Even though Enjolras carries the first sonogram picture in his wallet all the time (which shows nothing more than a little blob, really), it doesn't feel real until he hears the baby's heartbeat for the first time at around ten weeks. There is actually something in there. Until now, it's almost seemed like a dream. Eponine has no morning sickness, no strange cravings, and only very subtle changes in her body so far. (Which Enjolras is thoroughly enjoying; she's always had a great rack, but now they're even bigger, and he's pretty sure he could spend all day with his face nuzzled against her chest.) She doesn't look pregnant and she keeps saying she doesn't feel pregnant, either.
After they hear the heartbeat, however, in the following days Enjolras frequently catches her with her hands cradled protectively over her stomach. No one but Combeferre, Courfeyrac, and Grantaire knows since it's still early and they don't want to take any chances, but they are both bursting with the news.
Especially since Cosette is now eight months pregnant herself and absolutely miserable.
They're all out to dinner at a Mexican place and Enjolras is half-listening to Cosette (because he's curious as to what to expect from Eponine in the coming months) while still trying to appear engaged with what Jehan is saying at the other end of the table.
"I have to pee every five seconds, my ankles are the size of grapefruits, I have heartburn all the time, I have gained weight everywhere. My face is a puffy, nasty mess! I'm sorry. I really wanted to get pregnant. I love my baby. But this sucks."
As he surveys Eponine from the corner of his eye, he can tell she's starting to freak out a little bit. He is pretty sure this is the first time he's ever heard Cosette complain about anything, for as long as he's known her, so she must feel pretty bad. Marius soothingly rubs Cosette's back and Eponine makes a sympathetic noise, but she shoots Enjolras a quick look of panic. He clearly reads, Fuck, this is going to happen to me! in her gaze.
He squeezes her leg underneath the table, and not for the first time, praises the universe that he isn't a woman.
"I'm sure it'll be worth it once the baby is here, Cosette," Musichetta says brightly. "And I've heard that heartburn means it'll have lots of hair! You guys are going to have the cutest baby ever." Until ours gets here, Enjolras thinks.
"Let's hope so," Cosette mutters. She quickly makes a face and smiles apologetically. "I'm sorry, guys, this is pathetic. I shouldn't be complaining when so many people can't have a baby that want to. I'm horrible."
"No, you're not. You're just...a little bit miserable. And that's okay!" Eponine smiles and eyes Musichetta's frozen strawberry margarita jealously. Her excuse for sticking with water is that it's a school night and she has to work early the next day, but Enjolras wonders if anyone suspects anything. Eponine is never one to turn down alcohol. In fact, this might be the first time ever in all his years of knowing her. It will be a miracle if no one notices.
They duck out of dinner early since Eponine is tired (the only negative of her pregnancy so far) and she leans her head against the window as he drives home, eyes closed. He keeps one hand on the wheel and the other rests on her leg.
"Musichetta knows," she suddenly says, and Enjolras glances over at her.
"Did you tell her?"
"Nope. She guessed. Took one look at me after I ordered water, pulled me to the bathroom, and asked point blank."
Enjolras laughs. "I wondered if someone would pick up on you not drinking. She knows not to tell, right?"
"Yeah. I told her we would tell everyone on Christmas. Which, by the way, is kind of funny, since it's almost exactly two years since we've been together." It's also only two weeks away; only two week until her first trimester is already over.
"I know. It's a little weird. I just hope our baby doesn't share a birthday with our anniversary. That would suck." Eponine is due June 17th and their wedding anniversary is June 22nd. It's definitely cutting it close.
They pull into the driveway a few minutes later and go into the house. Eponine heads straight for the bedroom, strips off her clothes, and burrows under the blankets. She's immediately out like a light, even though it's only 7:45. Enjolras stays up for another few hours before he joins her in bed. He snuggles up to her back, wrapping one arm securely around her waist. His movement accidentally wakes her up.
"What time is it?" she asks groggily.
"Eleven. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up." He kisses her shoulder and presses his hand against her stomach. "Hey...you feel different," he says softly. Her stomach isn't completely flat anymore; there's a little, hard bump underneath his hand.
"Hmm?" She moves his hand and feels her own stomach. "Oh. Whoa. Weird. I swear it wasn't like that this morning!"
Enjolras grins, moving her hand out of the way again to place his own there. "This is so cool."
"Yeah, while it's still this size. When I'm carrying around a watermelon at nine months pregnant and it's 90 fucking degrees and 100 percent humidity outside, I'll be as miserable as Cosette, and neither of us is going to think this is very cool anymore."
