"When you're faced with life and death, you sprint towards life. Try walking and you'll never make it in time. Everyone knows death waits for no one."

— Blanks

_______________________________

Marinette Dupain-Cheng hardly remembered the world she used to live in. That world was long forgotten in the past, and if it was recognized by some fortunate soul, it was told as if it were an impossible dream to reach again, which seemed like a fairytale to those who never got a chance to see it for themselves.

The world that she lived in now was destroyed; a barren wasteland with hardly any sign of life. There was hardly anything left that was green. Everything had wilted brown. The trees were all old-looking, their branches resembling that of an old man's fragile bones, close to snapping in two, and yet, they remained standing, unwilling to succumb to their inevitable end no matter how much their weak roots screamed silently beneath the poisoned earth.

The symbolization of the trees is what kept Marinette going. Despite their pain, they withheld strength.

Besides that, nothing else on their desolate planet resembled life or hope. The sky had grown to be a dark green, and whenever the sun and moon rose, it looked as if someone had gone up into space just to paint them that way. There was no such thing as a clear blue sky anymore. Animals that had once existed freely amongst them had either gone into hiding, were killed, or vanished when the disease hit.

The disease itself did many things when it arose. For one, it spread faster than the common cold—at least, those were the words the people on the radio liked to use before all connections were lost.

That was the last time she'd heard another human voice, after all.

After the last radio broadcast was made stating an immediate emergency evacuation from the city, many people packed their belongings and tried to escape the sudden curse that had been planted on the earth. But the disease didn't just spread faster than the common cold. It infected the air, it infected the environment, it infected the bloodstream, and it infected the mind.

The ones who tried to escape it were unprepared for the monsters that emerged from within their deceased corpses.

They named the disease CAL2240. It stood for Corpses Among the Living and the year it all began. They couldn't say where such a sickness had originated from, only that it was something they had never seen before. These monsters that emerged from the dead weren't just the ones a child feared lurking underneath their bed. These monsters were your loved ones or your friends, strangers, or your foes, evolving into something that couldn't be fathomed. These things went after you, bit you, and could turn you into something that couldn't be controlled or stopped.

Marinette couldn't remember the first time she'd ever seen one of those things with her own two eyes, nor could she remember the first time she'd ever killed one. With just one bite, your entire life was flipped like a coin, and whether you called out heads or tails, you were doomed either way.

Because of this, Marinette had always done what needed to be done. There was no hesitance. There was never any remorse. She just killed. She killed the monsters so that others wouldn't have to worry about finding them underneath their beds.

However, she was only one woman, and only one woman could do so much. Every bite heightened their spread. Soon, the monsters overwhelmed even her abilities, and Marinette was left with nothing except knowing that the world as she knew it was officially over.

Left with emptiness, Marinette decided to push forward. She put years' worth of skills to good use. She learned things about the monsters that they themselves would never know.

She learned the hard way that these monsters were far from stupid.

To outsmart the dumb was an easy task, but to outsmart the intelligent only required one to be wise. That phrase was written in her brain, a mantra her father liked to recite from his days in the war.

Every move she made was calculated carefully after that. Recklessness was evaded as much as possible. To avoid antagonization, she decided calling the monsters stupid didn't have the best ring to it.

In the end, she decided to name them Vide, which in her French native tongue, simply meant empty or Blank.

After all, even the deceased deserved a name.

When there were still plenty of other people around, no one could figure out what was causing the disease that was killing millions of innocent people and then turning them into Blanks.

Originally, the plan was to find a cure.

However, no one lived long enough to find the antidote.

Now, several years later, Marinette was certain that she was the only one left. The only human being who still had complete control over their mind and who hadn't been turned into one of those things. She couldn't prove that what she believed was a fact, but she had no other way to prove that assumption otherwise.

After all, Marinette hadn't seen another human being in four whole years.

After years of searching for somewhere to call home, Marinette decided that a place like that couldn't exist in a world like this. Everywhere would have to be her home. Anywhere she could find provisions, at least.

So, she finally settled in an abandoned town that had buildings lined down dirt roads. She realized that after years of traveling, she'd somehow made it to the ocean, with the realization that she had reached an unfortunate dead end and could only head back inland from there.

There was a lighthouse on the beach, several missing bricks in the exterior indicating that the tower had been abandoned long before the apocalypse hit, but it was the only building in the town that was secluded. It was also the tallest point—it's height perfect for scanning her surroundings and keeping her position as an advantage for potential threats.

She was certain no Blank would be smart enough to know that she was up there, and even if they were to figure it out, the climb would be far too difficult for someone who had no idea what they were doing anyway.

So, she deemed the tower her new home for now.

Her first night in the lighthouse was very quiet, so quiet that not even a cricket could be heard. It was a bit lonesome, too. However, Marinette had grown used to living alone, so the silence was somewhat welcoming. It offered her a bit of peace, knowing that she had finally found a safe place to settle down for a few days.

For the first time in years, she slept soundly that night.

The second night was a bit more difficult. Marinette was almost caught in the midst of a large herd of Blanks that had ventured into the town while gathering supplies, slowly wandering the dirt roads in search for something to sink their teeth into. She hardly slept that night, listening to the distant moans and snarls that sounded like a nightmare on repeat as they lingered around in the ghost town.

By the crack of dawn the following morning, the wandering herd of Blanks had thankfully moved on, likely back inland when they found that the ocean would not let them travel any further... because they couldn't swim. Marinette went back out into the town to collect more provisions once the coast was clear and spent the rest of her morning building a fire up in her lighthouse to cook whatever canned food she'd scoured from the abandoned marketplace.

On her third night in the lighthouse, Marinette spent her evening leaned against the inner wall with her earbuds in her ears, listening to some of her favorite tunes out of a solar-charged music player her father had gifted her many years ago. It had been a while since she'd last gotten the chance to listen to music in an atmosphere of peace.

But that atmosphere was quickly ruined the moment she heard commotion from one of the lower floors in the lighthouse.

At first, Marinette felt the sound in her hands through vibrations in the metal flooring of the tower. It was faint, but prominent, as if someone had stumbled and fallen. It was brief too, but it was enough for her to open her eyes in alert. She pulled out her earbuds and set her player aside when she felt it again, this time louder and heavier, and she quickly scrambled on her hands and knees towards one of the windows to see if she could spot anything outside.

She expected to find maybe another herd stupidly ramming into the tower.

But unfortunately, the noises weren't from outside, or from another herd of Blanks wandering into the town again.

These noises were within the lighthouse, and they were inching closer.

Marinette stood to her feet and reached for her machete that she usually kept tucked away under her coat. As she unsheathed it, she patiently waited for the intruder to enter through the hatch that led to the top of the lighthouse.

Whatever it was—whether a Blank, an animal, or even a human—she would be prepared for its entry.

When the latch was suddenly opened, she waited for the inevitable. What she didn't expect, however, was for a sudden head to pop through the opening, dirty blonde hair being the first thing that caught her cautious eye. The figure looked up to take in his surroundings, and Marinette almost gasped audibly when her blue-bell eyes met emerald, green.

The arm holding her weapon fell limp to her side.

It was another human being.

He was a human.

In that moment, Marinette found herself unable to tear her eyes away from him.
She couldn't remember the last time she'd ever seen a human being that wasn't already a walking corpse.

Marinette learned that the mystery man who had somehow stumbled upon the abandoned town, was named Adrien. She predicated he was around her age (so between twenty to twenty-two, she decided), and had dirty blonde hair and bright, green eyes. From what she could see, his clothes were tattered and stained, with a few rips in the sleeve and on the knees, almost as if he'd been wearing the same clothing every day for the entirety of the outbreak. His face was covered in soot, and his hair was drenched as if he'd been caught in the rain.

At first, Adrien was startled when he first laid eyes on her. They exchanged a cautious look in silence for what seemed like an eternity. Apparently, he hadn't been expecting to find anything, or rather, anyone, when he ventured up into the lighthouse. With hands raised, he stumbled over his words as he hastily explained that his intentions were him simply looking for a safe place to spend the night, which didn't surprise her at all when he mentioned that. The lighthouse was the safest place to spend a night worry free, after all.

He moved to take a step closer to her, and her machete was raised again.

He kept his hands raised as a sign of surrender; his features etched with worry.

"Could I please stay the night up here?" He asked, almost begging, "I have nowhere else to go, and I promise you I won't cause you any trouble. You have my word."

Skepticism clouded her features. His word meant nothing to her.

She eyed him cautiously, uncertain. Drenched, he was shivering, his clothes clung to his lanky figure mercilessly, and he only had a worn navy-blue backpack on his shoulders to prove he had a few belongings. No weapons seemed to be on his person from what she could see—but whatever was in that backpack? Not knowing put herself in danger.

So, silently, she outstretched her hand and beckoned he give it to her.

Confusion overwrote his worry. Her fingers flexed again, another silent demand for him to comply. When her frown deepened, he slowly removed his backpack from his shoulders and slid it across the floor to her feet.

As she slowly knelt down, her cold eyes never left his. A moment later, she opened his backpack and thoroughly rummaged through his things.

Inside, a few cans of spaghetti were stashed above what looked to be a black shirt, along with two plastic water bottles filled to the brim. She searched briefly underneath his extra top only to find that he didn't have much. Only a few items that she deemed as personal and were nothing of importance to her. There were no weapons in his backpack either, which struck her as a bit odd, but was a relief nonetheless.

She closed it again and slid it back across the floor to him.

"Take off your shirt."

His eyes widened at that, stunned by her next demand. When he moved to protest, she raised her machete once more, and that was enough to keep him silent and obedient.

Hesitantly, he removed his shirt like she had asked.

She moved towards him like a coyote on a mouse. He tensed up upon her closeness, but Marinette had no interest in whether or not he was comfortable. Her only concern lied with the condition of his skin. She surveyed him carefully, looking out for any blisters or red blotches that looked like rashes on his chest. Those were both early evident signs of being infected. When his skin seemed clear, her next inspection was his eyes. Any signs of a red band around the irises meant infection, as well as whiteness slowly overtaking the color.

But Adrien's eyes were clear... and green. Extremely green. And deep.

She pulled back abruptly, still frowning, and nodded once.

"You're clear."

"That's what you were checking?" He quickly threw his shirt over his head, frowning slightly, "Couldn't you have just asked me?"

She narrowed her eyes at him. "I don't trust you."

Adrien didn't try to argue with her on that matter. Perhaps it was because he understood that she had every reason not to trust him. But he did ask again if he could stay the night, this time insisting he would stay on the opposite side of the small room and not bother her again. Reluctantly, she gave in to his plea.

It wasn't as if she could just mercilessly turn him away. She had every reason to believe he would not survive for long if she forced him to leave this tower... especially when he had no weapon on him.

Wondering how he had survived this long without a weapon, her curiosity nagged at her to ask him as she watched him from across the room, but she didn't.

Marinette hadn't spoken to another person in years, and she wasn't about to start engaging in conversation now. The silence was better anyways.

Adrien, however, didn't seem to share that same mindset.

"Are you alone?"

That had been his first attempt at breaking the silence.

She shot him a glare. "I thought you said you were going to leave me alone."

That was what she wanted, wasn't it? A part of her screamed yes, but as much as she hated to admit it, the other half of her secretly longed for normal human interaction. She wouldn't dare admit that aloud, though. Being alone was better for the soul anyways, because when you're alone, you don't have to worry about losing anyone.

Adrien shrunk back from her fearful glare, even averting his gaze. She supposed it was because she made him feel small.

"Sorry," he mumbled out, "I won't bother you again."

That turned out to be an absolute lie. Adrien couldn't keep him his mouth shut for more than fifteen seconds. He asked her another question, and then another, and then another!—all in which were left unanswered.

For someone who was still living in what she believed was hell, Adrien was too upbeat. She could tell right away that he was an extrovert, ready to talk about anything in order to make some sort of conversation.

She didn't like those type of people.

The ones who never shut up were the first to die.

When he eventually realized she had no interest in having a conversation with him, Adrien decided that he would do all the talking. He went on to tell her stories about what his life had been like before the apocalypse hit, and for some odd reason, she actually listened to his stories (even though she would never admit that they somewhat interested her.)

Before the outbreak, Adrien had apparently been a celebrity. He worked under his father and modeled for his father's clothing line. He admitted that he never truly enjoyed the job, though, especially when he later discovered that his father was only using modeling as a reason to keep his son under his control. When Adrien realized this, he moved into an apartment with his best friend, Nino.

And from the way Adrien talked about Nino, it seemed as if his friend was currently alive, which also meant that there were more people (besides her and him) that were still alive.

Marinette almost couldn't believe it, and she wasn't even sure if the possibility of other survivors worried her or excited her. All this time she had thought that she had been the only one left... but she'd been wrong.

When Adrien decided to ask her about what her occupation had been before the outbreak, Marinette decided it couldn't hurt to tell him.

"I designed clothing." She told him.

Her voice still sounded hoarse—clearly indicating that it had been a very long time since she had last used it regularly. Adrien didn't seem to mind, though. His smile only seemed to widen.

"That job suits you. Famous designer?"

How would he know if that job suited her or not?

She shook her head, frowning down at the flames that now separated them. "More like intern. I was close, but then the apocalypse happened."

Adrien nodded, as if he understood that disappointment. "I wanted to be a physics' teacher. I never got a chance to go to school for a teaching degree, though."

Oddly enough, she thought that job would've suited him well. Since he never liked to shut up, teaching would have been his strong suit.

"Maybe... if the apocalypse would've never happened, I would've modeled your clothing." He chuckled softly in order to break the silence between them, watching her movements closely as she leaned closer towards the fire. "We could've been friends."

Embers sparked when a piece of wood fell onto another. The smoke rose out through the small hole at the top of the lighthouse.

"Don't push your luck." She scowled, suddenly annoyed that he would even suggest such a thing. "I didn't need friends then and I don't need them now."

Adrien, who had been grinning like a Cheshire Cat, replaced his smile with a frown the moment he registered her words.

"Everyone needs a friend."

"Not me."

The light in his eyes dimmed at her words. "I'm assuming you're alone then, considering you aren't a fan of friends. How long have you been alone?"

She shrugged as if the time of isolation she'd experienced didn't matter. "It's been about fours years."

He gasped in horror. "Four years?"

Marinette nodded, but she offered him no verbal response in return.

She figured the less she had to talk to him the better.

"You've been all alone for four years?!"

Her brows furrowed slightly at that, and she idly wondered if his slow brain was having trouble accepting that fact. Was that really that hard to believe?

It that moment, she decided to look up at him, her cold, emotionless gaze meeting his bewildered one. She stared at him hard, and when their eyes met, Adrien stiffened and closed his gaping mouth.

"Yes. Four years," Marinette muttered, still keeping her gaze focused on him. "And I have survived the entirety of that time all alone, so I would suggest you keep your voice down, because if you draw unwanted attention this way, I will kill you."

The blonde gulped and nodded speedily without a hint of hesitation. After that little scare, Adrien did not mutter another word any louder than a whisper. When the silence engulfed them again, Marinette began to absently sharpen her weapon, and he watched with a curious, yet guarded expression.

He then broke that wonderful silence once again when he asked, "Do you fight with that?"

The scraping sound of a metal blade against stone was the only sound that surrounded them. She nodded. She also hoped that he would close his mouth after that, but Adrien shot her with another question in a matter of seconds.

"How did you learn to use it?"

Marinette didn't bother to lift her eyes from her weapon. "I taught myself."

Apparently, that answer wasn't satisfactory enough for him. "But... how?"

"I just did." Marinette said a bit irritably.

"Okay... but how though? Through YouTube? Do they even have tutorial videos for that? Or... wait—are you secretly a serial killer?"

Her fingers clenched around the handle of her machete, her knuckles slowly turning white. If there was one thing that annoyed her the most about Adrien, it was his constant questions, and she'd only just met him. When she was alone, she never had to worry about explaining anything to anyone.

"Stop asking me so many questions." She muttered dangerously low.

He didn't seem to catch the hint. If anything, her irritation only seemed to egg him on. "If you could just tell me how you learned, I'll stop asking."

"No."

He offered her a half-grin. "Please? I'm a curious guy."

"No. Curiosity gets you killed."

"Pretty sure satisfaction can bring you back."

Didn't that only apply for cats?

Marinette paused her sharpening to look up at him, offering him a glare that could only be deciphered as plain annoyance. Word play?

Word play only made him more of an annoying guy.

Adrien pouted, looking disappointed. It seemed he was still willing to test the limits. "I just—I've never seen anyone with a weapon like that before. Can you at least tell me where you got it?"

Marinette returned her gaze to her blade, studying the sharp edges carefully as she recalled how she had obtained the weapon. That was a story for another day, and yet for some reason, she felt inclined to answer.

So, she did.

"It was my brother's."

Adrien perked up at that. "You have a brother?"

Her posture stiffened, and once again, silence struck out between them like a blade slicing through thin air. She never answered his question or met his gaze again that night, only focusing on her blade, even when Adrien cleared his throat awkwardly after he realized he'd crossed an unknown line.

Instead, she demanded that he get some rest. And he listened.

The next morning, Adrien wore the biggest smile on his face when he asked Marinette to join him on his journey as he continued on searching for his group of friends that he'd somehow gotten separated from. When she first rejected his offer, insisting that she'd done well on her own for the last four years and didn't need his or anyone else's company to stay alive, he pointed out very clearly that there was no point in living this life if you had no one left to live it with.

She wasn't in the mood to have an inspirational quote thrown at her... even if he was right.

Though Marinette had vowed to never allow herself to make any more personal connections after she was separated from her own family, she couldn't help but feel drawn to Adrien's warm smile and his heart-filled promises that everything was going to be okay. He seemed to have a brighter, more positive outlook on their world, even though she saw nothing left to be positive about.

There was nothing left but death.

But Adrien saw things differently than she did, and maybe it was because he hadn't seen the things she'd seen. Even so, he truly believed that everyone who had survived so far still had a reason and a purpose for living. A destiny, even.

Marinette didn't understand what that purpose could possibly be... besides preventing themselves from turning into one of those disgusting walking corpses themselves. At this point, that was Marinette's only goal in life.

She reluctantly agreed to join him on his quest (because it wasn't as if she had anywhere else to be or a specific destination in mind). That resulted in a victory fist bump as his response. As they travelled together, Adrien continued to tell many stories. To satisfy his need to talk so much, she pretended to care. Most of what he said she only half listened to. She wasn't sure if all his stories were all true, but deep down, she didn't really mind the tall tales he told her. He even went on to tell her about the friends he'd been separated from, and how they all had become more like a family than just a bunch of strangers or misfits.

She thought that was... sweet, but she didn't envy any of it.

That feeling quickly evaporated, though, when Adrien told her a story she definitely didn't believe.

He told her about a city, but the city that he described seemed nearly impossible to exist. It was an untouched paradise where the disease hadn't (and couldn't) reach. Where the trees and grass were actually green, where the trees grew fruit and blossoms bloomed, where the sky was blue, and where the animals could also survive. He told her that their were people already there, living peacefully and in perfect health, and welcoming those in need of a sanctuary.

Apparently, it was the place he and his band of friends had been looking for.

Marinette scoffed at that. It sounded like a fantasy from a child's fairytale book.

"You just wait and see." Adrien said when she told him that sounded insane, throwing her a smile over his shoulder as he continued forward. She continued to drag her feet behind him, mostly only half-listening to his so-called 'real and not fabricated story' about the untouched city.

She decided, for the sake of not starting an argument, not to comment against its existence, but she wouldn't deny that she hoped to prove him wrong.

An untouched paradise? Pfft. That sounded too good to be true.

Later that day, they encountered a lone, wandering Blank on their travels. To most that would seem non-intimating, but to Marinette, it only rubbed her the wrong way. Her reason being just how... alone the creature seemed.

