Chapter 9: New Day, New Opportunities
And while the Miraculous Team enjoyed themselves, on top of that building facing the river, deep underground, Reptile was anything but enjoying himself. For his failure, Hawk Moth had punished him harshly. During what looked like an eternity to him, he felt his body being continuously electrocuted. His master had been torturing him from the moment he teleported him, from inside the food van Chat Noir had locked him in, before going after Hot Tamale. But he did not start by electrocuting him. No, the first thing Hawk Moth did to him was to use Reptile's own switchblade and cut him open with it. Reptile screamed from the top of his lungs, as Hawk Moth did this. He tried to beg for mercy, as his blood gushed out, running down his body and forming a pool blood at his feet, but the only thing that came out of his mouth were screams of pain, which echoed on the walls of the hideout. It was only then the psychotic villain began to electrocute him. Reptile had found out the hard way that for some reason, Hawk Moth's lightning attacks, courtesy of his cane, caused his regenerative powers to become weaker. This meant that whatever wounds he had; they would take longer to heal. His master wanted him to suffer for his failure.
Watching him in silence, Madame Romani and Brutus both wondered how long his punishment would last. For their previous failure, Hawk Moth tortured the two of them for nearly two days. Madame Romani saw her mind plunged into nightmares. Nightmares so foul and so horrible, that a normal person would go insane, just from having them. As for Brutus, his punishment was lighter, but by no means, less horrible.
"He's really taking his time with Reptile… not that that stupid lizard doesn't deserve it. The Akuma he created was barely worth the Akuma Butterfly, it was used to create it." -Madame Romani thought to herself. –"He needs to learn that one should not choose the first idiot he sees, who's having anger issues, and ask our master to turn him into an Akuma." -she thought.
But unlike Madame Romani, who did not care for what happened to her fellow lieutenants, Brutus could not help but to feel sorry for what was happening to Reptile. Yet, just like their master, Brutus believed that Reptile should be punished for his failure, so as to not make the same mistake again.
"He deserves to be punished. Once again, he has failed, and he must face punishment. Still, the master is perhaps being a bit too harsh on him." -Brutus thought. –"He's been torturing him for nearly a whole day now. It's going to take Reptile more time than usual, to heal those wounds." -he thought.
The pain he was in was excruciating. Reptile had been punished before, but this was the first time that Hawk Moth was taking his time torturing him like that. Usually he would electrocute him for a couple of minutes, or rip off one of his limbs, forcing him to grow it back. This time it was different. This time, Hawk Moth was taking his time with him. He would electrocute him over and over for countless minutes, or beat him up with his cane, after which he would just stay there, looking at him with his cold and uncaring eyes, until he felt like torturing him again.
Most of his thoughts were clouded by the agonizing pain he was in, but even so, Reptile could tell that Hawk Moth was furious with him. Panting, with his arms shackled, and feeling his blood slowly running down his chest, Reptile tried his best not to faint again. He knew that if he lost consciousness again, his master would just wake him up, electrocuting him
"Tell me, Reptile. Do you know why I am punishing you?" -Hawk Moth asked him. Those were the first words Hawk Moth had spoken to him, since he teleported him back to the lair.
"B-Because… B-Because I failed you again, m-master." -Reptile stuttered, trying to ignore the pain.
"Exactly." -Hawk Moth declared in his usual cold and uncaring voice. –"Because you have failed me yet again, Reptile." -he said, just before using his cane to strike Reptile on the face, breaking two of his teeth, which he spit to the ground.
After that, Hawk Moth electrocuted him once more, this time making him scream louder than before. He wanted Reptile to understand that he was not going to show him any mercy.
"P-Please! P-Please m-master… no more!" –Reptile screamed, begging him to stop. –"I will… not… fail you again, my master…" -he panted in pain.
"You better not, Reptile. Because if you fail me again… if you dare to waste one more of my beautiful and priceless Akuma Butterflies in an Akuma, who's not strong enough to kill those infernal brats and destroy their miraculouses, the punishment that will be waiting for you, will make what I just did to you, look like something pleasant." -Hawk Moth whispered to his hear in a cold, menacing voice, before turning to face Brutus. –"Brutus! Pick him up and tend to his wounds. He's no good to anyone, if his wounds prevent him from performing the tasks, I give him." -he ordered him.
