A little more life mile stones, fluff and I address an issue a commenter brought up. This one is yet another slight jump ahead as our young couple runs into more standard relationship issues.=^-^=
Hope everyone had a nice Turkey Day.
Ch. 21 - Moonlight Chat
Sabine restocked the shelves in the bakery while she had a moment. The middle of June wasn't generally a busy time, but there had been some kind of art show a few blocks down that trickled customers their way. "Do we need anything for the front, Sabine?" Aaron asked as he stuck his head from the back with a slight dusting of flower on his dark bangs.
She glanced at him with a pleased smile and shook her head. "I think we're doing fine so long as you added those chocolate muffins I asked for 15 minutes ago."
"Of course." He responded and popped back. Sabine loved how he'd grown much more comfortable as their newest family member even if he and Marinette weren't married yet. It took months of insisting to get him to call her by her first name instead on Mrs. Cheng and years to drop the Mrs. To just call her Sabine. Next she'd have to convince him to call her mom.
"Oh, Sabine, you look like you're in a wonderful mood."
Sabine turned to spy a taller woman looking a little older than she was but it was a friendly face. "Oh, Mrs. Deveroux, it's been a little while. How have you been?"
The older woman chuckled and took a look around the shop. "Oh, just keeping my husband in line, and the tenants happy. You? I noticed you looked to be in a good mood?"
"Oh, right, well…" Sabine drew out and walked around the counter to speak quieter. "I am." She was smirking while gesturing to the back. "I was just thinking of how I would get my future son-in-law to start calling me mom."
Mrs. Deveroux chuckled at her revelation. "Good luck then, oh!" She suddenly recalled and dug into her purse. "I was actually meaning to let you know about this a few days ago, but I never did make my way here." She then pulled out a few folded papers to hand over. "You just reminded me. Has your daughter and her fiancé decided on a place to live?"
Sabine raised a curious brow and crossed her arms. "Well, not that I know of. As far as I've been told, they weren't planning to move in together until Marinette graduates. Marinette really has her heart set on a spring wedding too." Sometime in April or May if her coursework gets chaotic. Sabine opened the paper to see an apartment layout shown by floor.
"Oh, that's too bad. You see the tenants in this unit here have decided to move out of the city and their lease ends in November. It's a good size for a starting family I'd say, and the couple who live there now have two kids."
"I'd say so, this looks about the same size as ours upstairs." Sabine agreed before passing the papers back over to the woman.
"Hold onto them." The older woman insisted. "My husband is planning to do a little updating with the apartments as they open up, so I don't plan to advertise this one until he has all the plans put together. At least let them know about the unit. You never know when a good place will be available these days, and I might be able to persuade my husband to give them a good deal."
"Well…. Maybe I'll mention it." Sabine relented as she folded it back up. "The thought is very appreciated, Mrs. Deveroux."
"Of course, Sabine. You and your husband run the best bakery in the city, and it's not as though you've never done me a favor or two." She then clapped her hands together. "Speaking of which, I do have a little something to request. You remember my sister? Well, she wants to throw a little reunion party for her old university club friends."
The shorter woman tried not to roll her eyes at the mention of the sister. "I suppose this will be another odd catering order?"
"You know her." The other woman agreed and threw up her hands.
"Well, that's fine I suppose. So long as it isn't tomorrow again."
Mrs. Deveroux held up a finger. "Ah, I did good this time, Sabine. She's having it next Saturday."
That gave about 9 days notice which was generally fine for an order though ordering very particular mostly off season items could be hard to deal with. "Alright, just give me a moment and I'll get your order put down." Sabine then retreated to get the tablet they put catering orders on. It had a special app containing their menu as well as a way to compile new items so that they could calculate time, price, and what ingredients they'd need.
When Adrien got off his shift at the bakery he headed home to put together dinner preparations as usual. He had been able to get Nino to cook a few things but the DJ just wasn't as interested in learning as he'd hoped. In their time as roommates they had decided to break down daily chores to compensate for what they each couldn't or didn't really want to do. Since Nino didn't want to cook, he instead was in charge of trash and clutter, as well as keeping the cheese smell subdued. They had been able to get rid of the intense smell within a few months but it still lingered a little. It was to the point that most people would think something cheesy had been cooked recently and forget within a few minutes. Adrien knew Plagg had something to do with the quick change, but he was afraid to ask what.
