When Tomorrow Comes

Chapter 19

CHAPTER NINETEEN

Enjolras ran towards the soldier with the smoking gun and knocked him so hard that he was sure he wouldn't wake up before the fighting was over.

"'Ponine!" he shouted.

He grabbed her and shook her a little bit.

"Mademoiselle!" he tried again.

It took a couple seconds, but Eponine finally opened her eyes again.

"Monsieur, what are you doing here?"

"I promised I'd look after you..."

"I thought you were dead..."

"I thought I'd be too. I guess fate didn't want me dead just yet."

"I guess fate wanted you to see me die..."

"No, I won't accept that, 'Ponine. You're going to live!"

"Look at me, Monsieur. I'm covered in..."

She looked down and smiled.

"It's raining, Monsieur," she said. "Can you feel it?"

Enjolras smiled sadly as he wiped a tear off his face.

"Yes it is, Mademoiselle."

"But a little fall of rain can hardly hurt me now..."

He nodded sadly.

"You would live a hundred years, if I could show you how. I won't desert you now."

"This rain can't hurt me now... This rain will wash away what's past."

"I'll miss you," he told her.

"Like I missed you, Monsieur."

"I can't stand seeing you like this..."

"Don't you fret, Monsieur Enjolras," she replied. "I've felt worse."

Eponine tried a smile, but the pain made it disappear pretty fast.

"I need you," Enjolras told her. "I don't think I'll be able to make it without you."

Eponine looked around at the massacre taking place. The boys were crying their eyes out, trying to flee more than trying to fight back.

Their guns trembled every time they aimed to shoot. Blood was flowing down their faces. Some were already mortally wounded and were just lying there, on the ground, waiting for God to bring them home.

"Don't worry," she answered. "I think we'll meet again very soon."

Enjolras smiled sadly.

"Mademoiselle, I can't believe that this is goodbye..."

"It's not goodbye," she answered. "I'll see you later, Monsieur."

"Later? What do you mean?"

But then she nodded at the battle taking place.

"They need you, Enjolras. They need their leader."

"Mademoiselle, I'll come for you as soon as this battle is won!"

He lifted her up in his arms and gently put her down in Café Musain.

"You'll be safe here, 'Ponine. But just in case..."

He ripped a gun off a nearby soldier lying dead and handed it to Eponine.

"Monsieur, I'm in no state to..."

"I know," he said. "It just helps me to settle my mind if I know you have it with you."

"Alright," she answered. "Go get them."

"Will do, Mademoiselle."

And then he was off.

"Marius!" he shouted.

"Enjolras! You're not dead?"

"My gun had no ammunition in it," he explained. "But the blow must have knocked me unconscious because I woke up in all this chaos."

"Glad to have you back, Monsieur."

"I guess fate didn't want Eponine to live to see tomorrow..."

"What do you mean by that?"

They paused a second to knock out two soldiers approaching them with their swords.

"Eponine's wounded," Enjolras replied. "It's bad."

"Wounded? How? I thought she was in Café Musain!"

"That's where I brought her. Listen, she took a shot for you."

"For me?"

"A soldier was going to shoot you, she diverted the shot towards her. Eponine saved your life."

Marius stormed towards Café Musain.

"I told her to stay there!" he muttered.

"Not now!" Enjolras barked, grabbing his arm. "We have more important things..."

"Well, well, well..." a voice suddenly said.

The whole street fell silent as all eyes turned to the man standing on the top of the barricade. It was the commanding officer.

"Quite a fight you've been holding on..."

And then he noticed Enjolras and he immediately lost his smile.

"I thought you were dead..."

"I guess you thought wrong," Enjolras coldly replied.

Murmurs started to fused through the boys as they were noticing Enjolras' presence. Combeferre smiled.

"You're one tough guy, Enjolras," he let out.

"Enough!" the commanding officer barked. "You have no chance, no chance at all! Why throw your lives away?"

But Enjolras simply walked towards the bottom of the barricade and slowly grabbed a piece of red fabric that he held up high.

"We are not throwing our lives away," he said. "We are sacrificing them for the greater good. And if you are too blind to see it, then I am sorry. My fellow men and I will fight until we can't fight anymore and that, until the Earth is free."

He looked at his brothers in arms.

"We are a family!" he announced.

He glanced at Grantaire who raised a broken bottle as a response.

"And families stick together, no matter what."

The commanding officer laughed.

"So you'd rather die for nothing than save your life?"

"See, that's where you're wrong," Marius interrupted.

"Yes, Monsieur," Enjolras continued. "It's not for nothing."

He looked behind him towards the open doors of Café Musain and spotted Eponine's body laying motionless on a table. The right arm was hanging loosely over the side. The gun had fallen to the floor.

Tears started to form in his eyes. Enjolras raised his gun and, looking straight in the officer's eyes, fired a shot right through his heart. The commanding officer fell backwards and crashed down on one of his fallen soldiers. Enjolras looked back at Eponine's body.

"It's never for nothing..." he finished.