"Oh honey, are you sure you're ready?" The worried tone of a loving, protective mother broke the silence. She hadn't intended to doubt her daughter's decisions, but this was a huge step.
The Dupain-Cheng girl, with a weakened smile, forced down her nerves with a quiet gulp. She stood before her parents in the cosy little living room, hands idly resting by her sides, but her fingers tip-tapping against the fabric of her pants. "Well," she spoke dryly, and immediately swallowed again to clear her throat. "It's only a short walk into the park. I'll be back in an hour or so, probably..."
Her father had his arm wrapped around his wife, the most concerned Dad-Expression possible pulling at his features. "Now, Marinette – I don't want you rushing yourself into this. You seem very nervous right now. Maybe we should try again in a few weeks, hmm?" He was freaking out more than his teenage daughter, and while his concern was definitely sweet, he had gone a little overboard.
"Tom, darling..." The smaller woman wrapped in his tight, anxious grasp, scolded him quietly, urging him to ease off.
"I..." Marinette rubbed at the back of her neck, lowering her eyes. Hadn't her dad said nearly the exact same thing a few weeks ago? She tried to push off the grimace starting to pull at the corners of her mouth. She appreciated how much they cared about her, but she had waited around long enough. She sucked in a deep breath, lifting her glance back up to her poor, flustered parents. She thought back to a time before all this happened. A time where she was simply bursting with energy, confidence, and radiated nothing but positivity wherever she went. It was hard for her to believe that was just less than a year ago. How did things change so fast?
"I'm sorry, sweetheart," Tom sheepishly chuckled, loosening his tight hold of Sabine, with a light grin. He then addressed his daughter, repeating an apology to her. "I thought I could keep you safe in here. But you have to go out and spread your wings again sooner or later."
"That's right. And the doctors did recommend we'd have to progress to this next step eventually," Sabine sighed softly. She wiped at the corner of her eye with the back of her finger, keeping her lower lip from quivering too much.
"Thanks, Mom. Thanks, Dad. I'm glad you understand." More importantly, the baker girl was relieved it didn't take all that much to convince her parents. She wasn't quite ready to sell herself and give a speech as to why she felt ready to leave the house again. She just knew it was time. "I'll text you when I'm on my way back?"
Her parents nodded, clearly reluctant to let their little girl go, but they didn't say another word as she turned around and made her way through to the bakery.
She hopped down the stairs, circling her way 'round the staircase, before pushing open the door. Her parents would most likely be heading back down to the bakery themselves in a minute, but not before having a mutual freak out, or so Marinette guessed. As nervous as she felt, she had also anticipated this moment for a long time.
She finally came to the front door, the only thing separating her from the outside world. Bracing herself, she dramatically screwed her eyes shut and began to push at the door…
"Special delivery."
"Huh?" With the door now open, she was finally hit with a rush of all sorts of outdoor noises, all still incredibly foreign to her. However, the sound of a voice that was definitely familiar hit her ears, and so she cracked one eye open. "Oh…!"
Stood there – or rather, parked there on his bicycle – was the blue-haired, soft-hearted Couffaine boy. Marinette saw he had no deliveries stacked up in the basket on front, after she opened her eyes properly again. "Heh, sorry, I don't actually have any pizza…" It had been so long since she last heard his voice. That silky, soothing voice put her mind at ease, even if only for a moment...
Marinette's heart thudded lightly in her chest. It was a pleasant surprise to have him show up at her doorstep, but at the same time, her subconscious was building itself up to scream at her, insisting she was absolutely not ready to spend time with anyone else yet. She plastered on a big grin, giggling along with his words.
"But I heard it's somebody's birthday today," Luka continued.
"Ah..." He had remembered. She wasn't even sure if she'd gotten a happy birthday text from her best friend. Then again, she never checked her phone all that often these days. How sweet of him either way. "You… came all the way here to…?" She tilted her head to the side ever so slightly, prepared to melt at his kind nature.
"Quite the coincidence that we bumped into each other like this," he chuckled, which only brightened Marinette's warm smile. He enjoyed making her happy. "I thought you might like to come on a little adventure."