In addition to trash, Nino was also in charge of cleaning the kitchen at the end of meals for most nights though Adrien made that easy since he liked to clean as he went. As soon as the young man entered his shared apartment he found Nino slumped over on the couch looking as sour as a lemon. "Nino? I thought you were going out with Alya today?"
"Urg…" He got in response as Nino turned his head to face into the couch.
"So… No?" His best guess since Nino was home.
Nino let out a sigh at then turned over onto his back with his legs hanging over the other arm rest. "I think Alya's tired of me…" He finally declared in a melancholy tone.
"What? Why would you say that?" Adrien set his wallet on the coffee table before taking a spot on the chair near the couch.
"Because… She cancelled our date again. This is the third time this month."
Adrien raised a brow. "So? I mean she's got work to do, right?" Alya had been working on her journalistic portfolio ever since summer started so she could have more to show for a job after she graduated. She had the LadyBlog, but a good journalist knows to have several different information blogs and articles to show. She had even started a neighborhood news blog along with a few others in the journalism program.
"I know she's busy, but still… I mean she was busy in college and lycee too, but we still had dates. I feel like we barely see each other now, you know? The last time I saw her in person was about two weeks ago when I brought her some coffee. Then she spent the next hour typing up an article before leaving to an interview. I don't think she even noticed I was still around." Nino sighed again.
"Well… She's just working hard. Marinette and I haven't even had a date since the Chinese New Year since she's been so busy with school work and her online boutique. I imagine if I didn't work in her house, I'd barely see her." Adrien admitted with a chuckle though he excluded the few akuma attacks they'd dealt with since then.
"Seriously, dude? That was four months ago. Are you two okay?" The darker skinned man asked sitting up with a more worried expression.
"Yeah, of course." The ravenette saw nothing wrong with the situation.
"But, dude, aren't you worried?"
"Worried? About what? Marinette wouldn't cheat on me." He waved that off as insane right off the bat.
"No, but… I mean, have you guys tried to plan any time together at least?"
"Well…" Adrien thought a moment. "Not really. I mean I've asked her if she wanted to do something a few times, but it was always a bad time. Either I was working when she was available, or she had an order or project to get finished. We're just busy, that's all."
Nino raised a curious brow at his friend. "Too busy for each other?" He winced. "I don't want to sound like I'm trying to be a downer, but that's not a good sign, Adrien. That's usually the kind of thing that happens right before a couple breaks up."
Adrien scoffed at that. "Come on, Nino, we're adults now, and both Marinette and Alya are preparing to start their careers. It's not going to last." It was nothing compared to his old schedule under his father either. Was he a little sad they hadn't spent much time together just for themselves? Yes. Was he worried that was going to end their relationship? Not in the least. Adrien stood up and headed for the kitchen. "Just chill, Nino, I'm sure Alya misses spending time with you too. Anyway, how do you feel about pork chops? I got them on sale yesterday and I can make them hot if you'd like." He knew Nino had a penchant for spicy things so it would hopefully cheer him up.
"Aaron! Right on time as usual!" Rose beamed as the much taller man entered the small salon she worked at. Rose had recently gotten her license to style hair professionally and had joined two others from her same program in working under an older woman introduced to Rose by her building manager's wife.
"I try to be considering it's an appointment." Something hammered into him back in his teens as a model with a rigorous schedule.
Rose gave him a smile before tapping her chair for him to sit. "Well, don't just stand there. Get over here. I want you to tell me all about your summer plans! You didn't really talk about what you and Marinette were doing last time."
Aaron took a seat and she placed a smock on him. "Oh, well… We haven't done much since last time. Honestly, I'm just working like normal and Mari's been doing orders for her online shop. Every time I talk to her she's working on something different."
"Sounds like Marinette." Rose agreed with a brilliant smile before starting to inspect his hair.
"Now, tell me about Blair, again?" Adrien heard another voice enter but from the back this time. One of the other stylists had a customer and had just washed their hair.
"Right, well Blair barely speaks to my brother anymore, and he doesn't seem to think that's a problem." The woman started as she sat down. "I keep telling him, you need to spend more time with Blair, and he just tells me she's busy! And I'm like, 'She can't be too busy for her boyfriend, Darien, or it would be like you're not even dating.' Of course he just smiles and shrugs."
"Well, maybe they are together more than he lets on?" The stylist suggested as she combed through her customer's hair. "I mean, a good boyfriend wouldn't want his girlfriend ignoring him. If they don't spend any time together he would definitely be worried, right?"
