Chapter Ten

Waking up next to Marinette was something he wanted to do every morning.

His Lady curled against him, soundly sleeping as morning rays slipped in through the blinds. He shifted, earning a muffle of protest from Marinette, pulling him back against her. A smile pulled at his lips, running his hands down her back. She let out a small sigh, mumbling something as she drifted off into a deeper sleep.

"Good morning, m'lady," he said softly, as to not wake her as he pushed aside several strands of her hair. The idea of yesterday felt so surreal, yet with Marinette here in his arms there was no denying what had happened. He pressed a kiss to the top of her head, letting out a small sigh as he sank into the covers.

Normally mornings weren't times to relax for him, rolling out of bed the moment his alarm blared out. Getting ready as his eyes cracked open, rushing out the door for whatever event was planned for him that day. To just lay here, listening to the soft breathing of Marinette and the kwamis... he simply let out a sigh. He stretched out, one arm around Marinette's waist as he just laid there, enjoying the bliss.

He didn't dare reach for his phone, while he was sure it was still early he knew there would probably be dozens of messages demanding to know where he was. He was glad he had put it on silent. He took in a sharp breath at the thought of going home, knowing exactly what would await him. Yet it wasn't something he could avoid, because it would only be worse if he didn't tell his father for himself.

His eyes drifted towards Marinette, and he knew exactly what she would say if she were awake. She would demand to go with him, to stand by his side as they always did. Yet the thought of what his father would say to her, what he might do... he knew he couldn't let that happen. He brought her in close, letting out a small sigh, knowing she would be furious with him later, then slowly pulled himself out of bed.

Marinette shifted, searching for his presence as he got up, and he scooped up the two kwamis. Plagg mumbled in his sleep as he was pulled away from Tikki, small paws reaching out for her. He placed Tikki in Marinette's hand, carefully sliding off his Miraculous off her finger as she cuddled up with the kwami. He then placed Plagg in his pocket, taking out the earrings, before putting his ring back on.

"I'll be quick," he promised Marinette as he headed out of the bedroom. "I promise."

Talk to his father, then return to his Lady as quickly as possible. He could do this.

He felt his resolve weakening after he got ready for the day though, Plagg still sleeping soundly in his pocket as he made his way downstairs. Tom and Sabine's reaction to the marriage was still fresh in his mind, and they were the ones who were known for being kind and sweet. He wasn't sure how they'd react to him this morning– would they regret letting him stay? Would they be angry that Marinette had come into his room?

"Good morning, Adrien," Sabine said brightly as he made his way down into the bakery– which had yet to open for the morning. Still it had been clear that the Dupain-Chengs had been hard at work, many wonderful smells coming from the kitchen, and Sabine preparing the main shop for the customers that would be sure to arrive. Adrien glanced at a clock, and found it wasn't long after he normally woke up– 6:02 AM.

"Good morning, ma'am," Adrien said hesitantly, but Sabine didn't seem angry in any way. Tired, if anything.

"Would you like something to eat?" She offered.

"Er," he wasn't too sure how to respond. "I, um, don't want to impose."

"Nonsense," she said, leaning her head into the kitchen. "Tom, grab something for Adrien to eat, would you?"

"Mme Cheng, you don't have to," Adrien insisted, swallowing. "I actually don't think I can eat anything right now."

"You're skin and bones dear, and I don't remember you having anything for dinner last night," she said. "Do you have any favorites? Anything you can't eat?"

And that was how Adrien found himself seated at a table, a plethora of baked goods and an omelet being offered to him. Despite the way his stomach was churning he decided not to decline the meal, eating it in small bites. He only saw Tom as he brought him out some food, before he vanished back into the kitchen, and he wasn't sure if that was reassuring or not. He just simply stuffed a cheddar muffin into his pocket for Plagg, trying to focus on Sabine's words as she talked. He wasn't sure if he had walked into another dimension, because she felt like a completely different person.

"It takes a miracle to wake up Marinette at this time, that was why I was surprised to see you up so soon, thought you'd want to sleep in while you had the chance," she said, giving him a sweet smile he felt that he didn't deserve.

"I figured I should just, um, get it over with," Adrien said, poking at his plate with a fork.

"With what, dear?"

"Talking to Father," he said softly, but Sabine heard him, her gaze turning to concern. She came over, sitting next to him.

"You know you don't have to go back there."

