Adrien is now full of resolve. He's ready to conquer anything to get to the heart of his doctor!

"First, I'll show that I'm doing well in this department by taking on tomorrow's night shift," he lists, bringing out one finger then he brings out another, "Second, I'll promise her that I won't make any mistakes. Third, I'll-"

"BOO!" Cries out a loud voice that causes Adrien to shout out of surprise. His chart falls down to the ground.

It was the patient, Manon, who was laughing heartily while leaning on the emergency door where she hid behind to scare the nurse.

Adrien brings a hand to his chest in hopes of calming down the erratic beating of his heart. Inhaling and exhaling repetitively, he manages to calm down.

"Nurse, you looked so funny!" Manon gushes in a fit of giggles, clutching tightly on her IV stand. "Your face really made me laugh!"

Adrien lets out a chuckle while watching the young patient continue to laugh at him. He can't blame the kid though. He really does have a funny face when he's surprised.

"What were you doing there, Manon?" He asks, bending down to be the same height with the girl.

"You know my name?"

Adrien playfully shrugs. "How could I not? You're basically a superstar among all the other kids here."

Manon puffs out her chest with pride and declares out loud, "It's because this girl is going to get a new heart in a week!" She points at herself.

Adrien smiles at her funny antics. "Why do you look like a superhero when you're doing that?"

"It's because I'm claiming that it's going to happen!"

"Is that so?"

"Of course, Nurse..."

"Adrien," he adds.

"Nurse Adrien!" She continues with conviction, "You need to puff out your chest and declare it out loud for it to happen!"

Adrien started to feel shy as the young girl was talking loudly in the corridor. Different people around were starting to look at them. Only those who know Manon watch the young one with amusement.

"I'll take that by heart, Manon," he tells her and stands tall again. "But you haven't answered my first question yet. What were you doing at the emergency exit?"

"Oh..." the young girl drawls out. "When I go through those stairs it leads me to my favorite area in the hospital."

"And where is it?"

"Shh." Manon cutely brings a finger to her lips. "It's a secret, I'm not going to tell you!"

Adrien brings his hand under his chin and rubs it in thought. "Hm...I wonder where that could be," he muses.

"Hey, don't think of stealing my secret place!" She says in an attempt to scold the nurse. What came out was a cute whine from the young patient. "How about I show you a secret place where you can go?" She offers.

"A secret place?" Adrien points at himself. "For me?"

"Come!" She grabs his hand and tugs him toward her. With her other hand, she holds on to her IV stand. "Since you're new and nice, I'll show you that place."

Now Adrien is really finding himself amused with everything this young girl sputters out. What's next? She'll show him how to be a better nurse?

A guy could only wish.

Manon excitedly takes him with her as they brisk walk along the corridor and turn left to where a storage room awaits them. She brings her hands out and presents the door to the room to him by shaking them, like a showcase of jazz hands.

"Tada!"

"A...storage room?" Adrien asks, staying careful with his tone or else the way he feels underwhelmed may be clear to the girl.

"It's not just a storage room." She opens the door and flicks the switch on at the side for the lights. "It's the storage room. This is where new nurses go to cry when they're sad or when they get scolded."

Adrien looks at the girl in confusion and is adamant with stepping in the storage room. Though, it still looks like an ordinary room. Shelves lined the room with different medical supplies such as syringes, gauze pads, surgical gloves and masks, and plastic bottles to name a few. There were also basic necessities like toilet paper and diapers for the bedridden.

Manon leads the nurse to a lone stool standing at the farthest corner of the room. On it is a roll of toilet paper with no traces of its squares being taken. "This is where the nurses hide to cry." She grabs the roll and gets around five squares then hands them to the nurse.

"Huh?" Adrien utters, baffled with her sudden action. Still, he takes it from the girl. "T-Thank you."

