Uptown, Downtown (Chat Noir x Reader) - Book 1

40 | Don't Look Back In Anger

So you pulled out your phone, logged into the WiFi, and sent her a text asking if she was ok.

You felt awkward for doing it, even though she’d assured you that you were friends, mostly because you knew how much Adrien meant to her. You’d honestly felt a bit guilty when you told her that you and Adrien were in a relationship, but you could only hope that she was telling the truth, when she’d said she was happy for you.

To your surprise, she replied quite quickly.

You: Hey are you ok?

Kagami: I am fine. As of now, I am taking a break from practice. I hope that your trip with Adrien is going well.

You: Thanks Kagami
You: You really deserve a lot more than you get

Kagami: If that is the case then please join me for lunch when you get back.
Kagami: I’d be glad to hear of all your adventures :)

A smile stretched across your face; Kagami really was an incredibly kind person. You texted back, and told her that you most certainly would go with her for some lunch as soon as you got back from Britain.

The announcement that the train would pull up at Brockley Station in 3 minutes caused you to stand up, and urge Adrien to get ready to get off the train. Once you arrived at your stop, you disembarked, and you led the way, through the streets of Peckham, towards your childhood home. The roads had changed quite a bit, but kids still ran aimlessly down the pavement, past the streets on the walkways, and through the gaps in fences, just like they’d done two years ago.

If you listened closely, you could almost hear the excited chatter of your younger self, and the concerned shouts of Julian as he ran after you. Every step you took echoed nostalgia, since you knew the way back home off by heart.

"It's a nice neighbourhood," Adrien commented, glancing around at the rows of council flats.

"Nice to look at, not so nice to live in," you advised, picking up your pace a tad. "Come on, we're almost there."

Adrien grabbed your hand, and held it comfortingly, as you approached your destination — then, at last, you arrived at the old house, which had a worn down 'for sale' sign stuck next to it. You took one look at the post, and shrugged aimlessly, striding towards the door, and pulling away the single wooden plank blocking the entrance.

"(Y/n)! Don’t do that, we're not allowed in!" Adrien protested, rushing after you, and placing a hand on your arm.

"Adrien, no one's been here since we've left, and no one in this area gives a shit," you replied, tossing aside the timber. "Come on, I want to get a look at the garden!" you fiddled with the handle, and pushed the door open.

Adrien gave in, a mischievous smirk taking over his face, as he pushed past you playfully, and peered around into the empty apartment. "There's a couch in here," he pointed out.

"Wait, really?!" you ran over to where he was standing in the living room, and let out a laugh of disbelief, "I can't believe it — that's our old sofa! How long has it been here?!"

"Since time first began," Adrien joked, and you snorted obnoxiously.

You both then continued to explore; Adrien went towards the kitchen, whilst you headed straight to your old room. Once inside, your eyes were instantly drawn to the wall, where there were visible remnants of bluetack, when you'd stuck loads of posters to your wall. On top of that, to your shock, you found a mangled Teddy bear, and a couple of old drawings from when you were a kid lying on the dusty floor.

"Adrien, come look at this!" you called out. When there was no response, an icy cold shudder ran down your spine, and you quickly left the room, and rushed towards the last place you'd seen him in a panic. "Adrien?!" you asked desperately, paranoia flooding your veins.

"Here," he responded, from vaguely behind you.

You whipped around, and then deflated with relief; the back door was open, and left you with the sight of Adrien sitting on the bench in your pathetic excuse of a garden. With a sigh, you walked outside to join him, taking in what was left of the overgrown space as you did.

Undergrowth curled around every inch of the garden, strangling flowers that once were your father's pride and joy; dried up petals and leaves were scattered across the ground. One single rose remained intact, presumably by pure luck, and it had a single weed wrapped around it, that seemed to be protecting it from any damage.

The surrounding wood was rotted and broken, the remains of your mother's birdhouse lay in pieces on the ground, and the grass was long and untamed under your shoes.

You sat down heavily next to Adrien, and closed your eyes, taking in a deep breath — you could smell the dampness, the signature, comforting stench of England, everywhere. A train rattled past, the screech of the tracks bouncing through the air, and causing a flock of birds to take off out of fright.

The clouds waltzed through the sky, and there was a rustle, as a cat jumped over the neighbour's fence. What blissful nostalgia — what remembrance.

Was this home?

Was this what made you happy?

You opened your eyes, and looked to your left; Adrien had a relaxed, dorky smile on his face, as he took in everything about your previous accommodation. When he sensed your staring, he glanced over to you, beaming like the sun.

At once, you smiled back, soft and content.

As long as Adrien was with you, anywhere could be your home.

Then you returned your attention back to the sky, the rumble of the train, and the sound of what you hoped was a bright future.

No — not hoped. It would be a bright future.

Eventually.

Just beyond the door to the house, the loose silhouette of a young man travelled across the pavement — and like a dying breeze, it faded away, and nothing remained but the ghost of a memory.

Julian finally left just like he did that morning so long ago.

The End.

a/n: and there we have it.
thank you for everyone who's stuck around long enough to deal with my daft updating schedule and occasional continuity issues. i appreciate and love you all so much. thank you for sticking around!!