When Tomorrow Comes

Chapter 2

CHAPTER TWO

The three arrived at Café Musain a couple minutes later. They were welcomed by Gavroche, casually juggling a gun. Enjolras quickly extended his hand and snatched it.

"Hey!" Gavroche exclaimed.

"Inappropriate," Enjolras muttered. "Courfeyrac!"

"What?" Courfeyrac asked while running down the stairs. "Something wrong?"

"Why did you give him a gun?"

"He needs to be ready."

Enjolras slammed the gun in Courfeyrac's chest.

"Not now," he stiffly said.

He stormed up the stairs as Marius and Gavroche followed quickly behind.

"Eponine, right?" Courfeyrac asked.

"How'd you know?"

"You're a girl that showed up with Marius and Enjolras... Can't be anyone else, really."

"Oh..."

"Come on in to Café Musain," he told her as he let her pass in front of him.

Eponine didn't have time to get to the top of the stairs that murmurs were already starting to spread between the boys.

"A girl?" Prouvaire whispered.

"In Café Musain?" Feuilly added.

"And Enjolras isn't freaking out?"

Enjolras turned around to look at her and that's when he noticed her bruises.

"Oh my..." he let out.

Combeferre stepped in.

"Might want to put some ice on that, sweetheart. What happened to you?"

Eponine instantly looked at the floor.

"Why don't you go get that ice?" Marius told him.

Combeferre hunched his shoulders and left.

"I'll take care of her," Joly offered. "You two have some planning to do."

Marius reluctantly let Joly leave with Eponine and looked back at Enjolras. The guy seemed in shock. He walked up to him.

"Is she okay?" Enjolras immediately asked him.

"Since when do you care about a girl?" Bahorel let out.

Enjolras stared at him so hard that he swallowed crooked and backed away.

"Her dad," Marius simply answered.

Enjolras' heart broke in a million pieces. For some reason, he actually felt bad for Eponine. That was a first for him. Usually girls would just past by and he'd just ignore them. He had more important things to do. But now...

"Enjolras, we're waiting," Prouvaire pointed out.

"Right, okay," Enjolras started. "Here's where we stand..."

***

"Are you alright there?" Joly asked. "And I'm not talking physically."

Eponine hunched her shoulders.

"I've had better days..."

"I'm Joly, by the way."

"Eponine."

She looked around. Joly had brought her far away from the others. She sat on a table as Joly was inspecting her wounds.

"You're hurt pretty bad," he told her. "But it should get better in a couple days."

"I know," she answered. "It takes three or four days usually."

Joly froze.

"Usually?"

"This happens a lot..."

"I'm... I'm so sorry."

"It's fine. Nothing much you can do, right?"

Combeferre suddenly arrived.

"Here's the ice," he said, tossing it to Joly.

He turned towards Eponine.

"Sorry about earlier. It just came out."

"It's fine."

Fine. That was starting to be Eponine's favorite word.

"Well then, I'll just go..."

Combeferre left in a hurry.

"Don't mind him," Joly told her. "He's not used to having girls around."

"Good to know..."

"Not that you're not welcome here. That's not what I meant."

Joly placed the ice on her left arm as she bit her lip.

"Sorry," he said. "I promise it'll help."

She nodded.

"You're the first girl he's let into Café Musain," Joly pointed out, nodding towards Enjolras.

"Marius didn't leave him a choice."

Still, that comment made Eponine blush. She looked back towards Enjolras and couldn't help but smile. The way he flipped his hair. How he smiled on the corner of his mouth, almost like a grin. The way he looked back at her... Wait. Looked back at her? Eponine quickly turned around. Joly smiled.

"I've never seen him like this," he said.

She couldn't get his stare out of her mind. For so long, Marius had been the only man in her life that she cared about, but now...

"How's it going, 'Ponine?" Marius asked coming up behind her.

She looked at him, then at Enjolras who was now trying his best to ignore her presence.

"I'm fine," she said. "Just fine."