Rich Mess ; Adrien vs. Felix

6 - What They Once Were

Marinette's POV

Adrien, Kagami, Chloe and I continued to converse over coffee and charcuterie. We mostly talked about work and upcoming events. It was surprisingly pleasant; I expected awkwardness and discomfort, but there wasn't any.

"How long are you planning to stay in Paris, Marinette?" Kagami asked.

"Originally, I was going to stay for just a couple of days. But now that I have to make your wedding dress, probably a month." I replied.

"Thanks again, I know that this must be a lot of trouble for you... When do you want us to meet?" She asked.

"Um... How about this Thursday? You can drop by anytime in my hotel room. I'm staying at the Grand Palace, room 1120." I proposed, and she nodded in approval.

Maybe I was going crazy, but I felt Adrien's eyes on me this entire time. He didn't talk much; he just stared. Even if I tried to avoid eye contact, his gaze was suffocating. It made me want to leave.

"Speaking of, I should go get settled in the hotel now. Thanks for the food," I declared as a finality.

"I'll come with you," Chloe added.

As we stood up from the table, Kagami said, "You should come to our yacht party tonight, we're going all the way down to the South of France and back up. Please come."

"Sure, why not." I shrugged with a forced smile, wanting to get out of here.

I tried to ignore the feeling of Adrien watching me leave. I could practically feel his annoyingly mesmerizing eyes on my back as I walked out of the mansion.

-

Once I was outside, the weight of the world was no longer on my shoulders. Chloe and I decided to walk to the hotel, since it was right across the street.

"So, yacht party, huh?" I asked.

"Yeah, don't worry I was gonna invite you. It's a corporate thing that Adrien's organizing for his brand. It's casual, and you should bring a bikini."

"Bikini? Nope, I don't think I can do this. Not if Adrien's gonna be there staring at me like he just did." I shook my head in dismissal.

"What? That conversation we just had was friendly, casual, breezy. You did really fine." Chloe said reassuringly.

"Yeah I'll be fine as long as he doesn't look at me with his eyes or take off his shirt," I replied, trying to get that image out of my head.

"Mari, there are going to be hundreds of people. You probably won't even talk to Adrien since he's the host." Chloe said, trying to convince me to come.

"I'm jet-lagged." I stated, as a final attempt to get out of this.

"Oh, please... You sleep 2 hours a day. You're be gonna fine. Besides, I'll be by your side the entire time." The blonde girl promised as she locked her arm with mine.

I let out a deep breath and rolled my eyes, "People don't say no to you, do they?"

"Sweetie, that's why I'm gonna be president."

So, it looks like I'm going to a bikini party tonight... As long as I avoid Adrien, everything will be fine. I let out an exasperated sigh that made Chloe snicker in satisfaction.

"Ooh!" She exclaimed suddenly. "You mentioned earlier that you have a boyfriend. Details, now!" She ordered.

Should I tell her that I'm dating Felix? They are estranged, after all...

No. I won't tell Chloe or Adrien. If I tell them, then I'll have to tell them that he's in the military. They'll ask why, and I wouldn't be able to answer without saying that Felix is a monarch. It's too complicated.

I won't tell that I'm dating Felix because I must keep his secret until he comes back from war.

"It's kind of a secret, but I'll tell you soon. Promise." I replied with a wink.

Chloe insisted for a while, but when she realized that I didn't budge, she gave up. We went bikini shopping and then got ready for the party.

-

Adrien's POV

Why the fuck did Marinette come back? I spent years of my life trying to forget her, and now she's back to remind me of what we once were.

I'm getting married to Kagami, the most wonderful woman I've ever met. With her, everything is always perfect. She's charismatic, kind, beautiful and extremely intelligent. Any man would be lucky to have her.

Did I make a mistake when I proposed to her? Did I propose only because everyone around me insisted that I should settle down and have a wife?

No. I have to stop doubting myself. Kagami and I are great, we have incredible chemistry.

We never fight.

We never fight.

Is that something to be concerned about..?

-

Very short chapter, but the next one is probably gonna be super long.

I decided to make Kagami nice in this book. If Kagami was mean, it would be too easy for Adrien to just dump her and go back to Mari.

Nope, Adrienette will NOT be easy.

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