MARINETTE

"You're taking all the initiative to make your relationship work?"

Alya came over the apartment after a week of staying with Nino. I knew that she would be moving out because they bought a new house just for themselves, I just didn't know that she would be packing away her stuff this early.

I grab a pair of black socks from her drawer and carefully place it inside the box, "I wouldn't really consider the two of us in a relationship yet..." I say trying to make things clear for her. "Neither of us asked the question yet..."

"What question? 'Will you be mine?' That question?" She mockingly laughs at me, "What are you? High school sweethearts?!"

"Hey! Don't tease me like that!" I shout at her, "It's better if I clearly know his intentions. He flirts with me...I think. But I flirt with him."

"So you want to rely on your relationship through flirting?"

I sigh in frustration. "No, Alya." I close my eyes and shake my head. I remove the box from the bed and take a seat on the soft covers. "You don't understa-"

"Or are you choosing to date him out of pity?" Alya cuts me off with the sudden question.

I feel taken back by her question. I can't help to feel mad at her. How dare she thinks that I want to date Adrien again because I feel sorry for him!

"What do you mean, 'out of pity' ?" I sneer and cross my arms. "Are you trying to accuse me of having fake feelings for Adrien?"

"It's not an accusation! I just can't seem to connect how fast you've 'fallen' for him again! Marinette, I don't understand you! What are trying to do?"

I exhale in frustration and scratch hard on my head. "Alya, I just-"

"Have you told him that you missed him?" She interrupts.

"Y-yeah! Why the sudden question-"

"Have you told him that you like him?"

"Of course!" I exclaim with pride, "I told him with a kiss too!"

"THEN TELL HIM ABOUT EMMA!" She shouts out of anger. My eyes dilate in fear of her. I am left in shock at her statement. She covers her face with her hands and falls to the floor, shaking as she cries.

My heart clenches in pain just by looking at her. "A-Alya-"

"He deserves to know..." She cries, her face still covered by her hands. "The father deserves to know about the miscarriage of his wife..."

I look away from Alya as I start to cry.

My heart hurts right now because it's true. He truly deserves to know.

But I can't tell him.

I'm sure that he will hate me once he knows and I can't bear to live my life that way, knowing that the guy I have loved ever since high school will hate me forever.

"Alya..." I cry, "I need some time-"

"Jesus Christ, 4 years is enough time, Marinette!" She announces, "For once in you life, let go of your pride and face the fact that you can't let go of Emma's death because you can't tell her father about it! Have you ever thought that by telling him, the both of you could help heal each other?"

She's right.

Damn it. She's right.

I turn away from her and sit on a chair nearby as I bury my head in my hands. "Stop it, Alya. Please stop!" I plead as my heart aches for him. I cry out of realization and sadness.

"Mari," Alya starts after wiping away her tears, "he is crazily over you. Nino tells me everything that Adrien says about you. Do you realize that the both of you need closure?"

"Alya, he has secrets that he never told me too!" I try to defend myself but instead of getting the reaction I wanted to see from her, she gives me an angry glare.

"I never knew that you can be that shallow." She whispers in anger and rolls her eyes. "I can't believe that even though you want your relationship to be fixed, you want him to make the first move by letting him be the first to tell his secrets to you."

I don't say anything. I couldn't dare to utter a word at her.

"He blames himself for your son's death..." She continues after a moment of silence. By that statement, she has gotten my attention and I can't help to utter the word, "why".

"He wouldn't say the reason...But I know that he wouldn't tell the reason to Nino and I because he wants you to know first. Can't you realize that he thinks of you? Have you ever thought that he hasn't stopped loving you?"

"Love?" I utter in disbelief, "That's too much, Alya. You're going way too fast."

"Am I? Or are you just so slow in reading other people?" She says back with more conviction. "Because I may be standing at the right side. What about you?"

"So do you need help or what?" I snap at her, trying to change the topic.

She scoffs, "Excuse me, it's you who needs all the help." She grabs her bag and her car keys from the table and opens the door to our apartment. "I'm leaving first. I can't stand to be around an egotistical woman." And with that, she slams the door behind her

My hands clench into fists and I let it all out by screaming at the top of my lungs. "FINE! BE THAT WAY! YOU'RE A B*TCH!"

I crumble to the floor and clasp my mouth with my hands and cry hard. I can't believe I just said that. Even though she probably didn't hear me curse at her, I can't help to feel guilty.