"As you wish, master." -Brutus said, as he rushed to help Reptile. –"I was beginning to think that he was going to continue to torture him for another day." -he thought to himself.
"He should have tortured him even more, so that lizard brain of his understands what happens when one fails." -Madame Romani thought to herself, smirking evilly, as she saw just how bad Reptile looked.
"Once you're able to stand on your feet again, you're going back outside, and prove your worth." -Hawk Moth told Reptile, as he continued to lay on the ground.
"Y-Yes… master." -Reptile said, nodding his head, as Brutus helped him.
"Those infernal kids once again have proven to be a thorn on my side." -Hawk Moth said, as he used magic to clean up the blood stains from his jacket and his shoes. –"And I'm beginning to think that perhaps I should be the one dealing with them… Still, I don't want to repeat what happened during last Christmas." -he thought to himself. –"For your sake, and I'm talking to the three of you now, you better not waste my Akuma Butterflies on prospects of useless and weak Akumas, or you will all suffer my wrath."
Hearing those words, for a second, all three of Hawk Moth's lieutenants could not help but to feel like they had their heads lying on a stump, waiting for an axe to come down on them, and chop them up. And that feeling was not a pleasant one. They knew that their master would keep his word, when it came to punishing them for their failures.
The weekend went by in a heartbeat. And during that time, everyone in Miss Bustier's class studied as much as they could. They all knew that the outcome of those exams was in their hands, and their hands alone. Luckily, thanks to their bond with the kwamis, they had an advantage that most people did not. That magical bond gave them an extra boost of energy, as well as the capacity for their brains to absorb large quantities of knowledge and process them. Unfortunately, that did not mean they would not get a splintering headache from all that studying. After all, they were still human, and more importantly, teenagers. Teenagers who wanted to do something else, than studying for their exams, no matter how important they were. And on that Sunday afternoon, they just wanted to go out and do something. The temptation to do it was quite big, especially when they were being tempted by numerous kinds of factors. One such example was at the Cesaire residence, where Alya was trying to study. She had spent those last two days studying every subject there was, and was beginning to feel both exhausted and crazy. To make matter worse, the twins had spent most of the weekend making noise, while playing. This made Alya wish that her dad had taken them with him, when he accompanied Alya's older sister Nora, to Chartres, where she was to have a fighting match that weekend.
She loved her younger sisters, but on that afternoon, she wished she was an only-child, like her best-friend, Marinette. Because if she was an only-child, she would not have to hear the giggles and the little screams Ella and Etta were making. She had asked them countless times to not make so much noise, so she could concentrate, but 15 or 20 minutes after she had asked them this, they would restart to giggle and talk the way they were before.
"I really need a break… a break from those two little devils." -Alya sighed, as she kept hearing her twin sisters making noise. –"I can't keep studying with those two giggling and yelping like that, I just can't." -she sighed again, although this time, she was determined to stop that. Getting up from her chair, she exited her bedroom and went to ask help to the only person she knew could help her, who happened to be in the kitchen. –"Mom, please, tell those two Sapotis to stop making so much noise. I need absolute silence, so I can study."
She did not want to resort to asking Marlena for help, but the little devils would just not stay quiet. And it did not take long for Alya to get the silence she much requested. Once they heard their mother calling them, asking them to keep it down, so their older sister could study in peace, Ella and Etta ceased their noise.
"Finally, some peace and quiet." -Alya thought to herself, as she sat in front of her desk and resumed working.
Unfortunately, it did not take long for Alya to realize that peace and quiet were not going to be enough for her to be able to study properly. After reading her notes for the tenth time in a row, she began to feel that the more she read them, the less knowledge her brain was absorbing. At first, she tried to ignore it, but eventually, she realized she was going nowhere fast.
"That's it!" -Alya sighed, annoyed, placing her pen next to her notebook. She just could not seem to find the will and the mental serenity to keep working. –"I need to take a break. A real break, from all of this." -she said. –"I thought it was because of the twins making noise, that I couldn't focus and work properly, but I'm starting to think that it's not just because of them."
