Work Text:
Marc tried to learn more origami after he was akumatized. It was a sort of coping mechanism for him. A way to take back some of the emotions Hawkmoth had twisted into villainy.
It started out with paper airplanes. He made them so much, it practically became instinct. Without him even realizing, Marc would make them when he was anxious about something, hands folding a sheet of paper into a perfectly made creation.
Eventually, Marc felt like he needed to expand his horizons. How was he supposed to improve if he kept doing the same thing over and over again? He started watching more tutorials from the internet, and before he knew it, Marc was regularly staying up late at night, trying to perfect a singular pattern.
This didn't escape people's notice.
Marc rubbed his face in an attempt to force himself to stay awake in the art room after school, just glad he didn't end up falling asleep in the middle of class. Mendeleiev was nicer to him, considering he was one of her favorite students, but she wouldn't let that be an excuse to alleviate him from any punishment.
Nathaniel sat down next to him, greeting his boyfriend with a quick kiss to the cheek, "Hey. You've been pretty sleepy today. That's usually my job." He accompanied the joke with a gentle, teasing shoulder bump. His voice grew softer as he quietly murmured, "But seriously, did something important happen?"
Marc smiled at how considerate the artist was, leaning his head on the other's shoulder, "Nah, I just stayed up late watching origami tutorials."
Nathaniel snickered, "Really? That's the thing that finally gets you to stay up late." He whined half heartedly as he continued, "And yet you won't even stay up until ten to speak to your beloved boyfriend."
Marc laughed, leaning his head up to give Nathaniel his own cheek kiss, "I'd rather have energy to see you in person." His giggles continued as Nathaniel blushed, dipping his head down, obscuring the dopey smile on his face with his bangs.
---
Maybe he should've stopped after the first night. But it soon became a habit for Marc to stay up on weekends watching origami videos. There was an entire drawer in his desk now just full of the things he had made while following the tutorials.
Fortune tellers, hats, frogs, butterflies, cranes, and even more. It felt like he had made every basic origami that existed.
Marc really should be reconsidering his decision. Instead of being in bed, he was sitting at his desk in the dark, only the light of his computer screen to illuminate his face as he fidgeted with the sheet of paper in his hands. Marc sighed, moving to stand up and actually go to sleep, but a video in his recommendations stopped him.
Huh. That seemed interesting. Plus it would be a good gift for Nathaniel.
And so he decided to ruin his sleep schedule even more.
---
Marc fumbled with the object in his hand as he went over to Nathaniel's house the next day to work on their comic together. He quickly hid it behind his back when Nathaniel opened the door with a smile, eagerly inviting him in.
They walked up to Nathaniel's room, Marc being careful to keep the item out of his boyfriend's sight the entire time. As they sat down on the bed, Nathaniel eventually spoke up, cuirousity clear in his tone, "So. What's behind your back?"
Marc fidgeted a bit, before pulling it out, revealing an origami rose.
"I just made it on a whim last night. It was just meant to be a simple gift, but when I was making it, I just started thinking of even more things."
He moved his free hand to rest it on Nathaniel's, looking up with warmth in his gaze.
"I love you so much. You're really such an amazing person and I feel like it was a miracle that I got to have you in my life, let alone dating you. I'm not that sure about the future. But I do know I want it to be with you. I hope this flower properly conveys that feeling to you."
Nathaniel blushed, stammering for a moment, before accepting the object, holding it by the stem as he looked at it. "That's a lot of sentiment for a simple paper." Despite his words, Marc could see the way Nathaniel's eyes softened at the gift, full of adoration and fondness.
Marc gently plucked it out of his hands, surprising Nathaniel. He brushed his bangs back behind his ear, before placing the rose there to pin the hair back. His hand trailed down to Nathaniel's cheek, holding it before pulling the artist in for a kiss.
"You look nice like that," Marc whispered with a small smile. Nathaniel's lips perked up, choosing to respond not with words, but bringing Marc back down for another kiss.