If there was anything Marinette had learned over the years, it was that these creatures hardly ever travelled alone. They preferred to gather in large numbers, groups that she liked to identify as 'herds'. The creatures themselves may have lost a few of their brain cells from the disease, but that didn't mean that they were necessarily stupid.

Adrien, on the other hand, had no issue ridiculing the creature.

The moment he noticed it limping through the forest, he was spouting unnecessary words at the darn thing—yelling as loud as he possibly could to catch the creature's attention. He even spit on the ground that it walked on, as if his saliva could harm the thing.

And Marinette couldn't help but spew curse words back at him in return.

"What the hell are you doing?!" She hissed through gritted teeth. The Blank had turned its head in their direction, clearly enticed by their presence. Its ghostly white eyes were now locked on them. It changed its course a moment later, wobbling in their direction, and she cursed underneath her breath. Sure, there was only one of them, but Marinette knew better.

There was never only one.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" Adrien frowned in return; his hard glare still focused entirely on the Blank who was nearing them with every slow step it took. "I'm luring the dumb thing over here so we can kill it."

"We?"

Adrien nodded wordlessly, his eyes still fixated on the creature.

Marinette turned to look at him with the hardest glare she'd ever mustered in her life, a single brow raised. "We won't be doing anything. You don't even have a weapon."

"So? I'll kill it with my bare hands."

Marinette squinted at him, unamused. "Is that so, Tarzan?"

He turned to look at her then, a bit of urgency in his eyes. "I'm serious. I won't let that thing hurt you."

"Now you've turned into my knight in shining armor?" Marinette huffed out a laugh. "How romantic. Looks like we might even meet our end together, Romeo."

Ignoring her sarcasm, Adrien simply frowned, "Okay, so maybe you will kill it. But why does it even matter? It's only one."

"Listen, there is never just one." She sternly murmured in response. Despite scanning her surroundings carefully, she couldn't seem to find anything out of the ordinary with the forest—besides the one Blank heading right for them at an incredibly slow pace. Of course, one would've thought the monster was alone, but that was too good to be true.

Adrien raised his eyebrows in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

"Blanks travel in herds, you idiot." She hissed, "Where there's one, there's hundreds."

With his hand, he gestured out into the open forest around them, as if it were obvious that there was clearly only one Blank wandering the wilderness. "But this one's clearly all alone."

"From what you can see... but looks can be deceiving."

He turned his head only slightly to look at her again, and she could easily see the ridiculous look he had to offer her from the corner of her eye—a look she really really wanted to slap clean off of his face. "Are you implying that these creatures are smart enough to know what a diversion is?"

She didn't nod, because she wasn't sure, but she did know that they were far from dumb. "They're smarter than they look."

CRACK.

She whipped her head to the side at the sound. Out of her peripheral, another Blank emerged from a cluster of bushes.

"It's just two." Adrien acknowledged the creature by hardly even sparing it a glance. Instead, he kept his gaze focused on the first. "It's fine."

"None of this fine." Marinette hissed out. "This is all your fault."

"My fault?" He turned to shoot her a frown. "Now hold on just a minute—"

"None of this would be happening if you hadn't called it over here."

"It would've seen us anyway—"

"Speak for yourself."

CRUNCH. CRUNCH. CRUNCH.

She turned to the sound, only to find a third one to her left dragging one of its legs behind, its boot crackling as it shifted through dry leaves while its still intact foot was bare.

Marinette quickly whipped around to shoot him a glare. His response was a sheepish smile and an annoying three-word phrase. "It's only three."

"Shut up. Say that one more time and I swear—"

He didn't have to. A fourth one began to claw its way from underneath the dirt. Marinette jumped back when she realized just how close it was, but by stepping back, that also made her a foot closer to the third Blank which was approaching from behind.

How had the one underground even known they were there?

Perhaps the Blanks could communicate telepathically. 

"Sorry," Adrien looked frightened now. "I guess you were right."

She could've told him that.... but now was not the time to be responding with something snarky. More Blanks began to quickly emerge from around the trees or sprout out from behind the brush as if someone had literally planted them as seeds in the earth. Luck was definitely not on their side when she realized they were slowly becoming surrounded.

One Blank turned into a hundred in a matter of seconds.

Before she and her stupid companion could become Blank lunch, Marinette yanked Adrien by the arm and shouted, "RUN!"

Adrien didn't dare argue. He ran as fast as his feet could carry him, trailing behind her even when he started to grow tired. They didn't stop until she was sure the Blanks were all out of sight, and even then, that didn't necessarily mean that the coast was clear either.

With a sense of determination, Marinette lifted her head up to the sky and furrowed a brow when she realized that the sun was close to setting. To travel at night was always a bad idea.

She scanned her surroundings until she found what she deemed to be the safest place to spend the night. She pointed up towards the large oak tree, turning her head to shoot Adrien a glare. "Climb up the tree."

He shot her a hesitant look. "But—"

"Climb up the damn tree, Adrien."

His expression fell into one of remorse, but he didn't bother to argue with her either. He simply nodded and began his ascend up the trunk. Marinette waited until he had disappeared into the higher branches that were concealed before she climbed up the tree after him.

When she reached a height that she believed was safe enough, she found Adrien already perched a little higher on a nearby branch with his knees tucked into his chest. His forearms were wrapped around his knees and his chin was nestled on his arms, and when she turned to look at him, he was already watching her with an expression that could only be deciphered as guilt.

She wasn't angry at him, per-se, but she was frustrated with him.

Instead of telling him that, she lowered herself on to a separate branch and removed her backpack from her shoulders. As she began to rummage through her things, she noticed from the corner of her eye as Adrien lifted his head up from his arms, trying to get a better view of what she was doing.

Marinette didn't bother to explain what she was doing, though. Adrien didn't need to know. When she pulled out a small archer's bow from her bag instead (along with a pocketknife that had been stashed in between her extra clothing), she didn't miss the way Adrien's eyes widened in complete and utter shock... and possibly fear.

Apparently, he didn't expect her to have more than one weapon stashed away in her belongings.

The silence that resulted from the sudden tension stretched out achingly between them. The only sound that remained seemed to be the sound of wood being broken every time Marinette broke off a dead branch. After breaking off about ten branches, she began to carve one of the ends with her knife. She could feel Adrien's eyes watching her every move as she silently worked.

SNAP. Another branch was broken, along with her skin as a new splinter embedded itself far into the crevasses of her thumb. She didn't even bother to inspect it, nor did she have the time to even consider removing it.

He decided to break the silence with loud and heavy sigh. "I'm so sorry, Marinette."

SNAP.

She ignored him at first, her attention too preoccupied on the task at hand. It was imperative that she be armed and ready in case the Blanks were persistent enough to follow their scent—something Marinette now knew they had. The only way to properly shake any Blank off your trail was to kill them as quickly as possible.

And if the herd followed them, she would do just that.

"I-I'm not used to travelling out in the wilderness and encountering Blanks. We have specific people who usually handle a Blank if it gets too close to camp." He explained.

SNAP.

Marinette turned to look at him again, catching his weary expression. Adrien looked genuinely sorry, and she didn't doubt that he was, but he'd also put them both in extreme danger.

And because of this, she figured it was time to tell him a little story of her own.

Marinette sighed in defeat and moved closer to the branch he was on, keeping a respectful distance away from him as she said, "How about this time... I tell you a story."

The moment she suggested it, Adrien's frown vanished in an instant. He smiled immediately, and Marinette couldn't help but chuckle, despite the frustration she still felt towards him. But his goofy expression somewhat made up for it. If there was one thing Marinette had come to learn about Adrien, it was that he loved to tell and listen to stories.

So, she told him a story. One that she hadn't shared with anyone else before—mostly because she never had the chance to tell it. Marinette told him a story of how she had once been traveling with a group of people who she later met after she was separated from her family. She told him how the people had been so welcoming to her; how couples who had lost their children offered to be the parental figures in her life that she had lost. She vaguely explained how wonderful it felt to be a part of a family again.

And how, because of her, everyone died.

Marinette didn't elaborate. With a straight expression, she told him that her arrogance had caused her to make one of the worst decisions in her life. She drew in the creatures, and no one at the time knew that Blanks were capable of tracking someone's scent the moment it was on their radar.

So, when the Blanks attacked their group, she'd been the only one to escape, and she was forced to kill whoever was still moving.

Even the people who had become like a new family to her.

"That's why it's so important to never let yourself be seen by a Blank unless you know that you can kill it," Marinette said with a straight face. "Because you won't be able to shake them off. They can—and they will—haunt you for the rest of your life if they have the chance."

Unlike Adrien's tall tales of peace and paradise, Marinette only had stories to tell that were revolved around reality. This was the world that they lived in, after all. Happy endings didn't exactly exist anymore.

She watched as Adrien swallowed and nodded silently. As the silence stretched on, nothing else was said between them. Instead, Marinette watched from the corner of her eye as Adrien's head eventually lolled onto his folded arms, his breaths even and relaxed as he lightly slept. Marinette continued on with her objective at hand until she had about one-hundred sharpened arrows for her bow.

And when she finally heard the herd of Blanks approaching in the middle of the night, she wasted no time in preparing herself for their arrival. Once they came into sight, she drew back the string and released her first arrow.

WHOOOOOOSHHHHH!

The arrow was completely silent as it shot through the air, only the wind following it like a gust. It struck the first Blank right in between the eyes and its body collapsed backward a second later.

She raised her bow again, already aimed at her next target.

The second Blank was shot in the forehead. It fell back just like the former.

Marinette released a third arrow. Then, a fourth. Next a fifth.

She shot and killed a total of thirty blanks that night.

She didn't miss a single time.

Marinette never missed.

Their journey began the next morning as soon as the sun rose in the sky. The thirty fully-dead Blank corpses littered across the forest floor at the base of the tree from the night prior weren't exactly avoidable when climbing down and feet hitting solid ground—or rather, a Blank's rotting body part. Marinette had seen enough dead bodies to not feel fazed about getting a little gut on her shoes, but Adrien was a different story. He was a lot more sensitive than she was. That much was obvious when he quickly doubled over to empty out the contents in his stomach. Marinette slung her bow over her shoulder, keeping it against her back. With her machete fastened at her waist, she and Adrien continued forward with no particular destination.

"I feel weak..." Adrien complained after his stomach had been emptied. He glanced over at her pleadingly. "Do you have any snacks?"

Marinette felt like she was dragging along a little child. More simply, a burden.

She sighed impatiently and rubbed at her temples. Somewhere from behind her Adrien was whimpering like an injured puppy. She was so close to strangling him in order to show him what real pain felt like.

"Do I look like a vending machine to you?"

"Is that a trick question?" He raised a brow at her.

The glare she threw him over her shoulder in return promised a painful death. "Eat one of those spaghettis you've got in your backpack if you're hungry... and eat it on the road, because we're not stopping."

"I can't eat spaghetti now." Adrien whined, "That'll make my stomach worse."

"Keep whining and the only thing that'll make your stomach worse is my fist."

Adrien's mouth remained shut after that. Smart on his part, because Marinette wasn't bluffing. He continued to drag his feet behind her though. His whimpered complaints continued on as low grunts, noises only a child would make whenever they tried to get the attention of their parents. And it was driving her insane.

They'd only been together for two days, and Marinette wanted nothing more than to throw this man off of a cliff. She forced herself to remain facing forward, ignoring Adrien's attempts at trying to childishly grab her attention. Instead, she focused on happy thoughts: like being alone once again and having the freedom of absolute silence. The times when she worked the best as a solo survivor. Oh, how she missed those very envied days. It was times like these when she regretted ever agreeing to joining his quest.

Suddenly, Adrien groaned a little louder, loud enough to instantly tear down the wall she'd built in seconds just to block out his complaining. She looked over her shoulder only to glare at him.

His eyes met hers, painfully so, and he took their eye contact as an opportunity to speak once again. "Could you help me walk?"

"What for?" Her eyes travelled down to his legs. His perfectly intact legs.

Adrien's expression faltered. He'd looked hopeful at first, as if he thought she would actually lend him a hand. "Because I'm in a lot of pain and could use the support?"

"Are you serious?" Marinette gave him a quick once over, no emotion written in her features. "How you've survived this long astonishes me... and that is nowhere near a compliment." She grumbled out and turned, continuing forward down what seemed to be an endless path through thickened forest.

A few more steps behind her indicated that Adrien continued to follow despite his faint complaining. Then, all of a sudden, he yelped. The sound of someone going across a zip line instantly followed. Marinette quickly whipped around with her machete raised, finding Adrien dangling upside down from his right ankle in a tree. Her eyes widened when she realized he had stepped in a trap, and who knew what it was meant to catch.

But she did know one thing for certain: humans had set it.

Adrien instantly began to struggle, trying to bend and reach for his ankle which was being painfully chaffed with barbed wire. But in doing so, it caused the bells fastened at the top of the trap to rigorously jingle, their loud sounds echoing throughout the dead and silent forest like a fire truck's siren.

Marinette's head whipped around to survey her surroundings quickly. She didn't know how old the trap was, so she couldn't say humans would be around to inspect it, but she did know that the sound was bound to draw in something, and she didn't want to be around to figure out what. So, she did what she always did in order to survive: she ran.

"Hey! Where are you going?!" The blonde moron shouted after her when he realized she was leaving. "Aren't you going to help me?!"

She ignored him, instead focusing on her next move. She was already running out of time to even enact it. If whoever set the trap was still around, there was a good chance they would hear the bells and come quickly to claim their prize. She couldn't be visible when that happened.

If the trap was old and the people who set it had already died, then they had nothing to worry about... except for the possibility of the sound drawing in the Blanks. In that case, her efforts to keep herself hidden from a potential threat would still not have been done in vain. Either way, she would have the upper hand for whatever happened next.

"You're just gonna leave me here?!" Adrien cried out. "I thought we were friends!"

Friends? Marinette didn't turn to look over her shoulder. She was, however, tempted to do so and scold him for being such a wimp. She wasn't abandoning him, but she couldn't tell him that without blowing her cover. And she wasn't his friend! Friends didn't contemplate leaving each other to die in a trap!

Marinette quickly began her ascend up another tree which she deemed was a good enough distance away from the tree Adrien currently dangled in. From her new position, she could easily get a good look at Adrien and his surroundings, as well as any oncoming threats. She quickly loaded her bow and prepared herself. With the cover of the tree's brown leaves, no one would see her... or where her arrow came from. When her eyes met Adrien's over the distance, she raised a finger to her lips.

That was enough to silence him. Understanding quickly dawned in his features and he nodded, clearly relieved that he wasn't being abandoned.

The sounds of footsteps crunching through leaves averted their gazes.

Not a moment later did several voices uproar. Marinette slowly turned her head in the direction they were coming from, her eyes narrowed. So, they were men. She involuntarily held her breath as four men emerged into the clearing, each of them dressed in rags and carrying a machete of their own. From what she could see, none of them were in possession of a gun—a good sign, indeed. Marinette watched them carefully as they effortlessly neared Adrien.

"Look what we have here boys." A man who seemed to be the leader of the posse hiked his machete on his shoulder. He was a broad man with fair skin and midnight black hair. He was smirking, and that in itself was not a good sign. "It looks like we've caught ourselves a man."

"You sure he ain't one of dem walkin' deadies?" A lanky blonde with poor vocabulary asked.

Their leader stepped to the side, revealing Adrien to the rest of his gang. "Why don't ya have a look for yourselves?"

The other three men inched closer. Adrien's fueled emerald irises had no intention of averting. He simply stared at them hard, watching their every move with extreme caution.

At first, Marinette would have wondered if perhaps these men belonged to Adrien's group of friends. But from the way Adrien was glaring at them, it was obvious he didn't recognize them, or trust them for that matter. Marinette was glad he was weary. Despite not seeing anyone in over four years, nothing about these men rubbed Marinette the right way.

She had been alone for years, wandering these woods for as long as she could remember. Where had they come from?

"Well, I'll be darned." The brunette of the group broke the silence. "It is a man."

The last man was Caucasian and elderly, his head and beard entirely white. He laughed at Adrien's predicament and his grin was absolutely sickening. "Whatcha doin' up there, boy? I got a better use for ya down here."

Adrien simply frowned as the others joined in with the old man's laughter.

"Don't mind them." The leader of their pathetic group chuckled, "They don't mean anythin' by their teasin'. We're just surprised, and amused, really. We were expectin' to catch a deer in this trap, not a man."

By now, Adrien had his arms folded across his chest. Still unamused, he looked like a bat hanging upside down from a branch.

"Would you mind helping me down then?"

The leader's lips stretched into a thin line. It seemed he wasn't too keen on that idea. "Not quite, kid. You see, you wasted my time. And I don't like it when people waste my time."

Adrien gulped at that, and his entire nonchalant bravado was gone in seconds.

Marinette didn't give the man a chance to state what he planned to do otherwise. She released her arrow. Her arrow whisked silently through the air, striking the man in the back of his calf. He let out a howling cry, falling to his knees in agony. The rest of his pathetic gang whirled around on their toes, machetes raised, as if they planned to strike her dead with them.

But from the way their gazes jumped through the forest, it was clear they had no idea where the arrow had come from.

She smirked. Good.

"Who shot that?!" Their leader angrily shouted. He was clutching his leg, the arrow still pierced through his skin and blood oozing out. "I want whoever shot that dead! Now!"

"We don't know!" The brunette man shouted back.

"We don't see nobody out der!" The lanky blonde added.

Another arrow shot through the air. It pierced the elderly man right through his right shoulder—though, she was tempted to shoot him straight through his beer belly and end that bastard's life. For Adrien's sake though, she wouldn't commit murder right in front of him. It wasn't as if she needed him to be more traumatized.

The elderly man howled in pain. He too fell to his knees, his machete falling to the moist ground as he clutched his bleeding shoulder. Her smirk widened at the sight. The sick bastard deserved it.

The two other men quickly dropped their machetes at the sight, raising their hands as a form of surrender. Marinette chuckled underneath her breath as she fastened her bow on her back once more. What a bunch of cowards.

"You could've just helped me down and we could've gone or separate ways," Adrien said absently, a smirk of his own slowly pulling at his chapped lips. "But now you've just made my partner mad, and you don't want to be the one to make my partner mad."

Her feet hit the ground a moment later. From a distance, it was easy to tell the two uninjured men had spotted her right away. Their eyes widened and their bodies visibly shook, almost as if their souls had ascended to heaven.

Their leader, who still lay unmoving on the ground, was livid. "Don't just stand there! Pick up your weapons and go kill the bastard!"

But the men remained unmoving, too afraid to make any more advances.

Marinette slowly made her way over towards them. With every step she took, the two men further cowered underneath her gaze. The leaves beneath her feet crunched like that of a man's bone being snapped in two. She unsheathed her own machete, only to further intimate them.

When she finally reached them, her machete lowered to their leader's head.

He stared up at her with fury in his irises, no fear mixed within. "You have a good shot, girl. I'll give ya that. But not good enough." He then smirked, as if he was in such a position to taunt. "Ya missed."

Marinette raised an amused brow along with her machete. "Did I?"

It was then when she finally saw a shimmer of fear dance around in his dark brown irises. His smirk fell as quickly as it came, but before he could open his mouth once more, she twirled her machete and struck him in the head with the butt end. With that, he fell unconsciousness. She then quickly turned to the unharmed men, who trembled even further under her gaze.

"W-We-We surrender!" The lanky blonde stuttered out on their behalf.

"You would be a fool not to." Marinette answered calmly. Then, without any warning at all, she charged forward and cried out, slamming the butt end of her machete right into his temple. The lanky blonde fell over, leaving only one man standing. His brunette friend, however, seemed to be a bit braver. The last man rushed towards Marinette with his fists raised, and so, to even the odds, she simply dropped her machete and smirked. With her own fists raised, Marinette slammed her fist right into his nose.

