As I bustle about the kitchen to prepare Emma and Thomas a lunch, the phone ringing interrupts my train of thought.
"Hello?" I answer, holding the phone between my ear and shoulder as I chop some carrots and celery.
"Hello Marinette, is Adrien home?" Felix's voice rings out, making me smile. He's been so busy with Law School for so long now that it's become rare to hear from him. Despite our differences from the past, he's easily become one of my favourite people to talk too.
And I just love how brotherly his is with Adrien. When everything fell apart during Gabriel's arrest, Felix really stepped up to the plate.
"He's playing with Emma and Tommy outside right now. Is everything okay?"
"Oh, yeah it's all good. Just missed talking to my cousin. Kagami wants to swing by sometime soon to see you and the kids. Are you guys free next Thursday? Say, dinner time?"
"Is this your way of asking me to cook you hot pot again?" I laugh out, hearing him chuckle.
"Kagami loves having hot pot with you as well, you know. Don't shove all the blame on me."
"Well, you're both more than welcome to come by anytime you want. I'll get the ingredients for hot pot next Thursday." I grab some bread, slathering it in mayo before I assemble the cheese, lettuce and spinach. This is Emma favourite sandwich right now, where as Tommy will only nibble on fruits and veggies for lunch. I'll give him some dry cereal to crunch on while he's at it. That should hold him off till dinner.
Tommy being 2 years old, I've learned a lot about the differences in babies. Like for example, at 2 Emma was happy to eat anything you handed her. Tommy, on the other hand, prefers chicken nuggets and celery with peanut butter. Only.
But I suppose that's just parenting, it's different for everyone. Not just each family, but each child has different needs. One size doesn't fit all.
"Excellent, I'll let her know. Oh, and can you please pass a message along to Adrien for me?"
"For sure." I cut Emma's sandwhich into four halves, the perfect little squares resting on her plate surrounded by veggies and some dip. I think she'll enjoy this.
"Gabriel reached out to me." The knife in my hand clatters onto the marbled countertop, the silence in the room loud enough that all I can hear is the static from the other end of the phone, and my thrumming heart beat. "He wants to fund the rest of my way through school. I think it's his attempt to sneak back into Adrien's life."
"What did you say?"
"I told him that'll I'll consider his offer the day he eat's a pile of dog shit." Snorting at his response, I watch the knife on the countertop. This is the first time in years that Gabriel has spoke to any of us. Not since we filed that restraining order on him once he was out of prison. Flashes of a memory from years ago skip through my mind, of the time Chloe saved Adrien from Gabriel's last ditch attack against him, with a knife.
When we filed the restraining order, we wanted to ensure he never comes around Emma, or Adrien. He'll never meet his grandchildren, and he has no one to blame but himself.
"And I'm assuming that the conversation ended there?"
"He tried to plead with me, but I told him simply put, calling me to get back into Adrien's life was a violation of not just the restraining order, but also the no-contact-order I have placed on him. I told him if he doesn't lose my number and piss off, I'll have him sued for every last dollar to his pitiful name." Felix's calm voice sends shivers down my spine, so eerily collected like a snake about to snap.
"Thank you Felix, I don't know what we would do without you."
"Probably run around like chickens with your heads cut off."
"Ha, funny. You're confidence in us is astounding."
"Almost as astounding as your capabilities to put up with my cousin every day."
"One could say the same about Kagami." I laugh, the tension easily leaving my body. I head over to the door, waving at my wonderful husband to come inside with the kiddos. The two of us are gonna have left over chicken and rice for lunch.
"Yeah, I'm not sure how I put up with her either." Felix chuckles, making me role my eyes.
"You know I meant her abilities to put up with you, smart ass." Adrien smiles up at me as he carries Tommy in, Emma holing his free hand as she tries to tug him along faster. "Here, want to speak with Adrien? He's available now."
"Oh, that works. It was nice talking to you again, Marinette. I'll see you next week."
"You as well, see you shortly!" I beam, handing the receiver over to Adrien. "Your cousin." I whisper.
"I wanna talk! Let me talk!" Emma calls out, trying to take the phone away from her father.
"Daddy has to talk with Uncle Felix, you can chat with them later, okay? How about we get you and Tommy set up with some lunch? I have chocolate milk ready for you!" Emma's big blue eyes widen with anticipation, rushing off to her spot at the dining table.
