Miraculous Multiverse One-Shots

The New Intern

A/N: I'll start with a short one, as usually there's the possibility of making it a little mutli-shot. Enjoy!

"Nathalie? Is everything alright?" Asked Gabriel when his assistant, even after him calling her name for the third time, didn't answer.

This time she flinched and whirled around because he had placed a hand between her shoulder blades and had startled her.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you, dear. Are you okay?"

The young woman shrugged and covered her eyes with one hand for a second to clear her thoughts before she sighed and replied.

"I'm fine. No need to worry."

Her employer and close friend tried again.

"Come on, Nathalie, I can see that something is bothering you."

She eventually looked into his eyes.

"Nothing is 'bothering' me, Gabriel. I just met your new intern at the company and she reminded me of someone and that made me a bit nostalgic and a little sad. That's all." Nathalie told him a little too calmly while trying to bring some distance in between them.

But the tall man followed her quickly and kept prying.

"Nath! We've known each other for quite some time. I consider us as friends, very good friends who can talk about everything. There even were times when we were so close, that..." He paused and sighed. "If I hadn't been so stubbornly obsessed with Emilie for way too long..." Gabriel shook his head. There was no need to go down this path now. Nathalie had made that clear after he eventually decided to let his wife rest in peace and give up the miraculouses.

"I have no interest in being your rebound or your replacement after you couldn't bring your wife back, Gabriel. I can't and won't be your second choice!" Had been her reaction to him confessing his feelings.

"I told you how I feel about that, Gabe. Even if it was different now, this friendship is way too important to me to risk it." She sighed.

He laid an arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer, then questioned again.

"Who does she remind you of? Old friend? Sibling, cousin?"

Nathalie laughed bitterly.

"My very first love and long term relationship." She then mumbled. "And that brought back old feelings, good and bad memories and the pain when she broke up with me out of nowhere. I was really, really committed, we even had some kind of engagement. And then she met that child, seventeen, almost eight years younger than her at the time, and gave up everything we had built up together in a couple of months. She wasn't even willing to give us another chance. One day we were utterly in love, the next we were 'just friends'. I mean, we never even argued and I was so devastated for so long. And, well, after the latest relationship disaster..."

His assistant wasn't usually close to tears but now they were running down her cheeks uncontrolled and he tightened his grip and pulled her to his chest.

"Shush, love, you know I am here for you whenever you need me. If you need to cry, I'll hold you, if you want me to fire the girl, I'll find a way. If you want me to go and punch that idiot in the face who hurt you so much, I'll have to pass because I need both hands for my work, but I'll gladly send the Gorilla to show him his place."

That made her chuckle a little bit.

"I really love you for saying stupid things like that, you know!" She hummed right beside his ear, only half aware of what she was saying.

Gabriel held his breath as a shiver ran down his spine, then kissed her forehead.

"If only you were able to love me as more than a friend, Nath. I know, you don't want to be my second choice, even if you never were to me. Without you I never had been capable of giving up on Emilie. You gave me the strength and the final clear sight. You were my first choice, Nathalie, because when I was eventually able to see, I became aware that who I wanted was already right before me and had been by my side for a long time."

He tilted her face towards his with two fingers under her chin. With a compassionate smile he then wiped away the remaining tears with both his thumbs, while cupping her face in his palms.

"I want to see a real smile and then we'll finish work for today and go have lunch in some restaurant where they have the cheapest and disgustingly sweetest wine you can imagine so we will be drunk before it's time for dinner. How about that?"

She really gave him a wide grin, then enthused.

"Thank you for always knowing how to cheer me up. That's exactly what I need right now!"

Then she quickly pecked his lips. That wasn't something they hadn't done before, in fact it was a rather regular way of thanking the other for the one or other favour. Yet at this very moment, after hearing her say she loved him, it felt different and he had to try.

Instead of letting her go as he usually did, he moved one hand from her face to the back of her neck while he reached around her with the other, placing it on the small of her back and pressing her tautly against him.

"Wh-what are you d-doing, Gabriel?" Nathalie gushed out soundlessly.

"What I should have done ages ago! It's been five years, for fuck's sake, Nath. I am not willing to wait until my son makes me a grandfather before I finally dare to make a move!"

He didn't let her answer when he pressed his lips onto the woman's.

For the split of a second he thought she would push him away when he felt her lips move in response to his own and her hands moving upwards to the back of his head and into his hair.

With a beaming smile Gabriel looked down at her when they eventually, after what seemed like an eternity, pulled away from the kiss.

"How did you know about the baby? They haven't told anyone yet and I only know because I accidentally overheard them!"

"What?" Gabriel gasped in shock.

"Crap, you didn't know? Fuck, I really thought that's what made you..."

"Just shut your mouth and kiss me! I am not capable of dealing with that information right now!" Came from the man as he started to lean in again.

With a giggle, Nathalie gave in, this time taking control over the kiss and soon their tongues were included and their hands were covering every tiny spot of the other's body, yet hesitantly and just above the clothes.