Chapter Text
Life had never been better for Marinette.
She was thirty years old and one of the best designers at a big fashion label in New York City. She was living her dream, and she couldn't be happier.
Well, that last part wasn't exactly true. She did miss being Ladybug, and she missed seeing her family in person, but it was okay. She could talk to her family on the internet and the phone, and even if she still lived in Paris, the city no longer had any use for Ladybug and Chat Noir now that Gabriel Agreste was in prison and Hawkmoth was no longer a threat.
She also missed Chat Noir a lot, but there was nothing she could do about that. She still had her miraculous, but she hadn't transformed in years, as there was no need after she left Paris. She hadn't spoken to Chat since the day she told him she was leaving. He was heartbroken, and the mere look on his face had almost convinced her to stay.
Almost.
She thought about him every day, and she couldn't help but wonder how you can miss someone so much when you don't even know their real name.
Marinette also kept an eye out for him in the Parisian news and on the internet, but he hadn't made a real, confirmed appearance since a couple of months after she left. The only mentions she had seen of Chat Noir since then were pictures of blurry silhouettes along the Parisian skyline and people discussing theories as to his whereabouts. She had seen the same type of "reports" about herself. It was as if she and Chat Noir were cryptids.
But other than that, her life was great. She loved her job, she loved her city, and she loved her fiancé, Liam.
Her life was amazing, and nothing could screw it up.
Nothing except for Adrien Agreste.
***
Marinette was sitting in her office mulling over some designs when she heard someone knock on her door.
"Come in," she called, looking up from her sketchbook.
When the door opened, she saw her boss in the doorway.
"Miss Givens," Marinette said, standing from her chair. "How may I help you?"
"I know it's last-minute, but I need you to come to an important meeting with me," Givens responded.
"Okay," Marinette nodded. "When is it?"
Givens gave her an apologetic look. "Right now."
"Now?"
"Yes, now. Let's go."
Marinette quickly closed her sketchbook and exited the room with her boss.
"So, what is this meeting about?" Marinette asked the elder woman as the two of them walked briskly down the hallway.
"It's with one of our biggest competitors," Givens responded. "There's only one spot left in the annual Tournoi de Papillon show, and there's another brand trying to nab it. We're meeting with two representatives from that brand to try to work something out."
Marinette shook her head. "I still don't understand why anyone would name a fashion show 'Butterfly Tournament.' It makes no sense."
Givens shrugged. "French just sounds inherently fancy to Americans. The language attracts socialites the way bikini models attract my seventeen-year-old son. And in this world of fashion and capitalism, it's all about luring in the people who have the ability to buy your ridiculously overpriced pieces of 'fashion' that they'll never use so that you can get more exposure for the clothes that are actually practical."
Marinette laughed.
"And anyway," Givens continued. "It's not just a fashion show. This is one of the biggest fashion competitions in the world. That's why it's so important that we get this spot. Here we are."
Givens stopped in her tracks and opened a door to her right. Marinette followed her inside and found herself in a small room with a rectangular table, a potted plant, and two people seated next to each other on one side of the table.
The two people stood to greet them as they entered, and Marinette's stomach lurched.
She was staring directly into the eyes of Adrien Agreste.
She was too shocked to speak. She never expected to run into her childhood crush after leaving Paris, especially on a completely different continent from the one on which they grew up.
His eyes brightened as he seemed to recognize her, and he opened his mouth to speak, but Givens spoke before he got the chance.
"Welcome to the Supernova Fashion headquarters. I'm Katherine Givens, and this is one of my top designers, Marinette Dupain-Cheng."
Marinette smiled at the woman sitting next to Adrien, taking her eyes off the blond man for only a moment.
"Nice to meet you, and thank you for having us," the woman said. "My name is Brenna Taylor. This is the CEO of Agreste Fashion, Adrien Agreste."
The fact that Agreste Fashion had mostly relocated to New York several months ago had completely slipped her mind. She should have asked what other brand they were competing against for the spot.
"Mr. Agreste," Givens said in surprise. "I didn't realize it was actually you. It's unusual for someone of your importance in the company to attend a meeting like this, isn't it?"
"Well, this is an important event we are trying to participate in," Adrien responded. Marinette suddenly realized she had never heard him speak English before. It had been a long time since she had heard a French accent other than her own.
"Right," Givens said, nodding. "Let's talk about that. I was thinking maybe we could work out some sort of deal in which we both get-"
"Absolutely not," Adrien interrupted, to the surprise of everyone else in the room, including his colleague. "I will not make a deal with a company that employs such riff raff." He gestured at Marinette. "If this is your standard for employees, I can't even imagine your standard for clothing."