"What are you going to do?" -Trixx asked her, wondering what Alya had in mind. Until that point, the fox kwami had remained silent, on top of Alya's bed, reading a book she had taken from one of the bookcases in the bedroom, not wishing to disturb her.
"I'm going to Skype-chat with Nino for a bit." -Alya told Trixx. –"Maybe if I talk with him for a bit, after it, I'll be able to focus on studying for another couple of hours." -she declared, while accessing Skype.
"Alright. If you think that will help you studying a little more." -Trixx said.
"I hope it does, Trixx, I hope it does." -Alya said. –"I don't even want to think what will happen if I score a bad grade on one of these exams." -she sighed.
"You always say that, and in the end, you end up getting great grades." -Trixx told her. –"This time won't be any different, you'll see." -she smiled at Alya.
"Maybe. But first, I need to find the will to get back to studying again. And I'm hoping a talk with Nino helps out." -Alya declared, as she waited for Nino to answer her call.
It was taking longer than usual for Nino to answer her call. He usually would leave Skype on, while studying, in case someone needed to talk to him, and Alya could see he was online, so she felt it was awkward for him to taking so long to answer her. One minute went by, then two, three, four, and then five, when Nino finally answered her call.
"Hey, turtle boy." -Alya smiled at her boyfriend. –"Took you long enough to answer." -she told him.
"Hey, foxy fox. It's good to see you." -Nino smiled back at Alya, who blew him a kiss. –"Sorry. I went to the kitchen to get myself a snack." -he said, as he showed her the jumbo sandwich he had been making. It had tomato, ham, lettuce, scrambled eggs, and plenty other ingredients Alya could not identify, just from looking at it. One thing was sure though, it looked absolutely delicious. –"So, how is the studying going?"
"Lousy… I can't focus. I thought that it was because the twins were making noise, but I'm not so sure, anymore." -Alya sighed, when she saw a half-eaten slice of orange floating in mid-air, appearing from behind Nino's head. –"Seems like you're not the only one who's having a little snack." -she thought to herself, knowing that orange slice was being eaten by Wayzz, who could not be seen on the camera. –"What about you? Are you having problems studying?"
"Not really. I mean, I'm tired, but that's all." -Nino said.
"Are you telling me your brother isn't giving you a hard time?" -Alya asked him. She knew that just like Ella and Etta, Nino's little brother could be a handful.
"I am. My parents took Chris on a walk, so I could study in peace." –Nino told her. –"And once they come back, I know that he'll be as calm as a kitten, for the rest of the day. My mom's going to force him to use up most of his energy. Plus, he usually gets sleepy after eating an ice cream, which I know my dad's going to buy him, when they're already on their way back." -he said. –"I can safely say that I won't have any trouble getting the silence I need to study."
"Lucky you." -Alya sighed.
Nino and Alya continued to talk, providing the brunette a much-needed distraction, both to her brain and her spirit. Through that conversation, Alya realized that her brain was simply tired of working and needed to rest for a bit, which surprised her, given this was not usual for her. She rarely got tired during a studying session.
"Don't beat yourself down, Alya. You've been studying like crazy for the past two and half days." -Nino said, trying to cheer her up. –"Last night I ended up with a massive headache, after studying for our English exam for nearly four hours." -he told her.
"I just wished we didn't have to do all our exams in two days." -Alya sighed. –"I mean, you know me, I'm always happy to do tests and exams. But having to do 8 exams in two days, that's a little too much… I'm just happy that we don't have to do any exams in our Art class, as well as P.E." -she said. Those were the only two subjects Miss Bustier was not their teacher, and were also the only ones where they did not take exams.
"I hear you, and I'm with you on that one. But look, once we finish the exams, we'll be as free as a bird. And you know what's the best part? It's that on Thursday, is your birthday." -Nino smiled at her.
"I know. Can't believe that almost a year has passed since the last one." -Alya sighed.
"Well, I can, because it was on your previous birthday that I understood that I was in love with you." -Nino said. –"I still remember you dancing, alongside Marinette and Alix, and literally rocking the dance floor. I fell in love with those sweet dance moves of yours." -he sighed, as he remembered Alya dancing to the sound of the music that he had put on, Rhythm of the Night by Corona.
