Chapter IV - Lady Cosette

"Cosette, do not make it an excuse that you are the eldest. You are aware of the tradition our ancestors have applied to this family; the man gets more than half of our possessions regardless of the order he and his siblings were born in. Your mother and I shall make no exceptions; just accept that you and your sisters will get nearly nothing from us, whether that is our money or our respect,"

"Good, because Eponine, Colette, and I haven't any use for it. Tell Levi to shove your and Mother's fortune and respect up his arrogant and overbearing arse."

COSETTE'S POV

I opened my eyes, feeling the intoxication sinking inside me slowly. My mouth was positively dry, head throbbing, and the smell of weed assaulted my nose. "Why were those the last words I heard before I woke up?" I thought to myself. "It's been eight years since Father said that to me," I let out a cough before looking at my surroundings; my bedroom, and I was resting on my bed when I fell asleep. I turned to my nightstand and saw an unlit joint but looked to be freshly smoked, by me. "Strange, I hardly ever smoke weed..." I said to myself. I knew I had to quit smoking somehow or else I'd be dead by the time I was forty but it became somewhat of a need to do over the years, thus it was hard to give up.

But there was a chance that Mary would be staying with us and if my brother and I continued on with these habits then we would be no different from Adam and Ann. We had to quit. I then glanced at my clock and saw that it was nearly 8 PM by then and when I looked out the window, all I was met with was darkness and the moon. I wasn't too high, so I luckily managed to get up to my feet without tumbling and exited my room. Ignoring my headache, I navigated my way inside the house and found my little brother inside the dining room area, smoking a joint at the table while drinking tea and...answering the questions from my maths textbook on a piece of paper. Such a nerd. He noticed me and could definitely tell what I was doing before I fell asleep. "You stole some of my weed," said Levi. My brother always had a love for maths for whatever reason and he often answered random equations during his free time. I would have bullied him for being a nerd but he tutored me.

"Do you keep track of your supply or something? And is that my textbook?" I asked. Levi looked down at what he was answering. "Oh, I got bored and I wanted some college-level maths. Anyway, dinner is ready; take a seat," Levi set up the table and brought out our food then we began to eat. He cooked my favourite for tonight, spicy barbecue chicken with mash and a side of salad alongside a glass of red wine for the two of us. My brother was incompetent in a lot of things but he was a talented cook which made up for the fact that he was an extremely picky eater. "How is it?" asked Levi, slicing a piece of his chicken. "Good as always, especially that you made it extra spicy this time," I answered before taking a sip of my wine. This was how it always was between us; together, living in one house, Cosette and Levi Churchill. It wasn't the perfect life but it was one I wouldn't exchange for something different. We both took turns cooking meals and we were never scared to share anything. Nothing was limited between Levi and I; we could be talking all day endlessly or just staying absolutely silent while sitting together. And whatever the case was, we felt comfortable with each other no matter what. We looked out for one another and even if he didn't show it, I knew wholeheartedly that Levi did love me.

I learned so much about Levi since we moved in together such as how to make him happy and he knew everything there was to know about me. One would argue we lived like a couple but none of us minded that lifestyle. Besides, Levi knew I fancied women and he called me ugly on more than one occasion. But even if I used to hold a grudge against him, I knew well that he changed a lot.

My brother hummed and tried to make conversation with me but I wanted to talk about our current issue. "Levi, we need to quit," I got straight to the point. "Quit what?" Levi asked, clearly clueless. "Smoking! I mean, if we take Mary then we wouldn't want her to have smokers for guardians! If a child has caregivers who smoke then it could leave a negative effect on them. And moreover, we should quit for ourselves not for the girl. Think about how early we could die if we continue like this," I tried to convince him. "We will both be dead anyway, and I was already fagging when I first met Mary," Levi didn't have a care in the world.

