September 1st
Move in day
"Marinette! Don't run!" My mom calls out, but I can't help myself from sprinting towards the apartment. I'm in freaking New York! And right in front of me is going to be my new home for the next few years!
My home with Adrien. A new start for the both of us, where we can work on our studies and also spend our free time together.
Adrien's laughter snaps me out of my dreamy daze of picturing our lives together in our new apartment, imagining how we're going to make it our home.
"Come on, Princess. Let's head in together." He says quietly as he steps up beside me, jingling the keys in front of my face. I giggle, snatching them from him as I try to dart off.
Wrapping his arms around my waist, he pulls me back to keep me with him. I playfully try to shove him away, but he just holds me tighter. Turning my chin to face him, he leans in to plant a sweet kiss on my lips as he makes use of the distraction to take the keys back.
My dad lightly smacks the back of his head, making him pull away with a shy blush creeping up his neck. I laugh, watching my parents walk hand in hand into the apartment building.
We take the elevator up to our seventh floor unit. My mom nervously glances around, her lips pursed.
"I'm not a fan of how high up your apartment is. That's a fire hazard. If you both needed to evacuate, you'd have to rush down so many flights of stairs!" She exclaims, her face laced with concern. I laugh, pointing to my earrings.
"Mom, if there was a fire, we'd just leave out the window." I giggle, watching her lips form a small 'o' as she remembers I'm not just a normal girl. I'm Ladybug, and my partner is Chat Noir. An emergency escape is what we do best.
"Still. Not safe." She scowls, making me laugh some more. My dad gives her a comforting squeeze on her shoulder as the elevator dings, the big doors opening up to expose the hallway.
Everything is nicely clean, which earns some serious brownie points from both my mom and I. The overpowering smell of lavender cleaner in the hallway makes my nose scrunch a little, but it's still very lovely in here. I see our apartment number, 709, and I feel the excited butterflies in my stomach do several flips and twirls.
"There it is!" I whisper yell, not wanting to disturb my new neighbours. I'm practically vibrating in my clothes, trying to snatch the keys back from Adrien who looks equally as excited as me, his eyes locked on mine with such a tender love in his expression.
It makes my butterflies have a full blown war within my gut, my muscles twitching to reach out for him. I start to do a little dance in my spot as I watch Adrien unlock the door, and the two of us step inside.
"Oh. My. Gosh!" I squeal, my father laughing behind us as we all make our way inside. From the door, we can see directly into the doorway that leads into the bedroom. To our left is another door leading to a lavish bathroom with both a comfortably sized bathtub, a standing shower stall, and a beautiful vanity with a marbled sink cabinet that has enough space to lay out all our bathroom supplies. The bright lights around the mirror makes me giddy, practically bouncing up and down as I take in the gorgeous bathroom.
Walking deeper into the apartment, to the right it branches out into a big square shape with the kitchen to the right side of the room, a large open space for a dining table, and to the left is our big living room that leads to a balcony overlooking the alleyway beside our building. Not the more impressive view, but it's still exciting.
The home is breathtaking.
"This looks even better than the pictures." Adrien says, amazed as he runs his fingers along the marbled kitchen countertops.
"This is nice." My mom stares wide eyed standing in one spot. "How affordable is this place?"
"It's affordable, don't worry." Adrien smiles, trying to reassure my mom but her lips press in a thin line.
"Part of being an adult is understanding value, my darlings. This place is lovely, and probably worth every penny the landlords will charge you, that is if your taste is extremely expensive. Lesser can be better, you could always make a home out of a smaller, less lavish apartment." My mom explains, my dad quickly stepping in to place a large hand on my mother's small shoulder.
"Yes, but you kids have been through enough, so we'll make sure you both can live comfortably in this apartment during your studies. Honey, can I speak with you?" My dad takes my mom out into the hallway, Adrien looking over at me skeptically.
"Let's listen." I whisper, darting towards the door but Adrien tries to block me.
"Shouldn't you give them their privacy?" He questions, making me giggle.
"Never." I press my ear against the door, catching a snippet of what my father is saying.
