The next thing Chloe felt was a warmth, a comfort. She shifted slightly and felt the cold sheets just brush her leg, waking her up slightly.
She didn't know how long she lay there, half sleeping, half awake, before there was a knocking sound. She rolled over in bed and glanced at her phone.
11:08am.
"Hmm… Who is it?"
"It's Daddy, sweetheart. Are you awake?"
Chloe jerked up, suddenly very awake.
Last night. Pollen. Ladybug and Chat Noir. The real Ladybug and Chat Noir.
The akuma.
Hawkmoth.
Suddenly, she felt herself jumping out of bed, running to the door. She didn't even think before flinging it open.
Her father was standing there, looking startled at her abrupt appearance. And Chloe didn't even think about it before she threw her arms around him, surprising the mayor. For a moment he stood frozen in place, then he wrapped his arms around her.
"Chloe, is everything alright?"
From her position, Chloe nodded and smiled up at him, tears in her eyes.
"It really is."
An hour later, Chloe was standing in the center of her room with her phone in her hand. If anyone else had been in the room, she would have looked extremely grave to them. No pout, no glare, no anger or resentment. Instead, they might have been surprised to see her pacing her room, looking down at her phone with an expression almost of fear.
Chloe herself was indeed feeling her raging fear, but as she looked down at the name on her phone screen and the "call" icon only an inch away from her fingers, she steeled herself and closed her eyes before pressing her screen.
Only a few seconds of ringing went by before a voice came from the other side.
"Chloe?"
"Hi, Sabrina. I…"
Her voice gave out, and silence hung over her for a moment before Sabrina's voice came through the speaker, high and shrill.
"Oh my gosh, something's wrong! You never call me unless there's an emergency, what is it? Did your hair dryer break? Did you lose your wallet? Did you-"
"Sabrina?"
"Sorry."
Chloe steeled herself once again and spoke into the phone.
"Nothing's wrong. I just wanted to see if you were coming to the hotel today."
At this, the line went dead silent. Chloe looked down at her hands, annoyed to see that they were shaking. Then Sabrina's voice came again.
"Do you need me to bring anything?"
"No."
Another silence, during which Chloe almost started biting the ends of her hair. Finally, the silence was broken.
"I'll be over in ten minutes."
Chloe nodded, knowing the ginger couldn't see her, and watched as Sabrina disconnected the call.
She was pacing the floor, almost wishing she hadn't mustered up the strength to make the call, when there was another knock on the door. She glanced at the clock and knew it couldn't be Sabrina yet, so called out a question.
"Who is it?"
No one answered, so she cautiously opened the door. No one was there. But on the floor outside, there was a small note written in a hand that looked strangely familiar. She bent to pick it up, examining the little slip of paper with her name on it, trying to remember where she had seen the writing before. She opened the note and saw a single line written on the plain sheet of paper.
Meet me here at midnight. LB.
Chloe almost dropped the piece of paper in her shock, her mind racing at a million miles an hour.
Ladybug wanted to see her? Why? And what exactly did she mean by "here" - the hotel? Her room?
And something about the handwriting was pulling at the back of her mind, trying to make itself known, recognized, a part of her life.
She walked back into the room and placed the note on the table, watching it expectantly, as if she thought Ladybug might materialize out of it. She was only pulled out of this reverie by a sudden chime from her pocket. Pulling her phone out, she glanced at the screen - it was the email she had been expecting.
Dear Ms Bourgeois,
It's wonderful to hear from you. I have an opening for a meeting at 1 o'clock this afternoon if you would like to come and discuss the last few arrangements for the charity event tonight - I know you were not as involved in the previous plans, but there are still some last minute things that need to be done and I would greatly appreciate your help.
Regards,
Angie Garnier
Chloe quickly typed out her affirmative reply and slipped her phone into her pocket as another knock sounded on her door. With only a slight hesitation, she gently opened it.
Sabrina was standing there, her hands clasped around the strap of her purse. For a moment, the two girls just stood in silence, looking at each other in apprehension. Finally, Chloe opened the door wider.
"Do… you want to come in?"
Sabrina nodded and walked in, still not saying a word. Chloe felt her heart pounding, her hands shaking, but she knew what she had to do. Still facing the door, she spoke in a tone she hadn't used toward her friend in many years.
"... I'm sorry."
She felt a movement in the room, and continued on, her eyes closed against the panic.