He stumbled back, holding his nose. Before he could regain his balance, she advanced and punched him one last time straight in the gut. The brunt of the hit was so hard, it sent the man flying backward. As soon as the back of his head hit the ground, he blacked out, also falling unconscious.

Adrien simply watched the entire thing in awe, his mouth agape and eyes wide. Marinette carelessly stepped over the old man who was withering on the ground in pain. She began her ascend up the tree which held the trap, intending to cut Adrien loose.

"That was amazing!" Adrien exclaimed, "How did you do that?!"

She left his question ignored. Instead, she grunted as she slid her body along the branch that held Adrien's weight. At the end of the branch was where the end of the trap had been fastened. She hoped the wobbling twig would support both their weight.

She unsheathed her pocketknife and began the process of cutting.

"You've got to teach me how to fight like that!" Adrien continued, simply marveled at how she had taken down four men all on her own. "You should've seen how terrified they were of you. It was brilliant!"

She did see, and the reminder of how terrified they'd been brought a smile to her lips. As she continued cutting, though, her smile fell when she realized his ankle was bleeding profoundly from where the barbed wire had dug mercilessly into his skin. Because of this, the blood was riding up his pant leg from hanging upside down.

"Does your ankle hurt?" She asked him, genuinely concerned.

"I'm trying not to think about it." He admitted nonchalantly, but the slight wince in his smile was enough to prove that he was in a lot of pain. Her hand began to move faster on its own accord.

Before she knew it, the wire was hanging by a thread, and she hardly had time to warn Adrien before the line finally snapped and he fell headfirst into a pile of dried, brown leaves, which hardly did much in breaking his fall.

She winced on his behalf.

Marinette quickly climbed back down. All around them, the four redneck men who had foolishly thought they'd had the upper hand all remained unconscious still. She extended her hand down towards Adrien to help him up, which he took graciously. As she hoisted him up, he involuntarily leaned into her, and she would have pushed him away... had it not been for the fact that his legs were no longer perfectly intact.

Marinette sighed heavily, if not defeatedly, "There's something important you should know about me."

Somewhat sluggish, Adrien lifted his head from her shoulder. "What?"

She met his eyes with all seriousness. "I never abandon the people I'm with. Don't ever assume that I'll do that again, you got that?"

In other words, she was promising that she would never abandon him, but wording it that way was never Marinette's style.

Adrien seemed to get the message though. He smiled, relieved, and leaned his head back on her shoulder. "Yeah... I got it. Thank you."

She didn't answer him. Instead, she remained silent as she helped him walk.

But... the corners of her lips did twitch upward against her own will.

They continued walking that way—with her supporting him, because now, Marinette had an obligation to this man. There was something about him that she couldn't let go of... and that was a sense of something new. Some shimmer of possibility that only he provided.

Which is why, she found herself slightly opening up to the possibility of companionship.

"A part of me wonders if you stepped into that trap on purpose so that I'd end up having to help you walk."

Adrien's eyes widened at her unexpected teasing. When their eyes briefly met, it would have been easy for him to spot the playfulness laced in her irises.

It was then when she decided something important.

The world was already harsh and unwelcoming, but she wasn't the world.

They went on like this for a long time, it seemed, and after four weeks of traveling together, Adrien and Marinette started to become rather close. In fact, she might even admit they were becoming acquaintances. She personally found Adrien's company less overbearing now that she knew him a little better, and somewhat started to enjoy it when he had a story to tell or a joke to crack. They would laugh together, bump each other's shoulders from time to time, and have the most ridiculous conversations. In a way, they were no longer strangers, and it was nice... even though she would never openly admit that.

But when morning rolled in to start another day, Adrien suddenly wasn't acting like the person she'd grown to know. His shoulders were slouched as he walked ahead of her, not a single ounce of pride in his step. Usually, Adrien was always the one to bring a smile to her face and always felt the need to remind her that there were still some reasons to smile in a world like theirs.

But today, he was completely different.

He was acting and looking like her—gloomy, but with better hair.

Adrien hadn't said much since they had begun their journey that morning, and Marinette felt just a tad bit guilty for wondering if the reason for his strange behavior could have been her fault. It wasn't exactly normal for Adrien not to have a smile on his face.

Marinette could admit she wasn't the most positive person out there. Hell, she knew half of the things she said were filled with nothing but negativity. Even Adrien knew that. Which is why, after weeks of telling stories of her own, Adrien had politely asked her to stop.

And maybe that's what bothered him.

Marinette's frown deepened as she stared at the back of his head. Lately, that was all she ever saw. If she didn't know any better, she would say Adrien was distancing himself from her.

And maybe she was right. Maybe he was.

Maybe all of her negativity was finally getting to him.

Marinette paused mid-step, and she watched somewhat sadly as Adrien continued forward, completely unaware that she was no longer following him. She hated to admit it, but after spending so many weeks with someone at her side, she was beginning to like it.

She was beginning to like it a lot. The company, that is.

And Adrien seemed to be... not liking it as much anymore.

"Adrien?" Marinette called out to him softly, and she watched as he paused and turned to look over his shoulder. When their eyes met, she could see the dullness in his irises, the lack of hope, brightness, or happiness in them. He looked empty inside, as if he had nothing left to live for—which wasn't a look that suited him well. However, confusion quickly clouded his features the moment he realized just how far back she was, but he didn't move a muscle. He simply stared, waiting for her to make the next move.

He looked so gloomy. Marinette was certain she looked exactly like that every day. Thank goodness there wasn't a mirror in sight.

"Do you want to head our separate ways?" She asked him.

It was a blunt and straightforward question, but Marinette had always been a straightforward person. There was no such thing as 'beating around the bush.' Adrien had been the one to invite her to come with him, but if he didn't want her tagging along anymore, she wouldn't be upset by the news. Sure, she had come to rather enjoy Adrien's company and would hate to lose it, but if Adrien wanted her gone, she would leave.

Adrien seemed even more devastated by that question. His eyes widened in what she could only assume was complete misery, and he whipped his entire body around to face her. "What?"

She didn't show an ounce of emotion. Instead, she merely shrugged, "I'm just asking if you wanted to go our separate ways."

He looked at her as if she'd grown a second head. "Are you serious?" He questioned in disbelief. "You want to part ways after everything we've been through?"

"I asked you if you wanted to part ways. I never said I wanted to."

He crossed his arms. "If you were thinking about splitting up, you should've never accepted my invitation to come along in the first place. Probably would've been better if you weren't burdened with me anyway."

Marinette bristled slightly, but not enough to make it noticeable. Though this wasn't really an argument, this was the first serious conflict they'd had since the two of them first met each other, and Marinette wasn't sure if it was well-needed or unnecessary.

Silence fell between them as Marinette struggled for an answer. With the way Adrien was currently looking at her (his expression mixed with the emotions of anger and what she could only decipher as hatred), she could only assume that he had a few things he needed to get off of his chest, and she would gladly listen to them if he needed an ear. But she would not tolerate him taking his anger out on her.

Oh no. Not one bit.

Marinette's frown deepened, "What the hell is your problem?"

Adrien's angered expression dropped in a matter of seconds, as if he realized just how snappy he'd just been. His mouth fell agape, as if to answer, but she raised a hand to silence him. "Your excuse is probably shit, so don't even bother. You wanna be mad at the world? Go ahead, but none of that anger should be directed at me. You got that?"

Adrien seemed speechless. His mouth was probably catching flies. "I-I didn't mean—"

"Shut up and keep moving," She shoved past him with a rough jab to his shoulder, not even giving him the chance to explain himself. "Have fun looking at my back for a while."

"Wait Marinette—!"

"And don't even think about dragging your feet either!" She called over her shoulder.

They continued on their trail in complete silence, and the only reason she knew he was still following behind was because of the way his boots crunched loudly in the brown, fallen leaves—after all, he wasn't at all a stealthy person.

Marinette briefly glanced up into the sky. From the way the weather was rapidly starting to change, Marinette was fairly certain that they were in the month of September, or even early October. Either way, winter was right around the corner, and neither of them were prepared for the harsh weather it would bring.

They'd been walking through a lifeless forest for hours in agonizing silence—and it wasn't even agonizing for her at all, considering she adored the peacefulness that silence brought with it. But for Adrien? She could tell that it was killing him, and it seemed she was right when he couldn't take it anymore and she heard him let out a remorseful sigh somewhere from behind her. "Ugh alright, I'm sorry, okay? I didn't mean to unleash all of that on you."

She continued to walk in silence as if she hadn't heard him say a word. Let him suffer for a little while longer.

The sigh that followed sounded more frustrated than the first. "Please don't ignore me, Marinette. I can't handle the silence anymore. Just please say something."

She figured since he was begging, it wouldn't hurt to be a little snarky. "Well, since you begged... I hope the silence eats you alive."

"C'mon! I didn't mean to say those things," She could feel his pout behind his every word. "And I apologized! You must know that I didn't really mean that."

"And how would I? I hardly know anything about you other than the fact that you're usually happy." Marinette turned to look forward again. "So, excuse me for thinking you might not want to be friends anymore."

The word slipped past her lips before she even realized she had admitted it. Marinette paused for a brief moment, and she knew it must've been noticeable to him—but she had just called him her friend.

Since when did she ever bother to make any of those? Since when had she even started considering Adrien an actual friend? Sure, his company was... enjoyable—though she wouldn't dare admit she was starting to like it better than being alone—but her friend?

Was she considering actually labeling him as such?

She was just starting to get used to him being her acquaintance.

Plus, four weeks ago, she was denying the very idea of them being friends.

Adrien paused too. When she turned around to face him after silently collecting her thoughts, he was already staring at her with wide eyes. "You... you consider me your friend now?"

"Uh-well..." Marinette sharply turned her head, avoiding his gaze. "So, what if I do? Got a problem with that?"

"No, no!" He quickly raised his hands in a placating manner. "Not at all! I'm glad we're friends."

Still, she refused to meet his gaze, too embarrassed to admit that, yeah, she kind of liked the sound of them being friends. However, a part of her also feared the consequences that came with friendship. Personal connections were dangerous.

Adrien cleared his throat, and it seemed he too also felt awkward. "It's just—I mean, I have no excuse for my bad attitude... but I just have this... dream that I can't seem to shake."

That caught her attention. Marinette spared him a glance out of her peripheral, her gaze somewhat softened. "A dream?"

His eyes lit up slightly the moment they met hers, a shimmer of hope in them. "Yeah. Well, it's more like a nightmare that actually happened... and I can't stop thinking about it."

Ahh... now that was something Marinette could easily relate to. She had plenty of past decisions and actions that haunted her as well and got even worse after the outbreak had hit. If there was one thing she knew all too well, it was the feeling of regret.

She turned her head back around to face the path ahead of her. "If it's regret you're feeling, they say venting out your feelings to someone can really help."

In an instant, Adrien was by her side. She could feel his pointed, yet curious gaze, on her side profile. "How did you know it was regret?"

"I didn't, but now I do."

Adrien hummed, but he still seemed out of it. For a moment, she quietly sympathized with his distress.... only because she knew what he was feeling was a horrible thing to feel. After another moment of silence had dragged on between them, Adrien sighed heavily, sounding defeated as he furrowed his brows. "I–I had this memory a few days ago about my family... well, my father, to be more specific. He was the only family I had left. But when the apocalypse hit, h-him and I got separated. Every time I think about him, I feel like I could've done more to make sure that he could've made it as far as I have."

From the corner of her eye, Marinette studied his profile carefully. She and him had similar stories about their families, after all. This was the first time Adrien had elaborately described what had happened to his family—or more specifically, to his father. Apparently, a mother hadn't been in the picture to begin with.

She decided not to prod him with an answer on what had happened to his mother. It wasn't her business unless he wanted it to be.

"Is he dead?"

Adrien's frown only deepened. "I don't know. Probably. It just hurts every time I think about him."

"Well... take it from someone who knows what it's like to be down that road." She sighed heavily, "You shouldn't dwell over what you could've done. Instead, think about everything you did. I'm sure your father would be proud of you... knowing that you made it this far."

Adrien shrugged his shoulders idly. "I don't know. As much as I miss my father, we were never close. I'm sure he doesn't miss me... if he's even still alive that is. I'm not even sure if he ever had emotions like that."

Marinette guiltily looked away, deciding not to respond to that.

"What about you?" He asked when they fell into a beat of silence once again. "What happened to your family?"

Marinette abruptly stopped, leaving Adrien to move a few steps ahead of her before he also stopped, realizing she was no longer walking beside him, and turned back around to see where she'd gone. She hardly registered the confused look he had to offer her when he met her eyes or the concern that was laced in his irises. All she could think about was her family. Her mother, her father, her little sister, and her older brother.

The people she no longer had in her life.

The truth was, she and Adrien did have similar situations, but they were also completely different.

Adrien wasn't sure if his father was dead or alive.

She knew her whole family was dead. She'd witnessed it.

"Marinette?" He prodded cautiously when she remained silent.

Marinette hung her head and shook it, allowing her bangs to fall over her eyes. It'd been four whole years since she'd last seen any of her family, and yet, the wound was somehow still fresh in her heart.

"They're gone." She murmured underneath her breath.

There was no hope for ever seeing them again, which is why she had stopped hoping for anything.

Until Adrien came into her life, full of hope, changing her perspective on everything she'd ever known. Sometimes, she wondered if she should caution herself when it came to his perspective. His perspective of hope and one day prosperity. His belief that they could have a better life.

She never believed any of that could be possible, and even now, she wasn't sure if she did. The only thing she hoped for now was that the city Adrien spoke about in his stories was real.

She felt him place a hand on her shoulder. "I–I'm so sorry, Marinette. I didn't mean to pry. I have no idea what that must feel like."

She knew he meant well, but it still hurt. She wanted to chuckle coldly at that; to lash out at him and tell him that he was right. He had no idea what it felt like to be in her shoes.

But instead, she looked up at him and offered him a pained smile. "Thanks."

Because she knew that it was unfair to blame him for something he couldn't control. She wouldn't do to him what he had just done to her, even if Adrien somewhat deserved it.

None of her troubles were his fault.

Adrien smiled warmly at her in return, something she couldn't quite decipher sparkling in his eyes. For a moment, she found herself completely mesmerized as she stared into his emerald irises; soft eyes that seemed to be solely focused on her. They stared at each other for what felt like an eternity, gazing into one another's eyes as if there was something they were seeing for the first time.

And then Adrien cleared his throat and removed his hand from her shoulder. "There's a small river up ahead." He told her as an attempt to lighten the mood, and she couldn't help but smile softly at that. "How about we take a little break and swim for a bit?"

She nodded as he reached out for her hand and took it. His hand felt warm in hers; calloused, but extremely warm, and for some odd reason, his touch made her body feel like it was on fire. She couldn't help the slight blush that fanned her cheeks all of a sudden. Thankfully, Adrien had already turned away from her and was leading her in the direction of the river.

All she could do was stare as Adrien guided her down a path he seemed to be familiarized with, and suddenly, her heart felt like it was about to burst out of her chest. Why was she suddenly feeling this way?

She was flustered, nervous, and her stomach was fluttering.

She hadn't felt this way since...

She tried to shake those thoughts away. Now was not the time to be thinking about her past. There was no room in this cruel world for feelings to get the opportunity to cloud one's judgement.

And yet, now she couldn't stop thinking about it.

They'd only known each other for a few weeks—but how much time had to pass before feelings could be something to lay out on the table? Was having feelings for him too soon?

Did she have feelings for Adrien?

A part of her hoped she didn't, but the other half of her wanted to know if she did, or if what she was feeling now was simply anxiety.

And a part of her also wanted to know if he felt (or could feel) the same.

She shook her head, trying to get rid of all these sudden oncoming thoughts. What was she thinking? They were just becoming friends! How could she have any kind of feelings for a man she hardly knew anything about?

Perhaps she simply found him attractive and was confusing that attraction with romance. Yeah... that made perfect sense—except she already felt like she had an unexplainable deep connection with him, like they had known each other for quite some time. So, what exactly did that mean?

They had clicked quickly... but that didn't necessarily mean anything—

Adrien tugged on her hand... and that's when she realized they had reached the river. He was smiling at her, his eyes searching her face. "What are you thinking about?" He asked.

She swallowed. Right now, her thoughts were too jumbled to give one answer.

So instead, she smiled sheepishly and said, "The... water is probably going to be super cold."

"Oh yeah." Adrien removed his shirt in one swift motion without hesitation, exposing his bare chest and torso. At first, Marinette tried not to look, she really did, but Adrien's toned muscles were a sight of the century—which made sense because he was once a model—

"Like what you see?"

Dammit! He'd caught her ogling!

Marinette immediately scowled at him, despite her cheeks fanning pink against her will. "Shut up."

Adrien chuckled and shook his head playfully. As he entered the river, he went deep enough to where it reached his mid-chest. He dipped his head under the water, allowing the cool liquid to drench his hair. When he came up for air, his blonde locks were pasted all over his forehead and draped over his eyes.

Despite feeling sour from his teasing, a smile slowly pulled at her lips at the sight. "Nice hair. Mind recommending me to your hair stylist?"

Adrien rolled his eyes playfully and moved his wet hair out of his face. "Haha very funny. How about you get in already? The water's not that cold; it feels great."

Marinette eyed him wearily. In any other instance, she would have been thrilled to soak in any body of water that was fresh. It wasn't as if they had the option to bathe in a bathtub, let alone under warm water anymore, but with Adrien in the water, bare in nothing but his trousers, she felt suddenly nervous.

And very self-conscious.

Marinette turned around so that her back was facing him as she removed her shirt. She could feel his gaze burning into her back the moment her shirt had vanished, revealing her bare skin, and she involuntary tensed.

The scars that danced all across her back were not a pretty sight, after all.

After a brief moment of silence, Adrien softly called her name, beckoning her to join him. In nothing but her cargos and a sport's bra, Marinette was too hesitant to take another step, but Adrien offered her a warm smile—a sign that her flaws didn't at all perturb him. That her scars didn't make him see her any differently. With that, she felt more at ease and returned his smile, gracefully descending into the water.

When she neared him, he extended his hand out towards her.

She hesitated at first, but gently placed her hand in his even despite that.

Adrien pulled Marinette closer to him, and the water came up to the top of her chest as she stood in front of him.

His smile widened, "I think your scars make you look beautiful."

She raised a brow at him, though her intention was completely playful.

But perhaps it looked threatening, because his smile quickly fell. "I-I-I-I mean... whhaahahaat? You always look beautiful! You would look beautiful without the scars too! I mean, you do look beautiful without the scars—!"

"I think it would be in your best interest to stop talking." Marinette placed a finger to his lips, laughing, "But don't worry... I understand what you meant. Thank you for the compliment."

He grinned widely, revealing his pearly whites, and before she could even anticipate what he was up to, Adrien cupped his hands together and scooped up as much water as he could carry, splashing it in her direction and drenching her hair. Marinette gasped and rubbed a hand over her face, peaking an eye open to find him grinning mischievously as he waited for her to retaliate.

Oh... she smirked, two could play this game.

Marinette lunged at him through the water, causing his head to disappear beneath the surface to avoid her attack. But just when she thought she'd taken him off guard, Adrien arms came around her legs yanked her down underneath the water with him. They playfully wrestled beneath the silence of the water until they both ran out of air.

When they both resurfaced, gasping for air, Marinette's arms had involuntarily wound around his neck, while his had found their way to her waist.

Adrien laughed as he shook his head rapidly, ridding the excess water that soaked his blonde locks. Marinette laughed along with him, and clung onto him tighter, unaware that her legs had involuntary wrapped themselves around his hips too. Either Adrien chose to ignore it, or he didn't mind, because she felt his arms tighten around her.

