Okay! Here we go! Sorry this took so long. I've been blanking out on how this chapter was going to go. Things are picking up in the real world for me, and the saying goes, "You gotta do what you're getting paid for first"!
Today, Adrien gives Marinette and her parents the 411 about what went down.
Song(s) Included, with/without Modifications:
Amazed - Lonestar
"HE DID WHAT?!" The entire family shouted.
Adrien nodded, saying, "You heard me."
He was sitting on the couch next to Marinette, meanwhile her parents were standing and looking at the scene.
"He threatened to pull you out of school if you didn't break up with me?!" Marinette cried, more angry than heartbroken.
"Yeah. He said you were a bad influence on me because I've been prioritizing spending time with you over everything else," He explained. "I... I completely snapped. I roared at him that I'd never leave you, no matter what happens. He ordered me to my room, but I defied him openly, saying that I'm a legal adult and I should be allowed to act and be treated like one. That obviously threw him."
"I know how you feel," Tom began, crossing his arms. "I had a falling out with my own father when I told him I was marrying Sabine here. He's very... Traditional."
'To say the least.' Marinette thought.
"Anyway, I told him that I'm finished being his obedient little boy, that who my friends are is my business and he has no say in the matter. He went silent, glared at me, and then left the room without a word. Once I was sure he was asleep, I took a few things and some money, packed my electronics and some clothes, changed my phone number, and snuck out. I left a note on my bed, telling him that he doesn't have a son anymore. As far as I'm concerned, I'm an orphan now." Adrien explained.
"That explains why you're here at this hour," Sabine told him. "So, what are you going to do?"
Adrien looked askance, rubbed the back of his neck in his usual nervous tick, and he looked up.
"I... I know I'd be intruding, but... I was thinking I could... Stay here?" Adrien asked.
"Of course!" Tom said without missing a beat. "We have a guest room. We can make that your bedroom."
"Great idea!" Marinette said.
Adrien smiled, relieved, and said, "Thanks. I was going to go to Nino's, but I didn't want to scare Chris with my scars."
"I actually think he'd be more amazed by the scars," Marinette laughed as took his hand. "He likes things like that."
Adrien immediately hugged her close to him and burred his face into the crook of her neck, kissing it like his life depended on it. Marinette held back a passionate moan, just as she heard someone clearing their throat.
Adrien looked up to see Tom and Sabine looking at them.
"Son, we know you love our daughter, but it's late, and you need your sleep. We can talk about this in the morning." Tom said, winking at Adrien.
Adrien blushed before saying, "I... I'll take the couch for the night."
Everyone nodded in agreement. Tom and Sabine went back to their room, turning out the common area lights.
Marinette kissed Adrien good night on his lips before getting off the couch and leaving for her room. He held back a whine as he watched her go up to her room. Adrien let his fatigue hit him like a ton of bricks, and with the soothing feel of Marinette's kiss, he laid on the couch and fell asleep.
After breakfast the next day, the family sat down in the living room to talk about what they were going to do with Adrien.
"...Obviously, you being a legal adult, filing for emancipation is out," Tom said. "And we don't have the income to provide you the lifestyle you're used to."
"I don't expect that. Beggars can't be choosers," Adrien said as he looked a family photo of the Dupain-Chengs that was on the shelf. "...I really envy you, Marinette."
"How so?" Marinette asked. Adrien stood up, walked to the mantle, and took the picture down.
"I've never had a close, loving, tight-knit family like you do," Adrien admitted as he came and sat back down. "Even my mother's family doesn't exactly treat me with kindness. They're pretty hostile towards my father, even though they cover it up with niceties all the time."
"That's bad." Sabine said sadly.
With a sardonic scoff and bitter smile, Adrien said, "At least these scars will make it easy for people to tell me and my cousin apart."
"Don't talk like that, Adrien!" Marinette said as she held his hands.
"Listen, Adrien, we're more than happy to take you in, but you need to do your part around here," Tom said. "Other than your homework."
"Honestly, that's another reason I wish I had this kind of home and lifestyle. I don't know how to wash dishes, cook, do laundry..." Adrien admitted.
