You're home. [Miraculous Ladybug Fanfiction] (Completed)

Chapter 22 - Ferris Wheel

An Uber drove the four of them to the board walk a few miles down the road into the nearby town. The board walk was long, lines by booths of games, food, and even rides. At the very end there was a ferris wheel that overlooked the ocean.

People of all ages walked up and down the wooden boardwalk, enjoying the sun and the salty ocean smell in the air, mixed with the sweet smell of elephant ears, a doughy treat topped with melted butter and cinnamon-sugar, and the familiar tang of barbecue.

The boards moaned in protest at they walked across, signaling the years of wear and tear they suffered through. Nevertheless, it was a beautiful day. The sun was high, hardly a cloud in the sky and the breeze was just right.

Alya and Nino stopped at a game booth.
"You guys can go ahead. Ill text you when we want to meet up again." Alya said as Nino slipped the booth manager a couple euros for some rounds.
"See you later, then." Adrien called and walked along with Marinette. She was taking in her surroundings. If she ever experienced a boardwalk before her memory-loss incident, she didn't want to miss a second of this opportunity to hopefully get some back.

"So, shall we pick something up to eat first? And then perhaps take a look around the booths?" Adrien asked, looking down at Marinette.

Marinette, who had checked out for a moment jumped at his voice, earning a chuckle from Adrien. Her cheeks flushed pink, but she nodded. "S-sounds like a plan to me." Though she stumbled over her words, Adrien understood her just fine. He placed his hand on the small of her back and walked her to a picnic table with a red and white checkered umbrella sticking out of the middle of it.

"I'll be right back." He told her, and jogged off to a nearby concession stand. While he was gone, Marinette took the opportunity to take in her surroundings again. All of this was a new experience. But something clicked in the back of her mind. Looking out over the white-capped sea, a couple memories flooded back into her mind.

She was back to her childhood, around sever or eight years of age, to be exact. Her family took a trip to the beach. Her cousins from China we visiting and they all went to a board-walk, sort of like the one she was at now. Marinette embraced the memory with open arms. Her childhood was a period of simplicity. There were no akumas to worry about, no school projects due in less than a week, no work to be done. She was a free-spirited child.

She transitioned back to reality when Adrien sat down in front of her with fish n' chips, ketchup, and two medium sized cokes. Carnival food at its finest.
"I can't remember the last time I ate stuff like this." Marinette admitted, plucking a fry from the stack, dunking it into one of the small paper cups full of ketchup.
"Me either. I usually have nutritional meals everyday." He said, looking a tad embarrassed.

"Im not surprised." Marinette giggled, bitting off half of the fry, popping the other half into her mouth a few seconds later. Adrien pursed his lips.
"Its always been like that, though."
"Is this the first time you've been to a boardwalk then?" Marinette asked, picking up one of the fried pieces of fish. Adrien shook his head, golden tufts of hair bouncing around as he did so.
"I've been a couple times. But never with friends. My father would always make Nathalie assist me. Or I would have to go with Chloe." The way he said her name, it had a tone of remorse laced into it.

Marinette felt bad. This was one of the rare times he told her about his past after loosing her memory. She leaned into the table, encouraging him to go on. He did.
"Because I modeled for my dad, I was forced onto a specific diet to keep at an attractive weight." He explained. "He made me do all sorts of sports to stay in shape since he didn't know about one little detail." He looked down at his ring.

Marinette's lips formed a frown. She reached across the table and took his hand.
"You don't have to worry about diets or whatever anymore. You don't live under his rules." She said with a gentle smile. Adrien stared at her in surprise, but nodded.
"Thank you, Marinette... I guess I'm still learning that." He shrugged, forcing a weak smile. Marinette couldn't blame him.