As much as Marinette didn't want to admit it, she enjoyed the closeness.

"Now your hair is just as soaked as mine." She breathed lightly, taking one of her hands that was wrapped around his neck and weaving her fingers through his wet hair. Adrien's laughter died down the moment he felt her gentle touch, and their eyes collided in an instant.

He was wearing the biggest smile, and she knew that she probably was too. It had been a long time since Marinette had last had this much fun with someone before.

"Can I ask something?" Adrien asked, his voice barely over a whisper.

She pursed her lips in confusion, but slowly nodded her head nonetheless.

Adrien cleared his throat. "Before the outbreak, did you ever have like... like a boyfriend?"

Marinette furrowed her brows slightly. She wasn't sure why something like that would matter in a time like this.

"Or... or a girlfriend! I don't want to assume—"

"No girlfriend..." Marinette chuckled, though the sound came out somewhat dry, because she honestly wasn't sure if she liked where the direction of this conversation was heading. "But I did have a boyfriend at one point. I'm not really sure what happened to him, though. I broke up with him right before the apocalypse hit."

She felt Adrien's fingers twitch against her skin. "Why did you break up with him?"

Marinette shrugged her shoulders. "We were kids. It was never serious, and besides, I don't think either of us even knew what we really felt."

"Was he hurt by it?"

She shrugged again. "I think he understood why I did it more than anything. We were still friends after the whole breakup, but then again, I don't even know if he survived the apocalypse."

Adrien hummed in response to that.

"What about you?" Marinette asked him softly, her fingers returning to the little hairs above his neck. "Did you have a girlfriend before the outbreak?"

Adrien chuckled and shook his head. "Nah, no way. My father would've never allowed me to date, and besides, there was never anyone who really caught my eye."

Marinette snorted loudly at that.

"Don't laugh," Adrien grumbled, though she knew he was far from being upset. She could even see the edges of his lips threatening to spread into a smile. "My father was probably the strictest parent on the face of the earth. There was only one person he probably would've allowed me to date, and she was my childhood best friend... so you know how that goes."

"Let me guess... she was totally on board with the idea of dating you and she probably tried to get her father and your father to arrange the relationship. Probably planned your future wedding all in her head too."

Adrien eyes widened, and he gaped at her. "That's exactly how it went down. How did you know that?"

Marinette offered him a smug smile. "That was entirely a guess, I swear. Buttttt it could very well be one of my many talents."

Adrien chuckled lightheartedly, "You are a very talented person, Marinette. It would've been cool to have known you before all of this."

"It would've been nice to have known you before all of this too."

He smiled softly, "Y'know my father might have liked you. He wouldn't even let me invite friends over to my house, but I bet you would've been an exception."

"Oh really?" Marinette raised a playful brow. "I can see why he wouldn't let you invite your friends over... you've got no manners."

Adrien gaped at her, and she couldn't help but laugh loudly the moment she noticed the look on his face. "Wow, you wound me. I have great manners!"

"Is that so?"

"Definitely!"

"Adrien, you've literally got your hands on a woman right now, and a gentleman always asks before touching a lady."

Adrien pouted slightly, but instead of feeling embarrassed or ashamed for what he had done, he smiled at her fondly, "But you aren't exactly complaining either."

Well, she couldn't argue with that. "I guess I'm not."

Adrien cleared his throat again. "Can I ask you another question?"

"If you're going to ask me how many guy friends I had before the outbreak next, I'm going to have to say no."

Adrien lightly poked her side underneath the water. "I was not going to ask that."

Marinette found herself giggling in response. When was the last time she'd ever let out such a girlish sound? She couldn't even remember... that's how long ago it was.

"I was going to ask..." He swallowed slowly, and she watched as his Adam Apple bobbed unsurely, indicating his severe nervousness.

"...if I could kiss you?"

The moment Adrien asked, however, his eyes averted away from hers, almost as if he was too afraid to witness what her reaction would be. She couldn't help but smile as she thought about the fact that Adrien wanted to kiss her.

And coincidentally, she found herself wanting to kiss him too.

Marinette caressed the back of his neck softly, and her touch seemed to draw his gaze back to her. The moment his eyes found hers again, she offered him a soft smile, one that she made sure was filled with reassurance, adoration, and even a bit of fondness for the young man in front of her. If she was going to spend the rest of her life in a world that was nothing but death, she wouldn't mind spending it with Adrien.

She smirked up at him. "You sound uncertain."

Adrien groaned in embarrassment, though that time, his eyes remained fixed on her. "I-I well no... uh no. I'm certain. Umm I-I want to do this. I do want to kiss you."

Marinette hummed thoughtfully. She inched closer towards him, watching with half-lidded eyes as he anxiously fidgeted from the closer proximity... but he didn't pull away. She slowly slid into his lap, and she felt his hands lower to her hips, gently caressing her skin underneath the water. If anything, he allowed her to tug him forward, and he let out an audible, contented sigh, once she had rested her forehead against his. She watched him slowly closed his eyes, savoring the moment.

She then rubbed her nose against his. "Good, because I want to kiss you too."

Adrien opened his eyes in shock, and they lit up, surprised by her confession. He wasted no time in surging forward and sealing their lips together.

The moment their lips touched, Marinette sighed into his mouth, pulling him as close as she possibly could. There was some sort of powerful connection that surged like lightening between them, a bond that Marinette realized couldn't be broken—and Adrien seemed to sense it too. He pulled her even closer against him and titled his head, deepening their kiss. She felt his tongue intermingle with hers. She felt his hands glide up and down the spine of her back. Her hands tugged desperately at his hair, keeping him as close as humanly possible.

And when she was forced to pull away for air, she giggled and rested her head against his shoulder, trying to hide her embarrassment. Adrien chuckled softly as he wrapped her up in a bone crushing embrace and spun them both around in a circle against the water, eliciting a series of laughter out of them both.

That time spent with Adrien in the river had been one of the happiest moments of her life. A core memory had been unlocked; she was sure of it.

When was the last time she had ever felt that happy?

Their time in the river came to a close shortly afterwards once the sun began to slowly disappear from the sky. While darkness once again began to settle, Adrien and Marinette found themselves up in another tree for the night. But unlike all the other countless of nights they'd spent together looking up at the stars, this night had been different.

Marinette was nestled against Adrien's side, her arm draped over his clothed torso as she rested her cheek against his shoulder. She could feel every time he inhaled and exhaled slowly, and his slow breathing offered her a sense of peace. Adrien had wrapped an arm around her shoulders, holding her close, while his other arm remained under his head.

It was moments like these that she hardly thought about anymore. She had been so preoccupied in a world that was filled with nothing but death, that she never thought she would find herself with someone in this way.

Adrien pointed up to the sky. "Y'know, the only thing that hasn't changed about this earth are the stars."

Marinette hummed thoughtfully, "Well... the stars aren't on earth. They're in the universe. So, I doubt the outbreak had much of an impact on them."

She felt him poke her shoulder. "Alright genius." He teased, and she couldn't help the fits of giggles that escaped her lips the moment he pulled her closer to him. He titled his head to look at her, a dopey smile stretched across his lips. "I can't wait to introduce you to all of my friends."

"And I can't wait to meet them." She smiled.

They fell into another beat of comfortable silence, and Marinette watched his side profile affectionately as he silently admired the stars. She found herself closing her eyes, feeling wholly content with being in his arms, and eventually, she dozed off into the peaceful realm of sleep.

When she woke up the next morning, a pair of emerald eyes were the first thing she got to see, and the goofy smile that Adrien had to offer her the moment she woke up reminded her that she still had another reason to live.

He was her reason.

He would always be a reason for her to live, as long as he stayed alive with her.

"Okay, listen to this."

They were walking side-by-side again, aimlessly passing through more of the forest. He had his hands in his pockets and she had hers on her hips.

Marinette raised an unamused brow at him. "If this is another one of your knock-knock jokes, then I'm going to have to pass."

There was another pause, before he said, "Knock-knock."

She groaned loudly and facepalmed her forehead. "Really, Adrien?"

Adrien laughed, slinging an arm around her shoulders. "Please, just answer. I swear this one's a good one."

"It better be." She sighed and decided to give in. "Who's there?"

"Spell."

"Spell who?"

Adrien snickered, "Okay, if you insist: W.H.O."

Marinette punched him the shoulder. "Okay, that was kind of clever... but still lame. How many of these do you even have?"

Adrien puffed out his chest proudly. "A whole list full."

"How long is this so-called list?"

"It's an endless list. I've got too many."

"And you tell these same jokes to your friends as well?"

"Oh, absolutely. They love them."

"I can't even say which is sadder: the fact that they love them or the fact you love telling dad jokes."

Adrien laughed loudly to that and shook his head. "They appreciate my sense of humor... unlike you. They know talent when they see it."

Marinette rolled her eyes playfully. "The day you tell me a funny joke is the day I'll appreciate what you call humor."

Adrien chuckled softly to that and lowered his arm from around her shoulders, instead letting his arm fall to his side so that he could casually reach for her hand. Marinette allowed the back of his hand to graze hers, and she smiled fondly as she watched him entwine their fingers together.

Since the first night they had spent together in each other's arms—with lips locked and limbs entangled—Adrien had become quite an affectionate person towards her.

Which she wasn't necessarily complaining about.

When he didn't have his arm enclosed around her shoulders, he had it wrapped around her waist, or his hand rested firmly on the small of her back. Most of the time he would entwine their fingers as they walked side by side.

He did little things as well—like a chaste kiss to the forehead or cheek, or the way his fingers came up to caress her skin or brush a few stray strands of her dark hair behind her ear, but these simple things meant so much more to her than he realized. It made her feel so... loved. As if she was important.

It had been a long time since she last felt that way.

But they weren't anything official. They hadn't talked about what this new affection meant... or what they wanted it to be. For now, Marinette simply saw them as good friends... who had some sort of feelings for each other?

Yeah... something like that.

"Can I ask you something?"

Ahh... the million-dollar question. The question he always asked whenever he wanted to voice out something that was going on in his mind. She squeezed his hand affectionately. "I've learned to prepare myself for the worst possible outcome whenever you ask me that question."

He laughed at that, and she couldn't help but smile widely, knowing that she had been the cause of his smile. But he let the atmosphere fall into a comfortable silence around them after that, not voicing anything else, and she wondered after a while what he'd been wanting to ask.

So, she prodded him. "What did you want to ask me?"

She noticed from the corner of her eye as his eyes flickered to her unsurely. "I... well... I was just wondering... what are we?"

His question made her falter in her step, and Marinette was sure Adrien noticed, but she hadn't been expecting his question either.

Marinette knew deep down in her heart that Adrien was no longer just a friend. That was made perfectly clear the moment they mutually decided to cross a line and kiss each other. What they shared now was far beyond just a friendship, and what she wanted with him was surely more than just platonic.

But she also wasn't sure if labeling anything was such a smart idea either. In a world like theirs, was there even a chance for the life she could've had? If she were to get too close, connect with him in that way, and then lose him—

She held her breath, forcing herself to shake that thought away. She couldn't think about that. She shouldn't think like that.

Marinette carefully contemplated his question. "Well... I definitely know that we're more than just friends."

"I'm glad we're on the same page there."

Marinette hummed and turned to look at him again, searching his eyes carefully. "What do you want us to be?"

She felt Adrien squeeze her hand softly. "Well... I really want you to be my girlfriend. I know it sounds bizarre, since we've only known each other for a month, but I really like you."

Well... at least the feeling was mutual.

Marinette smiled softly, "I really like you too."

Adrien cracked a goofy grin. "Would you want to be boyfriend and girlfriend?"

It wasn't even a trick question—of course!—but even so, she found herself hesitant to answer him, and he quickly seemed to notice the pained expression on her face as she struggled for an answer with her inner turmoil.

She felt his hand slip out of hers. "I... uh.. I'm sorry. I-I didn't mean to cross a line or anything or rush our relationship."

Marinette hesitantly reached out for his shaking hand, once again entwining their fingers together. Her touch seemed to calm him down just a bit. "You didn't cross a line, Adrien. I do want this. I want to be with you. I would love to be your girlfriend..."

He eyed her warily. "But...?

She matched his pained expression. "But... I'm afraid to put a label on something that I'm not guaranteed to have for long." She sighed defeatedly. "If I were to lose you, I don't think I would be able to continue on without you... and that scares me."

Adrien immediately stopped in his tracks and turned around to fully face her. He pulled her closer and wrapped his arms around her waist, securing her in a warm embrace. Marinette fell into him with ease and laid her cheek against his chest, listening as his heartbeat began to pace faster. He was just as afraid as she was, she realized. Because not only was it possible for her to lose him, but he could lose her too.

And that thought scared them both.

"You're not going to lose me." He murmured softly; his chin propped up on top of her head. She didn't bother to mention how empty that promise sounded.

Instead, she held onto it, and prayed he would be able to keep it.

A few days later, they encountered a man on their path. His clothing was more tattered than Adrien's—one of his pant legs ripped from the knee down and his shirt was torn like a low-cut v-collar at his chest. He was wearing a red baseball cap under a head of dark brown hair, the visor of the cap containing slight rips. His skin tone was much darker than theirs, leaving her to assume that he was either Hispanic or African American.

But she almost mistook him for a Blank, and when she raised her bow, fingers already twitching to release the string, she was surprised to find that the person in front of them wasn't lifelessly staring their way.... but actually had fear in his eyes. When he raised his hands in surrender, it was enough to convince her that he was human.

It took a minute before recognition struck. As soon as Adrien recognized the man, the blonde rushed to embrace the brunette. Marinette spared a timid look around their surroundings. The man seemed to be alone—something she didn't really understand, considering Adrien had told her before that he had been traveling with a group of people before he'd been separated from them.

Marinette watched unsurely as Adrien and his friend hugged each other. Her gaze even flew past them as she surveyed their surroundings. She wanted to be happy for him and this reunion, but something felt off, and she wasn't sure what to make of it. She wasn't sure whether she trusted the stranger or not so close to the man she was beginning to have immense feelings for. Adrien may have trusted this stranger, but that didn't necessarily mean she was obligated to.

As soon as they released each other, Adrien turned around to flash her a wide grin. "Marinette, this is my best friend, Nino."

For Adrien's sake, she tried to smile genuinely at the man, but Nino didn't exactly seem to want to reciprocate the same friendliness. The pointed look he had to offer her in return as he looked her up and down didn't go unnoticed—at least, not by her it didn't. Adrien, on the other hand, was completely oblivious to the silent war his so called 'friend' had just started.

She merely stared at him. He had valid reasons for looking at her uncertainly, weary of a newcomer—a stranger to him whom he couldn't exactly trust... at least not yet. After all, she had raised a loaded bow at him.

But he had no reason to look at her with hatred.

And because of that, Marinette kept her guard up.

As they began walking again, Marinette hardly paid attention to what the boys were talking about. Nino had apparently gone on to explain to Adrien what had happened to them all while the blonde had been missing. Apparently, from what she overheard, she wouldn't be the only female when they reached their camp either.

That was relieving to hear. When was the last time she'd spoken to anyone besides Adrien, let alone another girl?

Marinette chuckled softly to that.

As Adrien began to tell Nino of his adventures while being separated from his friends, she couldn't help but listen intensely to that.

The boys had walked a few feet ahead of her, engaging in conversation—probably to catch up and fill each other in on all that they'd missed—and leaving her to trail behind them. Marinette knew that Adrien was just excited to see one of his friends again, but as much as she tried to convince herself otherwise, she couldn't help but feel somewhat disappointed—as if she was pushed to the side now that he had someone else to fill in the space she'd been holding.

Marinette frowned at that. She shouldn't even be thinking that way. It was selfish of her. Adrien was simply excited to catch up with his friend. She should've known better than to assume that Adrien would replace her the moment he was reunited with the rest of his friends.

But that didn't stop her from feeling insecure about it.

Marinette lifted her eyes from her feet the moment she felt like she was being watched... just in time to catch Nino looking over his shoulder at her. Their eyes connected for a brief second before he turned back around and mumbled something to Adrien.

Adrien nodded slowly in response, and she couldn't figure out what had been said that would make his mood drop. But whatever had been said made Adrien's shoulders tense, and she knew for a fact that whatever Nino had said had been a part in ruining Adrien's mood.

And his mood remained that way until they reached the campsite.

When they finally reached the site, Marinette could hardly believe her eyes. There were a lot more people there than she had expected, and she was even more surprised to see children and mother's carrying their infants present. Most of the people looked to be about her age or a little older; no elderly people from what she could see, and a lot of them seemed to be young, aspiring parents.

It was almost as if they were trying to repopulate.

Marinette wasn't sure if that was a good idea or a bad one.

She looked over at Adrien... who seemed less than thrilled to be reunited with his friends. She thought he would've been thrilled with this reunion, considering that throughout their journey to find them, he'd done nothing but express his misfortune in losing them. But Adrien's lips were pressed into a thin line, a sign of clear discomfort. Timidly, Marinette made her way over to his side and wrapped her hands around the crook of his elbow so that she could tug on his arm gently, hoping to catch his attention.

And when he did look over at her, she asked, "Is everything okay?"

Adrien shook his head, and he didn't bother to elaborate on what was wrong either. Marinette frowned slightly at that. Since they were close—and considered themselves to be more than just friends—Marinette had always assumed that they could tell each other anything by now.

Which is why she soon planned to tell Adrien what really happened to her biological family.

Adrien must have sensed her disappointment, because he suddenly reached out for one of her hands that was wrapped around him and squeezed it gently. "I'll tell you later... I promise." He whispered.

His words sounded far from assuring, nor did they help to ease her uneasiness, but Marinette nodded silently and let go of his arm. Adrien must have sensed the disappointment that clouded her mind, considering that there was a lot more on her mind than what could be upsetting him. She noticed for a second out of the corner of her eye as he tried to reach out to her again, but before he could do that and ask her what was wrong, a young woman approached them both with a wide smile on her lips, and immediately introduced herself to Marinette.

The woman's name was Alya. She had dark skin, similar to Nino's, and her hair was dark brown with red highlights that reached her mid-back. Apparently, from what Marinette had gathered the moment Alya whisked her away to come and meet some of the other women in the clan, Alya was currently in a relationship with Nino... and was actually expecting a child.

Once the two of them were alone, Marinette decided to indulge her curiosity. "If you don't mind me asking... why are you bringing a child into this world? Put me in my place if I'm overstepping, but was the pregnancy unplanned?"

Alya shook her head, smiling as she continued to fold her clothing. "Nope. It was definitely planned. We tried for months."

Horrified, Marinette stared at the woman beside her with widened eyes. "Why would you do that?"

Alya giggled loudly, as if her question was a silly one. "We have to start somewhere fresh, don't we? We can't just let humanity die out."

"Wouldn't it be better that way?" Marinette laughed dryly at the idea. If it wasn't for humanity and their attempt to change the world as they once knew it, there would've never been a virus that turned people into walking corpses.

People would still be living carefree lives.

Families would still be together.

Instances like these were supposed to stay in the movies, after all. It was never supposed to become real.

"I don't think so. Besides, I think you'll find it's not as bad as it looks."

Marinette folded her arms across her chest. "I'd rather die than help bring another person into this hell of a world."

Alya laughed, although Marinette wasn't sure what the woman thought was so funny about that. "Oh silly, you don't have a choice. All women here are required to have at least one child to help with the repopulation act."

Marinette almost choked on her own saliva. "What?!"

Alya's smile finally dropped the moment she realized Marinette's sheer confusion was genuine. "Wait... you didn't know?"

