Into Another World (kotlc/mlb au)

Chapter 1

"Adrien Agreste! I know this was your fault!"

Adrien looked up with a start, his pendant clinking against the metal zipper of his jacket. Bethany simply glared at him, fire burning in her eyes. A fire that told him that yes, this wasn't just teasing. He was being scolded again for another "accident."

Knowing him, it probably was his fault. Not that he could explain it.

"You were the one who exploded my chemistry lab," she hissed. "How'd you do it? Huh? Explain yourself! We all know it was you! Fess up!"

Adrien shrunk from her stare. The attention that always struck up his nerves. He could feel his hands already beginning to shake, his mind losing sense of thought.

Don't let it happen again, don't let it happen again, he mentally pleaded. He couldn't let something like this last incident happen again. He had to control it. Even if he couldn't explain it.

That was the problem; he couldn't explain why stuff like that happened because he didn't even know how he was doing it.

Take the explosion for example.

It had happened because he'd been terrified of Bethany. She always scared him, whether physically taunting him or commanding the space like she normally did. Most kids sucked up to her, except him, of course. And she absolutely hated it.

He'd been trying to help her since they'd (unfortunately for both of them) been paired together, but she'd lashed out and said she didn't need any help from a freak.

A freak. That was all he was, and he knew it. Bethany took every opportunity to remind him, too.

It didn't help that a moment later, she was covered in slimy yellow goop. Thankfully, it had been harmless and the teacher had ruled it as an accident on Bethany's end.

Bethany knew the truth, though.

"Face it, Agreste, you're just a destructive little piece of garbage!" she spat. "How you haven't blown up the entire school is anyone's guess!"

Adrien squeezed his eyes shut. Don't do it don't do it don't do it.
He'd actually been surprised himself he hadn't blown up the school yet. But it also surprised him that he hadn't been caught. It was like his powers always chose to reveal themselves when they knew he wouldn't get in trouble.
But Bethany hadn't fallen for that just yet. Maybe because it always affected her or her friends in some way.

Like the thing with the light, which was one of the more dangerous incidents. His anxiety was already sky-high from the morning, when he'd nearly lost his necklace. Sure, to some people, it was no big deal; just go to school without it, but Adrien was never more than an inch away from his. A thin silver chain, with a crystal swirled with jet black and peridot green, the same green as his eyes. It was the only thing he remembered having when he "woke up" in this world, a phenomenon he couldn't quite explain but somehow understood clearly. He'd just started retaining memories of this life when he was four, an odd age to suddenly remember things. Even his parents said they really only remembered anything he did when he was four. The necklace had been right beside him when he'd first woken up, and he hadn't taken it off since.

Okay, so it was that one time it slipped off when he was sleeping (he assumed; he didn't really know what had happened), and he'd about had a meltdown. A fully induced panic attack. So it didn't help that when he'd gotten to school and Bethany was taunting him and everyone was laughing with her that he'd nearly gotten into the fetal position and then the light above her just shattered, glass raining down on everyone. He was sure everyone had at least one small scar from getting nicked by glass or something. Bethany's hands had been covered in bandages for the next few days afterwards, having taken the most hits. Even Adrien had gotten a couple small cuts on his palms, and he was pretty sure if he looked hard enough he'd still find the scars.