The Double Face of the Designer's Son

Chapter 5.

"Will that be all, miss?" It was 7:41 AM in Paris, and the new customer had just come into Marinette's bakery... once again buying a single croissant.

"Just one other thing. Are you Marinette Dupain-Cheng?" The woman's eyes were unreadable, and Marinette was reluctant to answer.

"Yes. Why?"

"I'm Claire Sancouer. I know that you studied fashion design in college, and I was wondering whether you'd be interested in a position as a head designer." Marinette grinned wide.

"Of course!"

"Great. Would you be able to meet with my boss next Wednesday?"

"Who's your boss?" Claire smiled, holding out a business card. Marinette read aloud.

"Claire Sancouer, personal assistant to Mr. Adrien Agreste...! Wow!" Her eyes went wide. "Thank you for this opportunity, Ms. Sancouer!"

"Claire is fine. You'll be working for my boss, after all."

"This is such an honor!"

"Anyway, I've got to go. Call the number on the card whenever you get a chance. Whatever time on Wednesday works for you, Mr. Agreste can meet you."

"See you soon! Have a great day!" Claire walked out of the front door of the bakery. Marinette squealed and started freaking out.

"What's going on?" Marinette's mother and father came down the stairs, rubbing their eyes.

"Mom! Dad! I have great news! That new customer came back! She's Adrien's personal assistant and she offered me a job as a designer!" Marinette ran across the room and hugged her mother, squealing and jumping up and down. Her father hugged both of them.

"That's excellent news! You'll get your dream job, and with that boy you like as your boss!" Marinette's father said. Marinette hadn't seriously considered having Adrien as her boss. Until now, that is.

"God, you're right. I'll be so awkward, I'll lose my dream job, and then I'll -" Marinette was cut off by her mother.

"Honey, you'll be fine. You worry so much about little things. You haven't seen that boy in years. What if he's totally un-handsome and you don't like him anymore?"

"This is Adrien Agreste we're talking about. He could never not be handsome! What am I gonna do?" Marinette began to bite her fingernails. Her father patted her back.

"You'll be fine, but you should be prepared. Did she say what you'd be working on first?"

"No, but I have a few ideas," Marinette said. "Can you guys run the bakery on your own for a few hours? I should work on my designs."

"We'll have to get used to it. My little girl's going to have a great job with a famous designer label!" Her father grinned, putting on his apron. Marinette kissed his cheek.

"Thanks, Dad."

-

Marinette had gone up to her room to draw, but she couldn't stop second-guessing herself.

What would happen if she fell for him all over again?

She couldn't stop thinking of him. What would he look like? She still hadn't seen him or even pictures of him.

Marinette didn't know what to make of this version of Adrien. He hadn't come to see her in person, which made her wonder whether he had chosen her specifically. Maybe not, she decided. Adrien, after all, hadn't contacted anyone or replied to anything they sent for four years. It had been quite some time since she had thought of him in anything close to a positive light; after all, he'd blocked her and ignored a handwritten letter she'd sent.

"This is quite an opportunity, Marinette!" Tikki was flitting around nervously seeing the anxiety on Marinette's face. "Even if you don't like Adrien anymore, you'll still have a real job doing something you love!"

"I guess you're right. It can't go much worse than that interview I bombed on Tuesday."

"Come on, Marinette! Where's your positive spirit?"

"I am positive," Marinette insisted. "Positive there's no way I'll be able to work casually around him." Tikki gave her a look. "I know, I know, that's not what you meant."

"You don't need to work well with him, you just need to roll with the punches. Take things as they come, and try not to worry about the future," Tikki smiled, which tempted Marinette to copy her.

"Wise advice. Maybe I should learn to trust my friends who have been around for thousands of years," Marinette shifted her position in her chair. "Now, I really need to get back to-" She was interrupted by her phone. The screen flashed with Alya's name and profile photo. Marinette picked up her phone, looking confused. "Hello?"

"Hey, Mari! I heard everyone's favorite model is back in town. How are you doing with that?"

"Pretty fantastic, I'd say. His assistant came by to offer me a job this morning." Marinette held the phone away from her ear as Alya squealed.

"Congratulations, girl! You get to work your dream job WITH your dream guy." Her face darkened.

"He's not really my dream guy anymore. He's a cold jerk... wasn't even at his father's funeral." Alya sighed.

"I guess you're right, but look on the bright side! You still have your dream job." Tikki gave her a smug look. Marinette showed her a goofy face back.

"You're right. Look, I gotta do some design work. Talk to you later."

"Okay! Later, girl." Marinette put down her phone and picked up her pencil. It was finally time to work.

-

"I've confirmed the meeting with the designer. She's excited to be working with you, sir," Claire gave a light smile, a spark flashing in her eyes despite the professional persona she used.

"She?" Adrien muttered. "This isn't a scheme, is it? I don't think I'm ready for romance with a coworker right now."

"How dare you," Claire said sarcastically. She knew that if she'd had the chance to do that, she would have. "But really, no. I wasn't sure you'd go for that. This is someone you can consider as just a friend." He looked into her eyes, ever unreadable.

"Alright. But you better not be messing with me."

Hey everyone! Just wanted to let everyone know that I'm looking to maybe commission some art for the cover of this book. Not sure how that'll actually work, especially since with the lockdown I'm basically out of a job, but I'm looking! You can DM me if you're interested and when I can find a way to get you some money for your work, I'll have your info on file. This author is no choosing beggar. Thanks for reading, Onyx out!