((A/N: This takes place in the senior year of high school for everyone so the average age is 18. There will be more mature language and more mature actions from the characters.

Also, italicization in dialogue indicates that the character is speaking English. There is an exception to this rule and that's in conversations when all characters present speak English and will not be using french in the conversation, for example, dialogue between Sam and her dad. That being said, thanks for choosing this fic and enjoy! ))

Her friends once said that hell itself would rival the arctic tundra if Sam were ever early to class.

A cold chill ran up her back and she gave a spiteful smile to herself as she sat alone in the empty and sterile classroom. Yeah, the devil was dusting off his winter coat, Sam imagined, and debated texting her friends to express her own surprise. Remembering that she had no clue what time it was back home, she decided against it.

In the cool and empty space, she absently stared at the desk in front of her. The new setting was bounds different than what she was used to, as the classroom seemed to look more like her older sister's college campus than a public school. The whole school was different, in fact. No metal detectors, an open courtyard in the middle of the school with no roof, and everything was so clean and untouched by permanent markers. She could be fooled into believing that this was the school's first day of operation if she was going on appearance alone.

Getting used to a new school was no big deal to her, as she was guaranteed to move at least every other year if not every year. It was nothing for her and truthfully this should be no different, except…

Letting her eyes wander over the schedule on her laptop, she could only rely on the room numbers and time beside the class names. It was all Greek to her… or rather, French. Seriously, what was her dad thinking? She knew that deployment location wasn't something that could be controlled but this was the first time she had been out of the country and it had been so fast. She just hoped she fit the puzzle pieces together correctly and ended up in the right classroom for the morning class period.

She was early to class because she hadn't slept a wink since getting off the plane the night before. Instead of laying around in the new, empty apartment waiting, she went ahead and showed up before she was supposed to. She just wanted to avoid everyone and everything, tired and suffering from jet lag. Hopefully, she won't be here but for a few months. She couldn't imagine staying in Paris into the new year and possibly graduating in a different country… that is if she could manage not to fail every class in the first few weeks.

Her head swam as the first voices echoed outside the classroom.

Steeling herself, she took a deep breath and checked her compact mirror. Her makeup was fantastic, considering she didn't do it last minute and spent all night considering her outfit pick for the day. Her look was bold and pop inspired, leopard print cropped top and slim black jeans. Red high tops to match the red hair clips in her split dye hairstyle. Half blonde, half brunette, a suggestion from her friend at her old school. And of course, her long acrylic nails that she tried to change up at least once every few weeks. Living in Atlanta for the past two years had majorly influenced her style and she wasn't planning on letting it go. No, her style was a bold declaration, both a defense mechanism and a grand gesture of self expression.

Popping her earbuds in, she put an aloof face on and tried not to look terrified. Plan A was to ignore everyone until she magically knew French and then be as emotionally removed as she could so that she didn't have to deal with the crippling fears of being vulnerable in a new country in her senior year of highschool. In truth, it was a terrible plan, but she didn't know what else to do besides cry publicly. On the first day, crying wasn't an option. No, she can do that when she gets back to the apartment.

The two girls who had walked in lit up with interest. Sam straightened up and focused on her laptop, which she used to pull up a favorite music video. She heard muffled greetings and closed her eyes to ignore the two.

It was the only defense she had and she hated it.

"Another Friday booked away? Come on man, can't they let you breathe for one day of the week? I can't remember the last time we did something together that wasn't me tagging along for a shoot." Nino complained, understandably.

It had been like this for the past four weeks each weekend planned with shoot after shoot for the upcoming fall fashion season. Adrien was tired of it too, beyond tired in fact. He missed his friends and any free time he had was eaten by his own extracurricular activities. He couldn't miss his foreign language training or his fencing practice. It was frustrating, but there was an end in sight. Next week, Natalie had promised that the entire Friday and Saturday would be free time for him to do whatever he wanted to. He could even have friends over. It was ridiculous but there was nothing he could do about it now.

"I know, I know. Next week will be different." He promised, taking the first step up the stairs to class. Nino, close behind him, tsked and shook his head.

"Are you sure? Because last time they snatched it from you last minute and those concert tickets were completely wasted." His friend reflected, looking up in mourning of the lost concert experience.

