The Big Reveal

7 - Are you afraid of my dad?

Warning! This part contains spoilers from "Volpina" episode (Season 1), "Collector" (Season 2) and "Robostus" (Season 2).

Marinette finished her homework some minutes later. She was satisfied that Adrien had corrected her only once. Well, she was better in the humanities. It seemed that they complemented each other perfectly.

"Are you hungry?" Marinette's mom showed up in the trapdoor.

"Yes, mom! You're the best!" Marinette smiled in answer.

Sabine winked to her and left a tray with pastries next to the trapdoor. Then she withdrew stating that the kids were much more relaxed today. Yesterday they had been so adorably embarrassed! In the evening Sabine and Tom were discussing the entire situation with amusement. Long after Adrien left, they giggled remembering the conversation with their daughter's admirer.

"Your parents will kill Nathalie!" Adrien joked, taking the tray.

"Why? I don't get it."

"If they feed me so well, I'll put on weight. My career as a model will end, my father will get mad and Nathalie will have huge problems." He explained with a croissant in his mouth.

"Uhm... By the way..." Marinette became serious.

"I know what you want to say. That I'm too skinny and I should eat more. I've started feeling like a stray cat, finally taken in by his lady."

"Uhm... Adrien?"

Marinette looked at him shyly. His smile faded away. His joke didn't make her laugh, so it was something serious.

"What's going on, Princess?"

"Uhm... It will be better if you sit down..."

"Marinette... You're scaring me..." he whispered.

"You know... I was thinking..."

"Oh, come on! Just say it! Or I'll die of anxiety."

"It's about your dad." She said quickly, closing her eyes. As if it was something to help. Well, at least she didn't see his face when he heard her words.

"Just don't tell me you're afraid of my dad!" Adrien suddenly laughed. "I mean, he can be frightening, and he isn't rather a warm person, but I'm sure he'll be enchanted..." he added quickly.

"I'm not so sure... You know how clumsy I am. It took some time for you too. And besides, I will do something stupid, because I want to make a good impression. And you must know that I have been a fan of your father for years. I admire his achievements and it is thanks to him that I started designing." She smiled with embarrassment. "But wait. We were not supposed to talk about it."

"So, about what you wanted to talk?" Adrien sat next to Marinette and looked at her concerned.

"Do you remember the day when you lost your dad's book?" Marinette went straight to the point.

"Yes, I rem... member..." he stopped suddenly and looked at her in shock. He remembered what Ladybug had told him about her suspicion of Hawkmoth's identity. "No, Marinette." He said coldly. "We have already solved this problem. He cannot be Hawkmoth. He couldn't send an akuma on himself!"

"Uhm, Adrien?" she stammered. "I think it's time to visit Master Fu. He will explain everything."

"Marinette..." Adrien took her hand. "Do you still think... that... my dad is...?" he couldn't finish the question. But her silence was the answer. "I can't believe that you still think that!"

"Adrien... I don't know. But Master Fu said that the book had been lost with two miraculous: the butterfly and the peacock. And he assumed that someone who had the book also had those two miraculous."

"Pea... Peacock?" Adrien stammered, feeling not clearly that a peacock reminded him something. "How does it look like?"

"I'm not sure. It was drawn in the book." Marinette answered involuntarily. "You do need to meet Master Fu. I... I'm afraid that I'll mess it up. He should explain everything directly to you."

"How do you know what's in the book?" he asked in a strange tone, moving away from her.

"Oh..." she closed her eyes, terrified with a cold fear in her heart.

She felt that Adrien would tell her that she had lied to him and he would dump her. She could imagine next scenes. She saw the pathetic end of their love story that had started just yesterday. No! She couldn't allow to that! Not so easily.

"Marinette?" he asked and took her hand.

"Adrien. I will explain everything. But please, don't interrupt. Just wait with decisions till the end of my story, OK?"

"What decisions?" he asked immediately.

"Probably you will never speak to me again..." she answered faintly, and her heart sank. "Never mind. I'll tell you the whole story."

"You're scaring me, Marinette..."

"Shush." She put her finger on his lips and smiled sadly when she felt the kiss on it. Who knows, maybe the last one in her life ... "Because I will lose the courage to tell." She added.

"Okay. I promise to keep quiet."