Day 19
Marinette woke up feeling terrible. She was exhausted and felt sick to her stomach. Adrien was angry. Angry with her. And that hurt more than she could have ever realized.
“Marinette,” Tikki said, coming to rest on her shoulder.
“What is it, Tikki?” Marinette asked in a hoarse whisper.
“I think you should call out today.”
“I can’t,” Marinette argued. “I run the business. I have to be there.”
“Marinette,” Tikki said, her voice kind yet firm. “You have been working yourself into the ground lately. Seven days a week, you’re gone and you haven’t had a vacation in a long time.”
“Because they need me.”
Tikki floated down in front of Marinette’s face. “No, they don’t,” Tikki said. “Not today.”
“I don’t have a choice, Tikki.”
“Yes, you do,” Tikki said. “You have worked so hard this last year trying to keep the company afloat. It may not be as strong as it was before, but you are running it well. People want to see what sort of designs come from Marinette. And Alya was an incredible help when it came to managing all the public relations stuff. Now, your company is thriving, but you’re working hours upon hours a day micromanaging everything.”
“What am I supposed to do, Tikki?” Marinette argued. “Everything is still so fragile.”
“Not as fragile as you think.”
The two were silent for a moment.
“So, you’re saying I should call off today?
Tikki nodded. “You should. For your sake and sanity.”
“Who do I get to cover?”
“No one,” Tikki said. “If you need to, you can text the designers to ask if they need anything, but they’re in the middle of designing the new line. The manager of the photoshoots has everything covered already, and you’re just waiting for that day to arrive. The investors can wait another day if they have an issue, which they shouldn’t considering the company is finally on a solid upswing. There is nothing you need to handle today, Marinette. It’s all in your head.”
Marinette was silent for a long minute. “Do you think I’m a workaholic, Tikki?” she asked. “Am I really like Gabriel?”
The smile Tikki gave her confirmed everything. “Honestly, Marinette, kind of. In that matter only. You have let work consume you. I didn’t like watching you go down that path. It was really sad, but you weren’t ready to listen to me. And I know you well enough to know that if you don’t want to listen, you aren’t going to listen.”
The tears were pressing against her eyes. All Marinette needed was the final straw to break those dams open.
“I know that Hawkmoth’s defeat was hard,” Tikki said. “I know it took its toll on you and Adrien watching the man you called family destroy the city. I know that both of you found coping mechanisms to deal with the pain.”
YOU ARE READING
The love dare
Random⚓After Hawkmoth was defeated, Adrien and Marinette are both hurt, leaving their marriage strained. Worried, Tikki and Plagg decided to take matters into their own hands by issuing a series of dares in an attempt to help their charges fix their marri...
