Chapter Text
August 2
“So, you’re definitely coming to the party right?”
“Well, I mean...I’ll definitely try to come”, Adrien replied, letting out a little sigh. When had he became so busy with life that he’d forgotten about his best friend’s homecoming?
“C’mon dude. I haven’t seen you in like a year.” Noting the note of irritation in Nino’s voice, Adrien let out another, more drawn out sigh, before rolling his chair to his desk. “Can’t you, like, just skip out on whatever model business you have tomorrow night?”
“Give me a second.”
“I’ll give you as many seconds as you want if you say you’ll come.”
Adrien couldn’t resist the urge to roll his eyes as he let out a little snort in response. Picking up his schedule book, he opens it to the page the little ribbon placeholder had been laid in to check if he had any work related obligations before responding. He had a small photoshoot in the afternoon, around 12, and a meeting with his agent at 5 to discuss any plans for the fall season. Other than that, he didn’t see anything that would stop him from going to Nino’s party, as long as his agent didn’t keep him too long anyway.
“So?”
“God”, he replied in an over exaggerated tone as he leaned back in his swivel chair, imagining the defeated look on Nino’s face. “I’ve got a photoshoot, then a dinner date with my oh-so-lovely agent, then I have to catch a cab to my best friend’s party and I just don’t know if I can go to yours.”
“You’re such a dick,” Nino laughed, “Man, I can’t wait to see you though. I have so much to tell you!” His friend’s excitement was infectious through phone, he couldn’t help but smile a wide toothy smile as Nino goes on about his exploits and adventures in America. “Oh! And I have someone that I want you to meet, actually.”
Raising an eyebrow, Adrien replies with a quiet, “Oh?” They had definitely been out of touch, if Nino means what Adrien thought he meant.
“Yeah...um, we’ve actually been dating for a while now,” he continues, “before I left actually.”
Thinking back, Nino had probably mentioned seeing somebody before he went off on his all American adventure, but Adrien’s memory was hazy. When he wasn’t struggling to balance his school life with his professional life, he was still helping Ladybug fend off Hawk Moth’s continuous attacks on Paris. It was kind of ridiculous how persistent the villain was in trying to steal their miraculouses, but it’s to be expected; heroes can only be heroes when villains exist.
“I think you told me about her,” said Adrien, attempting to remember anything about his best friend’s mystery girlfriend. “Was it...the cute girl from your literature class?” He felt like such a bad friend.
“I’m surprised you remember,” he said with a chuckle, “but..no. I met Alya in my psych class in my first year. I thought she hated my guts, then we started dating before I knew it.”
“Wow, hating your guts. What’d you do?” Knowing Nino, it could be a myriad of things. His best friend was a really nice and well meaning guy, but he did say and do a lot of things that would seem quite tactless. It’s the reason why his father didn’t allow Adrien to hang out with Nino when they first met, but that didn’t stop them.
“Nothing”, Nino said, feigning innocence. “I don’t know what you could possibly be talking about.”
“Right, okay. Whatever you say man,” Adrien chuckled. He missed talking to Nino and wished that they could hang out right then and there, but he figured that the other would be dead tired after a 10 hour flight. He probably also wanted to hang out with his girlfriend after not seeing her for a year.
“Anyway,” Nino continued, breaking Adrien’s train of thought. “How’re you and Kagami doing? Is she still kicking your ass at almost everything?”
“No,” he said with a shrug, shifting a little in his seat. “We broke up a while ago.”
“Oh.”
Right. He had neglected to tell his best friend about his now ex-girlfriend. Between him trying to juggle his hectic work, school and superhero schedules and Nino studying abroad, they kept missing each other when things came up, so of course he forgot to mention that little detail.
“Yeah...we broke up,” he replied with another shrug, not knowing how to explain how he felt about the situation. “We’re okay though.” Okay meaning that they still talked occasionally, but that didn’t mean that they weren’t so painfully awkward around each other. Kagami made the effort to check in on him every so often, and he did the same but he’d be lying if he said that it didn’t feel a little off.
“I’m sorry, dude.” Nino remained quiet on the other end, not knowing what to say.
“It’s okay. It’s all in the past,” he reassured. Thankfully, their break up had been an amicable one. Kagami felt like things were going nowhere, and with their conflicting schedules, they couldn’t see each other as often as they should have. Respecting her decision, Adrien simply agreed with her and they broke up after almost a year of dating. He was sure she was a little disappointed that he didn’t fight her on the decision, but he was sure that it wasn’t the first time that he’d disappointed her.
“Well, lucky for you, Alya has a lot of cute friends who’re coming to the party”, he teased, changing the subject. “Maybe you’ll get lucky and find the one.”
