A Winter's Tale

Chapter one- Adrien's Chance

Christmas! What a wonderful time of the year. School is out for two weeks giving many families time to have fun and do amazing things. Some travel while others gather by the fire drinking hot chocolate and getting their cookies ready for Santa Clause.

There is so much fun that comes along with the Christmas season. From decorating to shopping to kids playing with snow, there was a bit of fun for everyone in the winter break that was to come.

Christmas was by far every Parisian's favorite time of the year.

At least everyone but Adrien Agreste.

Adrien Agreste was every teenage girl's celebrity crush. The definition of a dream boy. He was rich, famous, and sweet, not to add the face of the Gabriel brand. The son of the great designer Gabriel Agreste himself. But as unique as he was, Christmas for Adrien was a nightmare.

Now, don't get him wrong. It was not that he hated Christmas. In fact, the holiday seemed like a spectacular one. His favorite part was watching Paris light up with the twinkling lights. It was more of what came with the holiday that bothered him.

Adrien hated the feeling of being alone. The school would be out, meaning most of his friends, if not all, were traveling, his mother had disappeared a few years back, and his father? His dear father was a modern version of Ebenezer Scrooge except for all year long.

Adrien already imagined what was to come. It was the same every year. His father either overworked him with new deals and collaborations, giving him very little time to at the very least relax. Or he would book business trips and meetings where he would travel, take Adrien with him only to leave him alone in a hotel room. Needless to say, Adrien's only memories of Christmas were when he was a child, and those were but a blur. He was starting to believe he didn't really know the meaning of Christmas anymore.

"Adrien, breakfast is served. Your father is waiting for your company in the dining room," Natalie, Gabriel's assistant, called out from the other side of the door of Adrien's bedroom. Adrien's eyes widened in surprise. His father would rarely eat with him. He always had excuses not to join him for meals. The event was definitely exciting. 'Maybe this Christmas would not be so bad after all,' Adrien thought.

It took the blonde only a second to grab his school bag and run downstairs toward the dining room. "Good morning, father," Adrien greeted politely, taking his seat.

"As you are already aware, Gabriel's is expanding. We will be opening stores in the United States and China. Therefore we will be traveling to China this Christmas break. I have a few meetings to attend regarding the last details date of the grand opening. We are pushing for Christmas Day. We will be leaving tonight. I have already asked Natalie to pack your bags as you attend your last day of school. Therefore you will skip fencing class and come straight home," Gabriel stated motionless.

And there it was, the Christmas disappointment. Just when he thought this Christmas could be different, his father found a way to ruin it. The model looked away, attempting to hide his frustrations. How was this fair? Why did his father always treat him as his employee rather than his son? He didn't even have the audacity to greet him before talking business.

The current conversation was a reminder of why Adrien disliked the Christmas break. Once again, he will be stuck in a hotel room spending Christmas ALONE!

Adrien felt angry. He was 16 years old. Why couldn't Gabriel allow Adrien to decide what he wanted to do for the first time ever? If he was going to spend the holidays alone, why not allow him to stay in Paris with his bodyguard?

He was really getting tired of living like this. That is the moment he decided he needed to do something about it.

"Father, must I go? I really rather stay here in Paris," Adrien spoke up.