He felt his heart sink at the memory. He had felt so bad about it and it haunted him for days. Nino had been looking forward to that for months and it was swiped away like always. Adrien wouldn't care as much if it had been just him that was disappointed, but letting down his friends was the worst. He always seemed to drop the ball, albeit unintentional, but being the let down of the friend group weighed on him. It almost made him wish that his friends would exclude him from important things like concerts or big events since he had no real control if he could attend. It would hurt him so much to stand back, but it would hurt them less in the long run.

No, he shouldn't think like that.

He loved the times that he could hang out with friends and at the end of the day, he knew they'd never hold it against him.

"This next weekend is all yours, I promise." Adrien offered and his friend smiled.

"You promise? I might have to sneak you out if you can't catch a break." he threatened with a wide grin.

At the top of the stairs, Chloe and Sabrina chatted passionately. They were both scowling, which was nothing new, but Adrien couldn't help but hear what they were talking about. Chloe in particular had a voice that was hard not to hear.

"Yeah, who does she think she is anyway?" Sabrina added and Chloe rolled her eyes and groaned.

"I know, what's her problem? It's nothing to me, it's not like I want her to talk to me anyway. She's probably boring and her shoes are definitely knock-offs." She claimed, punctuating her statement with a harsh laugh. It was unfair, he assumed, as most of the people that Chloe directed critique at weren't deserving of it. He was sure this was the case for whoever she was talking about now.

"Yeah, for sure. And her hair? It's like she can't make up her mind, right?" Sabrina added, her lack of confidence showed in her voice.

"Right? She was like "do I wanna be an oaf or a slut?" when she went to her discount salon. And her barber said "both"." Chloe laughed again and her friend giggled. As he took a step closer to the door, the blonde girl spun around to see him and Nino behind her. She straightened up and nearly took his hand before he quickly tucked it around his backpack strap.

"Oh Adrikins, you might want to sit with me today. This really mean new girl stole Nino's seat and no one wants to sit next to a harpie." Her voice turned sickly sweet.

"Yeah, sitting next to a harpie is the worst, huh Adrien?" Nino joked and winked as he slid past them. It was true that Chloe wasn't always the most gentle person, but she wasn't awful. Despite that, he knew her reputation and how his friends felt about her. Still, he said nothing as Chloe glared at the retreating guy, who ducked into the classroom.

"Anyway, don't talk to her. She'll ignore you." Chloe warned and turned on her heel, her ponytail swished behind her. Sabrina looked down and trailed behind.

The class bell was about to ring so he followed the two. Nino was standing awkwardly around, seemingly deciding what to do now that his seat was taken by a new face. Most of the class was already in their seats and accounted for. Adrien caught Nino's gaze and went over to him, seeing what Nino had decided.

"Hmm, I'll sit in the back for now. Maybe the teacher will bring an extra chair or something when class starts." Nino offered, and the blonde nodded along. It was then that he looked over to the new student, who sat beside where he normally did.

She was staring ahead at her screen, eyes fixed away from the world. Has she really been ignoring people? He was sure it was just Chloe over exaggerating. Still, she did look closed off and maybe even a little scary.

Hesitating for only a second he noticed Marinette and Alya had entered the room. Right, if anyone can break a new student out of their shell with a kind smile, it was those two. Instead of taking a seat right away, he held his breath as the two sweetest girls in his class noticed the new student.

"Oh, look Alya." Marinette smiled and waved at the new girl. She walked right up in front of the desk and leaned over, clasping her hands together. "Hi, you must be new here! I'm Marinette and this is Alya. What's your name?" Her kind words drifted to the new student and were met with… nothing. The girl looked up and stared at Marinette, her expression unchanging. After a moment of shared eye contact, she looked right back down at her screen, her lips sealed. Ouch.

"Um, Marinette just asked what your name was." Alya kindly reminded, yet her words met nothing. The girl coldly ignored the two. Dumbfounded, they looked between each other and around to see if anyone else had noticed it. Of course, Chloe had.

"Oh no, seems like not even Marinette Dupain-Cheng can crack her." Chloe taunted. "Say whatever you want, she won't care. Watch. Hey stupid, crop tops are against dress code!" She mockingly called out.

"Chloe, that's not nice! I'm sure she's just shy… oh, or maybe she's deaf?" the raven haired girl thought aloud. Alya crept past Adrien and to her seat, pulling Marinette with her.

