Work Text:
The rain was coming down with a vengeance that day. The dark grey sky lit up every once in a while with bright strikes of lightning followed by loud booming thunder only seconds later, while the street beyond the wrought iron gate was slowly turning into a miniature river. The steady sound of raindrops hitting the window might have calmed her down on any other day, but this was not one of those days.
Nathalie watched with mild annoyance as the sky continued to threaten the poor commuters of Paris. Her fingers tightened around her own keys as she saw cars driving a mile a minute down the road. There was no way she'd make it home in a timely manner. She sighed and closed her eyes, keeping them shut even as she heard someone walk up beside her.
"Never mind cats and dogs, its raining chickens and ducks out there," her boss said. “Such fowl weather.”
She stifled a laugh and turned to look up at him, her face etched with concern. He met her eyes with a smirk and an eyebrow raised in amusement.
"Sir, did you just make a joke?" she asked.
“Was it that bad?”
“No! I just didn't think you had it in you.”
“Miss Sancoeur, you have worked for me for how many years and you still find time to be surprised by the things I do?"
“You’ve got me there.”
He chuckled and cast his gaze back to the monsoon outside. She felt his arm come to rest around her shoulders and leaned into him. His touch was always a comfort to her.
“I think I’ll wait an hour to go home. That or until the rain stops. Either way, the drive is going to be brutal.”
His arm around her tightened. “You must think me mad if I’m going to allow my dear peahen to drive in that weather at all.”
"Is your repertoire exclusively bird puns now?"
"That wasn't a pun. You are my peahen, are you not?"
“I suppose I am, but you shouldn’t go around saying it out loud like that.”
“Always so paranoid. Fine, you’re my peahen in private. Happy now?”
“Extremely.”
“You’re still not driving.”
“How else am I going to get home?”
“You can stay the night.”
“Ah yes, let me just stay the night at my boss’s house. That should look really good to prying eyes.”
She was sure he had rolled his eyes when he heard her snarky reply. “Nathalie you literally have a room here. I’m sure there's been cause for people to speculate for a time now.”
“That’s different. I only use it during the day. Staying the night is an entirely different game.”
“You stayed after the business with Feast.”
“I went home before I came back to help you, so I was still in bed to everyone around me. People will know I stayed when I don't come home tonight.”
“You’re grasping at straws.”
“I’m just looking out for your reputation.”
As they stood and watched the rain, a large lightning strike lit up the sky right above the mansion and caused both of them to jump. The thunder that followed sounded like a bomb going off. The previously crawling traffic had now come to a complete halt and sirens could be heard in the distance. He looked down at her and tilted his head, giving her a how-about-now look. If only she could wipe that smirk off his face. She couldn’t though, choosing instead to submit to his wishes, much to his thinly-veiled joy.
“Perhaps I will stay the night,” she said begrudgingly.
Though she wished she were in her own home, Nathalie couldn’t help the warm feeling she felt in her chest as she listened to Adrien talk about his day at dinner. The boy had already been happy to see that his dad would be eating dinner with him, but he was over the moon when he learned that Nathalie would be joining them as well. It caused her to make a mental note to do this more. She smiled thoughtfully as he regaled her with stories about fencing, science class, and everything under the sun. He talked so much that she wondered if he had tired himself out. It wasn’t hard to see how exhausted he was when dinner was finished and he walked off to his room.
She had bid Gabriel a good night before making her way to her appointed guest bedroom. At this point it was probably better to just call it her room, seeing as how she used it so frequently. Though she hadn’t planned any overnight stays, the closet still had comfy clothes she could use in place of pyjamas. Once she had slipped on a pair of sweats and an oversized black sweater, she had climbed into bed intent on answering a few emails before drifting off to sleep. The last thing she remembered was contemplating just how mad she could make Audrey Bourgeois if she told her where she could shove her complaints about Gabriel’s designs being behind schedule. Somewhere along the way, she had dozed off, only to wake to another loud boom of thunder. The lightning had stopped before dinner, but now it seemed that the city was being assailed by it once again.
