Fate's Predicament

5.

Nino and Alya stared at Marinette as she stared at the blond mans' back.

She took a swig of her milkshake and breathed in, rearranging her white blouse. "It might not be him." She whispered.

"What?" Alya asked. But Nino was already standing up off the red couch and calling "Adrien?!"

Very slowly, like in a horror movie, the man turned around.

It was definitely Adrien Agreste.

A long pause ensued where they all just stared at each other until Adrien approached them slowly and broke the silence with an unsure greeting.

"Been a while," Alya commented quietly.

Maybe they should feel happier that he was back, but the truth is they - especially Nino - felt anger more than anything.

And maybe it was selfish because he had gone through a lot, but he'd also been selfish for leaving them without even saying goodbye or talking to them. He had up and left and, in many ways, it was like he had died. His friends had to live with the knowledge that he was out there, without them, probably suffering, and still go through a grief process.

It had been a while. Every time they thought of him now, they felt happy, if a little melancholic and nostalgic, because he had been an amazing friend that had been a big part of their lives. But now he was gone, and it is what it is. They still wondered about how he was sometimes but they'd already been through the acceptance phase.

Seeing him after all these years, though...it'd brought back the anger phase. Anger that had come from the hurt.

Adrien only meant to protect them - and maybe himself - by going away without saying a thing. He didn't know he'd only be making it worse for everyone.

But he had. So maybe Nino's abrupt, violent exit after seeing his old best friend for the first time in six years shouldn't have been such a shock for Adrien.

He looked on, in what Marinette could only describe as horror, as Alya scurried off after her husband.

She could see Amandla looking warily at the booth, and wished to be able to say something that would put the dark skinned girl's mind at ease, but Marinette could only stare down at her definitely half empty milkshake as Adrien stood frozen in front of the booth.

A few minutes - Seconds? Hours? - later, Alya came back and paid Amandla for everyone's milkshakes.

"Mari, honey, we're leaving. Do you wanna come with?" She glanced at Adrien. "Um, I'm sorry...Adrien. We- I don't think we were ready for this..."

He nodded understandingly as the blue eyed girl cleared her throat. "I'm staying, I think. Yeah."

"Uh, okay. If you need anything, call me. I'll keep an eye on my phone."

Marinette snorted. "You always do. Thank you, but don't worry too much, I think we'll be fine."

The two friends shared a smile before Alya nodded and, with one last look at Adrien, left the place.

Marinette looked up at Adrien, his green eyes a little duller than she remembered. "Would you like to sit with me for a bit?"

He looked at her with wide eyes, having been startled out of his daze.

"Uh, yeah, sure. If you don't mind."

"Go ahead." She all but giggled. She still felt apprehensive about this, but she didn't want to leave him alone after seeing him for the first time in so long. She understood Nino's reaction and, despite being angry too, she could bear to stay with him and give him an opportunity. She had missed his dazed state. She'd missed him.

They sat in weirdly comfortable silence for a bit while Marinette continued her meal until Adrien cleared his throat. "So...anything big going on with you?"

The girl furrowed her brows. "Uh, no? Not really, why?"

"Well, uh...that's your Freak Out Meal™."

"My...?" She looked down at the table and let out a bubbly laugh that filled Adrien with happiness for a fleeting moment. "Oh! You remember!"

"Of course I do." He laughed. "I could never just forget about you. Uh, none of you. You were my best friends." He finished quietly, looking down.

"Well, it seems like you're also having quite the day." She smiled. "Want a strawberry?"

"Thanks." He couldn't help but smile back.

When Marinette's strawberries were all gone - they'd be missed - the pair left the 50's inspired diner with a goodbye and a promise to come back soon to Amandla.

"Well...what did I miss?" Adrien asked as they decided to take a walk around town.

"It's been six years so, not gonna lie, you missed quite a lot."

"I don't doubt it...but if you're willing to talk, I'm very willing to listen." He smiled.

"Okay, well...I'm always a sucker for talking about our amazing friends so...hmm, where do I start?" She furrowed her brows in concentration, which was definitely not adorable at all. "Oh! Juleka and Rose are finally getting married! In about a month. Uh...Max and Alix had twins a couple of years ago!" She sighed. "We still haven't heard about Nath..." She looked down, sadly, before continuing. "Anyway, Mylène and Ivan moved to Italy a few years back, like they always wanted." Marinette smiled fondly, and Adrien listened closely and proudly as she talked about most of their old friends in common.

"Well," The petite girl began after a long while of walking around. "I should head home. It got late so fast!" She laughed. "Wow, that phrase sure makes sense..." She mumbled more to herself.

Adrien snickered. "It did, though...the day flew by." He sighed, disappointed, as Marinette hummed in agreement. "Can I walk you home? It's only polite."

The girl smiled, like she always seemed to do, picking at her baby pink, 50's inspired skirt. "Yeah, sure. If you don't mind."

The words somehow felt familiar to Adrien.

When they inevitably reached her apartment, he realized he really had to let her go, no matter how much he didn't want to be alone or how much her presence made him feel good and happy and safe.

"Thank you, Mari. For everything. For not leaving, for being patient... And I'm sorry." He looked down at her white pumps.

"No need to thank me, Adrien. And yeah, well...I understand why they left." She said, and he nodded. He did too. "I'm not...i don't exactly feel fine about all this either, you know? But neither do you, I think. So..."

He paused. "It hasn't been a sea of roses. Not gonna lie. But I'm just...glad that you guys are okay. I mean, Nino is a successful lawyer - he wears suits and ties! - , you're an amazing freelance designer who's definitely gonna blow up, and Alya's an outstanding and acclaimed reporter...I'm so proud of you all - I don't even know if I have that right - and I do wish I had been here to watch you and help you...I wish I'd grown with you. But I can't change the past. I can only do better in the future, and I will certainly try. And I can only hope that you will accept me back."

Marinette looked up at him adoringly, while shyly fixing her white headband. "I know you'll do good. And don't worry, I think it will all turn out alright."

They said their goodbyes and went their own ways. Marinette didn't even have dinner and went straight to bed after showering and feeding Tikki, she deserved to sleep after that day. Meanwhile, Adrien wandered until he found a bar, deciding to drown his feelings of loneliness and fear in alcohol.