Trust Me When We Fall

Act Two: IV

a/n: sorry for the delayed update! my day was so hectic you'd think Plagg was my kwami 😛

When the chime flitted through the house, I didn't give it a second thought. Doorbells were hardly on my mind. My eyes traced the checkered floor of Father's office as Harper fussed with the collar of my button up shirt. A piece for Gabriel's Ladybug Line. I hated it more than Plagg on caffeine.

Harper tilted her head, silky hair swaying with the motion. Recently she dyed it a deep copper, to complement her light complexion and gray eyes. Though she always looked nice. It was sort of in her job description. "Do you think it's red enough, Sir?"

"It's plenty red," Father eased.

She took the suit jacket off the rack and held it up against my shirt, to inspect the contrasting hues and textures. "Everything looks excellent. It's finally coming together."

"Yes, and no small praise is due you, Harper." Father offered a rare smile, more snakelike than anything else. "You've been a wonderful asset through this project."

I bristled a bit. I always did when I sensed Father lose sight of the fact that people were people. And he'd gone so far as to call her an asset. Why would anyone ever want to work for him? If there was a resignation form for being Gabriel Agreste's son, I would have signed it a long time ago.

Harper met him with a smile, obviously equal in sincerity. In that moment I realized how much I loved her. She was so much more than an asset in a large business. My eyes returned to the floor, more dazed than ever. If anyone in my life ever deserved the role of mother figure, it was her.

Nathalie rapped on the door, and stepped in. "Apologies, Mr. Agreste. I know you're in the middle of something." I wasn't sure from across the room, but I'd almost say there was something bordering dread in her eyes. "There's. . . Someone to see you."

"I see. Well who is it?" Father set his tablet on the edge of his desk, obviously not amused. Because as Nathalie had said, he was in the middle of something.

"Pardon me," a voice said. A woman's voice, but lower in pitch than average. Like a violin, with a certain lilt to it. Almost a melody. She stepped from beyond the double doors, into the room. There she stood, sure as the sky was blue.

"Mom."

The word was out before I could stop it. Though it was quiet, almost a breath, it hung in the air. And for a moment, the world seemed to slow, even to draw to a stop.

"Leave us."

At Father's request, Nathalie darted into the hall as though she'd been waiting to be freed.

Harper lingered a moment, eyes taking my mom in the way she did anyone. She had a sense with people, a super power in her own way. In spite of her profession, she saw deeper than outward appearance. Whatever conclusion she drew about Melody Agreste, caused her to frown, but remained unvoiced. Resolutely, she hung the crimson jacket back onto the rack with a sharp metallic click, and heels tapped the tile as she made her exit.

Me? I couldn't move. Last time the three of us stood in the same room, in this house, I'd been nine.

Father stood, stoic as ever. Hands tight behind his back. Chin up. Shoulders straight under his silk jacket. "Adrien?" He regarded me from over his shoulder. "You should change out of those clothes and return them to Miss Beauchêne."

"My clothes?"

"Now, Adrien."

At times there are moments that meet you where the decision you make will touch your future. They can change everything or nothing. In that moment I knew I could choose to stand my ground. To speak up. To fight. And boy, I'd been aching to fight him somehow. The man that held my freedom. The man that owned my life, my future.