Chat...is that you?

Chapter 7

After what happened with his father the other day, Adrien's patience couldn't be lower. He wanted to just get this over with already. No matter how much food he ate, how much exercise he did, it was all futile.
He still felt the same. Drained, tired and miserable. His father was a liar, these powers didn't make him feel anymore powerful than he was before. Probably weaker.

And though the akuma clouded his mind, a small part of him did miss Plagg and his antics.
He missed having a buddy he could talk to, even when locked in his room after being grounded for whatever reason.
And he missed her.
So damn much.
Most days he felt nothing but numbness or crushing misery...but when he thought of her his heart lit up, a warmth to his soul.
It was an awful shame he had to take away what was most precious to her-
Her miraculous...obviously.
And with this annoying device father gave him, it meant he could easily find her now surely.
Ladybug is the hero of Paris.
Only Paris. It would only be a matter of time before he would corner her.

That morning Adrien went into school with a newfound sense of purpose. Soon this would be over, and he could forget about his father ever being Hawkmoth. Once his mother was revived his father would have no reason to carry on terrorising Paris.
He walked quickly through the hallways while trying to avoid any people. Especially his friends, he knew they knew something was up with him. But he couldn't let them know of any of this.
He shoved yesterday's books into his locker and slammed it shut, and sat on a stray bench waiting for class to start. At least in here he'd be alone. He checked his phone, mindlessly scrolling through social media as he listened to the buzz of the school morning outside.
No one seems to have tried to contact him.
Unsurprising.
As his eyes flicked through the old conversation, a notification caught his eye.
Marinette?
He frowned. Her. Sure she was nice but he didn't really have time to talk to anyone right now. And he always felt weird around her.
He couldn't quite put his finger on it.
Adrien was tempted just to ignore it so he could avoid talking to her. But curiosity killed the cat he guessed.

'Hey Adrien, I've noticed that you've been pretty down recently and I'm worried about you. Wanna hang out today?'
-Marinette

Adrien groaned. He definitely should've just ignored it. He can't just leave her on read without her coming up to him and asking why.
Damn it.
Suddenly the bell rang, signalling the start of first period. Adrien quickly stood and shoved the phone into his bag. He rushed up the stairs to class and went sit, quietly sitting in his seat at the front. He shifted uncomfortably as he tries to figure out what to do.

"Hey buddy wanna hang after school? I have snacks!" Nino exclaimed happily, putting his hand on Adrien's shoulder. Adrien's eyes narrowed and he slowly pushed Nino's hand off him hastily. He wanted to be left alone with his thoughts.

"No thank you Nino" he said flatly as he turned away from his friend, sitting further away than he already was. He could visible see Nino's face drop as he returned to his seat. Oh well. Another distraction dodged. Now just need to sort out this one.

"Oh, hi Adrien!" Marinette chirped cheerfully as she quickly sat in her seat next to him.
"I saw that you read my message, you up for it? You're the best gamer I know!" She smiled warmly as she tilted her head, clutching her bag. Adrien looked at her, and could barely muster an answer. Rejecting Nino was easy but it seems Marinette is just that little bit harder to say no to for him. But why?

"I don't know, I'm kinda busy with-"

"I know you've been having struggles at home, I can tell. And you don't have to stay quiet Adrien, I'm here for you" Marinette said quickly as she looked away, her face becoming visibly red. Damn it, it's gone be even harder to reject her now! Why does he care about her stupid feelings so much?? He can't push away this painful twang tugging at his heart.