She looked over at the clock to see that she had only been asleep for an hour or so. It was barely past midnight. After putting away her tablet, she went downstairs to make herself a cup of tea, since she knew she wouldn’t fall asleep again with the weather picking back up.
That was how she found herself playing with an errant thread on her sleeve in the kitchen of the Agreste mansion in the dead of night. The dull monotony of watching the water heat made her completely oblivious to the world around her and as such, she missed it when a second person walked into the kitchen. The sound of someone clearing their throat caused her to whip her head around at an unfathomable speed, but she relaxed when she saw it was only Gabriel. Constantly having to tread as an evil sidekick while also covering for her villain boss was clearly wearing her down. Perhaps she should request some time off.
She kept her voice level as she greeted him. “My apologies, I hope I didn’t wake you, sir. I just couldn’t sleep.”
“No worries. I find myself unable to sleep as well. I figured I could use some…” he trailed off when he noticed the kettle heating on the stove.
She opened a drawer and pulled out a box before turning to him and showing it off proudly, “Tea?”
“That would be lovely. You know me too well.”
He sat at the table and watched her look for a second cup.
“I came down for the same thing. Kindred spirits, I guess.”
“When you work in such close proximity to someone for as long as we have, you're bound to pick up one or two of the same habits. I believe they call it the proximity principle.”
“It’s a shame I haven't gotten your affinity for being able to work on three hours of sleep.”
“That’s a rare talent Nathalie and not one for the faint of heart.”
She knew he was just joking, but she couldn’t help herself when she scoffed in mock annoyance and called him out.
“Are you calling me weak?”
The sound of him sputtering behind her made her giggle under her breath. It was good to know that she was one of the few people that could rattle the great immovable force that was Gabriel Agreste.
“Relax. I’m just joking.”
“You’re getting too bold for your own good.”
She laughed as she set the tea bags in the cups and poured in the water. “That’s just what you need though. I can’t always be your yes-man. Just think of what would happen to that ego of yours if I didn’t keep you grounded.”
“You’re right. I’d be helpless without you.”
She joined him at the table and set a cup of apricot tea in front of him. He was quick to notice that she hadn’t even asked him what flavor he wanted.
“What did I tell you? We even like the same tea.”
“It’s just tea. I don't think that drinks apply to your little proximity principle.”
“Oh yeah? Would you like some sugar then?” he asked as he pushed a small container toward her.
“No thank you. I don’t put anything in my tea.”
“Neither do I! You’re denying the facts.”
“Which are?”
“We’re slowly becoming one in the same.”
“I’m about to dump an entire container of milk in this cup if it’ll shut you up.”
“But then you’d spoil your tea, my dear.”
They locked eyes in an intense staredown. Well, it was intense on her part. While her eyes were narrowed and her gaze was sharp like a dagger, he was doing nothing to contain the mirth on his face. Why did this man live to torment her? They stared on for a few more moments before she scowled and looked away. He merely smiled and sipped his tea.
“I hate you,” she said.
“I’m sure you do,” came his nonchalant reply.
“I’m going to quit one of these days.”
“Oh really?”
“Yes. There's already a draft of my resignation letter on my computer. Maybe I should let you look it over for any errors before I submit it.”
“You would never.”
“And why are you so sure about that?”
“You would miss me too much.”
“Hardly.”
When he had finished his drink, he took the cup over to the sink and rinsed it out. Seeing him stand up thrilled Nathalie because she thought he was going to leave her to her own devices. Of course he didn't though.
She felt his hands on her shoulders as he came to stand behind her. The remaining tea in her own cup suddenly became the most interesting thing in the world to her and she busied herself with it immediately. Even when his deft fingers started to dig into her tension filled muscles, she refused to acknowledge it.