She's my best friend for goodness sake! The only best friend I have!

"I'm an emotional m-mess...crap." I wipe away my tears and fan my face. "Woo, take deep breaths Marinette." I rub my hands on my knees and close my eyes. I try to relax myself by taking deep breaths but I can't continue as I reach the number 7. Her words still play in my mind, repeating like a broken record.

Or are you choosing to date him out of pity?

"Am I doing this out of pity?" I whisper to myself, the question left unanswered.

"No." I whisper. "No!" I shout out loud as I stand up, keeping a strong and steady stance. "I chose to be with him again because I miss him and I like him!"

I collapse on the bed and stare at the wall for a moment. "Very much..." I whisper, "I like him so much, so much that it scares me if I ever tell him the truth..."

The truth that can change his life for better or for worse...

"It's more on the worse, Mari!" I slap my forehead and lazily lie down on the bed. "It's more on the worse..." I utter, deflated. And hopeless.

My phone suddenly starts to vibrate in my pocket. I grab it and check the caller I.D.

Dad.

I wipe away my tears and clear my throat before bringing the phone to my ear. "H-hello Dad?" I utter, trying to make a cheerful tone of voice.

"Mari?"

"Yeah, Dad. It's me..."

"Are you crying?" He asks on the other end of the phone and I let out a light chuckle, the only way to hide the sound of me sniffing.

"I'm not." I answer.

"Oh...if you say so. I just called you because I want you to visit me. I miss your company, my dear. Are you free right now? If not, then we can schedule another ti-"

"No!" I interrupt, "there is no need to schedule anything, Dad. I'm free right now so I can spend my whole day with you."

"Really?!" He spits out, clearly excited with me visiting.

"Yes, really."

----------------------

"Woah!" I exclaim in surprise as I find myself in a room decorated with cute paper cut-outs of the pastries we bake and sell. All the cut-outs were hanged individually on a string and taped to the ceiling.

"Marinette! You're here!" Dad excitedly says as he turns his head to look at me standing by the door. "Don't be scared, just come in already."

"Woah." I sigh, still in shock. "I'm not scared...just surprised, very surprised- Who did this?"

"The other crazy person in this family."

"Of course. It had to be mom." I leave my bag on the table and sit on the chair beside his bed. "She always does crazy things."

"When I told her that I miss our pastries in the bakery I didn't expect her to do this." He looks up to admire the decorations and closes his eyes. "This makes me more attracted to her..."

"Even with all the wrinkles on her face and her back pains?"

He chortles and squeezes my hand. "It's never about the appearance, my dear. Every time I see your mother, she glows. I never mind the wrinkles, her deteriorating figure...I look at her just like how I first saw her."

"What was she doing when you first saw her?"

He shakes his head as he starts to laugh. "I won't tell!"

"Tell me, dad!" I shake his arm as I plead, "I still don't know how you guys met!"

"It had something to do with a sack of rice..." He whispers and winks at me.

"The first time you saw her..." I try to guess, "she was eating rice? A whole sack of it?" I slowly continue, suddenly realizing how stupid I sound.

He scoffs, "Marinette! If she ate a whole sack of rice, she would look bloated by now!"

"Well she is bloated." I mumble but unfortunately, dad heard me.

He pinches hard on my arm and I cry in pain.

"Don't say that your mom looks bloated. That's like one of the worst things you can say to a woman...they get all insecure and conscious, they won't think straight starting from then. Believe me, I experienced that when I gave a bathroom scale as a birthday present to your mother...never again- never again, Tom." He shivers at the thought and now it is my turn to scoff at him.

"I think that I won't be like mom. I'm not afraid of the bathroom scale."

"Then get pregnant again and you'll be scared of the bathroom scale." He simply states while shrugging his shoulders.

"Dad!" I shout, feeling so embarrassed. "You can't just say that you want me to get pregnant again! I'm your daughter for goodness sake! Jeez!"

"You can just walk up to Adrien and say, 'Hey! My dad wants a grandkid. Make me pregnant again!' See how well I imitated your voice?"

My pupils dilate out of shock, "Oh my God! I can't believe that such words are coming out from father's mouth!" I slap my hands over my cheeks to hide how red they are right now. "My hands are sweating like crazy and my cheeks right now are darker than the darkest shade of red, seriously!"

"Awe come on, Marinette! I was just kidding!" My dad laughs it off but I know that deep down, he wants it.

He wants to see his grandchild before passing away.

