Work Text:
Wide awake, gettin' half-past zero
It's getting heated, so I leave the windows open
(Leave the windows open)
Silence and darkness surrounded Adrien in the small room. For the last week, Paris had been suffering from the unbearable summer heat that made no promise to end. A couple of hours earlier he had opened the windows to erase the smell of mold and cheap cigarettes at least a little. But that had had no effect. Despite the time being way past midnight, the night air was still hot and stifling, without even the slightest breeze.
He was lying motionless in bed; his gaze was fixated on the light bulb dangling from the ceiling on a suspiciously thin cord. Only Plagg’s soft purring, the buzzing of a half-dead fly stuck in the sticky trap, and Adrien’s shallow, irregular breathing could be heard. Sheets clung to his skin, droplets of sweat dripped from his forehead to his neck, and then onto the pillow. But Adrien didn’t give a damn about it.
Preoccupied with the late-night B-roll
Right now, laying here alone is heaven
(Here alone is heaven)
Even bone-deep exhaustion and a relatively safe hideout couldn’t help him fall asleep after everything that had happened in the past ten hours.The images of the final battle with Hawkmoth spun in his head in a constant loop.
The anticipation of the long-awaited victory had driven them forward. Ladybug and Chat Noir had been trying to process everything quickly and give an immediate response to the villain’s attacks. They had had a golden opportunity to tackle him and snatch the brooch from his chest. The shock from seeing and recognizing an unmasked magical terrorist as his father had stunned Chat. It had felt like a heavy punch to his chest, maybe even worse than Cataclysm applied to a living being.
Chat Noir just couldn’t face anyone after that revelation and the next one in the form of his mother lying in a glass coffin. He hadn’t been able to hear Ladybug’s choked gasps, Gabriel’s half-crazed threats and pleas to give him their Miraculous and help revive his wife. He hadn’t been able to force himself to stay, to hold a calm façade, to hand his father to the police and answer endless questions. First as Chat, then as Adrien. So he had just... fled from the scene, searching for shelter, the deepest hole to hide and ride out this disaster. That’s why he ended up in the cheap motel on the outskirts of Paris a couple of hours later.
And I've been a hero, helpless
I'm in hell
And I've cried up and down in these hallways
Blamed myself
Chat Noir ran down the halls of the mansion, roaring like a wounded beast. The tears blurred his visions, so he just moved forward blindly, crushing everything on his way. Mannequins in the atelier, vases with flowers, sculptures, paintings, and chairs.
How could he have been so blind? Live under the same roof with the monster and his dead mother for 6 years? How could the teenager crawl out of his skin to earn Gabriel’s approval, when in these years he had gotten only cold and disapproving stares and sheer disappointment seeping from the pronunciation of his name? How could he hope that this situation might change someday? ‘Stupid naїve child,’ he spat out venomously, looking at his sad face on the big portrait over the main stairway and punching the wall below it.
Bad luck, I don't wanna be home at midnight
The superhero fled into his room, quickly scooped his documents, some clothes, and cheese for Plagg, threw it into his duffel bag, and jumped from the window without looking back. Coming again to that cold, intimidating, and lifeless mansion was out of the question. He scowled, jumping from rooftop to rooftop. ‘I’m the wielder of destruction, bad luck is my partner. How else did I expect my life to turn out?’
Sun's up, but I really wanna fight the daylight
The first rays of sunshine started to fall from the open window onto the floor. Adrien growled, got up, and went to shut down the curtains. He sat on the floor in the middle of the room, clutching his head, inhaling and exhaling harshly and rapidly. Plagg, who had fallen asleep sometime in the night, stirred from his slumber. “Kid?” he flew to Adrien and started to circle around him with a worried expression. “How are you?”
“Do you even need to ask?” Adrien mumbled. “I wish this day had never come. I don’t want to get out of here and face the world. They probably think that I’m a supervillain too. Or at least some sort of sidekick for him.” He rubbed his eyes and laughed bitterly. “If only they knew…”
“We’ll get over this,” Plagg said confidently. “My kittens faced a lot of similar shit. Believe me, life will be back to normal. Not today and not tomorrow, though.”
I don't care if you moved on
I'm not layin' in bed with a fucked-up head
He couldn’t force himself to go to his friends. To the Grand Paris Hotel. To the warm bakery. To the apartment complex where his best friend lived. He didn’t know how he should approach Ladybug after this ordeal and his very inadequate reaction.
Maybe she would order him to relinquish his ring and Plagg? He doubted that she could continue to work alongside the son of her arch-nemesis. Maybe she would blame him too. How could he not have noticed? Not connected all the dots? Not reached out to his father and asked “What the heck is wrong with you? I’m here, focus on me!”? He had been too caught up in-
“Stop spiraling,” Plagg grumbled from across the room. Adrien sighed.