"No, honey, deaf people don't need earbuds." She pointed out, frowning to herself.

They both took their seat and having gotten his indirect answer, Adrien snuck a glance at Nino. His friend gave him a shrug. Accepting his fate, he swung his backpack down and took his seat, taking his notebook from his backpack. The first period was math, which wasn't his best subject. He quietly reviewed his previous notes for the test today, yet the odd tension didn't let him focus on his work.

Stealing a glance at the girl sitting next to him, he debated if he should try. Maybe she was just shy? He remembers how petrified he was his first days and how difficult it was to talk to people back then. Making his decision, he leaned over and strained a smile.

"Hey, my name is Adrien. I'm sure you're just shy, right?" He suggested. The girl looked over to him, her hazel eyes blank. She held his gaze, her stony face unchanged. Then, she turned away and yawned aloud.

"No way…" Someone whispered behind him, and he's not sure who it was. If he had to guess, it was Alya.

He pressed his lips together and came up with something. Reaching into his backpack, he pulled out a pack of gum. He pulled a stick of it out and held it out to the new student. Her eyes sparked for a moment.

"Want a piece of gum?" He asked, and gently waved it.

Her eyes traced over it before any progress came to a halt. Her eyebrows pinched together and she looked up at the ceiling. Sighing aloud, she closed her eyes and lowered her head.

"No."

Her voice came out strained and sharp. His friendly smile fell and he retracted his hand. He wasn't sure what to do in a situation like this. He certainly didn't want to sit next to her now if this is how she was. He wanted to give her a chance, just like everyone else, but this wasn't a good start. And to ignore everyone? Maybe she was mean and Chloe was right.

He looked over his shoulder at Nino, hoping that his friend would see his distress. His friend in turn shook his head in disbelief.

The bell rang and class began as usual. Adrien tried to forget the unfortunate situation of having someone unreachable next to him for most of the day.

As usual, class went on and the next period was on them before they knew it. Mixed Media was always a fun class that everyone agreed was interesting. It seemed to cure the worst of moods and Adrien was glad it followed math, as it usually lifted his mood. Whether it was photography, painting, design, or sculpting each day held something lighthearted. He looked over to the new student and wondered if this class would be the one to liven her mood enough to be friendly.

It wasn't like he was watching, but he did notice that she hadn't taken any notes during math at all and stared off into space or scrolled through social media on her laptop. Maybe she hated math as much as he did but he would never waste class like that.

The teacher wheeled in a rolling shelf with a set of tools and a large clump of clay. Along with it, tie on aprons and rubber gloves. Everyone looked to the front with interest, well except one person.

"Today, you'll be working with the person sitting next to you to make a tea cup and saucer out of clay. After it's sculpted, you'll brush a glaze on it and next week I'll bring back the finished pottery from the kiln for you to keep. Sounds fun, doesn't it?" The mixed media teacher encouraged brightly, her brown hair braided in an updo and her eyes were magnified by her thick glasses.

It sounded fun but… not for Adrien. Not with the person sitting next to him. A knot formed in his stomach as the teacher passed out the aprons and gloves. Silently, his seat mate put the apron on and the gloves, her long acrylic nails pushed the glove up her palm. She rolled her eyes and frowned, tugging down at the gloves. He had no issue with his gloves and wondered if he should encourage her, but his words caught in his throat and he decided not to.

Soon enough, the clay had been passed out along with a piece of paper that showed different styles of cups and saucers. He took the clay in his hands and placed it on the rolled out canvas that had been laid over the desk. Voices all around discussed what styles they wanted and their plans for the glazes.

"So, what kind of style are you thinking? Do you want to do the cup or the saucer?" He asked. She looked up at him and tilted her head. "I think this one looks cool." he said, pointing at the english style teacup. She looked at where his gloved finger lay and nodded, still saying nothing.

Without a word, she began messing with the clay, forming the vague semblance of a teacup. Well, it was decided. He'd be doing the saucer. He frowned and began working on the dish shape, trying not to notice Nino laughing with Nathaniel behind him. He wished that was him.

After a while, his saucer was getting to a semi-completed state. He glanced over and saw that the new student had a tea cup shape, now wordlessly shaping the curly handle. She was frowning and her brows were squished down. Yikes, she looked so angry. Still, the tea cup looked nice… maybe he should tell her.

