"Long Time No See..." (MLB Fanfic)

Chapter 2: Like A House On Fire.

Saturday Evening:

"If you think I'm going to settle for 30% of the profit, then you must have lost you're mind. We work together now so I'd expect we get to help decide the new name for the company. Make sure this contract gets renewed before Monday because I-"

"Ms Bourgeouis, I can't renew the contract or change the name of the company, both your mother and your father agreed with the terms and conditions last Friday, now I just need you to agree with it. Renewing it in two days just isn't possible..."

Meetings were one of the many banes of Adrien's existance. The amount of snobby business people was unbearable and exhausting, the fact that one of them was Chloe Bourgeouis didnt make it any easier to digest.

"Adrikins, no need for such formality, we know each other. Even though your business voice is very attractive." Chloe leaned back in her chair and bit on the end of her pen. She was at the end of a twenty-chair-long meeting table but that didn't hide the fact that she was trying to seduce him.

Adrien pinched the bridge of his nose. 'Lord, help my soul and everyone else who has to put up with her.' He felt genuine about his thoughts but would never say them out loud. Unless he was talking to Nino of course, who was definitly going to be getting a call from him after this dreadful meeting. A bit of a rant never hurt anyone especially if someone was willing to listen. Lucky for him, that person was Nino.

"Chloe, that wasn't my 'business voice' it was my annoyed voice, now will you please just agree with the terms so we can get this meeting over with and ready for the signing on Monday." As harsh as his voice sounded Adrien knew it was what had to be said.

"Ugh fine, if it means I'll get to be around you more often than I suppose anything works. I guess this meeting has come to a close Adrikins." She collected the files she had with her and walked the length of the table to get to the door that was behind Adrien's chair.

She leaned down to his ear before leaving and seductively placed her hand on his left shoulder. "See you on Monday..." Then she waltzed proudly out of the meeting room doors.

The seconded those doors closed, Adrien's head collaspsed against the papers on the table in front of him. It was as if his body just couldn't keep up the weight between his shoulders for any longer. There was a meeting just before Chloe's, and it was much more relaxing but still fairly boring.

Being the 'youngster' in amoungst middle to old aged people was definitly not that exciting. However there was always this man there, Adrien thought he must have been in his mid 60's, who would always bring a smile to his face with a bad joke or just some irrelevent informtion he remembered mid meeting.

It surprised him how the man hadn't been fired for it or at least received some sort of warning. With his head still pressed against the table Adrien smiled as he remember what the man said today about how he was fascinated with two very different creatures, cats and ladybugs. For the live of him, he could not remember the man's name.

Adrien finally came back to reality when he checked the time on his watch. "Crap, I'm late for dinner. Nathalie's going to have my head."

With Marinette:

Since Marinette was free for rest of the evening, Alya invited her over to her and Nino's apartment to hang out together for just a bit longer. Marinette loved their apartment, almost more then her own. It was loft style, the bedroom was above the kitchen. It showed off both of their personailities so well.

When the they got there Nino was sitting on the couch creating music for his next gig. He had his headphones on even though the music was playing all around him, making him unaware of the fact that he had company.

"Watch this..." Alya giggled as she came up behind Nino and started tickling him. He practically fell off the couch in surprise and in a fit of laughter. He could barely speak and could just about manage to get a few words in as Alya eased the attack. "B-baby sss....stop...PlEaSe"

"Gotcha though!" Alya helped her boyfriend to his feet and gave him a kiss on the cheek, only then did Nino see Marinette, standing by the front door with her coat draped over her arm.

"Oh hey Dudette, how's life?" he smiled and wrapped his arm around Alya, leaving it settle comfortably on her waist. Was it bad that Marinette was jealous of what they had...well maybe it was a bit bad, considering she had a boyfriend of her own. "Life's good, you're music is coming along great."

It was true, his music had caught the attention of multiple record labels and with the help of Alya promoting it on her blog, it caught the attention of multiple fans too. Alya had been working on her blog for almost 5 years now and she too had quite the following.

"Would ya like something to drink Mari, we have tea, coffee, coke, oh and we got a bottle of red wine yesterday that we could open?" Alya left Nino's side and raced over to the kitchen, taking out a very fancy bottle of French wine.

"A little wine wont hurt anyone." Nino took Marinette's coat to hang it up while she joined Alya in the kitchen. As he hung her coat up his phone started ringing, so he signalled to the girls that he would be two minutes.

With Nino:

"Sup Adrien, my dude! What's up?"

"Hey Nino, ugh remind me why I work for my father."

"Cause you had no choice? Is it one of those days again?"

"EVERDAY is one of those days! I'd say that those days are going to get a lot worse when I start working with Chloe. She's still trying to uhh...ya know. And the meetings!! I can't!" Nino could just about hear Adrien fall onto his bed with a grunt, through the call.

"I can only imagine my dude...did you get your schedule for next week? Any free days?"

"Yeah, I got it just after lunch and there isn't any free days written down but I'm taking tomorrow off, on my own accord..."

"Wow dude, didn't know you were a risk taker."

"Haha, if that's being a risk taker, I'd be a daredevil if I took two days off."

Nino had always hated the way Gabriel had such an overwhelming strength on his son's life and being. What especially broke him was that Gabriel was willing to go as far as to take the one thing that brought his son happiness and a sense of freedom away, Marinette.

Adrien was a different person now, and if Nino dared even mention the small things like Marinette's name, the life in Adrien would drain like a cup of water being slowly tipped over. So meeting up as a group of four hadn't happened since their break up.

Him and Alya would try and avoid meeting up like the plague. They couldn't possibly want that further strain on their friend group. That was like lighting a house on fire,   something that could change their friends and everything about them drastically. And despite the fact that Marinette was in a new relationship, like Adrien, the slightest mention of him would change her demeanor completely.

Eventually Nino snapped back out of his trance when Adrien asked him a question, which unfortunately he didn't catch. Which also lead to one of those awkward moments we've all been in at some stage of our lives.

"Sorry dude, didn't quite catch what you said just there."

"Oh yeah no problem, I was just asking if I could come over for a bit?"
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Hey Guys!

Hope ye enjoyed this chapter! Sorry if it's kinda long but this story is going to have less chapters than my other one, so they are going to be a bit long :)

Nicole x