Work Text:
Marinette had been weird all day. Adrien had really tried to make her smile. What usually worked had not. Worse than that, his girlfriend had even avoided him. And he could sense something was wrong. It was not just another weird Marinette thing, he could feel it. It was something deeper this time. So he decided he should try to talk to her. At the end of the school day, Marinette was waiting for him. She seemed nervous, which made him nervous. Apparently, he wasn’t the only one who wanted to talk…
— Hey Marinette. Are you okay?
She looked at him, with something in her expression which made him anxious.
—I’m… sorry Adrien. I just… can’t be with you right now.
— Wh… what are you saying Marinette?
— I think… we should break up.
Adrien’s eyes widened, but Marinette broke the eye-contact, now looking at the ground.
— I… I just don’t think we’re a good… fit.
— How… how can you even say that Marinette? We love each other!
Marinette did not answer. She instead took a step back, trying to slowly get away from him.
—I don’t… I don’t understand. Does it have something to do with my father?
— No! she answered quickly – too quickly maybe – I… I…
— Then what is it Marinette?
— I just don’t… I don’t love you anymore.
Without waiting for his response, she turned away and ran. Adrien stayed where he was, shocked. Marinette was telling him the day before that she loved him. They never fought, and yet, it was already their second breakup. Adrien just couldn’t understand what was wrong with them. He felt tears coming up, and decided to go home too. Part of him wanted to run after Marinette. But clearly, the young girl didn’t want to be near him. It wouldn’t do any good to force a dialogue right now.
However… he could try having a conversation with her as… Cat Noir. They had history and due to the last events, they had run into each other those past few days, more than once. It would not be this weird… right?
He transformed himself into Cat before going to Marinette’s house. She was at her balcony, looking sadder than ever. He had already seen her like that a few times. Marinette could sometimes be as bright as the sun, with a smile instantly warming your heart… but could also be so, so sad. He didn’t understand it. Of course, he knew she dealt with a huge amount of anxiety, and also knew she had trouble trusting herself sometimes. He knew it even when she seemed confident. She had tons of ideas, and was always volunteering to help people. But when it came to herself, all the confidence seemed to disappear.
He decided to join her. He needed explanations. If she didn’t want to give him some as Adrien… maybe he would get them as Cat Noir. And hopefully, could fix it somehow. He was pretty sure she did love him, and pretty sure he hadn’t anything wrong. At least, not that he knew of. But he had noticed Marinette seemed quite tired these days, and could only assume something was wrong.
—Hey, Princess…
She jumped slightly, not expecting anyone to be here.
—What… what are you doing here, Cat?
— I was just in the neighborhood and heard you crying. I’m sorry if I’m intruding but… I wanted to be sure you were okay. What’s wrong?
— The question would be what is right.
Her tone was harsh, but her eyes were desperate. Adrien’s heart tightened in his chest.
— What do you mean?
— I… nothing. Forget it.
— No, really, he insisted, I want to help you… if I can.
Marinette sniffed a little before answering:
—I just broke up with my boyfriend…
— Really? Why? Did he do something…?
— No, not at all! she exclaimed, he’s… he’s the best thing that ever happened to me.
— Then… why did you…
— I can’t tell you.
— Why?
— Because I can’t, Cat. Now please… just go away, she shouted.
Adrien froze. He had never seen Marinette so angry, so… unhappy before. Something was defintly wrong here. He had a bad feeling and looked around them, and saw a butterfly – an Ultrakuma ! – coming towards his girl.
— Cata…
But like last time, he could not do it and witnessed the butterfly touching Marinette’s bracelet. To his horror, the mask appeared.
It was the third time he was seeing her being akumatized. Last time, it was an illusion, yes, but still. He had a feeling that something terrible was happening to Marinette. Three times in a row? Was it just him or was the new Butterfly holder obsessed with his girlfriend? It could not be a coincidence… right?
The mask was still on, and despite Marinette trying to shake her head, he could see she was about to give up and be akumatized for real.
He could not let it happen again.
He then had an idea and cataclysmed the bracelet.
The mask disappeared instantly, leaving Marinette with a look of shock on her face.
— Are you okay? asked Adrien, worried.
Marinette did not answer, but instead began to turn pale, shaking like a leaf. She then brought her hands to her mouth and muttered:
—I almost got akumatized…
— It was close, but you’re safe now. I promise, he replied.
— No, no, you don’t get it. I… I can’t be akumatized. I just can’t! Not again!
Her eyes, full of tears, were panicked. Adrien immediately noticed her breathing changing, not only because she was crying: it was fear.
— I… I… I need to call Alya.
She tried to go back to her room, but she suddenly collapsed. She was shaking too much to move. He sat down to be at her height, and put his hands on her shoulders, trying to make her look at him.
— Marinette. Breath. You’re okay, I swear.
She looked at him, but seemed to be too far away to calm down.
— It’s not! She suddenly cried, it’s really not. I’ve done… nothing good. I… I keep… failing. At everything. I can’t make a single good decision!
Adrien had no idea of what she was talking about. His worry increased. He had never seen Marinette like that. And the worst part was that it didn’t seem to be new. She had probably been struggling for a while now for it to be this bad.
— Marinette. Please. Stop it. Just breath. You’ll be okay. You’re okay. I swear to you, he repeated with a calm voice.
He then hugged her as tightly as he could, in the hope it would help her. She returned the hug, while crying even harder. Adrien didn’t move, allowing her to externalize her emotions. A few minutes later, he felt her relaxing a bit. He moved away from her and looked at her. She was a mess. But she wasn’t crying anymore.
— I don’t know what’s wrong, but Princess… you can tell me anything. Really. I’ll always be there. And I’m sure your other friends are there for you. And I’m sure your… your boyfriend or ex-boyfriend would be there for you if you just explained to him what’s going on.
— Thanks Cat. I’m sorry. I didn’t want to… to break down like that. I… I’m sorry I took your time. I’m sorry for the Ultrakuma. I’m sorry to be…
— Stop it, he interrupted her, you don’t need to apologize. It’s okay to get help, you know. You should know that more than anyone I believe.
She gave him a surprised look.
— I mean… it’s commonly known Marinette Dupaing-Chen helps everyone all the time. You’ve just helped us with… you know, the Nemesis illusion and all.
— Of course. But I didn’t do much, you know.
— You’ve helped countless times, Princess. Stop pretending otherwise. You and I both know it. The whole of Paris probably knows it. So stop it.
She didn’t answer, but Adrien could have sworn he saw the glimpse of a smile. Just a tiny bit.
— So. Look. You can’t stay like this forever. You need to talk to someone. Me, or your friends, or your boyfriend, or anyone, really. Do you promise me you’ll do it?
The brunette looked away for a bit, before refocusing on him.
— Yes. You… you’re right. I… have to tell him the truth. I… I don’t have a choice. I… thought I could just… break up and not tell him… but even like that… it’s too hard. I need to tell him.
Adrien raised his eyebrow, surprised to hear "the truth” and "him”. He hoped she was talking about telling him as Adrien and not some random guy.
— Okay, then. In the meantime, you know you can always count on me if you need. Okay?
She nodded.
—Okay.
He could not resist the urge to kiss her on the cheek.
—Well, then, goodbye Marinette Dupaing-Chen. I’ll see you around.