There he was, looking all fancy schmancy in his signature white suit, hair slicked back, and piercing blue eyes. Gabriel Agreste, the father of Adrien Agreste, who hated me throughout my entire high school life, was standing right there at the counter, looking at no one else but me.

I wanted to excuse myself and run for the nearest exit possible. I wanted to walk over to him and pour a cup of hot coffee on his precious thousand dollar suit and stain it forever. I wanted to confront him and tear his hair off of his head till he's got none of it left. There were so many contradicting things that I wanted to do at once, but all I ever really did was sit there and freeze.

"Mr. Agreste," Nathaniel whispered, probably to himself, but it was loud enough for me to hear. Even he looked shaken. Just how powerful can this man be?

"Yeah, no shit," Alya muttered, looking as dumbfounded as we all were. The only oblivious person in here was Nino, and I've never wanted to be in his place like this before. I wished I didn't know who he was. I wished I wasn't the one with the life he basically ruined and still remembers it up till this day. I wished these memories didn't come back the moment he stepped into the café.

When I realized I've stared for too long, I cleared my throat and immediately looked down at my drink. It didn't matter if it looked like I wasn't putting up a fight; I just broke up with my boyfriend, found out that my first love had amnesia, claims that he still has feelings for me and doesn't remember the terrible things he had done to me, and his heartless father shows up in this café out of nowhere, all within a few days? Come on, give me a break!

"Kurtzberg," a deep, ice cold voice spoke from beside me. Chills ran down my spine when I realized that Gabriel Agreste was right here. My hands started to shake. "It's very nice to meet you here."

Nathaniel seemed to have noticed how I trembled, so he gently placed a comforting hand on my wrist, giving it a light squeeze. He shows off a polite smile towards the man as he slightly bows his head and says, "Yes, sir. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Nathaniel's hand on my wrist didn't stop me from trembling, but it did help. It comforted me in a way I can't explain. Gabriel Agreste's eyes looks down at Nathaniel's hand, then slowly goes up to me. If this were the old me, I'd never even have the guts to look back at him, but now, despite the fact that I'm still absolutely terrified of this man, I decided to look up at his eyes, and give him the sweetest smile I could do.

He looked so tall, so indescribably intimidating, without even trying. I almost felt my smile disappear, but I immediately fixed it back. My lips were trembling.

Gabriel Agreste squinted his eyes. But in what? In disbelief? Was he surprised that this girl, the one he once used to have wrapped around his finger, can still smile like this? That this girl, the one he didn't want his son to be with, is still happy despite knowing what he and his son did? Or maybe he really just has bad eyesight and I'm just overanalyzing everything?

"Dupain-Cheng?" he asks, frowning. As if his face awhile ago wasn't already a frown.

"Yes, sir. It's . . . um, it's been a long time," OH my GOD did my voice just crack? Twice?

Nathaniel squeezed my wrist once more, and I have never been so grateful that he was here. I mean, I know that I basically wanted to leave as soon as I saw him here, but now that Gabriel Agreste showed up out of thin air, his presence was one of the most comforting things in this café. Alya looked just as uncomfortable as I was.

She had her arms folded across her chest, both sides of her face covered with her hair, and she had her eyes closed while breathing deeply. It wasn't long when I realized she wasn't talking because she was uncomfortable; she wasn't talking because she was mad.

"Yes, it has been a long time, hasn't it?" Gabriel Agreste replies, chuckling while shaking his head. He looks back again at Nathaniel's hand on my wrist, then closes his eyes, then opens them to look at me once more. "You and Kutrzberg are together."

It wasn't a question. It was a statement. He wanted to point it out, but what for? What's he trying to do this time? Gabriel Agreste was the hardest person to read. He's manipulative and, as much as I hate to say it, hella smart. He's always two steps ahead of everybody.

"Not anymore, sir," I replied, and I saw something glint in his lifeless blue eyes. "We just broke up."

"I see," Gabriel Agreste quietly replies, straightening his back. Then his face forms a scowl, which made Nathaniel's hand on my wrist grip a little tighter. "I suppose nothing ever lasts with you, doesn't it, Marinette?"

Silence. Nothing has ever been so loud. My whole body continued to tremble in fear, but this time, it was mixed with so much anger. I looked down again at my drink, my eyes burning up with tears. I've never wanted to throw someone off a cliff so bad. Let alone a middle aged man. The eeriness of the café didn't help with the atmosphere at all.

His words cut through me like a knife. Nothing ever lasts with me. It's like everything I've questioned was answered by the one person I despised the most, next to his son. And the fact that I believed him made it hurt even more.

"Excuse me, Mr. Agreste?" Alya butts in, lightly tapping him on his shoulder. Gabriel Agreste shifts his attention towards Alya, looking surprised at how casually she approached him. Alya was smiling; but her eyes were screaming murder. "Um, well, no offense, sir, but we were having a really great time here before you came. If you don't mind, can you please leave us alone? Besides, it wouldn't be good for your image, you know? Meddling with someone else's business when it clearly doesn't have anything to do with you, sir?"

Dear God, I thank You for giving me Alya Cesaire.