"Say what?!" -Alya asked him, while chuckling.
"It's true. I fell in love with you on that dance floor." -Nino told her.
"I thought you told me that you fell in love because of how smart I am." -Alya told him in a playful tone, while raising an eyebrow at him.
"That too. But I also fell in love with you, because you were the best dancer that night." -Nino said, making her giggle. –"Well, and I might have also fallen in love with you, because of that laughter of yours."
"Stop that! You're making me blush more than Marinette, when Adrien praises her." -Alya told him, as she tried not to blush.
"That seems hard, since we both know just how much Marinette blushes, when my bro Adrien says sweet things to her." -Nino joked. –"You know, I was only going to give this to you on Thursday. But I'm feeling that this might be the perfect time to give it to you." -he declared.
"No, you don't need to give me your present yet." -Alya told him. She knew Nino was working on a surprise, and though she wanted to know what it was, she did not want Nino to feel obligated to reveal it before time.
"But I want to." -Nino smiled at her. –"It's something I've been working on, the past month, with a little help from Wayzz, and Master Fu." -he told her. –"Who would have guessed that that our old master knew so much about music?"
"When someone as him, lives as long as he does, he's bound to know a couple of things from most subjects." -Wayzz told him, as he landed on Nino's shoulder.
"Indeed." -Trixx said. –"He is quite probably one of the wisest people in the world, and has more knowledge about certain things in his pinky toe, than most people in their whole body." -she said, as she made her way towards Alya.
"I was wondering when you were going to join this conversation." -Alya told her, as Trixx landed on top of her head.
"I hope you like it." –"Nino said, as he sent Alya a music file.
"I'm sure I will, turtle boy." -Alya smiled, as she clicked on the file, beginning to download it.
Marinette woke up that Sunday with her mind made up. She was going to do just like she had done the day before. She was going to study for her exams and try to cram as much school subjects as she could in her brain, without leaving her bedroom. After getting dressed, she got down to work. Opening her textbooks on the pages she still needed to study, she grabbed a pencil and some coloured markers and did what she always did, which was to read and highlighting everything she felt was important. After that, she would write on her notebook, what she had highlighted, so as to help her memorize things. Over the course of the morning and afternoon, Tom and Sabine would come and check on her, bringing her a snack or her lunch, while also offering to help her out on a subject she was struggling with. From time to time, Tikki also helped her out, by asking her some questions, after she herself read Marinette's notes.
When it was nearly five in the afternoon, Marinette's eyes and brain reached their limit. Not counting the time, she took to eat or to go to the bathroom, the blue-haired girl had not stopped studying that day. She was determined to memorize as much as possible. Unfortunately for her, both her eyes and her brain could only take so much information, and they were begging her to stop.
"I'm so tired, Tikki." -Marinette sighed, as she closed her Math book.
"Well, you have been studying since nine in the morning." -Tikki told her. –"Why don't you take a break?" -she asked her.
"I can't." -Marinette sighed. –"I want to, but I can't. I still need to study for my Chemistry exam, as well as my French Literature exam, not to mention my Geography exam, Tikki." -she said. –"And I would like to do it, before dinner time, so I can relax the rest of the night."
"Still, I think you should take a break. You've been studying for hours now. That's not good or healthy for you, Marinette." -Tikki said, in her usual kind-hearted voice, as she nibbled one of the cookies Tom had brought his daughter, so she could have something to snack on. –"You need to relax a little bit. Go watch something on the television, read one of the mangas that you have on your bedside table, where they have been collecting dust, because you haven't had the time to do it, finish Alya's birthday present, talk with Adrien over the phone. Anything, but studying." -she told her. –"Give your mind the time to rest for a little bit, before going back to work."
"I guess I could talk to Adrien. I haven't talked to him today. I've only texted him. Right before I began studying." -Marinette admitted. She had only texted him, because Adrien told her not to call him. He told her that Nathalie kept checking on him, every half hour, to see if he was studying, and that if she caught him talking with her, or anyone else, instead of studying, he might get into trouble with her, or his dad, if it happened to be him checking on him. –"I know I promised him I wouldn't call him today, but I have to. I need to hear his voice and see his handsome face, even if it's just for a couple of seconds." -she sighed, as she grabbed her cell phone and accessed Whatsapp.
