Combeferre: Eponine...

Me: Yes?

Combeferre: Care to explain why Enjolras is sitting on a hay bale in the corner with a twitching eye?

Me: Not really but I get the sense that you want me to...

Combeferre: That's correct

Me: Well you see Enjy lost a bet and as punishment he had to sit in a room with Marius and Cosette while they sang a Heart Full of Love and professed their undying love...

Enjolras: I hate you...

Me: Love you to Enjy!Anyway...the thing is i didnt add you guys into to the Author Notes last chapter so he was stuck there for a little longer than anticipated. I fear he may be traumatized...

Combeferre: You did what?!

Me: Hey I gave him the option of choosing that or kissing me or Grantaire. It was his call!

Enjolras: I think I would have rather kissed you...

Me: You see and now its too late

Enjolras: You are a cruel cruel author!

Me: I know, my readers hate me for stretching out my story for so long. 27 chapters and they aren't even together. But worry not I have plans! So as a note to all my readers no matter what may happen, even if all hope seems lost trust me it all has a purpose and it will work out in the end!

Enjolras: Out of curiosity, why didn't you have us in your author's notes last chapter

Me: *Shrugginhg* I wanted to see if you were missed, apparently you weren't but that's beside the point. On with the story!

As always PLEASE review :D

Eponine took a deep breathe as she sat in the taxi cab and looked onto Marius' house, Enjolras had offered to pick her up but she protested saying that she needed extra time to get ready and had to pick up a gift before going and as he was already on his way when he called her she just told him she would meet him there. She took out a $20 bill and gave it to the driver, telling him to keep the change, and got of the cab. As she walked up to the door she smoothed out her blouse, her outfit was simple enough; it consisted of a pair of dark skinny jeans paired with a long sleeved black cardigan and her purple v-neck t-shirt, a long black necklace and her brown boots. She ran a hand through her thick hair, she still missed her hat.

She was about to knock on the door when she glanced down at Cosette's gift in her hand, it was a simple golden circle locket on a delicate chain. It was a simple gift but it was symbolic to Eponine, when Cosette had first come to live with the Thenardiers she had nothing but a simple locket with her. It was simple but it was the only thing she had, when Eponine was younger she had taken it from Cosette one day and played with it without asking, then she had lost it. Cosette had been so upset that day but Eponine's mother shut her up rather quickly; Eponine had scoffed it off as a silly piece of jewelry that wasn't worth anything and made fun of Cosette when she seemed to be so upset over it; though once her family went broke her perspective changed.

Eponine was curled up in the corner of the attic. Things seemed to have gotten a little better over the last two months. After they had lost their inn they were evicted and had to move around but they finally settled into a shabby boarding house in a shady part of town. Her father had turned to drinking more and her mother had been a lot more hot tempered but things seemed a little better, that changed soon however. A week into the new place her parents had gotten into another big fight and she had gotten in the middle of it when he had snapped at Azelma who was playing too loudly. She flew in to protect her baby sister and stood up against her father, it became the second time he slapped her. This time he was drunk and didn't even apologize instead just calling little 'Ponine a waste of space who needed to learn her place. She automatically pushed herself up and ran out of there, no one followed her; they didn't even call after her.

She ran down the boarding house's halls until she reached a door that opened to a stairs and climbed then until she reached the top which revealed a large room with a low hanging ceiling and a big window at the far wall. The room was empty and covered in dust but she didn't care, she just needed somewhere to go. She walked over to the corner by the window and curled into a ball, bringing her knees to her chest and wrapping her arms around them. She brought her forehead down to her knees, shutting her eyes to try to push out all the images and sounds that plagued her for the past two months, all the shouting and screaming. The moon streaked into the room from the big window on the wall and fell on her face illuminating the tears on her cheeks. A breeze also came in through the window and was strong enough to blow Eponine's hair around her face and blow her hat off her head; Eponine reacted automatically and snatched the hat back up from the ground. It was then that she realized how much Cosette's locket must have meant to her. It didn't matter that the things were simple, it mattered that they meant something, both Eponine's hat and Cosette's necklace were reminders and someone had loved and cared for them in them in the past; it gave them hope that someone still would.