As I get the kids set up with their respective lunches, I carefully watch Adrien's face morph from happy to angry scarily fast. Felix must have done a good job easing the situation though, because by the time he joins us at the table he looks relaxed again. Reaching out to squeeze his hand, I offer him comfort and support. An acknowledgment that I understand, and that we're going to be okay.
"How's the new designs coming along?" Adrien asks between bites of food, eyeing me down with thoughtful consideration.
"Pretty well, the the board approved my new project right before I began preparing lunch. We're going to start an up-cycling program where clients can bring in clothes they would otherwise be tossing out, and for a fair price one of the designers on the team will help create a whole new piece with the clothing and send it off to be created. On average it takes just 4 days for the whole process to be completed, and the outcome is always breathtaking. This is why I demanded we hire all the best designers I could get my hands on. Including new minds that haven't quite broken into the fashion industry yet."
"That's amazing, you should feel so proud of yourself. Honestly, I could listen to you talk about your passions for hours on end." Adrien gushes, leaning over to give me a quick kiss on the cheek. "No, Emma, don't smack your brother a piece of bread."
"He hit me first!"
"No, he tried to give you some celery. Cut him some slack, his aim is bad." Emma giggles at this, eating her sandwhich in pieces rather than fully assembled.
Sometimes kids do the darnedest things.
"The best part about the project," I continue as though my eight year old wasn't just tying to pimp slap her toddler brother with a piece of mayo covered bread, "is that it's really eco-friendly and gives us the ability to get even more creative."
"I love it. You always come up with the best ideas." Adrien places his hand on the small of my back, creating a tidal wave of goosebumps to wash over me.
I know what that alludes to later on.
"Hey kiddos, how about a sleepover with Grandma and Grandpa tonight?" I smile at them, watching Emma practically leap with joy, Tommy feeding off over her excited energy.
"Yay!" She calls out, Tommy gigging and clapping.
"Yay for me too." Adrien smirks, making my heart skip several beats. No matter how much time has passed, my heart desires him and him only.
——————
"Honey, I'm home!" I call out with a laugh, dropping my car keys back into my purse and kicking my shoes off. When I'm met with silence, I immediately know Adrien is up to some kind of shenanigans.
I tiptoe around the house, peeking around the corners to find him. Slowly, I begin to panic. After the call early today with Felix, I can't help but feel worried that maybe Gabriel snuck in and kidnapped him.
"Tikki." I hiss, watching her zip up beside me. "Can you please scope out the house and find Adrien? I think-"
"Boo." His deep voice startles me, making me let out a clipped scream. He laughs, tugging me into his arms, but I'm frozen at the sight of him.
My beautiful Chat Noir.
"It's been a while since I've seen you transformed." I breathe out, taking in his muscular body and shaggy blond hair. I cup his strong jawline in my hands, going on my tiptoes to plant a passionate and fiery kiss on his lips.
His hands rest on my hips, fingers pressing into my sides hard enough to keep me firm in my place. I love this side of him, this playful and seductive energy he exudes.
"It's been a while since we've had alone time." He grins, leaning back down for another kiss.
"It's literally been a week." I laugh, rubbing my nose against his. He draws my waist in closer, closing any gap between us.
"A week feels like a millennia." His groan makes me laugh some more as I run my fingers through his soft blond locks and tug slightly at the ends. His eye lids droop, a husky tone taking over his voice. "Bedroom. Now. Otherwise at this rate, we're not making it out of the hallway."
Oh my.
"Yessir!" I happily oblige, but he quickly scoops me up, carrying me to our bedroom. The sound of my laughter fills the air, making him chuckle along with me. When he tosses me down on the bed, his dark eyes meeting my own, I'm yanked out of my humorous state and into a world of desire.
This life we've built together is nothing short of amazing, and I wouldn't change it for the world. As we spend hours loving each other with all of our might, I know I couldn't have picked a better partner to spend my life with.
I feel so lucky, so many people spend so much of their time seeking out love, trying to find their soulmate. But me?
He fell right into my lap, one rainy day with a kind gesture to keep me dry. My heart chose him in that moment, and continued to choose him again and again as Chat Noir.
Maybe the future won't always be so peaches and cream, love and laughter. I'm sure we'll continue to face hardships as we raise our children. But I know we'll be okay.
And on top of that, I know this fiery passion that burns between us will never fade. No honeymoon phase that eventually comes to an end, it's a raw and deep attraction that will withstand throughout the trials of time itself.
Because I mean, look at him? My husband is literally Chat Noir, after all.