Love Dies

Chapter 2

             This was not the situation Adrien had planned to find himself in when he signed the document formally separating him from Kagami as his work partner. Not that there was anything necessarily wrong with Marinette. Who was he kidding!? Their long history of previously being partners and romantically involved tainted his view of her these days. Every time her name reached his ears, his heart would jolt. Whether the electrifying experience was because he couldn't stand to be around her, or because that was the only thing that he wanted, was completely unclear. The heat of this exchange was smothering, and Adrien couldn't wait any longer to get out of it.Just by observing the room, Adrien could tell how uncomfortable both he and Mari were. An awkwardness enveloping the room, with no room for escape. How had they gotten to this point? Well, Adrien knew how,but why? Why did they let it reach this result? They used to be inseparable, always able to rely on one another, with a side of love.Since the day he had met her, Adrien had found himself fascinated by her. It wasn't until their identity reveal their first day of work in the big leagues that he truly found himself in love with both Marinette and Ladybug. No matter how hard he tried to convince himself otherwise, his heart would always belong to her. However,Adrien knew what would happen if he gave into that reality. He'd be left on his own for the rest of his life. There would be no way that Marinette Dupain Cheng would take back his sorry behind. Of course,this caused him to make the dumb decision to pursue his second partner. Kagami Tsurugi, a.k.a. Ryuko. Yeah, if Adrien was honest,that was not the way to go. The break-up being far less dramatic than it was with Mari. Less of a heart-ache too. He wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not. His thoughts blurred and tangled his heartstrings, confusing the heck out of them as he reminisced the scene that had played out between him and Marinette a few months ago. The scar that was left behind from it, hindering his interactions with her from that day on. It was his fault for not continuing to fight for what they had, but he'd become so torn that he wasn't sure how to go about handling the situation. If only, things were different.

"You two are now dismissed. Your case is in Chat Noir's office. Go."Finally, they were dismissed. Unfortunately not to go their separate ways, but to get started on a case together. The sooner he finished this case then, the sooner he could get away from her. Yet, at the same time, a tiny flame in the back of his heart begged for that day to never come. Why were emotions so confusing!? Did he want her to stay or did he want her to go!? Adrien wasn't sure anymore. How long had he waited and longed for the day that his princess would walk back into his life!? Stop it Adrien! She's not yours anymore.That thought alone sent a spark of hurt throughout his figure. The harsh reality striking him with enough force to knock him out, if he let it take over. How had he been so stupid to let this happen!? On a string of luck, Marinette broke up with Luka bringing her back to him, but Adrien hadn't anticipated that it would. Though he had wrongfully hoped. Side by side, Adrien and Marinette walked to his cubicle, where their assignment was waiting.

"Wow.This office hasn't changed." Mari commented. Whether she was trying to insult him or compliment him, Adrien didn't know. However, based on her slightly sassy tone, he concluded that she was mildly insulting him.

"Maybe not to you." Adrien countered brushing past her to enter the office. He wasn't sure, how she had taken his statement, but he understood it perfectly. After she left him, the office just felt different. Her side of the room was cold, her desk bare, and the seat she used to sit in a sour memory the longer it remained unoccupied.Especially after the initial break-up. Once Kagami moved in, it felt even more out of place, though it was occupied. Now for some reason,Adrien felt bad for Luka. The blonde remembered what it was like when Marinette made her departure from him, the lingering feeling that he had lost everything refusing to yield. Adrien could easily imagine what Luka was possibly experiencing as of this moment in time. The young man dropped into his black swivel chair, his eyes remaining on the entry way to the office. His ex-partner, correction, his partner,stood there, hesitant and unwilling to move. That was fine. He could wait. So, Adrien leaned back in his chair, his left hand on his cheek, while his eyes locked on the woman before him. She'd refused to look him in the eye, Adrien had noticed. Not once in the past five minutes had he seen her eyes or even her face. Had she even taken a peek at him at all? If this was how hard she was going to make this,then they had a very long road ahead of them.