"A lot of nurses come here one-by-one...I noticed a year ago that they only come here to cry." Manon softly smiles at him then reaches into her pocket to grab a small piece of pink paper. "I wanted to leave something for them to cheer up." She shows it to the nurse.

Adrien leans closer to it to read the words written on the paper.

Don't forget that YOU make us smile! Don't give up! ♡

Adrien smiles as he reads her words. Manon even drew small butterflies and hearts around her simple message.

"You're very kind, Manon," he whispers, beaming at the girl. "I'm sure all of us will appreciate this."

"I have to give something back to all of you for helping me. So when I get a new heart, I'll go back to school and join a lot of things! I want to be a class president and help out my other classmates! Oh, I also want to join the arts and crafts club in school and make different kind of stuffed toys of animals or dolls!" The girl continues to ramble on as Adrien listens attentively and watches her with amusement.

He prays that whatever she wants, she'll get. Especially a successful heart transplant.

------------

Marinette was frowning the instant she saw the results of Manon's MVO2, exercise stress test.

The results were not what she was expecting for someone to receive a new heart in a week.

How could things turn out this way?

She was stumped, slumping in her chair while taking another bite of her mini chocolate croissant. She couldn't take her eyes off the results. They were burning into her eyes and eventually into her brain as she tried to rack up any way to see if things are normal...

Or she would have to postpone the transplant.

"What's bothering you in your head again?"

Marinette looks up to see Chloé peering at her. She lets out a dejected sigh and pushes herself away from the desk to allow Chloé to see the results of the MVO2.

The other doctor bends to see the results on the computer screen. After reading through them she lets out a sigh and faces her dejected colleague.

"The transplant is supposed to be in a week, right?" Doctor Chloé asks quietly. Her face contorts in worry for her colleague who has her eyes closed while eating a mini chocolate croissant.

"I can't push through with it," Marinette whispers.

"Because it will lead to more complications post-operation. Her body will all the more reject the organ," Chloé adds.

"And she may die earlier than expected." Marinette clicks her tongue in disappointment then stands to collect her charts that were scattered on her desk. "I can't operate on her if the risk is too high."

"Does she know about this already?"

Marinette stops to look at her colleague.  She opens her mouth to say something but stops midway. Instead, she shakes her head. "I have to tell her mom first."

"Want me to accompany you?" Chloé offers.

"It's okay." Marinette forces out a smile and tucks her chart under her left arm while her right hand is inside her coat pocket. "That tomato nurse is waiting for you at the station."

Chloé breathes out a laugh and inserts her hands in the pockets. "He's a quick one. Honestly, I always find myself impressed. And he's only a year younger," she finishes in a small voice yet Marinette still picks it up.

"You should take him under your whim. You know, choose him as the nurse you'll personally train."

"Hm, so what about your lover boy?" Chloé teases. Marinette rolls her eyes. "He's just the same age as Nath. Dating a guy who is a year younger is not that bad."

Marinette walks to the door, scoffing at Chloé. "He's at the pediatric department now."

"Hey, no fair!" Chloé exclaims. "You're helping him through the different departments."

"Just like what any doctor should do with new nurses," Marinette points out. "There are no personal feelings latched unto that decision of mine."

Chloé just hums as a reply.

"I'll go ahead," Marinette continues, "have to disclose the sad information."

"Ah, Marinette," Chloé calls out to her just before she leaves. She forms her hand into a fist and brings it to the same height as her head. "Stay strong!" She cheers her on.

Marinette does the same with her fist as well. "I will," she promises her.

When Marinette reaches the pediatric department, she heads straight to the room where Manon stays. She needs to inform her mother immediately. With great timing as Marinette reaches the room, Manon's mother comes out of it. They both stop in place and it's the mother that greets the doctor first.

"Oh, Doctor DC! It's nice to see you here." She pleasantly smiles at the doctor.

"Miss Chamack," Doctor DC greets back. Then she brings out her chart. This is it, she thought and takes a deep breath then exhales. "May I speak to you alone first?"