Adrien laughed, rolling his eyes. “It’d be nice if my life were a romcom, but I’ll be happy just to see my best friend again.”
“Ditto,” Nino agreed. Adrien could hear a female voice calling for Nino in the background, his girlfriend perhaps. Oh well, they’ve been talking long enough, and they were going to see each other later anyway.
“Hey, I’ll see you at the party tomorrow. I don’t wanna keep you from your lady friend,” Adrien teased. “I have a hot date with a kale salad and I don’t wanna keep it waiting.”
“Sure, kale salad. Will that be with or without 3 side helpings of pasta?”
“With, but my nutritionist and personal trainer don’t need to know that,” he replied with a smirk. “Later, man.”
“Later, dude!”
Adrien let out a little sigh as he pulls the phone away from his ear, thoughts filling his head as he sinks lower and lower into his chair. Relationships weren’t something he thought about much these days, mostly because he didn’t want to get into another one for it to inevitably end because he couldn’t make time for his girlfriend or meet her expectations. Thinking back, he’d always been the one being pursued and asked out, he’d never been the one doing the pursuing or courting. The only girl he could think of that he came close to asking out would be his partner in crime, Ladybug, but that would’ve been impossible.
Ladybug was an amazing, compassionate and kind woman who, he felt, could have any man or woman she wanted, but as she’s stated many times in interviews, she didn’t want a relationship. After years of being asked the same questions over and over again, “Ladybug, are you and Chat Noir an item?” and “Ladybug, would you ever date Chat Noir” and so forth, he understood that he didn’t have a chance—and that was fine. He admired her dedication to keeping the streets of Paris safe and respected her wish to keep their personal and professional lives separate, but he couldn’t help but wonder what she was like without the mask. After years of being partners, he’s seen her grow more and more confident and beautiful by the day that he almost couldn’t remember how clumsy and downright dorky she used to be when they first started saving Paris together. But, he could never forget that, he could never forget their origins. He wondered if he had changed any, but it’d be pointless to ask her.
“You may have grown taller, but you’re still the same reliable Chat Noir I became partners with all those years go,” he mumbled. “That’s what she’d probably say.”
From the corner of his eye, Adrien could see something shifting around on his desk. Plagg, his kwami, was most likely waking up from his cat nap. It was time for dinner.
August 3
Using his phone’s front camera as a mirror, Adrien ran a hand through his hair, hoping that it looked alright. After a morning of delays with the photoshoot and a long, drawn out meeting with his agent, Adrien didn’t have a chance to go home and make himself look more like himself. Admittedly, he didn’t look any different with a bit of makeup and styled hair, but it made him feel a little self conscious because it wasn’t how he chose to look on a regular day. He wanted to show up as Adrien Agreste, Nino’s best friend, not as Adrien Agreste, son of world renowned fashion designer Gabriel Agreste, part time model.
The car creeped to a stop as Adrien was contemplating which direction to sweep his bangs. His driver, tapping his fingers on the steering wheel, cleared his throat to get Adrien’s attention before announcing, “We’re here.”
Adrien, looking up at his driver then turning his attention to the window, realized that they were indeed in front of Alya’s apartment complex. With one last glance over, Adrien pockets his phone before giving the stern man a quick nod as thanks before getting out of the car.
Walking to the front entrance, Adrien notices the number pad embedded into the wall next to the door and sighs at the realization that Nino had neglected to text him the pin number to get in. Pulling out his phone, he attempts to call Nino to no avail. It kept taking him to voicemail and every single one of Adrien’s texts were going unread. A minute turned into ten and he was beginning to get a little annoyed.
“Um,” he heard a quiet voice from behind. “Do you need help?” The voice belonged to a girl, who he assumed, lived in the complex. She was a head shorter than him, looked about his age and had the deepest, bluest eyes he’d ever seen.
“Uh...yeah. Kind of,” he mumbled, brushing his fringe out of his face. “I’m here to see my friend and...um, he forgot to give me the passcode to get in. I’m trying to contact him and he’s not picking up.” He could feel his ears and cheeks heating up a bit when she started giggling.
“Well, someone might think you’re suspicious if you keep pacing back and forth like that,” she replied with a smirk before walking up to the pin pad and quickly inputting the 6-digit code. The door buzzed to inform them that they were now allowed to enter. The nameless girl pulled open the door with a polite “after you” and ushered Adrien in before walking in herself.
“I really appreciate the help, thank you.” He shoots her a smile in return and feels his phone buzz in his hand. Nino finally texted him back.
“It was my pleasure,” she replied with a nod. “Don’t keep your friend waiting and stay out of trouble now.” She points at his phone before bidding him farewell. Before he knew it, she had disappeared into one elevator and Nino had appeared in the other with an excited, “Duuuude!”
