A/N: Yeah so... I meant to post this yesterday but I got knocked out by cold meds so... rip me. Anyways shout out to intomiddle3arth for making sure I don't die before I finish this story.
Chloe Bourgeois pranced forward as Marinette fumbled to get out from behind her desk.
"Chloe! You're back in Paris!" Marinette said, finally standing to meet Chloe in front of her desk.
Chloe pulled her in for a warm hug, kissing her lightly on both cheeks.
"Yes, my love! I've finally returned to you!" She exclaimed dramatically, as she released Marinette, "Sorry for bursting in unannounced but I simply had to see you as soon as I found out!"
"Hm?" Marinette blinked, "found out about what?"
"About the baby!" Chloe fondly patted Marinette's lower abdomen.
Marinette's eyes widened. Leaning in she whispered in a panic, "Who told you?"
"Adrien, of course!"
Marinette sighed in relief. The last thing she needed was for word to be spreading without her control.
"Anyways. I think you should name her Chloe. After her favorite aunt." Chloe grinned, winking at Marinette when she raised her eyebrows.
"How do you know it'll be a she?"
"Intuition," Chloe grabbed Marinette's hand and started pulling her towards the door, "Now come on! We have catching up to do. I've set up nail appointments for us."
"Chloe, I've got to work." Marinette complained without really resisting.
"Oh bull. You and I both know that you deserve a day off. Besides, I already told Gabriel and he almost begged me to make sure you're pampered until the baby comes."
Marinette felt herself go pale. Digging her heels into the marble floor, she pulled Chloe to a halt. She turned, her dress flaring out around her, to pout at Marinette.
"Marinette, we're going to be la"
"Told him what?" Marinette cut her off, eyes wide and panicked.
"That you were working way to hard for a pregnant woman," Chloe said, eyebrows raised at Marinette's panic, "and that he should be a good grandfather and let me take you out to get our nails done."
"W-what did he say?" Marinette asked, her voice shaking.
"Like I said, he practically begged me to pamper you. He said Adrien would be busy until tomorrow and you should take that time to relax."
Marinette's eye twitched. She ran a hand over her face and groaned.
"Chloe. We hadn't told Gabriel about the baby yet."
"Oh shit."
"We've got to call Adrien and warn him"
—-
Adrien smeared a makeup wipe over his face in an attempt to remove some of the heavy product from his skin. After Chloe had rushed out to "treat Marinette like the woman she is," Adrien's photoshoot went off without much fuss. Now if he could just get the last smudge of eyeliner off...
With a sigh, he tossed the wipe into the garbage bin, giving up entirely. He decided to ask Marinette to help get it off later. As Adrien stood from the stool he was sitting on, his phone started ringing.
He pulled it out of his pocket, glancing at the caller id that read 'Marinette's work', before sliding the screen to answer.
"Hey, Marinette! What's up?" He tried not to sound panicked. The last time he talked to her, he accidentally confessed.
"Adrien! Have you seen your dad yet today?" It was Chloe who answered him.
"Yeah, this morning. Why?" Adrien turned away from the vanity table that he was looking at to face the photoshoot set.
"Oh no reason... Just uh... don't get mad okay?" There was a short struggle on the line and he could hear Chloe yelling about something.
"Are you guys okay?" Adrien asked as he watched his father walk into the studio. Gabriel waved down the director who pointed him towards Adrien.
"Chloe told your father about baby Adrienette." Marinette hissed into his ear.
Gabriel locked eyes with Adrien as his cell phone slipped out of his hand and clattered to the floor. Mr. Agreste took calm but quick steps towards his only child. Adrien shrunk into himself.
'He can't kill you. There's people around to witness.'
Adrien looked around the room to see if he could make eye contact with someone, anyone, who could help. The director, a shaky intern, and two photographers were the only few people still milling about. And they were all on Gabriel's payroll. No way they'd go against their fearsome boss. No one would say anything if his father murdered him on the spot.
'At least Marinette is fully capable of raising our child alone. Oh, who am I kidding? Father wouldn't just leave her in the cold like that.'