It only seemed fitting that she lost her hat while protecting something for Cosette. When she saw the locket in the window of a small shop at the mall a few weeks prior she automatically thought of Cosette and knew she had to get it for her. Cosette may not remember it but Eponine didn't care, she remembered.

Eponine was brought out of her thoughts when the door of Marius's house opened to reveal Enjolras standing on the other side. He wasn't dressed to impressed, sporting a pair of brown jeans, a red t-shirt and his black high tops but Eponine knew the simple fact that he came was hard enough for him. Eponine smiled widely at him and he nodded toward her, a small smile on his face, as he led her into the house. The party wasn't all that big, it consisted of the Amis like any other party they had along with some other people from school; namely some girls Eponine knew but couldn't put names too. They walked through the house but before they reached the living room Eponine separated herself from Enjolras and went to look for Cosette. She spotted her standing in a large group by the glass door that led the backyard with Marius standing next to her. His arm was draped across her waist and she was leaning in his shoulder, the sight pained Eponine but unlike before the pain just felt like a prick of a needle vs. a dagger to her heart; the realization made Eponine smile a bit. She was in all honestly happy for her two friends, even if it did cost her happiness; she knew she was getting over it. She strode over to where the group was standing and other than Marius and Cosette she saw the familiar faces of Courfeyrac, Feuilly, and Gavroche.

"Hey 'Ponine!" exclaimed Marius when he saw her coming toward them, "Glad you could make it."

She let out a playful laugh, "I would never miss Cosette's birthday! It only happens once a year."

"Very true" Added Gavroche who looked happy to be there, "What better reason to party the roof off this place!" He cheered gleefully, adding a little dance as he did so.

Eponine rolled her eyes and ruffled her little brother's hair affectionately, "You have been spending too much time with Courfeyrac."

"Is that a bad thing?"

Eponine shot a feisty look at Courfeyrac, "It depends on what you inherit from him. But 7 times out of 10 it is."

"Hey!" Courfeyrac exclaimed in mock hurt. Eponine stuck her tongue out at him before letting out a hearty chuckle.

Eponine composed herself and walked two feet over to where Cosette was standing. She tapped her on the shoulder and Cosette turned around, a smile widening on her face when she saw Eponine.

The two hugged quickly and Eponine smiled at her, "Happy Birthday Cosette"

"I'm so glad you came."

"But of course!" She pulled the box in her hand into sight and held it out to Cosette, "Marius may have made you the party but I came bearing better gifts."

Cosette smiled again and graciously took the present from Eponine, telling her she would open it once everyone else left so not to loose it in the chaos of the party. Eponine gave her an understanding nod and was about to turn on her heel when Marius called out to her. He reminded her of his cousin to which Eponine rolled her eyes and reassured him that she would do it as soon as she arrived.

Why I do these things I don't know…

She proceeded to walk back to where she left Enjolras and took a seat on the loveseat right next to him; he greeted her with a nod and they casually looked at the people around them. Before anything was said between them Enjolras stood up and walked over to a nearby cooler, pulling out to two drinks. He walked back and handed Eponine a Sprite while he got a Coke for himself, it surprised Eponine a bit that Enjolras knew her favorite soda but she didn't comment on it.

"How long have you been here?" Eponine asked as she took a sip of her drink.

He shrugged casually, "Not long, maybe half an hour."

She grimaced, "Sorry about that….I had to run some errands before I came."

"I know, I don't mind."

Just then Joly and Combeferre stopped them and walked over to where Eponine and Enjolras were sitting.

"Why if it isn't Enjonine" remarked Combeferre jokingly

Eponine raised an eyebrow, "Enjo- what?"

