He was silent. It was easy to miss the quiet artist in the back of the room, the only sound he made was the soft scratching of pencil on paper as he sketched. The lead formed shapes on the soft white surface, and eventually, its message became clear. Chat Noir and the Evillustrator's battle, brought to life by his own hands. It was obvious who was winning, and for those who couldn't see it, here's the explanation. Ebony claws grasped the front of the artist's suit, the other hand held high in an upcoming Cataclysm. The pencil froze in its motion, and the boys grip tightened on the writing instrument. Especially after the unfortunate incident with the resident blonde bully in the class which had ended up turning him into the Evillustrator, he stayed separate from everyone else. So it was understandable, then, that during the Christmas hustle and bustle, he was forgotten.

Everyone was excited. It was almost Christmas, and there was hardly any work being done in the classroom. The teacher had decided to just give up on the lesson plan and allow the kids to do what they wanted. So, it was the rapid fire exchange of gifts. Nino and Alya were offering each other their first holiday presents as a couple, a pair of cute earrings and what ended up being an orange hat to switch with Nino's usual red. His girlfriend claimed it suited him better, to his reluctant agreement. Chloe was ecstatic to receive new perfume from the Agreste line, flaunting it while Sabrina gushed over her own gift of used clothing that her 'best friend' no longer found in fashion. Max had gotten a surprisingly thoughtful gift of a book from Kim, who shrugged and said he picked it out at random. Juleka couldn't stop thanking Rose for her new gloves, and Rose insisted that the hairpin she'd gotten in return was much more beautiful. Alix was asking everyone who had gotten her light up wheels for her skates, while Ivan and Mylene snickered at her desperation but obvious joy. Said couple were already wearing their own gifts that they had given each other the day before on a coffee date, a candy cane themed bandanna for Mylene and a t-shirt for Ivan brandishing the logo of his favorite band.

They were all happy, bubbly, talking and laughing with joy.. While he sat quietly in the back row, hiding himself behind his sketchbook. He was fine, he convinced himself that he was fine. His friends were all happy, so he should be happy too.. Right?

Were they really his friends, if they forgot about him?

It was a depressing thought, though he'd been having thoughts like these for awhile. Of course a lot of people in their class had gotten akumatized, but he personally thought his was one of the worst. He'd kidnapped Marinette, of all people. The most liked person in their class. Sweet, kind, warm, thoughtful, lovely Marinette. No wonder why they hated him, he'd targeted the person they all loved. She was quite the opposite of him, it seemed. He would've laughed, if it were at all funny. Maybe it was okay that they didn't like him, he was sure he wouldn't be much of a good friend anyway. He returned to sketching. It would've been better, after all, if he had been the victim of the god of destructions powers.

She absentmindedly tugged on the tip of a pigtail, bluebell eyes glittering with happiness as she studied the scene before her. Everyone seemed to be having fun, with smiles and laughter. She was sitting atop her desk, a few gifts at her side that had yet to be given out. She couldn't help but to wait, she didn't want to interrupt everyone else. One gift was for Adrien, of course, she hadn't been able to work up the courage to give it to him yet. Matching mittens for his scarf she'd made him for his birthday the year before. A faint blush coated her cheeks when her gaze passed by him, and had to quickly avert her eyes before they met his emerald hues. Ah she couldn't do it, maybe she'd have Alya do it for her, or maybe she'd slip it in his mailbox like last time. Her thoughts faded as she frowned, however, quickly noticing that a certain red head wasn't among the group. Her head quickly turned, eyes darting up the back row where the male was hiding behind.. His sketchbook? Her brow furrowed. What was he doing up there?

Her fingertips wandered, brushing the edge of a certain wrapped gift that lay by her side, grasping it as she slipped off from her perch on her desk. Her steps weren't that quiet as she passed her classmates and went up the stairs that led to the back of the class, but it didn't seem like the boy noticed as she approached him.

"Hey, Nath," She spoke, voice soft and warm like golden honey dripping down the bark of a tree. He quickly lifted his head, turquoise eyes shining with unshed tears. He held the sketchbook closer, not wanting the girl to see.

"O-Oh, Marinette.." He murmured in response, quickly swiping his eyes with his sleeve. She smiled, that lovely smile that made his heart beat just a little faster in his chest.

" Happy Christmas!" She exclaimed, holding out the wrapped gift for him. His hands slackened in surprise, dropping the sketchbook he'd been holding in front of him so it fell flat on the desk.

"For me?" At her nod, he carefully grasped the beautifully wrapped present, opening it along the taped seams as not to rip the scarlet paper. Inside was a brand new sketchbook, a personally designed cover with a tiny little anime Nathaniel holding a pencil on the front, probably drawn and pasted on by Marinette herself. Along with that, a pack of colored pencils of the new brand he kept wanting to try. A soft smile came to his face, as he looked up at the girl standing before him looking expectantly and wondering if he liked it. His smile broke out into a grin, as he managed to finally say. Maybe he wasn't forgotten, maybe he wasn't so unimportant. Maybe if Marinette had managed to forgive him, he wasn't so bad after all.

"Happy Christmas Marinette!"