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( october 1832 )
DARK CLOUDS HAD GATHERED on the horizon as a carriage traveled down a dirt road leading away from the city. Occasionally, a heavy raindrop would break through the hazy covering and splash onto the vehicle, accompanied by the faint rumble of thunder somewhere in the distance. Inside the carriage, where it was dry and warm, Enjolras knew that he couldn't have chosen a more dreary day to pay another visit to Joly and Combeferre in the country; though despite the foul weather, both he and Corinne remained in good spirits.
In the weeks since Monsieur Guillaume's return, Corinne had been kept so busy that she hardly had any time for herself, and the preparations for that evening's soiree had only added to this. Enjolras, on the other hand, was simply relieved to have gotten out of attending yet another bourgeoisie party that he despised so strongly– and getting the opportunity to be with Corinne without the constant worry that someone would oversee was, in his opinion, a very pleasant bonus.
The pair had snuck out of the house while his father and the rest of the servants were busy preparing for the soiree. Corinne jokingly compared them to a pair of rebellious teenagers, to which Enjolras responded with an amused roll of his eyes (though he was unable to deny that their relationship was very similar to the stories of forbidden love in the romance novels he always made fun of.)
If Jehan had been there, Enjolras knew that the young writer would have described their situation as poetically ironic.
Once away from the chaos of the preparations, they'd sought out Lucien (who had agreed to drive their carriage rather than spend the evening on Monsieur Guillaume's heel) then left the estate just as the countless haughty guests began to arrive.
Enjolras wasn't exactly ecstatic to have the valet accompanying them. The last conversation shared between the two men (where Lucien had foolishly tried to claim Corinne for himself) was still fresh on their mind, leaving the air around them thick with tension. Lucien made no effort to hide his icy glare as Enjolras helped her into the carriage with a hand on the small of her back, nor did Enjolras try to conceal the prideful gleam in his eyes upon noticing the valet's blatant reaction.
Corinne, however, was somehow completely oblivious to it all.
The carriage, at least, offered the pair a bit of privacy despite the rather unwanted tagalong, and for this, Enjolras was thankful.
Upon their arrival to the country home, Musichetta was waiting to greet them just outside the front door. She brought them inside and led them to the drawing room, where Combeferre and Joly were already seated. Enjolras was surprised to find that Marius Pontmercy was there, as well. After what Combeferre told him when he visited earlier that week, he hadn't expected to even hear from Marius again.
