"I bet it was morning sickness."
Adrien felt his jaw clench at the snickering beside him. Chloé was speaking low enough that their teacher didn't seem to pick up on their conversation, but the feline hero caught every word. He glanced over at the heiress and for the thousandth time wondered what happened to her. Day by day, he lost a little bit of the hope he had of ever seeing the Chloé he once knew, again.
"She must be pretty cheap if Maritrash can buy a ride."
He looked at her in disbelief. What the actual hell? Anger must've shined in his eyes, because the moment the heiress caught his gaze, her smile fell. To her credit, Chloé had the decency to look a tad bit ashamed. It didn't take her long to recover, though, and soon she was staring at the board with her usual expression of boredom. Adrien shook his head and glared at his desk.
His phone vibrated in his pocket. Frowning, he took it out and gave it a quick glance.
New message: Dude u OK?
The model looked over at Nino, who gave him a look that clearly said "WTF". He gave his friend a nod before texting back.
A: Fine. Don't remember Chlo being this much of a bitch, tho.
N: What century were u living in, bro? She's been a royal B for like ever.
Adrien blew out a sigh. I think I'm starting to see that. Tucking his phone away, the blond did his best to focus on the lecture, all the while ignoring the worried looks from the girl beside him.
As soon as class got out, Luna was out of her seat, giving Nathaniel a small wave. She rushed down to Alya and Marinette who were waiting for her by the door.
"So, what're we doing for lunch?" she asked with a grin.
"Could swing by Marinette's," Alya offered. "Girl, you've got to try her mom's quiche. It's like fireworks on your tongue."
"Mm, count me in!"
The three of them turned to see Adrien right by them, looking hopeful. Nino stood just behind him, adjusting his headphones so one ear was free to listen to them. Aly and Luna both took a peek at a now very pink Marinette before locking gazes and sharing a smirk.
"Oh! Uh... Heyyyy there..." the designer said in a flustered tone. Adrien rubbed his neck, a nervous smile on his face.
"Unless it's too much trouble."
"N-no! No trouble! It's just we're girls. I mean, you're a boy! N-not that there's anything wrong with-" The designer flailed about as she tried to fix her speech. Thankfully, Alya took it upon herself to cut her off.
"What Marinette here is trying to say, Adrien, is that we kind of had a girls' day planned. No offense, of course."
The model laughed. "Sorry. I didn't mean to intrude."
"Now, hang on a minute, Aly," Luna said with a smirk. Her eyes swept over Adrien, sparkling in mischief. "I don't really see a problem, here. I mean, if we just slap a skirt on him, I don't think anyone's gonna tell the difference."
Adrien blinked, not sure what to make of the comment. "Uh..." He felt a quick pat on his shoulder as Nino walked passed.
"I think that's my cue to leave, bro," he said with a chuckle. "Good luck."
"Traitor," Adrien huffed as his friend left the room.
"You know, Luna, I think I see your point," Alya said, circling around him. "He does have a pretty feminine build."
"And I bet his legs would look great in a mini. What do you think, Mari?" Luna snickered. The Half-Asian girl turned as bright as a fire hydrant. It was clear she wasn't really thinking much as an incoherent ramble spilled out of her lips. Adrien had turned a similar color to the girl in front of him, slightly regretting his asking to join them. He opened his mouth to say he changed his mind when a pair of arms wrapped around his neck from behind.
"Adrikins!" Chloé squealed in his ear. The teasing tone of the group disappeared in the blink of an eye. Luna's smile faded away as she shifted awkwardly on her feet. Adrien suppressed a groan.
"Hey, Chloé," he droned out.
"Guess who planned out the perfect little picnic in the park," she said with a grin. "The cooks at Daddy's hotel made all your favorite dishes."
He gave her a strained smile. "Sounds great, Chlo, but-"
"Perfect!" the blonde girl said, taking him by the arm. "We'd better hurry! The pot roast's gonna be cold before we get there."
"H-hey, wait a sec!" Adrien tried to pry her grip off his arm, but was ultimately dragged away, leaving Marinette and the others to stand there, grim-faced.
"Looks like lover boy had other plans," Luna mumbled.
"Ugh, who does that brat think she is?" Alya huffed. "Acting like she'll always get what she wants."