* * *
The party was already underway when he arrived and, as he’s learned, Nino was dealing with some technical issues that killed the party vibe for a good 20 minutes. People greeted him with casual hellos when he passed by as Nino lead him through the living room turned dance floor.
“Give me a minute,” Nino yelled over the music before walking to the makeshift DJ table at the front of the room. Adrien could only assume who the DJ was, seeing as Nino wrapped his arms around her waist and planted a big kiss on her cheek as she laughed. He couldn’t stop smiling upon seeing how utterly in love they looked; he was happy for his best friend.
After hanging around, bopping his head to the music, for a few minutes, Nino comes back with Alya in tow and pushed them both into the kitchen and away from the festivities. The kitchen was a lot less chaotic than the living room, with a few people just hanging around chatting as they feasted on cheese puffs and pretzels around the drink table.
“So,” he began,” Adrien, this is Alya, my super cool, super cute and super amazing girlfriend.” Adrien and Alya both give each other a slight nod as Nino continued. ”Alya, you’ve seen Adrien practically everywhere, but like I keep telling you, his head isn’t as big in person.”
“He should know about things not being as bi-”
“Anyway,” she interrupted, stepping between the two before a friendly beat down broke out. “It’s good to meet you, Adrien!” Alya smiled, offering her hand.
“Same to you,” he agreed as he shook her hand. Adrien can confirm that this was their first meeting, but why did it feel as if he knew her from somewhere. He might’ve seen her around campus, but that would be unlikely since Nino met her in class and he and Adrien went to different universities. He just couldn’t put his finger on it, from the sound of her voice to her appearance, there was something familiar about her.
Introductions turned into casual conversations and casual conversations turned into drunk banters before they knew it. As Adrien’s learned, Alya had quite the mouth on her, sober or drunk, as she took everything he and Nino threw at her and returned it tenfold. Nino was the same as ever from the way he danced slightly offbeat to the way he fell all over himself when he’s had too much to drink. It felt like the old times, but the difference became pretty apparent when Nino and Alya started openly flirting with each other in their drunken stupor. It was like Adrien wasn’t sitting right there. Before he knew it, they were whispering and giggling among themselves, leaving him as the awkward third wheel.
“I’m gonna get another drink,” he yelled over the music before getting up and out of his seat. “Do either of you want anything?” No response. He doubts they could hear him, seeing as they’re lost in their own little world now. Adrien took it as his cue to leave when they started getting a little more physical on the couch. Had he ever been like that with his ex-girlfriends when they were too drunk and too giggly to notice anything else?
The kitchen was more of a mess than he remembered. Beer cans and stray pieces of chips laid haphazardly on the floor waiting to be crushed, empty bottles lined the counter like soldiers and a single girl sat on the floor with her legs pulled close, sipping from a wine bottle while playing a game on her phone. His stare lingered on her for a moment. He felt like he knew her from somewhere, but he again didn’t know from where. Why am I forgetting everyone today? He thought, still staring at her.
Their eyes met for a brief moment when she looked up, a smile slowly creeping its way onto her flushed face.
“Fancy meeting you here,” she said, returning her attention to her phone game.
Adrien only had to see the deep blue in her eyes to remember who she was—she was the girl who helped him earlier that evening.
“Yeah,” he replied, still collecting his thoughts. After a long pause, he added,”Hi, again.”
“Hi, again” she giggled, giving him a little wave. “I take it that your friend’s at this party?”
“Well, he’s the one throwing it so,” he replied with a shrug. “Or, he’s the one it’s being thrown for…” Adrien could hold his liquor a decent amount—heck, this was only his third drink in 2 hours, so it was a wonder to him why he was struggling to speak in a cohesive manner. “He’s Nino and this is his party, which is also being thrown...for him.” None of that sounded right at all. “Yes.”
“I’m glad that you made it then.” The smile from her lips never faltered as she watched him with an amused gleam in her eyes.
“What about you?” he asked, ignoring the heat that was beginning to bloom on his cheeks. “I’m more surprised to see you here.”
“You shouldn’t be,” she answered with a shrug. “You saw at the door, I kind of...live here.” Glancing around the kitchen, she added, “Here, here.”
“Oh,” was all he could muster. “You’re Alya’s housemate.”
“And the person who has to clean this up in a few hours.” She nodded.
“Well, ‘person who has to clean this up in a few hours’, I’m Adrien,” he said, closing the distance between them as he offered his hand. “Adrien Agreste.”
“Marinette,” she replied, accepting his hand. “Marinette Dupain-Cheng”