His father had ruined everything for him and would continue to do so. Would Adrien’s friends refuse to talk to the supervillain’s son or even to acknowledge him? Would his Lady, who hadn’t given him the time of day even without the terrorist’s last name lying like a heavy burden on his shoulders, want to continue working with him? Maybe, he wouldn’t be needed at all after Hawkmoth’s defeat...
Sun-dried on the backyard patio
Drunk eyes 'cause I didn't give it a home run
“Plagg, I’m going to the balcony,” Adrien decided suddenly.
The kwami eyed him suspiciously. “I hope you’re not gonna jump and break your neck?”
Adrien snorted. “I’m not that weak. Thanks for the concern, though.”
The summer heat didn’t go away, but it was a little bit cooler than at the time of his arrival at the motel. The bright morning sun blinded him immediately. His eyes hurt so much due to lack of sleep and unshed tears as if sand was there. Adrien stood motionless and stared into the distance, tuning out the hum of the barely awakened city around him. Then a quiet but distinct wheezing and scraps of words caught his attention.
Radio?
And more importantly… Ladybug's voice?
You're hiding on the FM radio
I sing along just to sing my thoughts at someone
He went back to the room, looking for a sound source. Yes, it was an old, worn down radio that suddenly started working in his room. Plagg was nowhere to be seen. Maybe it was he who had turned it on?
Adrien fumbled with switchers, trying to tune it properly and hear the familiar voice clearly. It seemed like he had been zoned out for too long and missed a start of Ladybug’s press conference. He caught only the last part of the superheroine’s speech where she asked Parisians to be patient, continue to resolve their negative emotions, and not lose hope. He sighed exasperatedly but choked on air when she asked to notify her if someone saw Chat Noir or knew his whereabouts.
The news anchor said goodbye, and the music started playing. Adrien fished clean clothes out of his bag and put them on the bed, then carefully laid the remaining cheese on the table, and put his passport and other documents in another section of the bag. He went to the bathroom and took a long shower.
After the return to the room, he started to dress. Music was still playing from the radio. A slightly anxious melody caught his attention. The lyrics of this song hit so close to home that he just couldn’t stop himself from singing along.
And I've been a hero, helpless
I'm in hell
He was twirling around, nearly shouting those lines and putting ridiculously dramatic expressions on his face.
And I've cried up and down in these hallways
Blamed myself
“And here’s my bad luck, celebrating without me. Nice show, Chaton.” Adrien heard a feminine voice and a kwami's snickers. He turned back to the balcony so abruptly that his feet nearly tripped over each other. His partner sat on the balcony’s railing; his kwami hovered over her head.
“Ladybug,” he whispered horrified. “H-how-”
“Plagg came to me.” His partner jumped from the railing and entered the room. The black kwami just flew to his cheese silently. Adrien stood rooted to the spot. She came closer, not daring to touch him.
“I understand now why you reacted so poorly to… him,” Ladybug whispered, studying his expression. “But you didn’t need to hide it from me.”
Adrien lowered his gaze to his feet. “Well, now you know and can take the ring away from Hawkmoth's son.” he mumbled.
“Why would I do that?” Ladybug asked. “I know you first and foremost as my partner, the brave and suave hero of Paris. He never gave me a single reason to doubt his loyalty.” She came even closer. “And I know you as Adrien Agreste. A very kind soul and not a single mean bone in that beautiful body of yours.”
Adrien flushed beet red at those words. His heart pounded in his chest as wildly as that beast that he had unleashed in himself last night.
Ladybug cupped his cheek gently. “You don’t need to hide from me.” She looked straight into his eyes. “Do you want me to stop hiding from you?”
His mind blanked. Was she offering him the chance to learn her real identity?
“D-do you want to reveal yourself? Are you sure? Isn’t it dangerous?” He asked.
She sighed. “It is. Even though Hawkmoth is defeated, a new supervillain could appear anytime. But you need full support from me right now, and that’s the most important thing. So I’m willing to give it to you with and without the mask. Do you want it? I’m not pressuring you, just offering. After all, I promised it to you a long time ago.”
He nodded, unable to utter a single word.
“Spots off.”
His dear sweet friend Marinette stood there. The love of his life, now without the mask. That combination of two of the most precious people was so wonderful, that he burst in tears immediately.
Marinette gave Tikki a macaron. The red kwami looked at the crying boy sympathetically and flew to the desk to join her counterpart and give their cChosen a moment to collect themselves. Marinette hugged her beloved tightly and soothed him, whispering words of encouragement and declarations of unconditional love.
I'm not layin' in bed with a fucked-up head
Determination and a strong desire to live slowly filled him back. He was sure that he could deal with anything with this woman by his side.
“You and me against the world, My Lady?”
“Always, My Prince.”