"I could tell she freaked you out a little."
"A little? Try a lot." She turns over and looks at him seriously. "You know what she told me? She literally cannot stop farting. She said she has gas all the time. Cosette doesn't fart, I mean, come on. She's like...perfect! If it's this bad for her, it's going to be hell for me. I hadn't really thought about it yet, but holy shit. I'm going to get huge and fart all the time and you're literally going to watch me expel a human being out of my body. How are you ever going to find me attractive again?"
He snorts in laughter and kisses her forehead. "Well, when you put it like that it sounds sexy as hell."
"Shut up. I'm serious."
"Eponine, I promise: no matter what you look like or how much gas you have, I will never love you any less than I do right now. And I don't think I could possibly love you any more."
"Pretty words." She sighs, but the side of her mouth finally curves up and she kisses him softly. "I love you, too."
"Go to sleep, Ep." He draws her closer and tucks her head under his chin. "Good night, love."
By the time Christmas comes, Eponine is wearing baggy clothes to hide her now obvious little bump. It's still not big, by any means, but if she wears her regular clothes, it's definitely noticeable. She definitely popped over the last two weeks. Enjolras loves it. He's constantly touching her, lifting up her shirt and running his hand over her stomach, and holding her against him on the couch or in bed. She always bats his hands away when they're in public, but indulges him when they're at home.
And he is incredibly, incredibly turned on by her, even though she wants absolutely nothing to do with him sexually at the moment. She keeps reassuring him that everything she's read says that once she's out of her first trimester, her libido should return in full force. He's really hoping that's true because he doesn't know how much longer he can stand not touching her.
He's watching her dress now and squirming uncomfortably as he sits on the edge of the bed. Of course, since it's Christmas, she's wearing red. And he loves her in red. The dress is tight and shows off her toned legs nicely, and it hugs her middle and shows off her little bump perfectly. Not to mention her boobs look amazing.
"Fuck, Eponine. Can't we just call everyone and cancel? Tell them we both have the flu and our house is contaminated?" He's aware he sounds like a whiny little boy, but he doesn't care.
She laughs and turns to look at him. "Merry Christmas to you, too, Scrooge. What's wrong?"
"You look beautiful."
"And that's bad?"
"For me. I want to rip that dress off of you." He eyes her suggestively and does his best to look seductive, hoping it's enough for her to take him up on it this time.
She bites her lip and cocks her head, narrowing her eyes. "It actually doesn't sound half bad right now. Tonight?"
Enjolras groans and flops back onto the bed, grabbing a pillow and smashing it over his face. He jumps when he feels Eponine's weight suddenly straddle his hips and flings the pillow away hopefully. She leans down and brushes her lips against his, slipping her hands underneath his shirt and running her nails lightly over his stomach. "I'm sorry, Enj. I know, seriously, it's been weeks...the longest we've ever gone without having sex since we've been together."
"By far," he says irritably, and she grins, lightly raining kisses along his jaw.
"Don't be mad at me."
"I'm not..." he sighs and puts his hands on her thighs, pushing her dress up. "I just miss you. But I know you haven't felt like it at all and I don't want you to just because I'm a horny bastard."
"I swear, it's actually sounding really good right now...but we don't have time. Everyone will be here soon. I promise that I will let you do whatever you want to me tonight."
He raises his eyebrows. "Whatever I want?"
"Within reason. I don't think I should be quite as adventurous as usual. And I get to be on top." She smirks, sits up and slides off of him, grabbing a sweater and slipping it on over her dress to hide her stomach until they make the announcement. They both finish getting ready and go to the kitchen, making final food preparations and making sure there's enough booze available to satisfy everyone, though it's a certainty that their friends will bring even more.
Combeferre, Grantaire, and Courfeyrac show up first since they're just across the street, lugging more beer, as expected, along with their Christmas presents. Enjolras grins when R immediately leans down and kisses Eponine's stomach. "Merry Christmas, Enjy Jr!"
Eponine smacks his head and rolls her eyes. "Oh my God, you're such a dweeb."
"Here," Courfeyrac hands her what could pass for a present, though it looks more like a five year old wrapped it than an adult. "We got you guys a baby present. Open it before everyone else gets here."
Eponine gasps and tears the wrapping paper off immediately. She's a sucker for gifts. "Aw, you guys didn't have to do that!" She cackles when she sees what's in the package and holds it up for Enjolras to see. It's a tiny little onesie that says, 'My mom is hot.'
Enjolras sighs and rolls his eyes, though he tends to agree with the statement. "Seriously, guys? My child is going to have more class than that."