"A-Adventure?" She repeated, her grin twitching just a small bit. She didn't like the sound of that. Or rather, she loved the sound of that, but this was a literal last minute call. She told her parents she'd only be going for a walk around the park. That was what she told herself for the past month! "I… I, uh… Luka, that's so sweet, but..." She felt a tinge of guilt as she braced herself to let the boy down. Those days of confidence were long gone.
His soft smile dropped, yet only out of concern. He knew Marinette had been in a bad way, and for a moment, he cursed himself for being so foolish. Of course she wouldn't be that much better in such a short space of time. Right? "I'm sorry, Marinette. I didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable."
"Ah… N-No, you didn't…!" She frantically shook her head, wanting to reassure him that it was alright. She paused for a moment after that, finding herself looking into his eyes. Those genuine, sincere eyes… Ones which almost reminded her of… "I'm sure it won't hurt to go for a little stroll?"
Not entirely convinced that she was okay with it, he made a point to double check that she was really ready. "Are you sure?" He didn't want her to be pressured into it, after all.
"Sure as I can be, mhm!" She nodded, putting on a fairly confident front. It was time for her to step out into the real world, even though a hint of nerves were bubbling in the pit of her stomach.
"Well, you're in luck." Seeing that she was okay with it, a sense of relief washed over him. He gestured to the basket attached to the front of the bicycle.
"Hmm…?" Curious, she peered in, and caught sight of a spare helmet. Her eyes widened a bit. "Are you sure it was a coincidence we bumped into each other?" She teased him, but not too much.
"Of course. I always carry a spare helmet. You know, just in case." Luka casually played along, watching as she pulled it from the basket.
"A spare that's pink?" She snickered, pressing him in a playful manner. When he gave a simple nod, she held eye contact for a moment or so longer, pretending to be all analytical and judging. Then, she blinked, deciding to believe his little story, despite the truth being obvious. "Good enough for me." She shrugged, putting the helmet on and hopping onto the seat behind him.
Luka could feel the rush of a familiar warmth to his cheeks when she finally broke eye contact; to him, it felt as though those few seconds lasted forever. He released a silent sigh of relief when she took a seat. Their little back and forth a minute ago was fun, sure, but he didn't want her to know he had spent a long time planning that 'surprise'. So far, so good.
"So, where are we going…?" Marinette filled the silence with some small talk. It helped calm her pounding heart ever so slightly.
He almost didn't hear her over an influx of different worries of the day ahead filling his mind. Snapping himself out of thought, he put on his usual cool composure, glancing over his shoulder to answer. "How do you feel about tracking down André?"
"O-Oh…?" She stumbled a little upon hearing that name. An uncontrollable thought of Adrien flashed in her mind for a split second. Her face had probably drained of all colour, as if she'd seen a ghost. But she was quick to shut it down, plastering on a smile. "That sounds great, Luka." After all, it was just ice cream, wasn't it?
He flicked his glance back to the road ahead. A troubled frown briefly pulled at his features. 'Shoot… Maybe it was too early to suggest that after all…' he thought to himself, only now realising he may have come up with the worst possible plan. He had no idea what to say to comfort her, though. "Are you sure?" That was all he could do – make sure she was alright with the plan. "We could go somewhere else…?"
When he turned to look at her with those soft, understanding eyes, she knew she couldn't be rude and turn him down. She told herself she had to move on sooner or later; not that she wanted to rush into anything with Luka, but rather, that she'd have to be comfortable being his friend eventually. Friends shared ice cream, didn't they? It was normal. She repeated that in her head a few times.
"No, it's alright…" She shook her head, accepting the offer of ice cream. No one could ever replace him in her heart, but she at least had to move forward and strengthen her existing friendships. Swallowing down her nerves, she flashed a smile. "Come on, let's go."
…
"Mmh…" A soft, melancholy sigh passed Marinette's lips. She slipped her eyes shut for a moment, taking some time to acknowledge how far she'd come. The cool breeze and nostalgic, refreshing scent of the Seine... Stepping out of her comfort zone was undoubtedly intense, but she found herself coping well enough. Having Luka by her side helped immensely.