"I can show you the ropes," Marinette said. "It's a case of doing it so much that it becomes second nature."
Adrien gave Marinette a smile and he looked her in the eyes. They started leaning in towards each other for a kiss...
*BRING~! BRING~!*
The house phone started going off, and Tom went to pick up.
"Hello?" Tom asked.
"Hello, M. Dupain, this is Nathalie Sancoeur," Nathalie said over the phone. "I'm sorry for bothering you, but it's an emergency."
"Emergency?" Tom said.
"Listen, Adrien's been missing since last night." Nathalie said.
"What? Adrien? Missing?" Tom asked. Hearing his name, Adrien tensed and he quickly latched on to Marinette.
"Yes. We've tried calling him, but his phone number has been disconnected," Nathalie said. "Is he with you?"
"No, he's not here." Tom lied. Everyone heaved silent, relieved sighs.
"That's peculiar," Nathalie commented. "Your home was the first place we thought to look. If he's not there..."
"Assuming he shows up, we'll get Marinette to talk to him at school tomorrow and ask what's going on." Tom said.
"Thank you, M. Dupain." Nathalie said before hanging up.
"Thanks." Adrien said.
"Don't worry, Adrien," Sabine said. "You'll be safe here."
Adrien smiled, about to cry tears of joy.
Once the mood settled down, Marinette's parents went down into the bakery to get to work while Marinette and Adrien stayed up top. They decided that they would set up Adrien's room and do some shopping for him (toiletries, clothes, etc.) after they were done for the day.
"...So... What do you want to do now?" Adrien asked as he hugged his girlfriend. "Do you have a tablet? We can play Super Penguino."
"Um, no," Marinette said as she gently got out of his arms and shied away from him. "I..."
What was she supposed to say? Her boyfriend was so in love with her that he all but disowned his father over it? His feelings for her were that strong? She cared about him, but she had to ask herself: was it to the same extent? Was she as passionately in love with him as he was with her? She wasn't sure.
"Marinette? You okay?" Adrien asked.
Marinette shook herself out of her thoughts and said, "Yes, I'm fine, just... This is all happening so fast."
"I know it is," Adrien admitted. "I know it's going to be an adjustment period. For both of us."
Marinette looked back at him and gave him a shy smile.
"But I promise you this," Adrien said as he took her hands and kissed them. "I'll never do anything that makes you uncomfortable. Just say the word and I'll back off."
"Thank you." Marinette said to him as he kissed her hands again.
He also pulled her in closer and planted his lips on hers. Marinette felt her heart soar in response to Adrien's kiss, and she locked her arms around his neck.
*BRING! BRING! BRING!*
Their moment was interrupted Marinette's phone. Her best friend was on the other line, and she picked up.
"Hello?" Marinette asked as she put her best friend on speaker.
"Girl, where are you right now?!" Alya asked, sounding panicked.
"Um, at my home," Marinette replied to Alya. "Why?"
"Listen, don't panic, but it's about Adrien!" Alya began. "He's-"
"Right here," Adrien said, taking the phone away from Marinette. "Safe and sound."
"...Wait, really?" Alya asked after a beat of silence.
"Yeah." Adrien said.
"That's it! Nino and I are coming over there right now!" Alya said over the phone before hanging up.
The couple looked at each other in confusion.
When Nino and Alya arrived, they stormed into the house before sitting down in front of them.
"Dude, way to give us a heart attack," Nino said, crossing his arms. "Your old man's PA called me up, said you went missing, and I couldn't get in touch with you to check up on the situation."
"Same here." Alya informed, a little annoyed.
"I changed my phone number," Adrien said, rubbing the back of his neck in a nervous tick. "Sorry for not telling you."
"Can you at least put the word out on that with the group?" Nino asked. "I'm sure Nathalie's calling everyone in class, asking where you are. And when they realize your old number is old news..."
"Yeah, good point." Adrien said.
"So, what happened?" Alya asked.