"Wow, that looks just like the diagram. Good job." He faked a smile. He was good at that, yet it still felt strained as ever. She looked in his direction. He gave a thumbs up to accompany his words.

For a moment there was a short, subtle smile before nothing again. Now she looked to her cup and looked even more mad. What had he said wrong?

This was awful. He really hoped he didn't have to sit near her more than just today. He just wanted Nino back next to him. The thought occurred to him and he sighed. School was his only real escape and now, if this continued, he'd have more anxiety to look towards each day. Without thinking, he pinched the bridge of his nose, but let go immediately when the cold, wet clay clung to his skin.

When the bell rang for lunch, Sam stayed seated as the other students began to pour out of the room. Many gave her pointed and suspicious glares as they went past, and she didn't blame them. There was no way she could communicate with anyone yet and trying is useless. She couldn't understand anyone and she knew that the few that tried to talk to her were doing so kindly and to introduce themselves. The worst was the guy who tried to offer her gum. She couldn't take his gum and not be able to thank him or clear the air.

She hated this. Why hadn't she known sooner that she was coming to France of all places? Then she could have at least studied basic conversational French. Anything. How are you? I'm good. Nice weather. Anything was better than this. Besides, she was tired from not sleeping all night and it was catching up to her. She hoped she could navigate the cafeteria because she hadn't brought lunch with her today. Hell, she didn't even know how the currency worked so she would probably get ripped off all the time.

In the empty classroom, she finally got up and followed behind the others once everyone was so far ahead. It didn't take long to catch up and the cafeteria was pretty basic, though a lot of the students had vanished. To where, she didn't know, but it seemed like less than half remained around. Was there another cafeteria? She didn't know. Instead, she kept her distance from the others and kept her head low.

Once in line, she shuffled through her wallet and found the equivalent of one hundred dollars in euros in her wallet. Lucky for her, the lunch menu showed the prices and so when it was time, she was able to pay for lunch no problem. Picking a corner away from everyone, she sat and pulled out her phone to scroll through social media. It was all still United States News and entertainment news, as she hadn't bothered with any French social media yet.

She tried to eat her soup, and it was delicious, but she just felt sick. After a few bites, she placed it aside and tried to distract herself from anything around her. She just needed to get home and ditch the next few days of class for her own mental wellbeing and to try and get some very basic French under her belt.

Of course, it wasn't that easy.

One of the girls who had tried to talk to her beforehand came up to her table and leaned over her. The look on her face said that whatever was coming out of her mouth was not nice, yet she didn't understand a bit of it. All Sam could do was watch the blonde girl gesture and flap her gums. She zoned out completely, letting her resting bitch face do all the work. While the girl spouted whatever negative thing, all Sam could do was observe other things.

The girl was tan with light blonde hair tied into a ponytail and had various luxury items like a Louis Vuitton bag and Prada sunglasses on her head. She had taste, Sam had to give her that.

With no engagement, the girl growled and stomped away, her hands in a fist. Sam frowned, and looked back to the soup. Sick or not, she paid for that but taking another bite wasn't doing it for her. Sorry dad. She picked up the tray and went over to the garbage and return, dropping everything off there. She recalled the schedule and looked at the time. Ten more minutes until class started back. She sighed and decided to get out of the cafeteria and go hide in the bathroom. The blonde boy who had sat beside her was at a table with a group, his eyes met hers for a moment before he looked away. Sorry, I wish I could have accepted that gum, she thought to herself.

She didn't linger on it, and if she did she might have cried. Instead, she was going to hide in the bathroom like anyone reasonable person would do and listen to absurdly obscene music to hype herself up.

"I wonder if we can all collectively go to the principal and get her moved out of our class." The blonde girl smoothed her hair as she thought aloud. She hadn't been invited to sit down, but she was still hovering around, letting her gossip spill to whoever was willing or otherwise opposed to listening.

"That's a little harsh, Chloe. But I admit, I didn't want to believe that someone could be so… blegh, you know?" Alya admitted, her face in her palm. "And we don't even know her name yet. Gah, I wish Marinette hadn't taken lunch at home today." Her wistful sigh drew Nino's attention and he wrapped an arm over her shoulder.

"Relax, we can all just ignore her like she ignored us. For now… What about next weekend? I looked and there's a few movies at the theater we could all go see." Nino's eyes sparked at the thought. That's right, Natalie had promised to let him do whatever for two days.