She heard him mutter "You're a ball of stress" under his breath, but she was hardly listening. The man was a master when it came to massages and her senses were working overtime just to keep her lucid. Maybe there was a very limited amount of perks that came with her job. She could almost laugh when she looked at the big picture. Here was her agoraphobic boss, who prioritized personal space above all else, throwing principle to the wind and practically feeling her up. She knew it was just her shoulders, but that was a lot when it came to him.
When she could take no more, she finally conceded and closed her eyes. His rhythmic movements were threatening to make her fall asleep until she tilted her head back and looked up at him. That damn smirk of his was quick to bring her back to reality.
"I'd love to know what's going on in that dastardly mind of yours, sir."
"Nothing too serious. I'm just wondering if you'd like to come back up to my room with me and de-stress."
She sucked in a sharp breath. Her insides felt like they were on fire and she was sure she was blushing like a rose at his words, but she kept her cool as always.
"What did you have in mind?"
"I was thinking we could watch a movie, if that interests you in the slightest."
"Oh if that's all it is…then yes. I'd love to."
"Perfect. Come along then. Time is of the essence."
"It's 12:30 in the morning. Time is redundant here."
"Nonsense. I want to start the movie by 12:40 so hurry up."
She was sure he just made that up on the spot to get back at her. Everything was either a contradiction or an argument with him, but right now he was being worse than ever. Nathalie never could understand why he had so much more personality later in the day, but she was realizing that he just opened up more and more as it got later. For all she knew, he'd be asking her to pick flowers and sing songs with him an hour from now.
Once she pulled herself from her thoughts and put her cup away, she reluctantly made her way upstairs and to his room. What a night this was shaping up to be.
His room was the same as ever, immaculate and clean, save for a random pile of clothing on the floor. She was surprised that his OCD had allowed for that. As always, she was shocked by the sheer size of his king sized four poster bed that threatened to take up the entire space. It was clear that this room had his wife’s touch. Gabriel would sleep on a mat in the corner of an empty room if he could, just for the sake of practicality. He was already reclining on the couch in front of his TV and flipping through the channels. Without a word, he patted the space next to him, beckoning her to join him.
The couch was like a cloud, causing her to sink back into the cushions and sigh contentedly. This would do wonders for her back. She lay there with her eyes closed and listened to the tap of the buttons on the remote, wishing she could just lounge there forever.
She wasn’t even listening when Gabriel spoke up. “What should we watch? I can’t find anything.”
“Hmmm?” she asked, barely opening her eyes.
“I need a movie recommendation, Miss Sleepyhead.”
“Ugh, why me? I’m not a film junkie. Just put on something I can make fun of.”
“Perhaps we should pick something about fashion and scoff at their ridiculous attire. I can’t believe what passes for style these days.”
“Hey, more power to you. We can pretend it's the middle of Paris Fashion Week. Though I doubt you can replicate the levels of ‘Gabriel’ that you reach at those shows.”
“I’m not that bad.”
“Correct. You’re worse.”
“Ok no fashion movies. I don’t need my assistant mocking me any more than she already does.”
“You know you like it. Why else would you keep me around?”
“Hush. We’re watching Ratatouille.”
She opened her eyes to see him ordering the movie on demand. She’d never took him for a fan of animated children’s movies. Though she had never thought he’d be a super villain that terrorized Paris either, so she was used to him adding new layers to his character.
“Isn’t this the American movie about some French rat that can cook?”
“Yes. I remember watching it when it first came out and finding it ridiculous so it should suffice. Do you like Ratatouille?”
“The food or the movie?”
“Both.”
“No. I hate tomatoes and I saw this with my niece and couldn’t stand the music.”
“The music?”
“I hated it. It reminded me of this awful Italian language tutor I had back in school. She’d play stuff like that non-stop. I don’t know, maybe I'm misremembering. It’s been a few years."
“This should be good then.”
