Chloe was left with nothing to do on the first day of summer vacation. Sabrina had gone on a family vacation, but was due back before summer ended. It was very common for families to go on vacation for as much as a month. Which is why you'd expect the daughter of a mayor to be basking on tropical beaches or something. But something about daily akuma attacks and newcome superheroes just made a mayor busier! Her immediate next thought was to call Adrien up- oh, right. Things were changing between her and Adrien more than ever. What was with that dumb cat, spewing out a wise lesson out of nowhere? Still… the night Chat Noir had said those things to her - no matter how much she told herself it was nonsense - something about his voice made it persuasive. And now, just two days ago, she'd found out he was right. He was dating Marinette, of all people, though predictable. Nothing she could do or say would change Adrien, he loved her in a different way, but she might've ruined that too. Could she even approach him anymore?
Adrien had been an obsession all this time and she hadn't really acknowledged it. So what was she supposed to do now? The next best thing to do, was sit around in a hot bath. But with baths came time to reflect, and all she could think about was-
"Ugh, this isn't soothing at all," Chloe threw the plastic bath bomb packaging on the floor after reading it again.
Chloe stepped out of the bath tub and grabbed a towel. She dried herself and undid her bun, there was a knock on the door down the hall. The entrance of her room was a bit far from her bathroom.
"What is it, Gautier?!" Chloe covered herself with the towel, as though Gautier, her butler, could see right through her bedroom walls.
"There is someone here to see you, Mademoiselle!" Gautier paused, "Should I send them away?!"
Are you kidding, "No, no! Just give me a minute!" oh God, that sounded desperate, "No need to wait around, Gautier, I know you have things to do, just leave them there. I'll open the door when I look presentable!" Chloe rushed around with her towel, who would come without warning her? She looked terrible! Knowing someone was waiting outside her door was too much pressure to be able to put on makeup and-
"Alright, but no need to keep your guest waiting either! You can relax, it's a friend!" Gautier walked away.
A friend? Well, that didn't mean she could open the door in a towel and with her hair all humid. She put her hair back in a bun, and put on her fluffy, red with black polka dotted bathrobe.
She walked over and opened the door, she held her breath and almost smiled, but she shook it off, "Adrien?"
"Hey… Chloe," Adrien's voice cracked a little.
Chloe looked away, "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be with Marinette or something?" She looked back at Adrien, "I'll bet she doesn't even know you're here, there's no way she'd let you come."
"Actually, she's the one that suggested I come here," Adrien tugged on his shoulder bag, he'd brought it mostly as a place to keep Plagg.
Chloe's face softened, "What? Really? Wait… that means it wasn't your idea. You wouldn't have come-"
"Don't get me wrong, I wanted to come. It's important. Can I come in?" Adrien ducked his head slightly as a way of asking permission.
Chloe stayed quiet for a moment, then stepped out of the way to let Adrien in.
Adrien walked with Chloe to her bedroom and sat on the ottoman at the foot of Chloe's bed, while she went over to her walk-in closet to pick something to wear.
Chloe opened the closet doors, "So, what's up?"
Adrien stared at the tied curtain that Chloe was standing behind, "Well, I want you to know that we're still friends. I'm willing to put everything that happened last school year behind me, as long as you make sure that next year will be different." He heard Chloe's bathrobe fall on the floor, one of the sleeves peeked out from behind the curtain.
Chloe opened a drawer, "What? Didn't you notice? I've already changed my attitude since Monday, isn't that a good thing?"
"Chloe, ignoring us isn't the same as being nice to us. Not to mention that since Monday, you've been meaner to other classmates. I'm worried about you, I don't think you're as okay as you try to look," Adrien leaned on his knees and looked at the floor.
Chloe came around the corner fully dressed. She stood in front of Adrien and raised her hands, "So, like, what? I try to get between you and Marinette, and you don't like it. I stay out of your way, and you still don't like it… well, shit," She slapped her hands on her thighs and walked past Adrien to the bathroom.
