"Make you're self comfortable," Mrs. Cheng said kindly to Adrien, "She won't be long."
"Thank you, Ma'am," Adrien replied politely.
Adrien glanced around the living room. It was so different from his own home, where everything matched perfectly and nothing was allowed to alter the formal white and black color scheme, save for a few gold frames on paintings, and a couple of dark red dracaenas, growing in planters in the hallway.
He ran his hand over the fabric of the light pink couch. On it, several brightly colored throw pillows, with polka dotted fabric, echoed the pink polka dotted window shades. Adrien smiled, he had definitely developed an affinity for polka dots.
Late afternoon sun streamed in through the apartment's windows, bathing the apartment in a warm glow. The bright turquoise refrigerator and hot pink cabinets were bold splashes of color in the kitchen, while a few black accents, cupboard doors and a lamp by the tv, anchored the light and airy color scheme.
The smell of freshly baked baguettes, filled the air with a fresh uncomplicated scent. Watercolor paintings hung on the walls, their style loose and flowing. Several family pictures also hung on the walls and were propped up on surfaces. Adrien gazed at them, no airbrushing, no color corrections, only un-edited love. Adrien's father would never have allowed such raw photo's in his house. Every picture of Adrien on the walls of his home had been carefully staged, airbrushed and photo shopped. Sometimes, Adrien didn't even recognize himself when he looked at them.
Tom Dupain clapped Adrien on the back, "So, these fancy parties usually last till quite late at night, right?"
Adrien looked up from studying a family photo. It had been the one he had noticed the last time he had been here, as Chat Noir, and was becoming his favorite. There were several formal paintings of his family, but none of them had the warmth and caring displayed by this snapshot.
"Yes sir, but I can have her home at anytime… would 10:00 be too late?" Adrien asked, a little nervously. He had read that parents always wanted their daughters home early.
"Don't be silly," Sabine laughed, "The party won't even be started by then."
"I'll be disappointed if she's back before 1:00," Tom added.
Adrien looked a bit shocked. This was not how he imagined parents were supposed to behave.
"You two have a good time. We trust Marinette to make good choices," Sabine said, smiling kindly, "and since you're one of those choices, we trust you too."
Adrien felt a warm glow in his stomach. Marinette's parents were amazing. "Thank you," he said, "I can see where Marinette gets her..."
"I'm ready," Marinette's voice rang out.
Adrien looked up, mouth falling open, not able to finish his sentence, "Wow," he finally managed to say, then mentally shook himself, Pull yourself together, Agreste.
Her hair was pulled back into her usual pigtails, but there was something different about them. They looked fuller than normal, white ribbons twined around her hair. Her dress was white, with a dark pink ribbon circling her waist, trailing behind her.
The bodice of her dress rose in three distinct tiered, overlapping layers, like sheets of paper that had been folded, then unfolded with the creases showing, covering each other, their corners sticking out. It gave the neckline a dynamic presence, as if she were rising out of sheets and sheets of folded paper. The skirt of the dress mirrored the bodice, three structured tiered layers of folded paper, ending just above her knees.
It was a dress an origami master would make, the fabric resembling thick folded paper. Then, she began to move. As she descended the stairs, the dress floated, shimmering around her, and hints of pink flashed here and there. Adrien noticed what he originally thought was a single piece of thick fabric, was actually thin layers of fabric stacked on top of each other, like the pages of a book, white on top and deep pink fluttering underneath, echoing the color of her belt.
He had thought it was a strapless dress, but as she came closer, gold glinted on her shoulders. Adrien noticed fine gold chains, two on each side, that served as straps. Other than her simple black earrings, it was the only jewelry she wore. She had managed to combine structure with elegance, bold design with intricate details. It was a masterpiece.
"You look… That dress…" Adrien stumbled over his words.
Marinette blushed.
"Don't you two look amazing together!" Sabine gushed, "Tom, get the camera, we need a picture."
Relieved to be back on familiar ground, Adrien posed for pictures with Marinette, while Tom insisted on capturing them from every angle.
"Papa," Marinette said, a bit impatiently, "We need to go, now."
"Of course, of course," He said snapping one last picture before he waved them off, "You two have fun… Don't come back too early."