I dropped my utensils and stared right at him with my eyebrows furrowed. "Levi," I called his name in a very threatening tone. I used it often and it never failed to scare the crap out of my brother. Thus, he swallowed the lump in his throat and shivered upon hearing his name be said in such a frightening way; he knew he fucked up. "Let me make it clear, we will quit smoking for ourselves and our health," I declared once more. Finally, my little brother sighed deeply as he shook his head. "Fine, very well," he finally agreed. "I suppose you aren't false anyway," I smiled and nodded. "Good, and one more thing," I continued. "What?" Levi groaned. I chewed some broccoli from my salad before pointing my fork at my brother. "I want you back to work tomorrow," The little man-boy stared at me with not much expression in his eyes. "You are treating me as if you're my mother, 'sette," I always hated that nickname, as it was what my bullies used to call me back in primary and secondary school when they discovered I was looking at girls way differently.

"Sette the tomboy"

"Sette the lesbian slut"

"Sette the wannabe man"

"Sette the delusional whore"

I hated all of it but whenever my brother called me the nickname, I never cared. I never heard the laughs or ridicules of kids around me; all I heard was a younger brother calling out to his older sister.

"I might as well be, little brother," I smirked. "Okay, I'll go back to work but I believe it is my turn to talk about something with you," Levi declared. I hummed, tilting my head. He wiped his mouth with a napkin before looking at me with those blue eyes. "I've been meaning to speak to you about this," Levi started. "Cosette, on the day that I went out to the pub with Ross, -the same day that I met Mary- Eponine showed up and they both announced to me that they were dating for about a year now. You knew about it, why did you not say anything to me?" Shit, I was hoping he wouldn't bring that up. At first, I couldn't answer and was only staring blankly at him, not even blinking.

"I'm sorry, brother, but Eponine and Ross requested me to not say anything about their relationship to you and that they would tell you themselves when the time was right," I explained. When I found out last year that those two were together, all I could think of was how Levi would react to it and how he would probably be so uncomfortable with it. Ross had been his best friend for more than a decade and Eponine was like a stranger to him. I knew it would be so strange for him to see the two together. "I just wanted to respect their wishes," Levi paused and looked down at his plate. "I...understand. If I were Ross, I wouldn't have wanted me to find out either," he spoke before looking back at me. "But be honest with me next time, alright? We promised each other; no secrets between us, right?" I smiled at my younger brother and nodded. "Look, how about we just go out for breakfast tomorrow and then after I will go straight to work?" Levi suggested.

"I am afraid I can't. I have an early date tomorrow with Julia,"

"Again? But do you not have to leave for work tomorrow as well?"

"I'll call in sick and if you recall Julia had to leave early during our last date because you and Mary arrived,"

"Why did you two think it was a good idea to have a date at our house when we live together? And you are always on a date nowadays,"

"I happen to really like this girl, Levi, and I want to make her happy,"

"Fine, but you best be available next time,"

After that, we stayed silent for a while, not knowing what to say next. "I'll be visiting Mother and Father's grave tomorrow morning before I head to the mansion. Would you like to come?" Levi asked. "No," I answered almost immediately. "But thank you for offering."

---

COSETTE'S POV

The next morning, Levi and I went our separate ways, attending to our personal affairs that day. He had work and I had a date. Julia and I had the day planned; eat breakfast at a café in Westfield and then watch a movie together. Afterwards, we would both see what else we could do for the day. Since it was just going to be a simple date, I decided to just dress casually but not too much that it looked as if I rolled out of bed and left the house. No, I put on a simple beige green dress, black heels, and kept my hair down but curled it. As for my makeup, I went for a natural look and kept away from bold colours. I would say I looked beautiful when I saw myself in the mirror but when I asked my brother for his thoughts he simply answered, "You look fine," Typical Levi. After I finished getting ready, I texted Julia that I was on my way to Westfield before getting into my car and driving off.

