Work Text:
Marc knows as soon as the first petal appears. Hanahaki disease. He's going to die.
He coughs again, a rose petal, blue-green as the ocean, blue and green melting into each other, looking just like Nathaniel's eyes, joins the first rose petals, red as his hair, on the stone bench.
Nobody can know. He'll write up letters to his friends and family, explaining what happened. He'll keep them with him, so when he does die from the deadly beautiful petals, the people he love will know. But only once it's too late.
The wind gentlly picks the petals up and carries them away, across the river.
There is so much work to be done.
🌸
Two days since the first petal.
Marc starts coughing more up regularly. He fills his bag half way with the petals he coughs up at school and sets them free over the river in the afternoon, when no one's looking.
He sees Nathaniel at school and in the art room everyday. His heart aches for Nathaniel, but he won't put this burden on his friend. So he says nothing.
Marc continues to talk and laugh and blush as always. They work on their comic together, Marc writing up the script as Nathaniel designs the next akumatized victim. Weirdly, when Marc's with Nathaniel, the coughing slows down, so it's easier to hide the petals.
🌸
One week since the first petal.
Marc can feel his energy seeping away. The petals come out often now. His bag is full of petals by the end of the school day.
Still, when he's by Nathaniel, it gets better. Hardly any petals fall.
Their comic is coming along. The newest akuma turned a well-meaning romance novelist into a rose-themed villain bent on everyone revealing how they feel to their crush or else they die. Ladybug and Chat Noir are battling the villain with Mighty Illustrator and Reverser, when Mighty Illustrator is hit. In a very climatic moment, Mighty Illustrator is about to reveal his feelings to Ladybug, when the akuma is defeated and everyone has to change back. That night, Ladybug catches up with Mighty Illustrator and they confess their feelings for each other on a balcony. The ending is going to be the two kissing in front the moon.
Any idea of Nathaniel kissing Ladybug, or really anyone else, stabs a knife deeper into Marc's already bruised and broken heart. But he smiles through it, through the pain, through the tears, through the petals threatening to choke him.
Marc's written all of his letters, but one. Nathaniel's. How do you explain to your best friend and crush that you love him, and had gotten hanahaki disease, and that's what killed you?
He sighs out loud, five or six petals falling out onto the bench. Marc's sitting beside the river currently, writing in his notebook as the sky fades from Royal blue to navy. He's found it soothes him so Marc now spends most of his time not spent with school, Nathaniel and their comic, and sleeping, here. Just watching the river and Paris's lights.
Reading over what he's written, Marc has to admit, it's pretty good. Poetic, with a feeling of nostalgia and bittersweet love. It mentions the good times he and Nathaniel shared, and how much he loved working on their comic. It explicitly says that while he loves Nathaniel, and will continue to after death, he knows Nathaniel doesn't feel the same way and won't hold it against him. It wishes Nathaniel the best in life, and tells him to not worry himself over Marc's death. Marc has accepted his death as fact; it doesn't bother him.
Gently ripping the page out of his notebook, Marc carefully folds the letter as he silently coughs out more petals. Slipping the letter into a red envelope, Marc writes Nathaniel's name on the front before sliding it into the back of his notebook.
Sighing again, Marc stands up and watches the released petals scatter around him. There's not much wind tonight, so the petals just stay where they are, on the bench and ground.
A shudder runs through his body. Another symptom?
🌸
Two weeks since the first petal.
It's become very hard to hide the petals. Marc's constantly tired, and spasms regularly rack his body, almost to the point of falling down on the floor from the strength of them.
Still, no one has noticed the petals, and Marc knows he doesn't have much time left, so it's all good.
Nathaniel has given him some concerned looks and asked him if he's sleeping well or feeling sick. Hopefully he doesn't suspect anything...
Marc rests his head on the table front of him. He's currently in the art room, waiting for Nathaniel to come so they can work on their comic. It's very close to being done. Marc had given the script to Nathaniel some time around Tuesday, and today's Thursday, so today is probably going to be Nathaniel showing what he has so far.
"Marc? Marc, wake up!" Nathaniel nervously says, shaking Marc's shoulder.
"W-wha? Oh, hey Nathaniel," Marc says sleepily, blinking himself awake. "Did I fall asleep? Sorry-"
"Yeah, it's fine, you seem tired. Are you feeling okay?" Nathaniel cuts him off, staring into Marc's eyes.
"I-i'm fine," Marc says, unconvincingly.
Nathaniel frowns, but pulls out his draft for the comic. "So I got as far as Mighty Illustrator almost confessing to Ladybug, but then it just kinda . . ." Nathaniel trails off. "I don't know, I just got artist block. I tried, but it never had the right mood, the right feelings."