Marinette quickly scrambled to her feet, looking down at Alya with a horrified look in her eye. "Obviously not! The repopulation act? You can't be serious. Are you telling me the women here are being forced to get pregnant?"

"It's not like that." Alya rushed to assure. "Everyone here who has a partner is in love. No one is being... forced into sex."

"Maybe not physically, but you're all being coerced!"

Alya offered her a sympathetic smile. "It's not as bad as it sounds... really. If you do it with someone you love, it doesn't feel forced."

Marinette wasn't really sure on how to process all this food for thought. "I-I don't even know how to be a mom... I don't even want to be one!"

"I don't think any new mom knows how to be a mom."

"Whatever," Marinette grumbled. "The point is, I'm not having a kid. I'm not ready for that kind of responsibility, and I certainly don't want to bring a child into this world."

Alya didn't respond to that, but the uneasy look she had to offer in return was nowhere near reassuring.

All that Marinette knew was that this was not a life for a child, and if Adrien was expecting her to be the mother of his child, he had another thing coming.

For the rest of the day, Marinette spent it glued to Alya's side, but later that night, she found herself seated around a campfire as the entire clan celebrated Adrien's return. He seemed more at ease and less tense in the midst of the celebration, and his 'friends' seemed to have plenty of gifts to shower him with. From across the campfire, Marinette watched as Adrien devoured the food that had been placed in front him by some of the women in the group.

Marinette still hadn't touched the plate of food that had been placed in front of her. What was served was a gourmet meal compared to what she had been scavenging since the beginning of the apocalypse. But her stomach was all in knots, and her appetite had long been ruined.

She wanted to be happy for him, but the longer she sat here amongst these people, the more uneasy she felt.

Ever since the discussion she'd had earlier that day with Alya, Marinette had been feeling a bit uncertain about her relationship with Adrien. She knew that he was attracted to her, as she did towards him, but was that attraction due to lust, or did he find her just as beautiful on the inside as well?

She tried not to dwell over the idea and the undying possibility that all this time, Adrien's objective could've been to bring her here... just so that she could have his child. Alya mentioned that every man and woman eligible in the clan were required to have at least one child for the sake of the repopulation act.

And in return of producing a child, they were granted guaranteed safety.

But Adrien hadn't given them a child...

Yet.

It was in that moment when Marinette decided to glance over at him again, and coincidentally, his gaze just so happened to be already fixated on her. He must've noticed the troubled look on her face, because his brows were already furrowed as he studied her, as if he could already sense something was wrong. She couldn't help but quickly avert her eyes away from his a second later. She couldn't even look him in the eye right now.

Everything was just too intense, and she didn't know what to think or believe.

Marinette found herself heading back to the tents later that night, while Adrien and the rest of his friends celebrated their reunion. But she didn't go to Adrien's tent. Instead, she climbed up into the nearest tree and settled herself on a branch that was severely hidden amongst the brown leaves.

There was no way anyone could've known she was up there, and yet Adrien knew exactly where to find her.

About thirty minutes later, she heard leaves bristling as he climbed up the tree and greeted her with a gentle smile. He settled on the branch next to her own. However, Marinette couldn't bear to look over at him, too consumed in her own doubts and wandering fears.

She felt Adrien place a hand on her forearm. "Hey, are you okay?"

She shook her head, because she couldn't find it in herself to lie to him. She couldn't find it in herself to make excuses for her behavior.

"What's wrong?"

She turned to look at him then, sternly meeting his eyes with a chilling glare. "I... I had an interesting conversation with Alya today. You know her well, right? Your best friend's girlfriend, who's also apparently expecting a child for this thing called the repopulation act?"

There was venom in her words, and Adrien seemed to quickly sense it. He winced and frowned slightly and drew away from her to create a small bit of distance between them. "Marinette, I can explain—"

"I just have one question for you." She wasn't finished, and her anger was surfacing. "Did you really only bring me here just so that you could eventually get me pregnant?"

Adrien's eyes widened in horror. "God—No! Of course not!"

"Alya said every eligible man and woman here have to have at least one child. Are you trying to tell me that you're not eligible?"

"I-I am eligible, but—"

"So, you already gave them a child then?"

"I..." Adrien sighed in frustration. "No, I haven't."

Marinette scoffed at that and turned away from him. "So... what... were you expecting? Me to just... open up my legs for you the moment we got here?"

"No, Marinette! That was never my intention!"

"Well, what do you expect me to think? You didn't even tell me about this! Why didn't you tell me about the repopulation act?"

Adrien groaned and reached up to tug at his hair in frustration. "I know this looks bad, but I didn't bring you here to have sex with you, I swear. I brought you here because this is my home, these people are my family, and I want you to be a part of my family. I care about you too much to even do something to you without your consent. Do you really take me for someone who would do that?"

Marinette shrugged, folding her hands underneath her armpits protectively. "I don't know, Adrien. You tell me. Because as far as I know, if we don't follow the 'one child' rule... we'll get kicked out of the clan."

"They won't kick me out."

"You don't know that for sure."

"Yeah, I do. I'm too important to them."

Marinette rolled her eyes. "If anything, it would be a blessing to get kicked out. No offense to you, but most of these people are weird. What will you do when your so-called family finds out you won't abide by their rule?"

Adrien didn't respond to that. Instead, he sighed and averted his gaze from her, and that's when Marinette realized that he had absolutely no idea what would happen if he didn't follow through with their rule.

Marinette's frown deepened, "That's why you seemed so down earlier... wasn't it? Nino must've mentioned something about this to you while we were traveling with him."

"He did," Adrien admitted, though the heavy remorse in his eyes went to prove how entirely distraught he felt about the entire situation. "I–I–ugh, he told me about how you would be a perfect candidate to fulfill my end of the deal, but I care about you too much to do something like that to you. I don't even want to get you pregnant. I'd be a terrible father anyways."

Marinette watched him with a cautious expression. "I don't think you'd be a terrible father—"

"I would be." Adrien insisted desperately, meeting her gaze with a bit of urgency in his irises. "Look at me. I didn't even have a father myself. Sure, he kept a roof over my head, but that was it. Hardly saw him, barely spoke to him. I wouldn't want to be like that to my kid."

"You wouldn't be like that to your kid." Marinette hesitantly placed a hand to his shoulder. "Because you're not your father."

Adrien nodded, and although he agreed with her words, she knew he was still uncertain. She felt bad for assuming the worst, but she also felt as if this conversation had been a necessary one. It was good to know where each of them stood on this matter, and it was even better knowing and confirming how much he truly respected her.

Marinette cleared her throat. "I'm sorry for assuming the worst, but I wish you would've told me about this in advance."

"You have nothing to be sorry for," Adrien assured her this by wrapping an arm around her waist, and this time, she welcomed his embrace. "I'm sorry for not telling you beforehand. I should've told you."

"Were you worried that if you told me, I would have left you?"

He shrugged, averting his eyes to the side to avoid her curious gaze. "I guess... I was worried that if you knew, you wouldn't want to continue the rest of the way with me."

"I would never just leave you, Adrien." Marinette leaned her forehead against his chest. "I'm pretty sure I made that clear from the beginning when I rescued you from that trap."

She felt him chuckle beneath her. "Yeah... you're right. I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry too... for jumping the gun."

"I told you there's no need for you to apologize."

She shook her head. "I kind of jumped to conclusions I shouldn't have, though. So, I think I owe you somewhat of an apology."

"Fine. You're forgiven."

Marinette giggled and looked up at him. "So... you don't want to get me pregnant huh? I bet our kids would be the cutest little things."

Adrien's eyes practically bulged out from their sockets as he leaned back and stared at her, and Marinette couldn't help the fit of giggles that escaped her lips as she watched him choke on his own saliva and sputter out a ton of words that made no sense whatsoever.

She pressed a kiss to the corner of his mouth. "I was just messing with you."

Adrien pouted slightly, "That's not fair."

"Think of it as payback for all the unnecessary drama you literally just put me through."

Adrien offered her a sheepish smile. "Okay, fair enough. Can I at least make it up to you by telling you another joke?"

"If it's not another knock-knock joke, sure."

Adrien's smile stretched almost sinisterly. She knew she would regret ever agreeing to his request the moment he asked her, "What sound does a sleeping T-Rex make?"

She made a confused face. "I don't know. What?"

"A Dino-snore."

Marinette slapped him hard on the shoulder. So hard, that the entire clan could've probably heard the sound... in their sleep.

Adrien yelped like an injured puppy. With wide, bulging eyes, he stared at her as if what she'd just done to him wasn't something to be anticipated. It was a really lame joke. He should've expected the abuse a mile away.

"What did you do that for?" He whined as he rubbed his poor shoulder.

"Adrien, that was a terrible joke." Marinette arched a single brow at him. "I thought you were supposed to be making it up to me."

"It sounded funnier in my head." He mumbled more to himself, pouting slightly.

Marinette tapped his nose playfully, and she giggled when he wrinkled his nose in distaste. She couldn't help but lean into him again, seeking his warmth. "I think I have a better way for you to make it up to me... besides hearing your lame dad jokes."

Adrien laughed loudly at that, but he didn't exactly deny how awfully lame his jokes were either. Marinette sighed contently when she felt his arm snake around her waist, holding her close. "And what exactly did you have in mind?"

She giggled and gave him no time to react as she reached up with both of her hands to grab his face—and the shocked expression he had to offer her only fed her libido as she pulled him down to meet her waiting lips. Very eagerly, Adrien kissed her back desperately, conveying his love and apology all in one.

They smiled into each other's mouths, genuinely happy to have resolved their conflict.

Of course, it was impossible for Marinette to deny that she was very much attracted to Adrien—so much so that the following morning, as she watched him play with the other children of the clan, she found herself smiling softly as she began to actually wonder what it would be like to actually have his child.

There was no denying that Adrien was wonderful with children, and she was sure that he would make an excellent father. But the world they lived in wasn't meant for children. It wasn't safe for children. It wasn't right to bring a child into such a horrific life.

Besides, even if their world was different and things were how they used to be, Marinette couldn't give him a child... even if she wanted one herself.

She felt Alya—the one woman she was beginning to consider as a friend in this clan—sit down beside her. "Okay, it's time for you be an actual girl for a little bit and spill all the tea involving you and Hottie-Mc-Blondie." When Marinette rolled her eyes in response to that, Alya giggled, "C'mon, Marinette. It's clear to anyone who's watching that you really care about Adrien."

Well... Marinette wouldn't deny that. She really did care about him, more than she cared to admit actually. Marinette never thought she would care so much for the boy who had stumbled into her lighthouse one fateful night.

Because caring too much for someone nowadays was a dangerous game, one that she promised herself she would never play again.

And yet, here she was.

Marinette shrugged. "There really isn't much to tell."

"Oh please," Alya chuckled, "It looks like you're about to jump him right now."

Marinette turned to glare at the young woman. "I am certainly not, but I'm sure you admire Nino just as much whenever you get the chance."

Alya hummed thoughtfully to that, and the dreamy look on her face only proved to show how much she truly cared about her lover... and the father to her future child. "Oh, all the time, but I can get away with it because everyone around here knows where we stand. The real question is: where do you and Adrien stand?"

Marinette looked up from the meal she was currently eating to shoot the woman beside her a confused glance. "Does it even matter where we stand?"

"Of course, it matters!"

Marinette narrowed her eyes, looking unamused. "Why? What matters is that we have feelings for each other. Why does it need to have a label?"

Alya rolled her eyes dramatically. "Because... when I was a freshman in Lycée, I had 'feelings' for a boy in our theatre group. I can assure you those same feelings were nothing compared to what I feel for Nino now."

"This isn't some silly Lycée crush, Alya. It's more than that."

Alya sighed, seemingly deciding pushing further on what she meant by that was a bad idea. "Of course, it is. So, you guys are at least dating, right?"

"Isn't that considered a label?"

"Well... if you're not dating and you kiss... I guess that makes you friends with benefits—"

"We are not having sex, Alya."

"Well, in that case, it has to be love." Alya simplified, except there was nothing simple about that statement. Marinette wasn't in love with Adrien. She couldn't be.

"Well... I wouldn't say we're in love either—"

"You can't seem to decide what you guys are."

Marinette turned to glare at her friend. "I'll tell you what we are—we're friends."

Alya arched an unconvinced brow above eyes narrowed into slits. "Oh really?"

"Yeah."

"Just friends?"

"Well... no. We're friends who have a really deep understanding of one another. We appreciate each other's closeness in a way that can only be shared with someone special." Marinette shook her head, hoping that what she said would make sense and also shake away her own confusion. Perhaps she needed to talk to Adrien about this. "Why is that so hard to understand?"

"Because friends don't look at each other like that." Alya pointed across the fire pit to where all the young men of the clan were currently huddled together, discussing their plans for the next hunt. Adrien was included, because he was a part of the clan, but during their traveling together, Adrien had admitted to her that he had absolutely no idea how to hunt.

When he told her that, Marinette had chuckled, and had promised him that along with teaching him how to fight, she would teach him how to hunt.

They never really got around to either of those lessons, though.

As Marinette followed Alya's line of sight, her eyes quickly connected with Adrien's, who had already been staring at her for quite some time it seemed. The moment their eyes connected, the blonde dork blushed feverishly and averted his gaze, earning a high-pitched giggle from Alya.

"See?" The brunette beside her crossed her arms firmly above her very pronounced stomach. "I think that boy sees more than just a friend whenever he looks at you."

Marinette chose not to respond to that.

She knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that whatever she and Adrien had was far from platonic. Adrien had voiced many times that he liked her, and she had voiced this out to him as well. Neither of them was denying the obvious feelings that they had for each other.

The problem was that Adrien wanted to put a label on their relationship.

She was too afraid to.

Marinette sighed at that and decided to disregard those thoughts as she turned to face Alya again, who, in the middle of her thinking, had begun rubbing at her stomach in slow, circular motions.

"So, when are you due?" Marinette decided to ask, an attempt to hopefully change the subject.

Thankfully, it worked. "It should be any day now." Alya mused. "The baby is a little late, but I'm not worried."

Worried was a huge understatement. If she'd been in Alya's shoes, Marinette would've been terrified. There was no hospital to go to, no doctors to see, no medications to help with the pain. It would be giving birth naturally, something that women had no choice but to put up with back in the day. Marinette couldn't even begin to imagine how she'd be able to raise a child, who was nothing but innocent, into someone who would one day have to kill in order to survive.

She felt chills run up her spine at the thought.

She was so distraught by these thoughts, that she hardly noticed Adrien when he took a seat next to her. When he noticed the uneasy look on her face, he placed a hand on her forearm and asked her if she was okay.

She offered him a smile, assuring him that she was fine.

Marinette was one hundred percent certain that Adrien didn't believe her for a second, but he didn't bother to pry for anything more.

Instead, he turned to look over at Alya when he noticed that she was massaging her stomach. "Feeling alright, Alya?"

Alya nodded, though the pained smile she had to offer didn't go unnoticed either. "I think so, but just in case... could you please get Nino for me? I'm feeling some discomfort."

Adrien nodded and hastily stood to his feet, but not before assuring Alya that he would be back as soon as possible with Nino at his side. The moment he was out of earshot, Marinette turned to face the brunette again. "Alya, are you sure everything will be okay?"

Unfortunately, Alya did not have an answer for that. When Adrien returned with a frantic Nino at his side, Nino wasted no time in scooping up Alya into his arms and carrying her away to his tent. As Marinette worriedly watched them leave, she felt Adrien place his hand on the small of her back.

Adrien assured her that Alya was tough, that she could handle whatever was thrown at her, that everything regarding her pregnancy would run smoothly... but those were all just empty promises. Marinette knew better than to only see what you wanted to see.

There was always a possibility for everything to go wrong... and that was something they always had to keep in mind.

Hours passed while Marinette blankly stared at Alya's closed tent. She stood there until the sky started to darken, and just as darkness began to settle, she climbed back up into the same tree where she'd already spent two of her nights nestled on the same branch after she and Adrien had found the clan. This night, however, Adrien didn't join her like he would've normally. For the first time since she met him, he wasn't there to sleep beside her. Adrien had gone to sleep in his tent on the ground that night, claiming he needed a more comfortable bed for his aching back, and although he had asked her if she wanted to join him, Marinette had declined.

There was no way she was going to sleep on the ground, no matter how many scouts Adrien claimed kept watch over them while they all slept.

Marinette found herself longing for Adrien's embrace that night, though. Not simply because she missed him, but because she needed someone to help calm her anxiety. She wasn't even the one pregnant, and yet all she could think about were the multiple possibilities and outcomes of Alya's pregnancy. That something could go wrong. She hadn't seen Alya since earlier that afternoon, and there was no sight of Nino either. Neither of them had left their tent. She could only pray to the gods—who she hoped existed—that everything would turn out okay.

And then her prayers seemed to be answered the moment she heard a loud, whimpering cry echo out from one of the tents down below.

Despite her reluctance, Marinette was the first person to hold the healthy newborn when the sun rose the following day.

Alya had insisted she be, despite how many times Adrien whined about how he'd known her longer, and therefore had rights as an uncle to hold the infant first. Marinette had laughed at him when the baby was handed to her anyway. Her smile fell quickly though, because at first, she was hesitant to take the baby into her arms, mostly anxious of how Nino would react to her holding his child.

But, for the first time since she'd met him, Nino smiled at her, reassuring her that it was okay.

She smiled back at him.

As Marinette pulled back the small blanket to see the child's face, she realized the baby was a little boy. He had dark skin, considering both of his parents were on the darker side, and his eyes were an opal shade of brown. The baby peeled an eye open to look at her, and she couldn't help but smile widely.

"What's his name?"

Alya smiled fondly, "Brick. Brick Lahiffe."

Brick. That was a unique name. There was no denying how adorable he was.

If only they lived in a different world, Marinette would've been more ecstatic about becoming a part of his life, but at this point... not even her own life was guaranteed. Hell, there wasn't even a guarantee that the boy would make it past the age of one.

She tried not dwell over the negatives.

Instead, Marinette handed the child over to Adrien, who was more than happy to take the baby from her arms. She watched his eyes light up the moment he was introduced to his little nephew.

She could feel Alya's eyes on her the entire time.

She didn't have time to dwell over that either, though. Adrien bumped his shoulder against hers, a fond smile on his lips as he bounced the baby lightly in his arms. "Isn't he the cutest little thing you've ever seen?"

A small smile tugged at her lips. "He's pretty adorable."

Nino, who had been observing the interaction between his best friend and his son from beside Alya, chuckled, "You might want to keep a close eye on this blonde idiot, Marinette. He might try to steal my son."

"Well, he wouldn't need to steal if he had one of his own, babe," Alya said matter-of-factly, turning her head to shoot the ravenette a wink. "Isn't that right, Marinette?"

Marinette's smile immediately faltered at that, but thankfully, no one had noticed. Alya had already turned to look back at Nino and was smiling up at him and Nino was too engrossed into Alya to notice either. Meanwhile, Adrien was too busy ogling over his new nephew to really engage in their conversation.

But, nonetheless, Marinette felt embarrassed. She felt out of place for living amongst a bunch of people who expected something out of her that she could not give.

She decided it would be best to remain silent to that.

After the baby was finally pried out of Adrien's hands and handed back to his rightful parents, Marinette broke away from her friends and headed down to the riverbank to bathe. She hadn't expected to be accompanied there (considering her 'boyfriend' basically had the baby fever), but somehow, Adrien had caught up to her, and she could feel his ever-so-pressing presence from behind.

Marinette rolled her eyes and bit at her bottom lip to contain her urge to smile. "If you're expecting to bathe together, I'm afraid to say your expectations were just shattered. This time around, I don't plan on keeping any of my clothes on once I enter the water."

Adrien chuckled from behind her. "Of course not. I just wanted to make sure you got here okay."

