Switched (Miraculous Ladybug)

Chapter 8

Adrien sat on Marinette's chaise, arms hugging his knees tightly to his chest. There was a plate of freshly baked cookies that sat untouched on the floor by the trapdoor. Normally the scent of warm cookies with gooey chocolate chips would have his mouth watering within seconds, but right now the smell only made him feel nauseous. Even Tikki couldn't bring herself to eat anything with the mood that filled the room.

The cookies were one of the many attempts that Marinette's parents had made to try and cheer him up, to get him to talk to them. He knew they must have heard all the yelling from his and Marinette's argument the day before, he would have been surprised if they hadn't heard, but he refused to speak to them about anything.

First they had tried talking to him, asking what happened and if everything was alright, placing their warm, comforting hands on his back in a soothing gesture. He shoved them away, both their gentle hands and loving voices. They weren't his parents, they were Marinette's. He didn't deserve to be comforted by them, especially not after what he did to their daughter.

They respected his wishes to be alone and instead began to leave out plates of Marinette's favourite food and treats. He couldn't bring himself to touch any of it, they weren't meant for him.

Tikki had also made her own attempts with him. She told him that it wasn't his fault for what happened, that he shouldn't should all the blame, but he refused to listen to her. Their argument was his fault, he knew that. The only reason Marinette had gotten mad was because she was feeling feel lonely and sad, and he had done nothing about it, he only made it worse.

Tikki explained that he really should talk over everything with Marinette. "Things won't get any better unless you talk to her about it," she had said.

That only made the pit in his stomach grow. How could he possibly face her after what he did?

Sabine poked her head up through the trapdoor, taking notice of the untouched cookies with a sad expression on her face before looking back to her daughter. Adrien could see her in his peripheral vision but didn't acknowledge her presence.

"Marinette," she said softly, in a loving, motherly sort of way that made him sick, "Alya's here, can she come up?"

With all their failed attempts to console her, Marinette's parents had apparently moved onto the only other strategy they could think of. They probably thought that Alya could get through to him, to find out the problem and maybe help him. He wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone, yet some part of his conscious also prevented him from denying the request. Maybe Tikki's words were getting to him, he couldn't bring himself to face Marinette, but maybe Alya could help. Without looking at Marinette's mother, he gave a small nod.

He could practically see the smile of relief that flashed over Sabine's features as her head disappeared back through the trapdoor. A couple of seconds later Alya emerged from it, closing the door gently below her. She made her way over to the chaise and sat down next to him. She placed a comforting hand on his shoulder which he immediately shrugged off, he didn't deserve her comfort either, he just wanted to hear what she had to say.

"Can you tell me what's wrong? Your parents didn't give me any details, they hardly know anything themselves as it is."

"Nothing's wrong," he mumbled.

"Don't even think for a second that I'm going to believe that." Her voice was firm, yet still consoling, as if she did this often. This only made Adrien feel worse. He didn't deserve any of this, for Marinette's friends and family to worry about him when they should be worried about her instead.

He sighed. He didn't want to talk about it or go into specific details, but this conversation wasn't going to get anywhere unless he said something.