"I've been a jerk! I haven't been a good friend to anyone, but especially you. So I'm… sorry."
A moment of silence was all the response she got. She was about to turn around when she felt a hand on her arm.
"Chloe?"
The blonde turned around to see the smaller girl looking up at her seriously. She took another breath and started again.
"I'm sorry, Sabrina. And I understand if you… can't just accept that. And if you want to leave now and never speak to me again, I won't blame you. You might be right."
Sabrina looked seriously at her, her eyes locked on Chloe's.
"Chloe, I don't want to leave you. I want to be your friend."
Chloe felt her breath catch, and before she knew what she was doing, she had thrown herself at her friend, feeling herself enveloped in a hug she had almost forgotten about. How could she have forgotten about Sabrina's hugs? She felt tears falling down her face, knew she was crying, but also knew that beyond everything, this would never change. Sabrina was there, she was staying with her through it all, and everything would be alright.
Sabrina, she finally realized, was closer to her than her own family. And the sudden realization of how near she had come to losing her closest friend burst upon her in an instant.
A few moments later, Sabrina whispered into her friend's ear
"Umm… you're kind of hurting me."
Chloe immediately loosened her grasp, trying to turn away to hide the effects of the tears, but Sabrina merely grabbed her by the hand and pulled her toward the vanity.
"Come on, I'll fix your hair."
Chloe held her back for a moment.
"Sabrina… I don't know how much you have been doing for me out of loyalty, and how much I've been making you do. I… I don't want you to feel like you have to do things for me to be my friend."
Sabrina looked seriously back at her, considering the question.
"I don't want to say that it's always been easy. And yes, there have been days where I did feel like you only kept me around to do homework and run errands."
Chloe turned away at this, but turned back as Sabrina grabbed her arm again, still speaking.
"But there were good moments, too! And I don't mind doing things for you - you know the five love languages?"
Chloe nodded - the class had learned about them not too long before, but she hadn't paid much attention to them, except to mention that her love language was money. Looking back, it wasn't a memory she was proud of.
"Well," Sabrina continued, "I show my love through acts of service. And sometimes that does mean people ask too much of you, but that doesn't mean you just stop doing them - just look at Marinette! I mean, she's always helping someone or making something for someone, besides being a class representative. She's sometimes gotten too much on her plate and people ask too much of her, but she doesn't stop trying to be loving to people she really cares about."
Chloe was still listening to her friend's continued reassurances and expressions of friendship, but her mind was wandering off in a sudden, wild direction.
She couldn't be seriously considering this, could she?
But too many things were adding up. Too many unexplained situations thrown into new light. Too many unanswerable questions suddenly logically explained.
But it wasn't time to look into that. Chloe smiled down at her friend instead.
"I'm… glad to hear that. And I hope you'll tell me if I ever ask too much of you again. But maybe I have a better idea than just sitting up here alone - would you be willing to help me with something?"
Sabrina's face lit up at the words, and she nodded enthusiastically.
And so it was that half an hour later, both Chloe and Sabrina were shaking hands with Angie Garnier, a willowy woman with dark blonde hair.
"Thank you for your offer of help, Mademoiselle Bourgeois. And Mademoiselle Raincomprix, it's a pleasure to have you working with us. I have a list of a few last minute things I still need help with, and I hope I've narrowed it down to those things you feel comfortable doing."
Chloe nodded with a smile, taking the short list. She looked over it seriously, then nodded and handed the list to Sabrina.
"Are all of these expected by five o'clock tonight?"
"If possible, but we understand if there's a delay in the last minute things. And by any chance, would you have access to a photographer? Ours had to cancel at the last moment."
Chloe for a split second thought of Alya Cesaire, but decided against it. While the girl was skilled in taking action shots for her blog, that wasn't what was needed here. She thought for another moment, and then nodded.
"I might be able to arrange it, but I can't guarantee anything."
"That's all we ask." Ms Garnier said, smiling at her. "Is there anything else you need before you get started?"
"Not a thing." Chloe said, noticing another young woman enter the room and holding her head high. "Thank you very much for all of your help - next year I'll be more on top of my responsibilities."
And with that, she rose from the chair and walked out, Sabrina by her side.
It wasn't until she had gotten out of the room that she realized Sabrina had been unable to answer Angie's last question, and she quickly turned to her friend in concern.