Givens looked appalled, and Ms. Taylor looked mortified. Marinette rolled her eyes as a small smirk began to grow on her face.
"Mr. Agreste," Givens said in shock. "I assure you, Ms. Dupain-Cheng is very highly qualified for this position. And not only that, but the talent she possesses-"
"Mademoiselle Givens," Marinette interrupted. "Thank you so much for defending me, but Adrien is only joking around."
Givens's eyes darted skeptically between the two of them until Adrien could no longer contain his laughter.
"I am sorry, mademoiselle," he said to Givens after a moment. His colleague rolled her eyes in exasperation at his antics. "Marinette and I were friends in school. I was just giving her a hard time."
"Oh," Givens said, then turned her head to look at Marinette. "Ms. Dupain-Cheng, you never told me you were friends with Adrien Agreste."
"Well, we haven't spoken much since I left Paris."
"The last time I remember speaking to you was at Alya and Nino's wedding," Adrien added. "And that was, what, four years ago?"
Marinette thought back to that night for a moment. "Yes, I think that's right."
Adrien laughed. "I'll never forget the way you danced that night."
"Hey, I'll have you know I'm actually a much better dancer than one would think after that night," Marinette informed him. "I just... had a bit too much to drink."
Adrien laughed again. "A bit? That's not exactly how I remember it."
Marinette rolled her eyes. "Okay, so I was completely wasted. But really, can you blame me? I had gone to my best friend's wedding without a date, and by that point I had pretty much lost all hope of realizing my dream of being a designer. I had no idea that only four years later I would be one of the head designers at Supernova and engaged to be married."
Adrien quirked an eyebrow. "Engaged?"
Marinette nodded. "Yes- his name is Liam."
"Wow," Adrien said. "I had no idea. Congratulations! I can't believe Alya and Nino didn't tell me."
"Well, it's only been a month since he proposed," Marinette told him. It was funny- they hadn't seen each other in years, and yet they were talking like they were best friends. Now that her childhood crush on him had dissipated, Marinette had no trouble at all speaking to him. Evidently, that's just what happens when you move on.
"That's amazing, Marinette," Adrien beamed. "We should get together sometime soon. I'd love to meet the lucky man who won your heart."
Marinette laughed. "Please, don't act as if you never won it, too."
Adrien's smile faltered for a moment. "What?"
Marinette rolled her eyes with a grin. "Adrien, you don't have to pretend you didn't know about my crush on you. I wasn't exactly subtle about it."
Adrien stared at her. "You had a crush on me?"
Marinette stared back. "You... really didn't know?"
"No!"
Marinette shook her head slowly. "Adrien... I knew you were naïve, but I didn't think you were blind."
Adrien laughed. "Hey, you were good at hiding it!"
"That is the exact opposite of the truth. You can ask literally anyone from our class."
"Everyone knew?"
"Yes. Every single person in our class knew."
"That- that is not true."
"Yes, it is! Call Nino right now, I dare you."
Adrien rolled his eyes. "That's too easy. He was your best friend's boyfriend!"
"Okay, so call Sabrina. Or Juleka. Or Rose. Or Ivan. Or-"
"I get it, Mari," Adrien laughed. "I can't believe I never knew."
"I can't believe you never knew either," Marinette said. "I mean, I turned into a flustered, stuttering mess every time you were in the vicinity."
"I- I just thought you were shy!" Adrien exclaimed. "I mean, there was a time when I thought you disliked me, but Nino reassured me that you were just shy."
"Mr. Agreste?" Givens interrupted. "I am terribly sorry to interrupt, and it's wonderful that you two are getting a chance to catch up, but do you think we could please discuss the matter at hand? I have another meeting in a little while."
"Oh, absolutely," Adrien responded. "I'm sorry. What were you saying before I interrupted, Mademoiselle Givens?"
"Well, we were hoping to come to some sort of compromise," Givens began. "Obviously we can't both get everything we want in this situation, but perhaps we can meet in the middle and both get half of what we want. So, we were thinking that, since each brand has six models walk in the show, we could each dress three models. We could consult each other on design choices and any other big decisions, and we could split the costs and any money we may earn as a result of this."
"That sounds perfect," Adrien said. "We'll need to get a contract drawn up, so we can enter into a formal partnership; would you like for your lawyer or my lawyer to do it?"
"Either is fine," Givens responded. "Thank you so much for agreeing to this."
"Absolutely. So, my lawyer and I can come by tomorrow afternoon to work out a few details and discuss the contract with you, if that's okay."
"That's perfect," Givens said, opening her planner. "How's 2:35?"
Ms. Taylor checked her own planner.
"2:35 is perfect."
"Excellent. I'll see you then."