Adrien…
Yes, Mama?
Promise me one thing, before I go.
What is it, Mama?
Never, ever, under any circumstance, forget.
Forget what?
That I love you, my darling.
The conversation had been years ago. And still, he couldn't get the image of his sick, dying mother out of his mind. Her phlegmy coughs, her pale face, even her hair had faded from a brilliant golden yellow to a dull straw color. But the one thing that never changed was her bright smile. He would sit in her room as she was lying in bed, and he would do his schoolwork. And whenever he asked her a question, she would always have the answer, even though her brain was slowly deteriorating.
Then the last night, when he had walked in chattering excitedly, and she had asked, "Who are you?" That had broken him.
Since that night, he hadn't dared to go into her room uninvited. But he was never invited. So he sat either sat in the dining room or his room, watching the door in fading excitement hoping upon hope that his father would enter and say, "Your mother wants to see you."
And one night, he did enter the room. He entered, his back straight and his chest out, the same straight face that held no emotion. "Your mother has died, Adrien." Then he turned on his heel and walked out, closing the door behind him. He had never seen his father cry, and that night was no exception.
Taking a deep breath, Adrien readjusted his bookbag and turned from the large family portrait that hung in the dining room. Today was Father's day, and though he had wished his father a good day, he had only gotten a dismissal hand. Adrien couldn't remember that last time he had heard words of love from his father. Definitely before his mother's demise. As he entered into the hallway, his phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out and gave a weak smile. A text from Nino.
N: Hey dude. Wats up?
A: Nothing much. Wanna hang out?
He waited several minutes before he got a response.
N: Sorry bro. Spending time with dad. Maybe 2morrow
A: Ok.
With a defeated sigh, he dropped the phone into his bag. In his saddened state, he didn't even realize he had accidently pressed the "mute" button on his phone. It must have fallen on Plagg's head, because a second later the black kwami darted out of the bag and floated in front of Adrien's face.
"What was that for?"
"Sorry, Plagg."
The boy said nothing more and continued his trek down the long hallway. Plagg stayed in his spot, confused for a moment, then he raced to catch up.
"What's wrong, Adrien?"
"It's Father's day, Plagg."
"But-... ooohhh..."
For maybe the first time, the kwami looked legitimately empathetic. He settled gently onto Adrien's shoulder.
"Can't you hang out with Nino?"
"Busy."
"Alya?"
"No. That would be way to awkward without Nino."
"What about Marinette?"
The boy's face burned bright red. Before he could tell Plagg to screw off, footsteps echoed from his father's study.
"Hide, Plagg."
The black kwami dove into Adrien's bag and was silent. From the doorway emerged none other than Gabriel Agreste. Adrien straightened his back and gave a forced smile.
"Good evening, Father."
"Hello, Adrien."
The two walked past each other with no other words. Adrien sighed and went to his room, flopping onto his bed face down.
He felt a nudge on his head and turned around to see Plagg floating inches above him, struggling to carry his cellphone, which must have been twice his size.
"What is it?"
"You got a text."
In fact, Adrien had multiple texts. A few were apologetic ones from Nino, and the others were from a new number he didn't recognize.
Hey Adrien, Nino told me that you weren't doing anything today and I was wondering if you wanted to come over. :)
Not to be creepy or anything! Oh gosh that probably sounded very stalkerish.
It's just that you weren't doing anything and I'm not doing much so I thought we could hang out.
By the way, it's Marinette.
Wait, what?! Marinette, his biggest crush (besides Ladybug, of course) had texted HIM? Oh, he was getting back at Nino for this. That little-
M: If you don't want to that's totally okay and in that case I'll just see you at school.
Oh. He should probably answer her. He wanted to go, but his Father might not allow him to leave on Father's day, even if there weren't doing anything. But he had other ways to get there. After careful consideration, he typed out:
A: Sounds great! I'd love to come over. You sure it isn't an inconvenience?
Before he could lose his nerve, he pressed send and waited anxiously. Finally, he got:
M: Absolutely not! When do you think you would be here?
A: Give me 15 minutes.
A slight over exaggeration. He could be there in less than 5. But he had to make it realistic. He stuffed his phone into his pocket and yelled,
"PLAGG! CLAWS OUT!"