"I'm sorry I can't ride home with you, Marinette. I tried to reschedule my fencing lesson, but my dad wouldn't budge." "It's ok. I should be able to get home by myself alright," hopefully. You could hear hesitation on his end of the phone. "Are you sure? I could always come to Versailles after I'm done." "But that's two hours away, and besides, the car ride alone would take forever. Thank you, Adrien, but I think I'll just head out once I'm finished here. I can do a bit of work at home later." "Ok, if you're sure….. I'll see you tonight at dinner, then?" "See you at dinner. And don't worry about me; I'm sure everything'll be fine." "I hope so. Have a good rest of your afternoon." "Have a good fencing lesson. Bye!" "Bye, Marinette." Click!
After ending my call with my fiancé, my stare lingered on my phone's home screen. It's been Cat Noir's photo since I got it. It was one I took of him back in undergrad; we were sitting up on the department building's roof and he was smiling cheekily as ever…. Gazing at it intently, soaking up the image that was him, my thumb ran tenderly across the screen. Tikki was out in the open and watching the event unfold; we were in the storehouse putting boxes away. This intense sigh exited my lips. "Sometimes I wish more akumatized people would threaten Paris just so I could see him again…." "Marinette," Tikki's voice wasn't as scolding as you would think. I chuckled forlornly and shook my head. "Ah well, I guess it's just a matter of time."
Just as I said this, my phone buzzed in my hand. Blinking back down to the screen I saw a brand-new name. "Bourgeois? That name sounds familiar…" I'd definitely heard it somewhere but couldn't put my finger on it. Pressing "answer" up the device went to my ear. "Hello?" "Marinette Dupain-Cheng?! Don't you DARE hang up! I'm not done….!" Rapid click! My eyes were the size of dinner plates, and my chest was pounding.
"How the hell did Chloe get my number?!" I asked Tikki, knowing full well she'd have no idea how Chloe acquired it. She shrugged her cute little shoulders. "Maybe the city's records? Her dad is the mayor, after all." "That's totally illegal! That's illegal…. Isn't it?! It must be! This is an invasion of privacy or something!" My voice fired back, more than a little terrified. If she showed up to my workshop one more time, I was toast! Burst toast! French toast!
The kind that was so burnt, you threw it out!
I nearly leaped out of my shoes when the same name and number appeared on my screen. "She's calling again!" I shrilled. "Block the number!" Tikki urged. "Good idea!" Doing as I was told, I blocked that number faster than I've ever blocked anything before. Only then could I take a deep, cleansing breath. My hand actually drew up to my still-racing heart. "Thank goodness….." I looked at my kwami in relief.
That relief didn't last long, however. My phone rang for a third time in a row! It wasn't Adrien or Chloe's number; it only said "unknown number". Glancing back to Tikki, I nervously hovered my finger over the answer button. "It's Chloe. She must be using a different phone!" "Don't answer it. If it's important, they'll leave a voicemail." "I haven't set voicemail up on this phone yet!" I cried in dismay. "You got this phone back in undergrad," Tikki rolled her eyes. "Yeah, but I just never got around to it. What should I do? I can't answer it! It's most likely Chloe, and you heard what Dr. Grinds will do to me if there's any more drama in the workshop."
The problem solved itself when my phone stopped vibrating. Both Tikki and I peered down at the screen- now back to Cat Noir's gorgeous face- then up at each other. "Looks like she gave up," Tikki pronounced. "For now," I muttered under my breath, putting my phone away in my back pocket. "Maybe you should tell Adrien?" My kwami suggested next. "I don't know what he can do. He said he'd talk to her, but she's obviously not getting the message." Tikki contemplated this for a moment, then let out a small chuckle. "I bet Cat Noir could deliver the message home." "Heh, you got that right. He'd make her see loud and clear. But alas, I can't ask him to do that; I can't drag him into this whole mess." "Because Chloe would want to know how you two know each other?" Tikki asked me. I flashed her a grin. "No. Because I don't want to subject my boyfriend to the fiendish monster that is Chloe Bourgeois. She'd probably rip his tail off." "Yeah, and then strangle him with it," Tikki added, and we laughed.
We were interrupted by a gentle knock on the storehouse door. Tikki flew into hiding and I spun on my heels toward it. "Come in." "Marinette? Almost done in here?" Alya poked her head inside, inspecting the work I had completed. I straightened up, brushed myself off, and grabbed my bag; Tikki was safe inside it by now. "Just finishing up. Are you all done?" "Almost. Dr. Grinds is going to be back soon," this was a coded warning. "Ok. I'll be out in a few minutes, then I'm gonna head for home," I checked the time; it was half past two. Still lots of time before dinner. "Me too. Just make sure you're out here before you-know-who gets back." "Will do! Thanks for the heads up."
Alya shut the door and my kwami re-emerged. We flashed the other a pleasant grin. "Well! Looks like our time in here is almost up!" My stiff arms stretched high above me. "You sure you don't just want to wait here for Adrien?" She inquired. "And stay on Dr. Grinds's radar? No, thank you. Home may be suffocating now…
But at least Daddy still leaves me out freshly-baked cookies."