He shook his head. "I need to tell him for myself, or else everything will just be worse. Especially if he... he somehow ends up... accepting everything." He forced himself to take another bite. "I wanted to leave before Marinette woke up, or else she'd insist on coming with me."

"She probably won't be happy that you're sneaking away," Sabine said after a moment.

"Trust me, Mme Cheng, you don't want her coming with me," Adrien said. "It's not going to be pretty, and if she's there Father will take it out on her."

"I don't want her going," she agreed. "But I don't want him taking anything out on you either."

Adrien gave a grim smile. "I'll be fine, don't worry."

"Adrien–"

He stood up, wanting to go before his resolve wore off. "I should be going. I'll be back soon, if that's still okay with you guys. Thank you for the meal, and for everything else."

With that he pulled out his phone, stomach writhing at the dozen of unread notifications, and he searched for his bodyguard's phone number.

"Where were you last night?"

Chills shot up Adrien's back the moment he stepped through the front doors, barely having time to draw his eyes up towards the stairs where his father stood. Cool gray eyes met his as he glowered down at his son. Most would have flinched under such a stare, especially from Gabriel Agreste, but this was Adrien's normal greeting for when he saw his father.

"With my friends, sir," Adrien said evenly, coming to a stop near the bottom of the stairs. Nathalie was off a ways, seemingly working away on her tablet, but he knew that she was listening. He didn't mind though, as she had a way to calm down his father that even he couldn't do.

"You didn't return home last night."

"I am aware of that, sir," he replied, hoping it didn't come off as sarcastic. He knew Gabriel wouldn't respond well to that, but he never took guilty silence well either. "I am sorry I made you worry."

He made his way down the stairs, each step he took echoing through the empty lobby. "You left us no message as to where you were at, and did not respond to any of our attempts to reach you. Do you realize the stress you caused by doing so? You are not a child anymore, Adrien, I thought that you would know how to present yourself."

He took a moment to reply, carefully considering each word before he spoke. He curled his hands, feeling the two rings on his fingers– his Miraculous ring, and his promise ring. He wasn't alone anymore, and he never truly had been. He sat up a bit straighter, meeting Gabriel's gaze despite instinct telling him to look away.

"That is right, Father, I am not a child," Adrien replied evenly. "I am an adult, and I fail to see the issue of me spending the night elsewhere without cause for concern."

"Why didn't you contact me?"

"I knew you wouldn't approve."

"Exactly," Gabriel said, narrowing his eyes at him. "So, what made you think it was appropriate to do so then? I have given you a lot, Adrien, I don't think asking for decent manners should be an issue. I raised you better than this."

You raised me? He wanted to ask, but he bit back those words, even though Father had never been a constant figure in his life. It had either been his mother, or a nanny, a tutor, or even Nathalie– Gabriel having always felt more like an employer than a father.

"Where did you stay last night?" Gabriel asked, turning away as he stood in front of him, as if he couldn't bear to look at him.

"The Dupain-Cheng bakery," Adrien said.

His father's posture stiffened ever so slightly, his fingers curling, and Adrien instantly tensed. For the first time since the conversation began Nathalie raised her head, looking at Adrien with a slight frown from behind her glasses.

"That is one of your female friends, is it not?" Gabriel said tightly.

He was surprised that he even recognized the name. "That is right, sir."

Gabriel whipped around, and Adrien flinched back as he moved towards him. "What made you think that would be appropriate? What if someone had seen you? Do you know what the tabloids would say?"

"That I'm sleeping with someone?" Adrien said, and despite those gray eyes glaring down at him he found some of his Chat slipping out. "Well, they technically wouldn't be wrong, considering that we shared a bed last night."

His heart was thumping heavily as he spoke, yet there was a thrill racing through him. The way his father's eyes widened, pulling back in startled surprise, looking at him in almost a panic. He felt a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips, and with a nudge from Plagg he sat up straighter as Nathalie cleared her throat, refusing to break eye contact as he saw the anger forming in his father's gaze.

He was no longer tied to him. His decisions were no longer binding him down– he was his own person.

"You what?" Gabriel hissed, stepping right up into his face, his warm breath washing over him.

Adrien ran his thumb against his Miraculous, then tilted his head to the side innocently. "What? I don't see how the tabloids could make a scandal out of me staying with my wife, sir."