Joly laughed, "Enjonine, you know Enjolras plus Eponine."

Enjolras eyes went wide while Eponine began laughing, "That's rich you guys!" She gasped in between laughs, "But we're not a couple."

Combeferre shrugged, "Our mistake, you guys spend so much time together it's easy to get confused."

"We're friends." Replied Enjolras in a monotone voice, "We are allowed to hang out together" He added glaring a bit at his friends

Combeferre nodded, giving Enjolras a knowing look, "Sure….we apologize."

Enjolras glared at his friend and he got the hint loud and clear though Eponine remained completely oblivious to the exchange as she was talking to Joly and laughing. The next thing they knew two pulled up two seats and sat next to Eponine and Enjolras, which neither really cared about.

"So remind me again what Marius wants you to do." Asked Enjolras

Eponine rolled her eyes, "His cousin is coming soon and he wants me to 'be friendly and keep him company'. My guess is that he is socially awkward and Marius feels bad for him."

"So now you are going to be stuck with him?" asked Joly

"Yep…boy is this going to be a fun party." She stated sarcastically as she took a sip of her coke.

"Why are you doing it?" asked Combeferre

She shrugged, "I kind of owe him."

Combeferre swore he heard Enjolras mutter something under his breath like 'haven't you done enough for him already' to which he raised an eyebrow and asked "How so?"

"He paid for my medical bills after the accident on Thanksgiving."

"It was his fault you got hurt in the first place." Commented Enjolras in a voice that seemed calm with specks of irritation sprinkled throughout, "He should pay for them either way."

Eponine shrugged, "It is what it is. I already agreed to it, not like I can back out now."

Combeferre nodded, "You are too good Pony."

Her eyes narrowed, "Please don't call me that. I'm not a horse and I do not enjoy being referred to as one."

He raised his hands in surrender, "Whatever you say." He may have been joking but he could tell from the look in Eponine's eyes that she was dead serious about the name thing and if there was one thing all the guys had learned over the years it was to never mess with a Thenardier.

She grinned, "Good, that's better."

The group talked for a bit longer but were interrupted by the sound of Eponine's phone dinging- with the money she saved from her job at the café Eponine was able to buy a decent iPhone, granted she got it from the flea market but it was still a great phone and Eponine was happy with it- and she moved excused herself from the group.

She heaved a big sigh, "Love to stay and chat but duty calls. Apparently Elvis has just entered the building."

"Best of luck" Called Joly as she went off

She turned her head over her shoulder and called back, "Don't worry I'm not doing this alone, that's why I made Enjolras come. Did you really think I would go down without bringing someone with me?"

The guys laughed at her and watched as she disappeared into the crowd to complete another one of her 'errands'. As soon as she was out of eye and ear sight Combeferre turned to his best friend and jabbed him in the shoulder, causing him to almost choke on his Coke.

"Eponine made you come?"

Enjolras rolled his eyes, "I wasn't planning on coming. I actually completely forgot about the party; she reminded me and asked me come."

"And you agreed?"

"What was I supposed to do? Say no?"

Joly raised a finger, "Well you could have. If it had been Marius or Grantaire asking you probably would have."

"That's different, Grantaire goes to a party practically every weekend and Pontmercy is just a blabbering idiot at times who asks for too much. Eponine doesn't ever ask for anything."

"Sure," commented Combeferre, "just keep telling yourself that."

Enjolras raised an eyebrow, "What's that supposed to mean?"

Combeferre sighed and continued with a smirk on his face, "Oh nothings, it just that we get the feeling that you may care for Eponine more than you are letting on."

Enjolras' face hardened, "I DO NO-"

"You can deny it all you want; it doesn't change what we think."

"I will have you know-"

Combeferre held up a hand to stop him, "Frankly whatever you think of Eponine is between you and her but if you do like her I would act upon it quickly. Let's be honest Eponine's kind of hot and if you don't snatch her up soon someone else will."