Miss Chamack furrows her eyebrows out of worry. "Is anything wrong?"

"It's regarding Manon's newest results on her exercise stress test."

Doctor DC discloses all the information the mother should know. And with every bit of information mentioned, the mother would frown all the more.

"So," the mother drawls out in a quiet voice, "she can't get a new heart yet."

The doctor sullenly nods. "I'm very sorry, Miss Chamack. Manon has to continue to stay here and continue with her medication until a new exercise stress test will determine if her body is ready for a new heart."

The mother lets out a long sigh and wipes her cold yet sweaty hands on her pants. "I understand, doctor, that the recent results are beyond our control. Manon's body is a function of its own, but...but how do I tell Manon?" She looks at the doctor. Tears were welling up in her eyes and she tries to blink them away.

"If it will help you," Doctor DC starts out slowly, "I can be the one to tell her."

The mother lets out a sigh. "T-That would be great. She admires you a lot, doctor."

The doctor musters a smile at the woman as they both enter Manon's room.

Marinette notices the newbie playing with Manon as she sit upright on her bed. The young girl continues to laugh as Adrien imitates a cat, licking the back of his hand. Manon laughs out loud.

"Imitate a ladybug!" Manon claps her hands together in glee.

Adrien laughs. "How do you expect me to do that?"

"Try to fly!"

The doctor clears her throat, garnering the attention of the excited patient and the now-flustered nurse.

"Manon, I can't believe you're having fun without me," the doctor teases, walking to stand by the girl's side. Manon's mother stands by the doorway, watching their interaction.

"I'm just playing with my new best friend, Nurse Adrien!" Manon gushes while Adrien, on the other hand, stands tense because of the doctor's presence.

"I thought I am your best friend."

"You are my bestest friend," the young girl emphasizes earning her a soft giggle from the doctor.

"That's not a word, but I'll accept that compliment."

After a while, doctor DC's face falls and she pulls off one of her serious looks. "Manon, is it okay if we have a serious talk?"

The girl tilts her head. "Is it time for another serious session again?"

"Yes..."

"But we just had one three months ago."

"This is different." The doctor takes a step closer and places her hand on top of Manon's that is just laying on her lap. "If you want, I can talk to you privately."

Manon looks at Adrien and speaks, "Is it something that Nurse Adrien can hear?"

The doctor faces the nurse who is just standing by the side yet he stays attentive to the situation. Doctor DC then nods at the girl. "Yes, he may stay to listen. I will tell you everything, Manon."

------------

"Adrien? Can you check the quantity of surgical gloves we have left?" Nurse Bustier requests the nurse who has just been two hours in his night shift.

The new nurse nods at the head nurse in compliance and makes his way to the storage room. Though he looks composed, as a nurse should always look like, his thoughts were in a disarray. His mind is bothered with a lot of things.

Manon is not getting a new heart in a week. We don't even know when she'll be having her transplant.

"Manon," doctor DC says tenderly, "I am very sorry. But I will do your best to make your body better so that you can have another schedule of your transplant in a few months, if possible."

The young girl flashes a smile at the doctor then squeezes her hand. "I understand, doctor. I'll continue taking my medicines and staying with the other kids like me. Thank you for always taking care of me."

Adrien reaches the storage room and lets out a heavy sigh and opens the door. Just being in the room reminds him of the cheerful Manon who would never stop smiling.

She still hasn't stopped smiling, but the other nurses told him that it's been coming out as mostly forced smiles.

Doctor DC is also bothered with the sudden change of plans. He could tell. She even acted weird after she had the serious talk with Manon. When she and Adrien left the room to give private space to Manon and her mother, she immediately called out to the nurse.

"Hey idio- newbie."

"Y-Yes, doctor?" Adrien turns around to face the doctor.

"Are...are you planning on taking another shift here?" With her hands in her pockets, she faces away as she asks him.

