Second Chances

talk -------->chp47

When Monday came, Adrien was fearing the worst. Emma had been angry and irritable all weekend while occasionally asking for Mommy. It had been very hard to navigate the battlefield known as her little four-year-old mind, and it was wearing on him. He knew he had to hold out until Marinette made her decision, but it seemed like such a long time.

Monday morning, he was immensely thankful to Nathalie and his father who took Emma for the morning just so that Adrien could have a talk with Marinette without Emma there to influence her decision.

He was so nervous, and when a knock sounded against the door, his stomach twisted into knots. He took a deep breath before he answered it. “Hey,” he awkwardly greeted. “Come in.”

“Thank you.” Marinette entered, slipping off her shoes right in front of the door and hanging her purse on the coatrack. “No Emma?”

“She’s at my father’s,” he answered. “To give us a little time to talk.”

“Oh,” she said. “Okay.”

They took a seat on the couch. Adrien’s hands wouldn’t stop shaking, so he tried resting them on his legs in hopes of hiding that fact. “My proposal still stands. I want to marry you. I want you in my life as my wife and Emma’s mom. But I understand if you are not ready, and I don’t want to push you.”

“I know,” she said. “And I’m so thankful that you understand and are so willing to give me that space and be patient with me.” Her hand found its way to his knee as she looked him straight in the eyes. “No matter what, I appreciate that more than you know and I thank you for it.”

Even though he felt a weight on his heart, he still covered her hand with his own and smiled at her. “You’re welcome.”

They stayed like that a moment longer. Marinette took a deep breath. Adrien braced himself for her decision.

“I want to pursue that future with you,” she whispered.

And his heart flat out stopped.

She smiled, but he could see the tears in her eyes. “I’m still going to need a little more time,” she said. “And patience. I… I’m still learning to fully let go, but I don’t want to miss out on what we have—the game nights, the dinners, the time we sneak together after we put Emma to bed—I don’t want that to stop. I like this relationship. I like our little family, even though it’s not official. And… and… I…”

When her tears fell, he was quick to brush them away.  Even once they were gone, his hand didn’t leave her cheek. Her hand came up to cup his as she pressed her face against his palm.

And suddenly, he was crying, too. His vision was blurry and his cheeks were wet and he couldn’t help but lean forward and rest his forehead on hers. She leaned up so their noses touched.

“But,” she quietly said, her voice still a bit weak. “I want to have a very serious talk about what that future entails before we fully agree on anything.”

“What do you want that future to entail?” he asked.

She leaned back so they were able to see each other clearly once again. Their hands dropped from her cheeks only to settle entwined together in the space between them. “If… if I am to be your wife, then I won’t be Emma’s nanny much longer. I… I thought a lot about that job opening your father offered…”