Enjolras nods. "I see the winecask is waking."
Joly nods, "Are you going to talk to him?"
Enjolras thinks for a few minutes. "Do you think that it's a good time?"
Joly looks at the boozy and groaning form, "Hm." he doesn't answer right away, "As good as any?" he guesses. "Though if I might suggest something..."
Enjolras listens. "Yes?"
Joly looks at Enjolras' trademark garment. "I'd take off the vest. It makes you look damned sexy."
Enjolras turns the color of the vest, then hurriedly takes it off. It is left to the observer to decide whether he looks better without it or not.
Joly smiles a little at the blushing. He looks over to the table, where R seems to be making himself human again.
Enjolras asks, "Better?" He poses a little self-consciously.
Joly shakes his head some, "You're still damned sexy. But it helps a little."
Enjolras blushes even brighter and sighs. He stands up before this nymphomaniac can say anything more and then sits down at Grantaire's table, a nice prepared speech all lined up in his head. "You're damned sexy," he says, then hits his head against the table as hard as he can.
Grantaire looks... surprised. Is he having another one of those dreams? He checks around for the purple octopus. Guess not. "You're not bad yourself." he manages.
Enjolras looks up, mortified. "I meant to say that I really don't think you should set your hopes on me. That's just not what came out."
Grantaire goes from ecstatic to crushed, hardly moving a muscle. "Oh. Well, common mistake." he stares at Enjolras, wondering what's different about this statue today.
Enjolras stutters. "I. Don't usually say things I don't mean. I. Um. I'm sorry. I should. Should just. Leave. Yes. Leave. Now."
Grantaire goes to all the effort of frowning. "Oh. I suppose you ought to. Better things to do, and all."
Enjolras has the decency to look really sorry. "I didn't mean to say that. I'm sorry. It just slipped out."
Enjolras continues, not thinking, "I don't know why. I don't think I meant it. I just said it."
Enjolras reaches behind him and gropes around for his vest. "I really should go now."
Grantaire grasps to a shred. "You don't think?" he almost whimpers.
Enjolras doesn't answer. He just gets up and leaves as fast as he can.
Joly watches Grantaire's face fall further, then lie down again on the table, and he thinks, >that can't have gone well.<
Enjolras walks back through the door that has just finished closing behind him. He strides over to Joly's table as if nothing in the world has happened out of the ordinary, and picks up the textbook he left there.
Joly looks at Enjolras questioningly.
Enjolras doesn't respond to Joly. He turns away and walks back toward the door, going past Grantaire's table.
Grantaire suddenly, as though having eyes in the back of his head, scoots his chair back into Enjolras' path. Then stands up slowly.
Enjolras freezes.
Grantaire puts an arm up around Mark's shoulders, as he's frozen and all, and gives him a little mouth...
Enjolras doesn't react at first. His eyes go wide. Then, he drops his vest on the floor.
Grantaire, at length, and, reluctantly, pulls back to look at Enjolras' face.
Enjolras stares at him with glassy eyes. "What was that?"
Grantaire, simply, almost questioning: "Humanity."
Enjolras nods slightly. "That's what I thought. Are you busy?"
Grantaire shakes his head a bit, "No."
Enjolras bends down and picks up his vest. "Ah. That's. good. I think." He straightens up and nods. "Yes. That's definitely good. I have a few things I have to say to you."
Grantaire nods, "Yes. I heard." he sighs.
Enjolras nods to himself again, and steps backward, heading around Grantaire for the door. "Walk with me?"
Grantaire follows quite willingly, yet silent.
Enjolras puts his vest back on once the two of them are outside. "I didn't mean all of what I said earlier."
Grantaire eyes, "You mean the bit about me being damned sexy."
Enjolras looks at his feet. "Yes. Well. No. Well. I'm not exactly sure. You see, Joly said I should talk to you. And he knows what he's doing."
Enjolras brushes his hair back from his face and glances at Grantaire, then shudders. "I don't know what I'm doing here, talking to you. I don't know what to say."
