Until I Make You Mine

Chapter 15

Nino was feeling a distinct case of déjà vu as he watched his best friend pace around his bedroom wringing his hands.

"Dude, will you just sit down for like 10 minutes and pull yourself together?" Adrien stopped mid stride in his near empty room before sitting down on his bed next to Nino. The mansion had been finally sold and almost everything, bar the bare minimum, had been moved out. "You know, this is the last time you'll ever be in this room, does it feel, I don't know, weird or sad or something!"

Adrien looked around his childhood bedroom. His eyes came to rest on the place his piano once stood. Aside from the piano, there wasn't really much else he had  wanted to keep. The piano meant more than just an instrument he enjoyed playing. It reminded him of his mother. Some of his fondest childhood memories was his mother teaching him to play as a little boy. It had already been moved to take pride of place in their new home. Adrien smiled to himself.

"No, it's not weird and I don't feel that sad about it. I never felt much like this house was a home, at least not after mother was gone. Sure there are some memories here. You know this was where I finally told Marinette I was falling in love with her and kissed her. Then later that night I found out she was Ladybug, that the girl who was my trusted partner, who I had been in love with since the beginning was the same girl I'd fallen for on the other side of the mask. It's one of the happiest memories of my life." Nino smiled at how Adrien's eyes lit up talking about that night. "But there's a lot of painful memories too, of my father's coldness, of being shut in, of being lonely and wanting to be free." Adrien sighed heverly before smiling and looking back at Nino. "Today is a new start. I decided that today was the day I would walk away from this place and never look back."

Nino regarded his friend for a moment. "Then why all the pacing dude? You're not nervous are you?" Adrien tugged at his collar and tie trying to avoid eye contact with the DJ.

"No." He said a little too loudly. " What makes you say that?" Nino shook his head and laughed.

"A hunch I guess." He teased with a shoulder bump. Adrien's face broke into a smile and he laughed with his friend.

"Yeah, okay you got me. But I'm more worried about Marinette. I mean, what if she trips on her dress or something, she'd be mortified. Not to mention the baby and..." Nino shook his head with a hand on Adrien's shoulder.

"Bro, you know she would have thought about all those things. Besides, she'll have her Dad holding her, I'm sure everything will be fine." Nino wrapped an arm around his friend. "I'm so happy for you dude." Adrien knew he really meant it. He looked at his friend with a more serious look on his face.

"You're more than my best friend to me you know Nino. You're like the brother I never had. There is no one else I would want standing by my side today." Nino smiled shyly at Adrien's words.

"You know I'll always be here for you bro." There was a knock at the door and Nathalie came in.

"It's time to go now Adrien. You don't want to be late." Nathalie's words might still have that same formal tone she always had, but the smile on her face after she spoke was warm and genuine.

"Wow Nathalie, you look amazing." Adrien had rarely seen Nathlie outside her business attire, but here she was in a flowing dress with her hair down. He went over and hugged her. Nathalie was taken aback at first, but she was starting to get use the hugs Adrien had been giving her lately. "You know you will always be family Nathalie. It means the world you being here today." Nathalie smiled shyly patting him on the shoulder before she walked back out.

"I think we all know Adrien isn't going to be the one that's late." Plagg said as he juggled several pieces of cheese in his arms.

"Be fair Plagg." Wayzz called out from Nino's jacket. "It's the bride's prerogative to be late." Adrien scrunched up his nose at his Kwami.