Vulnerable

2

Moving out to head to college shouldn't be as difficult as it sounds, especially after Marinette saw her new 'room' she would be sleeping in for the next four years. She decided to enroll in a college to major in fashion with a minor in business. She has been praying for an internship with a well-known fashion designer, even though she feels pretty well known already around Paris already. But the worse part of the transition is not knowing if Adrien was coming to the same college. What could he possibly go to college for? He already excel at multiple college courses!

"Here's the last of your things, Mari." Adrien said as he carried the last box and bag of school supplies into the small dorm.

Marinette smiled and helped him set everything down. "Thanks, Adrien."

"Anything else I can do to make this feel like home?" he asked while stretching.

She sighed a bit and looked out the window that looked over the beautiful campus. "I'm far from home. But Paris is still near." She put on a brave smile.

"That's a good way of looking at it." He laughed a bit. "Want to go exploring? I heard there's great cafés with awesome coffee. You might want to familiarize yourself with the campus."

Marinette rolled her eyes while letting out a small giggle. "If you want to. I could use a break from this moving in time."

Adrien smiled and walked to the open door. "After you, my lady." He bowed. She swore she saw him wink at her as she past him.

The campus was large that it could be its own little town and no one but the students and faculty would know where in the world to find it. The college was well known for fashion of the past and present. Mock boutique were in a building that it was its own outlet mall down the road from auditoriums and classrooms and labs. The college offered other courses like sciences, languages, music, art, and technology, but most student came out as fashion experts. Adrien actually suggested the college to Marinette after talking to a photographer during a photoshoot. So after making sure Paris would be okay from akumas for a while, Marinette applied and got a full scholarship funded by several fashion designers—even Gabriel Agreste helped fund the scholarship.

Marinette was in awe about her surroundings. The campus still had a lively Paris feel, but she couldn't stop herself from comparing the real Eiffel Tower to the mock one in middle that was the campus clock tower. The cafés made her feel at home, even though there was still company own cafes, so she was waiting for an original café to pop up so she can visit. Internet café? Coffee café? Bakery café? Something needed to make her want to go inside (This could be because she worked in her parents' bakery when she wasn't in school or saving Paris.)

"What about this one, Marinette?" Adrien called his attention while looking inside of one of the many café windows.

Marinette looked and saw a student playing guitar for a group of students and parents as the customers sat, chatting to each other, sipping on coffee or tea, and chowing down on croissants. "I like this one. It's very lively." She smiled and picked up Adrien's hand. She walked to the door, only to be stopped so her boyfriend could open the door for her again.

Not only the scent was enticing, but the environment was warm and comforting. Marinette could see the musical male was playing the guitar to entertain everyone in the café and the new students, taking requests and cracking jokes when he wasn't playing. Marinette had caught his attention and shyly waved at him, guessing he was a student by the way he dressed. The café had tables and chairs, bars and barstools with school pride accents in the café's warm vanilla brown colors and font, and lounge with chairs and sofas that could possibly fit three people. Towards the back, besides where the general assembly of café workers were, was where more customers were enjoying time on their laptops and tablets. Despite looking small on the outside, there was plenty of room to move and enjoy a peaceful time full of music, coffee, and croissants. If she had the option, she could pick up a part time job here to earn a little bit more money besides living off the money her parents would send her every other week—twice in one week if she's lucky they said if she doesn't skip classes, earning good grades and reports, and staying out of trouble.