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‘Cross over the front, then over the top, through the loop..’ Sabine watched out the corner of her eye as Adrien went through the motions of tying his skinny tie. She had to stifle a laugh when her daughter swatted at his hands, settling for a grin when he sputtered. ‘Someone’s a little nervous!’
To be honest, Sabine was a little nervous herself. Imagine her surprise when her daughter announced that she was dating someone from school. Now imagine it ten-fold when that someone turned out to be the handsome son of world renowned Gabriel Agreste!
Sheepishly, she recalled how guarded she was toward him. Although Sabine always told her daughter not to judge someone before you got to know them, the matriarch of the family found herself a little wary about Marinette dating someone so rich. Having worked so hard throughout her life, Sabine knew how pompous and arrogant those with money could be. So it came as a pleasant surprise when she opened her front door one day to a rather sweet and shy blond boy.
Between his good looks and his gentle disposition, Adrien gained Sabine and Tom’s blessings and quickly found himself a regular in the Dupain-Cheng household. Sabine couldn’t have asked for a better boyfriend for Marinette; The two teenagers treated each other with all the trimmings that came with young love. Marinette’s cheerful behaviour opened up a goofier side of Adrien, while Adrien’s calm demeanor boosted Marinette’s confidence, something which her mother was eternally grateful for.
With the two of them together so often, Sabine approached Adrien one night asking about perhaps inviting his parents out to dinner. “You know,” she gestured, “to get to know one another a little more!” She hadn’t expected the deer in the headlights look the boy gave her nor the rather practiced transition into a stiff, but polite, resignation.
Running his hand through his hair, a blatantly nervous habit, Adrien had spoken softly, saying “I’m certain he would…love to.” His olive eyes had floated to the ceiling before drifting back down to the cookies on the counter. “But he gets so busy. I’ll ask him but…” She had caught his wandering eye, and he had offered a forced smile, looking exceedingly awkward. “You know.”
Sabine did not ‘know’, but she quickly found out; According to Marinette, Adrien’s relationship with his father was more than a little strained. “Not that they don’t get along!” she recalled Marinette amending, her daughter’s hands flapping in panic. It was just that, what with Gabriel Agreste and his son’s tight schedules, the two didn’t exactly see each other often. “In fact,” her daughter went on, “I’ve never even met Mr. Agreste. Well,” she mused, fingers drumming on her chin, “not in the flesh at least.” Of a Mrs. Agreste, Marinette hadn’t say. Adrien never mentioned his mother and, Marinette was keen enough not to pry. Sabine though that a wise decision.
So it was that, through a miracle on high, they all made it to a reservation at La Maison on April 23 with the fashion designer Gabriel Agreste. It was the Dupain-Cheng family’s second attempt at dinner; the first had been cancelled last minute by Mr. Agreste and had left Adrien mortified. Sabine and Tom both placated him, assuring the teenager that, really, it was alright and that, yes, they understood. Marinette’s promise of a few marzipan candies and a tight hug raised his spirits exponentially and thus the night was salvaged.
Now, standing in the lobby of the La Maison, Sabine found herself looking for ways to kill time. They had come a little early and found Adrien there, alone. Apparently, his father was running a little late and would arrive shortly with his assistant. That rubbed Sabine the wrong way, but with Adrien already on edge and Marinette buzzing with nervous excitement, she kept her thoughts to herself.
It appeared that she didn’t have to waste too much time; Marinette had just finished retying Adrien’s half done tie, when a man strode through the door, looking for all the world like a king. Gabriel Agreste was far more imposing in real life than he was on T.V. or in magazines; Despite being only about 170 cm, the fashion mogul seemed to tower over everyone in the lobby, including Tom. His icy gaze swept through them all, before settling on Marinette. He dipped his head slightly. “Miss Marinette. It’s a pleasure to see you again.”
She froze up and smiled nervously. “Hello Mr. Agreste! It’s so nice to see you too.” Marinette wiggled in excitement, and Sabine found herself smiling despite her reserves against Gabriel. In the fashion world, he was a bit godly and Marinette was all too hyped to meet one of her biggest inspirations.
Still, her brief moment of warmth faded as she watched the rather cool greeting between Adrien and his father. Adrien’s soft smile looked more jittery than happy and Gabriel hardly returned the favor. As awful as it sounded, she sort of wished that Gabriel had kept more of his attention on his son, no matter how strained it looked, when he turned his frosty eyes on her.
“You must be Marinette’s mother. Mrs….?”
