It was one of the most beautiful days in Paris, with the sky completely clear, the sun shining, and the temperature being as perfect as it could be. Marinette was on the merry-go-round with Manon and Alya, Adrien was working his latest photoshoot, and Nathaniel was suffering.
Juleka and Rose had shown up to his house just under an hour earlier and dragged him to the park, telling him that just because he was an artist didn't mean he could be a recluse. He had tried to argue that he had left the house just that morning to grab a few groceries for his mother, but apparently that 'didn't count'.
They had originally all been sitting together, right against a tree behind Adrien's photographer, allowing all of them a decent view of the boy as they talked. Juleka and Rose were holding hands, Juleka leaning over to whisper something in Rose's ear every few minutes while Nathaniel focused on his sketches of the the blond model.
"No, no, no!. Ze boy haz eaten too much spaghetti! We needz more energy...more romance. We needz...a girl!" The photographer yelled as Adrien yawned, one hand raising to cover his mouth as the other tried to cover the camera. The camera man's eyes darted around before landing on the three of them, quickly darting over and pointing at Rose.
"You! I need an extra!" He yelled, causing Nathaniel and Juleka to turn to the man as Rose raised an eyebrow.
"Who? Me?" She asked, the hand that wasn't in Juleka's grasp rising to point at herself.
"Si, to pose wiz Mr. Adrien," He grinned, pointing behind him where Adrien sat against the edge of the fountain.
Rose turned to Nathaniel with a small smirk before painting a look of sadness on her face, head tilted toward Juleka. Nathaniel shook his head wildly out of sight of the photographer, knowing what Rose was planning and trying to stop her before she went through with it.
"Oh, Adrien! I don't know sir, I'm in class with him and I don't want a romantic photoshoot with him to upset my girlfriend," She said, squeezing Juleka's hand and turning back to the man who now seemed a bit unnerved by the small glare Juleka was sending his way, "But I know he came out as bi recently, why not do the shoot with Nath here? It'd probably be some good press!"
Nathaniel's face flushed as the photographer turned to him, fidgeting with his sketchbook as the man eyed him with a hum before smiling.
"Perfect! Come with me!" The photographer spoke, turning back to Adrien, all of them freezing when the screaming started.
An akuma wearing all purple with some kind of umbrella was blowing people all over the place with the wind she controlled, quickly encasing the merry-go-round in ice and continuing through the park, shooting odd lightning bolts every which way as she floated away.. The only ones inside the ice cave were Alya and Manon since Marinette had left a minute earlier to grab some food from the bakery for them all, which was a small relief, but still worrying.
As the photographer dashed away, calling Adrien's name, Nathaniel grabbed Rose and Juleka's hands and ran, heading in the opposite direction of the akuma and the two heroes who had just appeared. He was sure the two of them would be able to handle her, but he'd rather stay out of the way, just in case.
When the akuma had been defeated, Nathaniel was ready to excuse himself home, figuring he had dealt with more than enough excitement for the day, but Rose was quick to drag him back to the park.
"You can't just not do the photos Nathaniel! They're expecting you!" She chided as she pulled him along, ignoring any excuses he tried to fend her off with.
When they got close to where Adrien was sitting and the photographer was pacing, Adrien's head lifted from his lap, face seeming to light up when he saw the three of them. Nathaniel's gut twisted at the thought that maybe Adrien was wanting to pose with Rose, or maybe even Juleka, but when they shoved him forwards, Adrien's smile only seemed to widen.
"Here he is, ready for the photoshoot!" Rose sang, pushing him toward the photographer with one hand as the other was safely back in Juleka's grasp.
"Perfect! Go stand next to Mr. Adrien!" The photographer yelled, lifting his camera to his face as Nathaniel awkwardly stepped forward to stand close to Adrien.
"Hey, I'm sorry you got dragged into this. Vincent's a bit eccentric, but you don't have to do this if you don't want to." Adrien whispered, leaning toward Nathaniel and setting his arm over his shoulders.
Nathaniel's face flushed red quicker than he even thought possible, but he managed to turn his head to fully face the blond beside him, both of them ignoring the camera shutters.
"I'm sure my dad is going to try to turn this into some big PR stunt since I decided to come out, so I really do want to apologize. We could maybe go out and get lunch or dinner together sometime?" Adrien asked, one hand raising to rub the back of his neck as he gave Nathaniel an awkward smile.
"Did you just ask me on a date?" Nathaniel asked incredulously, watching in slight amusement as the question caused the other boy's cheeks to flare red.
"I mean, I was, but you don't have to if you don't want to! I can totally see how it'd be awkward, never mind, forget I said anything."
Nathaniel grinned at how awkward the other boy was, turning so he could fully face the boy, the photographer who was snapping photos every few seconds the last thing on his mind.
"I'd actually really like that. Going to get lunch or dinner sometime."
Adrien's head snapped back to Nathaniel, eyes wide before a grin took over his features.
"Really? It still doesn't have to be a date if you don't want it to! We could just go as friends, or people who are trying to be friends, or just classmates if you want."
Nathaniel smiled, one hand reaching forward to pluck a leaf that had fallen into Adrien's hair and toss it away. "I think I'd like it to be a date. If you still want it to be that is."
Adrien's whole face lit up once the words had left Nathaniel's mouth, and before he could prepare for it, the boy wrapped his arms around his waist and lifted him off the ground, swinging him around with a whoop of joy. Nathaniel was shocked at first, but quickly started laughing, one hand on Adrien's shoulder for support while the other rested on his head, softly patting the hair.
The photographer grinned as he continued snapping pictures, knowing that both boys had completely forgotten that he was even there.
And if Adrien found an envelope with his name on it full of the pictures later that week, Vincent would simply tell him that he accidentally printed doubles of all the shots. Accidentally.