Chapter 27
~Adrien's POV~
My father had been surprisingly generous with his designs, since he had said he'd provide another dress for the film. The only reason he said he let us borrow the last one was because it was for Chloe, so I was shocked, but not disappointed, when he asked me for a description of Marinette and her measurements to provide her with a nice, suitable dress.
The only time I got to see the dress before it was used in the scene was when I handed it over to Alya, but even then it was in a clear bag, folded neatly. Alya grinned and ran it off to Marinette, who was waiting for her in the school bathroom, to make sure it fit. I had waited a few minutes before Alya poked her head out through the still mostly closed door with wide eyes.
She stared at me with a mixed expression of shock and amazement before she broke into a grin. "Wow!" She said then laughed to herself as she closed the door again, but I could still hear her repeating her exclamations of "wow!" that only grew louder, as well as Marinette's nervous giggles.
Although at the time I had a very hard time understanding what made the two act that way, now as I watched Marinette run through her fifth take of this scene with that girl, Kagami, who looks kind of like her, I understood exactly why Alya said "wow" and I was having a hard time myself not saying it out loud.
Sadly though, Marinette stumbled slightly as she wore the black high heels with the dress, so Nino had to call for another take. But maybe it wasn't so disappointing after all because I could watch the girls act the scene I had read through with Marinette. The girls went back to their places, and Nino called for the scene to start for the sixth time.
Finally, after eight takes, the girls got through their scene, and were very excited to see how they did on camera. They, as well as Nino, Alya, Alix, and I gathered around to watch.
It started off with the first bit of them outside. Although it technically was a separate scene from the one they just filmed, it was so short and went well with the one right after that Alya just counted both parts as one scene.
Marinette was walking down the sidewalk right outside the clothing store we were given permission to use to film at. Kagami was wearing a simple white dress with a long tan coat over it, and Marinette wore very casual clothes with that puffy coat she wore for her character.
"I can't remember the last time I got a… mani-peti." Marinette said as she looked at her nails with a small smile.
"That's just the beginning." Kagami said with a satisfied smile. "You need to take time to pamper yourself. All you do is volunteer and work, and study."
"I should be studying right now." Marinette said anxiously.
"No," Kagami practically cut her off. "You need to go with your sister to get your hair and make-up done and then go shopping for a new dress! That was our deal."
"I know." Marinette sulkily said. "But I've already been gone so long—"
"Marilee." Kagami cut in, walking in front of her as she held her arm to show her seriousness, and when Marinette tried to argue, she let go of her arm and made hand gestures with the next two words. "Stop. Breathe. Okay?" Then she turned to look through the open store window to see white poinsettias. "Enjoy the holiday season."
When Marinette looked unconvinced as she turned towards the window, Kagami let out an amused breath. "Better?"
Marinette smiled in amusement and put her arm around Kagami's shoulder, giving her a side hug. "Better." She agreed.
"Good." Kagami said with a satisfied smile, returned the hug, then moved away. "You deserve this." She said seriously with a warm tone then grabbed Marinette's hand, pulling her towards the door of the store. "Come on."
"I deserve this." Marinette told herself, though she still had a skeptical tone and reluctantly followed Kagami.
As we waited for Nino to start the next recording, I looked in Marinette's direction to see her grinning with Kagami as they did a repeat of that side hug. I smiled softly to myself at the scene, happy to see Marinette so happy. I think her and Kagami were going to be pretty great friends by the time this film was over.
"There we go." Nino said, announcing the start of the most recently recorded scene and we all turned our attention back to the camera. Though, I did notice a small smirk from Nino that told me that he saw that I had been looking at Marinette. I chose to ignore it.
Kagami was shown moving clothes on a rack with a bored look, looking at a black suit jacket. "Are you almost done in there?" She asked, her tone matching her expression perfectly.
"Just about." Marinette's voice was heard from behind gray curtains behind Kagami, who smiled a little bit to herself and turned around just as Marinette opened the curtains and revealed herself in that dress. I was very glad I had been standing near the back of the room when they were filming the scene because I didn't want anyone to know how amazing I thought she looked in that dress, though while I was there surrounded by the others, I still let out a quiet breath and smiled to myself.
"Wow." Kagami said as she looked at how the dress looked on Marinette with a grin, and I silently agreed with her. The knee-length black dress with black lace covering her upper chest and arms down to her wrists was quite form fitting, and looked amazing on her.