"Yes, doctor. I'm taking the night shift tomorrow."

"Night shift," she muses. "I see."

Then after that, she left.

It really confused him - her sudden departure. Or maybe he's just mixing confusion with the butterflies in his stomach. He had to stop from smiling widely at that moment. But still, his angel doctor spoke to him first.

Wait, what was he supposed to do again?

Oh yeah, surgical gloves.

Adrien heads straight to the shelf that holds boxes of surgical gloves. One-by-one he counts and takes note of the amount in a piece of paper.

After this, he plans to visit Manon, to see if she's sleeping soundly by now. He hopes that her dreams are filled with positive things that she will eventually achieve in life.

Out of instinct, he cranes his neck to find the lone stool standing at the corner of the room. He knits his brows when he notices that someone forcefully ripped away some squares of toilet paper. He goes near the stool and sees Manon's handwritten letter to the nurses crumpled on the floor. Now, who would do something like this? Nurses may be emotional beings as well but they stay respectful above anything else. Adrien knows a nurse wouldn't do this. He grabs the piece of paper from the floor and flattens it on his palm.

And who would want to destroy this beautiful and thoughtful handwritten letter from Manon? Unless...

His eyes widen in sudden realization and instantly runs out of the room to go to the nurses' station.

Nino is there by the counter as Adrien arrives and his friend notices his disheveled state. "Dude, are you okay-"

"Has someone checked on Manon already?" Adrien immediately cuts him off.

"N-Not yet," Nino skeptically answers. "We'll start checking the patients in 10 minutes-"

"Too late!" Adrien exclaims as he goes back to running again.

"Adrien, where are you headed off to?!" Nino swears under his breath then runs after his friend.

Adrien reaches Manon's room and sees that the door is left ajar.

Oh no.

When he enters, he switches on the lights and sees no one on the bed. With the white blanket carelessly thrown to the side and the needle, that is connected to the IV drip, forcefully pulled out of an arm lies in the middle of the bed.

"Manon is missing," Adrien mutters under his breath, taking in the scene. He turns and leaves the room but is stopped immediately by his friend who has just arrived at the doorway.

"Adrien, what the heck is going on?" Nino asks in haste, holding his friend by the shoulders.

"Manon is missing," Adrien repeats this time with a clearer voice. The color drains in Nino's face and he pushes Adrien away to see if it's real.

"Oh my God," Nino mutters in worry.

"What?" Someone spits out from behind. Adrien turns and comes face-to-face with Doctor DC who was standing behind, a look of bewilderment on her face. She, too, heard what Adrien said. "Manon is missing?!"

"It's my fault, doctor," Nino starts, "I should have checked on all the patients earlier than scheduled-"

"There's no time for apologies. We need to find Manon now." She points at Nino. "You, tell the head nurse about this and gather more nurses to find her."

Nino firmly nods then runs back to the station to inform the others.

"You," she continues, "check the-"

"I'll go to a different area at the west while you take the other side, doc," Adrien interrupts the doctor in a hurry. Doctor DC found it to be surprising...in a good way.

"I was just about to say that," she utters before they both run in opposite directions, calling out Manon's name repeatedly.

Most of the nurses were on the search now after hearing what happened.

They checked almost all the common areas but she's not there at any of those places. Still they continue their search. They can't just entirely lose a patient, right?

Adrien finds himself back at the corridor where he first encountered Manon. She surprised him that time...where did she hide again?

"When I go through those stairs it leads me to my favorite area in the hospital. It's a secret, I'm not going to tell you!"

She came from behind a door of the emergency exit.

He runs to the very same door located at the farthest part of the corridor. Adrien pushes it open to find himself in a stairwell where the number of staircases to the different levels look...infinite.

Where in the world could Manon be in this part of the hospital?