Once the opening previews had started, he left the couch and started digging around in his closet. He came out a moment later with a big fluffy blanket and draped it over her, tucking the corners behind her shoulders in a rather sweet gesture.
“Are you sure you don’t want to share this? I wouldn’t want you to be cold for my sake,” she found herself saying as he returned to his seat beside her.
“I’ll be fine. Don’t worry.”
She pretended to be convinced, but it wasn’t long until she noticed him start to fidget. He wasn’t very subtle as he brushed his hands up and down his arms to warm them up. She said nothing as she moved closer to him and wrapped the blanket around him. He responded by pulling her into his chest. Neither of them said anything about the fact that they were basically cuddling. The only comments made were the occasional jokes about something in the movie.
Despite her earlier complaints, she actually found herself enjoying the film. She found Remy to be rather endearing. At least he knew how to be respectful to a friend rather than Gabriel who interrupted her gaze with his hand in her face. Before she shoved him away, she noticed a large tin that was now sitting next to him. It was overflowing with…
"Walnut?" he asked. His hand was already inching back toward her mouth so she really had no choice as she let him feed her one. She watched him dig a handful out of the tin to hold in his palm.
“Where did you get that?”
“It was by the foot of the couch.”
"And you just keep a giant tin of walnuts in your room?"
"Yeah. They help with inspiration."
"Oh. Sounds neat." She was not about to ask him to elaborate, but she allowed him to occasionally pop a few more in her mouth. What luck to have found a boss that not only kept her warm, but fed as well.
They stayed glued to each other all the way to the credits. She was yearning for another movie so they wouldn't have to move, but it was already too late as it was. They needed to at least try to get some sleep if either of them were going to survive the workday.
She was still bundled up in the blanket and basically laying on him, but he made no move to push her off of him. He really did act so differently with her. No other person outside of his close family would ever be afforded the luxury of being so near to him, much less in this position.
“Ok that wasn’t so bad. Second time’s the charm,” she said.
“Agreed. I found it to be quite enjoyable.”
“I…uh had a nice time. This was fun.”
“We should do it again.” His warm smile made her heart melt, but also made her stomach twist into a thousand knots. This was wrong even though it felt so good.
She sat up and tried to untangle herself from his arms and the blanket. “I don’t…I think I should go.”
He allowed her pull herself in a sitting position, but was hesitant to let her go. A gentle hand on her leg stopped her from leaving, though she noted that his touch was feather light as if he were trying to tell her that he wouldn’t force her to do anything she didn’t want. She could stand up and he wouldn’t grab her. His face was unusually void of his typical mask, his emotions displayed all over his features. He looked conflicted.
"Stay,” he almost whispered.
"But, this is hardly profess-"
"I don't care. It's cold and you are warm, therefore I'd like you to stay."
His face softened when he saw that she was still unsure so he took her hand in his and ran his thumb over her knuckles. It was a gesture that he did all the time, but it felt different today. There was an emotion behind it that she couldn’t pick up on, but she could hazard a few guesses as to what it could be.
“You can go if you want, but I really would like you to stay. We can talk about this later or not at all if you’d like. It’s all up to you. I just find your company to be very pleasant,” he said softly.
“I…”
She thought for a moment. They had always been rather close anyway and she knew that he had never had an inkling about her feelings for him. She was also dying to know if that bed was anywhere near as comfortable as the couch was and his insistent periwinkle eyes were making it harder to consider leaving. In the end she found herself buried under a thick comforter with her head resting on his chest and his arm slung over her. Her last thought was how this meant nothing and it was all in the name of a very soft mattress, but it was a rather thin excuse.
Later in the morning, when she would wake up to his fingers lazily trailing through her hair, she would still insist it meant nothing. Even when she sent Adrien off to school and found herself cuddled on the couch with him once again after she cleared his schedule, she would still repeat that over and over again in her head. Even if she knew it was a big fat lie.