A/N: I would like to preface this by saying that I don't actually fully believe that Gabriel Agreste is Hawkmoth. This is probably way AU and totally OOC but I thought it would be fun to write anyways.
The town car pulled away from the school's curb. The black haired girl was still standing on the sidewalk waving awkwardly as her friend stood beside her and shook her head. Her strange behavior had caught Gabriel Agreste's eye the moment the car had stopped for Adrien. She was chatting animatedly with his son about something or other all while pulling at her hair and smiling nervously. He wasn't so old as to not recognize a girl with a crush. His own late wife had once been that way. Adrien's mother hadn't been able to stop brushing her hair behind her ear when she'd talked to Gabriel when they were young. Adrien's classmate seemed vaguely familiar to him.
"That girl…" Gabriel said slowly as his son buckled his seatbelt. Adrien looked up abruptly with a tint of surprise on his face. "She was the one who won the design contest awhile back was she not?"
"Y… yeah." stuttered Adrien.
Gabriel rubbed his chin thoughtfully, "The hat she created was lovely even if it did send you into a sneezing fit. Do you know if she's done anything else? She seems talented. Or was her hat a one time brilliance?"
"I saw her sketchbook once. She's very talented. I pegged her to win immediately after I saw some of her other ideas." Adrien replied as he shot Gabriel a curious look. Gabriel met the look with a small nod of approval. The famous Agreste eye for fashion was showing in his son. It rarely happened but it was wonderful when it did.
"I see. What's her name?"
"Um… Marinette Dupain-Cheng."
"A lovely name. What are her parents like?" mused Gabriel.
"I'm not sure. I've never met them." Adrien said. He looked at Gabriel warily.
Gabriel waved his hand dismissively, "Ah no matter. That's what smartphones are for. Don't you agree?"
"Papa? What are you getting at? Why are you suddenly so interested in my classmate?" Adrien asked in confusion. The gaping fish look only got worse when Gabriel started pressing buttons on his phone.
"Hm… a prominent bakery and in good standing with the community." Gabriel summarized the review more for himself than for anyone else. Not the most elegant of backgrounds but it could most certainly be worse. Gabriel could concede that. This Marinette Dupain-Cheng girl might not be Chloe Bourgeois but, again, that wasn't necessarily a bad thing. Chloe had been a wonderful friend to Adrien when he was a boy; however, her father spoiled her. Monsieur Bourgeois was no better than his daughter. How many times had Adrien told him stories about how the mayor had gone stomping around the school to get his way for his daughter? Far too many times Gabriel was sure. Chloe had turned into a horribly selfish girl with absolutely no sense of her own creativity. Actually, if Gabriel remembered correctly, Chloe had tried to copy Marinette's winning hat. Another point to Marinette. She had the bravery to stand up for herself and the cunning to nip copycats in the bud. Yes, that was very good. He rubbed his chin and weighed the options. "Perhaps you should invite Mademoiselle Cheng to one of your photo shoots so she can see first hand some of the latest fashions."
"You never answered my question." Adrien reminded him. The boy crossed his arms and stared at Gabriel.
It was Gabriel's turn to look at Adrien in confusion. "I care about who you surround yourself with son because I care about you."
"Yeah, I know. It took you two months before you decided that Nino was cool and that I could 'officially' hang out with him." Adrien shot back. He uncrossed his arms to make air quotes above his head with his fingers.
"Yes well Mademoiselle Cheng seems like a nice enough girl and if you wish to spend more time with her then I'm perfectly alright by that. I was simply suggesting something for you two to do that would be of interest to her."
"Wait, what?" Adrien shook his head.
"The Agreste family and company could benefit from a talented young woman such as Mademoiselle Marinette one day. If you are pursuing her romantically you should take interest in things that she enjoys. I know you despise modelling but she might find it an inspiring experience. Who knows… perhaps if you take her along you'll find modelling a little more enjoyable."
"Me and Marinette? Papa, are you giving me dating advice?" Adrien asked incredulously.
Gabriel sighed and pushed his glasses up so that he could massage the bridge of his nose. How could his son be so horribly oblivious? "Yes Adrien. You are absolutely hopeless when it comes to that sort of thing."
To his surprise, Adrien began laughing. He balled himself up in his seat and laughed so hard that his eyes watered. Gabriel raised a critical eyebrow at his son. Adrien somehow managed to pull himself together again. "Papa you have it all wrong. Marinette and I are just friends. That's it. I promise you."
"Just friends?" Gabriel repeated. Adrien nodded in confirmation. That's when it occurred to Gabriel that his son was even more oblivious than he thought. The boy clearly had no idea how the girl felt towards him. How tragic for Marinette Dupain-Cheng. Gabriel sighed and shook his head in disappointment. "I see. Nevermind then."
Adrien drew back. The look on his face was a mixture of confusion and hurt. Gabriel offered him a smile and patted him on the shoulder fondly. "You are a sweet, kind boy Adrien. I'm sure you'll find a girl worthy of you."
A bright red color spread across Adrien's face. He turned away, pointedly not looking at Gabriel, and brushed his finger over that ring. Gabriel just barely kept himself from sighing. Perhaps it wasn't that his son was oblivious. Perhaps Adrien was merely blinded by his affection for another girl.
Gabriel had done his best that his son had all the tools he would need to succeed in life. Tried to give Adrien everything he might want. Yet for all his attempts to protect Adrien, he hadn't been able keep the boy safe from his fate. A talented girl with unending potential like Marinette Dupain-Cheng would be a much safer choice for Adrien's affections. Alas, he was unfortunate. He just hoped that Ladybug didn't destroy what was left of Gabriel Agreste's family.