The blue-haired sweetheart gave her a few moments to herself, recognising she needed to take some time to keep herself grounded. After that, he thought it'd be fine to speak up. "Is everything alright?" He felt a little bad for constantly asking that question; the answer was likely obvious, and perhaps she'd grow fed up of it. The last thing he wanted was to come across as annoying, yet he felt somewhat obligated to make sure she was handling her surroundings without any problems. If anything went south, he'd have to take care of her.
She took in a deep breath, and opened her eyes upon releasing a second later. She was greeted by the lovely sight of the calm waves once more. "Mhm," she responded, grateful he took the time to check up on her. She'd finished her simple vanilla cone a short while ago, mostly in silence, watching the world go by.
Luka understood there was no point in filling that silence with empty small talk. She would speak up whenever she was ready. He was calm and patient as always, just happy to be spending time with the one he admired. While she gazed longingly ahead at the beauty of the Seine, he found himself glancing in that direction, too, only slightly to the right, fixating on another kind of beauty. That look of pure bliss and relaxation… melted his heart.
"I forgot what it was like…" The girl mumbled, thinking out loud.
"Hmm?" He could take a guess at what she meant, but he asked her anyway.
"Oh!" She seemed surprised, wondering for a split second when and how Luka became a mind reader. Blinking rapidly, she realised. She turned to him with a sheepish grin. "Aha… I just… I forgot what being outside felt like. I didn't know how much I missed it until now."
"Mmh, I know what you mean," he said, nodding along with her. He averted his eyes toward the water. The shy little grin she just gave him was enough to make his heart skip a beat. There was no way he could maintain eye contact without his cool confidence wavering.
Blissfully unaware, Marinette trailed her glance up to the clear sky. How long had it been, she wondered. Every day and night, cooped up in her bedroom, she could never muster the energy to take a breather up on the bakery's balcony. Although her parents encouraged her to stretch her legs and distract her mind down in the kitchens, she still never got to truly appreciate the wonder of a bright blue sky like before. And now, being free from that cramped cage of anxiety, taking a step toward becoming herself again…
From just one glance, Luka could tell what was running through her mind in that moment. The soft sparkle of tears growing in her eyes became apparent to him, too. He paused for a second, mulling over what he should do to comfort her – or if he should even try anything at all. He figured it would be best if he didn't fuss over her too much, in the end.
After all, her tears were of joy and bliss. No intervention was necessary; all the girl needed was one single moment to revel in all the progress she'd made. She slipped her eyes shut, released a big sigh of relief, and opened them again. "Sorry. I'm okay now," she said, with a small laugh.
"Nothing to be sorry for," he softly replied, in a reassuring tone. As though he just remembered something important, he made a grab for his phone in his jacket pocket.
Marinette watched his movements with slight curious eyes; she wondered if he had to suddenly leave or something… Or worse, he was just being polite all along and had now grown bored of putting up a sympathetic act. She couldn't stop her mind from jumping to dark conclusions. "Ah…?"
He was only making a quick check of the time, however. "Is it alright with you if we stop off at one more place?"
"Oh…" Her cheeks darkened a little. Of course, she was relieved to hear he wanted to spend more time together… But she scolded herself in her mind, knowing she was in the wrong to assume those bad things in the first place. "Y-Yeah!" She frantically nodded, agreeing to continue on, desperately hoping he didn't pick up on how flustered she'd become.
Of course, Luka definitely caught sight of the light pink dusted across her cheeks. He just didn't say anything about it – mostly because he found himself gazing at her in nothing but pure admiration. In fact, he almost forgot all about the next phase of his plan. How could she be so darn adorable? "Mmh…!" He snapped back to reality. Thank goodness he had only really been gawking like a fool for about a split second. "I was thinking, um… We could take a walk around the park." He pulled himself to his feet, casually throwing out that suggestion.
