Running

6

Running 6

Eponine nervously walked up her neighbor's stone walkway to the front door. She had made sure she had an extra apple pie so she could bring him one. She wasn't sure why. She told herself she was merely being friendly, but was that the truth? The wooden porch steps creaked as she made her way the the front door. Mustering up her courage, rang the doorbell, then stepped back slightly. Only a few minutes later, she heard the lock unlatch and the door opened. He smiled when he saw her.

"Hello, Azelma," Grantaire greeted.

"Hello. I ended up having an extra pie so I thought I'd bring it over," she explained, trying to control the tremor in her voice.

She used to be a strong young woman, never letting anyone intimidate her, but since her years with Marius, she lost all of her strength.

"Oh! That's very nice of you! Thank you, Azelma."

Eponine handed him the pie, but he didn't say goodbye or turn to leave.

"Would you like to come over for dinner tomorrow night?" Grantaire finally asked.

Eponine's heart beat a little faster. What should she do? She barely knew him. But it was time to start taking risks.

"Okay," she smiled.

Grantaire's eyes brightened, "Okay! Is 7:00 good?"

"Sounds good to me."

"Alright, I'll see you then, Azelma."

"Until then," Eponine responded.

She felt like she was in high school all over again.

----

The next day, Eponine rushed home from work to freshen up before her date. Or was it a date? She wasn't sure. Keeping on her jeans, she swapped out her shirt for a nicer blouse and left her house at precisely 7:00. Before she could think too much about what she was doing, she darted across her yard and up to his door. She heard commotion inside the house and maybe Grantaire spout a curse word or two but she rang the doorbell anyway.

"It's open!" he yelled from inside.

As soon as she eased the door open, the smell of smoke and burnt food overwhelmed her senses. She followed the smoke path into the kitchen where she nearly laughed out loud at the sight before her. Grantaire stood there waving a dish towel frantically over something he'd pulled out of the oven, but she couldn't tell what it was because I had been burned to a crisp.

He turned to face her, "I hope your in the mood for burnt roast."

Then, she did laugh out loud.

He shook his head and dropped his dish towel in defeat, half smiling at her, "Well, I never said I was a good cook. I'm not really in the mood for charred meat, so how about I order a pizza, if that's okay with you?"

Eponine laughed again, "That's perfectly fine."

"I should've known I couldn't impress the woman who makes pies from heaven," he remarks, a sparkle in his eyes.

He was trying to impress her?

Within 30 minutes, their pizza was ordered and there. Due to the rather horrendous smell inside, they opted to eat dinner on the back porch. They were having a wonderful conversation, and for the first time in many years, Eponine was enjoying having a real conversation with another person. He leaned back in his chair and sighed. Eponine couldn't help but notice how handsome he was. He wore dark jeans and a blue button up shirt with a grey vest. His dark brown, shaggy hair was curly and tousled, and the sunlight hit his green eyes just right to make them sparkle.

"You look very nice tonight," he smiled. Then he raised his eyebrows, "and that pizza sauce on your chin really brings out your eyes."

Eponine gasped and grabbed a napkin to wipe her mouth. Grantaire burst into laughter, of course making Eponine laugh as well. Once they finally got control of themselves, Grantaire leaned forward, resting his elbows on the small patio table.

"So, Azelma...what are you hiding?"

Panic and anger shot through Eponine.

"Excuse me?" she demanded.

"Oh, come on. I can read people pretty well, and I know when someone is hiding something from me. I was hoping we'd be friends."

Eponine looked down, "I have nothing to hide, Grant, and I think I should be going."

She stood to leave but Grantaire shot up as well. What was he going to do? She didn't want to look up at him for fear that she would see in his face the same look of anger Marius often had.

"No, Azelma wait!" he exclaimed.

When she whirled around to face him, she was surprised to find not anger, but remorse in his eyes.

"I didn't mean to offend you, truly. I just want you to be honest with me. I'm sorry," he apologized.

"Frankly, I don't know if I can be honest with anyone," she scoffed.

His green eyes held a sad, disappointed look and his shoulder sank with a sigh.

"Well, if you decide you can, I'm always here. I'm a friend, not an enemy," Grantaire said softly.

Eponine wanted to tell him everything, but she was afraid of opening up to anyone ever again. She wouldn't get hurt again.

She swallowed hard, trying to get rid of the tremor on her voice, "Thank you. Goodnight."

That night was the first night since she left that her dreams were haunted with Marius.