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As Rose and Enjolras entered the small shop filled with wine and students, she could hear the music. The people talking and laughing, the one more drunk than the other. The shop had a great vibe in it, everyone happy and smiling.
"Am I crazy or did Enjolras bring a beautiful lady with him?"
"Enjolras' love life has nothing to do with your craziness, Grantaire!", a guy said, glancing at his black haired friend. He welcomed the new person and introduced himself as Bahorel.
Others followed his example, every single one of them telling her their names. There was Joly, Marius, Jean, Combeferre, Grantaire, Courfeyrac, Fueilly, Lesgle, Eponine and a little boy named Gavroche. He was no older than 8 years old, it shocked Rose a bit that a boy as young as this one was with all these students.
Eponine was the only girl in the large group of friends, but she was in no way less than them. The girl looked fierce, she appeared mentally strong and independent. She was very friendly, taking Rose's coat and giving her a chair to sit on. She figured that the new girl had cried not so long ago and that she needed some time to rest and find peace.
"You look like you need this." Jean gave her a glass of wine, Rose thanked him for that and took a small sip of the drink. She could feel the alcohol in her mouth slowly sliding down her throat. She wasn't really used to it, alcohol was something she avoided for as long as possible. But now she felt as if she deserved to let go of everything and just enjoy the night with new friends.
"Who are you exactly?," the little boy asked, sitting on the table next to her. His legs dangled over the wooden furniture, him being to petite for his feet to touch the floor. The small curls on his head were unwashed and dirty, they stood in every way they wanted to. It appeared to have a mind on its own, not moving with the boy's fingers.
Rose told him her name while shaking his hand, a soft smile on her face and her golden eyes shined from the candles in the room. She felt trust worthy to him, an aura of love and friendship hanging around her.
"You are the girl who worked at that shop in the street where Lamarque lives ," Courfeyrac added himself to the conversation, standing next to Gavroche.
"Enjolras walked into her last week." Rose recognized the man talking as Marius, she had seen him before, speaking to the crowd with the man with the blonde curls by his side.
Grantaire started laughing, his friend staring at him with a deadly glare.
"That's not really a good way to impress a woman."
"It's better than what you are always doing, R," Enjolras said while looking at Grantaire and then back at Rose. He was relieved the guys liked her, but he wasn't really surprised they did. All of them are very friendly and Rose was a great person to be around, almost unable to hate. Her adoring smile lifting the whole spirit in the room. It comforted him that she looked happy again, the struggles with her parents forgotten.
When Rose took a glance of the people around her, to see all the students and try to know them better, she saw the black haired man staring back at Enjolras. The way he looked was so familiar to her, as if she herself could feel it as well. The way he looked worried her, but she couldn't figure out why. It was a big mystery to her, a mystery she truly wanted to solve.
"You okay?," Courfeyrac asked, noticing her troubled expression. She waved his question off with just a smile and raised from her chair.
She walked to Eponine, who stood next to Marius, both very silent. It wasn't an awkward silence, two friends standing next to one another, enjoying the company. But Rose standing with them was also something they liked, the girl was a friendly person who cared about the feelings of others.
"I have to say, we're not used to seeing him arrive with a woman," Marius told her.
"It's nothing special, he's just helping me, as a friend would do." Rose looked at Enjolras, how he was looking at the papers in front of him, discussing some things with Combeferre. His hand combed through his long, golden hairs, them falling to the back of his head.
"Grantaire would love to hear that," Eponine laughed, her new friend's expression questioning.
"Don't tell me you haven't noticed it yet, look at him!"
What Eponine said was true, you could see that he adored his friend. His eyes shining and a little smile on his lips, something was going on with him and normally, Rose thought that something was amazing. She loved it that one could make another act like this, but now it made her lost for words, she had no idea how to react to it. It felt like a punch in her stomach, feeling like her heart broke a bit.
"And Enjolras, how does he -"
"He's too busy with his revolution, he has no time for feelings." Marius felt bad when Rose turned away from them and walked away, clearly not expecting he just said. He looked at Eponine, who rolled with her eyes and slapped him against his arm. She knew he shouldn't have said that, but thought it might be better for Rose to know. It was better for her to know what was going on, not getting her hopes up and ruining her own life with an impossible dream.
"Here Rose, for you to forget whatever problem you have," Grantaire showed her a bottle of wine, poured it into a glass and gave it to the woman. He himself drank out of the bottle, winking at Enjolras who stared at him with a mad expression. It was clear that he liked to tease his friend.
"Thank you, it appears you like the wine as well."
"He loves it, maybe a bit too much!"
"Not too much, never too much, Joly" Rose laughed with the friends, not noticing how Enjolras was looking at her, all the love in his body lying in his eyes. Her laugh making his heartbeat fasten and his blood raising to his cheeks.
He looked at her as if she was his world, but she only saw the expression on Grantaire's face, knowing that he wanted the blonde friend to be more than just a friend. Rose tried to accept the fact that it was like that, but it still hurt her on the inside. She wasn't going to stand their happiness in the way, even if it destroyed her own heart.