"Don't think I can get there and back safely on my own, huh?"

"One can never be too careful." He said as he wound his arms around her waist, pulling her flush against him.

Marinette leaned back into embrace, humming contentedly, "This is sweet, but I would like to bathe now. I smell."

He immediately insisted she didn't with a chuckle, but Adrien released her nonetheless, turning his back to her so that he could give her some privacy to undress. As Marinette began to shed her clothing, she heard Adrien shuffle his feet as he shifted his weight from one foot to the other. And then he chuckled, "Brick is soooooo adorable, Mari. Right after you left, he took my finger in his hand and it was the cutest thing ever."

Marinette giggled, because she could picture the look of adoration and pride in Adrien's face. "I bet it was."

"It really was. I wish you could've been there to see it." He said dreamily.

Marinette's smile fell almost instantly, but thankfully, they both had their backs facing each other, so Adrien wasn't able to see how quickly her expression had changed. She felt a bit guilty, knowing that Adrien could've been an amazing father, but wouldn't become one unless he slept with another woman.

She hadn't told him yet... but she wasn't even able to even get pregnant. At least, that's what the doctors had told her.

She didn't want anyone else to know, not even Alya, which is why she made it look as if she was just against the idea of raising a child—which she was—but only because of what this world had become. Before all of this, though, Marinette once dreamed about having a family.

What naïve girl didn't?

"I need to tell you something, Adrien."

Thankfully, with their backs still facing each other, this would be a lot easier to say to him.

"What is it?" He asked her softly.

"I..." she hesitated, her gaze falling down to her feet. She found that even her hands shook in front of her, her palms already going sweaty. Marinette wasn't sure how he would react to this news, but it was only fair that she told him the truth. "I just... wanted to tell you something else... about me."

She could hear the smile in his voice as he said, "You know I always love to learn new things about you, Marinette."

She swallowed nervously, "Even the flaws?"

"Especially the flaws." He answered, "That's what makes you... you."

Of course, she knew he was right, and yet, she found herself still hesitant to tell him. Because although it wasn't a super unnatural thing that she had, it was still embarrassing to have it.

Marinette sighed heavily, "Well... uhh.. I-I have this... disorder called endometriosis. It means that the tissue that's supposed to line the inside of my uterus grows on the outside instead."

An uncomfortable silence fell in between them—well, at least for Marinette it was. She bit at her bottom lip, wondering how he would even process this information. Or if this information would change anything between them.

Instead, he broke the silence with, "So what's does that do to you?"

She tried not to let her voice shake as she said, "It... it makes my periods very very painful. Like excruciating, and... and considering how bad my condition is, my doctor said it will prevent me from getting pregnant."

She heard Adrien inhale a sharp breath, and she visibly flinched herself, too afraid to even look him in the eye and see how he was taking it all in. Although she knew that they'd both agreed on not having a child for a repopulation act, it had to be disappointing to know that a future like that couldn't be possible with her at all.

"Can I turn around?" Adrien asked her, his voice barely over a whisper, shaky and tense.

Hesitantly, she nodded. "Y-Yeah."

She kept her back faced towards him though, too afraid to look him in the eye. She heard Adrien's feet shuffle amongst the leaves as he moved, taking slow and careful steps towards her. She almost jumped out of her own skin when she felt his fingers—his gentle, soft fingers—brush against her bare torso, almost as if he was afraid to touch her. But when she didn't pull away from him, she felt his fingers dance across her skin as he wrapped his arms around her from behind, his hands resting on her lower stomach.

She then felt him kiss her hair. "You are amazing, Marinette. No disorder will ever change that. It will never change the way I feel about you either."

She couldn't help but tremble in his arms. "It doesn't bother you that I'll never be able to have kids?"

"It's... sad," Adrien admitted, and she felt her own heart clench tightly in her chest from his confession. "Because after I saw Alya and Nino with their own little family, it made me think, 'I wish I could have that.'" He sighed wistfully. "But I still care about you with all of my heart, and that won't change just because of something you can't control."

She couldn't help the whimper that escaped her lips as she listened to his words, and she let out a choked sob as she felt Adrien kiss her hair again. She turned in his arms and wrapped her arms around him, burying her face into his chest, and she felt his hold on her tighten, his way of silently promising that he wasn't planning on letting her go anytime soon.

"I lied." Marinette suddenly admitted as she sobbed into his chest. "I lied to you about my ex-boyfriend."

She felt Adrien flinch in her hold. "What do you mean?" He asked her carefully.

"I didn't break up with him." She shook her head against Adrien's chest as she sobbed. "He broke up with me when he found out about my disorder. Back when you asked me about him, I wasn't ready to tell you about my disorder, so I lied, and I'm so sorry that I lied—"

"Hey," She felt Adrien's hand caress her head gently. "It's okay, Marinette. I understand, really, I do. You don't have to apologize for that. You should never feel obligated to tell me something if you're not ready to share it with me."

She moved her head so that she could look up at his face. Adrien was smiling softly down at her, and he released one of his arms from around her so that he could reach up and gently wipe away a tear with his thumb.

"You really don't mind?" She sniffled as she watched him closely.

Adrien shook his head, his smile still wide and prominent. "I don't mind it at all."

Marinette chuckled airily, mostly in relief, as she tightened her arms around him. Adrien didn't mind that she had a disorder. He didn't mind that she was different. In fact, his affection for her hadn't changed because of it. He still wanted to be with her.

"And that ex-boyfriend of yours? What an asshole." Marinette giggled into his chest as Adrien huffed, clearly disgusted that someone even had the audacity to do that to her. "I hope a Blank sunk its teeth into him."

Marinette pulled away from him only slightly so that she could slap him in the chest playfully. "Look, he was an asshole, but nobody deserves that kind of death."

"Maybe we can make an exception for him. Just this once."

Marinette simply raised a brow, which was enough of an answer to say no, no one is an exception for becoming one of those creatures.

"Fine, you win." Adrien grimaced, "He's not an exception."

Marinette nuzzled further into his chest, giggling, "Of course I did."

Adrien rolled his eyes, but his arms held her firm. "Only because I let you."

"Right, sure. We'll pretend that's how it went down."

As Adrien and Marinette remained wrapped tightly in each other's arms, they fell into another moment of silence. But this time, the silence wasn't full of tension or unwelcomed like it usually was between them. It was the kind of silence you didn't mind having around, because you know everyone's happy. Everyone's smiling. This kind of silence is what tells the good side of every story.

"I'm going to take a bath now." She broke the silence with a giggle as Adrien groaned in protest, clearly not ready to let her go. But he did, even against his own wishes, and pouted when Marinette gestured for him to turn back around with the spin of her finger.

Once Adrien had turned back around and was no longer looking her way, Marinette began to strip. "I do really appreciate you staying out here with me." She said as she slid one of the legs of her cargos off. "You don't have to do that."

She watched as Adrien shrugged, "It's the least I can do. Besides, where else would I be if not with you? I want to do this, and anyways, in a world like ours, I'd rather be at your side at all times."

"You know it's the same for me." She smiled as she slid off the other cargo leg. "I'd rather not leave your side either."

She could hear the smile in Adrien's voice as he said, "Then let's make a vow."

Marinette giggled as she tossed her cargos to the side, reaching behind her to unclasp her bra. "Okay. What kind of vow did you have in mind?"

"Let's promise to never leave each other's side." Adrien proposed as he shifted his weight from one foot to the other. "At least, willingly."

Marinette discarded her bra with her cargos, sliding her underwear down her legs next. "I can do that." She said after a few minutes. "I, Marinette, swear to never leave Adrien's side willingly."

She heard Adrien chuckle. "And I, Adrien, promise to never to leave Marinette's side willingly."

She couldn't help the round of giggles that escaped her lips as she shook her head playfully, submerging herself into the chilly river water. The water reached her collarbone, keeping her areas that weren't for anyone else to see just yet covered from view. And when Marinette was certain everything was covered, courtesy of the water, she gave the okay for Adrien to turn back around.

When he did, he was sporting the widest smile. "Do you know what I like about you Marinette?"

Marinette replicated his wide smile as she shook her head, because in all honesty, she really didn't know why Adrien liked her so much. She knew why she liked him though. Adrien's personality was rare to find, his heart was almost too pure for his own good, and he was dashingly handsome.

"What?" She asked him with a warm smile.

"Even when you've gone through hell, you still walk as if the fire doesn't affect you." Adrien said softly. His smile could only be defined as fond, all the while he watched her with a softness in his eyes that made her legs feel shaky. Marinette couldn't help but blush, well aware that he could probably see the crimson shade of pink that colored her cheeks.

Her smile remained firm, because she appreciated the way he saw her. Strong, confident, firm. But that didn't mean she always used to be that way.

There was a time when Marinette used to be weak. She used to lack confidence, trip over her own feet, and stammer over her words.

But then the world changed, and it changed a lot of people, including herself, along with it.

Marinette chuckled underneath her breath. "I didn't always used to be like that, y'know. I had to teach myself how to be that way."

"What did you used to be like?" Adrien asked her curiously.

"I was a total klutz." Marinette admitted with a chuckle as she thought back on all the many times she'd trip over her other foot or trip over an untied shoelace. "My parents used to own a bakery, and I was always dropping the platters. That's why they moved me to work at the cash register."

Adrien laughed. "Really? I would've never taken you for a klutz. You might actually be better on your feet than I am."

Marinette rolled her eyes playfully as she reached for her washcloth and soap. "I don't know about that, but I'll take that as a compliment."

"Of course, it's a compliment. Only for you."

"Wow, I'm flattered."

"You should be."

"Mhm."

"Let's play twenty questions!" Adrien suddenly exclaimed, the change of topic completely unanticipated. His emerald eyes were full of hope as he watched her, looking excited, and she couldn't help but wonder why right now he would want to play a game that was so very stupid in her opinion. 

But for Adrien's sake, she supposed she could play once.

Confused, Marinette raised a single brow, her smile a bit uneasy. "Sure, I guess."

Adrien's smile only widened further. "Okay, I'll go first." He then moved to sit down on a nearby rock where Marinette's towel was draped and leaned his elbows against his knees. "What's your favorite color?"

Marinette snorted, "What kind of question is that?"

"What do you mean? I want to know everything about you and knowing your favorite color is also on that list."

Marinette lolled her head to the side, her smile wide as she contemplated his question. "Well, it used to be pink, but I don't know if it is anymore."

As if Adrien had jotted down that bit of information in his head, he nodded, "Pink it is then."

"What about you?" Marinette asked him. "What's your favorite color?"

"Green. A really bright green."

"Really?" She snorted, "I would've never guessed neon green. You look more like a blue or red kind of guy."

"That's like me saying you look like a purple kind of girl."

Marinette wrinkled her nose. "Purple is the ugliest color to ever exist, and no one can change my mind."

Adrien laughed. "What's your shoe size?"

"Eight," Marinette answered. "You?"

"Eleven."

"Ha! Okay bigfoot."

Adrien groaned, rolling his head back as he laughed, "Really? 'Bigfoot?' Must you resort to name calling? That's so offensive!"

"To be fair, it is kind of funny. Even funnier than your jokes. You should start taking notes."

Adrien shook his head as he laughed, "What about your favorite food?"

"Anything Chinese. How about you?"

"Italian. But my father used to hate it whenever I would beg the chefs to make us pasta as a kid. He always used to say it was too messy."

Marinette eyes widened slightly, "You had personal chefs?"

Adrien nodded, though his smile only dimmed ever-so-slightly. "My father had a personal everything."

"Did he have a personal assistant to help him bathe?" Marinette wiggled her eyebrow, snickering when Adrien gaped at her in horror.

"God no!" Adrien wrinkled his nose. "But I'm like... ninety-nine percent sure he did have an affair with his personal assistant."

Now that had Marinette wrinkling her nose in disgust. "Gross."

"Yeahhh... maybe I shouldn't have said that. That was a weird thing to say."

She chuckled and flashed him a soft smile. She was relieved when he instantly matched her smile. "You know, you haven't told me anything about your mother. What was she like...? If you don't mind me asking."

"You're the only one I don't mind telling." Adrien chuckled fondly, his soft smile still visible, but the look that clouded his eyes clearly showed that the few memories freshest in his mind about his mother were not happy memories. "I don't remember my mother much. She disappeared when I was six."

Marinette's eyes widened slightly. "What do you mean by disappeared? Was she kidnapped?"

Adrien shrugged, "No one really knows. She just vanished. My father told me most of my life that she was murdered. But even then, I don't know if I believe him. There's no proof that she was murdered. No case, really. I bet the folder's empty."

"And you don't think your mother might've left him?" Marinette asked.

Adrien pursed his lips. "No." he shook her head. "My mother must've known my father was cheating, but she didn't leave. Her belongings were still in her room, everything she ever owned untouched, and besides, she wouldn't've left me. If she were to have left him, she would've taken me with her. I know that for a fact."

Marinette smiled sadly, unsure of how to comfort him. "I would've loved to have met your mother. She sounds like a wonderful woman."

"She was," Adrien mused sadly, "And I would've loved to have introduced you to her. She would've loved you; I just know it."

That thought made the world around her feel just a little lighter. If only, her mind fantasized. If only they lived in a normal world.

As the evening went on and Marinette continued to bathe, Adrien and Marinette exchanged questions after questions. By the time she'd finished bathing and had wrapped herself up in a towel, she was sure they had already asked each other each way over twenty questions. But Adrien wasn't exactly ready to stop asking questions, and surprisingly, neither was she.

"What was the first pet you ever owned?"

Adrien snorted. "I wasn't allowed to have pets. My father hated animals."

"Seriously?" Marinette gaped at him. "Not even a goldfish? That's like every kid's first pet."

"Nope. I did try asking him for a kitten once, but he grounded me."

"He grounded you just for asking?"

Adrien laughed sheepishly, "Actually, he grounded me because I tried to sneak a stray cat into the house. Back then, I didn't take no for an answer so easily."

Marinette laughed—genuinely laughed—even claiming she would've helped him smuggle and hide the cat, had she known him back then. She often thought about what it would've been like knowing Adrien as a kid. She supposed, even despite their predicament now, that life had a way of bringing people together in the most unexpected of ways.

They were laughing in unison over the idea of smuggling a cat when Marinette finished bathing and asked him to turn back around. Of course, he wouldn't dare deny her of such a request, and turned his back to hers, offering her the privacy she wanted to get dressed once more.

Their laughing died down as soon as she emerged from the water.

Marinette was slipping on a fresh pair of underwater that had been lent to her from Alya when Adrien decided to ask her a question she really hadn't been expecting. "This might be a weird question to ask... but what was your ex-boyfriend like?"

His back was faced towards her again, and thankfully, he wasn't able to see the way she froze and almost toppled over, considering she could've almost tripped over her own underwear.

Recovering quickly, she slid them all the way up and reached over for her sweats, sliding a leg in as she asked, "Why do you want to know?"

She watched as Adrien shrugged. "I guess I just want to get a better image of what the guy who broke your heart looked like."

As sweet as that sounded, Marinette didn't really like talking about the boy she once thought years ago was the boy meant for her. Her soulmate. "Do I have to answer this one?"

He shook his head, his voice soft. "No, of course not."

Even so, a part of her felt a bit guilty for not telling him, and honestly, she wasn't even sure herself why she was keeping it from him. What would it hurt to tell him? Besides bringing up unwanted memories that would arise, nonetheless.

Marinette sighed in reluctance. "Well..." She drew out, realizing there was no point in not telling him, but she was still nervous even despite that. He seemed to perk up when he realized she'd changed her mind. She found herself more at ease as she continued, "He was tall and usually wore dark clothes. He had blue eyes, dark, black hair that he ended up dyeing the tips blue..." She tried to think of how else she could describe him until she realized she'd left something quite important out. "Oh! And he was really good at playing the guitar. He played professionally in a band. That's actually how we became friends. We met through his sister—"

"Luka?"

Marinette froze, her head popping out from her shirt collar as she slid it over her head. Now fully dressed, she stood completely unmoving with wide eyes as she watched Adrien unsurely, as if what he just said she hadn't really heard.

Then, she swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat. "Yeah... that was his name. How... how did you know his name?"

She watched as Adrien's shoulders visibly tensed, before he slowly turned around to face her, and the look of utter—she wasn't sure what exactly—on his face looked anything but thrilled to hear the name. "So, I'm right then? His name is Luka Couffaine?"

Hesitantly, Marinette nodded, but the confused look she had to offer him in return didn't go away. How could Adrien even know who Luka was? There was no way they could've known each other; no way they could've met. In fact, all of this seemed too coincidental to be true.

Adrien sighed heavily and reached up to grab the back of neck. "Marinette, the Luka you just described joined our clan a little over a year ago."

There was no denying the shock that consumed her after her eyes widened.

And that only made her feel incredibly sick to her stomach.

She turned away from Adrien in a matter of seconds and emptied her stomach all over the riverbank.

She heard Adrien gasp out a loud WOAH before she felt a comforting hand to her shoulder, his other hand coming around to hold up her hair. As Marinette puked all over the riverside, she could feel his hand moving up and down her back in comforting circles. In a way, his touch somehow helped calm her nerves.

"Ugghhh." Marinette groaned as she held her forehead in the palm of her hand. "I didn't see him in the clan. I would've recognized him if I had. Are you sure he's really in the clan?"

"Everything you described fits a perfect description of the Luka who is currently in a tent with a few of my friends."

She didn't want to believe that. This just couldn't be real.

"Well... maybe he's a different Luka—"

"That's highly unlikely—"

"After all, there isn't just one person on the face of this planet with the name Luka, right? I mean, who am I kidding? Obviously not. It's not a common name—"

"Marinette," Adrien's grip on her shoulders tightened only slightly from behind. "It's him. You said he loves to play the guitar. I can assure you this Luka never parts with his guitar and he's pretty good at playing it."

Unfortunately, Adrien was right about that. Luka's prize possession was, and always would be, his guitar. He would never willingly part with it.

"You're right." Marinette groaned as she reached up grab fistfuls of her hair. "This is a total nightmare. He can't know that I'm here."

Adrien furrowed a brow in confusion. "Why not?"

"Because it will be extremely awkward seeing him after the way things ended between us?"

Adrien pulled away from her slightly, frowning, "That's only if you make it awkward, Marinette. You could, instead, walk back into camp with so much pride in your step that when Luka sees you again, he'd feel extremely guilty for giving you up in the first place."

Marinette groaned in embarrassment; embarrassed at herself for actually wanting to stoop down to such a pathetic level. "Ugh, you're right. What am I even thinking? I'm not the shy, clumsy girl I used to be."

The corner of Adrien's lips twitched upward. "That's right!"

"So," Marinette stood to her feet and smirked, one hand already placed firmly on her hip, and the other, reaching out for Adrien's which he took instantly. "I think it's about time Luka and I got reacquainted."

And then Marinette tugged him forward, and Adrien laughed loudly—because he was happily willing to follow her wherever she led him.

As they moved through the forest back to the campsite of the clan, Marinette barely registered Adrien say from behind her in a soft whisper, "That's my girl."

But she heard it, and the sentiment only made her smile widen and her confidence arise at its peak level.

Marinette and Adrien travelled back to the campsite hand-in-hand... but when they made it back, she realized something that had her questioning whether or not she had ever known the real Luka to begin with.

Because Luka had changed.

Marinette could tell as soon as she recognized him amongst the crowd just with the way he carried himself. The moment she spotted him, she hardly recognized him... because Luka looked so unfamiliar and different from what she remembered. Luka was quiet, could be pretty brash if he let his emotions get the best of him, kept to himself a lot, enjoyed artistic hobbies, and only ever had confidence whenever he was on stage in his element—which was why they had clicked so easily once upon a time ago. But now, he walked through the campsite with an arrogant trot in each step he took. He was smiling widely, but his smile looked anything but friendly. Instead, he wore the kind of smile that basically said: 'I'm up to no good, but do you know that?'.