"Hmmm…" She hummed thoughtfully to herself, debating on whether or not that would be too much. "Well, my initial idea was to visit the park…"
"I guess I'm a mind reader after all," he chuckled, before leaning down and offering a hand to help her up.
A teasing smirk pulled at Marinette's lips in response. "I knew it." She gave a nod in affirmation, and then gently placed her hand on top of his. When he securely tightened his palm around her fingers, she felt a spark of sorts, which she hadn't experienced in the longest time. That little teasing grin faded, melting into a twisted, confused look of embarrassment. "Th-Thanks…" She stuttered a bit when Luka lifted her up.
With that, the two hopped back onto the bike and enjoyed a ride through the streets, over to the park. It didn't take Luka long to get from one point to another, even at a leisurely pace, which gave them time to make some more small talk. When they finally arrived at their destination, the blue-haired boy put the plan into motion, at last.
"Hold on a sec, Marinette." Just as she got off the bike and prepared to head through the gates to the park, he stopped her in her tracks.
"Hmm?" Blinking in curiosity, she turned to face him.
He took a few steps toward her, and all of a sudden, propped his hands onto her shoulders. "I need you to close your eyes and trust me."
"H…Hu...huh…? What? What do you mean?" Immediately taking the situation way out of proportion, Marinette flared up, jaw dropping and eyes pretty much popping out of her head. She squeaked out those words, staring up at Luka. "W-Wait, not… not now, I'm not ready…!" She protested, squirming in his grip.
"You trust me, don't you?" He offered her a heart-warming grin, in the smoothest manner possible.
She grew hesitant, heart thudding in her chest. "Y-Yes, I do…!" Without realising, she'd clenched her fists at her side, her body all tense and stiff. She stuck her lips out in a pouty, preparatory sort of way, and screwed her eyes shut.
With her eyes now closed, Luka could finally let out a silent snicker, dropping the serious act. Poor Marinette really got the wrong end of the stick. Still, he'd never directly tease her for that. Composing himself, he tightened his grip on her shoulders a bit more, and… simply turned her toward the gates.
"E-Eh…?" When the thing she expected to happen didn't happen, she had a sudden urge to open her eyes again. "What's going on?"
"That'd be telling…" He laughed lightly, before reminding her to keep her eyes closed. "Go on, start walking forward. I gotcha."
"Ah… Right…" That was again she'd made a show of herself. She gave a defeated grunt, and began to take small steps forward. Blindly setting her feet down in all different spots was, naturally, a bit of a challenge for her. She shuffled rather awkwardly, despite knowing he wouldn't let her trip over.
It took quite some time, and an ounce of encouraging words from Luka, but eventually, they stopped at a certain point within the park.
"Are we there yet?" Marinette asked, for about the fifth time already.
Not that he minded, or anything. He released his grip on her shoulders, setting his arms back at his side. "Yeah. You can open them now…"
Curiosity had been gnawing away at her the entire time, her head filled with thoughts, wondering what could possibly be going on. All she could guess was that he'd planned a surprise gift for her somewhere in the park, but nothing could prepare her for what she would feel as soon as she slowly peeled open her eyes.
"Surprise!"
A chorus of familiar voices and faces rushed at her, all at once. "O-Oh!" She gasped, a whole muddle of different emotions taking over. Stood before her were the only friends who stayed by her side during her darkest days. A small crowd, for sure, but they were the ones she cherished most in her life.
"Happy Birthday, girl!" Alya broke out into a huge grin, being the first to dash forward and smother her best friend with a hug.
Luka stood at her side, smiling all proudly. "Sorry for the delay… It was a bit of a task to get her here with her eyes closed," he said, to the others.
"A-Alya…" Marinette could barely remember the last time she felt another's warmth and comfort, aside from her parents. She reluctantly lifted her arms, lightly returning that hug, almost as if she had forgotten how to do so correctly.
The brunette held onto her friend a bit longer than she should've. After all, she had missed giving her best friend hugs, too. "I'm so glad you were able to make it today." She pulled back eventually, eyes narrowing as she smiled with sincerity.