"Doesn't she, though?" Marinette said, looking a bit sad. Luna bumped her arm in an attempt to cheer her up.
"Let's forget about the overpriced Barbie doll, okay?" She said. "No way we should let her ruin our good mood."
"Yeah, and besides, we've got something little miss heiress won't ever get her hands on," Alya said with a wink.
"Oh, yeah?" Marinette laughed. "And what's that?"
"Your mom's kickass quiche! Now, let's get going. I'm starving over here!"
The girls all laughed as they joined arms again, heading to Marinette's.
"Chloé, stop already!" Adrien finally managed to yank his arm free from the blonde after being dragged halfway to the park. He rubbed his sore wrist. Chloé turned to him with a pout, batting her ice blue eyes.
"What's wrong, Adrikins? Our picnic's waiting for us."
The model groaned. "I don't want to have a picnic, Chlo. You can't just go and make decisions for me like that."
Chloé folded her arms. "And why not? It's not like you had any other plans."
Adrien gritted his teeth. Annoyance found its way across his face. "Well, what if I did?"
"Tsk, with who? The loser brigade? Adrikins, we're so much better than them." She ran her fingers through her ponytail.
"No, we're not, Chlo. We're regular people, just like them and everyone else. Just because we have money doesn't mean we can treat people like garbage." Adrien's brow tweaked as he saw the girl roll her eyes at him.
"Ugh, God, why are we even discussing this?"
"Because it needs to stop, Chloé! You can't keep going around and hurting people! How do you expect anyone to like you?!"
"Everyone adores me, Adrikins."
"You actually believe that." He spoke the statement in a deadpan. Chloé threw her hands in the air.
"Where is this even coming from, Adrien? I thought we were friends."
"I thought so, too, but... I don't even know you, anymore."
"What's that supposed to mean?!"
"You've changed, Chloé! You're not the same girl I grew up around. That girl was kind and funny, even if she was a bit pushy, sometimes. This?" He gestured to her form. "This isn't even a shadow of her. I don't... There are days where I can't even stand to be in the same room as you."
Blue eyes widened at his words. Chloé looked as if he'd slapped her. Tears started to well up, and the heiress bit her lip, looking down. Adrien pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to calm down. He knew he needed to take it back, but his anger wouldn't let him. He was just so sick of it. Sick of watching her belittle everyone around them. Sick of the snickers and cruel comments. Sick of seeing her burn every bridge she ever came across. Chloé stood in silence for a moment, hands clenched in shaking fists at her sides. She sniffed and quickly wiped a tear away before it could streak her face.
"If you can't stand me, then why don't you go see your real friends, huh?" she said in a shaky voice. Adrien took in a sharp breath.
"Chloé-"
"-Just...no..." She held up a hand to cut him off. More tears fell, and before he could do anything to stop them, the heiress turned away from him and stalked away. Adrien sighed, running a hand through his golden locks. He looked about and saw the crowd their fight had brought forth. Damn...
The boy walked away with his head hung low. If he had been paying attention, he would've seen the flutter of black wings streak by him, heading straight for the young heiress.
Marinette, Alya and Luna sat in front of the bakery, laughing and joking around. Each one had a piece of Sabine's infamous quiche, and Luna had to admit, it was pretty darn good. She had just shoved the last bite into her mouth when Alya started rapidly slapping at her arm. She looked up at the blogger, then followed her line of sight. A hand went to her mouth as she tried to fight a giggle.
"Oh my God," she hissed.
Marinette frowned, looking back and forth between her two friends. "What? What's going on?"
"Turn around," Alya said through her snickers.
The blackette did, and her jaw quickly dropped. Just a few feet away stood a red faced Adrien, looking at the ground and scratching the back of his head. Instead of his usual jeans, the model had on a black pleated skirt that cut off just above his knees. He shyly looked up at the dumbfounded designer and smiled.
"It's not too late to join the girls' day, is it?" he asked, sheepishly.
"What happened to your date?" Luna asked, still grinning. Adrien looked at his legs, then back at the girls.
"A picnic's not exactly comfortable in a skirt."
That was the final straw. Marinette broke out in laughter, clutching her sides. The others soon joined in, doubled over and slapping their knees. It took a long while for them to catch their breaths before they could usher him inside to get something to eat. He totally deserved it after that.