Adrien shifted around ,more in Chloe's direction, but didn't look directly at her, "No Chloe, that's not the problem. Yes, I want you to let Marinette and me be happy. But there's got to be some sort of place in between, where you're happy too."
Chloe blinked at her reflection, and pulled out a hair tie from her bathroom drawer, "I am happy. So I was a little possessive of you, it was a mistake I shouldn't have made as a friend. At school, I showed you a side of me that I wish you hadn't, and it wasn't even me… but geez, Adrien, a girl stops going crazy over you and you think they aren't happy. A little self-centered, don't you think?"
"That's not- and you're one to talk," Adrien looked up at Chloe, she was holding her hair in a ponytail and stretching out a hair tie. Just when Adrien finished his sentence and looked up at her, her thumb slipped and the hair tie flung towards Adrien's face.
Adrien squirmed when the hair tie flicked his cheek. Chloe tried not to laugh, "Ohmygod, I'm sorry, that was not on purpose!"
Adrien picked up the hair tie and tugged on the other end, "I'm sure it wasn't."
The hair tie flew and hit Chloe's nose, "Hey!" She marched out of the bathroom and picked up a pillow, "It really wasn't!" and whacked Adrien in the face with it.
Adrien fell backwards in his seat, "If that's how you wanna play it," he turned and reached for another cushion.
"Don't you dar-mph" Chloe nearly lost her balance when the pillow drove into the side of her face.
Chloe bent over to pick up the pillow she'd dropped, "Oh. You just made a big mistake."
Adrien laughed, this was the Chloe he once knew, "Did I, now?"
Chloe swung. Adrien countered. The cushions collided like swords. A pillow hit down on Adrien's head. Another on Chloe's hip. It didn't end until Chloe gave up and threw a blanket over Adrien.
"Ah, trying to pull the wool over my eyes I see," Adrien found a corner and lifted the blanket above his head.
"Ew, no it's velvet silk, obviously. Wool is so ugly," Chloe took the blanket and tossed it onto the bed.
Adrien got up, "It was supposed to be a joke, but, wool isn't ugly."
"Well, maybe not, but what can I say? I like shiny stuff," Chloe caressed the sheets, she glanced at Adrien, "What are you looking at me like that for?"
Adrien half-shut his eyes, "I missed you."
Chloe went quiet.
"Seriously, Chloe, you can talk to me. What's wrong? I can help," Adrien came closer to Chloe.
Chloe sat down on the bed, "No, you can't."
"Why?" Adrien went back to the ottoman.
Chloe looked towards the head of her bed, she picked up the teddy bear that sat there, and studied it, "Because you're in love with someone else."
Now it was Adrien's turn to have no words.
Chloe scooted back and criss-crossed her legs, "There's no problem except that you don't get that I need time to get over it."
"I'm sorry," Adrien looked at the floor.
"Don't be," Chloe tugged on the teddy bear's ear.
Adrien leaned forward, "Mind if I ask, why you've always been like that at school? Even before I started attending? Was it… Was it because you were afraid of what people would think of you?" A lash out to those who are able to be themselves, perhaps?
"No… but it's… selfish," Chloe mumbled.
"So what? Tell me," Adrien's eyes narrowed.
Chloe lied down, "I dunno… it's not fair to you."
"How could that be? It wouldn't be fair to not tell me," Adrien touched the back of Chloe's hand.
Why? Because she couldn't tell him everything, that's why. And because it had to do with, "Your mother," Chloe shut her eyes, to keep them from watering, "Was just as important to me, as she was to you." Her eyes shot open, "And it just feels so wrong to whine about her, to you."
Adrien swallowed hard, "I understand. But I feel as though, in a way, she was your mother too. You had it worse than me."
Chloe's mother, Désirée, was stiff and self-absorbed. Another person consumed by the infection of luxury. 'Only the best' might as well have been her motto. Her hair was always short, around her jaw. A bang hung from her left side, but didn't quite cover her eye. She loved fur, wore it everywhere with gowns and the like. She was always trying to make Chloe do the same. Rich girls had to present themselves a certain type of way. But Chloe was stubborn, and far too out of hand. Certainly, Chloe loved the high-end clothing and other spoils that came with money. What she didn't like was the boredom that came with it.