"M. Agreste threatened to pull me out of school if I didn't break it off with Marinette, so I left in the middle of the night and came here." Adrien explained as he held Marinette's hand in his own.
It wasn't lost on Alya and Nino that Adrien didn't address Gabriel as his father.
"So you finally faced up to him? I'm so proud of you." Nino said, smiling.
"Thanks," Adrien thanked with a chuckle. "I'm... Planning on staying here with Marinette and her family indefinitely. They're setting up the guest room to be used as my bedroom."
"Oh, living with your girlfriend, eh?" Nino asked in a teasing tone. "Sounds like you're finally spreading your wings, dude."
Adrien's face tinted pink, while Marinette was a full-blown red.
"Um, yeah..." Marinette said.
"Well, don't let us get in the way of you settling in with your sweetie," Nino chuckled. "Speaking of which, Alya and I have a date later. But we're not gonna dump the kids on you."
"Thanks, both of you." Marinette said to him.
"Yeah, my face is what kept me from going over to your place, Nino. Scaring Chris is the last thing I want to do." Adrien admitted.
The four of them started laughing at the idea.
"Well, Nino and I are gonna get going," Alya said as she and Nino stood up. "We'll see you at school tomorrow?"
"Yes." Adrien confirmed.
"Don't worry - if anyone asks, we'll let you do the talking." Nino said.
"Thank you," Adrien said as he stood up and did his signature handshake with Nino, meanwhile the girls shared a fist-bump. "I don't know how I got so lucky to have friends like you."
"No problem, dude," Nino said before wrapping his arm around Alya's waist. "Now, go on about your business. Just don't get too enthusiastic about it."
The new couple blushed in response as Alya and Nino left the house. Adrien had to grab the TV remote to turn on a comedy cartoon to change the mood. It didn't take long for the two of them to start laughing their heads off.
"I can't believe they didn't see that coming!" Adrien laughed.
"They call that a plot twist?" Marinette laughed. "It's so predictable."
There was laughter ringing out in the room the entire time the show was being played, and Marinette felt so at ease.
The following day at school, the couple arrived together, holding hands. Adrien still had his hood up (which was sheer force of habit at this point). When they got into the classroom, Adrien ran to their shared bench, wiped down their seats with a handkerchief he'd had on hand.
He stood up, before giving Marinette an overdramatic bow, saying, "Mademoiselle."
Marinette giggled as she sat down. Adrien quickly sat next to her, before holding her by the shoulder and leaning his head against hers. They settled into a peaceful silence.
"Adrien!" Someone shouted, and the pair looked up to see the rest of their class (barring the Terrible Trio) were looking at them in surprise, shock, relief, etc.. Alya and Nino weren't surprised at the scene, though.
"Oh. Morning, guys." Adrien said.
"Don't "Morning, guys" us, Agreste!" Alix griped. "Your PA called everyone in class, asking if we knew where you went! And none of us could get in touch with you on your phone! You had us all worried sick!"
"Er, yeah... Um, sorry about that," Adrien apologized meekly. "I got so caught up with everything that I forgot to tell you guys my new number in the group chat."
"I was 85% at the point of having Markov hack phones all over the city to track you down." Max said.
"But that goes against my privacy ethics you taught me." Markov pointed out, looking sad.
"Which is why I'm glad you protested." Max agreed.
Everyone laughed.
"Now that we know you're okay, we've got your back." Nino said.
"Thanks, guys." Marinette said.
Rose looked around to make sure no one unsavory (*the Terrible Trio) was in plain sight or in earshot, before asking, "So, is it true you've moved in with Marinette's family?"
"Yeah," Adrien said as he held Marinette's hand into his own and looked her in the eyes. "This starving, lonely tomcat had been rescued by a fair princess and her merciful family, and for that, I'm forever grateful."
He leaned his forehead against hers, and she smiled back, blushing while laughing, "Oh, you silly..."
Adrien hugged Marinette close to him as he kept his head against hers, his face tinted pink with love, too. Everyone was smiling at the scene, moved.
The entire school day consisted of the two of them together in classes, never leaving the other's side.