The doors in the stairwell lead to the different levels of the building. Adrien decides to go down the staircase and opens the first door he encounters. Even if he was expecting to arrive at a lower floor, he actually ends up in a balcony made out of steel railings with an emergency ladder tucked at the side. So some doors lead to balconies like these in the building.

Adrien looks down to see if Manon could be there at the ground. Standing at the fifth floor, he couldn't see any traces of her. He looks up to check the other balconies and notices a pair of legs hanging from the railing. Someone is sitting on the railings of one of the balconies in the upper floors.

Manon!

Adrien enters the stairwell again and runs up the steps. Around three floors higher he opens the door and stops once he sees Manon holding onto the railing as she sits on it with tears continuously running down her face. Adrien breathes deeply, catching his breath and attempts to go to the girl.

"Stop," she softly cries out.

"Manon," he starts out slowly yet with the most gentle voice he could muster. "I don't want you to sit there. It's dangerous."

"I-It's unfair," her voice cracks as she talks. "I'm supposed to be in school! I'm supposed to live like a normal girl!"

"And you'll live like one...just not now. All of us here want you to live a perfect life, that's why we want you to trust us."

Manon slowly turns her head to face the nurse. Conflict is clear in her eyes. She continues to sniff and cry while looking at the nurse. Adrien takes another step forward.

"All of us are rooting for you, a very strong girl, to get better," he continues, "But if you continue to sit there, it may not happen." He brings out an open hand to her, hoping that she'll grab it.

"You always make us smile, Manon," Adrien whispers, flashing a small smile at the girl, "This time, allow us to make you smile. We'll continue to make you smile, I promise."

She flashes him a smile amidst her tears and takes his hand. Adrien hides a sigh of relief as she moves her left leg to swing it over to the safer side of the balcony.

Suddenly, she loses her balance and slips on the open side of the balcony.

"Manon!" Adrien shouts and immediately holds onto her one hand tightly as she dangles from the eighth floor.

"Nurse Adrien!" Manon shouts, continuing to cry. "I-I'm scared!" She looks down at the ground that seems so, so far away.

"Look at me!" Adrien instructs her, with almost half of his body leaning over the railings to continue holding her. "Just look at me, okay?"

The young girl was shaking profusely and Adrien was starting to panic as her sweaty hand was slipping out of his grip. Adrien uses both of his hands to hold the girl fron falling. "Help!" He shouts, "Help!!"

Nino is outside with other nurses as they continue to search for Manon. He stops in place when he hears a familiar voice calling out for help. "Adrien?" He whispers once the voice becomes clear. He runs to the other side and gasps in shock when he sees Manon dangling from the balcony and Adrien holding just one hand of hers. Adrien continues to call for help and Nino could hear Manon crying loud out of fear. The other nurses see what's happening and gape at the scene playing in front of them out of shock.

"Get blankets!" Nino instructs them. "We need to catch her with no injuries!"

Adrien's arms are achingly painful by now. If he even attempts to pull the young girl up, she will slip from his grip. He needs someone to help as soon as possible.

"N-Nurse Adrien," Manon utters in fear.

"I got you, Manon," he reassures her. "I promise I am not going to let go." But as he said those words, all the more her hand slips.

"Nurse Adrien!" She screams, her fear building up. Adrien grits his teeth, doing his best to even hold on tighter to her hand than before. He could see nurses on the ground spreading open blankets that would eventually break her fall if ever she falls down. He won't allow that. He won't let her fall while he's here.

"Manon! I won't let go!"

A pair of arms suddenly grab the forearm of Manon from Adrien's side.

He tilts his head and right by his neck is Doctor DC who is gritting her teeth, tightening her hold on the girl's arm.

"D-Doctor," Adrien utters in disbelief.

"I'm not allowing this girl to fall! After three, we pull her up," she instructs the nurse. "Ready! One, two...three!"

Both doctor and nurse heave the young girl up the railings and carry her to the safe side of the balcony. Manon collapses on Adrien, crying loudly out of relief as she tightly wraps her arms around the nurse. Adrien brings her closer to him and rubs her back to comfort her.

