When I opened my eyes for a whole new day, my heart immediately felt surprisingly heavy, as if there was something huge lingering inside and I couldn't figure out what. I turned my head sideways and looked around, noticing that the room was larger than my trailer at camp, then realized that I was back at Alya and I's temporary apartment.

Groaning, I searched for my phone under my pillow and checked the time: 5:45 am.

Ugh. I can't believe I woke up this early. On a Sunday. Today was thankfully a free day, because the trip from the camping site all the way back to Hollywood was incredibly long, so majority of the staff agreed with a rest day Sunday.

While I was still squinting my eyes to adjust my groggy vision, I opened the contacts on my phone, searched for Nathaniel's name, then decided to send him a message.

Good morning, Nathy! It's rest day Sunday today, so rest well, okay? :)

I was about to hit 'send', when realization dawned over me.

He wasn't my boyfriend anymore.

We just ended our relationship yesterday, and I can't believe I forgot. Marinette, of all the things to be clumsy and forgetful for, you just had to choose that?

Maybe that was why my morning felt dull and heavy. Although I wasn't in love with Nathaniel, I was undeniably attached to him. Despite the fact that we were both still kinda having "issues" with someone from each of our past, I knew that everything we did together was just as special as what we did with our certain . . . people before. Nathaniel was undoubtedly a good boyfriend, and probably the only guy I can really trust along with Nino.

There's no denying that he definitely earned a special place in my heart.

With a sigh, I erased my message and turned the phone off, placing it beside me.

"Girl," Alya yawned from the bed across from mine, "what happened yesterday? You didn't talk to me when you arrived and just crashed on the bed."

What?

I immediately took my blanket off, then realized that I was still wearing the clothes I wore yesterday.

Was I that tired to the point of ignoring my best friend's existence and just crashing on my bed without changing into comfy pj's?

"Oh," I managed to say, groggily rubbing my eyes as I sat up. "A lot happened."

I sat beside her and proceeded to tell Alya everything. I made sure I didn't miss even the smallest part, because for some reason each and every little detail mattered just as much as everything else. There were a few times when I felt like I was about to cry, and I did. What a nice way to start the day.

"Holy crap, Mari," Alya breathed in disbelief, scooting closer to me, wrapping her arms around my shoulders, "All of that happened within less than a week? Just how emotionally drained could you possibly be?"

I shrugged, wiping the tears that forced to come out once more. Ever since I agreed to do this movie thing with Agreste, everything has been going downhill. The only really happy moments that I can remember was when I was with Nathaniel. But I couldn't really spend my time with him in that way anymore.

"Oh god," Alya mumbled, tightening her hug. "I am so sorry. If I'd never had forced you to audition for the movie, this never would have happened. I'm so, so sorry, Marinette. This is all my fault."

My eyes instantly shot up and I looked at my best friend in shock. "What? No!"

The last thing I want to see is Alya blaming herself for something she didn't mean to do. Sure, she badly wanted me to do this, but she didn't know about Adrien and I. It was my fault as well, for not telling her about us.

"Don't blame yourself, dummy," I told her, "it's my fault too. You didn't know that Adrien and I had a terrible past together."

Alya bit her lower lip as she looks down. "Still."

"Everything will be fine," I muttered, hugging her back. "I'll be okay. I just gotta figure out what to do with that banana guy."

Alya chuckled, shaking her head. "Please don't even think about going back to him. He's the biggest jerk of all jerks, and you deserve way more than that."

"I know."

I'm absolutely not going to fool myself again and get back together with him. Even when I'm still not entirely over Adrien, I know better than to waltz back into his hands and get played once more.

×××

Since it was rest day Sunday, Alya and I decided to just spend the afternoon at the café where Nino works. Besides, they've been missing each other for quite awhile now.

Alya didn't want to go there, probably because she felt guilty about being with someone she likes and who's practically her boyfriend when my relationship with mine just ended. But I didn't mind. If she was happy, I was happy.

"Welcome to—" Nino stopped immediately when he noticed us walking inside the cafe, the bell on top of the door chiming. Alya's grip on my hand went tighter as we got closer to the counter.

I swore I saw Nino's brown eyes sparkle like the sun. "Hi," he said, looking out of breath.

Alya smiled, her cheeks flushed. "Hi."

I didn't want to ruin the moment, so I decided to just tell Alya my order and tried to look for a seat. There wasn't really any trouble looking for one, though, since there were little to no people inside. I chose to sit at the corner, away from the windows, to avoid unwanted attention.

I was about to sit at the comfiest-looking table when I was distracted by a blur of red. Quietly praying that it's not who I think it is, I turned my head to the right, and, voila, my ex-boyfriend was sitting right there, just two tables away from the right.

He looked lonely, wearing a button-down and khakis, drinking what seemed to be coffee with both of his elbows on top of the table. He wasn't looking this way, which was a good thing because I needed some time to panic.