During their literature class, they were discussing some of the most famous love poems by some of the world's most renowned poets. Shakespeare was an obvious one, but Mme. Bustier wanted to make sure some lesser-known writers were showcased.
Marinette and Adrien were assigned "A Red, Red Rose" by Robert Burns.
As they were examining the poem, Adrien put his hand over hers, leaned in and whispered to her, "'O my Luve is like a red, red rose/ That's newly sprung in June;/ O my Luve is like the melody that's sweetly played in tune.'"
Marinette held back a blush. With a quiet giggle, she said to him, "Stop!"
Adrien chuckled back in response before whispering in her ear again, "'So fair art thou, my bonnie lass,/ So deep in luve am I;/ And I will Luve thee still, my dear/ Till a' the seas gang dry.'"
Marinette giggled again as they continued to annotate the poem (with Adrien whispering sweet nothings in her ear at every chance they got).
During lunch, Marinette was in line for food, gathering all her items to eat. She had gotten herself the beet and carrot salad, sliced, roast beef with mashed potatoes, and warm, plain sliced baguette.
Marinette sat down at a table, took a fork-full of her meal and ate it. She was about to take another bite and put it into her mouth when she felt her wrist get gripped gently. She looked up and saw Adrien (with his own lunch). He maneuvered the fork into his mouth and started eating. He gave Marinette a romantic smolder.
Marinette went red as her boyfriend sat across from her.
"Pretty good. Doesn't hold a candle to your parents' cooking, though." Adrien said as he started eating his own lunch.
Marinette's face was still red as she said, "Thank you."
As the two of them ate and talked, with Adrien clearly looking at his girlfriend with nothing else on his mind.
The girls were watching from nearby. Zoé said, "They're so cute together."
"Aren't they, though?" Alya agreed. "Adrien clearly has it bad for her."
"And she him." Myléne stated.
When school ended for the day, Adrien was escorting Marinette out of the building (with Adrien holding her hand).
"That Literature homework seems easy enough," Marinette said as Adrien nodded in agreement. "But we should also bang out that math, first."
"Yeah, I-" Adrien began, only to see something out of his peripheral vision. "Oh no..."
"What's the matter?" Marinette asked.
"Look." Adrien griped as he pinched the bridge of his nose.
Marinette followed his line of sight to see Nathalie and the Gorilla with the family car. She pulled a scowl as Adrien started walking down the stairs of the school, with her in tow.
"Adrien." Nathalie addressed.
Adrien paused in front of the scene, blinked, and said, "Excuse me, who are you?"
Nathalie heaved a sigh and said, "Adrien, don't play games with me. Your father is waiting for you, so please stop this farce."
Adrien scowled, looked Nathalie in the eye and said, "Father? What father? I'm an orphan."
Nathalie's eyes widened a bit, but she recovered and said, "I'm serious, Adrien. Enough with this nonsense - it's time to go home."
Adrien blinked before smiling and saying, "You know what? You're right. It is time to go home."
Nathalie nodded and opened the car door, but Adrien took Marinette's hands and said, "Come on, Princess. Your parents are waiting. I should get you home before I go on my way."
Marinette giggled as Adrien turned and started running from the car to head to the Dupain-Cheng bakery, and she was following him.
"Adrien! Stop!" Nathalie called.
Adrien ignored her as he continued walking towards the crosswalk. He was tapping his foot, anxious, listening to the sound of the footsteps behind him.
"Adrien, your father wants you-" Nathalie began to order as she tried to approach him.
"Lady, I don't HAVE a father! I'm an ORPHAN! Leave me the fuck ALONE!" Adrien shouted as the light changed. He charged across the street, with Marinette's hand in his own.
Adrien brought Marinette to the bakery door before hugging her. He whispered in her ear, "Get inside. I'll lose them before coming back in."
Marinette nodded before kissing his cheek and going into the bakery. She gave her mom a nod before heading upstairs into the family area to go to her room to do homework.
"Ugh, I hate quadratics... Where are Max and Markov when you need them?" Marinette complained as she tried typing the equation into the calculator and not getting anywhere with it.
