#aha an open end
For@alytori , and the MGI Anniversary Gift Exchange!!!
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There is something nostalgic about the rain, Marinette thinks as she peeks out from under the tarped cover of the bakery entrance. Maybe it’s the gentle pitter-patter of raindrops hitting the ground, or the all-too familiar scent of petrichor wafting through the air. Maybe it is the beginnings that blossom under the sprinkle. She smiles, patting the pocket where Adrien’s old umbrella is stored. Her eyes linger on the smallest hint of green that his touch had left on her that day. Maybe today she’ll tell him that they’re soulmates.
She goes through the motions–getting to class nearly late, falling asleep during Madame Mendeleiev’s lecture, glaring at Chloe, and finally, packing up for the day. She just about leaps out of her seat, desperate to catch up to Adrien, before Madame Bustier calls after her, wanting to talk to her about their upcoming school dance. Her focus lies elsewhere through the entire meeting, feet tapping the floor impatiently as she chews on her nails. As soon as Ms. Bustier excuses her, she sprints out, yelling a hurried goodbye back to her as she tears down the hallway.
She rounds the corner, and there by the entrance is Adrien, in all his golden-haired glory. He’s waiting under the cover of the entrance, preoccupied by the phone in his hand. She grins, pulling out his umbrella, ready for everything to come full circle, for her to finally be united with her soulmate–
But she halts at the sight of another limo pulling up to the curb. This definitely isn’t Adrien’s car, which is silver and less extravagant, and her suspicions are confirmed when Kagami steps out of the car and runs up to Adrien. Marinette can see the care in her eyes as she chastises the boy for his carelessness, pushing the umbrella she had been holding into his hands. She also sees the soft smile that Adrien sports, who chuckles at Kagami’s fussing.
It’s hard, holding in all she’s feeling at the moment. All the jealousy she feels towards Kagami, all the self-hatred she feels towards herself for her inaction and her hesitance. All the grief, the loss for what she could’ve had. But something in her breaks when their hands intertwine, and when Adrien presses a chaste kiss to Kagami’s cheek.
All of a sudden, everything is too much to handle. She’s suddenly made aware of the cold sheets of rain drenching her form, hitting her head in a manner so unlike the soft pitters of that morning. She realizes, warmth drips down her face and the taste of salt hits her tongue, that there is so much more to rain than simple beginnings.
Today, this is a dreaded end.
*
The next afternoon finds her laying in bed, eyes puffy and red as she sniffles miserably. Her entire body aches, and she shivers, cursing the rain for her cold. Her heart’s already broken–there’s no need for the universe to rub even more salt in the wound. She grumbles under her breath, blindly grasping for the chicken soup her mom had dropped off earlier.
The telltale twinkly sounds she’s normally so excited to hear grate on her ears as Tikki flits into view, comforting and positive as ever as she picks up a spoon and gently guides it towards Marinette’s mouth. But she doesn’t speak, which Marinette is grateful for. She doesn’t think she could hold a conversation if she wanted to–her throat is raw from crying, and she can’t go a couple sentences without choking back tears. She flinches at how pathetic she’s acting. All over a boy she’s destined to love, but who’ll never love her back.
The bowl she’s been holding is taken out of her hands, and Tikki pushes her back into the bed with little force. She stares at the sealing, hugging her cat plushie tightly, and takes a deep breath in, and out. In, and out. Her eyelids grow heavy, and the emotional exhaustion finally sets in as she blinks in and out of consciousness. A quiet buzz fills her ears, and she welcomes the white noise as she falls into the arms of sleep.
“I hope you feel better soon, Marinette,” she hears Tikki whisper by her side.
She hopes she does, too.
*
By the next school day, she learns that a new kid had joined them in her absence.
“Mari, I swear to god, Dick is so funny,” Alya recalls with a laugh as they come through the school’s gates. “I mean, he even made Madame Mendeleiev laugh!”
Her brows furrow, racking her brain for a “Dick” at their school. “What an odd name,” she muses. “I don’t think I’ve ever met him before, though.”
“He’s new! God, you’re going to love him, Mari.” Alya chuckles as she opens the class’ door. “He’s super sweet, and he reminds me a lot of someone I know.” She says as she gives Marinette a playful shove through the doorway. Stumbling in, Marinette lets her eyes roam across the room, avoiding meeting Adrien’s friendly gaze, until her sights land on bright blues so similar to her own at the back of the classroom. She’s mesmerized, enraptured in the depth of emotion in his eyes that leaves her head swimming, until Alya pats her shoulder, leaning in to tell her something.