"I'm so sorry, Sabrina, I did it again. You're supposed to be working with me on this as a partner!"
"Oh, that's okay, Chloe. I know you didn't mean it. How about this - I'll take the first pick of what to work on?"
Chloe nodded and glanced at the list in her friend's hand.
"I can check in with the hotel staff about the tables." Sabrina said, handing the list to the blonde. "What about you?"
Chloe glanced at it, then looked down at her phone.
"I'll call around for a photographer. I might be able to ask Madame Sancour about Adrien's usual photographer."
Sabrina nodded and walked away toward the ballroom in which the event was being held. Chloe watched her go, and then walked up her own suite for some privacy during the phone call.
At ten o'clock that night, the main ballroom was filled to bursting point with the Parisians, with every demographic being filled. Everyone from classmates to Jagged Stone was there, and the boxes of canned foods were well on their way to being filled. Not only that, but Jean-Francois had been sent four times to the hotel safe to deposit monetary donations. Vincent, the last-minute photographer, scurried around the room with his camera, taking candid shots of anyone who would stay still long enough.
Chloe stood with Sabrina, watching the event unfold and smiling every time someone set a donation into the box she had helped to fix. One of the instructions had been to repair a broken donation box, and she and Sabrina had spent a surprisingly pleasant half hour gluing the cardboard box back together and adding a few extra decorations to mask the obvious rip in the side. Sabrina was watching and waving at any classmates that happened to come in - Chloe hadn't quite realized how many would be there. Alix and her father had been almost the first to arrive, the Cesaires had been there for two hours already in order to help Madame Cesaire in the kitchen, and other classmates came in pairs or with their families.
Chloe knew that one classmate in particular would be coming, since she had heard her mention it to Alya, but she wasn't sure when she would be arriving. And she didn't know what would happen when she did.
Because Chloe, entirely unintentionally, had just broken one of the most important rules of Paris. As she had entered her room after her meeting with Angie, she had spotted the note from Ladybug sitting on her table. And she had, entirely unintentionally, realized something entirely shocking - and yet it made perfect sense.
And as she saw that classmate come in, greet Alya with a hug, and nearly trip over her feet as Adrien walked up to her, she felt an absolute conviction.
No one must ever suspect what she now knew for certain.
A few minutes later, Angie walked up to the podium and began her speech, thanking all of the volunteers who had given their time and effort to make the charity event such a success. Chloe nodded and smiled, but didn't raise her hand to identify herself. She wasn't sure she could even count her involvement as "help" - all she'd been able to do was finish a few phone calls and repair a box. But she clapped and smiled at all the coordinators who went up on the stage to be recognized.
And just as quickly, they all ducked as a beam of light shot toward them, missing all but one. The middle aged man who was hit was suddenly engulfed in a bright light, and as it cleared, everyone could see that he was suddenly transformed. Instead of the charmingly cliché and brightly colored Christmas sweater he had been wearing, he was now entirely in black and white, unable to move a muscle.
Chloe, along with everyone else in the room, turned to face the direction the beam had come from, and just as suddenly moved away. A man in a Victorian-style suit, with an absurdly large matching mustache, was floating in the doorway with an old-fashioned camera and flash in his hands, laughing heartily.
"Replace me, will you? Well, we'll see about that! I am The Flashbull - and you're going to regret letting this has-been take my place!"
At this the entire room was filled with shouts and the stomping of feet as people tried to get away from the akuma through the opposite doors. Chloe alone pushed forward, knowing that her classmates had been close to the door when the akuma had struck. She looked through the crowd, trying to find one in particular, noticing that at least a few of them had managed to get out of the doorway without the akuma. Turning her head to glance at the akuma, she noticed he was going after the chairpeople of the event - no, the photographer hiding behind them.
And Marinette was right in the line of fire.
Without a moment's hesitation, Chloe ran out of the crowd of people by the door and grabbed Marinette, pulling her around a table just as another beam hit Angie and turned her into some sort of Picasso-esque form. Without another backwards glance, Chloe pulled her classmate behind her through the doors and down the hall until they reached an an abandoned closet.
"What are you doing?" Marinette demanded, her hand on her purse. Chloe slammed the door behind them and braced herself.
"I'll explain everything later, but you have to get back out there!"
"W-what do you mean?!" Marinette said, her eyes widening. Chloe groaned aloud.
