SoulMates

Chapter 9

1:15 stared right at Nathaniel as he flopped over to the side that faced his desk. He hadn't been able to catch some proper sleep after settling into bed four and a half hours prior. Was it the euphoria he felt as he walked home or the sudden energy he had from the encounter with Lady, he didn't know. What he did know was that he couldn't keep his eyes closed for more than half an hour bursts once his head hit the pillow. In the entire time he had been in bed, he had probably gotten only two actual hours of shut eye, and even then, it was only the accumulation of small fragments of sleep. Sighing in defeat, the artist heaved himself up and put on some sweats and a light jacket, deciding to walk around town for a while.

Strolling down the quiet dark street, Nathaniel admired the city in the light of the night. The streets looked different than they would when the sun and people were out, it was beautifully quiet. Although there were a few street lights lining the paths, the stars were still visible if you just tilted your gaze towards the sky. Nathanael admired the semi clear sky along with its contents as he strolled around, before reaching the bridge that ran over the Seine connecting the two sides of Paris. He looked over the bridge railings on to the water only to stare in awe at the sight. Rather than being met with the wavy reflection of the night sky as he had thought would be looking back at him, Nathanael was met with another star filled sky. He felt that if he jumped in, he would find himself on the other side of space and time. His gaze continued to linger on the water, trying to figure out if it really was just the water or a portal, when something shot across the reflection. Confused, Nathanael naturally looked up to find the source. Was it a shooting star? A bug maybe?

Nathanael looked up in time to see Ladybug swinging away from him, causing his heart to jolt in both joy and excitement. He had heard through the grapevine that Ladybug and Chat Noir would often do nightly patrols but he hadn't really put much thought into it. Even when everyone else was asleep, this girl did her all to make sure that the city was safe. Taking a chance, Nathanael decided to follow Ladybug to thank her for all that she, urm they, did for him and the city. After all, he had nothing else to do and sleep didn't feel any closer now than it did when he was laying in bed.

By the time Nathanael reached the alleyway where Ladybug had seemed to have dropped into, Nathanael was almost passed out from the huffing and puffing. Although it could have been because she was swinging and he was running, but he could have sworn that she was going at it as if she was running away from something. Could she have noticed him and thought he was a bad guy coming after her? Although the thought made him feel guilty, he also felt it was highly improbable that this super hero was running away from a civilian in fear of danger, she practically runs to danger without hesitation all the time. But what if it wasn't him that she was running from, but something else?

Feeling a sense of protectiveness, Nathanael turned into the alley when something knocked him back onto the ground. He groaned at the pain in both his back and his chest, his senses slightly shook at the power of the collision as he squeezed his eyes shut to collect himself. He felt as if he had just been tackled, and with Alex as a childhood friend, he knew not to look up too quickly and to stay still a bit as his system processed the shock. His back ached and his chest prickled with pain while a warm sensation spanned the upper portion.

Yup, that's gonna leave a mark for sure

He could hear a groan coming from on top of him before there was a gasp and shuffling back. Confused, Nathanael opened his eyes to find the sky above him not spinning, but the stars seemed to dull in comparison to another bright light source coming from somewhere else?

A flashlight?

He felt around his chest as he sat up before looking down to try to find the source only to find it to be his chest glowing a bright, warm yellow. Was this real or was this all his subconsciousness playing a trick on him? He flared his hand on the area and upon feeling the warmth of it, smacked down on it. Yep, that hurt. He then looked under his shirt and sure enough it was coming from him. Yep, that's all him. Which meant....

The sound of something metal being knocked over caused him to look up at the source. Although the alleyway was dark, he could see the outline of a girl with two low pigtails, only visible due to the purple light that he assumed to emanate from her own chest. She was running away from him. Nathanael made the two connections and began to bolt after the girl.

"Hey! Wait!" He called after her, "Wait! I wanna talk!"

The girl didn't stop or even look back, instead she ran faster, weaving through small branching alleys as if she had done this all before. Injured and already tired from his other run, Nathanael could barely keep up and soon lost her through the maze of buildings. He leaned against a building and allowed his body to recover from the abuse he had put it through. Looking back up at the stars he recollected the encounter and pondered over it all. One minute he was trying to catch up to the city's most beloved heroine and the next he was trying to catch up to his soulmate. Ladybug was supposed to be in that alleyway. Nathanael's heart skipped, this would mean...

Nathanael could barely contain his excitement and absolute joy, it was the most probable conclusion! Although he was sad that he couldn't have a conversation with her and talk things out, he figured it would be best if he gave her time to come to him. She had obviously seen him before she bolted, and it was her choice in wanting to reveal herself to him. Nathanael never liked being forced to do something, especially when it made him uncomfortable, and being true to the values his parents raised him on, he chose to let her go. He wanted to have a trusting and genuine relationship with his soulmate, and he knew that if he wanted that, then he'd have to give her space if that is what she wanted. Although he wanted nothing more than to enjoy her company, he would let her come to him when she was ready. With a huge grin on his face, Nathanael decided it was time for him to get some sleep, all the running and excitement had finally tired him out both mentally and physically.

Now that that was settled, which way was home again?

___

On the other side of the mass of buildings, a girl stood hunched over her knees huffing and puffing, her ponytails falling onto either side of her. After making sure she wasn't followed, the girl could finally rest, but that didn't change what she felt at that moment. She knew it was going to happen, but she hoped that it wouldn't have happened so soon. After hunkering down on her responsibilities and finding out about Adrien finding his soulmate, the last thing that she needed was to find her own. She aggressively rubbed her face before letting her hands fall and balled them up tightly as her eyes began to burn and her breathing became more heavy. The girl looked up, and although she felt like she wanted to do nothing more than disappear, she forced herself to dismiss her weakening thoughts. This wasn't something she couldn't handle on her own, her feelings will pass. She swallowed the lump in her throat and tried to push the weight off her chest, this was just a stress test. Things will be fine, she's been through hard stress before and is still able to stand, it will all settle soon like always.

Hopefully.

**************************

Soo.... This Quarantine, am I right?

-Journey signing out-