Run Away With Me

Disclaimer: Even for this last bit, I will have to say that it's not mine.

AN: This is the final bit that you will get of Run Away With Me. It's an epilogue and a small bonus feature that will make sense when you get there, I hope.

Epilogue:

It is during his campaign for the presidency that the video surfaces again.

Candid video of presidential candidate discovered. In the video, Senator Enjolras is seen organizing a student protest with the daughter of the notorious Thenardiérs. Could this ruin his possible future as the youngest president of our country?

Of course her past is dragged into it, because her name is still an embarrassment, even after she has worked so hard and accomplished so much since college. She is a grown woman with her own career – and a few children of her own, who have actually turned out more like her brother than like her sister. They mostly turned out like her husband, with some of the most annoying things in him being adorable in their kids.

College love affair with criminal's daughter? The indiscretions of a man who should not become our next president. Video evidence under the cut.

Her first name is never mentioned, because it does not matter.

She is just fooling herself if she thinks that her first name ever really mattered – even though it mattered to him that crazy summer. What was she thinking?

"I don't know how they found out," he apologizes to her when he finally calls.

"It doesn't matter," she shrugs, even though he cannot see it. "The mistake was made years ago, and you can't change your past."

There is a list of things that she would have changed a long time ago if it were even remotely possible – but nothing involving him ever made that list. He should know that much, but he still forgets that, even though she has told him so many times.

She always has to tell him just one more time.

"Would you want to change it," he asks her, that gentle lilt in his voice.

"I wouldn't change it for the world," she vows, trying not to break down. "You were the first guy I ever loved. Maybe you were the only guy that I've ever loved. Jesus, Gabe."

He has so many different names now, to so many different people – but he will never be anyone but just Gabe to her. He is "Senator" to an entire state of people, and "Mr. Enjolras" to even more others – his first name rarely enters into the picture, even though she has always thought it to be so appropriate – the terrible angel. He is "Daddy" to his kids, if he ever sees them, because he is just so very busy all of the time.

"Were," he asks, a break in his voice.

"Gabe, I am always going to love you," she admits. "The kids are so much like you it's making me sick sometimes, and you're not here a lot, but I love you, okay. If you want me to campaign, if you want me to tell my story, I will do it. I would do anything."

She has been married to the guy for close to fifteen years, and she is willing to air out any bit of dirty laundry that she has if it helps him clear this up. It is time to let the entire country fall as much in love with him as she has – something that is going to be so easy once they see the real him behind the solemn politician.

"I'm on my way home right now," he tells her, and she fights tears again.

"You have no idea how happy that makes me," she grins through the tears.

It has been quite a few weeks since she has seen him last, and she just knows that he has not been taking care of himself as well as she can – just like she just knows that she has lost several pounds worrying herself sick over him. They do so much better when they are actually together – and she cannot wait for the world to finally see that, in her first public appearances as the wife of the presidential candidate.

"I'll be there in ten minutes," he sounds hurried, but happy.

"I'll be waiting," she vows, taking a deep breath. "I love you. See you soon!"

Hanging up on him never gets any easier, but at least this time she has the comfort of knowing that she will actually see him within the hour. The kids are still awake, but almost ready for bed. It would kill him if he couldn't see them before they fell asleep, so she has to keep them awake for a few more difficult minutes.

"Daddy's coming home," she smiles, quickly wiping her tears away.

Both her little boy and her girls sound so excited about that, and they immediately start shouting and jumping up and down, not even noticing that she has been crying.

Or so she thinks.

"Aren't you happy," her eldest girl asks her.

"I just missed your father a lot," she tries to explain. "People have been saying some awful things on the news, and your father and I are going to fix it."

The explanation is a little too simple, but she wants to make sure that all of her brilliant kids can understand it. Sure, Penelope – "Mom, just call me Penny" – is already twelve who years old, but Samuel – her Sammy – is not even ten yet and little Lizzie is only seven years old. They need to be able to understand what is going on.

"Is he still going to be the president," Lizzie has to know.

"That depends on the elections," Penny tells her little sister. "Because like mom and dad told you, the people can choose. And some people don't like Dad."

Lizzie clearly thinks that those people are stupid, and that warms her heart. Even though they do not get to spend a lot of time with Gabe these days, they are still obviously very proud of him, and they love him very much. Ten minutes now take forever.

"Guess who's home," she can hear his voice outside the front door.

"It's Daddy," Lizzie rushes to the door and throws it wide open.

He is indeed standing in front of the door – the cab has just driven off and he is left carrying all of his bags with the brightest of grins on his face. She lets the kids jump on top of him first, because she does not know just how she will respond when she finally gets to be with him again. There might be tears, and she does not want her children to see her cry anymore – they cannot do a single thing to help her.

"Hello darlings," he is smiling at them, letting them carry his bags in. "Hello love."