"This isn't the time, Marinette! Just transform and get out there now - before anyone else gets hurt. Is Chat Noir going to be here already? Whatever, it doesn't matter. Do you need anything before you go?"
Marinette was staring at the blonde girl in front of her, but just as suddenly as she had zoned out, she zoned back in again and started to panic.
"Oh no, no, no! No one can know, this isn't okay, Chloe, you can't tell anyone about this!"
"Of course I won't tell anyone about this!" Chloe snapped, her voice sounding almost exactly like her previous day's petulance. "I told you, I'll explain it all tonight when you come to see me, but you have to go!"
Marinette nodded and opened her purse, letting out a small red kwami with spots on it.
"Okay, but we're not done with this conversation, Chloe! Tikki, spots on!"
A flash of light that made Chloe close her eyes instinctively, and suddenly Ladybug was standing in front of her. Chloe couldn't believe that simple little mask had ever fooled her before.
"Stay here until the coast is clear, Chloe. I don't want you getting hurt." Ladybug said, unfurling her yoyo from her wrist. Chloe grabbed her hands as she was about to leap out of the door.
"What about all the rest of the people in the ballroom? Will you get them out?"
Ladybug looked up at the blonde, and then suddenly smiled and took off without another word. Chloe swore under her breath - something she hardly ever did except when under immense stress - and bolted out of the supply closet toward the ballroom.
The doors were still open, but the rest of the crowd had managed to evacuate. Seeing Ladybug swing from the chandelier and Chat Noir flip over a beam from the akuma's camera, Chloe turned and ran toward the lobby of the hotel. People were still there, trying to leave through the glass doors, but somehow they had been jammed shut. Chloe pushed her way through the crowd and found her butler, standing by the stairway.
"Jean, do we have any kind of microphone in here?"
The man shook his head, and Chloe sighed and jumped up onto the front desk.
"Ladies and gentlemen!" she shouted, in a voice she had often used to shout for her father to come and give her some inconsequential gift. The room went quiet.
"Please remain calm." Chloe said, in a more moderate voice. "Ladybug and Chat Noir have already arrived and are dealing with the situation. The ballroom doors are closed, and unless there is a serious issue, they should hold against the akuma. Please do not panic - is there anyone in the room who has experience with repairing automatic doors?"
A few people raised their hands, and Chloe gestured them toward the front of the crowd. After about two minutes, the doors opened and the crowd quickly exited the lobby. Only a few people stayed in the hotel, glancing in concern at the hallway toward the ballroom, but they needn't have worried. Only about a minute after the doors were opened, the red ladybugs came swarming out and engulfed a few things that presumably had been damaged by the akuma. Chloe gratefully took her butler's hand and hopped down from the desk, smoothing out her dress as she did so.
"Well, I think that went very well, don't you?"
The look on the man's face was almost the same he always had, but she could tell he was pleased.
The charity event was over well before intended, but Angie wasn't worried. They had acquired such a large amount of donations even in the first hours that they felt it wasn't worth trying to salvage it. Besides, a quick picture from Ladybug and Chat Noir on their website was enough to get attention and even more of an inpouring of donations from those who didn't have time before the abrupt ending. Chloe was watching the website on her phone, watching the number tick up toward their goal, when suddenly a knock came at the glass door onto her balcony. She glanced up at the window and saw a familiar figure standing there. She suddenly realized how late it was and jumped up to open the door.
Ladybug walked in and immediately sat down on a sofa, patting the opposite chair.
"I think we need to talk."
Chloe sat down on the indicated seat and nodded, holding her hands in her lap. Ladybug looked at her seriously.
"I don't know how you figured me out, but I suppose I should thank you for your help. Otherwise I might not have been able to get out of the way in time."
Chloe nodded again, then jerked her head up and shook it.
"No! I didn't mean that. I mean, yes, I'm glad I could help."
Ladybug smiled, and then said something that surprised the blonde.
"Do you mind if we talk without the suit?"
Chloe could only shake her head, surprise depriving her of words. After a tiny pause, Ladybug said two words.
"Spots off."
Another flash of light, and Marinette was sitting with her hands clasped in front of Chloe, who was suddenly acutely aware of everything she had ever done to her little classmate.
"Chloe," the smaller girl said, seeming to ignore the little kwami hovering at her shoulder. She looked as if she had something to say, but after a moment she looked away. Chloe could understand how she felt - since all the pieces coming together, she had been horribly aware that she and Ladybug - Marinette - didn't have a good starting place.
