A/N: Well its been forever. Motherhood keeps you busy. That shouldn't be a surprise. But I am finally getting back into writing. And while self-isolation sucks, and being out of work for now is damn awful, it is nice to have some me time.

So this chapter takes place before the Prologue. Weirdddd I know. I felt it was important to write my story. Its not too graphic though, I promise. The emotional side will come in the next few chapters. And sadly the next two chapters and this one is rather short for me, but I feel like enough is happening. Once things get going they will be closer to my regular chapter lengths. I promise.

I missed you all, and hope this story will be worth the wait. And yes, I am going to finish Please Keep My Secret. I might as well, since I have time.

Enjoy!

Then Everything Changed

Chapter 1

The last few days of Marinette's life proved to be the most exhausting ever. Days upon days of going through pre-labour contractions. The unending aching had been the worst thing she would ever thought to experience in her life. No fight or battle bruises would ever compare to how much pain these contractions caused. Several visits to the hospital, where they were so sure the baby was coming, ended with her being sent home. Frustration and anger boiled over with every instance of her doctor telling her, not yet. Nothing could help the contractions, and so Marinette had to deal with it. Marinette spent her days in the bathtub, refilling it with warm water, again and again. It proved to ease the pain a little. All of that suffering happened and finally brought her to this moment, twenty-three hours after being admitted, finally.

"Marinette, now I'm going to run this bottle across your body. Tell me if you can feel the cold bottle," the doctor said from behind the surgical curtain they hung up, separating the doctors and her lower half.

She nodded. "O-okay Doctor Moreau."

Adrien squeezed her hand as he leaned over to her to whisper in her ear. "You're doing fantastic."

The chill made Marinette shiver when the doctor pressed the cold bottle to her collarbone. "Do you feel that?"

"Y-yes," she answered.

He moved the bottle further down her body. The other doctor's, and nurses around her prepped for the surgery. That curtain was blocking her from seeing anything. She only glanced the top of the heads of her medical team as they moved behind the curtain.

"And this?" Doctor Moreau asked.

She shook her head. "Nothing."

"Excellent, so your body under frozen sedation now and we will begin. Hold tight," he explained.

Adrien gave her a kiss on her forehead and rested his head against hers. She appreciated the warmth he shared, and it brought her some comfort, but this still frightened her. Such a long time since she last slept. Her body ached and begged for some rest from such a rough pregnancy.

The medical team remained silent as they worked, only talking to a nurse when they needed a new tool. The minutes tick by, but still the time seemed to have come to a halt. She wanted to look at her baby. The minutes seemed like hours and no matter how many sweet words or kisses from her calm husband did anything to make the time pass by faster.

Something cut through that and echoed. A sharp cry that pierced the air. Marinette's entire body stiffened and her eyes went wide. Her baby! She noticed Adrien draw away as they both rose to their feet, and Adrien looked over the curtain to glimpse their son. All she observed from her position had been the glee on her husband's face. His eyes, wide with wonder, and his mouth hung open. She never seen such a glow from him before. Not even when they revealed their identities to each other.

She heard him still crying, but she didn't even glance him. The sound both terrified and frightened her. She looked up at Adrien. "Adrien, how is he?"

He sat back down on the small stool they gave him to sit on, and he just looked at Marinette with such a stunned expression. "He's... incredible."

The realization that their baby finally arrived, and she didn't understand what would happen next. No matter how many podcasts she listened to, read or talked to mom friends about it, nothing prepared her for this exact moment. It only became even more real when she caught Adrien looking to her right. Marinette turned to glance at what he stared at but she a jolt of surprise when she saw a nurse right by her side, holding their baby. Before she reacted, the nurse placed the baby on Marinette's chest.

She flinched when the baby screamed in her face and she froze as the sound both burned her ears, but it also just physically hurt her. Why did every muscle in her body hurt when she listened to that cry? She took in a deep breath and placed an arm around her baby, almost by instinct and to ease the pain his cries caused her.

"It's alright," she tried to sooth. So, she sang to him. One of the many lullabies she sang to him while in her womb. Adrien placed one arm around her, and the other rested on hers that cradled the baby. He softly sung to the baby too.

The baby cried for a few more moments, but after almost a full song, he settled and he rested on her bare breast. His eyes closed, and he breathed in softly as he relaxed. Many feelings filled Marinette. Her first child. She wanted her first child so much; a dream to build that family of five she dreamed of for so long. Her precious baby. Relief, joy, happiness, but also something deeper that dug at her. Something that hit her harder than the joyous moment she always hoped for.

Fear, uncertainty, and the realization that no amount of prepping had prepared her for this. She had no clue what she was doing. And she did not understand what would happen an hour from now. A week, or even a year from now, but her husband looked at their baby with such glee and love.

The love many told her she would love her child instantly.

A lump formed in her throat. She had none of that. Was this be normal? Could it just be the exhaustion? Would she feel that love the moment she woke up from a deep, wonderful slumber? Her mother, Sabine, has just talked about how precious she was as a newborn and how happy she was to have baby Marinette in her arms. That her father had all the worries.

But here she was, worried. What the hell was wrong with her? Tears were stinging the corners of her eyes. And that lump has done its damage. And tears fell down her cheeks. Adrien took notice. "You alright?"

She nodded, but she lied. "Of course I am, he's just so beautiful."

It wasn't the baby's beauty that she lied about. He was gorgeous. She wasn't alright. There was something wrong with her, but she had no words to describe it and didn't know if she dared say anything out loud about it. How would she? She was a mother now. She had to be alright. So Marinette just looked at her husband and sent him a smile. The best she ever faked. "I've never been better."

A/N: Please be gentle on me. I haven't written in a long while. Leave that for when I get back going again. In any case, I hope you all enjoyed!