I'll Cover You

Chapter 13

Cosette closed her eyes tightly. She did not want this to ruin her date with Marius, or to worry him more than she already had. She felt horrible for always being this big of a burden on Marius. It always felt as though he was working hard to make everything alright for her, while she had not done anything for him. Cosette tried to make the problem seem as minuscule as possible as she responded, "It's nothing Marius really. Don't worry about it."

Marius cupped Cosette's cheek in his hand, "Cosette, you know you can tell me anything. If there is something wrong, I want to know."

Cosette looked at his concerned face, and stared deep into his pleading eyes. Her mind dashed around in circles on whether or not to tell him, until she looked into his eyes. Once his eyes captured her, she was forced into submission. She spoke softly, "It is just driving me crazy being around the alcohol. Now, every time I'm around it, I get this unbearable itch that I can't control. It's not so much troublesome as it is annoying."

Marius replied, "We don't have to stay if you don't want to. Really, it's alright."

Cosette thought about this for a moment, then decided against it. She shook her head, "No, I will be fine. Besides, how am I going to learn to control my urges if all I do is avoid them?"

Marius smiled widely at Cosette. He admired her strength so much, even if she thought she had none. He took Cosette's hand, and kissed it softly. His words flew out smoothly, "I love you so much."

Cosette's face blushed deeply, "I love you too."

The rest of the date flew by quickly. Marius and Cosette had sat there together for hours talking and laughing. It felt as though they could stay there forever. Once their evening had begun to wind down, the check arrived at their table. Marius and Cosette looked from the check to each other, then both of their hands made a dash for it. Cosette's hands managed to take hold of it first. She gave him a small smile, "I've got it."

As she reached for her money, Marius snatched the check out of her hand, placed the money inside, and gave it to the waiter before she could even question it. He smirked, "Nice try, but I asked you, so I pay."

Cosette giggled, "Fine, but I get it next time. Okay?"

They got up, and Marius wrapped his arm around her waist, "Whatever you say." Marius and Cosette walked out of the restaurant with the stars in their eyes. The moment was perfect. There was a comfortable silence between the couple as they took in the evening around them. The air was crisp, and the moon was shining brightly.

As the pair walked down the street, the pair bumped into a familiar face. Marius waved to the man, "Hello Grantaire."

Grantaire waved back, "Hello Marius." His eyes then wandered towards Cosette, which led to his face forming into a sly smirk. He lowered the tone in his voice, "Why hello there Cosette. It's been a while, hasn't it?"