Gabriel Agreste's mouth shaped into a very shocked 'o' as he looked at Alya in complete disbelief. His eyebrows furrowed as he tried to look for the right words to say. "H—How dare—"

"My friend is right, sir," Nathaniel cuts him off, then smiled as brightly as he could, which obviously pissed Gabriel Agreste off. "With all due respect, please leave."

I have never seen Gabriel Agreste look so shaken before. Under different circumstances, I would've laughed, taken a picture, and would send it to Adrien and tell him that this man is exactly like him; a heartless idiot.

It took a long while before Gabriel Agreste could regain his composure. He closed his eyes and shook his head incredulously, then clears his throat, straightening his back, his chest puffed. He looks at each of us, one by one, then lands his eyes on me.

"We'll see each other soon," Gabriel Agreste stated, not taking his eyes off of me. It was as if he was threatening me; but with what? What for? He finally ruined me and completely changed me into someone so different from who I really was. He got exactly what he wanted before. What more does he want? What could he possibly gain?

When he finally left, I never realized that I've been holding my breath for so long. Nathaniel immediately released his hand from my wrist as he sat down beside me, sighing.

"God," Nathaniel breathed, leaning on the chair as he ran a hand through his hair, closing his eyes. "That man is terrifying."

"Terrifying? I could tear his face off in a second," Alya said through gritted teeth, aggressively drinking her coffee. "Man this coffee is good! But that doesn't change the fact that this day is ruined. Absolute trash, that man. I hate him."

Nathaniel leans over to me and places a hand on my shoulder, his blue eyes as clear as the sky. "Hey. Are you alright?"

"What do you think?" I replied, letting out a small, sarcastic laugh, trying to stop myself from trembling. My drink was still full but cold, and I didn't have the appetite to drink any of it anymore.

Nathaniel looks at me in silence, looking like he wants to say something but he can't. Instead, he pats my head and gently ruffles my hair, like how he always does. Before, though, he used to do that with a smile, and sometimes a laugh; but now he did it with nostalgic eyes and a sad smile.

We just stayed like that for a while. His hand on top of my head, his eyes looking into mine, appreciating every second that passes by. It felt like we both knew that this would be the last time we could ever be this close, even though we want to get a little closer, but we can't. What's done is done.

Then he breaks eye contact and moves a little farther away from me, then leans back on his chair. "What's his problem, anyway?"

Alya gives me a look, asking if he knows. I shook my head and she immediately nodded, awkwardly drinking her drink. I began contemplating on whether or not to tell Nathaniel about what exactly happened with Mr. Agreste, Adrien, and I, but a bigger part of me didn't want to even think about it. It would only make everything much worse.

"That man's always been problematic," Alya growled, slamming her drink on the table and aggressively ruffled her hair, letting out a frustrated groan. "Goddamnit! I can't believe I let that one man put me into such a sour mood. And he didn't even do anything to me!"

"Whoa, Alya, just so you know, if you break that mug, you're gonna have to pay for it," Nino butts in, a teasing smile forming on his face as he walks closer towards us. He seemed to already have noticed the tension and decided to try and lift it, which is something he would definitely do.

After a while, Alya and Nino seemed to have their own little world as they continued to chat, leaving me and Nathaniel alone at the other side of the table. Nino would leave us for a bit when a customer comes inside, but runs over to our table after serving them.

I sulked into my seat, arms crossed, looking at my drink, mind completely blank. This day was supposed to be fun.

"I know."

I turned to my left and looked at Nathaniel, who was playing with his fingers. A few strands of red hair fell on top of his forehead as he hangs his head.

"What?" I asked, confused. Know what?

"I know about Adrien," he continues, his voice distant and low. My heart stopped.

"What do you mean?"

"I know about Adrien. . . and you. You were together in secret for a long time, right?"

My mind tried to process his words. He knew? How? How did he know when not even my best friend knew? Does that mean someone else knew about it while we were still together? Did someone see us date? Did Adrien actually broke his promise and told somebody? My breath started to get harder and harder to catch even though I was just sitting down.

"H—How . . . ?"

"Well," Nathaniel's eyes widened for a second and he shrugged, "I . . . I don't know that much, though. I only knew that you two had a relationship before in high school. She didn't tell me anything else except that."

She?

"Who told you?" I asked, my hand finding its way to my drink and gripped it as hard as it could. Who the hell knew? Who the hell told Nathaniel?

"Um, it's fine, since I know—"

"Nathaniel," I demanded, leaning closer to him, my hand getting tighter on my drink. My breath was shallow. "Since when did you know?"

Nathaniel nervously runs a hand through his hair, then closed his eyes as he took a deep breath. "A few days after we began shooting."

"You knew even before we had our relationship?"

He paused. "Yes."

"Who told you?"

He stayed quiet. I leaned closer, our faces only a few inches apart. There was no way I'd let this slip. I had to know. I need to know.

"Nathaniel. Answer me."

He looks up, taking a few deep breaths before looking back at me, his eyes hesitant. Then he opens his mouth to speak, and for a moment there, I wished I didn't ask.

"Chloe. Chloe told me. She knew."

a/n:

is this a cliffhanger?