Adrien poked at the soup, which was nearly gone at this point. He'd often bring prepared meals for lunch, but in trying to avoid the diet that was constantly curated for him, school lunches were more appetizing than he ever imagined.

"That sounds nice. We could definitely go see a movie… though I hear the weather will be nice." Adrien thought aloud. He didn't know if there were any outdoor events in Paris this coming weekend, but he'd look into it.

Alya shook her head and sucked in her cheeks. She hadn't let go of her previous worries, and bringing it up again did Adrien no favors.

"I can't get over it. Like I know that being new is difficult, but she yawned at Adrien when he introduced himself. That can only be interpreted as disrespect." she adjusted her black framed glasses and motioned at him.

"Well I gave her an earful just a minute ago. She said nothing, big shock, but I bet she'll come crawling back to apologize any minute now. And when she does, I'm telling her "too bad" because I don't want to hear it." Chloe boasted, smirking as she looked at her nails.

"Did she ever end up saying anything to you?" Nino asked, leaning forward to gauge Adrien's answer. Alya and Chloe both looked to him too.

"Uh, no. She didn't. It's not a big deal, really." Adrien said, shrugging it off. Not because it wasn't bothering him, but because he didn't want drama, especially surrounding him. The thought that his name might get dragged into anything and having someone at school hold a grudge was too much for his anxiety right now. Nino and Alya frowned and Chloe scoffed aloud.

"Don't let it worry you, Adrikins." She gave sweetly before her tone soured, "I bet I can get her out of our class somehow, someway."

"I think I'm going to wait and see what Marinette says. She went home for lunch and decided to grab some fresh chouquettes as a welcoming gift. If anything will show if she's mean, it's that. Even the meanest people crumble for a dessert." Alya added, stabbing at her salad.

Ah, Marinette. Of course she would do something sweet like that for a new student. Despite what everyone was saying too. Part of Adrien wanted to see Marinette solve the problem like always, but he wasn't sure if she could.

"Oh, that's a good idea… but tell her not to waste her breath if the newbie turns that down too." Nino gave realistically.

"Shhh! Here she comes now. Watch, she's going to apologize." Chloe warned, and turned her face away to look aloof.

He looked up to watch the new girl walk closer, her bag swung over her shoulder. She met his eyes for a moment and walked right past them.

"Wow, that was quite the apology, Chloe. Should have made a bet on that one." Nino teased.

"Lunch isn't over yet. Bet she's going to go sharpie in her eyeliner." Chloe rolled her eyes and pulled out a contact mirror. "Whatever, this is ridiculous. I'm gonna go tell Sabrina about it now." she announced and went off.

"Marinette is going to be late… again." Alya frowned, looking at her texts. Nino shrugged and grinned.

"Classic Marinette. Well, now that Chloe's gone, let's talk plans." Nino grinned.

Adrien and Nino had talked during their remaining lunch break and Nino had come up with a plan. From his friend's perspective, the new girl obviously didn't care to be friends with anyone so Nino would politely suggest that he get his seat back and the new girl could sit in the back where she would be more comfortable. It was a win-win, or so Nino had put it.

Adrien was a little skeptical, but decided he'd go along with it anyway. He just hoped that if she really was mean and scary, that she wouldn't get mad at him and take it out on him for the rest of the school year. It was unique, he had to admit, having the issue that someone disliked him. He had it once or twice before, but normally it was resolved quickly or warranted in some way. And the usual for Adrien was people around him being maybe a little too friendly and kind to him, given who he was and what his father was famous for.

Still, Nino's plan was put into action the moment they got into the classroom. The new girl hadn't arrived yet, and Nino didn't want to move her stuff without asking, so they both awkwardly hung around until she showed up.

And once she did, she made a bee line for her seat, only for Nino to halfway block her path.

"Hey there, I um.. noticed you're not super talkative. You know, sitting in the back row is great because you don't have to talk to anyone." Nino smiled and sugarcoated. The girl stared at him blankly. This isn't a good idea. Nino gave Adrien a quick, nervous smile, but continued anyway.

"What I'm getting at is that… well, I normally sit with Adrien. We don't get to hang out much so we always sit together. Thats um… my seat in a way." Nino fumbled his way through. Adrien watched anxiously, crossing his arms.

