"And here's the last box sweetie." said Tom as he dropped a large box full of books on the floor.
"Thanks dad! That one was really heavy!" said his daughter.
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It was Monday afternoon. After a week busy packing all her belongings and helping to close the bakery, Marinette moved into the university dorms with her parents' help.
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Their plane was leaving the next day and they still had a lot of things to do so that was pretty much the last time she would see them before they come back to Paris. She looked at them, tears forming on the corner of her eyes. She didn't want them to leave.
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Sabine and Tom pulled their daughter in a big hug. The tears were now rolling down softly on Marinette's cheeks, as she hugged them tight.
"Don't worry, sweetie. Pretty soon, we'll be back." said her mother, patting her back. "We'll call you at least twice a week. We love you so much."
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After saying a last goodbye to her parents, Marinette returned to what would be her room for the next year. It was small but convenient. There was two twin beds at opposite corners of the room. Two large work tables, two desk chairs, two dressers, a medium fridge and a small couch were the only furniture in the room. A door led to a small private bathroom with a shower. She felt grateful that she didn't have to use a public bathroom everyday.
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One side of the room was already occupied with someone else's belongings and almost everything was pink. Marinette didn't know she would have to share the room with a stranger. The other student was not there, and the raven-haired girl wondered if they would get along. At least it seemed they like the same colours.
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A few doors away from the bedroom was a large kitchen that was shared with three other rooms. At the very end of the corridor, there was a laundry room with two washers and three dryers. Marinette noted that she would need to keep some spare change in her room if she wanted to be able to wash her clothes.
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She had unpacked half of her things when the door opened. A blond short-haired young woman appeared, smiling brightly. Marinette stood up from her bed and greeted the girl, returning her smile.
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"Hi! I'm Marinette! I just arrived a few hours ago."
"Hi! I'm Rose. Nice to meet you Marinette!"
"Nice to meet you too! So... we're gonna be roommates for the next year, I guess."
"Yeah! Feel free to use some space in the fridge and on the bathroom shelves."
"Thanks! Hum, I don't want to bother you, but speaking of the fridge, do you know where is the nearest grocery store?"
"Oh yes! And you're not bothering me at all! It's my second year here, so I can show you around if you'd like."
"Oh sure that'd be really nice of you!"
"I was planning to do my grocery this afternoon anyway. Why don't we go together? We could share some of the stuff we buy and we could plan to cook some meals together! That is if you want to, of course."
"Hum yeah, sure!"
"Great! And you must be tired after moving in. Would you like to go for a coffee and snacks first? I know a really nice place on the way to the grocery store."
"That's the best idea I've heard today. I'm actually starving. I couldn't eat this morning, I was too stressed..."
"Then let's go!"
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Marinette grabbed her purse and followed Rose. She was glad her new roommate was so nice. Maybe she won't be that lonely this year, after all...
.
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After spending a very nice time chatting with her new roommate while drinking a cup of well deserved coffee, Marinette followed Rose to the grocery store. They agreed on sharing most of their meals, so they bought together all that was needed for some simple good recipes. When Rose learned that Marinette's parents had a bakery, she begged her to teach her how to cook the best sweets. The latter accepted gladly.
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That's why they were now in the common kitchen, hands and clothes covered with flour, rolling dough while a batch of cookies was slowly cooking in the oven. A sweet smell of vanilla and chocolate was spreading through the dorms. They laughed a lot, and learned to know each other a little bit more. Marinette was so glad to get along with her roommate so far.
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The classes were beginning only next week, so Marinette spent the first few days exploring the University, to locate where she would attend her different courses and where was the library and the cafeteria. She also walked around the campus a lot, and gave her name at different shops in the neighbourhood, hoping to find a decent paying job.
.
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Marinette called Alya almost every night, chatting about everything and nothing, but mostly about the budding relationship between her best friend and Nino, who she met abroad. The funny thing was that he also came from Paris, and had decided to travel a bit before coming back to study. He fell in love with the country he was visiting, and decided to apply for a student exchange so he could stay there longer. Alya met him at the university's student café.
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That night it was Alya who called first, and she seemed really excited.
.
"Hey girl!"
"Hi Al! How was your day?"
"Great! Listen, I have great news for you."
"What is it? Don't tell me you're coming back to Paris because you can't live without me?"
"I'd really like to come back to you love, but no. I found you a job."
"Wait, you what?"
"I'm not kidding! You know Nino also comes from Paris?"
"Huh-uh..."
"His best bro is non other then Adrien Agreste, you know, the son of the famous designer Gabriel Agreste? So he told him about his girlfriend's BFF who was looking for a student job. And it appears that they're actually looking for new employees at Gabriel's. Nothing big, more like cleaning and maintenance staff. But it's well-paid and you'd set foot in THE best design company in France. So we never know, you could ask later to do your internship there..."
"Really?! What do I have to do?"
"Nino already asked Adrien to give your name to the person in charge of the employees and I still had a copy of your resume on my USB drive so we also forwarded it to him. Adrien sent an email to Nino a few minutes ago and gave him the contact's information for you."
"You guys are the best! Oh Al, you should definitely marry him!"
"Whoa calm down girl!"
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Alya forwarded the email to Marinette who couldn't stop thanking her.
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The next morning, Marinette contacted a woman named Nathalie Sancoeur, who asked her to come at 14:00 to sign the work contract. The young woman couldn't believe she didn't even have to do an interview for that job!
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Nonetheless, Marinette made sure her outfit and hair were flawless, wanting to make a good first impression.
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It took her only thirty minutes to walk to Agreste's headquarters. It was located in one of the most rich districts in Paris, and was surrounded with extravagantly huge houses and mansions, colourful gardens and century-old oak trees. It was simply gorgeous.
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When she arrived, she was oriented to a waiting area on the fourth floor. She only had time to sit down a few minutes before a stoic woman holding a tablet asked to follow her.
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She noticed the name on the office door and it confirmed her that it was Nathalie Sancoeur, whom she spoke to a few hours ago. The meeting went well, and Marinette signed the work contract after the woman sitting in front of her explained all the terms. The salary was good, and she would be working fifteen hours a week as a member of the cleaning staff. She would start next Saturday, for a two days training with the team manager.
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Back at the dorms, she celebrated her hiring with her roommate with one of her favourite dishes and a nice bottle of white wine. She was happy that, even if she was worried at first, everything seemed to be falling into place.