Then he's here – he is actually with her again. He wraps his arms around her and holds her tight, and that is just what she needs at that moment. His warmth makes everything better, and when he plants a kiss on her lips, she has trouble letting go.

Still, they can't do too much of that in front of the kids.

"Kissing is gross," Sammy scrunches up his face, making his sisters giggle.

"Hello buddy," Gabe holds out his fist for a pound.

Sammy thinks he's too old and too cool to get hugs and kisses, and they indulge that as much as they can, because they both know that he's vocal enough to let them know when he feels like crap and does want hugs and kisses, and also that he will grow out of that at some point. And the girls will always want her hugs and kisses.

"I'll go put them to bed," Gabriel kisses her again, and he lingers a bit longer this time.

It has been a long time for both of them, and she wants nothing more than to climb into bed with him and lock the door until they're finally sated again – but with three kids and no one else to look after them, that is completely impossible.

"I already called Grant," he calls over his shoulder. "And since uncle Grant is amazing, he is going to come over tomorrow morning, and bring breakfast for the kids and drive them to school. They will even get to have a sleepover at his place if they want, after school tomorrow. Mom and Dad can talk about the mean people on the news."

Actually, Grant is taking the kids away from the house so Mom and Dad can bang like they are still in college – in their own apartment with no nosy roommates or kids who can come in at any time. They can finally have some time for themselves.

"Thanks, Lips," she shouts up at him, over the giggling of the kids.

Since she feels like being silly and superficial, she checks out her reflection in the hallway mirror, just to make sure that she looks nice and that her tears have not made her look blotchy and messy. If they are finally going to have some personal time, she wants it to be when he cannot keep his eyes off her because somehow he still thinks that she is gorgeous and sexy even after almost twenty years together. Then again, she still thinks that he is the most gorgeous thing she has ever seen – the man has only gotten better with age, like a fine wine. He is going to be the hottest president ever.

She does not even want to think about the dirty fanfiction that will be written about him as soon as he wins the election – because she just knows that he will win.

"If you fall asleep really soon, you'll see uncle Grant sooner," she hears Gabe promise.

"Nice trick," she mumbles under her breath.

Of course it works for him, when it never works for her – the kids are wise to all of her tricks at this point, because she is usually the one tucking them in at night before finishing up her work papers – she only works part-time but the enormous mountains of paperwork her job entails still take forever to get through. She does not want it to take away from her time with the children, so she does the work on her night home alone.

"And they are off to dream land," Gabe rushes downstairs.

"And we are off to bed," she grins at him, pulling him along by his fancy tie.

He is happily going along with it, trying to undress her on the way up the stairs to their room – luckily on the completely opposite side of the house as the kids' rooms. She wants to at least wait until they start leaving a trail of clothes, because the kids do not need to see that and be scarred for life – it would amuse the shit out of Grant, though.

"You have no idea how much I've missed you," he tells her, locking the door to their room behind him. "The people in D.C. – there is just nobody there even remotely like you, and that is the worst part of life there. I miss seeing your face in the mornings and before I go to bed, and I miss seeing the kids every day. It is not even just about the sex, though I miss that too, Sexy. I'd love for you to go on the campaign trail with me."

She kisses him, longingly and lengthily, then actually starts to ponder his offer and what it would mean for the two of them and what it would mean for their family. She could spend more time with him, and she could finally be open about her life again, rather than hiding at her job and in the house with the kids. She has not been seen in public with her husband in years, and she hates that. It was her own decision at the time, because she did not want her identity and her family to hinder his political aspirations. Still, she is tired of being the hidden and sidelined wife. She wants to support him.

"I can't travel too much," she is trying to keep her own identity. "The kids can't be left alone for that long, and I don't want to stop doing work of my own."

When she started to work for Social Services, she knew that she was doing it to make a difference in the lives of children just like her. She wants to continue doing that, but she also knows that it is not going to be possible when her husband becomes the most important man in the country. There are going to be so many obligations then, and her job will fall by the wayside, and those children will have one less person to help them.

"Volunteer work," she interrupts her thoughts. "I can still do that."

He is practically naked, smiling at her so proudly, still looking so much like that student she fell in love with once upon a time. He is only wearing boxers, and she is mostly clothed because she distracted herself from her beautiful husband.

"Let's think about that tomorrow," he is helping her remove her clothes.

"Let's," she agrees, smiling widely.

She is giggling like a teenage girl, and she is just so happy. She never thought that she would ever be here, with a loving husband and three wonderful kids – still happy after almost twenty years together.

He was right. They did make it after all.

Bonus feature:

The future president's inspiring wife: an exclusive interview with Eponine Enjolras

By Angelica Lancaster

AL: First of all, I would like to thank you very much for choosing our magazine for your exclusive interview.

EE: Of course. I'm a big fan of your articles on equality in the workplace.

AL: That is very kind of you to say. So, you have recently gone from a relatively anonymous life to a life that places you in the spotlight all of the time. How has your daily life changed because of this?