The girl just stared at him. She didn't say a word. She just blinked and looked away.

Instead of answering back, she ducked past him and to her seat. Well that was a bust. Nino, mouth agape, stared at Adrien as they both wondered what on earth they could do better. The bell rang, and the teacher came in. Defeat.

The girl was about to take her seat, but the teacher called out.

"Young lady. Do you know what you're wearing?" She asked and tapped her foot. Right, Mrs. Bustier was a stickler for dress code. The girl ignored the teacher and took a seat. Everyone in the class held their breath. The teacher looked at the roster and then called the girl's name out.

"Samantha Wilson. Come here." She urged and pointed at the ground in front of her. The girl, Samantha, looked up in surprise. She looked around and slowly got up and tread past Adrien. He gladly took his seat. Chloe giggled to herself at the prospect of the new girl getting into trouble.

The girl stopped in front of the teacher, and it was a good time to really take in her outfit. It looked like the New York inspired street fashion that his father's modeling company debuted last season. Animal print, bold primary colors, and black. It was fashion forward for sure, but in a way some might find gaudy. To Adrien, it was all just clothes.

"This top is unacceptable. I know you're a new student, but you should check your student handbook. Today I'll let it slide. Do you understand?" Mrs. Bustier began and to no one's shock, she just stared at the teacher. There was silence for a moment.

"I said, do you understand?" the teacher repeated and Samantha stared back like a deer in headlights. Slowly, she shook her head.

"What do you not understand? You should have read the handbook." The teacher continued, again met with nothing. The elder woman's frown deepened. "Don't think I haven't noticed that you haven't been doing any class work today. You haven't taken notes or read along with the class. That is unacceptable if you want to do well in this class. What's the issue?" The question hung in the air and the girl looked down.

"I-I don't… know. I don't know." She answered, her voice strange and strained.

"What don't you know? You should know better, you're a senior aren't you?" Mrs. Bustier pressured. Samantha hugged her own arms and repeated herself.

"I don't know." her answer didn't help.

"Wow this is amazing, I can't believe this." Chloe laughed out, her amusement overflowing. The teacher gave her a sharp look as a warning. Everyone in the class was looking around at each other to make sure that they were seeing the same thing.

"Samantha, "I don't know" is not a good answer. You're going to have to explain yourself." This again prompted nothing.

The girl stared downwards, completely detached. What was her deal? He half wondered if she deserved this but staying silent like this wasn't going to help. Why didn't she just speak up? This is only making things worse.

"Samantha Wilson, I am talking to you!" Mrs. Bustier was beginning to lose her cool and her voice was showing it. The girl flinched but still said nothing.

"Go to the principal's office, then, since you won't talk to me." She demanded and pointed at the door, her voice elevated. Adrien held his breath and a pen could be heard hitting the floor. The girl still refused to move or speak.

"Mrs. Wilson, now!" She demanded again.

This time, the girl cracked. She yelled back, her voice furious and desperate. And strangely enough, in a completely different language. Lucky for Adrien, he could understand her.

"Stop yelling at me! I can't help it, okay?! I can't understand you and yelling won't help!" her voice was much louder than the teacher's had been, and there was a collective flinch across the room.

She was speaking English. Why would she be speaking English? Then everything clicked for Adrien. It made sense now. She couldn't speak French. Upon the realization, Adrien relaxed. She wasn't mean, she wasn't ignoring everyone. She just couldn't understand anyone.

"I'm sick of this… I'm so fucking tired. Ugh, I'm going home." she whimpered to herself, all the heat from her voice was gone. Before Mrs. Bustier could say anything, she marched back to the desk and over to his chair. She loomed over him, her determined face quite scary.

"Excuse me." she uttered in English. He understood but stared back for a moment. She looked up and searched her brain.

"Pardon!" she demanded, recalling the correct French equivalent. He obeyed and slid his chair back. She grabbed her bag up and shoved her laptop into it with haste.

"Don't talk to Adrien like that!" Alya called out behind him, but it was not understood by her. She marched around Adrien and towards the door.

He had to do something. He understood and he didn't want her getting in trouble for this. He was the only one who could help.

"Wait, come back!" he called out to her in English. She stopped in the doorway. "You don't understand, do you? You can't speak French!" His words rang out, and he knew that only she understood.