Gabriel stood eye to eye with his son. Adrien's shoulders shook, his eyes wide and teary. Despite being 22, he still looked like a child to his father.
'Maybe he's heard the news.' Gabriel thought to himself.
In a sweeping movement, Gabriel Agreste opened his arms wide and embraced his son. Adrien went ridged in his arms and Gabriel inwardly cringed.
"I guess I didn't do this enough in your childhood."
Adrien awkwardly returned the hug, trying not to hyperventilate.
"This situation isn't the best but it's okay. Marinette will be okay and if you think of this as an opportunity to get closer to her, it might actually be beneficial." Gabriel spoke in a tone that Adrien hadn't heard since his mother disappeared.
He pulled back from Adrien, holding onto his shoulders and smiling softly, lovingly. Adrien wasn't sure what to do or how to feel. The whole situation felt like a fever dream.
"You can still be with Marinette."
—
Marinette sat in the back of Chloe's personal limo and chewed on her lip. After fifteen minutes of silence from Adrien's side of the phone, Chloe had convinced her to hang up and go to the nail appointment.
"Stop biting your lip or it'll swell. And relax your face. You're going to get wrinkles if you worry like that," Chloe said, reaching over to pat Marinette's cheek, "Adrien will be fine. He's a big boy and his dad can't really do anything but yell at him."
Marinette slowly turned her head towards her to stare blankly. Chloe raised her eyebrows and shook her head.
"He's going to kill the father of my child." Marinette whispered.
Chloe snorted at her melodrama. Both of the women jumped as Marinette's phone started chiming, notifying her of an incoming call from Adrien.
"See! He's not dead." Chloe joked as Marinette answered.
"Hello? Adrien?"
"Marinette! He doesn't know. My father doesn't know that the baby is mine!"
"Wait, what? How?" Marinette asked, side eyeing Chloe, who tilted her head in confusion.
"I'm not sure to tell the truth. He just uh... he just talked to me about how to be a good friend now that you're pregnant."
"That's really strange," Marinette turned to look at Chloe, "What exactly did you tell Gabriel?"
"Huh?"
"Sorry. I was talking to Chloe."
"Oh. Put me on speaker phone. I want to hear."
Marinette tapped the screen and held the phone between her and Chloe. She gestured for Chloe to start explaining.
"I guess we never really discussed you being the father but when I said Marinette is pregnant he acted like he knew. Either that or he already knew that Marinette is pregnant."
"Did he say anything else?"
"He asked how you were doing... Which is why I thought he knew. I told him about the baby stuff shopping spree, but that was about it." Chloe shrugged.
"Hmm... okay. Marinette? Do you mind if I just talk to Chloe for a second?"
"Huh? No, of course not."
"Alright. Chlo? Take me off speaker."
"Okay," Chloe said, grinning like a fox at Marinette who tilted her head, her eyebrows crinkling in confusion. She tapped the screen and held the phone up to her ear.
"Okay, you're off speaker."
"I think my father knows that I'm in love with Marinette. He kept telling me to 'woo' her and win her affection by raising her child as my own"
"Yeah... I mean, you aren't very subtle about it. You tend to have ridiculous heart shaped eyes whenever you talk about her."
Marinette felt her heart clench. Adrien had a crush on someone?
"Haha. I remember when you were doing the same thing."
"Well at least I had the balls to tell her. The only reason she hasn't figured it out yet," Chloe glanced at Marinette, "is because she's just as oblivious as you are. You two were made for each other."
Marinette sunk down into her seat. Adrien had a crush on someone and they were "made for each other." She felt like screaming.
"I think I need to tell her. What with the baby and all."
"I think that's the best idea that's ever crossed through your pretty head." Chloe said, grinning, "Do you have time to set something up tonight?"
"Yes, actually. After he gave me some very awkward tips on how to get Marinette's attention, father informed me that my last photoshoot for today has been canceled. I guess I'll risk everything tonight."
"Oh don't be so dramatic. This'll all work out fine." Chloe said, rolling her eyes.
"I hope you're right. I'll talk to you later. I've got work to do."
"Yes you do. Get to it. I'll talk to you later." Chloe hung up and handed the phone back to a seething Marinette.