"-months of speaking poorly about Ladybug, something I can never take back. If my little girl wants this place, I'm going to make sure we can afford to give her it."
"Tom, she needs to be responsible-"
"Of all people, Sabine, she is the most responsible. She battled a super villain all through her high school years while still attending school, and helping us with the bakery on occasion. She doesn't need more life lessons. I need to make up for hurting her."
"Oh honey, she knows you meant well. Our little Marinette is responsible, but you're never done learning in this life. If we just give her whatever she wants, she's going to become spoiled and entitled." My mom argues, but her voice is tender. I can picture her trying to comfort my father while getting her point across.
"She boosted her grades and got herself a full ride scholarships to a school in a foreign country. Even helping to pay for this apartment will be significantly cheaper than her entire schooling. I'm not saying we give her all of the money right away to blow, but each month we'll release some of the money to help handle costs. Then, once she's settled and into the rhythm of things, she can look for a job. This apartment is what she wants, Sabine. I want her to feel comfortable when we're not here. Plus, the security of this building is pretty good. I want to know our baby is safe." I feel the tears well in my eyes, a lump in my throat beginning to form. I understand where my mom is coming from, this place would normally be out of the budget for someone my age.
The main difference is I'm going to be living with Adrien Agreste, the son of a multimillionaire fashion designer, who has also become a famous model himself known throughout all of France, and even other places of the world. He has the money to afford this place, because at the end of the day, this isn't just going to be my home. It's his too.
The both of us are going to make a home out of this apartment. I'll be sure to remind my mom of that. In the meantime, I'm going to stop eavesdropping. I think Adrien was right, that this isn't something I should be listening too, but it does warm my heart.
It both heals and shatters me to hear my dad express such love and support for myself after spending a long while hating my alto-ego. The regret and shame in his tone makes me want to rip the door open and tell him its okay, that I understand and forgive him.
Adrien grabs my hand, slowly pulling me back into the living room. The bright smile on his face makes my heart swell, eyes glued on mine as though he can't bear to look away.
"Do you love this place?" He asks, his voice soft and unsure. I beam up at him, nodding my head immensely.
"I love it so much."
"I do too. I think we can make it really cozy." He pulls me into his arms, my back pressing against his torso as he ducks in to lean his chin on my shoulder. His arm stretches out, pointing to the balcony. "We could add some potted plants out there, and in the window sill. I bet we'll get a ton of natural lighting."
"Oh! Thats a brilliant idea! And we could place our couch on this wall, and put together a TV stand to sit in the corner there. Directly across from the couch, we can put that nice square shaped shelving unit we found right there!" I point at the wall, visualizing the shelf with a record player on top, some vases with flowers around it. "Oh, oh! And we can put a pretty vintage rug on the floor, with a fun shaped coffee table. No lame rectangle shape!"
"I agree, and our bedroom is so spacious we could set up a corner with all your sewing stuff." I gasp as he says this, turning in his embrace to get a good look at him. I feel the love pool in my heart, spreading throughout my entire body and making me feel so warm and fuzzy.
"I love you." Is all I can think to say, placing my palms on his cheeks as I bring his face closer for a quick kiss. I feel so much love within me that I don't know what to do with it all, as though I might explode from how happy and in love I am.
"I love you more, Marinette. I can't wait to see what living in New York with you is going to be like. This is everything I could have ever dreamed of, and so much more. This place, even empty, feels more like a warm and cozy home than living back at the mansion." He says softly, forehead pressed against mine with his eyes closed. I imagine him picturing the way we'll decorate our place, make it our own.
"Thats because we both have so much love to fill this place up with." I giggle, feeling so excited yet a little nervous. This would be made better if we could have all our friends here to see our home once we're settled. The only person able to come by is Felix, who will be here tomorrow to help us unpack. Getting travel visas isn't easy, but especially when everyone else has their own plans going on.
Everything about moving abroad has been so stressful, with obtaining student visas and arranging our big move. Making sure my parents and Adrien's bodyguard could get a flight here as well, that wasn't very fun. We even had to hire a moving company here that is showing up soon with all of our furniture that we had to buy here in New York. It wasn't possible to bring that kind of stuff with us from Paris. We just brought our clothes, and other things we could fit into our luggages. Everything else we're going to have to buy now that we're here.