As she tried to factor out her quadratics, she looked at the clock on her phone. She sighed before saying aloud, "Where is he? It's been over half an hour!"
Almost like it were on cue, she heard a knock on her door. She said, "Hello?"
The door opened and Adrien's head popped in. He said, "Hi, Marinette. Sorry I took so long."
"Persistent, huh?" Marinette asked.
"Yeah," Adrien said as he came in and shut the door. "I had to hide for a while."
"Chances are they're not going to give up." Marinette confessed in worry.
"Never mind that, Marinette," Adrien said, changing the subject. "Let me guess? The quadratics?"
Marinette nodded as she showed him what she was struggling with.
"Let me help you." Adrien said as he sat next to her at her desk.
However, she got a whiff of something foul...
"Um, Adrien, where exactly did you hide...?" Marinette asked as she pulled away.
"Down in the sewers near the dump, why?" Adrien stated.
However, he got the hint when Marinette grabbed a can of air freshener from nearby and started spraying it in his direction. He sniffed under his arm, went green in the face, and gagged as he pulled away.
"Ugh, was there camembert and limburger in the sewers?!" Adrien wheezed. "I'll go bathe like yesterday!"
He dashed downstairs to find the bathroom. Marinette laughed as she kept spraying the freshener around the room.
Once he was cleaned up and they'd finished their homework, they were downstairs with Tom and Sabine, eating dinner.
"A hot, delicious meal with great family," Adrien said after swallowing a bite of the ratatouille. "Nothing better!"
Everyone laughed as they continued eating.
"Well, son, how do you like your room?" Tom asked.
Adrien's heart warmed at being called "son" and he said, "Cozy. Very cozy."
"That's great! I know it's small and the bed's only an extra large full as opposed to the king-sized bed you're probably used to..." Sabine said.
"Believe me, I haven't slept that good in a long time." Adrien said as he looked at the three of them before continuing to eat.
When it was time for dessert, Tom brought out a small cake and he said, "I wasn't sure what you liked, but I know you're a fan of the passionfruit macarons, so I made a passion fruit cake, with a caramelized white chocolate ganache filling and macadamia nuts!"
"Awesome!" Adrien said as Tom put a plate with a big slice of cake in front of Adrien. He immediately took to eating it.
Adrien chomped down, and his mouth was singing hymns while the flavors of the cake were doing a formal dance with the passion fruit and the ganache being the dancers. The sharp, acidic tones of the passion fruit were taking the lead in the waltz, leading the creamy, nutty, butterscotch-like notes of the ganache. The macadamia nuts added a crunch that was akin to sudden bursts of jazz music in the dance, and both the ganache and the passion fruit were embracing the breaks of syncopation.
Adrien was thoroughly enjoying his cake, and he kept eating it like his life depended on it. With each bite, he felt fuller (and not just his stomach).
"Honestly, this really feels like home." Adrien said as he kept eating his cake.
"Glad you feel that way, Adrien. And I'm glad you're enjoying the cake." Sabine said.
Once dinner was over, Marinette and Adrien changed clothes (Marinette in a bathrobe and Adrien in some loose-fitting clothes) and sat themselves on the couch and were watching a romantic dramedy (comedy and drama) movie. Her parents had since gone back downstairs to do some prep work for the next day.
They had finished watched the scene where the hero fell down the stairs after getting pushed in the back by the resident bully. After he landed on the bottom of the stairs, everyone was gasping and murmuring, wondering if he was okay. The heroine ran over to help him up. The next scene had her take his hand, and it caused him to feel a jolt in his body. He looked her in the eyes and his face went red.
"Ooh, I'm seeing the sparks!" Marinette giggled. "It's electric!"
"Just like us?" Adrien asked as he looked away from the movie towards Marinette.
"Well..." Marinette said, rolling her eyes in a manner akin to stalling. "I admit there were sparks between us..."
Arien smiled as he reached his arm to wrap it around Marinette.
"Just not these kind." Marinette said as she pointed at the screen.
