"Life in fast-motion, maybe." She pauses, thinking that if that's a film word, Courfeyrac may not get her meaning. "Compressed. Lots of little lives instead of one long one. Or almost-long one."

She undoes the top two buttons on his pajama shirt and pulls the shoulders of the top down, so she can access his body more, and starts to slowly work her thumbs across the tight muscle around his upper spine.

"But I don't think Enjolras or I would have ever paid any attention to each other if we weren't forced into this."