𝐃𝐞𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞- 𝐃𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞

𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝟏𝟎 -𝑱𝒐𝒃𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑼𝒏𝒆𝒙𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝑽𝒊𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒔

Marinette shook her head to clear her thoughts. She had been staring out at the street in thought for nearly an hour without even realizing it. The shop would soon close until the next meal. She likely would have been staring at the scenery until then if there had not been a phone call interrupting the trio from their silent observing.

"Hello, is this Miss Marinette Dupain-Cheng?" Marinette recognized the voice on the other end to be that of Miss Ivy and was surprised to have heard back from her so early. "Oui, she is me; I mean, I am me, darn," she said, taking a deep breath before correcting herself. "Yes, this is Marinette, Miss Ivy, I presume?"

"Yes, hello, or bonjour, as you would say," she chuckled slightly. "It's good to hear from you again. Sorry if it's at an inconvenient time as you were here a few hours ago."

"Oh, no worries, Madame I am not busy at all. I assume you are calling about the job, correct?"

"Yes, in fact, I have already had the chance to review your resume, and after the interview, I found that you are exactly who I am looking for in my management opening. I see you have the experience in team leading from extracurriculars, and you definitely have the recommendations. I had a chance to call a few of the listed contacts and heard nothing but glowing recommendations. Your leadership skills and positive recommendations are impressive, and I believe they will be valuable assets to our team. I am excited to see how you can contribute to our organization's success. So, what do you say? Would you like the job? We can always discuss it further if youd like to come in and talk pay and such."

"Actually, I am free right now." "I'm just finishing up coffee with Adrien and Chloe."

｡･:*:･ﾟ★,｡･:*:･ﾟ☆　　 ｡･:*:･ﾟ★,｡･:*:･ﾟ☆

Marinette and the blondes stood around the counter of the tree room that they had found only a few hours before. They were all asked to appear for job information and were currently waiting for Madame Ivy to give them any information they would require.

Adrien was not paying much attention to his friend's conversation. He had been texting Luca for most of the day about anything and everything. Neither seemed to want the conversation to end because everything just seemed better as they talked aimlessly, distracting themselves from everything in the distant past and possibly future.

The topic had recently gotten onto Marinette and how class would go after everything. Adrien and Luca had taken a very protective stance over Marinette after realizing Lila's actions toward the girl.

Seeing as Marinette was practically family with Luca already as she was Jagged's honorary niece, he took his protector duty very seriously. Anyone who saw the two could see that he really cared, and he acted more like a big brother to her than anything else.

Adrien and Marinette grew closer after Lila as well, and you could see the two boys beside her often, like dads looking after their kids. The comparison was even more striking if Marinette was in a happy mood, just frolicking around with her bright smile, making all the days just a little better.

It was really Marinette who brought the two together. She had been the one to introduce them all of that time ago, and she was the one with whom they shared a protective interest.

Adrien chuckled at the photo Luca had sent.

He further went on to explain how his father had gotten the photo of his children," which is currently his laptop wallpaper. His father's phone showed him with Penny, Fang, and all of the friends in a giant jam session on the boat. He recounted how the boat trip was one of the best memories he had with his friends and how most shared a passion for music. He mentioned that he often looked at the photo to remind himself of the good times they had together.

Before long, Adrien's attention was called back to his surroundings as Chloe called his name. He had unknowingly been staring at his screen with a huge smile for some time. "-ien, Adrien."

"I've been calling your name for like five minutes. Whacha smiling at adrikins?" Her hand was lightly placed on his arm in support as she tried to peer over at his screen. He quickly shut the phone, slipping it into his pocket and away from her prying eyes and wide smirk. She raised an eyebrow, playfully teasing him about what he was hiding. He chuckled nervously, feeling grateful for her lightheartedness in the moment.

"Anyway,", Chloe continued. " I was saying that she should be back any minute to tell us about the job. It appears we all made the cut, meaning we should probably think about what we need to know for the job.''

Chloe was the only one of the three without any real job experience. "What do you guys usually ask Mari?" Marinette, realizing she had never really had a job interview and questionnaire exactly before today, told Chloe accordingly, and Adrien did as well. Marinette had always just been paid to help around the bakery and had a little extra from her commission website that is just taking off. And, Adrien had only really worked as a model for his father's company, and he made a decent wage, but he never had to actually go through the job process and talk benefits or anything.

Chloe dramatically wrapped her arms around the petite brunette and sighed loudly. " Mariiiii! Please help me! I want to make a good impression. I've never been able to just be a normal teenager and have a job that Daddy doesn't buy my way into. I really like it here, and I don't want everyone to think I am just some spoiled princess for all eternity. I just want to earn something without asking Daddy for once, you know?" She had mumbled most of the last part, still heavily leaning on the girl.

"Chloe, you are doing fine, really. I understand your nervousness, but I think you're going to do amazing things if you just be yourself. Your actual self, not the one you pretend to be at school or with your mom, Remember that people appreciate authenticity and honesty, so don't be afraid to show your true personality. Just take a deep breath, relax, and trust in yourself."

Before Chloe could respond to the advice, a new presence entered the room, and they tensed up. They looked past Adrien, who was actually looking up from his phone for once after sensing the new presence. In the doorway to the room had just appeared a very pretty blonde lady. She had a big,
lopsided grin present on her pale face with bright blue eyes. The thing that drew most attention to her would have to be her split-dyed ends. Her platinum hair had a very bright blue end on one side and red on the other.

The bold color combination made her stand out in the crowd, and it was clear that she was not afraid to take risks with her appearance. Her unique hairstyle complemented her edgy look and made a statement about her individuality. Marinette noticed a slight discoloration of the neck area around her hair, meaning she had either dyed or redyed it recently, and from the slight dye under Ivy's nails earlier, she had helped. The two obviously knew each other, which put Marinette at ease considering she trusted her new boss, and she obviously trusted the blonde if she was close enough to help with hair dye.

Chloe and Adrien seemed to not have made the connection yet or were still not too comfortable with the boss if they had, based on their still slightly tense appearance. She always had been the most trusting of the group, as they had always gotten on her about it, but it was just her way to see the good in everything, people included. Despite her trusting nature, Chloe's behavior suggested that she was still trying to figure out her boss's intentions. Adrien, on the other hand, seemed to be more guarded and cautious in her approach towards the boss. It was only natural, though, seeing as he recently realized he couldn't even trust his own father.

Marinette wondered if she should introduce them but decided to wait and see if she would say something first. She didn't want to come across as pushy or overly friendly on her first day. After taking a second to assess each of them, the woman spoke. "Hello, sweethearts; you must be the new crew."