"I certainly hope so. I mean, while my brother can be a pain, I don't want him getting hurt, you know?" Adrien found it great he wasn't the only guy who understood when their girlfriend's were busy.
"Thinking like that, though, your brother may have already come to terms with the end of his relationship. I've seen it before." The man who spoke was the third hair dresser who worked in the shop, and was now sitting in his rotating chair drinking coffee showing he was on a break.
"Sean, you don't have to be so negative." Rose chided while pointing a gloved finger his way. She was currently putting the dye together before starting the dye job.
"I'm sorry, Rose, but I'm just being realistic. Unless that couple has secret rendezvous they're probably doomed. A healthy relationship involves both parties taking time with each other or what can you expect in the future?" Sean countered as he sipped his coffee.
"But, Sean, they're only dating, it's not like he's proposed… Right?" The hairdresser turned back to the customer.
"Well… That's true, but he's told me he's been thinking about it."
"Then that's a big red flag! If they can't spend time together now, then even if they get married, what will that bring? They'll eventually move in with each other only to find out they barely know each other anymore. No, a good relationship means spending adequate private time even if it's just sitting in the same room while they worked separately."
"You're girlfriend must be rubbing off on you, Sean." The other hairdresser remarked going back to her work. "This is exactly the sort of thing I expect Amanda to say. Then again, she works for a marriage councilor so no surprise there."
"She knows what she's talking about, and I have seen it happen several times now. Don't ignore the flags." Sean reiterated as serious as he could be.
"With how insistent you are, Sean, I worry about your relationship. You two are okay, right?"
Sean rolled his eyes. "You've met Amanda, and you're asking this? She spends so many hours in that office I worry until she suddenly schedules time for just us trying to make up for it."
Rose giggled at that remark since she knew Amanda as well. "Right, I bet she has more to worry about you considering all the girls who come in."
Sean scoffed but his expression showed he was amused. "Maybe if any of the girls didn't assume I was gay right from the start, she would have to worry. At this point it's just an amusing highlight when I mention all the men who hit on me." All three stylists shared a laugh at that.
"Ah, Aaron, sorry for ignoring you. Did you want to talk about something?" Rose suddenly asked realizing she'd been sucked into a side conversation.
"No, you're fine. I was just listening in too."
"So nothing interesting to talk about since our last appointment?" It was over a month ago.
"Not really?..." He stopped to think. "I suppose maybe one thing though…" He started as Rose glanced over his shoulder in obvious interest. "A regular at the bakery owns an apartment complex not too far away, and they wanted to give Marinette and me first dibs on a unit opening soon."
"Oh my gosh! That's great!" The blonde gushed while jumping. It was amazing her hands didn't slip out of place coating his hair as she did so.
"Maybe, but the unit will be available in January, and I doubt they'll hold it for next summer which is when we planned to actually move in together."
"Oh… Well, why not do it early? It's a good place right?"
Aaron nearly shrugged before thinking better of it. "From what I could tell it is, but I rent with Nino, and he can't keep up the payments on his own."
"Then he should go ahead and move in with Alya." Rose determined with a confident nod. Nino and Alya are one of the longest running couples in their group of friends after Maylene and Ivan.
"I think Alya already has plans to wait until she has a real job and can support herself though." Aaron countered not wanting to push any opinions on another couple's business.
Rose let out a sigh. "I suppose that does sound like Alya, but still, you shouldn't let a good place slip by. Julika and I made a few mistakes when we started looking for places to stay and let two good places get taken before we could make up our minds. I suppose it worked out, but one of them was much closer to the city and yet still a decent price rent wise. Anyway, what did Marinette say about it?"
"Hmm? I haven't had a chance to talk to her about it yet, actually. She's been pretty busy lately as I mentioned before."
"Well, get her opinion! This important, Aaron!" Rose insisted as she dabbed her brush to add more dye.
"I know, I know." He agreed. "I'm trying to find a good time where I won't be disturbing her work."
Rose pressed the side of his head to turn it and he was suddenly met with Sean not one foot away. "I cannot say I know much about this Marinette, but you sir need to make the time!"
Rose shooed him away quickly while Aaron just blinked in surprise. "Stop that, Sean! You just made me dye his ear!"
Marinette groaned as she once again missed a stitch and had to reset her sewing machine to fix it. "I don't have time to keep restitching this!" She whined as she pulled out the messed up thread to check and make sure the fabric was still okay. If it was frayed then she'd have to start over again with half the order.
