chamomile | miraculous ladybug

10 | Late Night Escapade

A/N: Hello all! This is a warning that this chapter, along with some others, deal with heavier topics.

As revealed in the beginning of the book, [Y/n]'s mother has passed away not too long ago. Therefore, this book will have elements of grieving, as well as this chapter having some alcohol use (by adults).

If this makes you uncomfortable, please don't read further.

-Lorelei

~~~

"Dad, I'm back from the store. I got the things you asked for," I announced as I entered my home. It was now nighttime, and my dad had asked me to run to the nearby 24/7 convenience store to grab a couple things on my way back from Marinette's.

Taking my shoes off at the door, I locked it shut behind me. I turned back towards the kitchen, and frowned at the sight in front of me.

The TV was playing a sports game, a mug on the table. Touching the mug, the tea that was inside was frozen cold like it hadn't been touched for a while. My dad usually only forgot to put things away when he was really upset about something.

"Do you think your dad is okay?' Ellie peaked out and asked me. I pressed my lips together, not answering. Instead, I headed upstairs to the second floor, bags gripped tightly in hand. Ellie tucked back into hiding once I got in front of my dad's door.

I could hear quiet crying on the inside. Raising a hand, I knocked on the door. The crying stopped for a moment, and my dad quietly said "come in."

Pushing open the door, I frowned. His bedroom surprisingly wasn't a pig sty, but it wasn't very tidy either. Two baskets of dirty clothes sat in the corner near the closet, and there was stuff on my dad's dresser. The trash was close to over filling.

There were empty bottles of alcohol too, some old and some new. A half empty bottle of liquor sat on his nightstand, another older fully empty one on the ground beside him. He had some soft music playing in the background, which had muffled his crying a bit. He was currently standing in the middle of the room, his face red and puffy as he was in the middle of picking up trash.

"[Y/n], I didn't think you'd be back this fast," he said, straightening up and stumbling for a second. He averted his sad gray eyes away from mine after regaining his balance. I had the same eye color as my mother, [e/c], and I could tell he sometimes saw her when he looked in my eyes. That's why he barely looked at me the first couple months after she passed away.

"I brought the stuff you asked for," I said dully, placing the bags on the ground. He was leaning against his dresser, having trouble standing on his feet. I walked up to him. "You should get into bed. You have work tomorrow."

"I'm sorry you had to see me like this," he apologized, hsi words slurred. He was beyond wasted, and it was a wonder he was even conscious.

"It's not the first time," I muttered as I led him over to his bed. When my mom had first died, he had become a heavy drinker to help cope. That was another factor in our disharmonious relationship that eventually became better over time. "You told me you'd stop drinking this much."

"I'm sorry, sweetie. You know, it's just with this time of year," he muttered as he sat down on the bed. I stood in front of him, looking down at him sadly. It really did hurt to see him like this, and hopefully, Hawk Moth wasn't awake at this time of the night. All of a sudden, he wrapped his arms around me. "Don't leave me like your mother did. Why did she leave me?"

"She didn't want to. She didn't choose to get in a car accident," I reminded him, and he sighed as he squeezed me tighter. "I promise I won't leave you."