Work Text:
It had been summer when Marinette had started getting the text messages. Her parents had to get Marinette a new phone and number so her classmates would stop texting her hate. What they did not know was that Marinette had moved the phone number to a different plan. Her previous number and phone was still active. Marinette was still being harassed and bullied by her classmates.
Over the course of the summer her mood decreased. Her old phone was hooked up to a charger, and was constantly going off. Mostly by Alya, Lila, and Adrien. Ass telling her various things and threats. But Marinette felt she needed to keep the phone. For evidence, because she was going to sue each and every classmate as soon as they were of age. It did not bother Marinette, as she had realised her classmates were no longer friends.
Only a select few people had Marinette’s new number. Her maman, papa, nana and grandpere, were the only family allowed the number. Damian and his family had her new number, although they did not know why she switched it. Jagged, Penny, and Clara all had her number. They knew not to share her number around. Marinette had described in vague terms why she had to change her number. They were not happy about Marinette being harassed, and as such promised to not share the number. The only friends that had Mari’s new number were Luka, Kagami, Jon, and Chloe. Chloe had become a friend after her entire class had turned against her.
However, today Marinette was excited. Damian was spending the last three weeks of summer break with Marinette in Paris. He was staying in “Le Grand Paris”, thanks to Chloe reserving a room for him to use with his brother Dick.
She got a text on her new phone, and she looked at it. It was Damian, signaling that he was at the hotel, and would be at the bakery soon. Smiling, Marinette sat next to her desk on her chair. That was when she saw her old phone on the charger.
Smile fading, Marinette picked up the phone. She promised herself that she would not look at them anymore . Alas, Marinette turned the phone on, and unlocked the screen. Thousands of message notifications built up on the red circle to the corner of her messaging apps. Fully knowing what the messages were about, Mari still clicked on them. Reading them still brought tears to her eyes, all these months later.
Alya:
Marinette, why the hell are you so mean to Lila? What the hell happened? You used to be so sweet and kind, and you have turned into a bitch. I don’t even recognise who you are anymore. You are not the girl who I became friends with. I can’t be friends with someone like you.
What? Not even going to bother responding? How horrible of a person can you be? Do you even care?
Figures you wouldn't. I won’t even be surprised if you worked for Hawkmoth.
There were many more texts from Alya, and each one hurt Marinette. She exited the chat, not bothering to reply. It would just make her reply even angrier. She went to the next most: Lila.
Lila:
I told you that I would take all your friends away. Yet, you didn’t believe me. See where you are now? It is all your fault.
I used make-up to make it look like you had punched me today. And oh, was it exhilarating watching you get beaten up for it. What friends you used to have, leaving you for something new. Hey, that rhymed. Maybe I should fake being a famous poet next.
Alya can’t even look at you without getting mad. Oh how the mighty has fallen.
Too scared to message me back? Don’t make me laugh.
I got akumatized today. Everyone thinks that you are the reason. You will /never/ get them back. I’ve won.
Marinette was upset about Lila’s gloating. She didn’t cry, but she was royally pissed. However, Marinette would use Lila’s words against her. Clicking out, Marinette looked at the other chats from her ex-friends.
Kim:
I can’t believe how much you’ve changed. What happened to the sweet girl that used to be my best friend?
Why would you cause Lila’s akuma? What did you do?
Why have you stopped responding? Have you blocked us? I see you frequently on your phone, so it's not like you aren't using it anymore.
Max:
The probability of you changing personality so drastically is improbable. So, what caused it?
Lila says she has texted you for class meetups. Yet, you no longer reply to anyone, despite constantly appearing on your phone. Was your number changed?
Sabrina:
You say you hate to be compared to Chloe, yet here you stand, worse than she ever was. Chlow never physically assaulted anyone. You punched her. You deserve what the boys did to you. You deserved to reap what you sow.
Adrien:
Why did you have to bait Lila? It wasn’t doing any harm. She wasn’t affecting anyone. You are our Everyday Ladybug. You need to do better.
The guys beat you. That wouldn’t have happened if you let Lila lie. She wasn’t harming anything, until you did that.
Mrs. Bustier:
Marinette, you are supposed to be an example to the class. You are supposed to be in charge, as the class president. You need to fix the rift between you and your classmates. Be kind to Lila, you know she can’t help all the disabilities.
Marinette shut off her phone. Anger and sad tears cascading down her face. Holding her phone to her chest, she mourned the lost relationships she once had. She was lucky that Hawkmoth had seemingly taken a break in akumas. Suspiciously, Gabriel Agreste was also out of town.
The trap door opened to reveal Damian. He lost the small grin to worry, and rushed over to Marinette.
“Beloved, what is the matter?”
“N-nothing I should care about.”
“I did not ask about what you should and shouldn't be upset about. I asked why you were upset.”
“The reason I changed numbers.”
“What?”
“I changed my number so I would stop being texted constantly by my class.”
“What were they saying?”
Marinette handed over the phone to Damian. He looked at the last few messages that Marinette had looked up, then turned it off. He slipped the phone in his pocket, and stood up. He cocooned Marinette in a blanket, and set her on the bed. He then grabbed the laptop to watch some of Marinette’s favorite movies.
“Dami, I’m gonna need the phone back.”
“No, I will be keeping it.”
“I need it for when I take them to court!”
“When? Why not now?”
“It’s because they are still minors. It would affect their parents more than them. Their parents didn’t do anything wrong!”
“Hmm,” Damian hummed. “I will take the phone, and have Drake and I document everything. Then, when the time comes you can go to court and sue them. That way you still have evidence, but will be unable to see anything they’ve said.”
“Ok…”
“Thank you, beloved. I care more about your personal health than suing a bunch of miscreants. They will pay, but not at the expense of you.”
“I love you, Damian.”
“And I love you, Marinette.”