Future Tales of the Miraculous

Chapter 8

Adrien stood in awe once he entered the vacant loft apartment.   Inside, he was greeted with a wall of tall, louvered windows spanning its full width.   A small open kitchen with a bar was to the right of the open living space before him, and to the left he saw a spacious bathroom and open riser stairs leading up to the loft bedroom. The real estate agent droned on about the features, amenities, and rent to the blonde, whom barely listened as he took in the space for himself.  Within seconds of entering this unit, he already knew this would be his new home.

"I'll take it," Adrien quickly replied.

Deciding to move out and live on his own was not a decision he had taken lighty. Over the years following her mother's disappearance, or death as Adrien had finally come to terms with calling it, his relationship with Gabriel Agreste continued to fall apart.  People dealt with grief in different, and sometimes extremely unexpected ways, his grief counselor had told him once .  Some shut out others and bury themselves in work to deal with the pain of losing a loved one.  Even if the ones being shut out need them the most during these hard times. 

Adrien held out hope that his aloof and cold-hearted father would return to the loving one he knew before the accident, but the day never came.  Instead, the ashen haired widower grew even more rigid and secluded as time passed.  Acknowledging Emilie as deceased was inconceivable to him; if anything he seemed determined to continue on as if he was certain she'd be returning home, alive and well. 

They'd become strangers living on opposing sides of their estate, never spending more than a few minutes in the same room during holidays or other important events.  The teen only had one thing to look forward to now:  gaining his freedom and independence from his father.  He was no longer content with living under anyone's shadow and desired to take more control of his life. When it came time to tell his father that he was leaving home, Adrien received only a stoic frown and a cryptic response from the stony blue-eyed man.

"Son, I hope you realize, when this is all over....that everything I did.  I did it to save her." 

He had then left his confused son with no further explanation of what his words meant.

Adrien's smartphone read fifteen minutes past One that Sunday afternoon; his stomach growled in protest of being neglected for lunch. The Gorilla awaited the teen outside, opening the backseat door as he emerged from the high rise apartment building. Instead of taking his seat in the chauffeur's car, Adrien waved him off.

"It's alright, I'm gonna find some lunch nearby. I'll find my way back to the estate later." Nodding, the Gorilla left the blonde to his own devices. Once alone, the little black kwami rustled out of his shirt pocket.

"Finally, I'm starving! You promised food over an hour ago," Plagg griped.

Adrien gave his Kwami a sympathetic smile and light chuckle.

"Sorry Plagg.  I do know a good place nearby where we can find you some cheese."

Traffic was bustling as usual at la Patisserie Boulangerie. Like a rehearsed dance, the violet haired girl gracefully dashed, bussed, served, and ran orders to and fro all morning and afternoon. Marinette was collecting dishes from the outdoor tables when she sensed someone watching her. She looked up to find a depressed looking Nathaniel standing before her.

They hadn't spoken in over a week.  At first Marinette would leave messages and tried to approach the sullen redhead at school, but Nathaniel resorted to avoiding or ignoring her.  She took Nino's advice to leave him be, until he was ready to talk. 

Seeing that the bakery traffic had slowed down, she invited the glum teen to join her at a table, then brought out some tea and a small plate of pastries.