"Marinette, don't you think you should take a break?" Tikki asked having been watching over her chosen the past several weeks as she worked with worry.
"No, Tikki, I don't have time for breaks either. This order is supposed to be finished in two days, and I've got three more to finish by next week."
"But, Marinette, you've been making little mistakes like that all night. You're working too hard, and you don't look as happy as you normally do when working."
The designer let out a sigh but kept working. "I have been having an off night, I'll admit that, but-"
Tikki flew down and took hold of Marinette's right hand. "Just look at yourself." She pointed to the five Band-Aids on that hand alone. "You don't normally make mistakes like this, and I've never seen your hands like this."
"It's hard to make it in the fashion world, Tikki, so-" She stopped as Tikki gave her that warning look she would give when Marinette was making a bad call. It was similar to what her mom would give her. "But, Tikki! My shop is finally getting a nice flow of customers. I can't stop now!"
"You can't keep going like you are." Tikki argued back before floating over to sit on Marinette's shoulder. "Success isn't always worth the price, Marinette. Remember how stressed out you used to get in college when you tried to do too many things at once?"
Marinette let out a defeated huff and leaned back in her chair. She wasn't about to argue with Tikki on this point since this wouldn't be the first time this exact topic had come up. "I just… Want to be on track once I graduate, Tikki… After I do graduate, there's just so many things to get done, you know?" There was finding a place for both her and Aaron, looking for a job, and of course the wedding. After all of that, she'd be able to concentrate on really starting her life with the goofball that just wouldn't give up.
Tikki saw her chosen smile and giggled. "You're thinking of Aaron, right?" She knew her chosen enough to recognize that smile well.
Marinette immediately blushed but didn't deny it. "I was thinking of many things…."
Tikki flew over to her desk to snatch up her phone. "Well, why don't you call one of those things, or at least text him. You two have barely spent any time together recently."
"That's not true, we see each other…" Marinette trailed off at the thought. They saw each other almost every day, but usually in passing or in a short greeting. Aaron was usually only over for work, and didn't stay for meals unless he was on break or Nino was having a gig and he didn't need to make anything. When was the last time they said anything other than, "Good morning" or "Have a nice day"? The sudden chill that ran up the designer's spine had her desperately fumbling for the phone to pull up Aaron's number.
Tikki nodded at seeing her work was complete and waited in silence as Marinette dialed. About a minute later Marinette sighed as she lowered the phone to simply stare at it. "Did he not answer?" The kwami asked curiously. Aaron always answered the phone if he wasn't working.
Marinette nodded and proceeded to shoot him a text instead before slumping over her desk, the jacket she had been working one now completely forgotten. "You don't… think he's mad at me, do you?" Marinette couldn't resist asking after another moment of thought. She'd certainly be mad if Aaron had been too busy for her for… Actually, she really wasn't sure how long it had been since they'd last spent real time together. It left a twist in her gut that had her thinking back to all those times she'd rejected him. Chat, despite his bravado and cocky actions, was very sensitive. His home had left him attention starved, and despite knowing this, she'd been basically ignoring him. Her last text to him had been last week and it was in regards to an akuma.
"Aaron wouldn't be mad at you for something like this, Marinette. You know him, and he knows you."
"But he usually answers…"
Tikki frowned as her chosen pouted at the phone in her hands. "You know what, Marinette. You need some air." She flew over to the window to the terrace. "A nice breath of fresh night air will make you feel much better." She'd been cooped up in her room for hours each day which was definitely no way to live. "A nice late night run might also help?" The kwami suggested as well just thinking of how Marinette hadn't exercised much. If there was one thing she remembered about humans, it was that lack of exercise was related to depressed thoughts. After swinging open the window to look outside she turned back to Marinette who was looking up at her with a melancholy expression. "Come on!"
"But he could call back..?" The designer reasoned glancing back at the phone in worry.
Tikki rolled her eyes before looking back out. A dark clad figure leaping across the Paris rooftops caught her eye immediately and she grinned. "I doubt that, Marinette, since I'm pretty sure I saw Chat Noir just now."
Marinette quickly bolted from her seat to climb up to her loft bed to see for herself. "He's out? Do you think there's an akuma?" She hadn't gotten any alerts which was rare with how vigilant Parisians were these days.