“Cheng.” Sabine supplied as politely as she could. His mannerisms just shouted ‘wrong’ at her, but she was still trying to give him the benefit of the doubt, at least for Marinette and Adrien’s sake.
“Mrs. Cheng.” He said softly and gave a short nod. Facing Tom, he added, “That must make you Mr. Dupain, yes?”
Tom’s wide smile seemed to melt the tension in the room a bit. “That I am!”
A sharp voice suddenly cut in. Sabine frowned and the tension flowed back in.
“Mr. Agreste, perhaps we should get a table.” A thin bored looking woman with too much blue eyeshadow didn’t even look up from the tablet she carried as she spoke. “It’s already 6:22 and you have a meeting with Amancio Ortega at 8:15.”
A startled gasp emitted from behind the woman.
“THE Amancio Ortega??” Marinette gaped like a fish. Adrien smiled in amusement at her, hiding it behind his free hand.
The woman sighed in obvious annoyance. “Yes, the Amancio Ortega.” Sabine narrowed her eyes at the woman when she swore she heard a muttered “honestly” and roll her eyes.
Unfortunately for Sabine, and rather luckily for the woman, Tom interjected with a loud, “I suppose we should get a table. After all, we don’t want to make Mr. Agreste late for his very important meeting.” He gave his wife a long look. “Right?”
She smiled tightly and grit out, “Right.”
The bored looking woman humphed and turned her attention to her tablet once more.
As the group headed inside the restaurant, Marinette bounded over to her mother’s side, leaving Adrien to speak with his father. Taking her mother’s hand, she said with air of a conspirator, “I think tonight’s gonna be interesting.”
Listening to Gabriel remark to Adrien with a sigh that the decor looked “like it was trying to hard” and that he “supposed it would do”, Sabine sincerely hoped Marinette was terribly wrong.
__________________________
They didn’t even make it past the appetizers.
Sabine was relieved to learn that the bored looking woman was Gabriel’s assistant, not Adrien’s mother. However, the woman, Nathalie, was still in charge of Adrien’s care, with Gabriel barely making waves in his son’s life. All this was enough to chafe on Sabine’s nerves but it was ordering dinner that the maternal instinct finally let loose.
It was as they were all looking through the menu that Marinette pointed out the crawfish ravioli to Adrien. “After all, I know how much you like fish,” she teased, some inside joke apparently. Her boyfriend shot her a look, causing her grin to widen. He finally smiled and rolled his eyes.
“It does sound good though.” He closed his menu. He gave her a wicked grin. “You could say the cat’s gonna get the cream.” She playfully punched his shoulder.
“Dork.”
Nathalie cleared her throat and shot Adrien a pointed look. “Perhaps not. How about the fresh salad?” She gestured to the menu. “It has a healthy mix of protein and vegetables and far less…. cream.” Her gaze switched to Marinette as if accentuating the word. Sabine narrowed her eyes.
“So?”
“So Adrien needs to watch his figure.” Gabriel hardly even spared her a glance. “He’s a model after all.” Adrien deflated and Marinette took sudden interest in the room’s decor.
Sabine stared at Gabriel in utter disbelief. “Watch his figure? You can’t be serious.” His cold gaze flickered up to her hard glare.
He closed his menu and folded his fingers together, his undivided attention placed on Sabine. “I’m entirely serious. Why wouldn’t I be?”
“Look at him!” Sabine threw her hands toward Adrien and Marinette, both attempting to remain neutral. “He’s skinny enough! If anything, he should be eating more! He eats well enough at my house.”
Tom reached out and placed a warning hand on her arm. “Sabine…”
“Tom, not now.” Sabine was in full ‘mommy’ mode and there was no snapping her out of it. Sensing that his wife knew what she was doing, he backed off.
Gabriel narrowed his eyes disapprovingly. Waving his hand as if to disregard her, he said, “Honestly, must you sound like a brute? You’re so harsh to your husband.” Beside him, Nathalie hummed in agreement.
“Wow!” Marinette burst. She took a huge bite of bread. “Isn’t this bread just delicious? Nice and warm. Right, Adrien?” Marinette’s nervous look did little to help Adrien, who had that deer in the headlights look again, teeth gritted tightly. Her flimsy smile faltered, and she took Adrien’s hand under the table, running her thumb over his knuckles. Sabine and Gabriel ignored her, while Tom gave her a soft smile and Nathalie shot her a sour scowl.
Crossing her arms, Sabine spat, “At least I’m willing to speak openly to someone. You know,” she wiggled her fingers at him that same way he had her, “instead through an assistant.” Nathalie looked scandalized.