And she knew she would have to pick up the pieces first.
"I'm sorry."
Marinette looked up in surprise at the words, but Chloe looked away as quickly as she dared before continuing.
"I truly didn't mean to find out, it was an accident. Utterly an accident."
More silence, then Marinette spoke.
"Tikki, has this ever happened before?"
Chloe looked up at the little kwami, feeling a pang of loneliness for her own. Tikki seemed to be considering, then spoke in a voice higher than Pollen's.
"I know people have broken through the identity charm before, but not exactly like this. But then again, we don't know exactly what 'this' was."
Marinette nodded and turned to Chloe.
"What did happen, anyway? Did I give myself away somehow?"
Chloe chuckled awkwardly and reached for the note on the table, holding it out to the smaller girl.
"Not intentionally, but I guess something just clicked. Maybe next time try typing your notes instead of handwriting them."
Marinette dropped her head into her hands and groaned, which made Chloe laugh a bit more naturally. At least something was still the same.
"I can't believe I was so stupid! I thought I was safe! I thought it was safe!"
Chloe suddenly felt she couldn't be sitting quite so close to her guest and quickly walked toward the sliding glass doors. The cold of the glass on her hand was almost painful, but she preferred not to have to face Marinette at the moment.
There was too much that had to be said, and she didn't know if she could say it.
But before the silence had dragged on too long, she heard Marinette get off of the couch. She heard and felt her moving closer, and braced herself for something - anything. But Marinette's only move was to set her hand on the glass door, a few inches away from Chloe's.
"So… Do you want to talk about it?"
Chloe chuckled again, but knew it sounded forced.
"Not really, but that's never stopped us before."
Marinette let out an equally forced laugh and turned toward the blonde.
"Why did you do it, Chloe?"
The tone of her voice made it completely clear to Chloe what she was talking about, and she knew it couldn't be pushed away any more. She sighed and placed her forehead against the cold glass, feeling the vibrations as she spoke.
"I was lonely. I was angry. I wanted someone - anyone - to see me and want me. And… I screwed up. I thought I would be happy if everyone was afraid of me, if I could control them." She pushed back the tears coming to her eyes. "I was wrong. Paris isn't afraid of me, it doesn't respect me, it hates me. The only person who cares about me is Sabrina, and I almost wish she could just let me go and do something better with her life."
Marinette moved her hand to the blonde's arm, and Chloe flinched away at her cold touch.
"I screwed up, too."
At this, Chloe looked down at her with surprise. Marinette seemed to be struggling to find words, but finally she said, slowly and clearly,
"I let you feel like you were a part of the group, and then I took that away from you without any explanation. I never visited, I never told you what had happened. And I wasn't a good friend to you. I felt guilty and didn't do anything about it. I thought I was doing what was right! I thought I was protecting you, keeping you safe in some way."
Another pause, and Marinette looked up at her seriously.
"But I was wrong. That wasn't what you needed or wanted. And I'm sorry."
Blue eyes met blue, and then they both looked away.
"Me too." Chloe said, walking back toward the center of the room. She looked awkwardly at Marinette, still standing by the doors, and then smiled a little.
"At least you cared whether I was safe."
Marinette nodded, her eyes more serious than Chloe had ever seen them.
"I never intended for you to have the miraculous, we both know that. But you were a good Queen Bee. I gave the miraculous back to you those times because you were loyal, you were brave, and you were willing to work with us in a way I never really saw in Chloe Bourgeois. With me. You were a good hero, and I didn't want all of this to happen."
Chloe shook her head, knowing Marinette would take all the blame if she could.
"That's not fair to you. I took the miraculous the first time and didn't return it, I was a whiny brat about being able to use it after that, and I'm the one who put you through hell and back with my own stupid, misguided ideas of power."
"That may be true." Marinette said, moving over to her. "But you also risked yourself to save me, while you were Queen Bee and Chloe. You did make progress toward being a real, wonderful part of the team. And I heard you last night, Chloe. You're not evil, you're not bad. Hawkmoth preyed on legitimate fears and feelings you had - and that's his fault, not yours. He gave you power, he promised you so much, and then took it away and left you to deal with the aftermath. But whatever your faults are, you are not a bad person. You are not like him, you have never been like him. I promise."
