Chapter Text
Adrien glanced at the clock. Still an hour or two to go before their date for the anniversary, but now was as good a time as any to stop. He slowed down and turned off the treadmill. Just because there wasn’t any supervillains left to fight didn’t mean he should let himself get out of shape, after all. Or maybe it wasn’t so much his superhero instincts as his supermodel instincts.
Either way, the highlights of both those careers were behind him, even if he could still technically be called both.
After getting changed back into his street clothes, Adrien stepped out of the gym and made his way home to take a shower. Or at least, what counted as his home for now. The apartment he lived in was fancier than what Marinette was used to, but it was still a big downgrade from the manor that he had spent his childhood in. He preferred it this way though - there was more life with a few neighbors around, and less space meant less that he had to fill. Besides, he wasn’t there a lot so it didn’t matter much anyway.
A shower, fresh change into nice clothes, some expensive cologne, half an hour making his hair the perfect balance of messy and styled, some extra cheese to keep Plagg fat and lazy, and he was out the door again.
No, the place where he really spent most of his time was where he was headed now - the Dupain-Cheng bakery. The place had practically become his real home years ago. Not long after he started dating Marinette, as a matter of fact. Tom and Sabine weren’t his in-laws… yet. But he was sure they would be someday. In the meantime, they treated him as one of their own, with all the love and affection he never had before.
He almost walked past a flower shop without going inside. Almost. On the bright side, he did refrain from buying Marinette a whole bouquet of flowers. But only because she was very insistent that she was running out of space for them all. Between his lack of impulse control and her green thumb, her small room over the bakery was becoming more like a greenhouse than a bedroom. Instead, he settled for just one flower.
The bakery smelled as delicious and wonderful as it had every day he’d ever gone there. He’d gotten the scent of bread and sweets so associated with the place that just a whiff was enough to make his heart soar. The bell above the door alerted them to his arrival.
Sabine smiled at him as he approached and they shared cheek kisses. “Oh, hello, sweetheart! It’s wonderful to see you again!” She said it was such feeling that Adrien had never doubted her, even if it was always the first thing she said to him every time they saw each other. “Will you be coming over for dinner again this weekend?”
“Of course, maman! How could I refuse such a delicious meal?”
“Is that Adrien?” A man’s booming voice shouted from the kitchen in the back. Tom emerged, a wide grin on his face and flour all over him as he walked toward Adrien.
Adrien’s eyes widened and he held up his hands. “Wait, I-” But it was too late. Tom had picked him up in a great big bear huge and he was lifted so high that his feet dangled off the ground.
“Oh, sorry, son!” Tom had the decency to look down abashedly at the mess he’d made of Adrien’s nice clothes, which were now spotted with flour.
“Don’t worry, papa. This won’t take me long to fix. I got here plenty early,” Adrien flashed a quick smile up at Tom. “Actually, is Marinette here? I could probably use her help.”
“Sure, sure.” Tom waved a hand toward the back door leading into their home. “She’s probably working in her room as we speak.”
He smiled and waved at the both of them before heading upstairs, feeling just like the fourteen year old boy who’d visit after school years ago. He opened her trapdoor and sure enough, there she was. So lost in her commissions that she hadn’t gotten ready for their date yet. Which also meant she hadn’t noticed him yet, and he got to bask in her ‘focus face’ - tongue slightly out, nose scrunched, eyes narrowed - for a little while longer.
While he would’ve been fine missing their reservation if it meant watching her work for a little longer, alas, she eventually noticed him. She fell backwards with a squawk and he rushed forward to give her a hand up.
“Adrien what are you-” She winced. “It’s today, isn’t it?”
He nodded patiently.
“...How long have you been watching?”
“Long enough to remember all over again just how adorable you are.”
She groaned. “I was making the face again wasn’t I?”
He kissed the hand he had taken to help her up. “Precious as always.” He held out the flower he had bought for her, a white tulip. “For you, my lady.”
Her eyebrows scrunched up, but the tension left her face almost immediately as she smelled the flower. She smiled up at him. “My favorite.”
“A tulip for your two lips?” He leaned down and closed his eyes.
“Oh my God, Adrien,” she said, laughing. “Okay, fine, but only because you went through all that effort.” She pressed her lips to his, wrapping her arms around his neck as she did. She pulled away and seemed to notice his suit for the first time. A twinkle of mirth shone in her eyes. “I see papa got a little too excited to see you again.”
“Nothing new there.” He shrugged. “I don’t suppose you’d be willing to help a poor boy out…?”
“Sure, just give me a minute to get changed.”
“No problem,” Adrien sat down on her well worn chaise and made no secret of watching her.
“Adrien…”
“Hm…?”
“Downstairs, sunshine.” She sternly pointed at the trapdoor. “I’ll call you back up when I’m ready.” Pouting, he paused every other step to shoot a pleading look at her over his shoulder. Eventually she got tired of him and pushed him forward, laughing. “Go, you tomcat!”
