Desideratum

Chapter 37

Cadence had already stormed out of the car with Spaceball right behind him by the time Luka reached the other side of the vehicle to help Marinette out.

She placed her hand in his and slipped outside, gazing over his shoulder at the blinding white scenery. Luka had brought them to the outskirts of the town, stopping in front of a rustic chalet with a large yard. It was the perfect size with the perfect location, and the surroundings were entirely covered in snow—which, she noticed from the corner of her eye, seemed to greatly amuse and entertain Cadence.

"This is beautiful," she declared, her eyes sliding back to the man standing at her side.

He grinned. "Wait till you see the inside," he said as he opened the door to grab her coat from the backseat. "Have you been here before?" she inquired, genuinely curious.

"Yes." Lightly shoving the door shut, he held her coat out, waiting for her to slip her arms into the sleeves.

"Are you starting to see the world twice?" she teased.

"Hmm," he hummed, smiling as she turned around and he bent down to kiss her nose. "And you're starting to discover it."

She raised an eyebrow, a mischievous glint in her eyes. "Really?" she challenged. "Because from what I know about you, you're probably going to help me explore the bedroom—and that's about it."

Laughing, Luka tugged her in his arms.

A squeal from behind them prevented their conversation from continuing.

Marinette stood on her tiptoes and peaked over his shoulder in order to see what had happened, before she rolled her eyes and slipped past him.

"Cadence, be careful," she chided, displeased, watching as her child rolled around in the snow as if it was the first time he saw it. The dog's obvious enthusiasm was probably not helping. "You're going to catch a cold."

"So what?" he retorted, grinning.

Marinette huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. "So then you'll be complaining all day long and I'll have to deal with you." Cadence laughed, sitting up. "Well, you signed up for it when you had me."

Marinette rolled her eyes. "Yeah, my bad," she muttered, though it was obvious loud enough for both Cadence and Luka to hear, because they burst into laughter.

The latter brushed a hand over her lower back as he passed by, heading for his son and sweeping him up into his arms once he reached him. Marinette furrowed her brows in amusement as she watched them whisper to one another, silly grins on their faces as the dog barked and wagged his tail at their feet.

Smirking, she leaned against the car, arms still crossed over her chest. She knew exactly what was going on through their minds.

"Before you decide on anything," she started, catching their attention, "You should remember that I'm the only one here capable of cooking." Both father and son groaned.

Luka played with Cadence outside almost the entire day after he showed them the house.

As she cooked dinner, Marinette was kept company by Spaceball, who seemed to have been thoroughly worn out by her energetic son. She suspected it was for more then one reason that he stuck to her side, though; she was, after all, an excellent cook.

By the time she made her way outside on the porch to call them in for dinner, they were both soaked to the bone and probably freezing; but they had huge smiles on their faces, and she had to make a conscious effort to keep her own at bay.

After ushering Cadence inside to dry up and change his clothes, she turned to Luka. She shook her head as she reached out to brush some of the snow off his coat. She quickly realized it was useless to even try, though, because it was thickly layered upon the wet material.

"You haven't grown up at all," she complained. Luka laughed. "Yeah, well, I never said I have."

"Yes, you did," she insisted.

He cocked his head to the side. "Did I?"

"Aha."

"I don't remember."

"That's too bad," she said, looking up at him with a teasing glint in her eyes. "A child with the memory of an old man? A bit of an unfortunate combination, if you ask me."

Luka laughed and moved to hug her, but she made a sound of complaint and stepped back. "Don't touch me! You're practically a snowman." Directing a mild glare towards him, she crossed her arms over her chest.

Luka grinned, his eyes sparkled, and before she could make a single move, he had grabbed her wrists and pulled her into his arms, holding her tightly against him.

"Luka!" she complained in a squeal, the cold snow already seeping through her own clothing. Pushing against him, she tried to slip out of his arms, but then he lowered his lips to hers—and she forgot everything but her name. Her restraint faded, her body slackening against his, and she even rose on the tip of her toes to reach him better; seeing as she would now have to change her clothes, anyway, she was ready to let his reproachable actions slip.

