No More Secrets

Chapter 01

(Edited)

❝ 𝕚 𝕗𝕠𝕦𝕟𝕕 𝕒 𝕨𝕒𝕪 𝕥𝕠 𝕝𝕖𝕥 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕚𝕟, 𝕓𝕦𝕥 𝕚 𝕟𝕖𝕧𝕖𝕣 𝕣𝕖𝕒𝕝𝕝𝕪 𝕙𝕒𝕕 𝕒 𝕕𝕠𝕦𝕓𝕥 ❞

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The warm summer sun beat down on the streets of Paris, the birds singing as the wind rustled through the trees and added a refreshing and relaxing feel to the ambiance around them. Many adored the summer weather in Paris, both visitors and locals alike, and Luka was no exception as he rode on his bike along the side of the road, a small smile on his lips as he enjoyed the wind tickling the exposed flecks of his hair from beneath his helmet, the sweat on his face cooling as the wind licked his skin.

The news of an akuma attack only an hour prior had caused the male a mild delay for his deliveries, but by now, the procedure for Parisians to avoid any contact with the akumatized civilian was more like a daily routine rather than a setback; memorized by the vast majority that lived in the city.

He was on his way to deliver one of his last mailed letters when a familiar girl caught his eye. Marinette—beautiful, sweet, Marinette—was exiting the park; though her pace was rather slow.  She looked strange; the air around her different. Her head was held low, and—from what he could make out—her expression was strained, showing an overwhelming amount of stress and anxiety alike. He began to slow, his heart straining in his chest as he got closer, only barely noticing the watery sheen in her eyes as she stared down at her purse, lips moving in slow, muttered words. He drew to a halt as he arrived at the curb, Marinette glancing up to face him with an almost exhausted expression. "Marinette, are you alright...?"

He could see it in her eyes—the almost broken and torn thoughts raging in her mind, screaming so many insecurities and doubts; guilts that he doubted she ever expressed to him or anybody before. Even then, her lips twisted into a smile, forced and crooked, tears still prominent in her blue bell gaze. "Yeah, I'm...fine."

A blatant lie, Luka could tell right away. She was barely holding herself together, her voice tight and wavering almost as though she were going to break at any moment.

She did.

As Luka made an effort to move closer, the girl's façade cracked, her expression contorting into something so broken that it tore Luka's heart into shreds. Tears fell from her eyes as her fists clenched, the palms of her hands flying up to wipe them away. "I'm not fine at all!"

A choked sob forced its way out her throat, and Luka instinctively threw himself off his bike and rushed over to her side, tears streaming down rosy cheeks as she rubbed them raw with her hands. He didn't pay any mind to the strangled sound his guitar made as it landed on the pavement—much less the bike that most undoubtedly had a few more scratches compared to how it came; the girl in front of him was far more important.

"I'm so tired, Luka; of all these responsibilities—of having to put up a front all the time!" Burying her face in his chest, the girl's fingers clenched the soft fabrics of Luka's sweater. "I've never been able to be who I truly am..."

Gently caressing her hair, Luka hugged the ebony-haired woman as reassuringly as he could. "It's alright, Marinette. You can tell me everything. Or nothing, if you prefer." Luka smiled down at her, "You can be yourself with me, you know?" Marinette gently pulled away, her blue bell eyes meeting his aqua-colored ones. There was a storm of emotion brewing behind them, Luka noticed; guilt, sorrow, and pure exhaustion. He didn't know what Marinette had been through. All he knew is that she needed someone to lean on—someone she could trust. "Just yourself."