"I don't think he will mind it." -Tikki joked.
Waiting for Adrien to pick up, Marinette looked outside and just how beautiful the afternoon was. Because of all that studying, she had hardly looked outside her window that day. Seeing people walking on the street, she just wished she could go outside and enjoy herself. Still, she knew that would not be possible. She could not jeopardize getting a bad grade in one of her exams. The consequences of doing so would be bad. She knew her parents would be understanding, if she had a minor slip in her grades. But she knew that would imply that they would force her to stay home and study to improve her grades, and that could not happen. If Marinette was to continue to be Ladybug and lead her friends in battle against Hawk Moth, she could not have anything stopping her from carrying on her duty as leader of the Miraculous Team; and that included having to work even harder on school.
"I can't let that happen. If my grades slip, mom and dad will most likely won't be so open-minded about the idea of allowing me to go out, whenever I want to, and force me to stay home and study. And I need to be able to go out, if I need to fight an Akuma… on the other hand, if I was forced to stay home and study, that would give Adrien an excuse to come and visit me." -Marinette mused to herself. –"No, no, no, stop thinking about that, Marinette! You need to be able to go out, whenever you want, without mom and dad thinking that instead of going out, you need to stay home and study. Besides, once these exams are over, you're going to have all the time you want to relax and have fun." -she thought, when she heard someone calling her name, and that someone was her boyfriend.
"Marinette? Is everything alright?" -Adrien asked her, wondering if something was wrong with her, or with the city.
"Yes, everything's alright. You don't need to worry about it." -Marinette told him –"I know I promised I wouldn't' call you, so you wouldn't get into trouble with Nathalie or your dad, but I needed to hear your voice and see your handsome face." -she sighed, as she looked into her cell phone's screen.
"It's okay. To tell you the truth, I also needed to hear your sweet voice and see your cute face as well, bugaboo." -Adrien told her.
"Don't call me that. You're going to make me blush." -Marinette giggled over the phone.
"Well, I wish I was by your side, right now, seeing you blush, like a sweet red tomato, or a strawberry." -Adrien said, as he noticed Plagg on his desk, making puke-faces. –"By the way, Plagg says hi" -he told her, while ignoring his kwami.
"Tell him, I said hi, as well." -Marinette told him. –"Oh, and Tikki also says hi." -she said, as she saw Tikki silently waving at her. The blue-haired girl knew already that whenever she was on the phone and her kwami waved at her like that, it meant that she was telling her she was saying hi to whoever was on the other end of the line.
"Tell her, Plagg and I say hi, as well." -Adrien said. –"So, what are you doing?"
"Trying not to go crazy from all this studying." -Marinette told her. –"I think I've solved enough mathematical problems for a lifetime. What about you?"
"Same thing. I'm pretty much spitting out chemical formulas." -Adrien said. –"What I wouldn't give to be somewhere else, especially if you were there with me." -he chuckled.
"You read my mind, silly kitty." -Marinette said. –"I wish I was somewhere else, doing something else, and with you right next with me." -she smiled, as she imagined just that happening.
"If you want to, we could go for a quick patrol tonight. It's Nathaniel and Kim's turn to go, but I don't think they will matter, if we just go for a quick stroll around both our neighbourhoods." -Adrien suggested her. –"What do you say? I'll pick you up after dinner. That way you can relax from all those subjects you've been studying about…" -he said.
"So, I can focus on you, and only you?" -Marinette giggled. –"I think you've got yourself a deal, Adrien Agreste." -she teased Adrien, by winking mischievously at him.
"You better believe it, my sweet, sexy and cute Marinette." -Adrien winked back at her.
"I love it when you talk to me like that." -Marinette giggled. More and more, she was getting accustomed to hearing Adrien talk to her like that, and to come up with a quick answer. Her fear of telling him the wrong words was quickly becoming a thing of the past.
