Shadow

20

"Sorry, I didn't...see you..." I trailed off when my gaze locked with silver eyes.

Mallorie.

She doesn't give me the slightest attention as if I'm invisible to her. She just continues down the hallway with her hands in the pockets of her pants.

"That's odd," I thought, "Wasn't she trying to act like "the sweet but shy new kid."

To keep up her act, she would've apologized to me but kept walking without a thought. Plus, there's no one in this hallway. There is plenty of space for her and me to walk past each other without bumping. It's like she purposely did it.

But why? Why is she starting to show her true colors? I suppose it would be hard to keep up the act with the news of her robbery out on social media. So, I guess, it wouldn't matter.

"How is she here? Shouldn't she be at a police station?" I thought, "Unless, someone bailed her out but why did she come to school?"

So many questions without any answers. I suppose if there is a time to be noisy, it would be right now.

Carefully, I began to follow Mallorie from a distance.

{+}{+}{+}

Adrien's P.O.V

Once lunchtime rolled around, I snuck out of the school and made sure no one noticed me leaving. At least, I hope nobody saw me leaving school grounds. I don't want to get in trouble or be questioned.

"I'm sure Plagg would be over the moon right now about my "rebellious escape," as he would say," I thought, wistfully. I quickly shake my head. No, I can't be thinking of Plagg. It'll make returning him even harder than it already is. I wince at the wording, making Plagg sound like a toy I'm returning with a receipt.

   "Stop making this so hard on yourself," I quietly scolded myself. I walk across the road and over to the Dupain-Cheng's bakery. My feet pause in front of the building and stare at it for a few seconds before it hits me.

How am I going to sneak the miraculous into Marinette's room without Mr. Dupain seeing me? Maybe, I could lie about getting something from Marinette's room? No, that'd definitely be a bad idea. I can't let him see me at all or else he might give away that I was here to Marinette. Or, it could be taken as a suspicious misunderstanding.

I need to sneak in and out.

I place my hand over the box (which looks more like I'm holding a hand over my heart). I could transform and jump onto Marinette's balcony. Yet, I don't necessarily want to see Plagg. I might break if I do. My eyes scan until recalling the side door.

If I'm careful enough, I only need to get past Mr. Dupain and up the stairs. I just need to sneak in and out when he is not at the counter or busy with a customer. Staring through the window, I see Mr. Dupain standing behind the counter and seeming lost in thought. He looks troubled by something.

"I wonder if it has something to do with a certain recently new family member?" I questioned in my mind. Marinette's been off ever since her twin arrived so it wouldn't surprise me if it is affecting Mr. Dupain too. Although, where did Mallorie come from?

I've only met her once but only for a short amount of time. We obviously didn't have time to talk since everything that was going on at that moment. I've heard the stories about her coming from America though. But, why hasn't Marinette actually talked about her sister before? What's the reason behind that? Did Marinette even know she had a twin sister before she arrived?

"I'll have to talk to Marinette about that at a later time. For now, I've got other things to do," I thought, knowing I'm getting off track. I waited for a few minutes until Mr. Dupain disappeared into the back. I quickly made my way around the corner toward the side door.