I'm Yours

"Father!" Adrien called excitedly to an empty room as he entered the kitchen. "I-" His bright smile faded when the lights turned on. "Father?" He looks around.

"Adrien." Natalie enters the room, a clipboard in her hands.
"You're father had to go to an emergency dinner meeting, he said to give you his apologies. " She says, the look in her eyes was so pitying it hurt.
"Oh." The silence rung for a while. He gives a soft, understanding smile. "Right, that's fine. I know he's busy."

Just then the tablet in Natalie's hands rings. She answers. "Adrien." The voice is cold and course, as always, and Natalie turns the tablet around for the camera to face him.

"Father, you don't have to apologize-"

"Don't be foolish. I'm not here to say sorry, you know I'm busy. I'm doing all this for you, my son."

Adrien lets out a soft sigh, making sure that no one but himself can hear it.

"Adrien, I've gotten your reports back. You are my son, and I love you, however you know that I can't just stand around and let you do whatever you want. You will be taking a break from that 'public' school, and will double up on all subjects. I do all this work for you, and this is what I get in return? You failed. I love you, but you're wearing me out. This love with fade overtime, Adrien, and then there will be none left. I always put up with you, but isn't this abusing your father? I work so hard for you, I never eat or sleep, I only work because I want you to live the best life you can, and this is what you do?"

"No, I'm sorry father- I don't mean to fail you, I'm trying my best to listen and improve I-"

"Adrien. Enough." The phone call ends.

Adrien closes his eyes and grits his teeth. "Thank you for telling me Natalie, but.. since my father isn't here could I eat in my room tonight if that's ok? "

"Of course." She says as she leaves.

It was times like these that he hated, when he looked so stupid with hope that his father would actually act like a father. 

~

The lights were low in the city of paris, something about this night was colder than the rest. The atmosphere was different. The city still was still lit by warm lights, and maybe it was the coldness of his own home following him as he ran across the rooftops, but Adrien couldn't find it in him to admire Paris anymore.

 He hated this city, his face was everywhere and still his father didn't care. It wasn't enough. Everywhere he went people loved him, and yet his own father wouldn't? Each sign he passed was a painful memory of the first time he realized that. It was a few months after his mother died, when they finally stopped their grieving. It was the first time in forever Adrien had been in front of the paparazzi, the lights blinding, the voices loud. People were screaming "I LOVE YOU ADRIEN" and "I WILL SUPPORT YOU FOREVER."

He remembers the interviewer telling him "..and you're fans hope you know, they love you no matter what. They will wait for you however long, they will support you with whatever you do." And then, that same night he heard his father scream at him for the first time. Make a fist for the first time.

Maybe it was just his muscle memory heading to Marinette's rooftop, or maybe it was his heart. Maybe his heart finally found out where his safe place was, and perhaps that was the reason behind the footsteps that just landed on her roof. Marinette's eyes shoot open at the loud thud, her homework was cold beneath her arms. Chemistry was always boring, boring enough to put her to sleep.

"Chat.. Noir?" She say's as she enter's the balcony.

"Marinette.." he says, trying to look as happy as he can. But there's tears in his eyes, there's a strain in his smile. "Chat.." Her tone changes as she approaches quicker.

"What- What happened?"

He scoffs, kicking himself internally for letting the warm tears fall as he grins, still trying to appear happy. "There's no hiding anything from you, is there?"

"To be fair, you're not the best at hiding it." She smiles.

His smile fades. Into something serious, something sentimental. There's a look in his eyes as he stares at her, and only her. "You know," He begins, his voice solemn. "It's ironic. With you, I always have a mask and yet you're the only person to actually see me."

She's taken aback by the sudden sentiment, and can't stop the heat from rushing to her cheeks.

"My father, actually, my family. That's what's wrong." The pain in his eyes was just the same as Felix's. That same familiar way his green eyes looked when everything hurt, when she found him in her arms. The first time she ever saw him cry.

"I don't know what's wrong with me, I'm always hurting my father. I don't mean to do this to him, I really try but I always end up disappointing him. And he is right, when he said I'm abusing him. If I would just do what he is asking then he wouldn't have to work so hard, he wouldn't have to put his health at risk by working all the time" He scoffs, and looks up at the sky. 

 " I'm such a... He is such a good parent, he doesn't deserve a kid like me. If he had another kid, he would be happy. I can't believe that I thought he was the wrong one, that I thought that he was the monster. "

And with that, chat noir suddenly straightens, he is suddenly aware of him being there. Pouring out his thoughts to Marinette. "What am I doing here?" He says.

 "I'm sorry. Good night, Marinette." He shakes his head and starts to head for the end of the balcony, to leave. This was ridiculous, he should have just kept on running on the rooftops, clear his head while looking at the citizens. He shouldn't be here, burdening her with his own personal problems. He should have just played off his tears as a narcissistic joke and say "I'm so sad.. I'm so handsome." But he didn't, he told her the words he had never said to anyone else.

She grabs his wrist.

"Cat, don't be sorry. Friendship isn't a one way street, I tell you my problems so why would I ever shame you for telling me yours?" 

This was.. a problem. "Why?" You may ask. Because the next words that Chat Noir said was "Plagg, claws in."