Should I leave?

No, Alya and Nino's having a moment and it would suck to be that one friend who ruins it.

So I just sat at the table I chose, just hanging my head, making sure that my hair was hiding my face. I mean, I shouldn't be avoiding him. He's still a friend, and we ended on good terms(ish), but we seriously just broke up yesterday. And talking to him now would only make me want to hug him and squish his little cheeks and tease the hell out of him. And cry.

"Mari!" Alya called, and I looked up, alarmed. She didn't know that Nathaniel was here, but it's too late. She called me.

I forced a smile at Alya, trying so hard not to scream. At my peripheral vision, I saw Nathaniel's head jerk up at the sound of my name, and I felt him looking at me. Should I look back? Or should I continue pretending that I never saw him?

The latter. Definitely.

While I continued to smile in a panicky way, Alya, who was carrying a tray of our orders, seemed to stiffen, but she continued to walk towards me. I think she saw Nathaniel, too, and realized she messed up.

When she finally sat down on a chair across from me, her dark brown eyes were as wide as saucers, doing the screaming for her. I can tell my facial expressions were doing the same. Oh god.

"HE'S HERE," Alya whispered as she leaned closer to me, blinking hard. That was what she always does when she's internally screaming; she blinks so fast, like a cheetah, but instead of feet, it's with the eyes.

"Yes, Alya, I know! What do I do?" I whispered back, trying to look calm, but my eyes were doing all the talking with the words I couldn't really say, like: help me, I'm dying here, Can I please just jump off a cliff?

Alya bites her lower lip. "Let's just pretend we didn't see him—OH CRAP, HE'S COMING."

"WHAT?"

"Quick, Mari. Act normal! Normal!"

"But—"

It's too late. Nathaniel was already standing beside us, holding a cup of coffee with a tired smile on his face. His eyes lost their spark, like it was just sea and no lightning. Nathaniel's eyes have always been a combination of sea and lightning.

"Hey," Nathaniel greeted.

CRAP. "Hey, Nath! How are you? Long time no see, right? Haha," I awkwardly replied, leaning my elbow on the table as I made weird gestures with my other hand. I looked at Alya from my peripheral vision, and from her face alone, I can tell that she was scolding me internally. Oh god.

Nathaniel looked genuinely confused, since we literally just saw each other yesterday back at the camping site when we broke up. But he seemed to know that I was nervous. His face softened as his lips turned up to a comforting smile.

"Yeah . . . I guess," he replies, letting out a soft chuckle. He saw right through me. He knew I was nervous, and he knew that if he pointed out the fact that it wasn't really "long time no see", I'd probably be digging a hole by now. Because of that, I felt thankful. Seriously now, what did I do to deserve to have this person in my life, boyfriend or not?

There was an awkward silence after that, and not one of us seemed to know what to say to break the ice. I wanted to offer Nathaniel a seat but he didn't look like he wanted to sit down at our table, yet at the same time he also looked like he didn't want to leave.

Nathaniel nervously ran a hand through his hair and opened his mouth to say something, but he got interrupted by Nino who went right up to us, holding a tray of our orders.

"Here's your order," Nino said cheerfully as he carefully placed our drinks on the table, oblivious to the awkward atmosphere around us. "Anything you'd like to add, ladies?"

"Nino, you didn't have to—" Alya started.

"—it's fine, really!" Nino said, hugging the tray against his chest with a goofy smile on his face as he looked at Alya. His cheeks flushed and his eyes sparkled, and I immediately felt my heart squeeze. Alya deserves the best, and the best is Nino; I can see him imagining wedding bells ringing just by the look in his eyes.

Then he looked up, and the future plans vanished and was replaced with surprise. "Oh, that's . . . you're Nathaniel Kurtzberg, right? Dude!" Nino's eyes widened with excitement. "My cousin's a really big fan."

Nathaniel awkwardly smiles, as if being acknowledged in public was he last thing he wanted to happen. Then I remembered the day when I first went to his apartment and saw all his paintings.

"It's my only escape."

Then I began to wonder if he ever wanted to have a life in the spotlight.

"Yeah, thanks," Nathaniel replies, bowing his head a little bit, stealing a glance from me, as if saying, help.

I opened my mouth to say something, but was immediately stopped by the bell on top of the glass door that chimed, indicating that someone has entered the café. Nino muttered a quick see you later before darting off to the counter to take the customer's order.

I turned to look at Nathaniel, but he still seemed to be uneasy. His shoulders were stiff and his eyes were tense while looking at the counter. Was he afraid of Nino?

Curious, I whipped my head back at the counter, and I immediately understood why Nathaniel looked even more uncomfortable than a few seconds ago.

Standing at the counter, ordering who knows what to Nino who was completely oblivious, was none other than Gabriel Agreste.

And he was looking at me.

a/n:

holy crap we're close to the end