But we're making it work, and soon it'll be all done and we can focus on our studies and lives together.
I hope my other friends are also excited for how things are going for them too.
My mom clears her throat, drawing my attention back to her. Both my mom and dad are standing there, smiling as they see us embracing each other. I pull back, a little awkward to be showing so much PDA in front of my parents.
"I'm so happy that you're happy, honey. I didn't like how expensive this placed looked, but your father and I talked and we think that as long as you can make it work, than its all yours." She smiles, squeezing my dad's hand. He laughs, looking between my mom and I.
"Well, it technically already was hers and Adrien's. You both signed the lease months ago." He chuckles, making me nod enthusiastically with a giggle.
"Exactly, no taksies-backsies."
We spend the rest of the day helping the moving company haul up our furniture and assemble it in their respective rooms. My mom bustles about cleaning every surface, though at first glance it looked impeccable. My mom's dirty cloths prove otherwise.
Note to self, even clean surfaces are probably filthy.
Slowly, the place is becoming a little more homey. We have a couch, a TV stand, a gorgeous and extremely comfy queen sized bed, a dresser with a big mirror attached, and a dining table set. We listen to music and crack jokes, just enjoying the day despite the many complications we had to face like trying to get everything up to the seventh floor to begin with.
By the time we finish eating pizza for dinner, my parents say their goodbyes to go head back to their hotel for the night.
"We'll be back tomorrow around noon to continue to help." My dad says as he leans in to kiss the top of my head, turning to clap Adrien on the shoulder.
"No, its okay! Take your time, go tour New York. Adrien and I will go shopping tomorrow for more things, so don't rush back here. We'll call you when we're home." I smile at them, giving both my mom and dad a huge hug. "Thank you for all the help today."
"Any time, sweetheart." My dad smiles, but my mom's eyes quickly turn glossy.
"You're already calling this place home." She sniffles, finally breaking her streak of not crying all day. I move to comfort my small mother, pulling her in for another hug. She's trying her best to keep her composure as I hold her tightly, my dad reaching over to rub her back.
"I will always have a home with you and dad, but this will be my home in New York. And one day, I'll have a different home, likely in Paris again. Home is wherever I make it, but I'll always come back to my parents. You raised me with so much love and security, that I know I'll be okay wherever I go. You must know that too." I say softly, listening to my mom's sniffles and feeling her body shake with her silent sobs.
"You're right, I know that. But I can't help but feel sad. My baby is all grown up." She cries, clinging to me as though I'll slip from her grasp and never return to her.
"I'll always be your baby, mom. No matter how old I get." I reassure her, pulling back to give her a bright smile through my teary eyes.
"Sabine, honey. Lets go back to the hotel and let them have a good first night in their apartment, okay? We can talk about this all night if you want." My dad says softly, pulling my mom away with a gentle and comforting hand on her shoulder, guiding her towards the door. "You both be safe, alright?" He glances at both Adrien and I with a raised eyebrow, making my face heat up. I'm sure he means not to forget locking the door and whatnot. At least, I hope so.
"See you tomorrow!" I call, smiling as I shut the door and lock it behind them. Turning to face my blushing boyfriend who must have the same thoughts as I do, I rush and jump into his arms, laughing like a madwoman. He twirls me in the air, leading me to our half-assed bedroom. The bed is the only part thats fully set up, and he flops me down onto it with a beaming smile on his face.
"We have to be safe." He whispers as he leans down, his strong arms encasing both sides of me as he bends to brush his nose against mine. "Remember?"
"Oh, shut up and kiss me." I giggle, connecting our lips in a soul shivering, spine tingling and exciting kiss that makes my butterflies swirl around inside my stomach. Pulling back ever so slightly so he can speak, his breath fans my face making my body light up with goosebumps.
"Want to snuggle and watch a movie?" He asks, biting his lip as he eyes me tentatively.
"I think we both know what I want."
