Cheers

At the café Musain, Eponine sat next to Courfeyrac who was shaking his head at her. He looked as if he ate something sour. She was picking off the chips on her cookie, looking away from him.

"Why are you so afraid to tell us?" Courfeyrac demanded to know. He slid the napkin the cookie was on away from her to get her attention.

"I'm not afraid," Eponine insisted.

"Then why didn't you tell us?" he demanded.

"I want it to be a surprise. Besides, I'm still not so sure about it."

"Lies! There's something else isn't there?"

Eponine bit her lip, still hesitant about telling Courfeyrac. "R."

Courfeyrac mouthed an "O" and rubbed his face. "Well… I see where you're going, but that was, like, a ages ago."

"He still likes him a bit. Don't try to fool me." Eponine stirred her drink.

"For once, Eponine, treat yourself. Grantaire would say the same. He's got somebody, I think."

Eponine's face turned into one of shock. "No way! Who is it?"

"I said 'I think,' not 'I know.'"

Eponine smiled. "Well, if I get the role tomorrow, everyone will know. If I don't, then, there really is no point in telling them.

At Theatre a day later, all the students waited in anticipation. Mrs. Caballero whipped out her notes and checked over them one more time.

"Alright everyone. Listen up for your names!" Musichetta, Eponine and Cosette offered each other a smile to calm each other's nerves. They all knew, if they didn't get the roles they wanted, they wouldn't be as happy as they seemed. It was their last year, and first in Eponine's case. They all wanted to close with a bang.

The auditorium became quite, and Eponine became aware of her heart beating quickly. She breathed in and out, trying to calm the tempo. Mrs. Caballero leaned against the stage as if she was just waiting for someone to shout at her "Get on with it already!"

"For costumes," she paused for dramatic effect. She was in the drama department after all. "We have Cosette Fauchelevant, Elizabeth Michaels, Ben Pierce, Kayla Poult…" She rambled on and on, listing all the names for costumes, set design, advertisement, and stagehands. Courfeyrac and Combeferre were chosen for stagehands. Marius let out a large sigh upon hearing he was in set design, eliciting a laugh from the students. Feuilly and Jehan were both included in costumes with Cosette. Eponine nodded her head along, thinking that her teacher made some good choices so far.

Suddenly, Mrs. Caballero stopped. She smiled (a rare thing), and announced, "The cast of And Then There Were None is next. If you have a problem with the castings, please talk to me after class. Starting with Anthony Marston…" she flipped a paper on her clipboard over. "We have—"

The bell rang, dismissing the class. Eponine groaned at the fact she would have to wait until the next day until she found out her role. It kept bothering her mind to no ends. She had to find out who she was playing.

Over the noise the students were making, Mrs. Caballero shouted, "The roles were posted right before class on the west wing's board of announcements just in case something like this happened. Feel free to check it out so we can jump into work tomorrow!"

Eponine jumped up from her seat and shoved past everyone to get to the board. She was lucky that the board was on the way to her next class.

Ignoring all the glares and curses people were giving her, Eponine pushed past the crowd of students and down the hall. She had to find out what her role was or else she would not be able to function in class. She could not be patient.

Eponine skidded to a stop in front of the corkboard. She searched through the multicolored posters until she found what she need: the casting list.

She searched for her name before checking the role. A few of her friends had made it. Grantaire, Bahorel, Joly, Bossuet, and Musichetta made it for the roles they auditioned for or were forced into.

At the bottom of the list, Eponine saw Enjolras's name next to Captain Lombard, to which she rolled her eyes. Of course he would get the role, she thought.

Underneath, she found her name. Before she looked, she bit her lip and closed her eyes, begging the universe she didn't make a mistake auditioning for a lead role.

First, her left eye opened, and when she couldn't believe what she saw, she opened her right eye. When it seemed what she read was correct, Eponine's mouth dropped. She stood there for a few moments before being pushed out of the way by other students who were eager to see what they had gotten.

She was still staring at the paper when Enjolras appeared next to her, looked at the sheet and smiled. He shook her shoulder, and he had to drag her to get to her class on time.

She laughed at his attempts and let him lead her. She did it! She actually made the cut! Half-way to their class, Eponine finally celebrated. She was dragging him down the halls now, laughing as the both struggled to get to the room. She let go of his arm and jumped into the air. "I did it! I actually did it!"

Enjolras shook his head, but a smile was starting to form. "Yes you did. Now c'mon! We're going to be late for class."

"I still can't believe it though! I did it! I'm going to be playing Vera Claithorne!" Eponine exclaimed. She opened the door for both her and Enjolras, and they entered their political-science class.

Marius and Courfeyrac congratulated Eponine and Enjolras as soon as they entered.

"Well, we're supposed to debate today. With the energy Eponine is giving out, I think there won't be a moment of silence," Courfeyrac chuckled, earning a painful punch to his shoulder.

Eponine's smile out-shined the one the really cheery, lunch lady had. She walked over to the usual table her friends sat at. Her smile dimmed a bit when she saw some of her friends were missing. "Where's everyone?" queried Eponine.

