"What happened to your ring?" Gabriel asked when Adrien came down the next morning, attempting to be the caring father. It didn't fit him.
"It didn't suit my style anymore," Adrien shrugged. "Why do you care? You never liked it anyways."
"Don't talk back to me. And, speaking of which, what do you think you're wearing?" Gabriel motioned to the ratty hoodie and sweats. It was over 3 years old, and the faded grey color alongside some stray strings showed it. But Adrien couldn't bear to throw it out; his mother had given it to him, some promotional gear for her movie she had exclusively gotten for him on set. He hadn't worn it since she died. But he needed the comfort today, something to remind him exactly what all of this fighting was for.
Nathalie tried to usher him back to his room to change, but Adrien stayed glued to the bottom of the steps. He glared at his father, waiting for him to break eye contact.
"I'm wearing my mother's hoodie. Just to remind you what I'm winning us back." Adrien knew his father needed him. Paon was far more powerful than Hawkmoth, not only in direct ability but in Adrien's popularity in Paris.
Adrien loved his father, but he was the adult here now. He was the one who was in control of bringing his mother back for the both of them. And, so long that he held this upper hand, by god was Adrien going to break free of the grasp his father had held on to him for so long.
Gabriel relented, just like he did when Adrien stopped informing him of his sentimonster plans, just like he did when Adrien changed his superhero outfit, just like he did whenever his mother dictated the family plans for the day. His father's expression was the same as the time his mother canceled their son's photoshoot for an impromptu trip to Rome just for some gelato. Adrien had spilled chocolate all over his shirt, he remembered. His father had been desperate to clean it up with napkins. His mother had just laughed and bought him a new shirt. It was still in his closet, he thought. He should wear it tomorrow.
When Adrien finally arrived at school, 10 minutes late due to the debacle with his father, he simply collapsed his head on the desk. He was seated next to Marinette now, in the front row, but she wouldn't even respond to his gruffly good morning to her. She scootched away from him on the bench, and didn't bother to wake him up when he started snoring midway through Madame Bustier's lecture. She made him feel like a bad guy, just like she had on that first day of school so long ago. He was already getting plenty of that from Ladybug anyways, between her manipulating and stalking him just to defeat him.
Marinette, the sweetest, most intelligent girl he knew, hated him. And he had no idea why.
So when Madame Bustier asked him to stay after school for detention, he was too tired to argue. After everything that had happened, he probably deserved it.
He shot off a quick text to his father informing he'd be home late from school. God, texting his father - so much could change in only half a year.
And then, he'd put his head back on his desk, dreaming of whatever new sentimonsters he could get Ladybug's attention with next.