I Knew It Was You [COMPLETE]

4. Summer

Adrien entered his room and sat on his desk chair. He spun on it till he felt like his brain was trying to force itself out of his skull. He stared at his desktop till his eyes were sore from the light.

"Look kid, I don't know what you're trying to convince yourself of but I'm gonna get my yummy cheese," Plagg said, zipping away to the cupboard. The tiny creature zipped away in a streak of black and settled down in his cheese cupboard.

I just went on a date with Kagami, I just went on a date with Kagami, I just....he repeated in his head. Suddenly, he moved towards his computer and selected a file: "Ladybug". He scrolled through the library and selected a picture, a picture taken after their first akuma battle since the defeat of Scarlet Moth. She was looking at the newly de-evilized butterfly as his superhero persona, Cat Noir, watched it flutter away.

A few months earlier...

"Pound it!"

The akuma victim, a school girl who got upset over her grades, rubbed her head while the other hand held the report card where the nasty butterfly (or, you know, the akuma) seeped in. Hawk Moth's creation was very lazy this time, giving the girl the power to turn people hating whatever they spent their education on and zombie-like trance to destroy schools, which didn't happen.

The akuma was an easy defeat, given that this was Hawk Moth's first one after his fresh defeat as Scarlet Moth. Ladybug didn't even call her Lucky Charm, Cat Noir ripped the report card into shreds by then.

"M'l-Ladybug?" he said, cautiously. The name felt so foreign on his lips when he realized how comfortable he had been using that nickname. Even Ladybug perked up, startled by the formality.

"Everything okay, Kitty?" she asked.

"Y-yeah...uh, I just wanted to tell you that I won't be here for most of the summer, I'm traveling," he said. 

Ladybug nodded her head, deep in thought. Given that Hawk Moth is not at his best with the akuma designs, they should be easy to defeat. Besides, he needs time to recover from that showdown, right? 

"Um, okay...no problem. Have fun wherever you are, Kitty. I'll miss you. Bug out!" she gave a two finger salute and extended the yo-yo to a high tower and vanished. If only she vanished from his heart as quickly. 

The whole summer had been jam packed with photo shoots, interviews, conferences and opening of the 'Gabriel' stores. Every time they returned to Paris, it was either a fencing tournament, piano recital,  or a Chinese presentation. Not to mention late night akumas, seeing Ladybug again and saying goodbye to her, without giving an explanation. 

Within a span of three months, they had visited Liverpool, London, Dublin, Lisbon, Madrid, Valencia, Rome, Milan, Brussels, Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Berlin, Prague, Vienna, Bern, Budapest, Stockholm and Moscow as the first leg of the "Gabriel European Tour", barely staying at each city for 4 days. If they did have a fifth day Adrien was forced to spend it at spas to "rejuvenate" himself, while Father talked to investors and attended small meetings.

Even though they were together for three months, Adrien only felt the distance between them growing. They talked...about the upcoming designs, stressful photo shoots, places to see...but they weren't communicating. Every smile was strained, every conversation was forced, every silence was heavier than the one before.

Talking to his friends proved harder. The day he landed in a new city, they had to check-in to their hotel and freshen up for a press conference. That usually lasted the whole day, often seeping into late nights where Gabriel stayed back and Adrien was sent to the hotel. The next few days were followed by fittings, photo shoots and fan meets, sometimes appearing in ads or promotional media. Adrien had to practice piano and fencing, he wasn't allowed to sleep without revising his Chinese (although, Nathalie let him go sometimes). It took a miracle to be able to video call Nino or Kagami and even then, they might've been busy. He kept up with their lives through Instagram, seeing their posts and stories: Nino got a DJ gig, Alya's blog has started getting professional sponsors and promotions and Marinette's online store was exploding. It felt like everyone's life seemed better than his.

The  only thing that kept him going was Ladybug's message: "I'll miss you". 

Every time he returned to Paris, he'd hear two good things: that the akuma attacks weren't very frequent and that she missed him. She missed him...

-x-x-x-

"You weren't thinking of my Sugar Cube's owner again, were you?"  Plagg said, interrupting Adrien's flashback.

"Plagg, I just went on a date with Kagami," Adrien said defensively.

"I've heard that one before," Plagg said, rolling his neon green eyes.

Adrien sighed...well that's true, isn't it?

A few weeks earlier...

"I don't understand, you arrive at the location, get your make up and hair done and then pose. I don't mean to be rude, but what's so hard about that which gets you so fatigued?" Kagami asked bluntly. Well, that was Kagami: blunt.

Adrien sighed and shook his head, as to change the topic. "Do you like anime?" he asked.

"I've never watched anime. Mother only allows me to watch news or documentaries."

He put in the DVD and both of them sat on the couch. Twenty minutes later, Kagami was dozing off on his shoulder. Before he could wake her up, he got a notification: nino.djsupreme sent you a video.

Well, it'd be rude to check in front of Kagami, but since she's sleeping...he opened the notification to see a boomerang of Nino and their classmates, waving hi.

Adrien typed: Aww, thank you guys! I'll see you soon

dudeeee u dont know what ure missing out on you need to get here!!!! Nino replied.

Sorry Nino, I'm hanging out with Kagami right now. Maybe later?

oh cool. see ya.

Ouch, Adrien thought. It was just a text but it felt harsh. He went to his feed and clicked on Alya's  story. It was a video captioned "What jamming really looks like." In it, Alya was taking the video in selfie mode while cuddling in Nino's arms as he joked about something with Marinette and Luka, who were laughing as well. Adrien's heart panged, seeing his friends having fun without him...especially Marinette who he doubted he could call 'friend'.

Adrien tapped Kagami awake, who immediately apologized about falling asleep as she had to wake up quite early to practice with her mother. Soon, she was in her car and driving away for a class on Japanese history she had to attend.

Nathalie handed him the tablet and informed him of his schedule.

"Will I get free time soon?" he asked.

Nathalie tried to neglect the hope in his eyes as she said, "Not so soon, Adrien."