I grab both of his hands and gently squeeze both. "I'm sorry that I can't give what you want, dad."

"Nah. It's fine. I understand your situation right now..." He utters, "Now, I got a new deck of playing cards...wanna play? I got money so we could bet!"

I grin at his excitement but I know that he is just doing this to change the topic. So instead of acknowledging his other intention, I nod enthusiastically. "You had me at cards."

It was dad who taught me all the different card games like Bluff or Blackjack. He also taught me how to bet and how tell if the player is bluffing or not.

He is a card game prodigy. Like literally, a prodigy.

We played different card games for hours and now, I'm losing a lot of money. But I don't regret losing it to my dad.

"Bluff." He says with a smirk and I let my cards fall on his bed.

"Damn it. You win...again." I hand him a bill and he grabs it with finesse.

"Thank you!" He gives the bill a light kiss and places it on the desk beside his bed. "You ready for another game?" He asks while shuffling the cards. I look at my watch and sigh in dismay.

"I can't stay for another game...I have to get the supplies for the bakery and it's getting late, you have to go to bed." I collect my things and kiss my dad on his forehead.

"I promise that I will visit you again." I say as I open the door.

"Did I make you happy today?" He questions me and I stop.

"Why the sudden question, dad? Of course you made me happy today!" I close the door behind me and walk closer to him. "Did I make you happy today?" I ask.

"You make me happy everyday even if you don't visit me at times." He answers and heaves a sigh, "I had to ask you because you were crying before you answered my call this morning."

"I-I wasn't crying this morning..." I murmur as I fiddle with the keychain on my bag.

"Parents can tell when their child is lying." He says, "It's one of the perks."

"I told you that I wasn't crying."

"And I told you that I know when you lie." He says back, "And I clearly know that you're lying right now."

I stay quiet and he sighs before closing his eyes.

"You don't have to worry about me." I assure him, "I'm okay already!"

I'm not okay, dad.

"I solved my problem already!" I continue.

I don't know what to do, dad.

His lips slightly twitch up and he opens his mouth to say the word that instantly shattered my self-protective barrier, "Liar."

"W-what?"

"Liar. I know you're still lying. Even though you're 28 years old already, you can still talk to me about your problems."

I bite my lip, trying to stop myself from crying.

"I'm your dad, Mari. And behind every flaw, I will always love you." He continues and that is when I burst out crying. I hug him and cry hard on his shoulder.

My dad doesn't say anything as he wraps his arms around me, rubbing my back as he silently comforts me.

"It's so hard, dad!" I cry, "I-I don't know how to face the problem!"

"Then don't." He utters and I stop my wailing, not expecting such an answer.

"W-what are you trying to mean-"

"You don't have to face your problems in an instant." He cuts me off but still gently rubbing my back. "But you shouldn't run away from them. Study them, get used to them. Once you have done that, you will gain the confidence you need to overcome them."

He grabs my shoulders and slowly pushes me away from him. Now we are looking at each other, eye to eye. He wipes away the tears staining my cheeks. "You have to think first before acting. That problem can lead to a new opportunity, a good one to be exact."

"A-and what if it's not an opportunity?" I whisper. He shows a gentle smile.

"Then it's not." He whispers back, "Life isn't always happy. Some things may seem to lower down our self-esteem or confidence, but we shouldn't let it continue to degrade us."

"Okay..." I whisper.

"Do you understand?"

"Of course, dad. Thank you."

"I love you, my daughter." He says, "Don't forget that."

I hug him and close my eyes as my head rests on his shoulder. "And I love you too."

"If the person who is giving you a problem is a man, then tell me. I may be getting old but I can punch like a professional boxer. I'm not letting those years of punching dough go to waste."

I giggle by his overprotective manner and hug him tighter, "I'll keep that in mind, dad."

"And before I forget, to finish my story from earlier, when I first saw your mother carrying a sack of rice by herself. I knew that I had to marry her."

"So she wasn't eating it." I smile at the thought of my mother getting the attention of my dad through a sack of rice.

"I was buying flour in the market when I saw your mother buying a sack of rice at another stand. I thought that she was struggling but when I approached her, she pushed me away. Then told me that she is an independent woman who doesn't need a man." He continues, a big smile playing on his face as he reminisces the event. "And it was true. She doesn't need a man, but I needed her. Someone who is stronger than me and someone who can teach me how to be strong."

"It was love at first sight?" I whisper.