At the Couffaine house, Juleka had also decided to Skype-chat with Rose. But unlike it happened with Alya or Marinette, the Goth girl called her girlfriend to see if she could help her with a chemistry exercise, she was having difficulty with. She did not why, but Juleka always had trouble with that subject. The only thing she was able to memorize was the chemical formula of sulfuric acid, and that was thanks to a song she liked. Lucky for her, Rose aced at chemistry, and was more than willing to help her with any question she might have.
"Okay, did you understand the difference between protons, neutrons and electrons?" -Rose asked her.
"That part I think I understood it, yes." -Juleka answered the blonde. –"But I'm still having trouble with the atomic number of an element. I still don't know what that can it tell us about the element." -she declared.
"Oh, that's easy. You see, the atomic number of an element tells us the number of protons orbiting the nucleus." -Rose chirped.
"I wish I had that brain of yours to understand this. I suck at Chemistry." -Juleka sighed.
"Well, it's any consolation to you, I would love to have that brain of yours to understand geography." -Rose told her. The difficulty Juleka had in Chemistry, she had it in Geography.
"I thought you were going to tell me that you would love to my height." -Juleka joked, knowing Rose wanted to be a little taller than she was.
"And I would love to. But I'm happy with my size, because that way, when we're standing in front of each other, and I look up, I see your pretty face." -Rose said, smiling.
"Oh, you… you say the sweetest things, Rose." -Juleka smiled back at her. –"Hmm… not that I'm trying to spoil this cute moment between the two of us, but this is usually the moment when Flint decides to present us with one of his sarcastic comments, saying that we're giving him diabetes, or something like that." -she commented. –"Don't tell me he's not going to make any comments today?"
"Oh, he's sleeping. He stayed up all night, last night, watching a series he found on Netflix, so he's sleeping." -Rose declared. –"What about Tamara? I still haven't heard her either." -she pointed out.
"She went for a little walk. She sometimes does that, and who am I to say no? As long as no one sees her, she can go wherever she wants to go." -Juleka said. –"Plus, she wanted to listen to music and she knows I can't study while listening to it. When I start listening to music, I completely forget what I was doing." -she said. –"So, she's probably up on the rooftop with my iPod, listening to the playlist I uploaded into it at the beginning of the week."
Juleka was about to say something else, when someone knocked on her bedroom door. Recognizing the knock, she knew it was her older brother, Luka, who had knocked. Telling him to come in, Luka wasted no time and entered.
"Sorry to interrupt you and your girlfriend, but I've got some news that you might like to hear… hi, Rose!" -Luka said, as he waved at Rose in the screen.
"Hey, Luka." -Rose waved back at him, as he approached his sister.
"And what are those news, Luka?" -Juleka asked her brother.
"Well, I know that you, Rose and your other friends went to Jagged Stone's concert a couple of days ago, and you would expect it to be the last concert he was going to give for a while…" -Luka said.
"Get to the point, Luka, please. You know I don't like it when you keep people in suspense. Even mom has told you, you shouldn't do that." -Juleka told her brother.
"Hold your horses, little sis, I'm getting there." -Luka said in a playful tone. –"Well, it so happens that a couple of minutes ago, it was announced that he's opening for KISS, next weekend."
"He is?!" -Juleka asked, surprised.
"That's right. He's going to open for them." -Luka smiled at his sister.
Because they both had read an interview of Jagged Stone, where the musician said that after that last concert, he was going to take some well-deserved time to recharge his batteries, they were both a little surprised to hear that he was opening for a band, and a band as famous as KISS.
"And why are you tell us that?" -Rose asked him. –"Did he somehow found out that we missed the concert? No, that's impossible. There's no way he could have figured that out." -she thought to herself.
"Because he's a big fan of both KISS and Jagged Stone, and he's not going to be able to go to the concert, but still wanted to share the news with someone." -Juleka said, knowing that to be the truth.
"And why not?" -Rose asked, curious. –"Why can't you go to the concert, Luka?" -she asked him.
"Because mom and dad forbade him from going to another concert, until he improves his Math grade." -Juleka answered her, before Luka could.
"It's true." -Luka said. –"You can imagine just how jealous of my little sister here I got, when I found out that she had managed to get a ticket for his concert, a few days ago." -he admitted.