“You can stare later! Just go say hi,” she whispers, and Marinette groans silently. She trudges up the stairs, embarrassed and mortified by herself. She’s still getting over Adrien, why is she already feeling things for a boy she’s never met?
She stops by the new student’s desk, about to speak before their gazes meet once again and all the words she’s about to say die on her tongue, mixed about by his stare. She hovers awkwardly, unsure of what to say and even how to speak, when he breaks their gaze with a closed-eyed smile.
“You’re Marinette, right? Nice to meet you!” His cheer, already contagious as he shakes her hand vigorously, gets a giggle out of her.
“That’s me. It’s nice to meet you too, Dick. Weird name though, no offense.” He chuckles at her little joke, and it’s like everything becomes a bit brighter as her cheeks heat up at the sound of his laughter.
“Don’t worry, it is a pretty weird nickname, anyways.” He waves her off. “But at least it’s kinda funny. My real name makes me feel like an old person.”
“Why? What is it?” Though she’s sure he’s just whining, she feels like a child being told a thrilling bedtime story by their parents, desperate to hear what happens next. She’s genuinely curious as to what name could possibly get him this worked up.
He beckons her to come closer to him, and cups his hand around her ear when she does. He makes a show of looking around for anyone listening in, and once he decides it’s safe he leans in, slightly rustling her hair as he does. “It’s Richard,” he whispers darkly, as if the name were a curse. She leans back, trying to catch any hint of a joke in his posture, but the serious glint in his eyes tells her otherwise.
“Dick, I hate to burst your bubble, but… that’s one of the most common boys’ names in France. Possibly even Europe,” she snorts, slapping a hand over her mouth as Dick’s face falls.
“I- what?! Hey, don’t laugh! It’s not my fault I’m from America.”
“America, huh?” She’s about to ask him why he’s here, maybe for studying abroad, but she is interrupted by Madame Bustier clapping her hands at the front of the room, bringing the class’ attention to the start of the lesson. With a little wave towards Dick, she makes her way to her desk and plops down in her seat with a sigh. When she looks to the front, she makes the mistake of locking eyes with Adrien, who is turned around in his seat, talking to Alya and Nino. For a second, she’s afraid he knows that she saw him and Kagami a couple days ago in the rain, but instead he smiles warmly, and the tension in her shoulders eases minutely.
“We missed you, Marinette! I hope you’re not feeling too sick anymore, I’m sure that was a pain.” There’s genuine sympathy in his tone, and she can’t help but grin cheerily back.
“I’m much better now! A little cold can’t keep me down for long,” she huffs triumphantly, flexing her arm slightly.
“Yeah, except for that one time she was knocked out for a few days because she went in the snow without a coat.”
“Nino,” she pouts. “That was so long ago! How did you even remember that?”
“That was just a few weeks ago, Mari.”
“Ah.” Her face grows hot as her friends break into laughter, and she chuckles despite herself. “Hey! In my defense, I would have been late to school. I can’t have that now, can I?”
Alya pats her on the back as they focus their attention back on Madame Bustier. “Whatever you say, girl.”
The rest of the day is relatively normal, save for fact that she partners up with Dick rather than Alya for one of their assignments. The other girl had already partnered with Alix, and their class has finally evened out with their new student. She can already tell he is an incredibly hard worker–he already has the outline of their poster finished and is now catching her up on what she had missed.
As they are wrapping up the sketch of their poster, the final bell rings, and they chat as they clean up their station. She’s finally able to ask him about his travels, how the U.S. is, if he misses his family. He takes all the questions with stride–his high school was prestigious enough to land some of their students opportunities to study abroad, and his father had been more than happy to pay for his expenses. A sentimental look crosses his face at the mention of his father, and he tells her stories about his crime-ridden city, so dangerous that vigilantes have taken residence there and began to protect the city’s citizens.
“Don’t even get me started on Batman!” There are sparkles in his eyes as he talks about the vigilante, and his face flushes in excitement. “He’s so cool, he’s been able to break up almost all of the Rogues with such a high success rate! Without him and his sidekicks, I’m sure Gotham’s crime rate would be even higher than it is now.”
