I Knew It Was You [COMPLETE]

14. Gabriel

Present day...

"Are you sure Nathalie?" Adrien asked.
Natalie nodded, sitting down on a chair and rubbing her head. Adrien knelt down next to her, one hand on her shoulder and one on the chair.
"It's time Adrien," she said looking at him. Her blue eyes stared at him, soft but cold, soon welling up. He hated seeing the only mother figure he has, crying and weak but he knew he had to stay strong for her. 

-x-x-x-

The Gabriel Brand has almost completely lost it value. The only thing keeping it alive is it's prestige and the workers. With Gabriel gone, the house can't function and there's only so much Nathalie can do. She isn't the same person and one by one, investors, designers, managers...they left the group. 
The only thing keeping it alive are the young upstarts who will work to no-end in the belief  that Gabriel will rise again some day. The other reason is because of the fans of the younger Agreste.
Yes, once he turns 18, Adrien will own the entire Gabriel brand, even if Gabriel is alive or not.

The pressure was building on Adrien: he was to become the head of the brand. Adrien had to admit that he liked the company at a management level but he didn't have an inkling of the talent his father had. The boy knew his limitations and as brilliant as he is, he couldn't pick a pen and design to save his life. He still tried his best: fashion design crash-courses, fashion technology basics, studying modern fashion and it's evolution...there was so much to enlighten his knowledge but nothing could improve his designing skills. The best drawing he ever made was an eye diagram for physics but when he drew sunglasses, Plagg was convinced it was an infinity symbol with limbs.

Nathalie was tirelessly working and Adrien doubted it was because of her pay. He couldn't remember the last time she slept but she never stopped running errands, attending meetings and making sure Adrien was in sync with his much more flexible schedule. He insisted that he could help but Nathalie never let him: his academics, modeling career and fashion courses are his top priority. He tried to convince her that he should be coming to meetings with her since he will own the company one day but Nathalie kept making excuses, only hinting the inevitable: Gabriel will close soon.

With the end of Gabriel, comes the end of Nathalie Sancouer. She was hired based on company needs, not for personal assistance. Her career was based on the needs of the CEO, not Gabriel Agreste as an individual. With the end of Gabriel's reign, comes the end of Nathalie's, too. Adrien thought the simple solution was to re-hire her as his assistant but the rules were too complicated for him to understand. Bottom line: Nathalie will lose her job.

Today had been unbearably tough. Gabriel was due for a corrective surgery in the near future but circumstances stated otherwise: he needs to do it today. His health deteriorated everyday, it was only a matter of time till he was no more. What was the cause? No one knows. No harmful growths, no response to blood tests and no response to medications. The best doctors in France and even from around the world, have visited the ill man but all to no use. No one could diagnose the disease, much less try to fix it.

Adrien went to get Nathalie's phone, a heavy blanket of dread slowly wrapping around him.

-x-x-x-

"You okay dude?" Nino asked. He had come over to  Adrien's house after he had called him for video games. Adrien wasn't particularly in a competitive mood, often losing for careless gestures. He was sighing the whole time and didn't laugh around like he usually would.

"Yeah, yeah, just- preoccupied," he said, setting the controller down. He picked up his phone and looked through the messages, ignoring the incoming spam of messages from Marinette. Thinking of her made him sick; his most recent attempt to tell her how he feels didn't exactly go well. She was running over him with different topics and obliviously rejecting the slight change in the mood, wiping away an exciting tension with a much more quirky and safe topic.

"Woah man, too down to check Marinette's messages?"
"Especially hers," escaped out of Adrien's mouth. Suddenly he perked up and pushed an array of buttons, hoping Nino didn't notice.
"Is something wrong between you and Marinette?" 
"N-No of c-course, not. I-I mean, w-why would there be? W-We're perfect- I mean, perfectly fine! W-Why would you ask?" Adrien blabbered, a phony smile across his face.
"Because first of all, you're depressed," Nino said tossing the controller. He picked up Adrien's phone and showed the screen, "Secondly, this doesn't light up your face. Wanna tell me what's going on?"

Adrien wanted to make an excuse. He was the king of them after all, he would say anything to escape an uncomfortable situation. But his mind kept giving him another idea: tell Nino about Marinette. Nino was his best friend after all, not as close as Marinette but basically the only other person he trusted. And besides, what's the harm? Sure Nino couldn't keep a secret but maybe that's one way Marinette will realize...
"Okay okay, but you better not tell anyone. Especially Alya," Adrien said cautiously. Nino rolled his eyes and nodded, too impatient for instructions.
Adrien exhaled deeply. "I like...someone."
Nino perked up. "Wait seriously? Like this is after you gave up on Kagami, right? Who is it? Who dude?"
"M-Marinette?"
Nino's face changed from super excited to super scared. "Marinette? Dude are you serious?"
"Y-Yeah. Why?"
"No seriously, are you freaking serious? Like you, like Marinette? AS MORE THAN JUST A FRIEND?"
"You're scaring me Nino..."
"Bro, how long has it been?"
"Um, almost a year? Mayb-"
"ALMOST A YEAR?"

Nino looked cynical but then burst out laughing. After interrogating Adrien like a detective, the boy had the nerve to laugh. 
"Why are you laughing?" Adrien asked, annoyed.
"Be-Because!" Nino wheezed. He grabbed his stomach and wiped his eyes, settling down. "Dude, couldn't you have told me then? You would've had a chance with her, man!"
Adrien's eyes nearly bulged out of his head. Nino, realizing what he had said, grabbed his phone and pretended to be extra absorbed in his home screen.

"What do you mean I would've had a chance?" Adrien asked, his annoyance increasing by the second. He had a chance? At what?
"Um well, you see, I-I shouldn't be telling you this-"
"Telling me what?"
"Uh well, okay. I guess since it over, I can tell you," Nino said deep in thought but obviously frightened.
"Since what is over?"
"Huh? You see, um well, this was a long time back and it isn't-"
"GET. TO-" Adrien stopped when he realized he was yelling. He put his fingers on the bridge of his nose and exhaled. "Can you just tell me now?" he said, much more softly.

Nino played with the brim of his cap and slowly said, "Marinette used to have a crush on you."