Gabriel narrowed his eyes and curled his lip into a frown. He clasped his fingers tightly together. “I don’t like what you’re implying Mrs. Cheng.” Like a snake poised to strike, he finished, “I think you’re implying I don’t know what’s best for my son.”
“Oh!” Sabine feigned surprise and put a hand to her mouth daintily. “You have me confused than Mr. Agreste.” She smacked her hands down on the table and spat out, “I’m not implying anything; You DON’T know what’s best for your son. In fact, I’d say you don’t know anything about him at all.”
By this point in time, several other diners had taken note of the argument happening. Both Marinette and Adrien were relieved that they had taken a back table, away from most patrons, but the argument was still getting out of hand. Marinette didn’t even try to get her mother to back down; it would be like telling the sun not to rise. Instead, Adrien, despite distress being painted on his face, attempted to defuse the situation.
“Father, please…” Adrien said weakly. Gabriel’s attention snapped to his son immediately, causing the latter to freeze up. Under the table, Marinette squeezed his hand hard.
Both Nathalie and Gabriel glared hotly at Adrien. “I let you go to the public school and this is what happens?” Counting off on his fingers, he growled, “First, that delinquent Nero-”
“Nino…” Adrien corrected quietly, mouth snapping shut at his father’s hardened glare.
“Nino. And now this girl, whose family seems to be unhinged.”
“Hey!” Marinette, Tom, and Sabine shouted at the same moment. Adrien let his head fall into his hands and stared at the table instead.
Sabine stood suddenly, hands firmly placed on the table. “I’ve heard enough of this bullshit.”
Gabriel also stood, Nathalie quickly following suit. “For once, we agree on something. Adrien,” Adrien looked up at his father tiredly. “I, for one, don’t think you should see this girl anymore. In fact, maybe we should rethink public school altogether.”
“You have got to be kidding me.” Adrien muttered just loud enough for Marinette to hear. Marinette sent her mother a pleading look upon watching her boyfriend cover his head with his arms.
Sympathy flooded Sabine, and she gathered her purse and coat into her arms. “Tom, I think we should let the kids have a bit of time to themselves, so let’s go.” Tilting her chin at Gabriel, she said stiffly, “Since you are SO busy and need things to be spelled out for you in the plainest way possible, I’ll leave you with this; Listen to Adrien. Talk to him, ask him about things. He’s a smart, sweet boy, and I’m so proud that Marinette has found somebody as kind as he is. YOU should be proud of him, and you should let him know that instead of hiding behind your little secretary there.” Sabine was pleased to see that for the first time that evening Gabriel looked uncertain, his eyes wavering between her and Adrien. He closed his eyes tightly and turned on his heel, leaving the table behind, Nathalie not to far behind him.
“Oh!” Sabine snapped her fingers, drawing Gabriel and Nathalie’s attention again. Adrien and Marinette also looked up, waiting to see what else Sabine would say. Smirking viciously, she called, “Nathalie you might want to stop by the pharmacy on the way home and get some laxatives. You tend to look a little constipated.” Nathalie’s shocked expression drew laughter from both Marinette and Adrien for the first time that evening, and she stormed off with her cheeks flushed red. A flustered Gabriel trailed behind her, and the two exited the restaurant.
Tom seemed to have read Sabine’s mind and fished out €40, handing it off to Marinette. “Why don’t you two get something to eat? Your mother and I are gonna head out.”
“Thanks, Dad,” she smiled gratefully at her father and shared a wink with her mother.
Just before the two left, Adrien managed to find his voice. “Mrs. Cheng…” he trailed, grasping for words. He sounded tired, but his face looked relieved. “I’m sorry for everything… he’s just-” He sighed.
Sabine cut him off by reaching for both his hands. She gave him the smile she reserved only for Tom and Marinette and murmured as honestly as she could, “Adrien, there is nothing to be sorry for. You are always welcome in our house. Always.”
The tension finally bleed out of his shoulders and he replied with a hoarse, “Thank you. So, so much.”
She squeezed his hands, and finally the Dupain-Cheng parents made their way out into the night.
It was quiet for a few long moments, the two of them sitting close to one another in the disastrous aftermath. And for once it wasn’t buildings or cars that had been damaged in a fight. Adrien broke the silence first.
“Your mom is the coolest.” He said softly, green eyes floating over to Marinette.
She smiled sweetly and gave him a soft hug. “I know. Where do you think I get it from?”