A chilly breeze sweeps through the streets of Paris on a gloomy Wednesday morning. The windows of the Dupain-Cheng bakery are covered with frosty patterns that sparkle in the dim light. Marinette's alarm sounds, but she ignores it.
"Five more minutes," the young girl groans, silencing the alarm with a whack of her hand.
"Get up, Marinette," a high-pitched voice comes from across the room. "Today's the big day, remember?"
Bolting upright in bed, Marinette looks confused as she takes in her surroundings. Her gaze falls onto her open calendar, which has a yellow sticky note on it.
"Oh my god! Tikki!" she yells, throwing her blanket off and sliding down the ladder to the rest of her attic bedroom. "Why didn't you wake me up sooner?"
"I did," Tikki retorts, watching Marinette dash around the room. "You kept falling back to sleep."
Grabbing some clean clothes from her wardrobe, Marinette hurriedly puts them on.
"Erm... Marinette?" Tikki questions, looking over to her chosen one. "I think your clothes would fit a lot better if you tried taking your pyjamas off first."
Looking down at her mismatched clothes, Marinette groans loudly and pulls off her top, revealing her spotty pyjamas underneath.
After another ten minutes, Marinette is finally dressed and ready for school.
"Bye Mum, bye Dad," the frazzled girl calls out as she runs past them and out the door. "Love you!"
Slamming the door shut after herself, Sabine dives over the countertop wrapping a protective arm around the morning shipments. The last thing she needs today is the deliveries getting caught up in the unexpected whirlwind that is Marinette.
Running through the park, Marinette weaves her way past crowds of people, dodging a huge oak tree in the nick of time. Tikki pops her head out of the small pink bag and looks up at Marinette's frantic expression.
"You need to slow down, Marinette. You'll end up tripping over something and falling flat on your face."
"If I slow down, I'll be late for class," Marinette replies.
The bell rings as Marinette runs up the steps, skipping a few to save time.
"Please be the warning bell. Please be the warning bell. Please be the warning bell," she begs, skidding down the hall.
In the classroom, Miss Bustier is currently marking off the students' names on her register.
"Marinette?" she calls out, her eyes flickering to an empty seat. She marks the paper with a red pen and moves to the next name on the list.
The classroom door bursts open, startling the whole class.
"Sorry, I'm laa-ATE!" Marinette yelps, stumbling over her own feet and nearly falling face first on the ground.
A wave of laughter sweeps through the class, making Marinette wish she could disappear.
"Way to go, Mari-nette Du-Pain-Cheng," Chloe mocks, with a slow clap of the hands. "A grand entrance, as always."
Miss Bustier sighs, shaking her head. "Go sit down, Marinette."
Avoiding eye contact with the class, Marinette quickly dashes to her seat and slides next to her best friend.
"Excited about today?" Alya whispers, her eyes darting to the blond boy sitting in front of them.
Placing her small bag next to her, Marinette leans over.
YOU ARE READING
Awkward Steps
Fanfiction'Awkward Steps' welcomes you to Marinette's world, where Adrien's rejection has left her heart in pieces. Can Chat Noir, her enigmatic partner, help heal the wounds, or will she push him away? This fanfiction, enriched with season 4 elements, weaves...