"Oh, come on!" Adrien laughed as he slapped his knee in amusement. "Our first meeting wasn't that terrible, was it?"
"Last time I checked, you told me that doing things for the greater good and having respect for your fellow person was a bunch of hooey!" Marinette laughed in response before giving him a sly smile. "I also remember you deflecting my compliment about your hoodie features."
Adrien blushed before rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly, saying, "Y-Yeah... Now that you mention it, I did do all of that."
Marinette laughed heartily at Adrien's reaction, and the two of them went back to the movie. When they got to the biggest, most romantic scene in the movie, Adrien took a deep breath and turned to his girlfriend.
"Um... Marinette?" Adrien asked.
"Yes?" Marinette questioned, turning back to him.
"Come to my room tonight." Adrien said, his face red.
"Wait, what?" Marinette asked, her eyes bulging in surprise.
Adrien didn't respond, looking her in the eyes. He took a deep breath and said, "Later tonight... Come to my room?"
Marinette blinked at him in confusion, but seeing he was also anxious, she looked down in thought. After giving it a few moments, she looked up and said, "Yes."
Adrien smiled and said, "Perfect! Now, um... Back to the movie."
Marinette blushed and looked back up at the screen as they continued the movie, meanwhile Adrien quietly slipped away...
Once the movie was over, Marinette clutched herself, gripping the fabric of her bathrobe as she approached the door of Adrien's room. She took a deep breath and knocked on the door.
She heard footsteps, and the door opened, revealing Adrien, who was wearing his nightshirt, but his hair was wet and he had a bath towel around his neck.
"You showered again?" Marinette asked, quirking a brow in confusion.
"Yep. Didn't want to take any chance of still having that sewer stink on me." Adrien admitted as he ushered her inside.
He closed the door and sat on the bed. He looked up at Marinette and patted the space next to him. Marinette swallowed a lump in her throat and sat down next to him. He sat cross-legged at the head of the bed, meanwhile Marinette was sitting near the end, her face looking at the floor and her hands in her lap. She was too anxious to look Adrien in the eyes.
'Why am I so nervous? It's not like we haven't been alone in a bedroom together before...' Marinette thought, subtly shaking.
Being in Adrien's old bedroom back at the Agreste mansion was one thing. She knew Adrien wouldn't do anything like that to her in that situation because they
"Marinette, I..." Adrien began as he scooted closer to her.
"Yes?" Marinette asked as she swung her legs up onto the bed and sat on her knees. Adrien sat on his knees before raising himself up a little bit. He reached a hand out to touch her cheek.
"Vous êtes si belle..." He murmured huskily, bringing her face up to look at him.
He was looking at Marinette with passion in his lidded, bedroom eyes as he took off his nightshirt and let it fall on the bed. His rugged, defined chest was bare to her eyes, and the dim light in the room was highlighting his body scars and his desire-filled eyes. Marinette looked back at him with a red face, frozen as he reached for her bathrobe.
"Do you have any idea how hungry you make me?" Adrien asked as he gently slid the shoulders of her bathrobe off to reveal her pale pink, nearly-white lingerie.
"Um, there's plenty of food in the kitchen..." Marinette said, blushing hard and looking down, her heart pounding.
"Not that kind of hungry, Marinette," Adrien chuckled as he held her closer. "The kind of hungry that only gets sated when this beast of a man lies with a beauty such as yourself."
Marinette's face was surely on fire by now.
"A-Adrien, aren't you moving a bit fast?" Marinette asked as she found her face in his chest and his arms around her.
Her heart pounded as she put her hands on his chest, feeling the solidness of his muscles. The scent of the soap he used was sharp with the musky, dark aroma of patchouli, combined with the dry smokiness of vetiver. Like Adrien had gone from a surly, broken black kitten who was scared and angry at the world to a fully-grown, mature black jaguar who was ready to pounce on his mate. She pulled herself away from him and looked up at him. His soaking wet hair sticking to his head made him look even more attractive, and her face kept burning while her heart continued to pound.
"What do you mean?" Adrien asked. "I fell for you pretty fast, like... How did they describe it in the "Hotel Transylvania" movies? A zing."