He could feel Plagg shaking with silent laughter, and the tension in the room was palpable. His heart rate picked up, yet there was something satisfying about watching the way his father lost composure– his surprise and panic now clearly visible. However it only lasted for a moment, Gabriel's gaze hardened just as quickly, and Adrien had to resist the urge to step back.

"What?" He asked, voice eerily calm.

He closed his eyes, squaring his shoulders. "Yesterday I was married to my girlfriend of three years, Father. I came here to personally deliver this news, and to inform you that I will no longer be living here."

Deafening silence, and this time even Plagg was still. Though he didn't want to, Adrien opened his eyes, forcing himself to look at his father. His eyes were gray and cold as always, but they were now edged with a bitterness that sent chills through him.

"I seemed to have misheard you," Gabriel said quietly. "Would you like to repeat that?"

He blinked as his father, wondering what he hoped that would accomplish. Words wouldn't change what had happened, nor did he want any of it to change. He swallowed, eyeing the way Gabriel had tensed up, watching every little twitch that played along his form, instinct telling him to get away as swiftly as possible.

"I got married yesterday, Father," Adrien said once more. "It was a private ceremony, just me and her, though we do plan to have one with friends and family in the future which you will be invited to."

It was a desperate gamble, one that he knew would not pay off, but he just hoped that his father would accept this. Be upset for not being involved, but for nothing else. He just wanted to see something in his gaze, anything besides that dismissal and disappointment he had come to know too well. He could feel his withering spark of hope dwindling, anger entering his father's gaze. His hand then was raised, and instantly Adrien recoiled, desperately attempting to pull away–

Then Nathalie was there, her hand on Gabriel's wrist.

"Gabriel." Her voice was soft, though edged with a caution.

Adrien's heart was racing, and in his pocket he could feel Plagg writhing in anger, a heat coming off of him as he struggled to keep back his destructive rage. Gabriel's gaze hardened, pulling himself out of her grasp, turning so his back was to them once more. His entire form was tense.

"I don't know what made you think such a stunt was appropriate," Gabriel said stiffly. "But you will see to the end of it. I want this... 'marriage' annulled by tonight, I don't care who or what you have to pay," he turned towards Nathalie. "Make sure no news of this reaches the public."

"Right away, sir."

Adrien didn't know what he had been expecting, but still his stomach churned. The fact that Gabriel hadn't even blinked, just wanting to sweep it under the rug. His jaw tightened, and he jerked his head up.

"I'm not annulling anything," he growled, and two sets of eyes turned towards him. "I just told you something important happened to me, and you want to make it like it never happened? You have no right, you don't–!"

"Don't raise your voice at me," Gabriel snapped, and instantly Adrien fell silent. "And no, I'm not going to entertain silly teenage impulses that you'll regret within a week. You're young, not as mature as I was hoping, and as your actions have shown not ready to be independent in the slightest. You should be grateful that I am trying to help you fix this without tarnishing your name, instead of letting you run off with some girl trying to use your name."

"This wasn't impulsive," Adrien whispered. "We've been planning this for months, and she's not using my name."

"Really?" Gabriel said, a hint of a laugh in his voice, though his frustration was clear. "Dupain-Cheng, correct? The girl who wishes to seek a career in the fashion industry, the exact same one you work in with influence? A baker's daughter without a penny to her name? A girl who has already made multiple attempts to get her name out there?"

"And has never once attempted to use another to do so–" Adrien began, before pausing. "...How do you know so much about her?"

"What?"

"You've never paid attention to my friends before," he whispered, this time not backing down as they made eye contact. "I so much as mention a name and you dismiss it saying you don't know anything pertaining to them."

He scoffed. "I keep myself informed, Adrien, especially concerning those you appear in public with. To avoid scenarios like what you've exactly thrown yourself into. Now, you're going to annul this marriage, and cut off all contact with this... leech trying to abuse the Agreste name."

His gut twisted at the realization that his father was keeping tabs on his friends.

"Don't worry, Father," Adrien hissed, anger burning through him. "You don't have to worry about her using your name– because we took on her last name."

It was strange how quickly his resolve settled. He had come in here prepared for the worse, but wanting to make peace. To carefully dance around his father and keep whatever threads he could grasp close, but something else had taken its place. It wasn't the dismissal– he was used to that, and it wasn't the knowledge that he and his friend's privacy had been disregarded– if anything it was expected.

It had been the causal insults thrown at Marinette, the belittlement that was so clear because she was the one he wanted to be with. His father had never said anything positive about his friends, and the blatant insults were something he wouldn't tolerate quietly– let alone such words being spoken of about his Lady.