"At least you got the t-shirt I brought you. That's more than most people got."–Juleka told him. –"Oh, and, you should have seen the talk-to my mom gave him, when he told her that he had scored a 6 in Math, Rose." -she told Rose. –"I hadn't seen my mom that mad in a long time."
"It was not pretty. Usually it's dad who we have to face, when we score a bad grade. But this time, it was mom who did most of the talking, and she was really angry at me." -Luka declared.
"Guess you should have studied, Luka." -Rose said.
"And I did study… but not enough, unfortunately." -Luka shrugged his shoulders.
"You should have spent less time composing, and more time studying, that's all I'm saying." -Juleka said. She knew that on the week before that Math test of his, Luka felt inspired and began composing, instead of using his time to study. –"And you were lucky that was your only bad grade. If you had flunked at another subject, mom and dad would have been a lot harsher on your punishment." -she added
"Tell me about it. If I had flunked at other subjects, they probably would have forbidden me from attending any concert, for a whole year. And worst, they would probably forbid me from playing guitar… nah, that wouldn't happen. Mom loves my music too much to forbid me from playing, no matter what happens." -Luka said.
That last comment of Luka made both Rose and Juleka laugh a little, with Juleka knowing her brother was right. Their mom was too fond of his music to forbid him from playing. Even if their dad dared to confiscate all the musical instruments in the house, Anarka Couffaine would tell her husband that if he did such a thing, he would be being too cruel to both their children. Such was the power of music in their home.
"Thanks for sharing that piece of information, Luka. But right now, I think I need to get back to studying with Rose, or I'll hand up flunking at chemistry, and I don't want to, because I'm not in the mood to hear mom giving me the same speech, she gave you." -Juleka told him. –"And you should also stop reading things online and study Math." -she said.
"Okay, okay, I get it. I don't want you girls to think that I'm running your date." -Luka chuckled, as he made his way to the door.
"It's not a date!" –Rose and Juleka exclaimed in chorus.
"Whatever you say, girls." -Luka teased them.
"Oh, you!" -Juleka exclaimed, as she playfully grabbed her pillow and tried to hit Luka, as he closed the bedroom door behind him. –"That Luka…" -she sighed, between giggles.
"You've got the best big brother ever." -Rose declared, while giggling.
"I know that, Rose. I just wished he would sometimes didn't joke about our situation like he does. One of these days he might accidentally let it slip that we're dating, before we can tell our parents." -Juleka told her, her voice revealing she was a little bit worried.
"I understand. Still, I know that when that when we tell our parents about us, it'll be good to have him on our side." -Rose told her. She was happy to know that her future brother-in-law was alright with the two of them dating each other. –"But never mind that now. You heard what he said, didn't you?" -she asked Juleka, with a gleeful voice.
"I did. And now, we've got to tell the others about this." -Juleka said. –"Let's gather everyone on Skype, so we can also tell them."
It did not take long for both Rose and Juleka to have the whole class online, as some of them were already online. For those who were not, they quickly texted them, telling them they needed to talk. Telling them the news, Juleka suddenly could not help but wonder why she had suggested to Rose to tell everyone about Jagged Stone going to open for KISS, if they could not attend the concert. Still, she ignored that thought, as deep down, she was just happy to be able to take a break from studying and talk to her friends.
"Imagine! A second opportunity for us to watch Jagged Stone." -Nino said. –"Sure, he won't be the main attraction, but come on, it will be two concerts for the price of one."
"Yeah, except that the tickets won't be cheap. And I'm not swimming in money." -Alya said. –"I don't think any of us is swimming in money, with the exception of a certain blonde model, as well as the daughter of a certain mayor. But you guys don't count." -she said, referring to Adrien and Chloe.
"Well, I could…" -Adrien said, before being interrupted.
"Let me stop you right there, Adrien Agreste. If you say that you can buy us all tickets for the concert, you can forget about it." -Alya said. –"You already paid us that second lunch on Friday. If you did that with the tickets for this concert, your dad would begin to think that we're taking advantage of you." -she said.
"But…" -Adrien tried to speak.
"She's right, bro." -Nino interrupted him.