"Y-Yeah, it's… it's all thanks to…" She gestured over at the boy beside her. He was a sneaky one, that was for certain. He played it all casual and cool since the moment they met up earlier.
"We prepared some food for you!" Rose beamed, presenting a simple white box in her hands. She gently nudged her girlfriend, as though reminding her to also show off the other box.
"O-Oh, yeah… it's just some cakes and stuff, nothing too fancy…" On cue, Juleka murmured a vague explanation in her usual reserved tone.
The blonde nodded excitedly along, practically bursting at the seams with pride of their joint baking effort. "Mhm, mhm! They're super tasty!"
"How would you know that…?" Juleka quietly wondered.
"Um…!" She froze.
Marinette softly giggled. Even though she felt glad to see everyone again, and witness all their unique quirks and humour once more, it was still a bit much for her to handle. She broke out into a cold sweat, pressure slowly rising in her chest like a balloon; a dizzy spell washing over her, something she'd experienced many times before. She played it cool, inhaling deeply and plastering on a smile, so her friends wouldn't notice nor worry.
"Ah, and we can't forget your presents…!" Alya interrupted, clasping her hands together.
"Oh? You didn't have to…" Part of her thought she didn't deserve their kindness. Their sweet words, their love, even their gifts. She sighed softly, accepting the fact that she had a long way to go yet.
"Nah, don't even worry about it." Nino reassured her, propping his hands on his hips.
"It's your birthday, of course we gotta get you some goodies!" Alix piped up, in defense of those awesome presents.
The birthday girl in question rubbed at the back of her neck, smile twitching ever so slightly. While her friends spun on their heels to move over to the pile of presents behind, Marinette flicked her glance over at Luka. "Hey, um…" Her words trailed off before she even began. She wasn't quite sure how to ask for his help.
"Is everything alright?" He pouted, concern taking over.
Somehow, he could read her perfectly yet again. "If I needed to get away early, do… do you think…?" She hated sounding so weak. So needy, and vulnerable. Even though she should've known there was no shame in asking for help every now and then. To avoid further embarrassment, she glued her eyes to the ground.
Luka took a couple steps forward, gently resting his palm on her shoulder. "I've got your back. No worries." Internally, he was close to bursting. The fact that she relied on him during a tough spot was a great honour. He'd be sure to never let her down.
She trailed her sparkling eyes up to him, connecting glances for a moment. "Thanks, Luka…" She breathed a sigh of relief, her once tense body now relaxing.
He gave her a pat on the shoulder, and went to go join his sister and friends.
She watched the group for a moment, a pang of emptiness striking her heart. "If only…" she muttered, not brave enough to finish that thought. She clenched her fists in front of her, forcing herself to squeeze out some determination. "Alright! I got this."
…
Darkness wrapped itself over the city of Paris once more; a light splash of silver illuminating where the street lights could not reach. All were sleeping soundly, something that months ago would've been a rarity. Ever since they fell, the citizens no longer had to worry about terrors of the night. Some, however, still ached for the other side of that devastating loss.
In her bedroom, the young Dupain-Cheng girl stirred in her sleep. As much as she could distract her mind and trick it into a sense of ease during the day, the cruel night always tried to trick her into believing she'd made no progress at all.
"Mm… mmh…" Forehead creasing, she mumbled while asleep, a hint of hurt and desperation seeping through.
Outside, a horrible crashing and thudding rang out, piercing the peaceful silence of the night. Without a doubt, it signified the beginning of a new wave of unrest in Paris.
Marinette immediately jolted upright at the sound. "A-Ah…!" Her heart was pounding hard in her chest already, sweat starting to trickle down her forehead. She clutched at her blankets, chest rising and falling rapidly as she wondered if that crash was real, or all in her head.
She waited, quieting her panicked breathing as best as she could. If it were truly real, her parents would've come dashing upstairs to make sure she was alright. However, with each second that passed… No one came. The fear gradually subsided, but now, she was wide awake and had no desire to return to sleep yet.
With a light grunt, she slid the covers off and got out of bed. She stuck a pair of slippers on and made her way up to the balcony, wanting to take a much needed breather. When she poked her head out, the cool, fresh air rushed at her. "Ah…" Refreshed. She headed over to the railing, resting her arms on it.