EE: I have had to quit my job working with Social Services, which is something I have always been passionate about. However, I have enjoyed meeting many of the people that Gabe [Eponine's husband Gabriel Enjolras ed.] has told me about over the years, and the people at the rallies are often so lovely. They all have their stories, you know.

AL: I understand that you have a story of your own.

EE: Doesn't everyone?

AL: Did the leaked video of your student protest have anything to do with your decision to become a more prominent figure in your husband's campaign?

EE: I would be lying if I said that was not true. The media was painting this picture that had very little to do with me and a lot to do with who my parents are.

AL: So, your parents are indeed the infamous Thenardiérs?

EE: Yes, they are.

AL: Did this affect your childhood in any way?

EE: You must understand, children do not really notice that their parents are doing something wrong. I was starting to understand that something was not normal when they asked some silly favors, but I was only thirteen when they were arrested, and my siblings were even younger. We did not know what had happened for a long time.

AL: And you were a foster child?

EE: Yes, the three of us were put in foster care, since we did not have relatives who could take care of us. My siblings got adopted after about three years in foster care, but I stayed in a home until I was eighteen and got a college scholarship.

AL: Are you still in touch with your siblings?

EE: I'm still very close with my brother. His wife is expecting their second child, so I'm pretty much attached to my phone until the baby's here.

AL: You have three children of your own?

EE: Gabriel and I have two girls and one boy.

AL: Can you tell us about them?

EE: Penelope is twelve, and she is really ready for middle school. Samuel is ten and he loves to play soccer. Elizabeth, or Lizzie, is seven and she loves to sing, all of the time.

AL: How do they feel about all of this?

EE: They think it's amazing that their father is going to be the president of the entire country, and they're excited to move into the White House. They don't really understand why the media people do not seem to like me much, and they will viciously defend me to anyone who says anything. You might have seen the picture of my eldest.

AL: The one with the water gun?

EE: Yes, that one. A college friend of Gabe's and mine gave her that idea. He said that it would ruin the shot, but not actually ruin the camera. So she went for it the next time someone asked an impertinent question about me.

AL: How did your husband feel about that?

EE: He was secretly proud, but we did talk to our friend about it, and we had to tell him to not give them any more ideas. He did not take that too well.

AL: You met your husband in college, right?

EE: We met through mutual friends, yes. Our friend Marcus [Justice Marcus Murphy ed.] told him that he should talk to me some time. We ended up going away together for the summer. We took a road trip to New York, and we visited my siblings.

AL: Is that when your relationship started?

EE: Yes, we fell in love that summer. It sure surprised our friends when we got back, because we always appeared to be so different.

AL: Well, some of your videos from your trip have leaked, and people are starting to form opinions about your relationship.

EE: Okay, I will tell you some things. He realized his feelings first, but I was not ready to deal with it yet. Naturally, I made the first move, because he continued to respect my wishes, like a true gentleman.

AL: That is lovely.

EE: Yeah, he is very lovely. And, I got off topic, I'm sorry.

AL: And where does the protest video fit in?

EE: That video was taken shortly after our road trip. We were already together, but it was still relatively new to the people on campus. You can imagine.

AL: Oh, yes, I definitely can. Was your last name known at the time?

EE: No, I spent most of my time at college hiding my last name. I told Gabe pretty soon into our trip, and after that he covered for me whenever I needed. We told people we were married a few times, even before we actually were married, because people just wanted to know my name and it was not a good idea to tell them.

AL: Are you ashamed of your family?

EE: I'm not so much ashamed anymore. I am deeply sorry for what my parents have done to people, but I am not my parents and there is nothing that I can actually do about it. My parents are never going to be sorry for their crimes, unfortunately.

AL: Are you still in contact with your family?

EE: My mother calls occasionally, but I rarely pick up. I haven't seen my father or heard from him since he got arrested. My sister used to be in contact with them a lot, but I think that's over as well.

AL: Is there anything else that you would like to talk about?

EE: I am curious to see what the future will bring. I want to thank you for being so kind throughout this interview. I look forward to talking with you again in the future.

AL: Thank you very much.

AN: Words will not be able to express how grateful I am for every single one of you who managed to stick with me this far. Everyone who reads this, whether it's right as it comes out or in the future (what's it like there?), has my thanks. Everyone has been wonderful. I love you all.

I'm still pondering on my next foray into E/E fanfiction. There are a few oneshots and prompt fills ahead, but nothing real as to a full fic. There are some ideas in my head, and I have some first chapters, but I want to figure that out first.

Feel free to message me at any time to ask me about me/my fic/my ship, etc. Hang out with me on Tumblr (textsfromumbridge) or Twitter (dutchmoxie). Prompt me or ask me questions at my (dutchmoxie).

I love you all! It has been a pleasure writing this story!

THE END!