She was a wild little beast. Naturally, when their paths crossed at a very young age, she'd drag Adrien into the trouble she caused. They were only about six-years-old when they met. Adrien was rather calm, he liked to sit and read with his mother. Chloe was a ball of energy, reading was not an option. Adalene had no problem adjusting to that. Besides, she loved the adventure in Chloe. Adeline was the only defender Chloe and Adrien had when they, rather... Chloe, got into trouble. Adrien tried to keep her in line, but there was no reasoning with her. No matter how much he'd tried, that time 8-year-old Chloe broke into a room being prepared to be a dinner hall, he couldn't keep her away from the desserts.
She had said to him, "C'mon, your dad never let's you eat sweets. And I think you're a little young to be watching your diet."
And Adrien, being the obedient child that he was, "It's all so unhealthy, I don't have any reason to want it." Little did he know that temptation and craving built with time, and after years of having literally, no taste of freedom, he wouldn't be able to resist.
Nonetheless, Adrien's demeanor had no influence on Chloe, and she attacked the cakes, puddings, macarons… up until the four parents entered the room. Her father, André, was speechless in a bad way. Désirée was outraged. Gabriel was shocked, but mostly concerned in looking Adrien up and down, to be sure he had nothing to do with it. Adalene on the other hand, couldn't help but to laugh. She liked to help Chloe along, she wanted kids to be kids. Much later she would pull Adrien out of photoshoots, building many arguments with Gabriel.
Chloe became free-spirited, and no longer felt trapped by her own mother, who had no motivation to try any harder on her daughter. As for André, he only enjoyed spoiling her, easily swayed by whatever she asked. Although,sometimes, her behavior made him want to send her to school and make friends with normal citizens.
Chloe turned on her side and hugged the teddy bear, "When my mom died in an accident, it didn't feel real. And when I suddenly felt sad, I got angry with her. Why was she making me feel sad? I had no reason to miss her, we had no connection," she sniffled, "She could have fucking stabbed me before she died, and I'd still be here… crying over her. Why?!" The emotional bias towards a family member was a curse Adrien didn't know, and had yet to understand.
"That's a little extreme, don't you think? But, maybe it's because you did have a connection. But it was just attached by such a thin line, that you didn't see it… what I'm trying to say is, maybe your mom just wasn't good at showing affection, but she's still a mother," Adrien leaned on the edge of the bed from his seat, inches away from Chloe.
"No offense, Adrien, but you can be a little naive sometimes," Chloe's laugh was heavy.
"I know, what I said wasn't very realistic. I just… have a bad habit of looking for answers, where there aren't any," Adrien traced the stitching on Chloe's comforter.
"It's optimism, at least," Chloe ruffled Adrien's hair. She remembered seeing his hair like this when he'd first wake up, but somehow it looked familiar in a different way.
"I didn't get it on my own," Adrien smiled.
Chloe smiled back, "Well, then you got it from your mom because I didn't get it on my own either," she went serious, "That's why then was the time I needed her the most."
Désirée had passed when Chloe was 9-years-old. Adalene made sure she, Chloe, and Adrien had spent quality time together after that. It wasn't anything new. After all with an oblivious mother and an unpresent father, it was nearly easier to make decisions for Chloe than for her own son.
Chloe was always following Adalene, sometimes secretly. When a child enjoys anyone's presence, they will indeed follow you. Sometimes, you don't notice you are being followed. And that is exactly why, Chloe saw something she wasn't supposed to. Miru the Peacock kwami, it turned out, was hovering next to Adalene. After an exchange of words, Adelene was transformed into none other than Cresta, the famous heroine. Adrien hardly remembers anything about the heroes Cresta and Cattleheart, because they were rarely in Paris, or in France even. But Chloe had met them, and had promised to keep it a secret. Now she had a hero to look up to, one who was her hero in and out of costume.