"Say less." He grins, fanning the flames of my passion with another earth shattering kiss that destroys the rest of my world, making himself the centre of all I can think of.
Life with Adrien is beautiful.
---------
The next morning is extremely eventful.
"I'll send a taxi to pick you up right now, I didn't know you'd arrive so soon- okay! Look-" Adrien abruptly stops speaking, his eyes meeting mine and rolling dramatically as he holds the phone a little further away from his ear. I can hear Felix yelling something that sounds awfully distorted through the phone speaker.
After a few seconds, Adrien brings the phone back to his ear, letting out a sigh. "Are you done? The flight came earlier than expected, I'll cancel the taxi I booked for later, and send one right now just sit tight. Yes, I know. Yes. Alright. Hey now, I do have my drivers license. No, I haven't bought a car yet- alright, alright! But have you seen the driving in New York? It'd be faster to bus or take a taxi everywhere. No, I know that. Okay, look, just sit tight I'll have a taxi there for you immediately. No, he's running errands for me. Felix. I'm hanging up now. See you soon, be good." Adrien hangs up quickly, laughing to himself.
"I'm guessing that didn't go well." I giggle, bounding up to my sweet boyfriend as I wrap my arms around his neck and pepper his face with light kisses.
"Yeah, Felix's flight got here sooner than they expected. He's angry he can't understand anyone very well, but he'll be fine. He demanded I send my bodyguard to go pick him up, but he's grabbing our groceries and curtains for us to install."
"Mmm, gotcha. Shouldn't you call the taxi company then?" I tease, watching his eyes widen.
"Shoot." He whips out his phone again, frantically dialing the taxi company he forgot to call after hanging up on Felix. I laugh at my short-attention-spanned boyfriend, heading over to the kitchen to continue setting up the cutlery and dishes that we bought this morning.
Who would have known picking out sets of spoons, forks, knives, bowls, plates and cups would be so exhausting? We left at 9am to go do that, and now it's 11am and I'm ready to take a nap.
I check my phone, seeing my parent's unread text message.
Momma: Hi Honey, We Are Currently At A Nice Cafe. Pastries Are Good, But Not Even Comparable To Your Fathers. We're Going To Go For A Walk Around, Then Come Over After. See You Shortly. Love you. Love, Mom.
I let out a giggle at the way she texts, and the cute follow up picture of her and my father sitting in a café. They took a selfie together, that's just so cute. They both look extremely happy, which makes me feel a lot better. Last night I had troubles trying to fall asleep for a plethora of reasons, mainly being the new setting, but also worrying about my parents and what they must be going through right now.
In a few days, they'll have to leave to go back to Paris, and I worry they'll be devastated about leaving me behind here.
I trust that they'll be okay though, the same way that they trust in me.
"That's a cute photo." Adrien whispers into my ear, making me jump. He snakes his arms around my waist, giving me a tight hug from behind. I lean into his touch, feeling the way his warm body immediately eases my concerns.
"Yeah, they're adorable." I feel my heart ache, thinking of how Adrien doesn't really have parents anymore. Gabriel is in jail, and his mother is six feet underground. I can't help but feel as though me having happy and healthy parents is almost insulting to him. As if I'm rubbing it in his face.
In a way that makes me certain he can read my thoughts, he nuzzles his face into my hair and lets out a deep sigh. "We're going to be like that for our future kids."
I laugh, turning to face him with a look of 'don't be so silly'.
"We aren't thinking of having kids for a very long time." I poke his nose, making him blush and flick my forehead in retaliation.
"Yes, but I hope that we have some little rascals of our own one day. In the far off future."
"We will." I smile, cupping his precious face in my hands. A knock at the door makes us break apart, and Adrien heads off to answer it. Walking back into the kitchen a few minutes later, he's holding a large box.
"It's the internet modem and everything we need to set it up. Felix said he'll do it when he gets here, but I think I can figure it out!" He beams over at me, taking the box towards our TV stand to start putting it together.
Let's see how that goes.
—————
"I can't freaking figure this thing out!" Adrien exclaims, falling back onto the couch with a hmph. I laugh at him, heading over to ruffle his hair.