"Alright! To the nail salon!" Chloe declared, successfully ignoring Marinette's grim expression.
—
Gabriel Agreste tapped his fingers against his wooden office desk. Marinette becoming pregnant could either help or hinder his plot to couple her up with Adrien. On one hand, if the actual father of the child didn't want to help Marinette, Adrien could easily win her heart over by showing off his own fatherly instincts. On the other hand, if the father did want to raise the child...
He groaned and ran his hand over his face in agitation. This whole situation was really giving him a headache. He couldn't do much other than try to gently lead Marinette and Adrien together and that turned out to be about as easy as herding cats.
Gabriel stood from his chair to stare pensively out the ceiling to floor windows.
'This would be so much easier if Adrien was the father...'
—-
Marinette watched with blank eyes as her nail technician applied the last coat of polish. Chloe sat next to her, chattering amicably with her own manicurist and Marinette's. They were talking about something to do with tourists. Marinette wasn't paying enough attention to really notice.
Ten minutes later, their nails were dry enough to leave. Chloe thanked the ladies, tipped them heavily, and pulled Marinette out of the salon.
"I used to be such a brat to them when we were younger so tipping them fifty percent seems like the least I can do for their struggles." Chloe commented, linking arms with Marinette, who was still not listening.
Chloe checked her phone before letting out a shrill noise and shouting something along the lines of "Oh shit. We have to get you home."
Marinette allowed herself to be shoved into the limo as Chloe continued to rant about how she lost track of time.
The drive to Marinette's apartment was quiet. Chloe tried to start up a conversation several times but it soon became apparent that Marinette was not interested.
"Who does Adrien have a crush on anyways?" Marinette asked angrily, after several minutes of silence.
"Huh? Oh! You'll definitely be meeting her soon so I won't ruin the surprise but I can say, with certainty, that you'll absolutely adore her, Marinette." Chloe started off on a rant as Marinette sunk deeper into agitation, "She's funny and smart and practically a super model. She's semi new in the fashion world but, oh my god, if she isn't the designer of all things beautiful. She's perfect for Adrien and I'm sure you'll agree."
Marinette grumbled something unclear and glared out her window. Chloe smirked behind her back. There was no way that Marinette knew what Adrien had in store...
As they pulled up to the building, Chloe squeezed Marinette on the shoulder.
"I'm sure he'll be confessing his undying love to her any minute now. You'll get to meet the woman of his dreams soon."
Marinette nodded and took a deep breath before opening the car door. If Adrien wanted to be with someone else, who was she to stand in the way?
"Bye bye, Marinette! Today was lots of fun! We'll have to do it again soon!"
Marinette waved limply, muttering her goodbyes and trudging to the front door. She yanked it open and immediately caught sight of a line of single rose petals leading to the elevator. Rolling her eyes, she tromped to the elevator.
When the doors opened, rose petals practically spilled from it. The floor was covered, wall to wall. Heaving a deep sigh, Marinette got on and pressed the button to the fifth floor.
The doors opened at her stop to reveal a thick trail of rose petals, leading down the hall in a sickeningly cheesy declaration of love.
'Of course, it would be on my floor. What better a way for the universe to kick me while I'm down?'
She continued down the hall, feeling more angry than sad. How come she was left out of the loop? Apparently, everyone knew who Adrien had a crush on except for the person he had a crush on.
'Why wasn't I included in this little secret? He's supposed to be one of my best friends. Yeah, sure, it hurts that I'm not "the one" for him. But it hurts more that he doesn't trust me enough to tell me about who is... besides, if this girl is so great, why did he ask to kiss me.'
By the time she had gotten to her apartment door, Marinette had worked herself into a blind rage. She didn't notice the rose petals had lead her to her home. She didn't notice that the front door was slightly open. The only thing she saw was red.
Marinette flung the door open and it slammed against the back wall. Adrien, who was standing in the front hall in a dark green and black tailored suit, jumped at the sudden noise. He held a dozen roses out in front of him as a weapon.
Marinette felt her anger melt as Adrien straightened up and cleared his throat, attempting to not look like he had just been scared witless.
"Welcome home, Princess."