Cat's Eye (Lukadrien)

Volume 2, Chapter 9

Luka is perhaps, a little bit paranoid.

He didn't get a text that evening.

There is probably no reason to worry. Adrien did message him in the mid-morning, letting him no he won't be able to come round tonight because he's going to have a conversation with the Doctor's about the new akumatisation effects.

So, it's not like Gabriel's taken him hostage and is messaging him from Adrien's phone. In fact, if anything it's highlighted to Luka that he really needs to make sure Adrien has a VPN, now they're talking about Miraculous stuff on text.

But he can't help the sinking gut feeling, when Adrien didn't mention the confrontation at all. The boy has said he was definitely going to do it that night. There's always the chance that he just didn't for whatever reason. Maybe Gabriel didn't show up, and Adrien couldn't find him anywhere. Maybe Adrien changed his mind and was too tired.

Luka knows there are many reasonable explanations.

His intuition tells him otherwise.

Still, he pursues his day with vigour, or rather as much vigour as can be mustered in school. Luka always found the lessons a little dull. Easy enough to coast past and focus his attention elsewhere. Usually, it would be on a composition or project – he'd always found creating far more motivational than pure academics. It frustrated his teachers to no end, who seemed to harass for his apart potential, which he wasn't applying.

Today though, Luka's mind was busy with worries. He did manage to see Adrien briefly in the corridor between periods, where the boy seemed fine physically. He just seemed, off, though. Unusually dismissive of Luka's concerns. As much as Adrien was someone who made his true feelings hidden from most people in school, Luka had become his confidant. Someone who he didn't hide things from, even in school. Luka wonders whether his move for a hug last night spooked the blond. Perhaps the conversation with his father did go fine. His gut pangs. Maybe, Adrien figured out that Luka had caught feelings that were more than normal friend feelings. Maybe, Adrien didn't share the sentiment, and was distancing himself.

As Luka sits down in his seat for his next class, he nearly kicks himself. Adrien has a lot going on in his life. He doesn't need Luka being a gay disaster on top of it. Especially since Adrien probably doesn't share the feeling. Luka's only going to push the boy away, and he clearly wants Luka's friendship.

He nods to himself, steeling his resolve. He's going to be the best damned friend Adrien's ever had. His heart sinks as his monologue comments that it's probably not hard, given Adrien's track record of no real friends. Adrien deserves the best friend Luka can be. Luka can deal with his disaster crush later.

Lost in thought, Luka is brought back to reality by a strong clearing of a throat. In front of him looms an unfamiliar figure. It's at that point that Luka realises everyone else is in their lab coats, and he's still staring at the ceiling.

Hurriedly, he launches up from his leaning back seat, nearly toppling it in the process, as he swipes his lab coat off his desk and sets to work. The titration steps are outlined on the board, as well as on the handout, so he begins to prepare the burette.

They have a cover teacher for science at the moment, since Ms Mendeleev was still on medical leave after her akumatisation. Luka didn't know much about the severity of her condition – Adrien had skirted around the topic when they last spoke, and Luka certainly wasn't inclined to push him to talk about things he'd rather not. Still, it left the school on edge. The staff were visibly shaken by whatever state Ms Mendeleev had been in before being taken to the hospital. As much as students love to muck about, that same attention to detail they pay to teachers to avoid being caught means they can tell when something's off, too. As Luka makes his way around the lab, he throws out some joking comments to his classmates, who smile weakly at him before returning to their own hushed gossip. He takes no offence at that – usually Lila and Amany are all for his jokes. Seems like she's too much on edge today for the punchline to really land, but she seems to appreciate the effort, nonetheless.