Marinette looked at him in confusion. She wasn't a horror film fan.
"It was one of those things where I looked at you, and I saw the sun was giving you a halo affect. But I was still in a pretty bad place at the time, and I didn't realize my true feelings until later." Adrien continued.
Marinette felt so flattered at his declaration that she smiled.
"So... What's stopping us?" Adrien asked, his voice above a whisper.
"Well, what will my parents say if we cross the line?" Marinette questioned. "They know we're together, but..."
"Who cares?" Adrien said lowly, sighing with passion. The scent of his minty toothpaste lingered on his breath, making Marinette dizzy. "Who cares what anyone thinks? Je t'aime, Marinette, and there's nothing in the world that will make my feelings change."
Marinette's heart pounded at the declaration.
"But what if I-" Marinette began to argue, only for Adrien to put a finger to her lips and gently hush her. She looked into his eyes, and she melted at the loving, starving light in his eyes.
"Don't talk about it now," Adrien quietly commanded. "I have too much respect and love for you to force this when I can tell that you're not ready."
Marinette looked back up at him and saw the smile on his face.
"Every time our eyes meet, this feeling inside me is almost more than I can take," Adrien quietly sang to her as he took Marinette's hand and put it to his facial scar. "Chérie, when you touch me I can fell how much you love me, and it just blows me away."
Marinette's heart pounded as looked back at him while he continued his song.
"I've never been this close to anyone or anything," He sang as he laid his forehead against hers, closing his eyes. "I can hear your thoughts, I can see your dreams."
Marinette smiled, sighing in affection as he kissed her cheeks.
"I don't know how you do what you do. I'm so in love with you," Adrien confessed in song while landing a kiss on her lips. "It just keeps getting better."
Before he could continue, Marinette buried her face in his chest again, and he pulled her closer. He thought in song, 'I wanna spend the rest of my life with you by my side. Forever and ever.'
He started stroking her hair with his hand, being sure his touch was gentle. Marinette felt passion rush through her body as goosebumps were formed.
"Every little thing that you do. Chérie, I'm amazed by you." Adrien sang.
He gently brought Marinette down to lay on their sides on the bed with him. He tucked her head into the crook of his neck.
"The scent of your skin, the taste of your kiss, the way you whisper in the dark," Adrien sang quietly, trying to lull her to sleep. When he looked down, her hair was still wet and he raked his fingers through it. "Your hair all around me. Chérie, you surround me. You touch every place in my heart."
He saw Marinette's eyes were fluttering closed, but she was making every effort not to fall asleep.
"Oh, it feels like the first time every time," Adrien sang again, trying to convey his emotions. "I wanna spend the whole night in your eyes."
Adrien kissed her lips once more, and that finally made her fall asleep. Adrien's hand from her hair to her back and he was rubbing it gently.
'I don't know how you do what you do. I'm so in love with you,' Adrien mentally confessed in song, refusing to say it, lest he wake her up. 'It just keeps getting better.'
After that serenade, Adrien himself felt the pull of sleep take him.
The following morning, Marinette's eyes slowly opened and she was face-to-face with Adrien's face. She noticed that his arms were still around her, but he was also sound asleep.
She kissed his cheek, and quietly slipped out of his embrace to go into the kitchen for breakfast.
"Good morning, Marinette!" Sabine said.
"Shh!" Marinette hushed. "Adrien's still asleep."
Tom and Sabine looked at their daughter, then to the bedroom door.
Tom asked, "Did you two...?"
"No!" Marinette immediately denied, red in the face. "No, we didn't! I mean, he wanted to, but... He wasn't going to do that unless I was ready and I-"
"Marinette, calm down," Sabine said. "I know you two love each other, and I know he's responsible, just like you."
Marinette sighed in relief as she smiled at her parents.
It didn't take but a minute for Adrien to come out of the room. He yawned before looking at the scene. Seeing the looks on their faces, Adrien went pink in his own face. He said, "Morning."
"Morning, son," Tom said. "Hurry up and get ready. You two have school, after all."
