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Marinette couldn't sleep that night. She had long forgotten what it was like to just roll onto her bed lazily, pull on her blanket, rest her head on her pillow and just close her eyes and drift off into a deep, peaceful slumber. She was what one would call an insomniac; sleep-deprived, baggy-eyed and terribly depressed.
On the rare occasion she did manage to get some sleep, it was far from peaceful. It was just tossing and turning all night, crying and screaming for help internally.
She had nightmares. And those nightmares were awful. She encountered that man again...the man who did....things to her when she was a child. It may have merely just been a bunch of nightmares, but it felt so awful, just like the real thing...
The terrible sensations of his hands sliding around her body...her frightened state of mind...him telling her it was their little secret...
It was awful. But she couldn't let anyone see her in this state. They'd take advantage of her vulnerabilities...just like that man did...
Marinette sprayed water onto her face and stared into her reflection in the basin mirror. The smiling, innocent Mari was long gone. She was now replaced with a sarcastic, cynical and prideful teenage girl. She was now a person that her younger self would've been baffled by. Her past self would've been absolutely disgusted. Marinette sighed. She washed her hands and thrust a bit of the basin water at her reflection.
"Screw off!" she snapped at no one in particular. She grimaced and walked out off the bathroom. Today was Sunday. She had loads of homework to do, plus helping her parents out at the bakery. She was feeling stressed out already.
It was going to be a long day....
***
"Marinette! Someone's come to see you!" came her mother's voice from downstairs. Marinette exasperatedly got up from her chair and sluggishly climbed down the stairs.What now?
What she saw when she came downstairs was definitely not a pleasant surprise.
***
"Sup" greeted none other than Adrien Agreste, smirking at the look of annoyance on her face. She quickly reverted back to her original state.
"What d'you want?" she asked, her voice heavy with irritation. Before Adrien could open his mouth to make some snarky reply, Mari's mother interrupted them.
"So, Adrien, did you like the macaroons Marinette gave you?" she asked him eagerly "I made them myself!"
"Oh..err...yeah! They tasted great!" Adrien said, scratching the back of his neck awkwardly "You're a really good baker, Ms.Cheng!"
