Adrien stepped into the brightly coloured hospital room. Coloured balloons, streamers, flowers, stuffed animals, and anything else anyone could think of adorned the room. Jagged Stone posters and clips from some of his father's fashion magazines hung up on the white, sterile walls, giving them an inch of life.
Funny, the whole decoration of the room had a very cheery vibe. But the incessant beep, beep, of the heart monitor and the anxious, tense expressions of anyone who entered belied the real experience. Everything in this room was a false cheery, an expression ignorant of all hardship and pain and steadfastly determined to remain on the bright, happy side. It was sickeningly sweet and inexpressibly empty. There was very little joy to be seen in that room. But then again, it was the room of Marinette, the girl from his school who always knew how to turn any bad patch of rain into a spot of sun. She was a wonder to be around.

And that's why seeing her now, pale and weak, with tubes running out of her arms and nose to machines hooked up in the corner, weary lines of exhaustion weighing on her eyes, and even her strongest smile accounting for only a faint shadow of what it used to be, Adrien found it harder and harder to keep coming here; to see her deteriorate by the daily. It was emotionally exhausting, and Adrien hated the helplessness he felt every time he walked into that room. It was complete and utter defeat; there was nothing he could do.

As he walked in today, Marinette greeted him with a tiny smile. Her eyelids lay heavy on her face, and the veins on her hands, arms, neck, and even face were protruding from her delicate, bony frame more than usual. Adrien briefly wondered if they'd switched her medications. Again.
Not that any of them were actually doing anything anyway. Adrien wanted to pound his fist into a wall. There was one job for them; one job they had to do. And yet, no matter how many concoctions and dosages they tried, nothing was working. The disease continued to rage inside her body, and the Marinette everyone knew and loved began to deteriorate. Nothing could destroy the disease laying peril to Marinette's insides, nor the anger that was laying peril to his.

Marinette's parents, Tom and Sabine, greeted Adrien with warrior-weary faces as he stepped farther into the room. Marinette made a small gesture with her head, and Tom and Sabine rose to exit the room, Tom laying a hand on Adrien's shoulder before leaving. Confusion briefly flashed over him before he turned his attention back to Marinette. He nearly winced. She was even paler than yesterday. Taking the seat that Tom had vacated, Adrien leaned in close to the bed and clasped his hands in front of his knees.

"So, how are you feeling today?"

The corner of Marinette's lip turned up.

"Tired. The doctors are trying me on a new medication. It's supposed to help me fight whatever this is that's causing this, but I don't know." She looked up at the ceiling and blinked heavily, catching her breath before continuing. "I don't think there is any fighting this anymore."

"Don't say that." Adrien looked at her small, frail form under the covers and swallowed. "There's going to be something that works; we just haven't found it yet."

Marinette smiled and closed her eyes. "So hopeful."

Her airy tone caused his insides to turn around. She didn't think... No. He wouldn't even let himself go there. He swallowed quickly and changed the subject.

"So, hey, guess what happened in Ms. Bustier's class today."

And so he spent the better part of an hour retelling all the interesting parts of the day. How Chloe nearly had a heart attack when one of Max's projects, Markov, got out of his backpack and flew in her hair, how Mr. Democlese threw a fit over the state of the curtains in the 10th grade classroom (one of his new favourite obsessions), how Ms. Bustier brought in a real live ice cream maker to walk them through the process of making ice cream "From cow to cone," as the man had so fondly called it. And they both temporarily forgot their problems.
That is, until Adrien looked at the clock above Marinette's bed.

"Oh man! Is that clock right? I really have to go; my father's going to kill me."

Adrien rushed up to say goodbye to Marinette when she hastily grabbed his hand, halting him in his tracks. Her grasp was as weak as a feather brush, and almost as light.

"Wait!" The breathy tone of her voice didn't match the desperation in it. "There's something I want you to see."

She attempted to lean out of her bed to the bedside table beside her, but Adrien quickly ended that idea with a touch.

"Let me get it."

Marinette conceded and lay back down on her bed, breathless.

"It's in the top drawer; the yellow envelope."