In less than thirty minutes I arrived at the shopping centre and found my date inside our agreed café. Julia was drinking coffee and once she noticed me at the entrance, she happily waved and gestured for me to come. "Cosette, you look so beautiful in that outfit," the girl I was desperately trying to make mine complimented me as I took a seat across from her at the table. Julianne Monroe, the girl I met when I was twenty during a party we both attended. Julia was eighteen. The two of us saw each other at the rooftop and I was the first one to arrive there; she thought I was going to jump when she saw me looking down from the railings with an empty expression. Well, I was considering it. However, safe to say, the two of us became very close since then and had been on a few dates since we admitted how we felt for each other earlier this year. Julia was a petite, fair-skinned girl of a short height (around 160cm) with long bright purple hair that she straightened and pink eyes. She was dressed in a simple white jumper with light blue trousers and black heels. No matter how tall her shoes were, she would always appear short to me. Her makeup was a natural look as well and the style she went for was way different from her usual dark academia. I thought, "I may have overdressed."

I blushed as I smiled at her. "Don't flatter me, Julia, you're the one who always looks stunning," Julia giggled at my compliment before placing her chin on the palm of her hand as her elbow rested on the table. "Really? This was the nicest outfit I found in my wardrobe. You know I don't exactly dress in anything fancy," she said. "But just for you I wanted to look pretty. I'm sorry, you look so gorgeous today and this is all I'm wearing..."

"No, Julia, it's alright," I assured her as I held her hand across the table. "I like just the way you are, you're dashing, and you know this is how I always dress every day, so, maybe I should have taken it down a notch..." Julia looked at me and chuckled. "Aren't you a cheesy one? I quite like that," After making small talk, the two of us ordered our food and coffee then began to eat. "So, are you and Levi still planning on taking the girl?" asked Julia. I swallowed my food before answering, "We are, if the judge allows us to. It isn't our decision we just offered it if Ann isn't getting Mary,"

"You're going to be busy all day during your vacation if Mary does end up with you and your brother," Julia remarked. I chuckled softly. "Well, things happen and Levi will always be by my side," Julia nodded before saying, "If you ask me, I truly believe that the child is best off with you two than her mother. The judge should know that,"

"I am quite surprised at how much my brother seems to care for Mary. He was the one who brought her home to us,"

"Speaking of which, you know, it never fails to surprise me how you never seem to hold a grudge against your brother despite everything he's done. Why is that?"

I paused, quite surprised at her question. "When I was young I was mad at Levi for everything and for a while, I blamed him for the death of our parents. But after seeing our two sisters having the same feelings as me back then, I realized that hatred and anger wouldn't make anything better nor would it have changed the fact that our parents were dead," I took a long sip of my coffee before continuing, "More importantly, I was more mad at our parents than my brother. They never treated my sisters and I fairly and only cared about Levi because he was the son they desired to have for so long. Mother and Father went through two pregnancies before him, the first one was me and my twin. However, despite everything, I came to realize that if our parents hadn't spoiled Levi for so long then maybe he would not have turned out the way he was. And I knew he had regrets,"

"What made you realize he did?"

"My brother used to be a very arrogant cretin back then, so, when our grandparents died, Levi couldn't be bothered to attend their funeral but he did with our parents. He did not even had to be asked about it. Just the look in his eyes when we were told our parents died said everything I needed to know. And after inheriting everything Mother and Father left for him, Levi didn't immediately drop out of school, which meant he never planned on doing it even before getting his hands on their fortune. He gave it some time and thought and after his graduation, that was when he finally decided not to apply to uni. I am...not defending his decision to discontinue his education but what I am saying is that I realized then that Levi wasn't totally a bad person; he still had a heart inside him,"

Julia chuckled at me before sitting back. "You're so kind, Cosette, you're almost an angel to me, you know?" I almost laughed when she called me an angel. "I am anything but an angel, Julia. I just learnt what forgiveness truly meant. Anyway, let us not talk about depressing topics. This is our date, after all," After breakfast, we still had about an hour left before our movie so we spent it by taking a stroll around the large shopping centre, chatting and looking at what shops we came across. "How is uni for you?" I asked Julia as we walked hand in hand. "The usual," she answered. "I still have about a year left before I graduate,"