"Well, there is a good way to find out." Tikki insinuated as she gestured out the window.
"Spots on!" Ladybug wasn't about to waste another moment.
Chat Noir made it a habit to go on a late night run whenever he had a real chance to. Even with his life the way it was now, nothing ever felt more freeing than suiting up and leaping about the night to where ever he pleased. This time, Nino had a late night gig, and Aaron had a day off the next day which was the absolute best situation for it. Summer nights in Paris were humid at times, but the current night breeze was warm and comforting especially so once he hit his destination at the Eiffel Tower. The breezes blowing so high up were much cooler and made looking over the expansive lights below that much more relaxing. Chat leaned back against a support beam and lazily hung one leg off the edge. "You can almost fall asleep up here.." He mused to himself before a sudden clang had him on alert.
A few seconds later and his spotted partner descended from above rolling up her yo-yo and looking out at the view. "Taking in the view?" She wondered without looking at him.
"Y-yeah…" Chat was still a little surprised to suddenly have company. It had been awhile since they'd been out together without an akuma. They'd even had separate patrols since their civilian schedules had been so misaligned. He watched her fumble with her weapon a little before she sat down beside him silently. "It's… nice out tonight." He commented while scolding himself for not asking his real question. He really wanted to ask how she was, but something felt off about it; distant.
"Chat Noir?" Ladybug looked down at her legs.
"Yeah, milady?"
"I'm… Sorry."
Chat's ears went up in surprise as he sat up to slide closer to her side. "Sorry? For what?" He couldn't for the life of him think of anything she'd done to him unless...
"For being so busy…" She admitted which had Chat Noir letting out an instant sigh of relief. "You were mad… Right?" She asked next glancing at him with a worried expression.
"Huh? Why would I be mad?" Chat found it almost hilarious considering what his thoughts were going to only second before.
"Well, we haven't really spent any time together, and I know it's been me more than you that has been getting in the way."
Chat chuckled and took her hand from her lap. "It wasn't you, Ladybug, it was work. You've been working so hard with your online shop."
"And basically ignoring you…" She admitted next while grasping his hand tightly.
The cat hero furrowed his brow as he thought on what to say next. With Marinette's tendency to catastrophize, he really didn't want to say the wrong thing. He also didn't want to hide his feelings from her either. "I suppose… If I'm being honest, I have been a little lonely lately." He felt her grip tighten as he spoke. "But I couldn't hate you for it, and I don't." He then leaned over to give her a kiss on the cheek. "So get that crazy idea out of your head before you say anything else."
Ladybug took a calming breath and leaned her shoulder on his. "Okay… But it was bothering you, right?"
Chat glanced at her and then out to the lights as he recalled his last appointment with Rose. He'd spent some time thinking that night on their relationship, but he couldn't say it really bothered him much, though he also didn't think it was right. "Aside from being a little lonely? Not really…" He sighed and released her hand to move it around her shoulders. "I knew you were busy trying to become a successful designer, and make money for our future together. There's nothing wrong with that… Right?"
"Really?" The heroine asked back curiously. Chat simply nodded while looking out at the lights. "Oh…"
"It's weird isn't it? At least I think it is."
"Weird that it doesn't bother you?" She asked for clarification.
"Yeah… I mean, we're engaged and preparing to start a life together. Should I really be fine with spending so little time with you before that? What does that say about our relationship? I mean, yeah I missed you, but I should be more bothered, right? Normal guys like spending a lot of time with their girlfriends don't they? Unless they… Well… you know?"
Ladybug kicked her legs a little as they hung over the beam. "I… Hmm?" It was a surprisingly difficult question. "Well… Yeah, but also… No?"
"Very confusing." Chat noted with a slight chuckle.
"It is." She agreed with a giggle of her own. "I don't even get it myself. It feels like it's wrong to not be bothered, but I… You know what? I don't know." She finally declared confidently. "I suppose looking at other couples gives us the assumption that we should be together all the time." Chat Noir looked over the edge at the people still out so late at the Paris landmark some of which had to be couples. "But I also worry that spending all our time together would also be a bad thing."
"Really?" Chat wondered next in surprise.
"Yes, my maman actually talked to me about this last year right around when you proposed. She told me that even though I want to, I should avoid spending too much time with you before we got married."
"That sounds odd, I mean it would be impossible to spend all day with each other every day, but how is that a bad thing?"