"As I have said I'm not one for relationships and all that jazz. I doubt the day I do care for that will come anytime soon."

"Whatever you say mon ami, whatever you say…"

At that moment Joly noticed something and leaned over to whisper in Combeferre's ear "I think that day may be sooner than we think."

Eponine weaved her way through the crowd trying to get back to Marius and Cosette. When her phone dinged she unlocked it to see a message saying that Marius' cousin had come and he needed Eponine's help. Eponine couldn't help but be the least bit annoyed with Marius at this point, she was growing really tired of being his errand girl but he was one of her closest friends and she couldn't just abandon him. As she walked to meet him and his cousin she was mentally preparing herself for her 'babysitting gig'. She was expecting some socially awkward kid or some guy who talked too much for his own good or worse yet someone crude and rude, what she found instead was nothing like she expected. She reached the staircase where Marius told her to meet them and saw that a few girls were crowding some guy, Eponine rolled her eyes and turned away from them. Marius spotted her automatically and strode near her.

"Eponine I can't thank you enough for hanging with my cousin."

"No problem Marius, I owe you."

Marius shook his head, "After all you've done for me in the past three months? No at this point I owe my life to you several times over."

"I know, I'm keeping count; never know when I may need to cast in a favor."

"And I fear for that day." He said with a nervous laugh before continuing on, "Now let me introduce you to my cousin Theodule."

Eponine froze for a moment, that same sounded very familiar but she couldn't quite place it.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Marius call over the guy the girls were flaunting over and he came to stand next to Marius. When Eponine saw him she had to take a double take, the guy before her was not what she was thinking at all. He was attractive with dark blonde hair and light green eyes, his nose was straight and he had striking feature. His demeanor gave off a sense of confidence and poise making Eponine wonder why he would ever need her to keep him company at the party.

Before she had time to further think Marius stepped in and introduced them to one another, declaring Eponine as his 'close friend'. Theodule smiled at Eponine and for some reason her stomach filled with butterflies. She bit her lip lightly and smiled at him, giving him a polite nod as well. Satisfied that Theodule was in good hands Marius left the two together and went back to join Cosette, leaving Eponine alone with Theodule.

She started to lead him to where she had left her friends when he spoke to her, "You know when Marius told me he was going to introduce me to one of his friends to hang out with at this party I had no idea he was going to pair me up with someone so…"

She raised an eyebrow, "Tall? Snarky? Talkative?"

"Pretty" He replied, causing Eponine to deepen a shade of red.

"Um…thank you." She muttered, not really knowing what to say.

"You are very welcome." He said confidently as he tapped her nose lightly with his pointer finger.

As they walked to the other side of the room Eponine had this nagging feeling that she had seem Theodule before, his face was familiar and his name rang a bell but she just couldn't place them. They finally reached the others and Eponine introduced them to Theodule who in turn shook their hands and nodded politely. The group commenced talking with Eponine taking a seat right in between Enjolras and Theodule but engaging in most of the conversation with Theodule. She blushed from time to time due to some things he said and he would occasionally brush some lose strand of hair behind her ear and she would pat his knee. Eponine seemed smitten with Theodule which was apparent to everyone. What wasn't apparent to everyone was Enjolras' and his miniature movements throughout the whole interaction. Every time Eponine giggled at something Theodule said or he smiled at her Enjolras' grip on his coke can would tighten and his teeth would grind together or his face would harden. He barley acknowledged Theodule and when he did it was usually single word responses to question with an icy tone. Something about Theodule struck him as off, he normally had a good sense of character and he could tell that Theodule's wasn't good. There was also a deep pit forming in his stomach that he just couldn't get rid of. He knew what he was feeling but he didn't want to admit it to himself; he was Aiden Daniel Enjolras, he didn't get jealous and worked up over girls, so then why was he feeling this way?