Marc nods. "Yeah, I got that too. Once he and Ladybug meet up on the balcony; somehow it just doesn't seem natural."
"Yeah," Nathaniel says. "So I was wondering if maybe Ladybug should confess her feelings for Cat Noir to Mighty Illustrator and Reverser. Then, in the next comic, maybe they could set up a way so Ladybug and Cat Noir can go on a date together.
"Yes!" Marc says, brightening up. "I was trying to write a date scene, but it wasn't working. But now," he says, talking to himself, "I think this'll work." He turns to Nathaniel. "Should an akuma interrupt the date, or should it be just some bonding time between characters?"
"I think it should just be bonding. Superheroes need some time off."
"Okay, yeah! I can-" Marc gets the feeling of choking, but it abates quickly. "Ahem, sorry, I can write the new ending tonight and have a rough draft of the next comic by
Nathaniel nods. "Okay, sounds good!"
🌸
Two weeks and one day since the first petal.
Nathaniel is very worried about Marc. He hasn't seemed right for weeks, getting more and more tired, coughing a lot, spams warring across his body. Yesterday he had found Marc asleep in his chair. Nathaniel never admitted this to Alix, but he had a horrible fear when he saw Marc asleep that Marc was dead.
Of course, he knew it was irrational, but at the time it had felt like a plausible fear.
And, it isn't just the thought of his closest friend (besides Alix) dying, it's the thought of Marc dying before Nathaniel has the chance to tell Marc he loves him. Has loved him since they made their first comic together. His eyes, those dark emerald green eyes. His hair, black and silky like raven wings.
And now, Nathaniel sighs, looking around the art room, he's late. Which never happens. Marc is always in the art room early or right on time, never late. Which could mean a lot of different things, and a lot of things could be stopping Marc from coming. But . . .
Nathaniel stands up and goes in search of Marc, a gut feeling telling him that Marc needs his help.
After only a couple minutes, Nathaniel finds a trail of petals. Heart growing cold with fear, he follows the faint trail until it leads to . . . "Marc," Nathaniel whispers, in shock.
Marc, curled up under the stairs, pale. Marc, passed out. Marc, who looks like he could be dead. Nathaniel gasps and races towards Marc, terror of being too late egging him on.
~🌸~
"Marc, Marc open your eyes," Nathaniel says panickly, shaking Marc.
Groaning, Marc does just that. It hurts . . to breathe . . . He can feel the petals . . blocking his lungs . . . preventing air from getting . . in. But he opens his eyes, if only to see Nathaniel one last time.
"Nath . . ." he whispers, one petal coming up and sticking to the edge of his mouth.
~🌸~
His whisper is so quiet and beautiful, Nathaniel doesn't know if he's going to cry or laugh. A red petal is stuck to the corner of his mouth, looking scarily similar to the trail of blood some people have appear before they die.
"Marc," Nathaniel says, leaning closer to Marc, "Marc, who caused this?"
Marc trembles and right when Nathaniel thinks he won't respond, whispers, "You. I love . . . you, Nathaniel. Don't . . don't hate yourself . . . I've accepted . . death."
Nathaniel's heart breaks and he has to blink the tears away. "Marc, I need to tell you something."
~🌸~
Nathaniel leans in, his eyes closed. Marc's close instinctively, and then the unthinkable happens. They kiss. Nathaniel's lips are warm and soft, gentle pressure on Marc's. The world falls away. The pain in his chest falls away, he can feel the petals disappearing from his lungs.
A hand lifts Marc's head closer to Nathaniel, and he lets it. He lifts one of his hands and slides it into Nathaniel's hair. They stay like that for who knows how long.
Eventually though, they move away. Nathaniel pulls Marc up into a sitting position, and he leans against Nathaniel's shoulder, too tired to try to sit upright.
"I love you too," Nathaniel whispers, resting his head on top of Marc's. He intertwines their hands together and Marc smiles at that, at the feeling of his hand in Nathaniel's.
🌸
One year since the first petal.
Arms wrap around Marc's waist. He giggles as Nathaniel leans in, kissing his cheek. They stay in that position, both staring out across the Paris skyline from the bridge.
"I nearly lost you that day," Nathaniel says after a while.
"I know," Marc whispers. "You saved me.
"Please never do that again," Nathaniel says.
Marc turns around and kisses Nathaniel on the lips. He breaks away, smiling and saying, "I promise I never will, so long as you promise to be up front about your orientation."
Nathaniel smiles and kisses Marc's nose. "I promise."