I Knew It Was You [COMPLETE]

10. Birthday

"Marinette wake up!" Tikki squealed, "It's your birthday!"
Marinette stretched and sat up in bed, all the kwamis zoomed to her and wished her, a few of them giving her a tiny kwami hug.
"Thank you  guys!" she said, looking at all of them. She got ready and put on the birthday outfit she was working on: a light pink, satin high-low dress with a white-braided seam and her signature polka dots at the hem. Sure it looked a little childish, but not so much when she put it on and styled it it with a white jacket. She did her hair in a loose fishtail to the side and added a tiny dab of mascara. 

Her parents wished her when she went down, handing her a delicious breakfast of chocolate and berry loaded waffles. She took her normal walk to school but no one was at the courtyard. Hmmm, is there no school today? she thought.

She entered and went up to class, the whole school absolutely still. She took a deep breath before opening the door, expecting to see an empty class and a sad walk home. 
Instead of a loud silence, she heard a loud "Surprise!" 
Marinette tried to see through the bursts of confetti and all the hollers.
"Happy birthday to you..." everyone started singing: Alya, Ivan, Alix, Luka, Nino...
Marinette buried her head in her hands and tried not to let the tears spill. She's planned so many surprise birthdays but never did she expect one in school and that too, for her.

"Awww, you guys!" she said looking at all the decorations: pink streamers, a pile of gifts and even a cake. She gazed at everything and got pulled into a group hug.
"We love you, girl. Got surprised?" Alya said.
"You like it, dudette? I had to come early for all this," Nino said, hands crossed but smiling.
"Oh come on now Nino. You should put some efforts, once in a while," Luka said, nudging him. Nino returned with a friendly punch, before joining everyone. Luka stood behind her for a moment and placed his hands on her shoulders. "Hope you like it Marinette. Happy birthday," he said.
She looked over her shoulder, smiling sweetly at him, and mumbled a thank you before they all gathered around the table.
"We are so thankful for the Marinettes in the world," Madame Bustiere said, "Happy birthday to the most special one."
Marinette cut the cake and opened some of her gifts: a comic about Marinette as a superhero from Marc and Nathaniel, a scrapbook from Rose, a hand painted thermal flask from Juleka, a Jagged Stone poster from Luka along with Polaroids from when they worked with him, an album of pictures from Alya, a stuffed animal from Nino...there was so much more but Madame Bustiere reminded them that they had class.

Marinette got a text before she settled in her seat.
adrienagreste.official: Happy Birthday! There's a surprise here, too.
adrienagreste.official: Come over during lunch. I'll drop you back.
adrienagreste.official: Couldn't make it school today. Emergency hospital visit :(
adrienagreste.official: But it's all good. Just let me know when you're about to reach.

-x-x-x- 

"Happy Birthday, Marinette!" Adrien said, standing at the door. He engulfed her in a hug as she said, "Thank you Adrien."
She made her way to his room, greeting Nathalie and the Bodyguard as they went past them. 
"Okay, close your eyes..." Adrien said, opening the door and leading her in.
"And...now." She opened her eyes to a feast.

"Adrien! This is not a light lunch!" Marinette said, unable to contain her happiness.
"What? You know the chefs love you! Besides, Father asked them for this anyways. I'm just your host," Adrien said, hands on his hips.
They sat down on his couch and tried a nibble of everything, and then took seconds of the dishes they liked.
"Wow! Mr. Agreste ordered all this for me?" Marinette said, cutting up her cheesecake.
"Mhmm...if you want, I could take you to him. He has something for you...and th-that is i-if you want to see him, n-not that you have to. I me-mean, Father would lo-love to see you but-"
Marinette interrupted him by holding his hand, giving it a gentle squeeze.
"I think we should see him," she said.

Soon, they were on their way to what was once another dead room in the mansion but now was the medical wing. Gabriel Agreste laid on a plush, white mattress, surrounded by pillows, IV drips and carts of medicine. His once tall, broad figure barely stood out anymore, replaced with a skeleton of a man. His eyes were sunken, his cheekbones jutting out and his jaw looked starved, not sharp like it once was.

"Father?" Adrien called softly. Gabriel's eyes lolled in his head before he adjusted to his surroundings. He squinted and reached out his hand, a pale smile on his face.
As they approached him, Marinette noticed more grey hair. His clean shaven face now sported a stubble and his arms were thinner than hers.

"Father, it's Marinette's birthday. She wanted to see you," Adrien said. Marinette smiled sweetly, trying not to be bothered by how glassy Adrien's eyes suddenly became.
"How are you, Mr. Agreste?" she asked. He smiled, visibly weak and reached his other hand out to her. 

"Ha-Happy," Gabriel wheezed. Soon enough he went into a coughing fit. The nurses rushed to him but he composed himself and they knew better than to bother him when he was with family. He took Marinette's hand and closed it in his, cold and empty, and tried to smile again, a wider one this time. Then, he slowly pulled something out from under his pillow and handed it to her, a package that look about the size of the pillow itself.

Gabriel gestured to open it and Marinette slowly peeled off the baby pink wrapping paper, revealing a Gabriel box underneath. She looked at him for confirmation, trying to hold in her excitement and he nodded in reassurance. She carefully took it off and opened the box, a smooth pink material inside. There was a note, written in sloppy but fancy handwriting:

"My dearest Marinette,
Happy birthday to a future designer. You have all the potential and creativity to make it big. Don't ever give up on your dreams.
At times like these, I can't thank you enough for being the ray of sunshine we needed. Keep smiling and keep laughing. 
Wishing you all the best.
Love always,
Gabriel Agreste"

Marinette's eyes welled up and she pulled out a silk evening gown. A "Custom Design" tag hung from the back and she took time to let the details sink in: sequinned embroidery around the waist and hips, every inch of it in a vibrant, fluffy pink. She suppressed a smile, while trying to hide her tears. 
"Thank you," she said, her voice barely there. The nurses took the dress and promised to repack it and have it delivered to her house. She quickly composed herself, smoothing out her dress.
"Impressive," Gabriel said, pointing to her dress. She smiled shyly and thanked him.
Nathalie soon appeared and announced that they had to leave in ten minutes.

"Goodbye Mr. Agreste, I'll visit you soon. Thank you for everything," Marinette said, gripping his fingers. He patted her hand and nodded, his silent way of wishing goodbye. They left the room and soon were walking down the hall and out the door. They got into Adrien's car and Marinette tried to wash away the uneasy reality: Gabriel Agreste was terminally ill and no one could figure out why.