Too Young For Love (On Hold) ~ A Miraculous Love Story

Chapter 10: Consequence

"Don't you think you were a little hard on him?" asked Tikki.

Marinette stood at the edge of her balcony, her forearms rested against the railing as she overlooked all of Paris. The cold was biting, but she didn't care. She needed this, she needed to be reminded how much Chat hurt her.

"He deserved it, Tikki. He left me right after he promised he wouldn't." Frowning at the building in front of hers, she envisioned the family inside blissfully asleep. Maybe their lives were better, with two people deeply in love and children who had two parents to turn to instead of one.

She shook her head to rid herself of the thought and wiped the welling tears from her eyes. She was too old to cry over an old flame. She had a son to provide for and a life she had to build for him. Hugo was her priority now and he was the only thing that mattered.

"What does it matter now anyway? We had one night together. He took advantage of me, slept with me and then abandoned me after he got what he wanted."

"You know in your heart that's not true." Tikki flew up to Marinette face. "You're not the first Ladybug to seek comfort in a Chat Noir, many partners fall in love and physical intimacy is a common side effect amongst you humans. He loves you and you love him."

"Loved," muttered Marinette. The word felt like an omen on her tongue, a curse. She should've kept on loving Adrien. He was the one she'd wanted, but with Chat it'd been nothing more than an act of fear, comfort and...

No. It wasn't love, especially not after how things had played out. She'd never be able to forgive him for being an absent from both her life and Hugo's.

She just couldn't understand why he'd returned now. It'd been seven years since they'd last seen each other, seven years that Hugo didn't have a father and Marinette had had to cope on her own. He wasn't there when she found out she was pregnant, when she gave birth to their son with only her parent's hands to hold or when she'd had to provide for him all on her own.

"Mommy?"

Tikki flew behind a potted plant and Marinette sighed heavily, her body moving slowly as she plastered on a cheerful smile and walked towards the trapdoor. Hugo was peering out into the night, clinging to the ladder as he watched her.

His Ladybug themed pajamas were bright against his dark hair and his green eyes glowed beautifully, but all she could see in them were Chat, his puns, his laugh and the heartache she'd inflicted on him when she'd left him moments ago.

"Who were you talking to?" he asked.

"No one, Sweetie," she replied, "You should be in bed already. What are you still doing up?"

Hugo moved back inside and Marinette slid in after him, closing the trapdoor above them. Her room glowed soft pink from the color of the lampshades and glow-in-the-dark stickers liked the ceiling, making the room look like a haven compared to the outside, especially now.

Crossing her legs beneath her, she pulled Hugo into her lap and hugged him close to her. "Did you have another nightmare?"

He didn't respond and she stroked his dark hair softly, humming lightly to him in hopes of making him sleepy. But things never worked out quite the way she planned when it came to him.

Fiddling with his fingers, he rested his head against her shoulder and sighed. "Mommy, why don't I have a daddy?"

Marinette's heart clenched painfully and she bit her lip to keep her voice from wavering. She would kill Chloe, pluck every single blonde hair out of her pale scalp and watch with great satisfaction as she begged and cried.