"Nurse, I-I was so scared!" She sobs.

"You're safe now, you're safe now," he repeats in a whisper. He too lets out a few tears, very grateful to hold the girl in safety.

Doctor DC walks to the girl and kneels to rub her hand on Manon's back as well. The young girl feels it and pulls away from Adrien to tightly embrace the doctor.

"I'm sorry, doctor!" She cries into the embrace. "I didn't mean to do it! I never meant to!"

Doctor DC softly shushes her. "I know, Manon." She pulls away slightly to wipe away the tears on the young girl's cheeks. "I'm happy to see you safe and sound. You have nothing to be sorry for."

Nurse Bustier and another nurse arrives at the balcony with a wheelchair. "Manon!" They call out. Both nurses rush to her and help her stand to sit on the wheelchair.

"Take her back to her room and wash her up, please," Doctor DC says. "Please take turns in taking care of her tonight."

The two nurses nod and turn their attention back to Manon. They start to talk to her with cheerful tones in their voices, acting like as if nothing happened in the first place.

Doctor DC and Adrien stand and watch Manon be taken back to her room which leaves the two of them alone.

Finally, the doctor lets out a deep sigh. She leans on the railings and closes her eyes.

Adrien fiddles with his finger, suddenly conscious of how they're the only ones left on the balcony and how close they are to each other. "Doctor," he starts out quietly, "thank you for coming just in time to help."

"How did you find this place?" She asks in a straightforward manner. Then she opens her eyes to look straight into Adrien's.

"U-Um, Manon mentioned something about a place she enjoys going to..."

The doctor breathes out a soft laugh then crosses her arms. "Well, I'm glad I chose the same night shift as you," she muses.

Adrien swallows down a big gulp. His heart is now thumping out of his chest and he could not contain his growing happiness with what the doctor said. He wanted to smile, and if he's bold enough, he would take her into his arms.

But self-control is key in a situation like this.

Though, he cannot stop the way his cheeks turned beet red.

"Anyway," the doctor drawls out, "good job. I'm going back to work."

No! He thought in panic, Where are you going?! I have something to say!

"Doctor!"

She stops and turns back to him again. She raises her eyebrows, waiting for him to continue.

"I-I've made up my mind. I'm going to join the cardiology department," he declares, puffing out his chest with pride just like how Manon taught him. "I'm here to challenge myself and what better way to do that than to be part of one of the most hardworking departments. I-I'll give my very best!"

Marinette watches him in amusement and leans on the wall behind her. "I remember...five years ago," she utters, smiling softly at him. "Even when you looked so scared you continued to shout for help. I got to help because of you that day. It was determination and perseverance that saved a life, and tonight the same thing happened."

Adrien gapes at her in shock. He...he could not believe his ears. Is this real? Did she really say what I've been waiting for her to say this whole time?

He couldn't help himself. He starts to cry. "You...you really remembered," he whispers, bringing a hand to his mouth.

Marinette rolls her eyes then flicks his forehead. "And did I tell you to cry?! I... just want to say that life is going to get tougher now." She rubs her forehead and looks away, starting to feel shy with the next words she utters, "So stay strong and keep the same determination you had five years ago."

Adrien nods frantically while trying to collect himself from crying. "Y-Yes, doctor! I promise you that I will be the best because you deserve the best!"

"Oh, God," she mutters. "You're still an idiot - saying those cheesy things." Despite her words, she found herself smirking due to the idiot's antics. If she says anything else, he might just break down with being too overwhelmed with his feelings. "Go back to work, your shift is not yet over," she finishes, placing her hands in her pockets and stands straight again to walk away.

"Yes, doctor! Leave it all to me!"

And for the first time, Marinette finds herself genuinely smiling during a night shift.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wth, this was a long chapter hahaha

Hopefully you liked it!

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