"No, he's not!" Eponine exclaims. "He's going to wear this all the time. 'Cause it's true." She sticks her tongue out at him and balls up the onesie, tossing it at his head.
Enjolras smiles and catches it, suddenly struck by how tiny it is. "Jesus, is it really going to be this small?" (He also notes her use of the word 'he' and remembers to ask her why she said it later. Is it wishful thinking or does she have a hunch?)
"It's a newborn size," Combeferre shrugs. "So yeah, for a little while, I guess it will be that small. Kind of crazy."
"I have to confess, babies scare the shit out of me." Courfeyrac shudders. "They look so breakable. Like bald little aliens. And all they do is sleep, poop, and eat."
"Courf, that's what you do. And they love breasts, so really, babies are kind of like your spirit animal," Grantaire says.
"Huh. Well, when you look at it like that..." Courfeyrac grins. "We have a lot in common. Maybe I should babysit."
Eponine is about to reply when the front door suddenly opens and Marius and Cosette enter. Enjolras shoves the onesie back in the box and tosses it behind the Christmas tree. He doesn't want to ruin the surprise for later.
Everyone else shows up within the hour and they dig in to the food, some crowded around the dining room table and others lounging on the floor of the living room. Gavroche has eyed Eponine curiously since he arrived, and Enjolras suspects that he knows something is up. He knows his sister better than anyone, even better than Enjolras sometimes.
Eponine has planned something silly to tell everyone, something that centers around Gavroche, and as soon as they're done eating, Eponine ushers everyone into the living room to open presents. They draw names every year to choose who to buy for since there are just too many of them to get every single person a gift; they'd all go broke if they did that every year.
When everyone is finished and wrapping paper litters the floor, Eponine hands Gavroche a sizable package wrapped in penguin paper. "I have one more for you, Gav." She's practically bouncing with excitement and Combeferre has the camera ready, at her request. Enjolras is trying his best to hide a goofy grin, but he finally just gives up when he notices Gavroche's confusion as he opens the present.
"What the hell is this? Why did you get me a doll?" he asks curiously. It's a frilly little babydoll, which is clearly a strange thing for a twenty-one year old kid to receive.
"Read the bottom!" Eponine yells impatiently.
Gavroche looks at her like she's crazy but looks back at the doll and reads what she wrote on the bottom of the packaging. "'Can't wait to meet you, Uncle Gavroche...'" He blinks, and then suddenly realizes what it means. He looks quickly up at Eponine and gasps. "What?! No way!"
Everyone is paying attention now, and Jehan grabs the doll from Gavroche. "You're pregnant?!"
"Yeah," Eponine admits delightedly. "I'm a little over thirteen weeks. We wanted to wait to tell you guys until it was safe."
"But we knew!" Grantaire says victoriously. "We've known all along."
"Oh my gosh!" Cosette is actually crying. "Our babies are going to grow up together!" She leans over and hugs Eponine tightly. "And I hope you are as miserable as me while you're pregnant!" She laughs and wipes her eyes.
Enjolras is silent, just enjoying watching everyone be excited and happy for them. He feels unbelievably lucky that they have such amazing friends who are going to be there for him and for their kid. There's really not much more he could ask for, other than a healthy baby.
By the time everyone leaves that night, the house is mostly clean and the dishes have been done, thanks to Musichetta bossing the boys around and insisting it was rude to leave for a pregnant lady to do. And once they are alone, Eponine keeps her promise. They make love for the first time in weeks and it's the same, yet very different, and just as amazing as always. Eponine insists on curling up on the couch and looking at the Christmas tree afterwards, so Enjolras wraps them up in a blanket and rubs Eponine's back until she falls asleep with her head against his chest.
He loves her. Everything is perfect, and he loves her.
1. Response to that first chapter was freaking incredible. I had NO idea whether or not this would go over well, so I'm really excited you guys like it!
2. More fluff. Yay!
3. There will be smut in the next chapter. And some problems. So get ready.
4. I have no personal experience with pregnancy, but I'm at that age where several of my friends have had babies or are pregnant right now, so I'm relying on their experiences for both Cosette and Eponine. I was also lucky enough to be present when my cousin gave birth to twin girls, so I have that to go on, too. Everything in this story is going to come from personal experience, just not...directly? lol (NO babies for me. I have 25 kids at school. That's enough.)
4. Breaking the Rules will be updated tomorrow. I'm writing both at the same time, but not forcing myself to work on any particular one. It's just going to be whatever I want to write at the moment.
Anyway, hope you guys continue to enjoy and liked this chapter!