Marinette wrinkled her nose at the sight of him. Even though she had no doubt that it was him, she asked nonetheless. "That's him, isn't it?"

Beside her, Adrien's eyes remained fixed on Luka as he nodded, "Yeah."

"I mean... that really does look like him, but..."

She watched from the corner of her eye as Adrien glanced over at her. "But what?"

"But that's not who he used to be."

Sometimes, change could be a good thing. Marinette knew that because a long time ago, she'd once been a screw up, a total klutz, and someone who never stood up to the people who made fun of her because she was too shy, too afraid, a pushover, and didn't know how stand up for herself. But now... now she was someone different. Someone who was confident. Someone who was proud. Someone who wouldn't take anyone else's shit.

The change for her had been good because it shaped her into a better person.

But the change for Luka had shaped him into someone she no longer recognized, and in his case, that was a bad thing.

She felt Adrien's hand tighten in her own. "What are you doing to do?"

She hadn't really thought that far yet, but she had a vague idea.

"Maybe march over there and start with an interrogation." She suggested with a shrug of her shoulders, which caused Adrien to snicker.

"That sounds like a fantastic idea."

So, that's exactly what Marinette did. Hand-in-hand with Adrien, she marched straight over to the boy she hadn't seen in years, who had plopped himself down beside a small fire he'd built on his own, away from the others, and stood right in front of him. Thankfully, he didn't notice either of them standing there as he poked the fire that kept him warm with a long stick.

Marinette cleared her throat. "Luka Couffaine."

If Luka was perturbed at all by hearing her voice, he didn't show it. Instead, he slowly lifted his head, his blue, blazing eyes connecting with hers. She held his gaze, determined not to be the first to look away because that's how stubborn she was, and that's how stubborn she'd always be. He simply stared at her for what felt like an eternity.

And then he laughed.

"Marinette Dupain-Cheng," The corners of his eyes wrinkled as his smile widened. He shook his head as if he couldn't believe it was her, chuckling to himself as he continued to move his stick in the fire pit. "I thought you were dead."

"Likewise."

He let out another breathy laugh. "Long time no see, eh? I have to say, it's a pleasant surprise to see you again."

"It's more like an unfortunate coincidence for me."

Luka laughed loudly at that and glanced down at the fire. "I see you haven't lost your sarcasm... or your bitterness." He looked up at her again, only so that his eyes could move between her and Adrien. He smirked once his gaze landed on the blonde. "And it looks as if you've already been acquainted with Adrien Agreste, the man who everyone thought died out in the wilderness."

Adrien gritted his teeth and his jaw shifted involuntarily, but he said nothing.

Marinette wholeheartedly ignored Luka's statement. "What are you doing out here, Luka?"

"What does it look like I'm doing?" Luka gestured to the fire in front of him dramatically. "I'm trying to get warm. It's freezing out here."

"It's not that cold... and anyways, that's not what I meant. I'm talking about what you're doing here with the clan. I know you've only been with them for a year."

"So, what?"

"So, I want to know where you were for the other three."

Luka scoffed, rolling his eyes. "What's it to you? Where I was all that time doesn't concern you. It's not even any of your business. Not anymore."

In the past, something like that being said to fragile Marinette would've hurt more than she would've cared to admit, but present Marinette was no longer that weak, naïve little girl.

And Luka words didn't perturb her anymore.

"Where's the Liberty, Luka?"

Almost immediately, Luka's shoulders tensed and retreated into the base of his neck. He kept his eyes locked on the fire and away from hers, as if he knew that if he looked up, he would lose his element of composure.

Adrien, however, was confused and raised an eyebrow at Marinette. "'The Liberty?'"

"Luka's houseboat," Marinette answered without averting her eyes from the man who was now completely silent. "I know the Liberty is where you stayed all this time. Now I want to know why a year ago you abandoned her."

From the corner of her eye, she watched as Luka clenched his fist. "I forgot how observant you are, Marinette."

She rolled her eyes at him. "Just answer the damn question, Luka."

"I didn't abandon the Liberty." Luka said that as if it needed to be clarified, as if saying that would make him a better person. "I ran out of provisions, so I had no choice but to leave and head inland. I meant to return once I had enough, but then I was rescued from a bear trap by Xavier, the leader of this clan."

Out of instinct, Marinette turned to look at Adrien, who slowly nodded, confirming that what Luka was saying was true... at least about the part that regarded their clan leader, Xavier.

"After I got rescued and settled, things became so easy. I felt like I was living a normal life again and an easier one, so why would I want to leave?" Luka looked up to meet her eyes again, a bit of anger in them. "So, I never returned to the Liberty. She's still back at the docks where I left her."

"That's miles away." Marinette murmured underneath her breath as she pinched the bridge of her nose.

But somehow, Luka still heard her, and frowned even further. "Why does the Liberty even matter to you? Why do you care?"

Marinette shot him a look. "Because if we find the Liberty, we can sail out of here. Look for a place that isn't infested with Blanks."

Immediately, Luka threw the stick he was holding off to the side as he stood to his feet. He shot her the ugliest glare, along with a grimace. "If you think for one second that I'm going to let you take my boat, you've got another thing coming."

"Ha!" Marinette narrowed her eyes at him. "I'd like to see you try and stop me."

"Y-You can't!" He sputtered out, deflating slightly. "That's my boat! It belongs to me. The title is in my name and everything—"

"Do you really think I give a damn about a title that means nothing at this point?" She rolled her eyes. "What law enforcers are going to stop me from taking your boat? The policemen corpses?"

"Oh... bloody hell, Mari, it's still my boat! You can't just take it!"

"So, what you're telling me is that you're still a selfish ass, huh? You won't share your boat with the rest of the people here? The ones who took you in?"

"My boat, my rules." Luka crossed his arms, looking and acting extremely childish.

"What kind of nonsense is that?" Adrien interjected, "You left that boat out on the docks. You were never planning to return to it. What was it you said again? Things got easy, so why go back to doing it the hard way alone?"

Luka gritted his teeth. "You are not taking my boat."

"You mean the one you abandoned?" Adrien instigated, a small smirk tugging at his lips as Luka's frown deepened. "What's that old saying again? 'A man's trash is another man's treasure?'"

Marinette placed a hand to Adrien's shoulder, a silent request for him to stop with the instigating before Luka blew his top. Hesitantly, Adrien obliged, but not before shooting one last glare at his rival.

"Think about what these people have done for you and do something for them for a change," Marinette said sternly, "If you don't want to give us the Liberty, fine, then come with us, but this is the only way. There's nothing left in these woods anymore."

"Besides the Blanks," Adrien added matter-of-factly. "And when they run out of animals to eat, what do you think they're going to come for next?"

If Luka was afraid of the answer to that, he didn't bother to show his fear. Instead, he kept his arms crossed as he simply glared at Adrien.

Marinette wasn't sure why he felt the need to look at Adrien like that.

"Fine," Luka grumbled after he'd given it some thought. "But if we're going to do this, it's going to be just us three."

"What?!" Adrien gasped angrily. "What about everyone else?!!"

"Boo-hoo. What do I look like? A captain with a bloody cruise ship?" Luka snapped with an equalized amount of anger behind his every word. "Keep in mind that there are hundreds of people here."

"Well, we can't just abandon them! That isn't right!"

"Oh, shut your hole." Luka scoffed indifferently, "Reality is, the Liberty doesn't have enough room for everyone."

"We could make room!"

"Were you under the impression that boats could magically expand? Because I'm pretty sure I just said that there isn't enough room for everyone."

"Guys," Marinette snapped, stopping them both from a bickering argument. She then turned to look at Adrien, who was already looking at her, but looked like he was about to blow his top. "He's right, Adrien. There's not enough room on the Liberty for everyone."

Luka let out an obvious cough at that. He was smirking when Adrien turned his head to glare at him.

"So what? We just leave all of these people here?!" Adrien argued.

Marinette didn't like that idea either, but they didn't have much of a choice. "We don't have that many options—"

"That's not right, and you know it. We can't abandon all these people!"

"We have to prioritize our own safety first before we can even consider helping a bunch of strangers, Adrien." Marinette was starting to grow frustrated with him. Why he couldn't he understand this? Why couldn't he understand that he couldn't save everyone?

"They're not strangers, they're my family, and they're innocent people!" He argued, "If we leave them here, we're basically leaving them to die!"

"No, we're not," She stressed, trying to keep herself calm despite her rising frustration. "Because we're not obligated to protect them.

"What about Nino, Alya, and Brick?" Adrien countered, "They're our friends, Marinette! You're saying that you would leave them behind?! Leave Brick behind—?!"

"Okay!" Marinette finally snapped, even though she'd been trying to prevent that. Frustrated, she raised her hands over her head and grasped fistfuls of her loose hair, closing her eyes only for a brief moment. To her left, Luka watched the scene play out, amused.

A tension-filled silence consumed the air around them. When she opened her eyes again, Adrien was staring at her, seemingly surprised by her tone, mostly because he hadn't heard that tone since he accidentally lured a herd of Blanks their way all those months ago. Marinette watched as Adrien took a few steps backward with a hurt look on his face, but she was too overwhelmed and frustrated to give him an apology at that moment.

She turned to look over Luka instead, ignoring Adrien for the time being. Thankfully, Luka's smug smile had fallen, otherwise she would have taken her anger out on him and slapped it off of his face. "I have one condition. Three other people join us on the Liberty. Nino, Alya, and their son, Brick."

"A kid?" Luka groaned, seeming unsure. "I'm not too sure—"

"If you don't accept my condition, I'll take your damn boat without your permission like I had originally planned and leave your sorry ass behind to rot inside of a Blank's stomach."

Luka, taken aback by Marinette's tone of voice and choice of words, gulped and quickly nodded, "Okay. You got yourself a deal. We leave at sunrise."

With those terms set in place, Marinette turned on her heel without another word and headed for her tree—the tree she spent every night in. Darkness was ready to greet them shortly, and if she wanted her plan to play out perfectly the next morning, she needed all the sleep she could get.

She didn't invite Adrien to join her that night, and she doubted he would follow. After their somewhat intense argument and her slight outburst, she was sure Adrien would be looking for somewhere else to sleep for the night.

She stood corrected when she remained perched alert on her branch for most of the night, unable to sleep, and Adrien never showed. Instead of dwelling over his absence, Marinette made herself as comfortable as she possibly could and closed her eyes, hoping the morning would be more promising.

She awoke to the sound of birds chirping—when the first faint signs of light began to paint the sky in the horizon. Their surroundings were still too dark, a risk Marinette was willing to take if it meant they could escape without being seen. Her feet hit the ground, crunching beneath dried leaves. With her knife clutched in between her fingertips, Marinette carefully treaded through the quiet campsite and snuck into Alya and Nino's tent to wake the couple up.

She tried Alya first by gently shaking her shoulder.

"Marinette?" Alya groaned out her name sleepily when she realized it was her, rubbing at one of her eyes as she sat up slowly. "What are you doing? The sun hasn't even risen yet—"

"You need to get up," Marinette said as she fumbled to wake up Nino next, who seemed to be even worse to wake up. She came to that conclusion the moment she nudged his shoulder, and he grumbled something incoherent, shooing her hand away, all the while remaining fast asleep. "We're leaving."

"What?"

"We're leaving the clan. You, me, Adrien, Nino, your son, Luka—"

"Woah, woah Marinette, slow down!" Alya whispered as she reached to grasp Marinette's arm, keeping her in place. "I don't know what you're talking about, but Nino and I aren't leaving the clan. This is our home."

"Please Alya." Marinette groaned impatiently as she rubbed at her temples. "Don't make me force you."

Alya gaped at her ridiculously, rolling her eyes as if she didn't think that to be possible. For the record, Marinette was plenty capable of doing so if she really wanted to. "Force me? Yeah, I don't think so—"

"You'll be safer if you come with us." Marinette interrupted her. "This place... we're running out of land. Eventually, there isn't going to be anywhere left to run from the Blanks. And the animals, they're slowly becoming extinct. Do you know that when Adrien went out with the hunting group a few nights ago, he told me that they couldn't find a single deer. Do you know what that means? It means that the Blanks are eating our food source on top of eating us. It means that once they're all done with the deer, and the boars, and the bears, they'll come entirely for the people. It means we're not safe here anymore."

Alya opened her mouth and then closed it again, simply staring at her friend with a look of fear in her eye. Marinette knew that she was afraid. It was hard not to be. All of these people were so used to relying on each other, that they really didn't think for themselves.

They followed a leader, a dictator. Someone who told them what to do, when to do it, and how to get it done, but that wasn't surviving, nor was it living. It was just a random man trying to feed his libido of control by taking the reins of full charge yet knowing nothing about how to properly lead people. He was only leading for one thing and one thing only: power in the palm of his hand.

"What if Xavier finds out?" Alya asked, her voice a bit shaky.

"If we leave now, he won't know we're gone until it's too late."

"And what about the guards?"

"The one's I plan to sneak past have fallen asleep at their posts, and yes, I've already concocted our escape plan." Marinette whispered softly as she picked up Brick from the blankets and wrapped him in her arms. She then buried him into the sling she'd spent all night creating for him (because as it turned out, she hadn't been able to fall asleep no matter how hard she tried), which slung around one shoulder and held the baby in front. It kept him hidden from view, and as long as he felt secure, it would keep him quiet. "Please, Alya. Trust me on this. There's nothing left for you and your family here."

In a split-second decision, a hesitant Alya made a choice to trust her friend and nodded. She moved to stand up from her bed on the floor as she began to pack their things silently. While she did that, Marinette reached over and continued to shake Nino until he finally peaked an eye open.

"Marinette?" He groaned, and moved his head back suddenly, as if he thought he were seeing things. "What the hell are you doing in my tent?"

"Saving your life." Marinette retorted as she moved to give Nino some space, and to help Alya finish packing their things.

"Saving my life?" Nino sat up with wide eyes and turned to look at Alya, who he realized rather quickly was collecting all of their things. "Babe wait, what are you doing? What's going on? Why are you packing all of our things?"

"We're leaving the clan, Nino." She turned her head over her shoulder to look at him. "It's not as safe as we thought it was."

"What are you talking about? Of course it's safe." Nino stared at Alya, confused, until he turned his gaze to look over at Marinette. He frowned when their eyes met. "Why are you scaring her? Everything's fine."

"It's called reality, Nino." Marinette said emotionlessly, "Sometimes reality can be scary. Now hurry up and put on some pants."

He quickly glanced down at himself, blushing out of embarrassment when he realized he was in his boxers only. He snatched a pair of his discarded cargos and tugged them up his legs, frowning at Marinette the entire time he dressed.

"Where are you even planning on going?" Nino waved his hands wildly to gesture what was around them as soon as he was dressed. "There's nowhere left to go."

"We're sailing across the sea."

Nino's eyes widened. "How the hell—?"

"Luka has a boat he left at the docks. A houseboat." Marinette explained as patiently as she could. "If we leave now, we can make it there before the sun sets."

"Are you insane?!" Nino whisper yelled. "You do realize that we have absolutely no idea what could be going on in other places around the world! Where exactly do you plan on sailing to? Africa? Australia?"

"Actually, we were thinking more like North America," Marinette said as she stood to her feet and slung a backpack over her shoulders. "A while back when I first met Adrien, he mentioned this city that was disease free. He has reason to believe that the city is somewhere up north... in a state called Montana."

"Montana?" Nino gaped at her as if she'd grown two extra heads. "How do you even know if this is true? How did Adrien even figure that out?"

"Adrien knows more about the city. You should ask him."

"He could've made it up. That's a stupid name for a country."

"It's a state. Didn't they teach you that in Lycée?"

"Look, I know this is a lot to take in, but can we discuss it on the road?" Alya interjected nervously as she stood to her feet as well, slinging a backpack over her shoulder. "We're running out of time."

Marinette nodded in agreement. "She's right. We won't be able to get out of here in time without being seen once the sun fully rises."

"Fine." Nino reached over for his t-shirt, which had been carelessly discarded on the ground, and slipped it over his head. He shot Marinette a look that could only be read as, 'I'm only doing this because of my girlfriend and my son, not because I trust you', which Marinette wouldn't hold against him. For now.

"Great," Marinette said with hardly any emotion. "Then let's get going, shall we? The others are already waiting for us at the borderline of camp."

She exited their tent before either of them could respond and decided to wait outside. Almost immediately, she heard a series of whispers, too low for her to make out the words, but she had a pretty good feeling they were entirely from Nino complaining to Alya.

When they emerged shortly afterwards, Nino was sporting an impressive glare.

Not as impressive as hers, but he was close. Marinette easily ignored him.

As soon as Alya, Nino, and Marinette met up with Adrien and Luka at the agreed spot she'd suggested, Nino pulled Adrien aside to probably (from what Marinette guessed) chew him out about this idea that he believed to be stupid.

The boys were the ones to lead the way, much to Marinette's dismay. She'd hoped that she could've talked to Adrien before they began this journey, or even along the way, just so that she could apologize to him for the way she snapped. It was obvious now that he was avoiding her, and although that made her heart feel awful, Marinette was too exhausted to chase after him.

When he was ready to talk to her again, she figured he would come looking for her.

"Is there something going on between you and Adrien?" Alya asked from beside her. Marinette barely spared her a glance from the corner of her eye. If there was one thing Alya was good at, it was reading people.

Playing it cool, Marinette simply shrugged her shoulders and said, "Not more than there usually is. Why do you ask?"

"I don't know. It just feels like Adrien's avoiding you." Alya pointed out.

"Oh." Alya was really good at reading people. "Well, you're right about that."

"He is?" Alya suddenly looked sad, her eyes holding sympathy as she watched her carefully. Marinette hated that look. "Why? Did something happen?"

Marinette rolled her eyes, hoping Alya wouldn't catch it. As much as she loved and appreciated Alya, she didn't really like talking about her feelings. "He just didn't like something that I said in the way that I said it, that's all."

"In the way that you said it?"

"I was stressed out, okay?" Marinette huffed out stubbornly. "I was overwhelmed, and, he wasn't trying to, but Adrien was shouting right in my face, and I just couldn't take it... so I snapped."

There was a slight pause before Alya asked, "What did you say when you snapped?"

It wasn't even that big of a deal, and yet, Marinette found herself admitting, "All I said was 'okay'."

She watched as Alya's eyebrows came together in confusion. "That's it?"

"That's it."

"That can't be just it."

Marinette let out an airy laugh through her nose. "I swear that was it. I said 'okay', and he looked at me as if someone had just kicked his puppy."

Alya crossed her arms. "I have a feeling that when you said 'okay', it wasn't said with a softness in your voice."

"Obviously not, Alya. I was annoyed. People don't speak softly or coddle their loved ones when they're mad at them."

Alya rolled her eyes. "You should apologize to him."

"And why would I do that?" Marinette gaped at her friend ridiculously. "I did nothing wrong except raise my voice a little."

"Yeah okay, but you and I both know that Adrien is way too sensitive for his own good." Alya said as she raised a knowing brow.

Gosh darn-it she was right, but so what? Adrien was a grown man.

"I'm not going to be chasing after him wondering if he'll accept my apology or beg him to accept it." Marinette said as she watched the blonde walk up ahead. Adrien was still walking beside Nino, and the boys still seemed to be in a deep conversation with each other.

Alya sighed, "You're so stubborn, girl. Were you like this before the whole outbreak began too?"

To that, Marinette actually laughed. Genuinely laughed. "Yeah, I guess I was now that I think about it. Stubbornness sort of ran through my family."