But then, "She disappeared. And I was left with no explanation as to why," a lie, Chloe knew very well that she'd disappeared while on another mission as Cresta, but she couldn't tell Adrien, "That's what broke me. You're a lot stronger than me, you kept going as you were, in some instances you made it seem like she was still here. You tried to enjoy things the way she taught you to enjoy things, even now you're doing that. You tried your best to go to school, like she always wanted you to, it's probably the only reason your dad finally gave in. But me, I took a step back. I took several steps back. Something made me feel as though I had to listen to my mom again, now that no one was there to tell me otherwise. When my dad sent me to school, I wore my hair perfectly the way she'd put it, I acted classy and superior like she had wanted me to, and all that did was make me look like a snob at school. What was I supposed to do? My potential friend list was going down dramatically. My luck couldn't get any worse," Chloe made a large gesture, "And then this girl comes waltzing in. She's clumsy, she's shy, and everything goes wrong for her. But you know what? She still smiled, and she was friends with everyone." And she was so damn friendly too, just like- no!
Adrien smiled slightly, then frowned, "...and, so, you took it out on her the most?"
Chloe rolled her eyes, "Yeah, she pissed me off the most," she smiled affectionately, "But when you texted me that you might start going to school, I was so excited. I finally had a friend at school. And a sexy one to show off at that."
Adrien raised an eyebrow, "But what about Sabrina. How'd you meet her?"
"Well at first, she was just the easiest, she was clueless. But then, she was really nice. And she was kind of funny. That's why I chose to give her your mom's brooch. Sometimes, I felt comfortable being myself around her," Adalene had given Chloe a brooch, little before her disappearance, when Chloe had asked to be her sidekick.
Now that Cresta was gone, she had Ladybug, "Ladybug reminds me of your mom," Chloe heard herself say. Oh no, it had slipped.
"Me too," Adrien sighed, wearing a melancholy smile.
Chloe looked surprised, but she took it as an opportunity to change the subject, "So… this talk about you acting more freely like your mom, reminded me of something I wanted to ask you about. My dad got a phone call from your dad, he said you were missing, and then suddenly said 'nevermind' and hung up. Now, I don't want to jump to conclusions and say this had to do with Marinette, but… "
"It does, but not as in it's her fault, it's completely my fault. But, I just get lost and carefree when I'm with her. And, you're not the first person to say I'm changing. I'm sort of grounded right now because of all that, I won't go into detail, but I did come here with permission, somehow. It seems like people don't the way I'm changing," Adrien sat back up.
"Well fuck them. I like all this. I'll get back to you on the whole Marinette thing… but you know how long I've been trying to get you to loosen up?" Chloe sat up and slapped Adrien's arm.
Adrien chuckled, "Hey, I've even been eating a lot of sweets lately."
Chloe thought for a moment, then laughed loudly, "Ooooh, aren't you bad?!"
"The number one gangster, if I do say so myself," Adrien flicked his collar proudly, he got up, "Oh, and, Chloe?"
"Hmm?"
"Well, you seem like you'll be bored for a while. Next Sunday my dad's letting me off the hook, and Marinette, Alya, Nino and I going to Disneyland… if you wanna come?" Adrien grabbed his bag and walked up to Chloe, who noticed he was getting ready to leave and got up too.
Chloe snorted, "No, but thanks. I'd just be a 3rd wheel… or a 5th wheel."
Adrien rested the shoulder strap on his shoulder, "If you say so, but you should really give Marinette a chance. She's a good friend, and she's really sweet."
"Whatever, I'll think about it," Chloe hugged Adrien, she leaned back but didn't let go of his shoulders, "And really? A week? You're lucky your dad know nothing about discipline," Chloe spun Adrien around and smacked his ass. Adrien made a soft, and adorable, noise.
Chloe turned and went back towards her bathroom again, "Just leave already. I know who you're dying to see."
Hey, hope you guys liked this chapter! Please leave any reviews or comments, I'm all ears. If you have any questions (because i tend to leave things a little confusing) don't hesitate, I have answers, whether it be about characters, scenes, or idk... something else. If you want you can ask here, or at eloctromagnetic on tumblr so that everyone else can see the question and answer.