Grantaire walks next to him, "You don't need to say anything."
Enjolras looks over again. "But I should. I should apologize."
"You don't need to apologize to me. I understand." He watches the ground and Enjolras alternatingly.
Enjolras gets his thoughts in order. "You can't possibly be as bad a person as I thought you were. I'm sorry." He adds, "You don't understand me any better than I understand you. Just let me make amends."
Grantaire looks up, surprised, "That's a very nice thing for you to say." Then, "All right..."
Enjolras pauses. "I think I did mean what I said earlier. Or I'm going mad. Or both." He touches Grantaire's shoulder wonderingly, as if he hasn't ever touched anyone else before. He says quietly, mostly to himself, "Definitely mad," before he leans forward to kiss Grantaire.
Grantaire obliges him, blinking, lips trembling a little.
Enjolras pulls back after a few moments. "What do you want from me?"
Grantaire blinks, "Whatever you want to give."
Enjolras frowns. "That's not what I asked. Make a request of me."
Grantaire smiles vaguely, "You've already given me more than I ever thought I'd have."
Enjolras narrows his eyes. "You've been staring at me for years and you're satisfied with a kiss?"
Grantaire watches the narrowed eyes, "You would like to... go home?" he questions nervously..
Enjolras looks more nervous than Grantaire. "How should I know? I'm not the one who's used to being human."
Grantaire reaches a hand out a little.
Enjolras watches, holding himself in place by force of will.
Grantaire remains that way, hand out, silent.
Enjolras reaches up slowly and takes Grantaire's hand in his own. Then, he looks away from Grantaire for a moment, and realizes that part of him really wants to leave the street, and part is too frightened to go anywhere. "We should talk."
Grantaire simply stands still, asking "Where?"
Enjolras frowns. That's not the response he wanted at all. "Where do you think we should go?"
Grantaire shrugs a little, "We could go to my apartment." he asks hopefully.
Enjolras looks almost ready to run away. "How far is it?"
Grantaire slowly lifts a hand and extends a finger in the direction of the boarding house, in sight range.
Enjolras says in a very small voice, which isn't much like him at all, "oh."
Enjolras fidgets with his vest a bit. "I suppose we could go there, then. Yes. Let's." He sets off as fast as he can go, hoping no one else will see him doing this very stupid thing.
Grantaire follows, fumbling around in his pockets for the key. "Let's." he repeats.
Enjolras is foiled by the boarding house. "Um. Lead on."
Grantaire opens the door for his guest, holding it like a gentleman ought to... He thinks.
Enjolras walks in briskly, then realizes what he has done. "You know, I meant to tell you that I would really like to get to know you better if only you'd stop staring at me."
grantaire steps up the stairs to the upper floor, "You would?"
Enjolras grimaces and follows. "Yes. But the if part was important."
Grantaire, promptly looks away, to the door. "All right."
Enjolras sighs. "I didn't mean right now. Shut the door?"
Grantaire does so obediently, behind them, and looks up to him again. "With the amis, you mean."
Enjolras looks away this time. "Once we figure this out. Yes. I don't like being stared at constantly."
Grantaire nods, "I see."
Enjolras smiles weakly. "Oh, good. Can you explain this to me?"
Grantaire offers a seat. "I can hardly explain it to myself."
Enjolras sits down. "Try, then."
Grantaire sits down on the bed, facing Enjolras' profile. "I've dreamed, for almost as long as I've known you, that you might one day be sitting there. Now, you are. How's that?"
Enjolras shakes his head. "I don't know why you dream about me. I don't understand."
Grantaire speaks softly, "Because... you're strong, and I'm weak?"
Enjolras protests, "But if I was really strong I wouldn't be here at all. I should leave. I don't know what I'm doing. At least you are what you are, all the time, all the way."
Grantaire stands up again, coming over to in front of the chair. "I know, you could never be, what I am." and with the thought seemingly not concluded, he leans down and gives Enjolras some more mouth.
Enjolras starts to protest, then stops complaining and lets himself enjoy it.