Work Text:
Nathaniel smiles. A fake, plastic smile, but a smile nonetheless.
Nathaniel talks. Empty words, empty phrases, empty promises, but he talks nonetheless.
Nathaniel’s father brings him everywhere, shows Nathaniel off at parties. Nathaniel isn’t allowed to do anything without his father’s permission.
Nathaniel draws, he draws and draws and draws. It’s the only time he can get away from it all. He doesn’t know why his father allows him to draw, but Nathaniel doesn’t take it for granted.
Nathaniel is lonely. No one talks to him. Well, except for Alix, but even she barely talks to him. They’ve known each other since they were little. It doesn’t seem that way. She hangs out with her friends, he… well he sits alone.
Nathaniel goes to the art club after school. He lies to his father, says his school ends later. His father doesn’t bother checking.
Nathaniel looks and he draws. There’s a girl in his class, Marinette. He draws them together, he draws himself as the hero, and he dreams. He dreams of one day being able to be that powerful, to be free .
Chloe sees his drawings and she laughs.
Nathaniel runs. Runs away, out of the classroom.
Hawkmoth notices.
Nathaniel is left alone, like always. Except, this time he’s left alone in an unfamiliar place. He quickly realizes that it’s Chloe’s bedroom. The heroes left him there. Ladybug is still kind of cool.
Nathaniel’s father gets worse. He starts paying attention to Nathaniel. He escalates from neglect to hitting. It’s nothing makeup can’t cover-up.
Nathaniel notices how cute some boys are. Nathaniel notices everything about them. Then, Nathaniel realizes. He likes boys.
Nathaniel hides. He hides from his father, who is coming home drunker and drunker, more and more aggressive. He hides from the bullies at school. He hides from himself.
Nathaniel meets a cute boy, a boy he can’t help but stare at. He seems nice.
Nathaniel sees. Sees the boy there instead of Ladybug, sees Marinette holding a camera.
Nathaniel gets angry. All his life he stayed quiet, not today. He rips up the notebook. The notebook that was used to prank him.
Later, Nathaniel regrets. He shouldn’t have done that.
Nathaniel saves. He helps the heroes!
Nathaniel meets Marc again. They work together. They create together. It’s...fun.
Nathaniel feels less alone.
Marc asks Nathaniel out. Marc asks Nathaniel out.
Marc and Nathaniel start dating.
Nathaniel’s father finds out. Nathaniel’s father is angry. Nathaniel’s father is violent.
Marc finds out about Nathaniel’s father. Marc is angry.
Nathaniel’s father goes missing. No one knows how or why. It’s all over the news. Then… people forget, they move on.
Nathaniel is… happy. Has Nathaniel truly ever been able to describe himself like that? Well, Nathaniel is happy. Nathaniel is with Marc. Nathaniel is not with his father. Nathaniel has friends.
Nathaniel is free .