A lot of you are wondering about the Miraculous angle and where Tikki and Plagg might be. I wanted this be just a thing between Marinette and Adrien. Consider it as a timeline without the Miraculous. I should have made it clear at the beginning. Please enjoy this next part.

It was the day of the funeral; her parents had arranged that they would be cremated and have their ashes be stored in a family crypt in China. Marinette was thankful she didn't have to make decisions of how the proceedings were to go since the lawyer who set everything up for her parents had contacted Mr. Agreste. Marinette's relatives arrived from China and other parts of the world. She hadn't seen many of them in years but she recognized a few from pictures. Many of them didn't say much since Marinette couldn't speak Mandarin nor they French. Adrien stuck to her side like glue, addressing her Chinese relatives for her and passed along their condolences to her. Adrien would act as a shield in case someone asked too many questions or made Marinette feel uncomfortable. She was grateful to him and made sure he knew it by squeezing his hand or hugging him and he would return the gestures in kind. What really surprised her was the fact that her classmates showed up. Everyone, including Chloé, hugged her. They all loved her parents and remembered that they would give out free treats to Marinette's classmates. Marinette's aunt and her mother's older sister, named Jun Cheng, was going to take the urns back with her to China at some point since she decided to stay in Paris for a while. Marinette was exhausted both emotionally and physically having to stand at the receiving line. She pulled her bun out and removed her shoes. She let out a sigh of relief and flopped on her bed. She decorated her room to how it was back at her old home but without the loft. She kept her pictures of Adrien in a hidden drawer and placed pictures of her friends and family in their place. By her bed were two pictures; her and her parents and the other of her and Adrien. She was so grateful for him today, she wasn't sure how she would have survived. She was about to sleep when she heard a knock.

"Mari? May I come in?"

"Yes, you may Adrien," she said sitting up on her bed.

Adrien entered and saw where she was.

"Oh, were you about to take a nap? I can come back later. I just wanted to check on you."

"It's fine, please come in," she said sweetly.

Adrien was still in his suit but he had loosened his tie. He sat on the chaise while Marinette remained on the bed. Neither one spoke for a while.

"Thank you, Adrien," Marinette whispered.

"For what?"

"For everything. I don't know what I would have done or where I would have been if you weren't here."

Adrien smiled and decided to sit next to her.

"I'll always be here for you, Mari. No matter what."

"I know," she said leaning into his shoulder.

Adrien placed his head on hers and moved his hand closer to Marinette's. The second their fingers touched, their hands linked together. Acting purely on instinct, Adrien kissed the top of Mari's head and then placed a kiss on her hand that was holding his. Marinette's heart was racing at the attention he was giving. She wasn't sure what it all meant and was too scared to address it but for now, she relished it. Adrien released her hand and hugged her. He then proceeded to tuck her in.

"Get some rest. I'll come check on you later."

"Alright, thanks Adrien."

"Sleep well Princess."

He then kissed her forehead and quietly exited the room.

It's been a few weeks since Marinette's life changed. Her two biggest supporters were no longer with her. The once cheerful and lively bakery was now dark and empty, just like the home above it. Marinette was sure she would have to have suffered alone through it but, three amazing people stepped in to pull her through. Alya was always there with a hug and a smile and Nino was there with a joke and a grin. But Adrien was there with breakfast in the mornings, a squeeze of the hand in the limo or walk to school, a wink in the hallway and at the lockers, an arm around her shoulder while watching a movie or studying, a kiss good night on the forehead and warm embraces when nightmares invade her sleep. Adrien did care for Marinette, but he wasn't ready to admit it. Neither to himself nor to her. He wasn't sure if he could pursue something with her given the fact she went through such a traumatic experience. He observed her progress. He noticed her smiles were genuine and her passion for design was coming back. He sometimes found her in his father's office exchanging ideas and Gabriel giving Marinette advice and critiques. Adrien hasn't heard her laugh though, so he was determined to bring it back. And what better way than puns.

"Good Morning, Purrrrincess! The chef promised that breakfast today would be the cats meow!"

"Mari! Don't you think this yellow and black shirt is un-bee-lieveable?"

"You look pawsitively radiant today, my Lady."

"Hey Mari! I think you should be my partner today, we sure do have the chemistry for it."

After many more attempts, nothing worked to make her laugh. Adrien was using his best material here and he had nothing to show for it. He and Nino were waiting for the girls outside of the classroom to go to lunch.

"I don't get it. Those were some of my best ones!"

"Hey man, not everyone is a pun person. And seriously, they weren't that funny."

"You have no sense of humor."

Adrien then proceeded to lean against the wall but it was further away than he anticipated and fell to the ground. Nino began to laugh but soon another laugh was heard. It was loud, high-pitched and sounded like it was from deep within. Adrien looked to see not only Alya was laughing but Marinette as well. She had her eyes closed, hands gripping her stomach and doubled over. A big smile on her face and tears in her eyes. Adrien was so happy to hear her laughing again after so many weeks of not hearing it. It was music to his ears and from that point on, he vowed to make sure she could laugh all the time.