They blushed in response before Marinette dashed up to her bedroom. Adrien looked at Tom with an expression that seemed serious. Tom recognized that look, and nodded at him...
A little bit of time passed by, with the same routine: wake up, breakfast, go to school, duck Nathalie and the Gorilla after school, get back to the bakery, homework, dinner, cuddle time, repeat. On weekends, they'd stay inside and hang out or go to the barge and have fun with the group.
One such instance one Friday, Marinette was packing up her bag and books to head home for the day.
"Hey, Marinette?" Adrien said as he approached her.
"Yes?" Marinette asked as she put her backpack on.
"Listen, I'm gonna have to meet up with you at home later," Adrien said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I have an errand to run."
"Really?" Marinette asked. "What is it?"
"Oh, it's pretty important. Just some paperwork to make sure M. Agreste doesn't try and get me to come back to the mansion." Adrien said.
"Oh, I get it: you're filling a restraining order." Marinette said to him.
"...Yeah." Adrien said after a few beats of silence, smiling and nodding.
"Don't worry about it. The girls and I are hanging out this afternoon anyway. I'll see you later at home!" Marinette said as she briefly kissed him on his lips before dashing out of the classroom.
Adrien heaved a romantic sigh as he watched his girlfriend leave. He started to make his way out of the classroom, too.
Later on, near dusk, the girls were walking along the Seine, drinking smoothies.
"I still can't get over the fact that Adrien disowned his father over you," Alya said while sipping her orange-guava smoothie through her reusable metal straw. "I'd be worried if Nino ever did that."
"Alya, there was more to that than just me. Adrien has a lot of... problems with his father. Trying to get him to break up with me was just the straw that broke the camel's back." Marinette said, remembering her promise to Adrien as she sipped on her strawberry-banana-raspberry smoothie.
"Seriously?" Alix asked while chugging her carrot and apple smoothie.
"Yeah," Marinette said while taking another sip. "I admit it, I was so angry and hurt when his father told him I was a bad influence and all..."
"You, a bad influence?" Myléne asked while drinking her peach smoothie. "That's stupid!"
"Indeed," Kagami agreed as she gulped down her dragon fruit and "I fail to see how making a boy happy qualifies as being a bad influence."
"No kidding," Rose stated while drinking her triple-berry smoothie. "Especially when you compare his demeanor to when he first arrived."
"Yeah. Remember that? He was so unapproachable." Zoé agreed. She took a gulp of her lemon-blueberry-vanilla bean smoothie.
"But look at him now: he's gone from hostile and mean to a cuddly fluff ball, especially when Marinette's around." Alya said while nudging her best friend.
Marinette laughed, but the good mood was cut off when she heard her phone ring. She lifted the device and saw an unknown number. She looked at it, her gut telling her to pick up, and she said, "Hello?"
"Is this Marinette Dupain-Cheng?" A voice on the other line asked.
"This is her, who's calling, please?" Marinette responded, her tone neutral. Everyone stopped walking and turned back to Marinette.
"I'm calling you in regards to your fiancé, Adrien Agreste." The person said.
"Fiancé? Adrien?" Marinette asked, confused, while her face went red in flattery and her heart beat.
The girls, even though they were only picking up parts of the conversation, were looking worried. Alya muttered to Myléne, "Since when did Adrien put a ring on it?"
Myléne shrugged, but the girls looked back at Marinette.
"Yes. You ARE his fiancé, right?" The caller asked.
"Yes..." Marinette asked, going along with it, while thinking, 'I'll worry about that later.'
While the rest of the girls watched, Marinette listened to the other person. With each word, Marinette's face went from confused to worried. Then her face went pale and her eyes went wide.
"He's in the hospital?!" Marinette shouted.
Everyone gasped.
And BANG! Here we go again with poor Adrien in the hospital. Sorry to do this to our Sunshine Child, but I couldn't think of anything else.
And yet again, sorry for the long wait. Like I said earlier, I gotta do what I'm getting paid for first.
Coming up... THE FINALE CHAPTER!