"Probably because you're dumb." Felix pipes up, making me glare at him. "I told you let me do it."
"I'll tell Kagami you're being mean." I shoot back, watching him smile at the mention of his girlfriend.
"She'll take my side." He retorts with a grin, heading to the mess Adrien has left behind.
"If you give me more time, I can figure it out." Adrien huffs, making Felix roll his eyes in response. The blond haired boy that could easily pass as Adrien's twin quickly gets to work and I abandon the two of them to finish helping my parents hang the curtains up in the bedroom.
"How's it going?" I ask, noticing the two of them standing back to admire their job well done. I stare in amazement, they finished that in hardly anytime at all. "Whoa, that's amazing! You were so fast!"
"Time to do the living room!" My dad smiles over at me, grabbing the next box with the curtain rods and hooks. My mom stares at the bottom of the curtains they just hung, tapping her chin with her finger.
"I'm not very impressed. I think the curtain needs to be hemmed, it's too long."
"I think it's fine, don't be such a perfectionist, Sabine." My dad laughs, reaching to ruffle my mom's hair. She shoots him daggers with her eyes, swatting his hand away.
"Finally a job that I can do! I'll work on that, you both can hang up the next curtain rod, that's fine?" I rush to grab my sewing stuff, smiling at my parents as they nod their heads.
"Wonderful idea, honey." My mom kisses my forehead before joining Adrien and Felix in the living room.
Everything is a little chaotic right now, and there's a lot more to moving out than I expected. But we're making it work, slowly things are coming along and this place is really starting to look more like a home.
I'm humming to myself lightly as I nearly finish hemming the curtains, when all of a sudden I hear Felix yell in the living room. "Done! Haha! Now you have to admit I'm smarter!"
"No way! I would have figured it out too if I took an hour!" Adrien retorts, making me giggle. He took well over an hour.
"You spent all afternoon trying before I got here, liar." Felix shoots back, my dad starting to laugh in response.
I feel my phone buzz, seeing a call from Alya. I had to send out an email using my data to all my friends letting them know my new American phone number and telling them that I would have internet shortly.
"Good timing, I just got internet." I laugh as I answer the phone, but then I hear my sobbing best friend. I sober up quickly, any bit of laughter wiped from my body. "Alya? What's wrong?"
"I miss you so much already!" She practically screams into the phone, sobbing uncontrollably. I hear Nino's voice in the background trying to soothe her. I wish I could be there to hug her and tell her it's okay.
"Oh Alya, I miss you too. A lot. But it's going to be okay! We'll see each other soon enough, and we'll FaceTime every day, okay? I promise." I try to comfort her, my voice cracking at the end exposing myself for being heartbroken too. Hearing her cry has made my eyes tear up as well. Alya doesn't cry often, and I hate that I'm not there to help.
I hate it even more that my moving away is what's causing her to cry. We already cried and hugged it out right before I left, and I thought we got it all off of our chests. But Alya is my soul sister, my twin flame; being away from each other will always hurt us.
"FaceTiming isn't enough, I need to crawl into your skin and wrap myself around your spine." She cries some more, making me giggle through my tears.
"You're nuts." I halfheartedly laugh, wiping my tears away with the pads of my fingers. "We're gonna be okay, Alya. Please stop crying, you're making me cry."
"I-I know, I'm tying to s-stop but I ca-can't." She stammers out, hiccuping from her sobs. "Alya, it's okay." I hear Nino say, picturing him rubbing her back as she cries into the phone. "No it's not!" She retorts, clearly inconsolable right now.
"It really is okay, trust me. We're going to be fine and stay in constant contact, I promise." I try to reiterate, hoping she understands that I mean what I say.
"You're not allowed to make a new best friend."
"I would never dream of it." I laugh, but she doesn't join me.
"No, I mean it. If you make a new best friend, I'm flying to New York and I'm gonna kick her ass-Nino! Stop! Hey-"
"Hey Mari," Nino interjects, clearly having taken the phone away from Alya, "I'm gonna hang up and take care of her, okay? She's just emotionally charged right now, but she's gonna be fine. I know you don't need the added stress right now with the big move. I hope it's going well!"