"Yes. I know, it's very cheesy. But it softened my heart and led me to your mom..." He chuckles, "Now you know the story! You don't need to nag me anymore."

"Thank you, dad. You always know how to cheer me up."

He gently squeezes my cheeks, "Anytime, Marinette."

----------------------

Should I sneak in or not?

After getting the supplies for the bakery, I pass by the building where Adrien held his art exhibit and I notice one of the back doors is left slightly open.

Will I get caught?

Damn it, curiosity! Is it a crime to just see the place?

It has been more than a month since I've last been there!

"I deserve to see the place again." I whisper to myself. I walk towards the door and just as I was about to push it, I take a step back and start to mentally freak out.

MARINETTE! You're hesitating! I thought you want this!

I take deep breaths, one after another before I rest my hand on the door. "Yes, I want this." I utter before pushing open the door.

The halls look bigger without the paintings. I turn on the lights of every hall I pass by. They all looked empty and bland, nothing was present to make it look lively.

I walk silently around the building as I still remember the different pathways.

"His portrait used to be here..." I run my hand over an empty spot on the wall. "I wonder who bought it." That mere thought makes my blood boil in jealousy. I know that someone is fawning over that painting this very instant. "Stop it, Marinette."

My hand falls back to my side and I continue to walk again, "You shouldn't act like that."

I reach the end of the building and I suddenly remember a certain painting. The only painting that Adrien didn't get to sell.

I turn around and right before me is the painting for me. The painting that holds a lot of memories and was one of the solutions to Adrien's problem with the IRS.

I walk towards it and the whole moment is overwhelming because it feels like as if the painting is welcoming me, bringing me closer to it.

I hesitate at first before placing my hand on the frame. I trace the shapes using my index finger and I smile. "Tommy, you look so cute in your father's painting."

"I didn't know that I still had visitors."

I turn around in fright but upon seeing the person behind me, I sigh in relief. "Oh Thank God. It's just you."

"Just me?" Adrien says as he approaches me, his hands in the pockets of his black slacks. "Who else were you expecting? The police?"

"Yes." I utter and he laughs.

"Why would you be scared of the police?"

"Because I am trespassing private property!" I exclaim. Adrien raises his eyebrow at me. "And why are you raising your eyebrow at me, Mister Agreste?"

"Such a petty excuse to be scared of the police-Ow!" He cries in pain after I hit his stomach with my elbow.

After a while, he is still hissing in pain and I start to worry. "Oh my, did I hit you that hard?" I place my hands on top of his, "I'm so sorry-" I get interrupted as he grabs my hands and places them around his waist. After doing that, he wraps his arms my shoulders and sighs in content.

"I was waiting for you to come closer..." He whispers at me who is stuck in his embrace.

"You could have just said that you wanted a hug." I mumble, stuck in a somewhat awkward position.

"I love surprise hugs especially when I am the one surprising you."

I look up at him to find him looking at the painting, his eyes completely glued at one figure on the painting.

Our son.

"What is he doing right now?" He whispers, "Who is he with right now?"

"He's an angel playing with other angels right now...and of course, he is with his grandfather." I answer him and let go his hug to hold his hands. "Your father is taking care of him."

"Is he? Does he know how to take care of Tommy?" He bombards me with questions and I can't help to pity him as Adrien worries over his father's inability to show that he cares because Adrien experienced the feeling, first-hand.

Pity.

Such a short word. A short word that holds such a strong feeling.

But I pity him because I care about him and his feelings. And I care about him because...

"Adrien." I utter, trying to get his attention.

He looks at me and I plant a soft kiss on his cheek. "I like you."

His cheeks turn red and he clears his throat, "I like you too, Mari. But I think we're done confessing this already..."

"I know. I just had to say it again." I smile at him and move a step closer. "But we haven't made us official yet."

"Us." He whispers, "Us." He repeats and his smile beams with joy, "We would be us again..."

"Is that what you want?"

He laces his fingers with mine and gives our intertwined fingers a swift kiss. "Will you be mine again? And I'll be yours?"

Being with you will make me worried everyday. Worried that you will know the truth, Adrien.

But I can't just run away. I have to accept that being with you will help me gain confidence and it might also help me find love again.

"Tommy will be happy once I will say my answer." I whisper before placing my forehead against his.

"Yes, Adrien. I want us to belong together again."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hi! They're finally official xD

Sorry for letting you wait for almost a month :( huhu

I hope you liked this chapter by the way :)

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