His classmates knew that he had studied English but he had never spoke it around them. The girl turned around and stared at him. This time not a blank, uncaring stare but one that let him know that she understood.

"You can… speak English?" She asked timidly, her voice beginning to shake. He nodded.

"Mr. Agreste, what are you doing?" Mrs Bustier began to question but he gave her a polite smile.

"Please, just a moment." He answered the teacher in his native tongue before returning his attention to the new girl.

"I'm not perfect, but yes. You're going to get in trouble if you leave. Let me help you!" he offered. She took a few steps back into the classroom, ignoring the tapping foot of the teacher.

"You want to help me?" She asked and her voice cracked. She fought it well, but her composure was crumbling. "Then can you tell me what the teacher was yelling at me about?" she asked, her eyebrow pulled upwards.

"Well, it started about um… your outfit. It's out of dress code but then it was about you not answering her or doing class work." He answered, a little embarrassed to bring up her crop top.

"Oh. I see. Can you tell her about me? That I can't understand any French at all, please?" she begged and the first sound of weepiness was creeping into her voice. He nodded and gave her a short lived smile.

"Mrs. Bustier, Samantha can't speak French at all. She hasn't been able to understand anyone all day." He translated and the teacher looked to the new student, her expression softened.

"Can you ask why she doesn't know any French?" Mrs. Bustier requested with a frown.

"Why don't you know any French?" Adrien asked and that was it for the new student. A sob escaped her and she covered her face.

"B-Because I didn't know I was moving until three days ago. My dad was deployed to Paris and we had to pack immediately, I haven't had time to learn a language yet." She sobbed through her palms. He felt for her, he really did. He knew what it was like to be surprised with plans with no preparation. And to think, he thought she was mean and scary. They all had.

"She didn't know she was moving until a couple of days ago. It was a total surprise." Adrien translated over her sobs.

Mrs. Bustier walked over and put her hands on the shoulders of the girl.

"Shh, we'll get you taken care of. Don't worry, it'll be okay." she coaxed and Adrien translated.

"She said that she's going to take care of you and it'll be okay." He gave and the girl peered through her fingers.

"Adrien, do you mind coming with us and helping translate?" The teacher asked. There was no one else to help, he imagined, and he couldn't bail now. Samantha looked at him through her fingers.

"Sure, no problem." He agreed and pushed his chair out as he made his way around the table, ignoring murmurs from other students. The sobbing girl let herself calm a bit and she pulled her hands from her face. The result was big, dark streaks under her eyes all the way to her chin.

The teacher kindly guided the girl to the door when it opened on its own to show a frazzled, panting Marinette. She had a branded baggie in her hands from her family bakery.

"Hey, I'm back. Class hasn't started yet has- oh!" Her eyes widened at the scene in front of her.

"Class has started but it's okay. I have to take Mrs. Wilson here to get some help." Mrs. Bustier explained before turning to the class. "Everyone, quietly study while I'm gone. There's a history quiz today on chapter 3." A collective groan sounded and Marinette idled around the door.

"Mrs. Wilson." the pig-tailed girl said to herself. "Here, I brought you this and I was going to give it to you later but it looks like you need it now." Marinette offered with a smile, ignoring the teacher.

She held out the baggie and Samantha looked from the bag to Adrien.

"Is she giving that to me?" the new student asked, not daring to reach for the bag. Marinette looked perplexed and gave an audible huh at the foreign language.

"Yes, it's a welcoming gift from her family's bakery." He answered back in English. The girl looked down and gingerly took the baggie, her face again crumpling as another sob broke.

"Can you tell her that she made my day?" Samantha sobbed out, her words nearly too difficult to make out.

"Marinette, Samantha says you made her day." Adrien translated. Marinette smiled for a moment before she realized it was him talking.

"Oh, er, good! I'm glad she uh, it liked! Oh, that she liked it." She jumbled her words and sighed, pressing her palm into her forehead. He stifled a laugh.

"That's very sweet, Marinette." Mrs. Bustier confirmed with a soft smile. "Alright then, let's go get this sorted."

Mrs. Bustier led the new girl out, who tried her very best to stop crying. She clutched the baggie close as they descended the stairs to the principal's office.

Adrien followed close behind, now wondering what was next. Did he possibly have a new friend? He didn't know and all he could do now was go along with it all, just as always.