Warped Reality

Chapter 12 Final.

Adrien

"Adrien is that you?"

How was he supposed to know?

"Where's Marinette? I was just with her."

"Well it doesn't sound like him." Chat murmered and Ladybug gently nudged him.

"Marinette is in the lobby. But before that, can you tell us what happened?"

He ignored them, stepping past and pushing open the doors. His gaze darted around the few people there, and she was no where to be found.

"Marinette?" He called, jogging to the front doors.

He ran a hand through his hair, uncomfortably panicked by the fact that she wasn't by his side. They had been with each other for days.

"Let me take you home."

Chat Noir gently pulled on his shoulder, and Adrien stuck his hands into his pockets, finding his phone and car keys? His mother's.

"Where have I been?"

"I'll have your cousin Felix return the car. I believe he was with you."

Chat took the keys, and Adrien shook his head. They were back already? So much was left unresolved. She hadn't opened the paper. She didn't know. Would she believe him if he told her? Would she think he had lied?

The next several hours were spent slowly. He had to fill in Chat Noir, and once Felix returned with his mother's car, which the other Adrien had apparently 'borrowed' Felix filled him in on what the other Adrien had been up to. He dumped Lila, which he didn't mind. He would have done it anyway, and at least he didn't have to deal with her dramatics. Felix didn't know much about Marinette, save for the fact that apparently she had been sleeping over at his house. His rib pain was gone, which he was glad for. He didn't have to worry about moving anymore, and breathing normally was something he would no longer take for granted. The next few hours were at school, with an empty seat beside him. She hadn't shown up. His nerves were on high alert, worrying over what it would be like when he saw her again. Because he wasn't going back to how things were. He was terrified that she would though. That she'd slip back into their usual roles, that they'd go back to being rivals. His fear made him abandon the school at lunch, trekking through the rain to her apartment. God he wished he had an umbrella.

Marinette

She sat down, her legs aching. When she had appeared standing outside that hotel, she had prayed they were home. She booked it all the way back to the apartment, hoping to find her father there. Instead she was met with an empty apartment, save for the mess left behind by the other Marinette. There was a note however, talking about her father in rehab, and that the Agrestes took her in. That Nathaniel needed a restraining order, and that Alya and Nino were good people, and great friends. She agreed. Being friends with them was weird, but in a good way. And the last thing on the note. Adrien. The other Marinette hoped they could work out their differences. That maybe they could be friends someday. If only it were so simple. If only they had been given just a little more time. By the time she had finished cleaning, hours had passed, and she was exhausted. She hadn't gotten any sleep in a while. So she locked her door and went to her room, locking that door too. If what the other Marinette said was true, she needed to change the apartment locks. She curled up in bed, listening to the sound of the rain slamming against her window as she drifted off. Would it be snowing when she woke up?

Tap tap tap.

She shifted, her eyes fluttering open. Had the rain woken her?

Tap tap tap.