The familiarity of his city’s predicament hits so close to home. She can understand the struggle, especially with Paris’ current situation, and she silently thanks Gotham’s vigilantes for holding out for their citizens. She’s grateful Dick and his family are able to stay safe.
“Anyways, Gotham kind of sucks, but I still miss it. There’s people there waiting for me to come back–they’re going to have to wait though, because I love it here! It’s so different from home.” He sighs, dumping the rest of her markers back into their case. “I feel so safe here.”
She’s about to remind him that Paris hasn’t gone a full week without akuma attacks for the past couple years, but someone taps on her shoulder and she spins, nearly bumping into Adrien.
“Oh–sorry, Mari! I just wanted to talk to you outside for a bit if it’s okay? I don’t want to disrupt your guys’ work or anything!” He smiles softly, scratching the back of his neck nervously. The familiar anxiety of being in Adrien’s general vicinity is back, tightly gripping her heart as if it feared losing its hold. She glances back at Dick questioningly, and she sighs in relief when he gives her a nod and another cheery thumbs-up. Following the other boy outside, she takes a couple stabilizing breaths, preparing herself for whatever he was going to say.
The two stand outside in silence for a couple minutes, leaning back against the classroom wall. Marinette can feel the hesitance in the air, a question so close to spilling out of the others’ lips before he bites it back. She chews her own lips nervously as she surveys the pavement below them, which is now lightly dotted with rain, and is reminded of him and Kagami. Whatever he asks, she hopes it’s not about a couple days ago.
“What does love feel like?” Her eyes blow wide at the simple question, head on a swivel as she turns to Adrien. He’s not looking at her–his sights are set dead ahead, unfocused and full of pain.
“It’s been a long time since my mother passed, and my father’s been absent ever since. Funny, I don’t think I remember something as basic as love.” He lets out that self-deprecating chuckle that she’s grown to hate, and his shoulders tense ever so slightly. “It’s not fair. I want to be able to love, and I think I am in love. But how do I know it’s even real?” His eyes close, and he finally lets himself breathe.
“Sorry for asking you such a loaded question, Mari. I feel so stupid.”
“No, don’t feel sorry!” She waves her hands placatingly. “It’s fine not to know–and it sucks that you’re in this position right now. It really isn’t fair, is it?” Her heart breaks when he nods, curling into himself just a little bit.
“To me… love is a want. It’s a want to be around someone, to hug them, give them gifts. Love is wanting to stay by someone’s side through thick and thin, to hold their hand through pain or just… be with them. You know?” Her voice cracks with emotion and she pins him with a look that she knows is vulnerable, too vulnerable. She can already see the confusion in his expression, the way his lips twitch slightly downwards and his brows furrow worriedly. “It’s so hard to describe. I guess that’s because it’s different for everyone,” she finishes hurriedly, brushing herself off as she pushes off from the wall. “Did that help?”
“Yeah… I think so,” Adrien trails off. “Thank you.”
“Of course,” she chokes out, desperate to leave before her heart breaks even more. “I hope you can find love again.”
Whether or not her last words are meant for herself or Adrien, she’s not sure. But as she makes for the door, she misses the look of longing that Adrien gives her.
*
“You okay?” Marinette looks up to see Dick hovering worriedly by her desk. “You were out there for a bit, so I packed up the rest of your things for you.”
She chuckles wetly, sniffling as she brushes away the tears that were beginning to well in her eyes. “Yeah,” she says, taking her belongings from the boy’s grasp. “I’ll be fine, don’t worry.”
Dick smiles back, all sunshine and warm where Marinette needs it. “Anyways, I heard about this mysterious ice cream cart that pops up sometimes–you’ve probably already seen it, but do you want to find it with me?”
“Ah.” Marinette sees the glint in his eyes, hopeful and genuine. “Sure! We can drop our things off at my place first, if you want. It’s just across the street.” Dick nods, and as they make their way out of the classroom, she notices that the sprinkles of earlier have built to a light pour.
“Shoot, it’s raining,” the other whines. “Sorry, I don’t have an umbrella. Mind pushing this back another day?”
But she’s already taking out the umbrella she has, waving him over. “We can share this one, if you want? I don’t bite.” Dick laughs as he steps under its cover.
As they make their way to the bakery, she’s content with the knowledge that, while the rain may have brought an ending, she’s excited for what’s to come.