"This dress…" Marinette said self-consciously as she rubbed the lace on her arm and awkwardly walked towards Kagami. "Is beautiful."
"No," Kagami said as she shook her head at her. "You're beautiful. And Green Eyes is going to faint when he sees you."
"Oh, no-no-no I-I can't afford this." Marinette protested as Kagami walked closer to her and smiled.
"Not a problem." Kagami said, shaking her head again seriously. "I sold three houses this month and I want to take care of you for once."
As she spoke, Marinette was shaking her head to oppose. "It's too much."
"Marilee." Kagami said in a gentle tone. "When Mom and Dad died, you came home and put your life on hold to take care of me. You have done so much for me, and the dress is nothing."
Marinette game her a look and Kagami smiled sweetly, knowing she gave in and they both turned to look at her in a mirror. Marinette still looked very self-conscious and rubbed at the material while Kagami smiled. "You look like Mom…"
Marinette broke into a sad smile and looked at herself for a little longer. "I do?" She asked, emotion in her tone as if she'd start crying.
Kagami nodded and smiled more, a comforting hand on Marinette's arm. "Yeah, you really do."
They stayed there for another couple seconds before Marinette turned to Kagami and lifted a hand, sticking her pinky out. "Pinky-swear?"
Kagami grinned with tears in her eyes and lifted her hand as well, wrapping her pinky around Marinette's and nodded. Then, she pulled her into a hug, saying quietly, "I love you."
"I love you." Marinette returned with a small smile on her face, then the scene cut to blackness.
"That dress was so beautiful, but I could never own one like that for myself." Marinette said after she came out of the changing room, the dress back folded in that clear bag.
"Why do you say that?" I asked instantly as I turned towards her. "It looked really good on you."
Marinette stared at me for a couple seconds, her cheeks turning a rosy color before her eyes darted away. "Y-You think so?"
"Definitely." I said with a grin, choosing to ignore the elbow to the side I knew was from Nino. I also knew Alya and Alix would be smirking, letting me do all the talking.
Marinette finally looked at me with a small smile, though it was obvious she was embarrassed. "Thanks." She said quietly. "Do you think you can thank your father for me, for letting me borrow this dress for the film?"
I shrugged in response and looked in Nino, Alya, and Alix's direction for a moment to see them all giving me a look. I smiled to myself in amusement, knowing what they all meant. "Why don't you come with me and thank him yourself?" I offered.
Marinette looked alarmed at the suggestion and immediately started sputtering. "I-I-I couldn't do that! He's probably busy! So busy! I-I wouldn't bother want—I mean want to bother him!"
I smiled at her, my amusement growing as I let her get out what she wanted to say. "It wouldn't be a problem, really." I insisted. "Besides, my house is closer walking distance than yours is. After you thank him, I can be sure you have a ride home."
"Oh." Was the first thing she said, and her eyes traveled in the direction of Alya, Nino, and Alix. I wasn't sure what they did, but suddenly Marinette had her eyes on me again and grinned. "Yeah, I'd like to home with you—go you home—I'd like that."
I smiled at her, more amused and nodded before gesturing towards the door. "Shall we then?"
"Oh." Marinette said and giggled nervously as she looked in the direction of our friends then back at me. "We shall."
It seems like no time had passed before we found ourselves at the top of the stairs to my home and I was opening the door for her. "Well, I thought it looked stunning on you." I said with a teasing grin.
Marinette rolled her eyes playfully and shook her head. "You have to say that when a girl says they looked bad in anything." She said as she walked through the door. "You can't agree with her."
"I mean it." I told her as I walked in after her and closed the door behind me. "That dress fit you well, in my opinion. Unless my opinion doesn't matter to you?"
"Actually—" Marinette started with a small laugh, but cut herself off as we both looked up towards the stairs and saw my father himself looking at us with an expressionless face, his hands folded neatly behind him. To say the least, I was very surprised to see him out of his office.
"I assume the two of you are discussing the dress that I gave away for Miss Dupain-Cheng's use?" He questioned, and though he wasn't loud, his voice easily carried to us in the empty entrance hall.
"Yes, Father." I answered, noticing Marinette stiffen beside me. "The dress was a good choice."
