You're my dearest lie || Miraculous Adult

Chapter 33

Marinette

"Okay, what kind of rich neighborhood is this?" Alya whispered as we wandered through the avenue for a whole eternity.

There were huge mansions and estates everywhere, protected by high fences and security cameras. One palace bigger than the next.

"You can't tell me Juleka lives here in the 16th Arrondissement? How on earth has she never invited us to her place?"

I shrugged my shoulders and caught sight of a red Mercedes Maybach pulling out of the driveway of a property. I was quite astonished. I'd only ever seen cars like that in action movies or music videos.

The street we were walking along was not very busy and was adorned with perfectly trimmed, uniform trees every three meters. The street lamps were also like something out of the 19th century.

I knew that Adrien's home wasn't far from here either, but I quickly dismissed the idea.

Alya was typing hastily on her cell phone (probably because she had lost the GPS signal), while my gaze wandered thoughtlessly over the magnificent capitals of a villa. It really did resemble an ancient temple.

"Okay, that should be it," Alya mumbled, looking up from her display. I followed her gaze too and I almost gasped.

The estate was gigantic.

A perfectly trimmed hedge on a sandstone base adorned the garden, which was separated by a shimmering gold garden fence.

"Woah," my friend hissed, and I couldn't have put it better.

A magnificent fountain with a statue of Cupid adorned the center of the spacious front garden, behind which I could see a wide staircase leading to the entrance thirty meters away.

Juleka's home was like a fairytale castle. The building was made of light-colored sandstone with countless pilasters and stucco decorations. The windows were also framed and had the kind of roofing you would see in the old days.

"Did they win the lottery? Or did Juleka's mom just get herself a millionaire?" Alya asked incredulously.

I didn't know the answer either.

"Okay, the gate must be brand new, there's no surname on it yet, but the address is right."

I couldn't get enough of this castle. And the gate was cast from a dark, shimmering bronze.

"It's us," I said excitedly as the hands-free system buzzed. Should I have been more formal? After all, I knew Juleka and her mom. And hopefully her stepfather wouldn't look at us weird.

"Hey, yeah, I'll get you in," Juleka's voice buzzed from the system, and the gate opened automatically with a click.

"Holy chair," Alya hissed, and I could only stare at the gate in bewilderment.

But it didn't get any better. As soon as we had a clear view of the front garden, I thought I was in a royal residence.

A number of flowerbeds caught my eye, arranged in such a way that you could walk through small walkways. The palm trees, which didn't actually grow at our latitude, did the rest for me.

Was Juleka trying to hide all this from us because she was afraid that we would have a different image of her?

After we crossed the park past the fountain, Juleka was waiting for us at the high entrance door.

Her black crop top, along with her denim pants and fishnet tights, didn't seem to match her idyllic home at all, but Juleka was someone who wouldn't be told what to do.