He was brought back to his senses by someone tapping him on the shoulder; he turned to see Eponine looking at him with a confused and bold look in her eye.

"I'm sorry what just happened?"

She shook her head at him while she rolled her eyes, "Theodule just asked you what interest you hold career wise."

"He did?"

"Yes," confirmed Theodule, "Marius tells me you are a senior. Certainly you already have plans for your future and study interest."

"Yes I do, I plan on going into political science."

"A politician?" asked Theodule with a raised eyebrow, "How….. interesting"

Enjolras narrowed his, "Yes my views exactly."

Theodule let out a small scoff that was almost inaudible but Enjolras heard it, "Oh but politics seem so dirty to me, why anyone would want to partake in such things."

Enjolras looked appalled, "There are several reasons why! I see lots of injustice in society and I plan on doing something about it. If I want change I need to take the first step."

"Well that's not all politics entail, in fact there are several other aspects, and if you don't have a battle plan going in you will never get too far. It's far too much in my opinion."

"Luckily I don't care for your opinion." Enjolras replied coldly before standing up and striding to the kitchen, leaving everyone to stare after him wide eyed.

Enjolras stood over the sink by the window and looked out at the sky. He just needed to get out of that situation as quick as possible, the whole thing was making him uncomfortable and he hated it. He gripped onto the edge of the sink and took a deep breath, trying hard to force his feelings down.

"What the hell was that?!" Demanded a voice behind him; Enjolras didn't even have to turn around to know who's voice that was he would recognize it anywhere.

"What do you mean?"

"Don't play dumb with me Aiden I am referring to the way you just treated Theodule." She replied with fire in her voice.

Enjolras rolled his eyes and turned around to face her, "What? Someone had to put him in his place, just because he thinks something does not mean that he can degrade my opinion."

"Maybe someone should put you in your place." She challenged, placing her hands on her hips and trying to look as intimidating as possible which was hard considering Enjolras had a good three inches on her height was. "Honestly the way you acted was very rude. Theodule is Marius' cousin, we have to be nice."

"Seems to me like you are taking your job a little too seriously"

She narrowed her eyes, "What are you implying?"

"I'm not implying anything, I am stating that you are taking the task of 'being friendly' to the extreme. I don't think Marius wanted you to flirt with his cousin when he asked you to keep him company and be friendly."

"Why I-"

"Oh come on now Eponine, you two could hardly keep your hands off each other back there! That was some hardcore flirting on both sides. Honestly I know you are trying to get over Pontmercy and all but rebounding with his cousin is a little low don't you think?" The second those words came out of his mouth he regretted them and wanted to take them back but seeing the look on Eponine's face told him the damage was already done.

Eponine's jaw dropped in shock as she took in every word Enjolras spat at her. It looked as if someone had just stabbed and killed a puppy in front of her and the look in her eyes portrayed absolute betrayal and anger. The look was only there for a moment and soon it was replaced by that of fire and defiance.

She looked at him with abhorrence and shook her head at him. Her hands flew up to the side of her head, stopping several inches away, and her fingers were tensed and locked up in a claw-like manner. She shook them furiously a bit before throwing back down a bit and looking at Enjolras in aggravation."I'm not dealing this right now." She pivoted on her heel and marched out of the room, stopping at the door way and angrily calling over her shoulder, "Call me when you get off your fricking pedestal."

As he watched her march out with frustration in each and every one of her steps Enjolras stood there wanting to call her back and apologize but pride prevented him from doing it. The second she was out of sight Enjolras knew he really screwed up.

Bare with me! I promise I have a plan and it will all work out. I decided that after having 26 chapters with absoutly no progression in the relationship i needed to get organized. Usually i have no idea what i am going to write until i actually start writing, i tend to know points B and E in a plot but have no idea with C or D. But now i organize a bit and have an outline set... Again Please bare with me! It will be a long process but things will turn around...eventually

Review please! And again if someone could make cover art i would love you forever!