A Miraculous Tale: Flashback

Ch. 12

Marinette heard a very familiar voice. At least she thought she did. Her brain was foggy and she couldn't tell if she was dreaming or not. Everything seemed distant, and she felt like she was in a quiet wood. Must be dreaming. Marinette thought sleepily. The voice continued to talk. Curious to see who her dream had brought her, her eyes opened a crack. Adrien, a distant image, sat at her bedside. A small black ball hovered near his shoulder. It looked like Plagg.

This is definitely a dream. Adrien can't be Cat Noir. She watched as Plagg and Adrien talked.

"So who is it? Ladybug or Marinette?" Plagg was asking him.

"Plagg, I don't want to talk about this right now." Adrien said, clearly annoyed.

"First you say you undyingly love Ladybug, but then you turn around and chase after Marinette!"

"Plagg..."

"I just want you to make up your mind!"

"Fine. I love Ladybug."

"Well then why are you at Marinette's bedside?"

"Because she is a friend. A very good friend."

"Hmm." Plagg said, not satisfied to where this conversation had led.

Marinette closed her eyes mournfully. Even my dreams won't let me be with him. She let herself draw away from the image of Adrien and Plagg, and she entered the quiet woods once more.

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Marinette's eyes fluttered open. Her parents were sitting on chairs at the base of the bed.

"Mom? Dad?" Marinette called softly. They looked up at her.

"Marinette, you're awake!" Her Dad said, obviously relieved.

"I'm going to go get the doctor, she wanted to know when you wake up." Her mom left the room.

Marinette looked quizzically at her Dad. "How long have I been sleeping?"

He put his big hand on the side of her face. "Two days, I'm afraid. You were unconscious, Marinette. I'd thought I lost you when you ran out of the hospital and no one could find you. Luckily, Cat Noir saw you collapse and brought you here. He looked worried about you. He said you just collapsed in the street! The doctor isn't worried though. She thinks your delusional outburst was because of Flashback. She think's Flashback's power over you lasted longer because you were in a weakened state. I'm just glad that you're safe now."

"Me too." Marinette said as she hugged her dad.

"I love you, Marinette."

"I love you too, Dad."

"Hey, do you know who also loves you?" Her Dad asked with a grin.

"Who?" Marinette asked, puzzled.

"You're friends. They came by often. The doctor would only let them in for a few minutes though. I'm glad you have close friends, Marinette."

"Yeah, they're the best." Marinette replied. Her mom came in a second later with the doctor.

"Looks like sleeping beauty finally woke up!" The doctor said as she looked over Marinette. "Feeling better, I hope?"

"Yeah, I am." Marinette said.

"That's good. Now, you'll have to stay in here for another five days I'm afraid. For the next two days you will have no visitors before 10 am and after 8 pm, including your parents. This is to ensure you get enough uninterrupted rest. Understood?"

The Dupain-Cheng family nodded their understanding, and the Doctor left after she was satisfied all was well with Marinette.

"Marinette, I'm going to send a notice to the school to tell them you're awake and okay. They've all been worried about you." Her mom said.

"Thanks, Mom." Marinette said. "I think I'm going to take a nap now, if you don't mind." Marinette leaned back into the pillows and was instantly asleep.

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She woke an hour later. She had a small bowl of chicken soup for lunch, and after Alya and Nino came by.

"Girl, you're okay! I was so worried! You don't know how awful it is to think that you've lost your best friend, watch her fall..." Alya trailed off, and tears filled her eyes.

"It's okay Alya, I'm alright now. That's all that matters." The two friends hugged tearfully. Alya pulled away and wiped her eyes.

Marinette directed her attention to Nino, who was standing awkwardly in the back of the room.

"Hey, Nino." Marinette called.

He walked up to the base of her bed. "Hey, Dudette. I'm glad you're okay. Wouldn't be the same without you."

Marinette smiled. "Thanks, Nino."

Alya brought up a chair to the side of Marinette's bed. Marinette smiled and looked around the room. Something's missing. Adrien! Why didn't he come? I thought he'd at least come because we're friends; maybe we're not even that. Marinette thought glumly.

"Looking for Adrien?" Alya asked. She didn't wait for Marinette's reply. "He's coming later tonight. He still has practice because the tournament is tomorrow night. Then he has a photo shoot with his dad. Then he's coming over to visit you."

Marinette's eyes widened. "That's a lot of things to do." Oh my goodness,
Adrien wants to come see me! Marinette thought, and butterflies of excitement fluttered in her stomach.

"Man, the poor guy doesn't get a break." Nino said.

Alya leaned close to Marinette's ear. "I'll tell you about Adrien later, when no one else is around." Marinette nodded, and the little butterflies grew bigger.

Nino glanced at his watch. "I think we should go, Alya."

Alya nodded. "Sorry we have to go, girl. We've been planning to go to this movie for a while, so..." She trailed off.

"Go ahead and go. Just don't have too much fun without me."

"You're the best." Alya said. Then they walked out of the hospital room. Marinette laid back down in the pillows.

"This is going to be a long day." She murmured to herself.

Tikki flew over to join her. "I'm sure we can make it go by a little faster."

Marinette smiled. "Change it then. A long, less boring day."

"A long, less boring day." Tikki repeated with a smile.