Chloe felt the tears falling down her cheek and moved to turn away, but before she could, the little Kwami, Tikki, flew up and grabbed a tear off of her face.
"Pollen has missed you, Chloe. She said you were the best holder she's had in centuries."
Chloe put her hand up to her mouth and couldn't help herself. She dropped to the sofa and sobbed, not even caring that Marinette was there, watching and judging her. She'd been judged enough by people - but this, this was something else. And somehow, knowing that this was Ladybug, Marinette, someone who truly knew every part of her now, made it alright to show this weakness.
And something in her felt better when she felt Marinette's arms around her and instinctively set her head on the dark-haired girl's shoulder.
When she finally managed to gulp down her sobs and look up, Marinette and Tikki were looking at each other and mouthing words together, trying to communicate without interrupting her bout of tears. Chloe quickly pulled herself away and grabbed a tissue, turning away to compose herself. When she looked back, she saw the two of them, the kwami hovering over Marinette's shoulder, and she felt the tears come back again. Forcing them down, she said as steadily as she could,
"Why did you take her away from me?"
Marinette looked surprised, then sudden realization dawned. She suddenly looked from Tikki to Chloe and back again, her expression shifting from realization to pain. She looked at Tikki again and held out her hand.
"I had no idea what that would do to you. I should have known that you two were bonded even after that little time. I mean, Al- Rena Rouge and Trix were bonded from the moment they met. I'm sorry, Chloe. I truly didn't think about that… and I should have. Because I can't imagine what would happen if I lost Tikki like that."
Chloe stayed silent. Marinette stayed silent. There was nothing they could do.
Until Tikki suddenly spoke.
"Marinette," she said, "A kwami doesn't have to stay with their miraculous if the guardian is willing to let them go. It's not common, but it's happened before when a miraculous has been in danger but the kwami doesn't want to be separated from their holder."
Chloe looked up, confused at the sudden subject change and almost daring to hope. Marinette had a similar expression on her face, but then looked thoughtful.
"I didn't know that - it's not in the book."
Chloe suddenly remembered that Marinette - Ladybug - was the new guardian, and the sudden glimmer of hope died out.
Marinette wouldn't want Chloe to have something like this. She'd never wanted it in the first place.
But Marinette was looking at her, almost as if she was scanning her or trying to gauge her reaction. Chloe knew it wasn't possible to hide her emotions, so she didn't even try. And then Marinette did something Chloe hadn't thought possible.
She smiled at Chloe. A real, genuine smile.
"I have an idea."
She nodded at Tikki, who suddenly flew across the room and through a wall, and then she reached for the blonde's hand and held it, her grip surprisingly gentle.
"I think a miraculous is too much for you right now. And to be honest, it's too much for me, too. That bridge has been burned, but that doesn't mean we can't fix it."
Chloe gaped at her, her mind trying to find the catch, the downside, the way Marinette would have power over her.
"What are you saying?"
Marinette smiled at her again, this time a little sadly.
"I'm the guardian now, so I guess that means I can make some… unorthodox decisions. And despite everything, I heard you. I do hear you now. You want to get better, and I want to help you. So why don't we call this a test run?"
Chloe couldn't believe what she was hearing. She stood up and glared at the smaller girl.
"Dupai- Marinette, if this is some kind of punishment, I'll never forgive you."
Marinette shook her head.
"No punishment, no angle. Pollen can come and stay with you, but the miraculous stays with the box, in a location only I know. And if this goes well for a while, maybe we can talk about it again and reconsider."
Chloe shook her head, trying to make sense of what was happening.
"You can't be serious - what about Hawkmoth!?"
At that, Marinette laughed out loud, surprising the blonde.
"You think I didn't see that interaction last night? I think you're about the only one who can handle him right now. I mean, can you imagine what would happen if he were to attack you now?"
Chloe thought about it for a moment, and then suddenly a laugh came from her. It was small, but the more she thought, the more she laughed. It was a carefree laugh, a defiant laugh, a laugh that was more natural than anything she had said for months. Finally, looking directly at her former enemy, she smiled, allowing her real Queen Bee fire to show through.
"I would like to see him try."
And we're finished! Of course, this isn't a one-and-done deal, Chloe still has a ways to go in order to regain trust and rebuild relationships, but this is such an important first step. And that's what counts right now.
I hope you all enjoyed the story - thank you so much for reading!