The Connection Of Music || Adrienette AU

SEVENTEEN

"The right to bear arms ... does not and never will overpower the individual's right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness."

~{*•*•*•*}~

Adrien's POV

It was the next day and all was going well. The class was normal, except for the fact that Marinette was practically gone for the first half of the school day.

"I'm going to be out of class all day." She informed Alya, Nino and me as we ate our lunch. "I was asked to do these little workshops with the kids in the hospital. Thankfully, Principal Damocles invited them here for numerous workshops with each grade in our school." It was really interesting and nice to see what Francois Dupont was doing to be welcoming to all ages, especially to the younger generation. It was cool.

The bell sounded and Mari quickly stuffed the rest of her sandwich in her mouth. Adorable. "I'm going to our class in an hour or so with all the little kids!" she rushed her announcement while scurrying off to the auditorium, where the kids were having their lunch. The warning bell went off, signalling this was the last chance for the students to get to their classes before they get a detention. So, the rest of us quickly packed our bags and rushed to our rooms.

Throughout the first hour after lunch, the sound of children's laughter could be distantly heard. However, it suddenly stopped and the deafening sound of a gunshot.

Silence.

Ms Bustier spun her head towards us, panicking at all of our petrified expressions. She slowly put a finger to her lips, trying to hide the fact that she was terrified as well. She signalled for us to hide under our desks. So we followed her commands, moving as quietly as possible to not alert any of the intruders.

Several minutes went by of just our class huddled under each desk, hugging our knees for some sort of comfort.

Sniffles could be heard behind me, and I realised that Alya must be so scared since Mari was not beside her...

Marinette! She's out there! What if-

A harsh grab from my shoulder put me to a halt, and I realised that I was near to the point where I was about to bolt out that door. "Let go of me, Nino!" I seethed, yet he kept his hold. "She's out there somewhere without me! What if something happens to her?" There was a cry in my voice that caused Nino's straight face to a fault.

A loud bang terrified all of us, as the impact of the door slamming against the wall triggered an ear-splitting noise. "Everybody put your hands in the air and leave the room!" The deep, hoarse voice was aggressive. It was too risky to not obey his command. Those who chose to hesitate, however, were jabbed at the side with the end of the gun.

As soon as we all evacuated the classroom, everyone was both shocked and frightened at the sight in front of them, especially me. Every class had been forced out of the safety of their classrooms and ended up in the same situation as my class - on our knees and hands up in the air. On the other hand, what I was most disgusted by was the scene in the courtyard. The group of kids that we're invited to our school was shaking, hugging each other for some kind of support, yet what caught my eye was Marinette. She stood at the front, holding her arm out as a safety blanket for the kids. Her other arm was wrapped around the child who was grasping at her waist with tears streaming down her face. It was Manon. That sweet girl whom I had the pleasure of meeting when I visited the hospital.

"Please, don't do this." I heard Mari beg the shooters that lined up before her. "They're only children!"

"We are not here for them. We're only here for you." the masked man's voice was dangerously low and the air thickened when the man stepped closer to Mari.

"Stop!" I couldn't help but yell. "Don't touch her!" Mari's bluebell eyes found mine and I noticed how they have lost their colour. A jab in the leg knocked me back down to my knees. "Stay down, kid."

"We could do this one way or another." the threat began to circle the group of children - all pairs of eyes followed suit. "You come to me and we will take you somewhere private, or we will shoot this entire building down to its core. Which will it be?"

Even though I was quite a distance away from her, I could see her gulp as she stepped away from the children, who were shrieking. They wanted her back and so did I.

"You take me and no one gets hurt." She continued to walk towards the mysterious men, much to many's dismay, yet she didn't notice how the main threat had pulled the trigger. However, a certain person had reflexes like a cat and managed to jump in front of the bluenette before the trigger of the gun could be pulled.

At the speed of light, the bullet pierced through Manon, hoping that it was enough for Marinette to dodge the bullet, yet it wasn't as the bullet had torn through them both.

Silence again.

No one knew what to say or do.

Mari and Manon staggered before falling to the ground, both of their eyes widened at the sudden turn of events.

The man in black stepped forward, slowly closing in the distance between him and the pair on the floor with a pool of red surrounding them. Fortunately, the deafening sound of sirens was creeping upon them.

All of the men dressed in disguise scattered and left the building, leaving the entire student body and its staff in a state of shock. However, the sounds of groaning, screaming and crying pushed everyone into a panic.

I was the first to my feet and beside Mari, Nino and Alya following closely. Marinette was too distracted and focused on Manon's health to even realise that we were by her side.

"Manon? Manon, you're going to be okay. You have to be okay." Mari kept repeating weakly as she tried to grasp onto her hand when she was getting no response from the young girl.

"Mari." I tried to stay strong in front of her while I pulled her onto my lap, yet her whimpering and groans made me feel so useless.

I couldn't do anything.

Soon both her and Manon were taken out of our grasps and into the depths of the ambulances.

Red blurred my vision as I swiped my hand across my eyes. Everything was a blur and I didn't even notice how I ended up in the waiting area outside the operation room, where Marinette was fighting for her life.

What had this day become?