"Finally!" exclaimed Marinette as she let herself fall dramatically on her bed, making her roommate laugh.
"Yay you survived!" cheered Rose, who was folding her clothes to put them in her suitcase.
"Barely. But at least I'll be able to sleep instead of sewing at night for the next month!"
Her first semester at university had ended today and the next one would be only starting mid January. It had been a lot of work, but she loved every minute of it. All her classes were interesting and she was proud of the 6 creations she did, especially the last one that she handed this morning.
Adrien had been very comprehensive regarding her schedule and she hadn't worked at Agreste's for the past two weeks in order to focus solely on university. He even gave her an advance on her paycheck so she wouldn't be short on money during that time. Anyway, she had been scheduled to work full time during the next 4 weeks so she should be able to save money for next semester.
"So you're leaving tonight?" Marinette asked her roommate.
"Yes! I'll spend the holidays with my family. Since they moved abroad I only see them during the holidays and summer." Rose answered.
"You're lucky. I wish I could see my parents or Alya who's like the sister I never had. Christmas will be weird this year... I might buy a mini tree for the room or something." she explained, a sad look on her face.
Rose put down the jeans she was folding and sat on Marinette's bed. She took her hand in a reassuring gesture.
"I'm sorry, I didn't want to brag about that…" Rose said sheepishly.
Marinette sat up and hugged her friend.
"Hey don't worry about it. Anyway I'll be working full time so I shouldn't have time to be bored. And the dorm's management organized a Christmas dinner for the students stuck here. So I won't be totally alone either. Do you want me to help you finish packing?"
It had been two weeks since Rose left for the holidays and Marinette had worked a lot. Adrien had a ton of events to attend to as well as the interviews to choose the team who will be working on the youth collection, last minute photoshoots and a small fashion show. His schedule was hectic and hers as well.
"Hey Marinette, do you have a few minutes?" Adrien asked as he came back from the last meeting of the day.
"For you, always." she answered, smiling brightly.
Adrien chuckled. "I have a problem. Tomorrow is the very important company's Christmas event and Father had decided I would attend with Lila."
Marinette frowned. She didn't like Lila. She was a liar, a manipulator and never respected Adrien's boundaries, always touching him and snuggling against him. She saw that he was uncomfortable but he couldn't really push her away since she was the main feminine model for Agreste's. So he put up with her.
"Yeah I know...That IS a huge problem." Marinette mumbled.
"No, the problem is not that she will go with me, it's that she just canceled for I don't know why anymore. Father will be furious." he explained.
"At least she won't try to drag you under the mistletoe to kiss you." Marinette joked.
Adrien shuddered. "Ugh no thanks… but anyway. I wanted to ask you to attend the event with me." Adrien said, rubbing his nape with his left hand.
"Really?! Hum I mean…o-of course I'll go with you. I just don't really have a dress chic enough for this though…"
"Thank you Marinette! I'll owe you. And for the dress, don't worry. I'll buy you one." he answered.
"What?! You don't have to!" she exclaimed, flustered.
Adrien's gaze locked on hers for a few seconds before she looked away shyly.
"I want to." he answered, his expression serious.
They stayed in silence for a few minutes, waiting for who would give in. Marinette sighed and turned towards him.
"Thank you. I appreciate it… You're just so kind to me, and I have the bad habit of wanting to do everything by myself and refusing help..."
"It's ok, don't worry." he said, smiling softly. "So, want to go shopping?" he asked, presenting her his bent elbow.
Adrien was grinning and his smile was contagious. Marinette giggled and slid her arm in the loop of his arm. They walked like this until they had to climb in the car.
When they arrived at the Agreste's Women wear boutique, Marinette almost squealed. She had gazed at the creations displayed in the front window every time she walked by the boutique, but she never dared to go inside.
Adrien opened the large glass door and motioned for her to go in. She gasped when she saw all the colors and fabrics in front of her.
"Oh good evening Mr Agreste!" said the employee.
"Good evening…" He looked down at her nametag. "... Patricia. Please call me Adrien. Mr Agreste is my father." he told her, smiling.
"Ok Mr…I mean Adrien. What can I do for you today?" she asked.
Motioning towards Marinette, he answered. "My friend here needs a dress for tomorrow's company's Christmas event."
"Tomorrow? We'll have to pick a dress with minimal alterations to do… Alright!" Patricia said, clapping her hands. "Do we have a budget? A preferred style?"
"I don't really have a budget, Marinette can choose whichever dress she likes the most. But the price has to stay between us." he told the sales assistant. "And for the style, it needs to be a ball gown."
Patricia guided Marinette throughout the different options while Adrien waited on the leather sofa. He could almost see the stars in Marinette's eyes as she looked at different dresses. After half an hour, she had selected four dresses that she wanted to try. The saleswoman helped her to put the first one on, making some slight adjustments with clips for the fitting.
