Indirect Friendship😸Complete😸

Chapter 9

Adrien walked into the park, seeing Marinette and Alya chatting already. Around Alya's neck was the pendant Nino had gotten, to Adrien's amusement. She was holding her phone, with a new Ladybug charm that he assumed had been from Marinette. Marinette held a little box.

"Hey." Adrien greeted, walking up to them. They smiled at him.

"Thanks for the earbuds, Alya." Marinette said. Alya smiled at her.

"And for the model, I have a new book." Alya said, pulling it out of her bag. Adrien grinned.

"Thanks! Here, I got you a bracelet." he pulled it out while holding his new book. Alya slipped it onto her wrist.

"Thanks, Adrien." she told him. They sat on a park bench, talking for a while.

"Time for me to head out," Alya said, a while later. "It was nice to see you guys!"

"Bye Alya," Marinette hugged her. Alya walked away, waving, then entered a car. Marinette waved as the car drove off.

"Shall I walk you home?" Adrien asked.

Marinette flushed slightly. "N-No worries, it's totally fine! I know you have...stuff...and I don't want to be a bother." Adrien waited adamantly. She sighed, but didn't complain.

The walk was once again silent. Adrien racked his brain for conversation starters, coming up with nothing. He sighed and accepted the silence. He could hear Marinette humming quietly, to his amusement.

Within minutes, they reached her home. "Thank you for walking me home, Adrien. See you on Tuesday!" she opened the door, waving. He waved back, looking away.

"Oh, is Adrien here?" Adrien turned back to see Marinette's mother smiling kindly at him. He glanced at Marinette's face, showing her panicked expression.

"Hi, Mrs. Dupain-Cheng." He waved politely.

"Call me Sabine, silly!" she stated.

"See you on Monday!" Marinette said, urgently. She closed the door, and Adrien could hear Sabine's muffled protests. He laughed, walking away.

Adrien paused, about to knock at the door. He glanced at the rose in his hand. He got it for her out of custom, being polite...he seriously hoped he wasn't coming off too strong.

Steeling his nerves, he knocked at the door. Mr. Dupain-Cheng answered, smiling kindly at him. Adrien realized how similar in nature Marinette's parents were. Both kind, passionate and loving. Adrien smiled in response.

"Hi Mr. Dupain-Cheng, is Marinette ready?"

"Please, just call me Tom. And yes, yes she is. Ready and absolutely lovely." Mr. Dupain-Cheng's - Tom's - smile filled with pride.

Adrien glanced behind him through the doorway, and nearly fell over in shock.

Marinette's mom - Sabine - was fiddling with Marinette's hair, who in turn tried to push her mom away. Marinette was giggling lightly.

Adrien could only stare. She was wearing a red dress that reached her knees. A black belt fit around her waist, simple yet elegant. The dress had sleeves reaching her elbow, decorated with white sequins. The same sequins lined all the ends of the dress. Her hair was out and curled, and a small Ladybug hairclip pulled her bangs to the side.

"Hi," she breathed, reaching the door. He had to remind himself to breathe.

She's beautiful.

"I, uh...hi. This, um, is for you." he stammered out. Marinette's eyes widened as she held the rose. Her cheeks matched the pinkish red of the flower in her hands.