"I see, what are your plans after graduation?" I asked with a smile. "Get a proper job as soon as possible. I can't provide for my family by just babysitting random children or being a waitress," Julia answered immediately. "My parents deserve to retire by now,"

"You're only twenty-three, so you should enjoy life first before getting a job after your graduation," I suggested. Julia looked at me and laughed. "Well, I wish I could, love, but I have to help my family. I am the oldest, after all," I paused for a moment, quite moved by how much Julia wished to do for her family. "You're such a hard worker, Julia," I complimented her. "And you care so much about your family. I bet they're so lucky to have a daughter like you,"

"Quite the contrary actually; I'm lucky to have them," Julia chuckled. I looked down at my shoes and said, "My family isn't like yours. We're quite distant and I haven't spoken to any of my relatives ever since my parents passed away,"

"If you had, I bet they would be so proud of how far you've gotten and how put together your life is," Julia smiled. I chuckled softly as I looked straight ahead again. After that, we both stayed silent, just like my brother and I at the dinner table last night but this time, I enjoyed this silence. My hand intertwined with hers, just the two of us against the world at that moment. "Oh, wait," Julia made me stop walking. "Can you lean down a bit? I think there's something on your face," I hummed and leaned down to her height. Julia's face reddened and she didn't do anything for a moment, only staring into my eyes as I looked back at her. Shit, she was so pretty. Then, Julia suddenly held my face before kissing my cheek. My eyes widened and I let out a high-pitched yelp as I flinched from her touch. The feeling of Julia's lips against my skin and the warmth of her hands made me feel something I haven't felt in a long time.

Julia pulled back and looked at me with a smile. "You are so perfect, Cosette Churchill," Her cheeks flushed. "Shall we head over to the cinema now?" To which I blinked thrice, still taken aback and flustered but I managed to regain my senses and nodded my head at her question. She took my hand in hers again and we navigated our way to the cinema to watch our movie, which was the highlight of our date for that day. I was thoroughly enjoying myself especially because Julia was with me. It was usually always just me and Levi, so it was refreshing to have somebody else for company that day. Julia was such an amazing girl and I couldn't find anything to not like about her. And her eyes, oh, how I loved to get lost in them. Anyway, the two of us chose to see Titanic, a classic, seeing as though it recently just re-released and watching a romantic film would probably be good for our date. Since Julia paid for our food earlier at the café, I insisted on paying for our snacks for the movie. At first, my date declined and said she would pay instead but after some persuasion and a bit of flirting from me, Julia finally caved.

The movie was splendid as usual and the entire time Julia didn't let go of my hand and I wasn't complaining. At some point during the movie, Julia leaned over and rested her head on my shoulder. "I wish I could focus on the movie but I can't stop looking at your beautiful face," she whispered to me. I gulped, my cheeks flushed. "Well, you better pay attention because we paid money to see this," I said teasingly to her with a smirk. Julia laughed quietly as she rolled her eyes. "Cheeky," The movie was three hours long but with her by my side, it was like time stopped. Anyway, after the cut scenes rolled, we left the cinema and decided to go get ice cream and went shopping for clothing at various shops. Though, every time Julia was about to pay for what she bought I kept on slipping my credit card to the cashier. Julia kept on insisting to pay me back but I declined each time and said it was a present from me. On some occasions, Julia tried to stuff her money inside my pocket or throw my credit card across the room when I tried to pay.