When Marinette looked at me in surprise, I looked at her and gave her a small smile. I know she was silently asking me if that meant my father chose the dress himself, so I gave her a small nod as well. I heard her exhale deeply through her teeth and look towards my father.
"What did you think of the dress, Miss Dupain-Cheng?" My father inquired, seemingly interested in her response.
"Oh, it's absolutely beautiful." Marinette said instantly and took a small step in the direction of the stairs on which my father stood. "I never imagined I'd wear such a dress, even for a role in a movie." She paused and looked down at the dress that she held in her arms, and I looked at her with a small smile of my own. "Thank you so much for letting me use the dress. I will have it cleaned and given back to you after we film the last scene that I'll be wearing it in—"
"That won't be necessary." My father cut in quickly, causing both Marinette and I to look up at him in surprise. He was quiet for a couple seconds, and it almost appeared as if he were enjoying the look of surprise on our faces. "You do like the dress, do you not?"
"I love it." Marinette answered, surprise and confusion in her tone. "It's a beautiful design, and I'm honored to have the privilege to wear it in the film."
"Then you will also have privilege to take it off my hands." He said, and I was shocked to see a small smile curve at the corners of his lips as Marinette stared wide-eyed at him.
"Are you serious?!" Marinette asked, not even bothering to keep the excitement out of her voice. "I can keep this dress?!"
My father gave her a small nod, and his smile grew a little more, but I wasn't paying him any attention anymore as my eyes went back to Marinette. She was looking at me with a large grin on her face, and I knew she couldn't even think of any words to see.
"Oh my goodness, thank you!" She finally said after a few seconds, and it seemed like she would explode from all her happiness and excitement. "Thank you! Oh, wow! Adrien, can you believe it?!"
I smiled at her in amusement, my eyes flicking up to see my father looking at me with what appeared to be a small smirk. That only confused me, and my confusion went in my tone when I answered her. "No, I can't…"
"Thank you for coming by, Miss Dupain-Cheng—" My father started, but surprisingly Marinette interrupted him.
"Marinette…" She said her name, still sounding dazed.
"Yes—Marinette." My father corrected patiently. "It was very nice to see you. I will make sure you have a ride home."
Marinette continuously muttered to herself in excitement and amazement, even as I started to walk her to the door, but I stopped in my tracks when my father spoke again. "Adrien, where do you think you're going?"
"To see Marinette home." I answered, giving him a confused look when I stopped near the door and turned back towards him.
He shook his head at me and spoke, "No, I'd like for you to stay here with me. Marinette will be seen home by Natalie."
Marinette and I exchanged confused looks, but shrugged it off. We said our farewells to each other, then she walked out the door and I turned back to my father. I was surprised to see that he had descended the stairs and was approaching me. Not knowing what else to do, I walked towards him, meeting him in the middle of the large entrance hall.
"You let her keep the dress." I said as a statement, though it was enough of a question to him. He nodded slowly but didn't say anything, so I continued. "Why?"
"I thought it was obvious." He told me. When I didn't answer, he gave me a very small, amused smile. "I believe we both know she looked very nice in that dress."
"But you didn't—" I tried to protest, but he silenced me with a hand.
"I didn't have to see Miss Marinette in that dress to know it must have looked nice on her." He explained. "You alone were able to tell me that much."
"Me—What?" I asked, confused as I looked at him, wanting more answers. "How did I tell you?"
"It was how you looked at her, and argued with her that the dress was beautiful on her." He answered, and instantly my cheeks warmed. "And I assume you were not lying to her?"
"No, I was not." I answered, knowing I couldn't lie easily to my father.
"I let her borrow and keep the dress because of you, Adrien." My father told me. "When I asked for a brief description of her appearance and her measurements, you seemed very—what's the word—fond of this girl."
I didn't think my cheeks could heat up anymore, but they had, and I knew they had to be a red shade by now. "I-I don't know what you mean." I tried to protest, but my father would have none of it.
"I'd like to meet this girl properly in the near future, Adrien." My father told me, and it was obvious this conversation was close to an end. "She seems like a great girl. I think I might like to meet her parents as well. Don't you think I should?"
I knew he was teasing me now. He very, very rarely did it, and it didn't really show in his tone, but by that amusement in his eyes, I knew he was, and I knew I could only respond in one way to get this torture to stop.
"Yes, Father."