When they arrive at the Agreste Manor, it's almost sunset. Natalie welcomes them with a warm smile on her face while Gabriel wears a blank expression. His eyes, however, fall onto the raven head, observing.

Himawari looks up, she notices those eyes are on her, although she doesn't understand why. However, the thought of Gabriel keeps staring at her makes her feel uneasy and she unconsciously inches closer to Luka, avoiding eye contact.

Gabriel still holds his gaze. Usually, he doesn't care much about who Adrien is being friends with as he trusts that his son is wise enough to know who he should not be associated with, but with Himawari, it's a different story. Despite having heard many amazing stories about the raven head from his son and Marinette, Gabriel can't shake off the odd feeling that maybe this girl is a bad influence on Adrien.

"Let me lead you guys to Chloe." Adrien smiles as he leads the way.

Despite being so close to her friend group, Himawari can't shake off the odd feeling that Gabriel's eyes are still glued onto her back. She doesn't enjoy that feeling, it makes her feel uneasy as she nervously grabs onto Luka's arm while walking. The older boy notices the worries in her amethyst orbs, like the gentleman he is, he rests his arms on her back, pulling her closer to him.

"What's wrong?" he lowers his voice, just loud enough for her to listen.

"I… I feel like I'm not welcomed here…"

"Hm…" slightly turning his head to her side, Luka catches Gabriel's intense gaze on the poor raven head "Don't worry, I'm here with you."

Himawari nods her head, she knows that. Just inching closer to him makes the uneasiness slowly fades away, the warmth of his body brings such calmness into her heart, every time she is with Luka, Himawari feels so safe.

As they get closer to Chloe's room, Marinette's words echo in her mind, how she refuses to help the blonde and that they should not expect anything from her. She remembers how all of her classmates seem to not even care about Chloe's sake and some even go as far as to say that she deserves all of this. Himawari can't blame them, not when Chloe has done so many bad things and caused them so much trouble.

What she can't stand is how that one friend who has always been Chloe's side is now acting like she knows nothing about this, Sabrina. Lately, she has been spotted hanging out with Lila, acting the same way she did when she was still with the spoiled blonde. Himawari doesn't know how to feel about this change of heart, she wonders if Sabrina is truly Chloe's friend, or she's just there for when the blonde was still a bully at school.

Although the treatment Chloe gives Sabrina is unacceptable, there were times when the blonde showed genuine care towards her so-called friend. But now, with the time Chloe shows up at school becomes lessened, Sabrina begins to show her loyalty to Lila, someone who she's rarely interacting with due to the rumors her friends told her.

If there is anything that annoyed Himawari the most, it is definitely fake friends, ones who turn their back immediately once they find their friend no longer useful. In a way, that's what Sabrina is doing to Chloe.

"Here we are." Adrien knocks on the door "Chloe, we're coming in!"

When they come inside the room, the blonde is standing in front of the big window, admiring the beautiful sunset. She turns around, her gaze softens a little bit when she spots the familiar raven head. Although many people are here to see her, the sight of Himawari makes her heart feel at ease, like a wave of relief washes over her.

"Chloe…" the raven head takes a few steps towards her, a warm smile adorns her face "How are you doing?"

"So far so good. Natalie takes very good care of me." she stops for a moment, finding it quite difficult to hold a conversation with everyone "Well, this is awkward…"

"How so?"

"I never thought that of all people, you guys are the ones in this room right now." the blonde looks at them "It feels nice…"

"Like you're actually having friends?"

"Hm, something like that."

Her response makes Himawari giggle. The answer is so honest, like a child just stating a fact. There's no sassiness in the blonde's tone, just genuine surprise and pleasure.

"Well, we are your friends after all."

Chloe is surprised at first, her mind is waiting for someone to oppose this claim but no one speaks up, as if it is a unanimous agreement. Adrien steps up and puts his hand behind the blonde's back, a reassuring one. Kagami crosses her arms, her eyes softening when she looks at Chloe. Luka looks at her, nodding his head in approval. And then, there's Himawari who welcomes her with a kind and loving smile.

"Friends…" she murmurs under her breath "Friends… I like the sound of that…"

They start with small talk, mentioning the school work, how everyone is doing, how hard the assignments are and what activities that are held at school. Chloe listens, nodding her head as she follows their story. It feels nice to have a genuine conversation with another person and the more she is engaged in the talk, the group slowly realizes that Chloe is nothing but a normal teenage girl, that spoiled persona is something that she puts on for years living under her parent's pressure. She might add some sassiness tone here and there, but there is no rudeness in her words.

"Interesting, so you act a certain way in front of everyone and yet, you can talk like a normal person when you're with us?" Kagami sends her an amused look.

"I don't know. Maybe... I mean, we're talking right now, so…"

"You can do the same thing with our classmates too, they would love it!"

"No, I refuse to talk to those peasants." she raises a brow "No offense to your sister, of course."

Luka shrugs his shoulder, knowing Juleka, she doesn't take the blonde that seriously to be offended by her words. Himawari is sitting next to him, covering her face to stop the giggle from escaping from her lips. A blush adorns her face when Luka whispers something in her ears, making her smile as she nods her head.