Cosette rolled her eyes. "R.B. asked Mrs. Caballero to hold a meeting to go over the roles. 'Just to clarify everything and make sure everyone knows what they're getting into.'"

"That's ridiculous! What the heck do we need to 'clarify'?" Eponine asked.

"Good question. They'll probably tell you over there," Marius answered. He tipped his head towards a table across the cafeteria where all the main members of the cast were. Eponine's smile brightened a bit at seeing Marius only could nod to their direction because his right arm was around Cosette, and the other was holding her hand. She sighed a bit longingly, never having experienced something as pure as their love.

Eponine bid them goodbye and walked over to the table where half her friends were sitting at. She looked around for a place to sit, but there seemed there was no space. From the small smile forming on Colette's face, Eponine guessed that was intentional. Eponine walked over to where Enjolras was sitting next to Colette and squeezed herself between them. Enjolras shifted a bit to let her in, and she was able to sit down, though slightly squished. Colette looked at her quickly and offered an obviously fake smile. Musichetta chuckled across the table, not caring to hide it.

"So! What's all this about?" Eponine asked around the table.

"We were discussing our roles until you literally butted in. We're trying to work out the best days to meet up," Colette said disdainfully.

"When do you think you're able to come to rehearsals?" Enjolras asked her.

"I thought that the school decided," Eponine declared.

"We get to choose 3 days out of the week, too," Joly told her.

Eponine nodded then added, "I'm good any day, except Saturdays, Tuesdays, Fridays and Thursdays."

"Dance?" Grantaire asked.

"Some days. Others I have to bring around Gav or go to the bookshop."

"Well," Colette sighed. "I think that's it for theater. How have you guys been doing?"

"Football's been going great," Bryce Stevens, a football player and cast as Judge Wargrave (the murderer in their version of the play), interjected.

"Well, that's great!" Colette lied.

Gee, you really need to work on your acting and lying, Eponine thought.

"Are you guys going to the Winter Dance?" Colette asked.

Almost everyone nodded or said "yeah," all except Eponine, who had not even heard about it.

"A dance?" She choked out over her fries.

"Oh, yeah. Hugo's dance is pretty cool. It's winter themed. More people go to it than homecoming," Musichetta informed her.

"Although the gym gets really hot, and it seems more like a summer dance," chuckled Grantaire. "That is, until somebody locks you out of the gym. Naked."

Everyone looked at him, horrified. All the boys shifted uncomfortably and stared somewhere else in the cafeteria. Bossuet blushed and looked ashamed. Enjolras rolled his eyes, and Eponine tried holding back her laughter. Grantaire always had the best stories.

"And…?" She dragged out, obviously begging him for more of an explanation.

"It only happened once to poor Bossuet, but then Feuilly and Bahorel beat the crap out of the guys who did it," Grantaire finished.

"If they do it again, Bossuet," Musichetta began, "Tell me, okay? I'll beat the life out of them."

"That's not very lady-like," advised Colette.

"Boo you and your social conformity," Musichetta barked.

Eponine smiled at her brave friend. Musichetta was very involved with social justice and feminism from the beginning. She helped Eponine see the world in a different point of view, and better, if you asked her.

"Boo," Enjolras chimed. The Amis at the table laughed, and Colette sat rigidly, bright faced.

Eponine was reading Delirium in the café later that day. A few other Amis were there, too, chattering away about what had happened to Colette at lunch. Madame Houcheloup came out from behind the counter with Montparnasse following her. They were each holding a tray of hot chocolate, one for each of the Amis.

"Oh!" Eponine gasped as a mug was placed in front of her.

Madame Houcheloup chuckled. "A treat, dear. I heard that you, Enjolras, Grantaire, Joly, Bossuet, and Musichetta got the roles. On the house."

"I got a role, too Madame," hollered Bahorel. Madame brushed him off. They all laughed, knowing she was still mad at him for accidentally breaking the glass on the display case for the cakes when he leaned on it.

"Well, cheers, I guess," Eponine proclaimed. She held her cup up.

"Cheers!" The Amis echoed, followed by laughter.

They took a sip from the smooth, warm liquid and all sighed. It was different from the worsening winter outside. Eponine stuck her tongue out in her cup, searching for a marshmallow.

"Eponine," Montparnasse called her.

The cup was removed from her lips. She looked at him and smiled, signing for him to go on.

"Do you have a ride to the dance? I've got two tickets and I'm open that night." Montparnasse smirked at her, and she laughed.

"Sure. I don't have anything to do that night either," Eponine said.

They both shared a smile, oblivious to the small glare that Enjolras gave them.

A/N: Hey guys! I'm sorry this was really late, but I was having trouble trying to put my ideas into words. I'm not the most organized person, so I'm trying my best here. If you have any advice, please feel free to tell me! I'm all ears. I'm not sure if I can get a beta yet, but if somebody is one, or knows someone, please tell me! There is still more to come, so please hang on.

Special thanks to guest Lauren, Freedom909, and Samsprout who are constant reviewers and readers. You guys have helped me a lot.

Thank you for reading, and none of the characters belong to me. Except for Leanne. Please review/favorite/follow. Constructive criticism is completely welcome.

-Franky