"It is, thank you Nino! There's a lot more that goes into moving than I ever anticipated but we're managing well enough." I say, starting to feel a little better. The tears no longer form in my eyes, allowing me to compose myself before I head into the living room in a bit to see the others.
"That's awesome bro, tell Adrien I say I miss him and hope he's doing well. Give my homie a little kiss for me, would you?" He says, and I can practically hear the smile on his face. This causes both Alya and I to laugh. I've already appreciated Nino's undisputed ability to make us smile even in the toughest of situations.
"Will do. I'll talk to you guys later, take care of Alya for me, okay? Not just today, but every day until I'm back."
"Done and done. See ya, little dude." He hangs up after that, making me miss them even more, if that was possible.
Sniffling up the snot that has threatened to drip out of my nose, I wipe my tear streaked cheeks one last time before quickly finishing the curtains and heading into the living room where I see more curtains for me to hem.
My mother is in the kitchen sorting all of our things that I previously put away, into new and 'better' spots. My father and Adrien are working on setting up the TV, and Felix is out on the balcony talking on his phone. Most likely with Kagami.
I'm gonna miss them when they head back to Paris, but I'm happy how things are going. I'm even more excited to live with Adrien.
--------------------
Six days later
I wake up with a big yawn and stretch, patting the empty bed beside me. Adrien snuck out of bed without waking me up somehow. That pesky boy, I told him I wanted to wake up early.
Tomorrow, we both start classes. Everyone has left already, and we have had a few days to adjust to living in New York now. September 7th, the day we both will be starting this next chapter of our lives. University.
"Adrien! You big butt. I wanted to get up with you." I call out as I walk into the bathroom to wash my face and brush my teeth. Something feels off when I don't get a response. "Adrien?"
I turn around, palms on the countertop as I look around tentatively. Something is wrong. He would never leave the apartment without telling me, we already discussed that.
After everything we've gone through, I know he wouldn't just disappear on me.
"Adrien?" I call out again, feeling very apprehensive about walking out of this bathroom. I know that Master Fu said we shouldn't transform out in public, but I'm not so sure if I should honour that right now. If Adrien is in trouble, I need to help him.
"Tikki?" I whisper yell, seeing my Kwami flying over to me a few seconds later with a groggy expression. Clearly not pleased that I've decided to wake her up.
"What's wrong, Marinette?" She croaks, rubbing her sleepy eyes.
"I don't know where Adrien is."
"Aren't you being a little paranoid? I'm sure he's just gone out for a few moments."
"Where is Plagg?" I question, watching Tikki roll her eyes.
"Hopefully reading up about manners." She grumbles, floating away to search the apartment. She comes back with a shrug.
"Plagg isn't here either."
"I'm gonna transform." She quickly shakes her head, and right as she's protesting, I hear something outside on our balcony. Both Tikki and I stare at eachother wide eyed. "Be prepared." I whisper, grabbing the plunger from beside the toilet and taking several careful steps towards the living room.
Peeking around the corner, the sight before me makes me gasp.
Chat Noir is perched on the balcony with a bouquet of red roses, and an empty box of donuts that have spilled all over the balcony. I burst out laughing, coming around the corner throwing my arms out in exasperation. I drop the plunger, heading to the balcony door to usher him inside. He meets my gaze, laughing along with me.
"You idiot! You aren't supposed to transform." I laugh, staring at the donuts everywhere. Chat Noir blushes but he's unable to compose himself. He thrusts the roses into my arms, dropping the empty donut box on our living room floor to bend over with fits of hysterical laughter. A shaky arm points at the plunger on the ground, Chat Noir wheezing as he tries to speak.
"What were you gonna do?!" He gasps between fits of laughter, "plunge me to death?!" I giggle, smacking his arm playfully.
"I was scared. We promised not to leave without telling each other! What were you thinking, transforming out in public?" I question him as he sobers up, reaching out to tuck my messy hair behind my ear. He gazes at me lovingly, making my heart swell.