Adrien stepped outside her bedroom and sat on the stairs. Pulling out his phone, he checked the time and double checked his reservation. They still had half an hour to get there and it was close by. Plenty of time. After a few minutes of listening to rustling clothing, the door was opened above him and he walked back in.
“What do you think?”
Adrien’s eyes roved over her light summer dress and its pastel colors. He cupped her cheek with a soft smile.
“As beautiful as ever, lovebug.” He stepped back and offered his arm. “Ready to go?”
She giggled and gestured to his suit. “Forgetting something?”
A glance down reminded him of the flour. “Ah, right. I think I remember you promising me a hand?
After a quick clean up, they walked arm in arm out of the bakery and to their favorite restaurant.
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The night was already going well with good food and a pleasant buzz from their drinks. Conversation was flowing between them, mostly one-sided as Marinette filled him in on everything that had happened since the last time they’d gotten to chat freely the week before. More commissions. Her last shifts at the bakery. Which brought her to the reasons she’d been saving so much money in the first place.
“...So I found an apartment.”
Adrien smiled as he poured both of them another glass of wine. “I can’t wait to see it. How close is it to your university?”
“That’s the best part! It’s within walking distance, just a couple blocks away.” Marinette took a sip of her wine while doing a happy shimmy. “I’ll save on commuting costs, and the rent is super cheap too.”
There was a surge of worry before Adrien quickly smoothed it over. Just because it was cheap didn’t mean it was bad. Maybe she’d just found a good deal was all. And even if it was… lacking… she’d be able to improve it, no problem.
“I’m so happy for you! You’re already ahead of the fashion game with all your contacts and professional experience. Having an education in design will be the final thing you need to really excel in the business. You’re going to do amazing, I just know it!”
“Thanks!” She ducked her head shyly. “I’ve been so nervous about… well, everything, to be honest,” she admitted with a giggle. “In a little under a month, I’ll be out of the bakery and putting my skills to the test. And it’s a pretty prestigious university, so I bet I’ll have some competition too.”
“It’s nothing you can’t handle, princess.” His smile faded as he swirled the last dregs in his wine glass.
He felt her take his other hand and he looked up to see her concerned frown. “I know it’s hard, Adrien, and I’m sorry Nino and Alya couldn’t make it. But you know we’re all right here behind you, all the way.”
He nodded, biting his lips. It’d been two years to the day. They had all met up last year to celebrate... and to forget. Sure, he didn’t expect it to really turn into a yearly tradition, and Alya and Nino had tried their best to make it... but it still stung a little that they couldn’t.
“I’ve been talking your ear off this whole time about what I’m doing. What about you, kitty?” She leaned forward to rest her chin and her hands, looking at him with tender affection in her eyes. “What’s next in life for you?”
Adrien didn’t have an answer for that.
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Full, laughing, and slightly tipsy, Adrien walked Marinette to her front door just as the streetlights began to turn on.
“And you know I’ll be there for you forever and ever and ever, yeah?” He grinned from ear to ear, looking more like Chat Noir than Adrien Agreste in the moment.
“Silly kitty.” She leaned in a little closer. “I think just helping me move in a couple of weeks will be enough.”
His arm snaked around her waist, pressing her flush to him. “Then you can count on my help. Even if I have to carry in a hundred boxes alone.” He pulled back one arm to flex.
She rested her forehead against his chest and laughed. “You’re such a dork.”
“Your dork.”
She hummed in agreement. Rolling onto her toes, she gave him a chaste kiss on the lips. “Good night, Adrien. I love you.”
He sighed happily. “Ahh, that takes me back.” He let her pull away from him. “I love you too, Marinette. Pleasant dreams.”
After flashing him one more smile, she ducked inside and closed the door behind her. Adrien spent a few long moments standing there, grinning like a dork, before a tiny, snide voice from inside his coat pocket drew him out of his reverie.
“You done staring at the woodwork, kid? Or do you want a few more minutes?”
He rolled his eyes, but couldn’t even manage to be exasperated. He was riding high after tonight, and he felt like nothing could drag him down. Not even grumpy cheese cats.
While it wouldn’t take him long to get home as Chat Noir… the summer night was warm and pleasant. He could almost pretend to see the stars above him. It would be a shame not to enjoy a little stroll back to his apartment.
On his way inside, he noticed that he had mail, but was in such a pleasant mood that he didn’t even glance at it until he’d shut his door behind him. As he kicked off his shoes, he finally looked at the envelope.
The prison-issued envelope.
His smile, a semi-permanent fixture on his face ever since heading over the bakery earlier that day, vanished like fog before the dawn. After skimming the contents, he neatly folded it back up and tossed it into a box of depressingly similar letters.
Try as he might, he couldn’t shake off the bad mood. His only consolation as he drifted off to sleep was that at least tomorrow would be a new day.