She walked in front of Adrien with the first dress. It was beautiful but something was not right. He couldn't tell what but he gave his opinion. She showed him the next two. She was uncomfortable in the second one so they ruled it out. She was looking absolutely lovely in the third dress but it would need too many alterations for the time they had.
When she appeared wearing the fourth dress, Adrien momentarily forgot how to breathe. Marinette was simply stunning in this burgundy A line dress. The off shoulder neckline was enhancing the curves of her shoulders and neck. The back was laced in a deep V plunging down to her lower back and the skirt was made of several layers of slightly shimmering chiffon fabric. It was delicate and very feminine. And the best of all, it was as if the dress had been made for her, and no alterations were necessary.
"Wow Marinette… You look stunning. You will make heads turn tomorrow if you choose this one." Adrien declared, his cheeks turning pink.
Marinette blushed deeply.
"Oh Marinette, Adrien is right! This dress suits you amazingly! But we can look at other dresses if you want." the sales assistant told her.
She looked at her reflection in the mirror and made her skirt twirl lightly. "What do you think Adrien? Should I try other dresses?" she asked shyly.
"Well, it's your choice. But I honestly doubt that another dress would fit you better."
Looking at her reflection once more, she smiled to herself and nodded. Patricia helped her to get out of the dress. She could come to get it back tomorrow, after it was steamed properly. She also helped her to choose high heels and a clutch bag matching them. Adrien paid and they left the boutique.
"Are you hungry?" he asked her as they got in the car.
Marinette's stomach chose this exact moment to rumble loudly.
"Well that answers my question." Adrien added, chuckling. "Let's go eat something."
She suggested a nice ice cream corner shop she liked to go with her dad when she was younger. He agreed eagerly.
Twenty minutes later, they were sitting in a booth with their creamy snack in front of them. They discussed animatedly while eating. This would be the first ball Marinette would attend and she was getting excited.
"I hope you don't mind but we'll be expected to do the opening dance." he said before taking a spoonful of icy chocolate.
Her spoon stilled a few centimeters from her opened mouth and her eyes went wide. "D-dance? In front of everyone?" she stuttered.
"Well, yes… It's really annoying but I have to do that each year. But don't worry, it's nothing complicated. Just a regular valse." he answered.
"...Just a regular… What? I-I don't know how to dance! And I'll surely stomp on your feet or trip or rip my dress or who knows what other mishap…"
She was starting to panic. She had never been good at dancing. She avoided it at all costs. If she was to ridicule Adrien…
A warm hand on hers cut her flow of thoughts.
"Hey… I'm sorry. I didn't know it would make you uncomfortable. But don't worry, you'll just have to follow my lead." he reassured her.
"I have a hard time just following my own feet…" she mumbled. She noticed he hadn't taken his hand off of hers and that made her heart rate increase.
"I have an idea." he said, his eyes searching her gaze. "Let's go practice."
"Now?" she asked.
"Yes. I'm a member of a private gym that is open 24/7 and they have dance rooms. I don't think there will still be a coach at this hour but I can show you the basics. And you will only have to follow me. I'll guide you, don't worry."
His tone was soft and he was smiling. Marinette sighed, giving in. "I guess if I have no choice to dance… We'll at least try to avoid disaster…"
So that's why they were in the gym at 10 pm, and why Marinette was really anxious.
But Adrien was a good teacher and within one hour and not more than 3 feet stomped, Marinette Dupain-Cheng was valsing. Who would've thought…
At first, she was way more aware of where his hands were touching her than what she would admit. It was distracting her even more and she had stumbled on her own feet (and sometimes on his) quite a lot. But he never showed a sign of impatience and was always encouraging her.
And then, without noticing it, her hand was now comfortable in his and her feet were almost moving on their own.
"I'll try to twirl you, ok?" he asked and she nodded.
Of course, she had to lose her balance when he was guiding her back to him. Because she was… well herself.
She had braced herself, a reflex she had developed too well thanks to her clumsiness, but instead of hitting the floor like she thought she would, she collided with a chest and got surrounded by two strong and warm arms.
She was mortified… She was about to apologize but then, she realized that Adrien hadn't loosen his hold on her, quite the contrary actually. She could hear his heart racing and hers followed suit. She tentatively slid her arms around his middle and hugged him back.
Was this wrong? He was her boss after all… After less than a minute, Adrien pulled back, blushing.
"I… sorry. I hope I didn't break a boundary..." he told her seriously.
"N-no! Not at all! It's ok, really." Marinette answered, still flustered.
He sighed, kinda relieved, and ruffled his hair. "I think it's enough for tonight. It's late and we have a long day tomorrow. Anyway, I'm pretty sure we'll do just fine with the opening dance. Don't think too much about it." he said, smiling warmly.
Marinette smiled back and nodded. He drove her back to the dorm and after saying goodnight, she got to her room and face planted on her bed, groaning. She really hoped she wouldn't humiliate Adrien tomorrow…
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