You're my dearest lie || Miraculous Adult

Chapter 40

Domestic Pressures - Johann Johannsson

Marinette

I should have punched him in the face, really. Unfortunately, he left too quickly, he was really out of line

Hey, I know this is the worst possible time, but you can talk to me about anything

I googled the woman, she's the head of a successful PR agency

Okay, she's quite pretty, but I'm sure she's already had some help

As if he had a thing with her, the woman is in her mid-thirties

I never thought Chat would be such an ass in my life. I always have an open ear for you, I hope you know that

Are you okay? Please get in touch :/

I know you'll need time to process all this, but I'm really worried

I silently looked at my screen, the messages from last night to this afternoon.

I knew I should reply to Alya, but I couldn't. Even though "I'm okay, don't worry" could be typed in a few seconds, the effort was too much.

I just wasn't capable of it.

And the worst part?

I had to pretend everything was okay in front of my parents. They were already stressed out with the shortages our bakery was giving us. I couldn't put any more stress on them, which I couldn't risk because of my superhero identity.

Lost in thought, I bit the inside of my cheeks.

It was just so absurd that I thought Chat would have been different. Different from Adrien, who had dumped me after our first time. I wondered why Chat hadn't stuck it out until then. There had been no point in letting me catch him in the approach phase. Maybe I wasn't even worth it.

I exhaled deeply, looking at my physics worksheets.

The formulas were clear. They were structured, comprehensible and subordinate to the laws of nature.

Love, on the other hand, was unpredictable, wild and irrational. It didn't care about a single rule and would rather trample them underfoot.

And I was too stupid to believe that I knew what it had in store for me.

Unfortunately, just a heart broken into a thousand pieces.

I tried to swallow, but my throat was dry as a desert.

When will I finally stop falling for people like this? Why had I so thoughtlessly thrown the last bit of self-respect I still had at his feet?

I pulled my legs up onto the chair, clutching them with both arms.

I was lucky it was Saturday, I don't know how I would have made it to school in this state.

Tikki looked at me emotionally, but I didn't return her gaze. The whole thing was pointless.

What if Paris had been attacked at that moment? I wasn't able to get out of bed for several hours.

All because I had followed my gut feeling. That it really must have been something with Chat and me.

None of it had ever had any deeper meaning.

But I had to get over it now, for better or worse. Preferably before my final exams, which were in a few weeks' time.