"Adrien, dear?" Sabine asked softly, standing at the door to the bakery to catch the boy before he disappeared upstairs. "Can I talk to you for a moment?"
"Of course, Mrs. Cheng!" Adrien immediately replied and although he couldn't wait to see Marinette, he followed her mom to the bakery.
It was Sunday morning and Adrien came to spend some time with his girlfriend before a family dinner for which Marinette had invited him yesterday. Yes! His girlfriend! Kissing in the rain were quite successful.
He guessed that Marinette's parents would like to talk to him, since he'd started dating their daughter, but he didn't expect that they'd do it so instantly and without a warning… In addition, he was alone now, without his girlfriend by his side. Her presence would definitely help him to face her parents.
"I'd like to show you something." Mrs. Cheng said in a soft tone. "Marinette probably will tell you about it herself, so I think you should know what to expect."
"Is it something serious?" Adrien asked with fear, because it sounded like Marinette's mother wanted to tell him about some terminal sickness of her daughter. He felt a heartache when he thought he could lose her.
"It depends on how to look at it." Sabine just smiled with comprehension. She could read in his thoughts like in an open book.
He sighed with relief, because that smile could mean that a terminal sickness is not an issue. He looked at Marinette's mom and waited. Meanwhile she reached behind and put on a table something he didn't expect at all – a laptop.
"I talked to Marinette yesterday and she informed us that you're dating." She began while the computer was launching. "Tom and I are very happy that you're finally together! We've been supporting you for a very long time. Yet… You must know about something that happened this week, about which you apparently forgot. I have to stress here that neither my husband nor I accept lying. I hope you both had good reason to lie to us. We accounted it for the spell you were under and for your will to protect us, the parents. I assume our daughter didn't want to worry us."
In the middle of Sabine's speech Adrien felt like he began suffering from irregular heartbeat. By the way he forgot how to breathe. He was staring at Mrs. Cheng in horror and thinking about the worst possible scenario – that Marinette's parents forbade their daughter from dating Adrien. In that case he would probably jump from the nearest bridge. Visiting his girlfriend illegally on her balcony was impossible – firstly, he would reveal Cat Noir's identity, secondly – that would be deceiving the parents more than lying. The consequences would be even worse. Fortunately, Sabine smiled and Adrien could sigh with relief.
"So, when Marinette informed us yesterday about your dating status, we got a proof of our assumption that when you had come here wearing those old ponchos, you put on a little show."
"Old ponchos?!" Adrien spotted and his heart skipped a beat. Meanwhile he felt some trembling in his pocket. That could mean only one thing: Plagg was convulsed with laughter.
"Oh, yes! We were a bit surprised by this, but didn't ask. I took some photos that day and I think it's the right moment for you to see them. The more that Marinette's reaction was quite… uhm… surprising…"
Saying those words Sabine chuckled and Adrien felt anxious a little. He had no idea what to expect, especially when Marinette's mom had great time, and he didn't catch the point.
He started understanding the situation after noticing the first photo on the computer. The photo of him kissing Marinette!
He didn't remember this for sure! They were standing in the corridor, both blushed, embraced, with eyes closed. This picture was so intimate that Adrien felt his cheeks burning when he watched it. Marinette's mom discreetly looked away but she couldn't stop smiling. God, these kids were adorable!
"I hope you don't mind that pictures are in a reverse order, do you?" she whispered as if nothing had happened and she began clicking on next photographs.
It was like watching a movie in a "rewind" mode. He saw the moment when he had been embracing Marinette, her face before he had done it, his face when he had looked like he was asking her for a permission to kiss her. He saw their embarrassed faces on over twenty pictures before their kiss.
During this time he was watching them, his mind was working on a new issue. He put together two pictures – taken on the same day – showing two different kisses: Adrien kissing Marinette and Cat Noir kissing Ladybug. How was is possible that he kissed them both within one hour? How was it possible that both photos showed so much emotions and tenderness? What the heck had happened that day?!
Suddenly he saw the picture when he had helped Marinette to take off some rags. He felt hot. Were those "famous" old ponchos? He held his breath. And then Sabine showed him the last photo – the first one she had taken.
Adrien felt heartbeat in his ears.
There was him on the picture. He was taking off the rags with a visible relief on his face. And Marinette was glaring at him. The same way someone else had done many times before. The someone he called His Lady. Ladybug…