Chapter Eight - Rescue

Being 18 definitely has its perks, like being able to check yourself out of the hospital without them calling your parents. The last thing they need to be worried about is me getting hurt because I just so happen to have violent nightmares and we just so happen to live in Paris where those nightmares can become real. They really didn't need to worry about my long list of injuries either. I ended up with a severe bite mark on my neck and shoulder, deep lacerations to my left thigh and all the way across my stomach, puncture wounds on my throat, severe bruises on my neck and both wrists and a slight concussion. As I finish getting dressed, I hear a familiar voice outside my room.

"What do you mean I can't see her? I'm one of her best friends!" Adrien is here? Well of course he is, Chat probably told him right after he left the hospital. I decided to end his verbal abuse of whatever nurse wouldn't let him into my room and open the door.

"I was changing, that's why she wouldn't let you in," after I open the door I turn around to begin checking the room for any other belongings and I hear Adrien come into the room behind me and close the door.

"Mari, my god, what the hell happened to you?'' As I turn around, I see that his eyes are glued to the blood staining my clothes and traveling up my body to the bandages on my wrists and the one that covers my neck and shoulder. He looks pale and more than a little concerned as he takes small, hesitant steps toward me. It seems like he had no idea I was hurt. Did Chat not tell him? "Are you okay? Wait, that's a stupid question, of course you're not okay, you're covered in blood and in the hospital, but it also looks like you are trying to leave so maybe you are okay, or maybe you were trying to sneak out and I-" I cut him off before he can continue his word vomit.

"Adrien, stop, I'm okay," I hold out my hand as if I can literally stop his panicked words. "I got hurt and lost some blood but I'll be fine" I finish my sweep of the room, confident I am not leaving anything behind. "What are you doing here?" I ask and watch his expression, looking for any indication that he knows what happened. If Chat told him my nightmare came to life, he will coddle the shit out of me, not to mention hover over me…a lot. Not that that's a bad thing but it will make transforming significantly more difficult.

"Um Chat, he stopped by my house to tell me you had been hurt and that I could find you at this hospital. I drove here as fast as I could but there was a weird amount of traffic for this early in the morning," at his words, I walked over to the window and peeked behind the blackout curtains to see the first rays of sunlight just starting to crest the horizon. "Do you want me to take you home since you don't have your car here?" he asked from his spot across the room. I look over my shoulder to see him staring at my back now. I must have blood all down my back as well so I guess this shirt is going straight in the fire.

"You wouldn't mind? I don't want to worry my parents by calling them from the hospital. I was planning to walk home but given the state of my clothes I don't think that would be a good idea," I pull at my shirt slightly and find it all but glued to my skin. Adrien makes a strange face before he unbuttons his shirt and pulls it off leaving him in a black wifebeater tank top. He then proceeds to hold it out as if for me to put my arms through as he stares at my shoes. Something is off, he won't meet my eyes, just like Chat wouldn't meet my eyes.

At my hesitation, he shrugs and says, "...for the walk to my car…" so I put my arms in the sleeves and he pulls it up onto my shoulders, carefully avoiding touching the bandage. Something is bothering me…but what is it? We walk silently through the hospital and the parking garage to his car where he opens the passenger side door for me before climbing into the driver's side. My mind is currently spinning, trying hard to figure out what it is that seems off. Adrien starts the car and puts it in gear but doesn't move. Instead he turns to look at me and puts his hand on top of my hand. "You know you can tell me anything right? I'm not sure exactly what happened to you last night but you can tell me if you need someone to talk to. I know from experience that keeping a secret from literally everyone in your life can start to take its toll and I don't want that for you. So, if you ever want to talk privately, I know a place where we wouldn't be found or overheard and you can tell me anything. If you want, of course, I'm not trying to pressure you into anything."

As he finishes speaking, he goes to take his hand back but I grab it and hold onto it for dear life. "Thank you, Adrien. Thank you so much. For everything" I say and I really mean it. Maybe, just maybe, I could talk to Adrien. Not about everything of course but maybe I can talk to him about the nightmares. Or maybe Tikki is right and I should just talk to Chat about it, he's already seen Chat Blanc and I'm sure he has a billion questions for me. Ugh this is so much harder than it should be. I need to just get home and talk to Tikki and see what she thinks I should do. I also need to figure out this nagging feeling that has been bothering me.

As we pull onto my street, Adrien pulls past the bakery and parks a short distance up the street, out of view of the bakery windows. At my questioning glance, he reaches over to the glove box and pulls out some concealer and a clean blending sponge. He opens the concealer and turns to me with an expectant look.

"Let me help you cover the bruises on your neck before we face your parents." He says and leans toward me with his eyes on my neck. I obediently tip my head back giving him full view of my throat and the marks there. He gently adds some concealer and grabs the sponge to blend it all in. "Luckily we are close enough in skin tone that this wont look too weird or draw any attention. It's not an exact match but if we button that shirt up then it will be less noticeable." He still avoids meeting my eye and I fully plan on confronting him about it but he turns and gets out of the car before I can even open my mouth. He opens my door and we begin to walk down the street to my house. Adrien comes inside with me and helps me lie to my parents about where I was all night while simultaneously blocking the visible bandages. He tells them that we met up last night to study for our upcoming history final and lost track of time so I decided to stay the night at his house and have him bring me home first thing the next morning. He also tells them that my phone died so I wasn't able to text them but that we both felt safer about me staying at Adrien's house than trying to walk home in the middle of the night as he had picked me up last night. They actually bought it and Adrien was invited to stay for breakfast which he accepted before following me up to my room.

"Thanks for bringing me home, Adrien. Honestly, you have been my hero these last couple days," I say it nonchalantly but watch him closely. Finally, his eyes meet mine and he looks…scared? "What's the matter, Adrien? You seem kinda nervous…" Instead of answering me, he swallows hard and looks away again. Why the fuck is he acting so strange?

"I'm gonna get some air, is it okay to use your balcony?" he asks, and I wave him up. It's only after he gets all the way out on the balcony that I remember my Kwami is up there and probably freaking out. I rush up the stairs and the ladder quickly, trying not to panic. I burst out of the trap door and onto the balcony and only narrowly avoid tripping and falling back down through the trapdoor. I stand up and see Adrien with a strange look on his face and realize there is no Kwami in sight. I also notice that he is ghostly pale.

"Uh-sorry I…thought I left something embarrassing up here and wanted to make sure you…" my voice trails off as I look around the balcony and suddenly realize the reason for Adrien's sickly pallor. There is blood all over the ground on one side of the balcony and what looks to be several holes punched in the wall on the other side. Shit! How the hell am I gonna explain this to Adrien? Aw fuck, how the hell am I gonna explain this to my parents?