We're finally equal | a miraculous story

The new kid

Marinette woke up feeling week. Her muscles were sore and her back ached in pain. Her parrot squawked at her. She looked over to her, Tikki, a red and black cheeked parakeet. The bird hopped onto her head, which made her heart lighten a little.

"Good morning Tikki." She said and scratches the bird's head. Marinette crawled out of bed and looked in the mirror. She looked twisted and weird. Her weights strapped to her neck, arms, and legs. She frowned, and grabbed her mask from off the dresser.

Only she was allowed to see her face. Not even her parents could after Marinette turned 13, 3 years ago. She placed it on her head, covering her freckled soft face. The mask covered her entire face, where as some people only covered half.

It was red, with black around her eyes and mouth holes. The mouth area was drawn out to look creepy with different shades of gold fake teeth poking out.

Some people are scared of her.

She pulled on some clothes, pulling her weights over them. Her weights were smaller, but after a while they made her sore, with the only time to take them off being in the shower.

She took long showers.

Marinette then ran downstairs where her parents sat in the bakery, getting ready to open.

"Have fun at school today! I heard you're getting a new student." Her mother, Sabine said as her daughter grabbed a granola bar for later. Her mother wore a white mask and her father, huge weights.

"I know, but should I be excited or not?" Marinette wondered as she hugged her mom and dad.

"I'd say excited. And if it's a boy.." her father winked.

"Dad!" Marinette pouted sarcastically. "Ok, I must go now!" She said and dashed out the door.

She ran across the street and to the school where her friend waited on the stair case. It was Alya, a red and brown ombré haired girl with a orange mask covering half her face. "Hey gurl, Your here on time for once!"

"I know, I know. My bird woke me for scratches." Marinette chuckled.

"I'm sorry, at least you don't have a dog's butthole sitting on your nose when you wake up!" Alya counter attacked.

"Did he really?" Marinette gasped.

"Trixx can be like that some times." The two laughed together.

"Ew, you two are so immature!" A voice said from behind them. It was Chloe, probably the luckiest human in Paris. She only had half a mask. No weights. No earphones. Alya has earphone set to buzz her every 5 minutes which made her forget where she was and what she was doing.

"Look who's eavesdropping." Alya folded her arms.

"Buttholes? Really? Gross. How are you even in 2nde?" (A/N 2nde is 10th grade in France) Chloe scoffed.

"That's not what we were talking about!" Marinette fought.

"Well.." alya laughed a little bit.

"Whatever. I just wanted you two to know that Adrien, the knew kid, is fragile. Don't you go talking to him! It makes him feel stupid!" She said with sincerity. She actually sounded like she cared.

"Adrien..?" Alya raised an eyebrow under her mask.

"The new student. We've been best friends since we were in diapers.. ew... and he loves me. Don't talk to him." Chloe scowled.

"Ok fine." Marinette placed her hands on her hips, clumsily slipping them with her weights. Chloe laughed with cruelty at her mistake.

"Alright bye then!" Chloe chuckled as she trotted away.

"What a brat." Alya commented.

"It's fine, she's Chloe, queen of everything." Marinette said sarcastically as they made their way to class.

The two found their seats and had been chatting for a while before the bell rang. Last minute students scrambled inside, Ivan actually fell in his face because his weights were so heavy. The teacher, Mrs. Bustier, entered finally. A sea of blank eyes from those who had masks and those who didn't, watched her. Their unnoticed eyes peering through the sockets of their masks.

"Alright class, as some of you may already know, we have a new student today!" Mrs. Bustier cheered and everyone whispered in anticipation, annoyance, or boredom to one another. "Please be kind to him, he is famous after all!"

"Who is it? Are we seriously getting a celebrity or something?" Alya whispered to Marinette.

"Probably, because Chloe's friends with him." Marinette replied.

"You can come in now." Mrs. Bustier looked at the open door to the classroom. Loud footfalls echoed through the class room as a mess of a figure walked in.

He had very large weights, much much bigger than her own. His earphone was hidden by his full face black mask with coloring of green and silver small horns at the top to make him frightening, though  Marinette could see he had blonde hair underneath.

"Class, please welcome Adrien Agreste!" Mrs. Bustier said and the class welcomed him. He looked nervous. "Share a little about yourself Adrien."

"H-hi. I've never been to school before, i don't really know if this is what I'm supposed to be saying.. I uh..." he had a rather pretty voice.

"What are your hobbies?" Mrs. Bustier asked.

"Um.. fooseball?" The class burst out in laughter. Adrien shifted uncomfortably. "I like fencing too." He finished.

"Very Nice Adrien. You can sit down now. Your next to Nino." She pointed at a darker skinned boy in front of Alya and Marinette who had a earphone and small weights.

"Ok." Adrien quietly sat down.

"Sup dude." Nino put out a hand for Adrien to shake. Adrien just stared blankly at him. "Your.. supposed to shake it." Adrien still did nothing. "Are you ok dude?" No response.

"Mrs. Bustier! Nino is making fun of my Adriekins!" Chloe raised her hand and stood up.

"Nino.." Mrs. Bustier frowned, though you couldn't tell from under her mask.

"Mrs. I swear I wasn't! I was trying to shake his-" suddenly Adrien shook Nino's hand then carried on as if nothing had happened. "Ok.. hi..." Nino suddenly flinched.

"Sorry bout that Nino." The teacher apologized. Nino looked at her.

"What are you sorry for? What did I do?" He asked cluelessly. Chloe began to laugh.

"Ha! He can hardly remember the last few seconds!" She sneered.  "Who would ever want to hang out with some one who forgets their own name?" She whispered to Sabrina.

"A looser who didn't know their own name." Sabrina replied and they started snickering.

"Mrs. Bustier! Since I know Adrien best, can I sit with him? I think he's scared of Nino."

"Chloe.. Adrien And Nino are perfectly fine. Pleas sit dow-"

"Then can me and Sabrina swap with Marinette and Alya?!" Chloe projected.

"Chloe! I haven't even been able to start today's lesson! Sit. Down!" Mrs. Bustier scolded.

"Unacceptable! This is ridiculous, utterly ridiculous!" Chloe scoffed as she sat down with crossed arms and a pouted lip.

And this Mrs. Bustier started the day off with a pop quiz about Shakespeare.

Marinette felt awed by the boy in front of her. Adrien, she felt drawn to him. But she was distracted by the pain creeping up her back like a snake coiling itself around her and squeezing. The pain that made her hunch and twist weirdly. The pain that kept her in reality with her nightmare self. The pain that woke her in the night. The pain that made her clothes look weird. The pain that made her back want to give in. The pain that was her spine, twisting like an S, curving in a 70° rotation, shifting one shoulder higher than the other. Her scoliosis that she hid from the world.