"Well, it wasn't planned at first. I'm sorry for leaving, but I wanted to surprise you this morning with some flowers and donuts from that bakery down the road, but as you can see I kinda dropped them everywhere. Anyways, when I got back I realized I forgot my key, so I just went into the alley and waited until no one was out, then I transformed and zipped up. Then I decided I'd stay like this, in the version of me that you first fell in love with." He smiles softly, damn near making me swoon.
"I fell in love with you as Adrien first, actually. I just fell for Chat harder. I should have known all along that you were Adrien Agreste behind that mask, only someone so perfect could make me fall for him twice." I cup his face with my free hand, holding the roses close to my chest.
"I love you, Marinette. I have one last thing to give you." He pulls away to grab a box off the dining table that I hadn't noticed before. He hands it to me with a beaming smile on his face, making me blush.
"It's not my birthday, you know." I giggle, trying to play it cool as I take the box from him. Opening it up, I see a photo of us in a beautiful white picture frame. I gasp, picking it up to reveal the second one behind it.
These pictures are from that time Chat Noir grabbed my phone and took some photos of us. He had wanted me to hang up a photo the way I did everyone else. I never got around to it. In the picture I'm holding, we're both smiling happily into the camera.
Tears fill my eyes as I see the second picture. Chat Noir is smiling at the camera still, but I'm laughing as I gaze up at him. My eyes are filled with love, like I can't bear to look at anything else in this world besides him, as though he's the centre of my universe.
With everything going on, I never checked these photos we took. I was too busy being in survival mode, trying to get by each and every day. Had I saw them, I would have noticed it way sooner.
That I had loved Chat Noir all along. My sweet, pretty Kitty. My rock. The puzzle piece that completes me. Adrien Agreste, my soulmate. I would have seen it all sooner.
I cry happy tears as I read the small note inside, picking it up to hold it between my fingers, needing to know that this isn't a dream.
I love you, Princess. Always have, always will. Your's truly, John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt.
"Adrien! Oh my God!" I cry out, gently placing everything on the couch as I rush into his arms. I hold him so tightly, my head pressed against his chest as I hear his soothing heartbeat. He rubs my back, holding me against him.
"I mean it, Marinette. I want to spend the rest of my life with you." He says softly, making me laugh through my tears.
"I meant it, too, Kitty. Forever and always, I'm yours." I sniffle, feeling the kind of warmth and happiness that I always read about but never was certain I'd have for myself.
But damn it, is it ever amazing.
I can say with confidence that this life with Adrien is one that I'll forever be grateful for. I will live each day for not just him, but myself too. I want to make the most out of everything, because life is short and no amount of time on this planet will be enough time with him.
I'll miss our days as Chat Noir and Ladybug, and the nights we spent that belonged just to us. Our midnight adventures, flying through the streets of Paris and laughing like nothing else mattered. We faced hardships that others couldn't even fathom, and yet here we are. Because just like the saying goes, the sun always rises the next day.
I'm reminded of a poem I saw as a kid once that sparked something inside me that I hadn't been able to put a name too. It was by Robert Frost, Nothing Gold Can Stay. If I remember correctly, it went like this.
Nature's first green is gold,
Her hardest hue to hold.
Her early leaf's a flower;
But only so an hour.
Then leaf subsides to leaf.
So Eden sank to grief,
So dawn goes down to day.
Nothing gold can stay.
I pictured this poem as a tale of a breakup, of sadness and heartache. That the poet had experienced a sense of deep loss, no longer with what he believed to be gold. Whatever that gold may be.
But now, I believe it symbolizes growth, change and revitalization. Our days as the heroes of Paris were golden, even though hard and at times gut-wrenchingly painful, they brought us to where we are now. We overcame, and persevered. Now, those days are gone, because nothing gold can stay.
However, these years will be golden too. With change, and new hardships we will face and once again overcome. I'm so incredibly proud of us, and excited for whats to come. At one point, these years will be over with too, and we will face more change to adapt too.
Natures first green is gold, like a spring that is starting to bloom. And the best part of spring?
It happens every year.