Adrien pulled out the envelope and turned it over in his hands. His name was scribbled lightly on the front.

"I want you to take and read that. Somewhere private. It's something I've been wanting to say to you for a long time."

Adrien looked at the desperation and fear in her shimmering blue eyes and quickly conceded.

"Of course; I will as soon as I can."

The desperation left her face, and her eyes closed as a childlike smile spread across her lips.

"Good. Thank you."

Adrien turned the envelope over in his hands again, looked at the resting form of Marinette, and quietly whispered, "See you later Marinette."
He couldn't be sure, but he thought he saw her smile just a little bit more.

He passed Tom and Sabine on his way out to his father's car, and they both sent him off with hugs and well-wishes. Tears misted his eyes as he stepped onto the elevator to descend to the ground floor. Would his father ever care about him as much as Tom and Sabine already did?

% ~~~ %

That evening, as Adrien sat in the back of his father's vehicle after running the multiple errands and events his father had planned for him, Adrien again pulled out the envelope. The tinted window that separated him from Gorilla was already closed. And so, Adrien pulled open the seal and began to read the letter inside. It was Marinette's light, flowing handwriting.

Dear Adrien,

I know the past few months have been hard, and it's been nearly impossible for me to write you this letter until now. I'm taking advantage of a quick energy boost from a change in medications.

But anyway, this letter contains something I've been wanting to say to you for a long time; I've just never had the strength and determination until now. But now, I have very little to lose. The doctors have said if we can't find a treatment plan that will work for me, I won't make it past Christmas. Imagine that! Of all the days for them to say I could die, they had to choose Christmas.

But, in any sense, it's a good thing, because that finally gave me the strength to tell you how I really feel.

I've been feeling this way for a while; perhaps even going back to the day you lent me your umbrella at the beginning of school, so that I wouldn't have to walk home in the rain. And my feelings since then have only grown. You've always been a good friend to me Adrien. Even when it seemed like everyone else turned against me, you always remained there. You're smart and kind and loyal and trustworthy, and anyone would be absolutely blessed to be able to call you their friend. That said, I've been wanting to be something more than friends for a long time now, and this notion was only strengthened when you decided to be with me through this hard time.

I love you, Adrien Agreste, and I wish you the absolute happiest best. I don't expect you to reply to this letter if you don't want to; if you don't feel the same. But I couldn't keep this inside anymore, and I had to let you know.

I love you. I have since the first day I met you, and I will for forever. I love you Adrien Agreste. I love you.

Sincerely, Marinette

Adrien stared down at the letter in shock.

"Marinette loves... me?"

Suddenly, all the time they'd ever spent together came flashing back. Every awkward moment and spontaneous blush. He'd just chalked it up to Marinette being who she was, but now...

"Marinette loves me... Gorilla!" he suddenly shouted. The large bodyguard rolled down the window separating them. "I need to go to the hospital. I need to see Marinette!"

Gorilla hesitated only slightly, before pressing the brake and turning the dark vehicle around.

"Thank you," Adrien sighed in relief.

Adrien was out of the vehicle before Gorilla had even put it in park and was quickly dashing up the steps of the building. Darting inside, he ran to the place with the elevators and repeatedly pressed the button until it opened. He stepped inside and pressed the button for the appropriate floor, then tapped his feet as he waited for the doors to open on the correct floor.
After what felt like forever, they finally did, and Adrien full-out ran to the hall where Marinette's room was situated. There, he stopped in his tracks. Sabine was standing outside the room, sobbing into her husband Tom's arms, while Tom stared blankly over at the wall adjoining the floor. Adrien's heart stopped beating as he rushed over to them.

"What happened?" he asked, trying to get a glimpse into Marinette's room. Sabine sobbed louder, and Tom rubbed her back absently before breaking his stare with the wall and looking empty into Adrien's eyes. Ice chilled Adrien's bones at the words that came out of his mouth.

"Marinette's... she's gone."

The whole world faded out of sight to Adrien, and he felt like he was being sucked into a portal. A portal of black and white and cold and empty. He didn't even hear the words that came out of his own mouth.

"But... I love her."