That, of course, until he easily turned her around and began to lead her backwards, in the direction of the stairs. Her eyes popped open, a gasp escaping her lips when he tightened his arms around her waist and picked her up.

"Don't you dare!" she warned, resuming her struggle to free herself. It was even harder now that her feet were no longer on the ground. "I said I'm the only one capable of making food!"

Luka grinned. "You already did."

Her punch was weak against his chest. "Luka!"

But he simply laughed and, in one swift movement, threw her on the ground. She squealed, but it was more from the coldness of the snow than the practically nonexistent pain, because he had taken care to soften her fall and was now lying on top of her with the only thing sustaining his weight being his forearms.

Groaning yet again, she hit his chest, but then laughed as he kissed her. "I can't believe you!"

Luka grinned against her lips and rolled over, holding her on top of him by her hips. "I know," he murmured softly, one of his hands coming to brush a lock of dark hair behind her ear.

Nothing really mattered for her after that—nothing but the feel of his lips against hers and his fingers tangling in her hair, his hand resting securely on the small of her back and his warm body beneath her.

Only after a while did the cold become bothersome enough to burst through their bubble.

Later that night, Marinette found herself in the darkened living room, curled up in front of the fireplace with a sleeping Cadence using her lap as a pillow. Spaceball was lying closer to the fire, made into a big ball of yellow fur, but his ears were perked up and his beady eyes would peek out from where they were buried in his belly every time he heard movement.

A smile pulling at the corners of her lips, Marinette busied herself by brushing locks of hair away from her son's forehead, gently tracing his smooth skin.

She had always loved Cadence. She had loved him from the moment she found out she was pregnant. He was the most precious person in her life, the one who mattered most, the one who came before everything. She would do anything to see him smile… and sometimes, it surprised her—this powerful, all- consuming love she had never thought she would feel.

"Hey," Luka made his presence known in a hushed voice as he stepped over a stray pillow and slid down to the floor beside her. He had two cups of hot chocolate in his hands, one of which he handed to her.

"Thanks," she whispered as she accepted the white mug, one hand still running tenderly through Cadence's hair.

Luka couldn't help but smile widely as he watched them—the two most important persons in his life. He didn't know what he would do without them now that he had them; he couldn't remember what his life had been like before the two of them had stepped into it—and he didn't even want to remember.

This was his life. These were the cards he had been dealt. The way he had managed them was his own responsibility—and perhaps he had managed them exactly like he had been supposed to. Perhaps the events that he had always hated so much would have happened even if he had been the perfect husband and exactly the man Marinette deserved. Perhaps they would have happened even if she had known exactly what he thought and felt and understood what he was going through without him having to voice it.

The point was… it didn't matter. The present was what mattered. Marinette, Cadence, him—them. He didn't want to focus on the past, but on the future— on their future.

Marinette smiled, throwing him a weird look when she noticed him staring. "What?" she asked.

Luka smiled. "Nothing," he answered with a shrug. "It's just that… I never thought I'd see you like this again. I never thought I'd be given a second chance. I never thought…"

"…You'd be here with me now," she finished for him. He nodded.

"Me neither." She smiled, and the tears in her eyes shone in the light of the flames.

Luka shifted closer and caressed her cheek. "I want to leave the past behind," he whispered, eyes tracing the soft contours of her skin. "I don't want to keep thinking about what I did wrong or about what you did wrong or about what I could have done to stop you from leaving me… about what I would have given to have you and Cadence by my side all these years. I want…" He swallowed, and his eyes met hers. "I want to look to the future, and see you there—for sure."

Marinette smiled, and at the same time a tear slipped down her smooth cheek, leaned in and kissed him.

There was a promise engraved in that kiss. A promise they both willed to protect and respect for the rest of their lives.