"You know, you have a very pretty name," I said to her. "Julianne, makes me think of a field of flowers. So, why do you insist on going by Julia?" Julia looked at me weirdly as she hummed in thought. "I don't know honestly. Julia has always sounded right to me and Julianne just sounds too posh for comfort. But your name, Cosette, sounds so immaculate and pretty. I think of angels singing when I hear it," I chuckled. "You flatter me, Julianne," I smiled at her. Julia laughed and shook her head at me. "Yeah, definitely doesn't sound right,"

After finishing our little shopping spree, we went to the car park to put away everything we bought into my car. Julia didn't own a vehicle of her own yet, so I offered to just help her carry her things and drive her back home later. Somehow, we both ended up at the backseat of my car, sitting together and just chatting. The atmosphere suddenly became warm for me and how close Julia was sitting next to me made my cheeks flushed again. I decided to might as well take advantage of the situation. I looked at Julia for a moment before slowly placing my hand over her left thigh and began stroking it with my thumb. Julia flinched as her cheeks were reddening again and scoffed at me. "You're getting bolder, Cosette," she remarked and I smiled, "I couldn't let you outshine me in this relationship,"

Julia's eyes widened when I said "relationship" and I immediately remembered that the two of us weren't dating yet and it just slipped out of my mouth. "I'm sorry!" I immediately removed my hand from her thigh as I apologized, flustered. Julia laughed at me and placed my hand back on her. "It's alright, Cosette," she reassured. I could never take my eyes off her; she was so mesmerizing to me. We stared at each other, none of us wanting to look away. "How did you find out?" she asked suddenly. "Find out what?" I questioned back. "That you were like me," answered Julia. "That you weren't like other girls. How did you find out that you were gay?" I looked down and fiddled with the ends of my dress as I let out a forced chuckle. "In my experience, it wasn't about finding out, it was more about accepting myself," I explained. "Even when I was in primary school, I already saw myself looking at girls and thinking about them much differently than I was supposed to and being so indifferent towards guys. All the girls in my school were always talking about certain boys, how handsome they were and how they wished they would notice them, while I only just listened and I could not relate even a little,"

I sighed. "At some point when I was twelve, I finally learned what a 'lesbian' was and to some extent I resonated with it. However, I was in such denial and I refused to accept it because it felt wrong to me and I...I just knew that my parents would never accept me or look at me as their daughter again if I fancied girls. This went on for the majority of my early teenage years but when I was sixteen, I finally decided that enough was enough. I realized I didn't deserve how I was beating myself up and being trapped in one-sided love all the time when I tried to date boys. I just wanted to be happy even if my parents weren't going to be with me,"

I looked back at Julia and showed her a sad smile. "I went to prestigious schools all my life where social status never mattered and thus, I got bullied a lot for being lesbian and it never helped how my parents were constantly degrading and ridiculing me for who I was. That is the summary of my journey. I could go on more but then we'd be here forever. To be honest, even now I am still finding a way to accept all of me because of the certain morals I grew up with. But I am just happy that my siblings accept me even if our mother and father never did," I continued. "How about you? How did you find out?"

"All my life, I got jealous that all of the male love interests in everything I was watching were being kissed by the female lead instead of me. I remember throwing a tantrum over it at some point," Julia answered immediately with a cheeky smile. I stared at her with my mouth open wide. "Uh..."

"I know, ridiculous story, right?" she laughed. Julia then looked at me before suddenly wrapping her arms around my body, embracing me. "But you went through so much, Cosette, if I could just do something to prevent all the crap you had to endure. You forgave your brother and accepted yourself when nobody else would," I swallowed the lump in my throat as my heart was probably going to beat out of my chest at that point. "Julia..." Finally, I relaxed and sunk into her warm embrace. Yes, that felt so nice. Two women just wanting to be together in a world without judgement or hatred.

We looked at one another again, our bodies pressed together and our lips not even an inch apart as I felt her breath against my skin. "Cosette, may I?" Julia asked and I knew what she meant. I didn't answer, rather I closed my eyes and slowly moved my head closer until my lips were pressed against hers. Subsequently, Julia kissed me back, sliding one hand from my neck to my face and in return I placed my own hands on her small waist before pulling her closer to me that she was sitting on my lap.

We both pulled away and looked at each other with love in our eyes. However, that kiss wasn't enough.