"Couples can burn out spending so much time together. It's strange to think about, but it kind of makes sense. Just think about it, Chat Noir. If we were always together, then spending time together wouldn't be as special would it? It's like eating your favorite food every day, eventually you'd want something new."
"You'd start taking each other for granted…" Chat realized aloud. It had been how his father was with him. His father always assumed Adrien would do whatever he was told, and it got to the point where the man didn't even ask if Adrien cared about what he did every day. His father assumed he would agree and that he was right.
"Right." Ladybug responded. "And I suppose that's what the end to that newlywed rhythm actually is. It's because you suddenly spend so much time together." It sounded like a scene right from a TV drama or one of those bachelor shows. "Not that I think that will happen to us!" She amended after a moment of thought. "But, I think it's okay to not be bothered about being apart so long as our feelings don't change."
"Okay, but…" He stopped realizing it might sound like he was complaining or disagreeing despite feeling the exact same way.
"Go ahead, Chat." She could tell he wanted to disagree and she didn't want him bottling it up like she tended to.
"Well… I really don't want to be okay being apart if we can help it. I mean, yeah, I like how much we trust each other, and life does get in the way, but I still want us to actively make time for each other." If that hairdresser was right about anything, it was that.
Ladybug smiled at him and reached up to hold his hand on her shoulder. "I don't really want to be fine with it either, but it's nice to be okay in those situations. They'll happen whether we want them to or not." She then looked over Paris. "But, we should work on not just letting them happen, you're right."
"Then… Let's start now?" Chat suggested a little worried he was jumping the gun.
Marinette really was swamped with her shop. "Yup, right now sounds good." She quickly agreed relieving his worry. "I know I've been busy, but I won't be able to make it a daily thing…"
"Weekly." Chat Noir suggested holding up a finger indicating one. "Once a week we carve out a few hours of time where we are together. It doesn't have to be special, but we have to spend it together."
"I can do that." Ladybug flipped open her bug phone to look at her schedule. "And you know what? I'm going to put a hold on my orders for the next week."
"What!? But Mar-Ladybug?" He'd nearly slipped at the sudden leap.
"I've been getting a lot of them, and I just can't keep up. Tikki scolded me earlier about my hands." And the many bandages adorning them. "I'll reopen them once I've finished all of my current orders. I think my stuff is good, so people will wait if they really want it." Though the unease in her voice was still apparent.
"Your stuff is great, bugaboo. Don't ever doubt yourself." He squeezed her shoulder affectionately.
"I know, but… This is Paris, so it's not like I'm the only designer around. Being good will only get you so far."
"And being exhausted will make you hate your job. Trust me, I know."
Marinette raised a brow at the man's counter. "You don't ever seem to hate baking." She then realized what he meant and covered her mouth. "Oh, you were talking about before weren't you?" Though Aaron had never revealed what job he did for his father, she did know it was one he didn't like. She also knew he had to do that while doing several extracurricular and home school lessons. "Did you ever like it?" She asked after a moment when he didn't respond.
"Working for my father?" He asked back with a neutral expression she knew well. He never liked talking specifically when it came to his father.
"Yeah."
"Probably… At least in the beginning. I imagine I thought it was nice to be helpful. I couldn't say for sure though, It was years ago." He let out a sigh. "And if I did it wasn't long enough to really make an impression."
Ladybug glanced back to him and then out to the city again. "I know…" It was hard to find the right words. She didn't want to make him angry, but she also knew he needed to hear something in regards to his father. "I don't know your father, Chat Noir, so I'll understand if you don't want to believe me, but… Your father did love you. I'm sure of it." She felt his hand on hers tighten and glanced down to it.
Chat Noir felt his chest tighten at her words. He wanted to shout to the skies that she was wrong, but he knew better. He knew deep down that his father loved him in his own twisted selfish way. "My father… Is complicated…" Was all he was able to get out. It was a relief he'd resisted yelling it at the very least.
"I imagine so…" Ladybug commented next and another small quiet settled between them. Chat had been waiting for her to say more, but considering how little he spoke about his father, what else could she say? Would she even want to say anything more even if she knew more about him? Considering her major, she would know him already, albeit impersonally. "Chat… Don't feel like you need to talk about him if you don't want to." She'd taken note of his expression and could almost hear his gut twisting. "I don't need to know everything about you to know who you are, you know?" She'd resigned to knowing very little about his past pretty quickly in their relationship. Aaron never looked happy when talking about his father at all.