"Anyway, we're here for a reason, right?" Luka stretches his body "Care to tell her what we know when she's busy enjoying Paris with this little lady over here?"

"I'm not a little lady!" Himawari pouts.

"Are you sure about that?" a smug smile spreads across his lips as he gently flicks her forehead "You might be surprised at how small you are compared to others."

"Ouch, meanie!"

Kagami looks at them, feeling déjà vu. This scene is similar to how Adrien and Marinette are after they start dating, the teasing and flirting that only grows over time. Chloe looks at them and then back at Adrien, the blonde boy scratches his head awkwardly, not knowing what to say. By this point, everyone already assumes that Luka and Himawari are an item, much to the raven head's denial.

"Honestly, why you guys aren't dating still amazed me…"

"K-Kagami!"

"I mean, they might surprise us with a wedding invitation." Chloe sips her tea.

"Chloe!"

Himawari pouts at them. She is not a laughing stock, nor she is the center of all the teasing. She has been friends with Marinette long enough to understand how that feels.

"Anyway, we have something we want to tell you. It's about that future fiancé of yours…"

The blonde looks at Kagami, nodding. She's already in a bad situation in the first place, how much worse can it get?

They told her about the conversation they had with that boy and how he wanted to see them, or to be more specific, he wanted to see Chloe and Himawari. How he noticed the raven head was missing from the crowd still amazed them, as if he had his eyes on her for quite a while to know that she of all people, was missing alongside the main character of last night.

"I've tried to do some research on him. Heir of the publishing company, same age as Luka and comes from a prestigious private school in Paris." Kagami scrolls her phone "Not only that, his academic level is outstanding, a perfect version of what a prince charming is."

Chloe doesn't say anything. Although she knows about the engagement, they rarely interact with each other. Most of the time they meet were usually in formal meetings with their parents. They rarely have time to get to know each other. The only thing she learns about him is his name, Leo Dubois.

"Hm…the lion in the forest…" Himawari murmurs to herself "Interesting name…"

"He said he wants to talk to me?"

Chloe doesn't understand why he wants to talk to her. But maybe…

"Then let's talk to him." the raven head looks at her blonde friend.

"Aren't you deciding things quite fast?" Kagami turns to her "And what good will it be for her to talk to him?"

"You never know. But maybe… It's the way out that Chloe needs." she rubs her arms together "We never hear his side of the story, whether he wants this marriage or not."

"You think that he doesn't want this just like Chloe?" Adrien speaks up "If so, that is the way out for Chloe!"

"Maybe. We still have to talk to him first… Now… If only there's a way to get a hold of him…"

"Most of our meetings are through my parents. I don't have any way to contact him."

Chloe looks at her phone, sighing. The group looks at her for a bit before turning their attention to the other blonde, who is startled by their gazes. The expectation in their eyes is the answer that he needs as Adrien exhales, nodding his head. He understands his task.

"Let me talk to my father, maybe he can get a hold of him."

When Adrien excuses himself and leaves the room, Chloe sighs. She doesn't care much about talking to her future fiancé, what she's more worried about is how she faces her parents. Although ideas are running through her mind, the blonde doesn't know how to execute them. The thought of facing her parents frightens her, what will they do if she decides to talk with Leo behind their back?

"Chloe, are you okay?"

"I…" she trails off, not knowing what to say.

"It's about your parents?"

The blonde nods her head, sighing heavily. Each thought about them adds another weight to her heart, pulling it down even more. She feels guilty for doing such a thing, and yet, she can't live under their thumbs anymore.

For a whole day, she has been thinking about everything. Her life, her childhood, her parents, her friends and everything that has happened to her. Although she is grateful that her parents give her a life of luxury, but in exchange for that, she has to give up her freedom. Maybe that's the reason why she has been so hostile, so rude towards anyone who steps foot closer to her. For someone who is born and raised in a lavishing lifestyle like her, it's hard for everyone to see that Chloe also has her fair share of problems that she wishes to solve.

The daughter of a mayor…

She can not let anyone sees her pain, so she masks it by acting rudely and being a bully. It helps her get all of the negative emotions out, but at the same time, she isolates herself from people. Chloe loves her parents, especially her mother, but after what happened last night, the blonde finally understands that nothing can make Audrey happy besides fame and fortune. To become more powerful, she will sacrifice everything, even if it is her daughter's happiness.

Chloe also thinks about her father, the man who has lived his life under the thumb of Audrey. He's a mayor, so any positive publicity will benefit him. But she also remembers that last night, when her mother was coming for her, he stepped in and stopped that woman. He agreed with Butler Jean to let her stay outside of Le Grand Hotel. Somehow, he does care for her. Maybe his definition of caring is to spoil her with all the money and expensive clothing, but Andre truly cares.

While her mother decides not to stay by her side and goes on a grand adventure to further her career, Andre stays behind, running the hotel, being a mayor and taking care of her. In the end, as much as she loves her mother, Chloe can't deny that her father is the one who has always been by her side.

"Maybe after all of this, I will see my father…"

"Are you sure?" Himawari asks, her voice full of concern.

"I am. I want to know if my father truly cares about me…"