A Promise

Chapter Thirteen

        That night, I slept in my little alleyway. The cold night chill made me shiver, and the rats scurried around me. I stared up at the dark sky, wishing there were a place I belonged. When the morning came, I crawled out of the alleyway and tried to find food. There were many opportunities for me to steal breakfast from street vendors, but I could no longer bring myself to commit the crime of theft. My stomach rumbled, and I tried to ignore the gnawing hunger I felt.

        "'Ponine!" I heard a familiar voice say. "Hey, 'Ponine, wait up!"

        I turned around to see Marius rushing after me. Great, I thought. What does he want from me?

      "Where have you been?" Marius asked when he caught up to me. "Enjolras is worried sick about you. Yesterday he had all of Les Amis searching for you."

        "Really?" I asked, once again surprised by Enjolras' care. "Tell Enjolras to give up on me. I don't belong with him. I don't deserve to be a part of the revolution. I don't deserve his friendship, or yours for that matter."

        "Enjolras is never going to give up on you, and neither am I!" Marius said. "Stop being so hard on yourself. You can't change your past, but you can change your future."

        "And what about Grantaire?" I asked. "He will never forgive me for the pain I caused him."

        "Look, 'Ponine, I don't know what happened between you and Grantaire, but Grantaire has never been one to hold a grudge. Just give him time and show him you're truly sorry, and I'm sure he'll forgive you."

        "I'm sorry, Marius, but I can't go back," I said sadly. "I wish I could, but I'm too far gone for redemption."

        "That's not true," Marius said fiercely. "You're kind and brave. You have more redeeming qualities than anyone I know. We need you to come back, 'Ponine. If you won't do it for me, then do it for the revolution. We need someone who will be the voice of the poor, and you're the only one we know who can do that. I need you, and Enjolras needs you. Before he met you, he used to be so emotionless and cold. You changed him, 'Ponine, more than you know. You taught him how to care. You showed him that to help the poor, he has to feel compassion for them. He needs you. You can't just abandon him."

        "Marius, I wish I could come back, but-"

        "Stop making excuses," Marius said sharply. "I know you're scared and worried that your reputation will damage us, but it won't. There's a meeting today in thirty minutes. You're coming with me, whether you like it or not."

        I sighed, defeated. "All right," I said. "I'll return."

        Marius smiled. "Good. Let's go."

        Marius and I walked together to the Cafe Musain. I was nervous to return after I had abandoned them, but I was excited to see Enjolras again. We finally arrived. I took a deep breath and walked through the door. The minute I stepped inside, Enjolras wrapped his arms around me and pulled me into a tight hug.

        "Where have you been?" he asked, holding me as if he planned to never let go. "I was so worried about you. How could you leave me like that?"

        "I'm sorry," I said, returning his embrace. "I was afraid that my reputation would harm you and Les Amis. I'm so sorry."

        "Don't ever do that to me again," he said, and pressed his ring into my hand. "I gave you this ring for a reason. You can't give it back to me; it's yours to keep." Jehan cleared his throat loudly. I realized that Enjolras and I had been hugging for a very long time. My face reddened, and I quickly let him go. I fastened the chain from which the ring dangled around my neck. Then, I looked around the room and noticed three familiar faces.