"It's sweet of you, for wanting to help us, Adrien. But we can't let you do that. We don't want you to get into trouble with your dad." -Marinette said. The last thing she wanted was to get her boyfriend in trouble, and she knew the rest of the gang did not want that either.
"Fine. I won't buy the tickets." -Adrien sighed, while blaming himself for having the money to do something good for his friends and girlfriend, and not be able to do it. –"What's the point of having all the money in the world, if I can't even use it, without getting into trouble?" -he thought to himself.
"But Chloe could. Couldn't you, Chloe?" -Mylene asked her.
"Yes, I could." -Chloe answered. –"I'll buy tickets for all of us. Front row seats. Daddy won't mind if I use the credit card to do this." -she said.
After all the things that she had done to them, it was the least she could for her friends. For all the times she was anything, but nice to them. For all the times that she bullied them. For all the times that she was anything but a friend to them. Chloe owed them that. They had forgiven her for her past, and had given her a second chance, when they could have refused to give it to her. For all that, she owed them those tickets, and so much more. Plus, she had the means to make it happen, and that made it even more important for her. She knew that her friends had already forgave her for everything, but she herself felt the need to keep atoning for what she did to them. She did not know for how long she would continue to atone, but she would continue to do it, whenever she could, for as long as she felt she needed to. Besides, doing good deeds like those, made her feel good about herself.
"I don't think you're going to do that, Chloe." -Sabrina said. –"The concert's sold out." -she declared. –"I just checked it, and all the websites that were selling tickets for the concert are saying the same thing. It's completely sold out, for almost a month now."
That was one of the problems when one of the best rock bands in the world booked a concert in a city like Paris. Tickets sell out in two shakes of a lamb's tail. And a rock band like KISS, that was bound to happen, even before it was announced that Jagged Stone would be opening for them. Hearing Sabrina's words, everyone felt like once again, luck was on their side, and that they would have to wait to see Jagged Stone in concert, some other time. But Chloe was not going to let that happen, if she had a saying on the matter. She was going to get tickets for her friends and herself, one way or another. And she knew just what do to get them.
"Then, I'll just have to ask Jagged Stone himself to get us tickets." -Chloe said. –"I'll call him." -she said.
"But didn't you say, you couldn't reach him, because the cell phone number you had of him, was no longer available?" -Kim asked her.
"Yeah, that's what she said." -Max said.
"Well, then, she just has to get the new one." -Sabrina said, believing Chloe would be able to get the tickets.
"Sabrina's right. I just have to get his new number. I'll ask my dad to find out what's Jagged's new number, or at the very least his agent's number, so she can give it to me." -Chloe said.
"But what if he doesn't answer, even if you get it?" -Alix asked. She did not want to be the one to spoil everyone's humour, but she knew there was the possibility of that happening.
"We have to believe that luck will be on our side, this time." -Marinette said. –"And if Chloe believes she can get us the tickets this time, then, we just have to hope she's able to do it, while wishing her good luck in doing it." -she declared.
Once more, with her words, Marinette had managed to inspire trust in everyone, showing just what a wonderful leader, she was. But more importantly, she had also given Chloe a boost in her confidence, which would help her in her attempt to get the tickets for the concert from Jagged Stone himself.
"I agree with Marinette. If there's one person who can do this, it's our Chloe." -Adrien said.
"Good luck, Chloe." -Sabrina wished her best-friend.
"We're counting on you." -Nathaniel said.
"If there's anyone who can do it, it's you, Chloe." -Adrien said.
"Thanks, everyone. And I'll do my best to get them." -Chloe declared.
I have to apologize to you all, but having my routine altered this way, has made it harder for me to focus on my writing. And because of it, the chapters are coming out at a slower pace. Still, I promise that I'll try to write a little faster.
As for this chapter, well, there's not much to talk about. It's your typical chapter, where out heroes have to deal with the most common problem that teenagers have... studying for their exams. I still remember what a pain it was studying for countless exams, and feeling like my life depended on a decent grade (which it did, xDDD). That's one part of school that I really don't miss a bit.
Plus, now our heroes know that they might have a chance of seeing Jagged Stone, live, again... but will Chloe manage to get those tickets? You'll have to wait and find out. xD As always, feel free to comment, fav and leave suggestions to improve this fic and future ones.