"Do not ever speak of my wife that way again," Adrien began, cutting off his father as he opened his mouth to speak. "I know you don't approve of my actions– but that doesn't change the fact that they have happened. We are married, and we are staying married. I love her, Father, and I feel like she's the only one who's truly loved me in years."

Silence.

"I'm not expecting a miracle," Adrien said softly. "I just want you to know that this isn't going to change. I'm married, and I'm happy."

Gabriel watched him for a moment longer, before turning on his heel. "Get out of my house."

"Sir–"

"Father–"

"Do not address me as such," he snapped, the words were like a blow to the face. "You've lost such privilege. Get out of my house, get off of my property. You will no longer be associated with the Agreste brand, or anything to do with me."

For a moment he couldn't speak, tears blurring his vision. He heard Nathalie attempting to say something once more, but the words meant nothing. He only forced himself to speak, voice even from so many years of practice.

"Yes, sir," he said simply, words he had so often said to the man.

He then turned before his tears could threaten to spill over, hurrying towards the front doors as fast as he could without it being a run. His steps echoed through the foyer as he hurried out into the sun, which seemed too bright for the emotions coursing through him.

Up ahead on the driveway he could see Ezra by the limo, his bodyguard pulling the door open for him. He shook his head, coming to a stop on the front path, trying to process everything that had happened. His tears silently ran down his cheeks, taking in a sharp breath. He had known this could happen, he had told others it was what he had expected, but to hear those words said right to his face...

He wished he would have waited for Marinette to come with him.

Ezra had known something was wrong the moment he had come to the stop, the giant of a man making his way towards them, concern on his face. Before he reached him though the mansion doors were thrown open once more, and Adrien looked back to see Nathalie coming towards him.

"Adrien, wait!" She called, hurrying down the steps. She was composed as always, though that didn't hide the nervous gleam in her eyes.

"Yes?" He asked, slowly turning towards her, attempting to wipe away his tears.

"Your father wants me to remind you that you're still under contract," Nathalie said, coming to a stop in front of him, and he winced at her words. "All current photo shoots that are on your schedule you will be expected to attend, or else charges will be pressed. You have seven more, and your fa– Gabriel will be terminating the contract from there."

He heard a sharp breath from behind him, and he felt Ezra's large hand placed on his shoulder.

"...Tell... Tell Gabriel I expect to be paid the same as always," Adrien replied in a tight voice. "Directly deposited into my account."

"I will make sure of it," Nathalie promised, and then the professional tone fell from her voice, though still as stoic as always... but softer. "Adrien, are you alright?"

He let out a snort of a laugh. "What do you think, Nathalie?"

"Is there anything you need from the house? From your room?" She asked. "Pictures? Anything? I will get them to you, I can have them mailed, find a place for you to stay and help you open your trust fund–"

He looked up at her, not able to smile, but he hoped his eyes showed his gratitude. "Thank you, but I already took care of all of that. I had everything that meant something to me moved to a storage unit weeks ago and... and I'm good."

His voice broke slightly at that last line, and Ezra looked between the two of them, silently demanding an explanation.

"Gabriel has decided to cut off contact with Adrien," Nathalie said, her voice back to its usual professional tone. "You will no longer need to watch over him or escort him anywhere. I am sure we can find another job for you–"

Ezra's hand left Adrien's shoulder, pulling out a phone as he furiously typed away. Adrien looked back at him, and seconds later Nathalie received a notification on her tablet. She looked down at it, unsurprised, looking back up at Ezra with a single nod.

"Quitting– that I expected. I will need the keys to the limousine–" she was cut off as the keys were practically chucked at her, grabbing them from the air by reflex. "Ezra, take care of him. And Adrien... if you ever need a reference feel free to contact me."

Adrien hesitated, then threw his arms around Nathalie. She had never been the warmest person, stiffening up slightly, before patting him on the back in reply. She had been the closest thing he had to a mother in years, and the most stable person in his life. The realization that he would be losing her too was just as painful as his father's words had been.

Ladybug's words played in the back of his mind, how Nathalie's passiveness had just been as bad as his father's abuse, but that didn't make him pull back from the hug. Nathalie was the one that moved away first, looking between them one more time, before heading back to the manor.

Ezra put a hand on Adrien's shoulder, guiding him off the Agreste property as more tears stung his eyes.