I'll Cover You

Chapter 12

Cosette had tried her best to take a nap before getting ready, but her itch had been keeping her up. Once she had given up on the concept of sleep, Cosette looked at herself in the mirror. She cursed to herself as she saw that there was a huge red mark on her neck from where she was scratching. Her mind wandered around while she tried to figure out what to do. As she tried to think of a resolution, Cosette decided not to waste any time on getting ready.

Cosette laced herself into a powder blue dress with sleeves that reached to her elbows. She slipped on a pair of black shoes, and draped a locket her father had given her around her neck. Still, when she looked in the mirror, she could see nothing but the marks on her neck. Marius was due by any minute, and she still had no idea what to do about it. Then, the idea finally hit her. She could simply cover it with powder. Cosette almost smacked herself for not thinking of such a simple solution.

Marius stood outside of Cosette's door, and ran his hands through his hair one more time before knocking on her door. He was sweating bullets as he waited for the door to open. He had went out with Cosette hundreds of times before, but this was different. This was their first official date. He was so nervous that he would somehow screw something up that would drive her away, and that was the last thing he wanted.

Cosette surveyed herself one more time, and was surprised. For the first time in months, she had actually felt beautiful. She smiled to herself, and opened the door for Marius. Marius looked at her astonished. When he finally managed to find his words, he stuttered out, "H-he-hello... Cosette... You look... Wow..." He continued to gawk at Cosette for a while before turning red.

Cosette had turned her own shade of pink as well. She giggled, "Why thank you... You look rather dashing yourself."

Marius smiled widely, and offered her his arm, "Shall we head out?" Cosette blushed harder, and accepted it. She wrapped both arms around his arm tightly as they strolled down the Parisian streets.

They wandered around for a while until Marius finally brought them to their destination. It was a nice little restaurant which usually had a quiet atmosphere. However, that night it was extremely busy. As they walked towards the table, Cosette grew a bit apprehensive. The waiter was leading them towards a booth that was right across from the bar. Her heart was pounding hard out of her chest as she tapped the waiter on the shoulder, "My apologies monsieur, but is there a chance that we could be seated somewhere else?"

The waiter shook his head, "I am sorry, but this is the only table that we have open at the moment."

Marius squeezed Cosette's hand gently. He whispered in her ear soothingly "Everything will be alright. I promise." Cosette looked at Marius, and nodded slowly. As they sat down together, the itch that had consumed Cosette's neck jumped down to her wrist. She began to scratch roughly until the patch of skin had turned a bright shade of pink. She hid her arms under the table, and continued to scratch her wrist avidly.

Marius looked at her concerned. Cosette had not spoken since they arrived, and she would look down every couple of seconds. Maybe he should not have chosen this restaurant. He said, "Are you alright?"

Cosette's mind was lost in thought. When she closed her eyes, she could only see the sea of red being poured into a clear glass. Then when her eyes would become vagrants of the restaurant, she could see nothing but the bar. It was a long while until Cosette looked to Marius to answer his question, "Oh, I'm fine. Couldn't be better."

Marius was not buying it, "Are you sure."

Cosette nodded, "Absolutely. I'm here with you... We are having a great time... Everything is just fantastic."

Marius looked at Cosette in shock. It appeared that Cosette had brought her hands up from under the table by accident to reveal her now scarlet red wrist. His voice spoke with the same astonishment his face withheld, "Cosette, what is that?"

Cosette, now realizing what she had done, moved her hands back under the table. She tried to pretend that nothing had happened. "Wh-what? I uh... I have no idea what you are talking about..."

Marius moved from the booth opposite of Cosette so that he was now sitting next to her. He took her wrists gently in his palms, and observe them. Looking back up at her, he whispered, "Cosette... What have you done?"