"I would though… I mean if you really wanted to know." He relented looking down at her with a slightly forced smile. "I'm not really trying to hide who I am."
"I know, and you aren't hiding who you are Chat. Thinking back on the days when we first started working together, I bet you were more you as Chat than as a civilian anyway." She joked knowing it was more than likely true. "But..." She started and pat his arm. "If you ever felt like talking about it, I would love to hear." Chat was sure she didn't intend to make him feel guilty, but it did. He was still hiding the fact that he'd even changed his name let alone they had apparently known each other in college; he still didn't really recall though so that was another gut punch. "Chat?"
"I should tell you… I mean, I don't want to hide-"
"Chat, I already-"
"No, I need you to know something." He let out a breath to calm his nerves. He'd attempted to tell her a few times over the years but either worry or bad timing would stop him. "I suppose it is a little late for this considering we're engaged and all, but back when I first met your parents I wasn't really honest."
Ladybug looked at him but not in curiosity like he expected. It wasn't even an angry look. Much to his surprise it seemed to be amusement. "Oh, I know."
"Y-you… know?"
She nodded. "Yup, maman has been nagging me to get your real birthday ever since the first year we tried to celebrate only to have you completely forget about it. Also, papa had mentioned years ago about how you used a fake ID to get your job, but that I shouldn't pressure you about it."
"What!?" Chat turned himself completely to face her instead of lean against her.
"You're not the only one who can keep a secret, Chaton." She wore a somewhat devious smirk while she giggled.
"So… You… Know, wait, what?" He asked again still rather confused.
The female hero let out a slight sigh and pulled his arm back to her. "I know you gave my parents a fake ID to get a job, that you were 17 when you ran away from home, and that you actually have blonde hair and not some kind of protein deficiency." She reached up with her free hand to ruffle his raven colored locks. "But neither I, nor my parents actually care about any of that. By the way, only I know you used to be blonde. That was something I figured out because I know who you are, Chat. Anyway, my parents, while a little wary about you considering you were lying to them, understood who you were."
Chat stared at her another moment. "So… Your parents let a lying teenager who they knew nothing about stay in their house with their only daughter alone?"
Ladybug had to pause at that before nodding. "Yup, I guess so, but I mean… By that point they knew you were only lying to support yourself. Besides, if you'd turned out to be a creep, I think I could handle myself, don't you?" She reached for her yo-yo to emphasize her point.
"Your parents are crazy… I mean… no, just crazy." He reconsidered as he leaned back against his fiancé.
"Oh, I know. My maman especially." They shared a laugh thinking on the eccentricities of one Sabine Cheng especially at Chinese New Year.
"But you know, Aaron Bassett might not even be my real name." The feline hero stated in tease despite him actually being serious.
"I've dealt with not knowing your name for seven years Chat, as long as we can still legally get married, I don't really care what your name is. You're birthday, on the other hand, would be useful to know."
Chat chuckled at her devil may care attitude. It was much lighter than he'd always worried, but perhaps she would care a bit more if she knew he was Adrien Agreste. Still, though, it was nice to hear her say it. "I'll have you know that my real birthday has been on my ID for about three years now. I got an official copy in order to rent with Nino."
"Wait, really!?" She asked back in utter shock.
"Yup, you just never bothered to look."
"Well I want to look as soon as you get home. Send me a picture!"
"As you wish, milady." The stuffy accent he used was ruined by his smirk. "Anything else?"
"Well…." Ladybug thought aloud while glancing at his expression from the corner of her eye. "I know you don't like talking about your dad, but I'd love to hear about your mom if you'd share? I'm pretty sure I've seen a picture of her in your wallet."
He seemed to freeze for a moment before a soft smile rose to his face again. "Sure, if you want to. I've got a better picture too, if you want to see it." The little wallet size had been a little battered over the years but he always kept a framed one in a drawer in his room. He supposed it would be alright to share it with Marinette, and not many people know what Emilie Agreste looked like these days anyway.
Life can get in the way of things, especially when you're an aspiring designer in Paris. Add Adrien, a hard worker who trusts his girlfriend/fiancé explicitly, and maybe things take an unintentional turn? Relationships can be very complicated, especially early on when neither party wants to rock the boat. Lucky for our couple they know the first rule of a good relationship; communication. (Not that it will always be obvious, especially for Marinette.) All relationships are different so I went with how I think they would act.=^-^=
Thank you for reading, and please let me know what you think.