As she suspected, nothing was out of the ordinary. Street lights spilled down onto the paths below the bakery; all she could hear was the occasional chirp of a bird. "Guess it was a bad dream after all," she sighed, lowering her head and allowing her eyes to slip shut for a moment. She wanted to forget about the imaginary events that transpired in that vivid dream – to allow the cool night air blow lightly through her hair. But of course, when she did close her eyes, he flashed into her mind. "Adrien…" She solemnly whispered.
"Wuaaahhhhh!"
"H-Huh?!" Out of nowhere, a harsh yell of distress hit her ears. She swiftly lifted her head back up, eyebrows raising, and caught sight of something or someone flying through the air at high speed. "Wha…?" It was as though the air had been sucked out her lungs when she thought she recognised them. There was no mistaking that black, full-body suit. The soft rays of the moon mixed with the harsh, unnaturally bright street lights made it all too apparent.
She flinched, recoiling as they collided with the ground just in front of the park. "That's… No way…!" She gripped onto the railing to steady her now shaky hands, peering down over the balcony, unable to believe her eyes.
"Oof! Ugh, alright, you got me good that time… But you won't be able to get me twice…!"
A cold chill ran down her spine upon hearing his familiar voice. That loud yelp could've easily been her imagination making her think it was him, but as soon as he became more vocal, she knew. "Chat Noir…" Her voice came out shaky, half-gasping.
She could only watch, stunned and frozen on the spot, as he pulled out his stick and extended it, wielding it like a bat before charging head-on into the danger. She darted her wide eyes over to the right a few feet, spotting another familiar face… Surrounded by pigeons. "N-No way…! Wah!" She slapped a palm over her gaping mouth, not wanting to attract any attention to herself.
It was over within a couple of minutes. Still, the fact that he'd allowed Mr. Pigeon of all people to land a decent swing at him… Well, Marinette didn't have the time to be judgemental. The pigeon whistle was stomped on, and the kitty called up his Cataclysm to put an end to the akuma.
Marinette's stomach was turning like crazy. Watching the fight, she felt detached from reality… Like she was just reliving a distant memory. She chewed on her lower lip, staring blankly ahead at nothing in particular. So many questions filled her mind, overlapping one another, desperate for answers… But she couldn't bring herself to fully understand what happened.
"Everything is okay, Mr. Ramier…" Below, just across the street from the bakery, Chat wrapped an arm around the slouched victim. He spoke soothingly, offering a gentle smile.
"Oh… Oh my, what ever happened…?" He had his glance fixed on the ground in shame, but then something clicked. "W-Wait… Oh my! Chat Noir…?!" He instantly perked up, overcome with joy – a stark contrast from the confusion and regret a moment ago.
His cat ears lowered a bit from the sudden attention, a blush sneaking up on his cheeks under the mask. "I see you're doing just fine. Do you need me to accompany you back home?"
"Oh, no no! I'll be alright, thank you. But… You must tell me…! Where on earth have you been these past few months? And where is Ladybug?" Xavier gushed over the superhero, but one of those questions stung deep.
Marinette briefly heard it, too. Something began to prickle the corners of her eyes, chest tightening.
"Uh… I…" Chat had no idea how to answer. He averted his glance elsewhere; that just happened to be in the general direction of the bakery. That was when he caught sight of an old friend, at last. "M-Marinette?!" He called out, thrown off guard by her late night appearance.
"Hmm…?" Xavier looked between Chat beside him, and that blue-haired, trembling girl up on the balcony.
She couldn't take it any longer. She made a dash for the hatch back down to her bedroom, without saying a single thing, guilt and panic overriding any other logical reactions. She quickly opened it, tears streaming down her cheeks. A moment later, she slammed the hatch shut and locked away the outside world, nowhere near prepared to deal with the consequences of that day.
What should've been a great birthday… A day where she made had the potential to make some progress… Ended up being nothing more than a reminder that she could never forgive herself.