"My mom was really stubborn too." Alya laughed as she recalled a memory only she would remember. "For some reason, I'm not as stubborn as her, but I'm not complaining. Hopefully Brick takes after me and doesn't inherit his father's stubbornness."

The two friends erupted into a fit of girlish giggles, something Marinette was really glad she was able to do to get her mind off of the whole fiasco with Adrien. Neither of the girls noticed as the boys turned to look over their shoulders when they heard the sound, specifically Adrien, who seemed to have a sad look in his eyes as he watched Marinette laugh. She didn't catch it, though. He turned back around to face forward just as quickly, but he also didn't bother to resume his conversation with Nino.

Their laughter died down shortly afterwards and Marinette silently reached up to adjust the sling where baby Brick was currently sleeping. When Alya noticed this, she frowned slightly. "I can carry him if it's too much trouble. He is my responsibility after all."

"Nonsense." Marinette waved a hand at her. "The moment we left the clan, he became all of our responsibility. Besides, you just gave birth a few days ago. You shouldn't be carrying a baby in a sling like this for a long time."

Alya smiled, a little uneasy, but grateful nonetheless. "Thanks Marinette."

Marinette reciprocated her smile, nodding once in a friendly manner. But before they could continue talking to one another to pass the time, Luka decided to pop up on Marinette's other side. He placed a sudden elbow to her shoulder, as if they were buddies, which didn't even eject a flinch out of her. "Evening, loves."

Marinette brushed off his arm so fast that there could've been a risk at ripping the limb off of his body. "If you so much as touch me again, I swear I'll—"

"Alright, alright I get it." Luka said as he raised his hands in surrender. "You don't like physical contact, noted."

"Not from you, I don't."

"Oh, is that so? I don't remember you saying that five years ago—"

"People change, Luka... and so do their preferences."

"Ouch." He laid a hand over his chest, presumably where his heart was, feigning hurt. "Never knew you were capable of being so harsh."

Marinette chose not to respond to that.

"Is there something we can help you with, Luka?" Alya asked, a single brow raised which only indicated that she was suspicious with his presence. Marinette didn't blame her. From what she'd heard from Adrien, Luka was a strange and secretive person among the clan.

Luka shrugged and offered her a deadpanned glare. "Not anything from you, nosey. I just wanted to talk to Marinette."

Alya rolled her eyes and stepped further away from Marinette, only because he was right beside them and she didn't want to be near him. Marinette, however, simply crossed her arms as best as she could (considerate of the sling in front of her) and glared at him hard. "Well, apparently no one can stop you from running your mouth, so—"

"Can I please just talk to you for a few minutes, Marinette?" Luka asked with a bit of desperation in his voice. He then turned to look at Alya, his gaze weary. "Alone, please."

Alya pursed her lips and furrowed her brows, folding her arms stubbornly across her chest. "I don't think—"

"It'll be fine, Alya." Marinette interjected softly. She had a pretty good feeling of what Luka wanted, and she also knew that he would do anything in his power to get whatever he desired. Luckily for Marinette, she was no longer a pushover. "Just give us a minute."

Alya's frown deepened, her gaze set hard on Luka, clearly indicating that she didn't agree one bit with the two of them being left alone together whatsoever. But she silently nodded nonetheless and reluctantly jogged forward to catch up with the other boys.

When they were finally alone, Luka cleared his throat. "I...I really had no idea that you were still alive. I thought I would never see you again."

"Same."

"How've you been?"

Marinette snapped her head to look at him, her hard glare boring into his eyes in an instant. "Are you really going to ask me how I've been? Why don't you take a wild guess."

Luka pressed his lips together. "I'm sorry, that was a stupid question. What I meant to ask was, how are you holding up?"

"Well, I almost lost an arm to a Blank about a year ago—"

"You know I don't mean literally, Marinette." Luka slapped the palm of his hand against his forehead. "Considering the circumstances, I just want to make sure you're okay."

Marinette scoffed, "Okay. Since we're playing the question game, why are you trying to rekindle something that died a long time ago?"

Luka furrowed a single brow. "What are you going on about?"

"You're trying to be friendly with me... and it's weird. Don't you remember the last time we spoke? You told me that you wanted to break up with me because of my disorder."

"Yeah... well I did say that. But the thing is... I ended up regretting it later on."

She wasn't convinced. In fact, she wouldn't be surprised if Luka was saying all of this just to try and win her back after all these years. "Isn't that what they all say?"

"Yes... well..." Sighing heavily, Luka rubbed the palm of his hand over his face. "Look, I know I made a mess of our relationship. What I said to you back then was stupid, and I really am sorry about that, but can't you take into consideration that all of that happened five years ago?" When Luka looked up to meet her eyes again, his gaze was practically pleading with her. "We were so young, and I was still severely immature, but I'm not the same immature boy you once knew. I've changed."

"Really? 'Cause you still seem like a self-centered jerk to me."

"I won't deny that I'm an asshat sometimes, okay? But I've changed in other ways. I've grown and I've learned, and I've regretted some of my past choices. I never thought I would be able to make amends with you, and now that I have that chance, I'm going to try my best to cease it."

Although Marinette didn't want to admit it, Luka was, in a way, right. He had changed since then. Whether that change did him good or not, he wasn't the same freshman boy who'd broken her heart on the bridge over the Seine all those years ago.

They were all young adults now, forced to adapt in a world that wasn't even a place she wanted to live in anymore. Most of them didn't have time to be childish anymore. Most of them had to become adults before they even got a chance to hold their diplomas.

It just wasn't fair. The world had ruined their worlds. The people had doomed themselves.

"At least give me the chance to prove to you that I'm a better person." Luka added quietly, his gaze hesitant as he searched her eyes carefully.

Marinette sighed heavily, if not dejectedly, "Well... if you wanted me to accept your apology, then consider it accepted."

She watched as Luka's eyes lit up. "Really? You'll accept my apology?"

"Under a few conditions..." Marinette simply extended her hand out towards him, waiting for him to take it. "The first being that you understand that we will never get back together."

His smile stretched a little, as did his arm. "Not to be disrespectful or anything, but I don't see you in that way anymore, so that's very unlikely to happen."

"Likewise on my end. Secondly, you're going to be civil with Adrien."

Luka's arm halted, struggling to reach her hand all the way for a shake. He grimaced, revealing his dissatisfaction with that term. "But Adrien is the most annoying prat on the planet—"

"You're already failing at this 'trying to prove I'm a better person' thing."

Luka sighed dejectedly, "I get that you might like him and all (not that I understand what you could possibly see in him), but I've known Adrien longer than you have and let's just say we've always had our differences." He said earnestly, "At least have this same talk with him if you want us to be civil."

"Fine. Just as long as you're making an effort on your end."

Luka finally reached out for her hand and shook it firmly. "Deal."

She didn't smile at him in return, but inside, she was somewhat relieved to have finally made peace with Luka. In truth, it was better that way if he was going to be a part of her group and it also allowed her to have the closure she deserved.

That fact made her feel lighter as she continued travelling. It was like a huge weight lifted off of her shoulders.

The weight returned, however, the moment Adrien seemed to have decided that he'd had enough of avoiding her.

"Marinette, can we talk?"

Because of how slow everyone was moving, their group unfortunately wasn't able to reach the Liberty for the night like Marinette had originally planned. Much to her dismay, Marinette had to get everyone into the nearest, safest tree and pray that baby Brick would keep quiet for the night and not draw any unwanted attention from the woods.

But... that also meant Brick and his sling was handed over to Alya and Nino for the night, which left Marinette stuck all alone on a branch...

With Adrien.

"Yeah, sure." Marinette said as she pulled her knees up to her chest, wrapping her arms around them. If Adrien was ready to talk, she was more than ready to listen, but that didn't make their situation any less awkward or the tension between them evaporate.

Adrien sighed heavily, "I feel like you've been avoiding me."

She raised an eyebrow at that. "Adrien, you've been avoiding me, remember?"

The blonde pressed his lips together. "I wasn't sure how to tell you but... what you said really hurt."

"Hurt?" Marinette met his eyes, fury blazed in her irises. "All I said was 'okay' and you're saying that hurt your feelings? What are you, five?"

Adrien frowned at her, completely ignoring her degrading insult. "It was the way you said it... as if what I was saying didn't matter or was non-important in that moment."

She rested her chin against her knees, her gaze still hard as she searched his eyes carefully. "Adrien, that's not what I meant by it at all. I needed to be stern so that you would stop yelling in my face."

Adrien pouted. "I wasn't yelling in your face."

"You might as well have been." Marinette said, turning her head so that she could rest her cheek against her knees. "Keep in mind that I've been making decisions on my own since all of this first started. I'll be honest— I snapped so you'd shut your mouth."

She watched as Adrien's expression fell almost instantly.

"But," Marinette said as she subtly reached out for his hand. Adrien didn't pull away when she entwined their fingers together, which she was super grateful for. "I shouldn't have snapped at you. I'm not alone anymore, which means I'm still learning how to get used to having someone who isn't me make decisions or voice opinions."

Wordlessly, she felt Adrien squeeze her hand affectionately.

"I'm sorry." She said softly, watching his eyes carefully as she began to caress his thumb with hers gently. "Please be patient with me."

She watched as the corner of his lips twitched upward against his will. Adrien turned his gaze to look at her again, his irises radiating softness and warmth.

She smiled in return. "So... no more avoiding each other?"

Adrien nodded, offering her a fond smile. "No more avoiding each other."

"And no more silly fights?"

Adrien chuckled, "Definitely not. Let's remember to always communicate with each other to avoid something like this again in the future."

Marinette nodded, smiling as she leaned her head against his shoulder. "I can live with that." She nuzzled her face further into the crook of his neck when she felt Adrien's arm come around her hip, and she giggled softly when she felt him teasingly squeeze.

"I can live with that too." Adrien whispered as he delicately pressed his lips to her temple.

Marinette hummed, moving her arms around Adrien's waist, but Adrien seemed to have different intentions. He yanked her suddenly into his lap, and Marinette let out a whispered squeal as she was suddenly trapped underneath Adrien's arms and against his chest.

Despite the sudden change in positions, Marinette couldn't help the smile that pulled at the corner of her lips as she snuggled further into Adrien.

"I don't know what my life would be like without you in it, Marinette." Adrien mumbled into her hair.

As he spoke, Marinette could feel his chest rumbling, and the sound was so comforting that she found herself falling asleep before she could tell him: "I don't know what my life would be like without you in it either, Adrien."

And that thought stayed with her throughout her dreams—keeping a smile on her face as she slept—and even remained until the next morning while she was pressed against Adrien's warm, clothed chest.

AHHHHHH!

Marinette jumped up in surprise, completely abandoning the warmth of Adrien's embrace. Adrien jumped up as well, his chest rising and falling frantically, as he clung to her waist like a lifeline. She offered him a brief strange look then, which he returned with a sheepish smile.

Then, the scream sounded again, causing their locked gazes to resort to fear, exchanging silent words with one another without having to say anything at all.

AHHH!

For a third time, someone screamed again. Immediately, Marinette jumped into action and reached for her backpack, pulling out her sheathed machete. Her and Adrien exchanged another serious look before they were both hurriedly climbing down the tree.

As soon as Marinette's boots hit the ground, she unsheathed her machete and swung it, effectively dismembering a Blank's head off its body from behind. When the rest of its body fell forward to the ground, her eyes instantly met Alya's, who was staring at her with a look of fear in her eyes. In her arms, Marinette noticed she was holding Brick tightly against her chest.

And the baby was crying.

Without a single word being said, Marinette held an agonizing glare as she sheathed her machete once again. From behind, she could feel Adrien on high alert. A bit harshly, she reached out and grabbed Alya's forearm, forcing the young mother to follow her.

"What are you doing on the ground with him alone?" She hissed out. "Do you have any idea how much danger you just put yourself and the baby in?!"

Alya harshly ripped her arm out of Marinette's hold, forcing the raven-haired woman to turn back around and face her friend. "Don't you dare patronize me like I'm some sort of child! I was fine!"

"Oh really? So, all that screaming was just... what? Screams of joy?"

"It was meant to be a distraction! I was luring it towards me on purpose!"

"With the baby in your arms? Are you insane?!"

"Ladies please," Adrien interjected pleadingly in a low whisper, his voice and movements cautious as he stuck an arm out between two women who looked as if they were about to throw hands. "This isn't really the time to be having a cat fight when there's a pretty big chance we could be in a lot of danger right now."

Marinette rolled her eyes, wanting nothing more than to turn around and slap him on the shoulder for even making a pun at a time like this... but he was right. They weren't safe anymore and they needed to get moving again as soon as possible.

Brick was still wailing loudly in Alya's arms, and the longer he cried, the more he risked attracting more Blanks. More than what was already around from the one she'd just killed.

"What danger?" Alya, however, didn't seem to think Adrien was being serious. She scoffed loudly, rolling her eyes as if she thought he was overreacting. "Did you not just see Marinette kill the so-called danger?"

Adrien shot Alya a deadpanned look. He wasn't exactly the biggest fan of sarcasm, that much Marinette knew.

"Adrien's right," Marinette said. "We're not safe here anymore. We need to get moving as soon as possible."

"Why?" Alya asked, this time her tone sounding worried and no longer sarcastic or accusatory.

Instead of Marinette answering, Adrien beat her to it. "Blanks travel in herds. There's never just one."

"They travel in 'herds'?" Alya scoffed at that. "So... what? We're comparing walking corpses to... a herd of animals? Do you honestly hear yourself right now, Adrien?"

"Fine, I'll use different terminology. They travel in groups." Adrien narrowed his eyes at her, clearly unamused. "My point is: they never travel alone, even if it might seem like it."

"Oh yeah? And who told you that?"

"Marinette." Adrien said simply.

If Alya felt embarrassed, she did a good job of hiding it. She simply spared Marinette a glance out of the coroner of her eye, her expression neutral, before she turned back to look at Adrien. "And that just all of a sudden makes it true? Because Marinette said it? Is she the new google or something?"

Marinette pressed her lips together, silently grinding her teeth in order to keep herself from saying something she might regret. Thankfully, Adrien jumped in right away to defend her.

"Would you rather ask Siri, Alya? I'm sure she'll have all the answers. Except none of us can rely on her anymore." He glared at her with a look in his eye that could've snapped a twig in two, and Marinette didn't think he could look any more handsome.

"So, we're supposed to believe everything she says? Without proof?"

"I've seen the proof." Adrien stressed heavily. "When I met Marinette, she'd been living on her own for four years. She warned me about what they were capable of and even saved me when I underestimated them. Don't make the same mistake I did. Do not underestimate them."

Marinette couldn't help the smile that pulled at her lips as she titled her head to look up at Adrien. He returned her smile with a warm grin, something that made the butterflies in her stomach flutter helplessly.

She didn't want to admit it... but she was slowly falling in love with this man...

...And that scared her tremendously.

Alya's expression seemed to drop in guilt. "Okay... so should I go wake Nino?"

"Yeah," Adrien said. He then turned to face Marinette again, his expression set straight. "I'll go wake up Luka."

Marinette idly wondered how they hadn't woken up from Alya's screaming.

Nonetheless, Marinette frowned at Adrien (only out of seriousness) and nodded curtly. They quickly parted ways, but not before he leaned forward to press his lips against her forehead in a chaste kiss. Marinette's smile was small, despite the fact that they were all currently in a lot of danger. When he pulled away, he raised his hand to her cheek, and Marinette leaned into his touch.

"Stay safe." He told her fondly, but also in all seriousness.

"I will." She told him, and she meant it. "You better stay safe too."

"Don't worry about me." He chuckled airily and moved away first, but she could tell that he was really reluctant to leave her side. However, they didn't have a choice. They had to work together to protect everyone who was now under their wing.

"Come with me." Marinette said as she grabbed Alya's arm once again, and this time, the brunette didn't dare pull away from her. "We need to wake Nino, and I need to make sure nothing happens to you or Brick."

"I can take care of myself." Alya stubbornly huffed out.

"You sound like a child who didn't get their way." Marinette couldn't help but roll her eyes at her friend. "Grow up. This is the world we live in now, and no one can live in it alone."

"But apparently you did... according to Adrien."

Marinette briefly shut her eyes and exhaled slowly, trying to remain patient. Alya only knew so much about her backstory. The brunette didn't know about the many lives that'd been lost to the Blanks due to younger Marinette's carelessness.

Sure, Marinette had been on her own for four years. But it had also been the loneliest four years of her life.

"That wasn't living," Marinette stated slowly as she carefully considered her words. "That was just surviving. There's a big difference."

Alya arched a brow at that. "And you're living now?"

"Well... yeah. Now I have people to live this nightmare with."

Those words didn't seem to faze Alya. At least the nightmare part. "I don't consider this a nightmare. It's the new normal now."

Marinette turned to look over her shoulder, shooting Alya with an odd look. "The new normal, huh? Where the dead devour the living? You've actually normalized that?"

Alya shrugged. "Where the living pays the consequences for all the evil we cause."

Marinette turned back around, deciding not to respond to that. Were the rest of the living really paying the consequences? For what? Being human? Marinette liked to believe that wasn't true. So many people who had died, who she'd lost, who she'd known, hadn't deserved to die the way they did. They hadn't deserved to suffer. When someone died at the hands and mouths of the Blanks, it was simply gruesome and cruel. No one deserved that kind of death.

"So, you think this is some type of punishment?" Marinette asked after a beat of silence.

"Yeah, you could say that."

"From what?" Marinette wanted to scoff. She found that extremely unrealistic.

"Mother nature... God..." Alya shrugged, not quite knowing herself. "Whichever you believe in."

"Neither." Marinette snapped. She could feel her temper rising by the second. "Neither of those have gotten me to where I am today."

"Maybe their mercy has."

"Please tell me you don't actually believe in that nonsense?" Marinette turned to look over her shoulder again, only to find that Alya's expression was extremely serious. The ravenette scoffed as she turned back around, shaking her head, because honestly, she couldn't believe what she was hearing. "If they actually existed and had mercy to offer, they wouldn't make us live in this hellhole."

"Well, we do have a choice not to live in it." Alya's voice seemed unperturbed; too calm. "We could always kill ourselves. End our own misery."

Marinette grimaced, extremely disgusted with Alya's words. Death wasn't the answer to their problems. Sure, they could finally be ridden of this world, but what if some people weren't ready to die? What if some people wanted to see if this would end? To live through the hardships and push through? Marinette was not a quitter.

Ending her life would only signify that she was giving up, and Marinette was not about to give up.

"Stooping down that low to end your own life is cowardly."

"No, it's not." Alya said softly, "It's just a repercussion of fear."

Marinette immediately halted in her tracks. She whipped around to face Alya, who was now holding a sleeping baby up against her chest. "When you have a family to take care of, you don't get to allow your fear to control your actions. Being afraid doesn't justify taking your own life, and don't you even dare consider it. You lost that option the moment you decided to bring a baby into this world."

Alya's face visibly fell. "You know I didn't choose to get pregnant. It wasn't my choice!"

"And yet you tried to take away mine, telling me in order to stay in your ridiculous clan, I would have no choice but to have a child too. You even encouraged Adrien and I to try!"

"Well, of course I did! Doing it with someone you love is always the best option!"

"You could've left that camp, but you chose to stay. You chose to actually go through with their stupid reproduction rule! That's on you!"

"I chose to sacrifice my preferences for my family's safety!"

"Your family's safety, or your own?"

Alya froze, her eyes wide and heavy tears collecting on her bottom lids. Marinette kept her chin high, looking at her friend with a challenging look in her eye. A challenge for her to deny those words. But Marinette didn't think she would, or better yet, she didn't think she could.

Because what she'd said had been the truth.

Besides Nino, Alya had no other reason to protect anyone but herself. She had no other living family or loved ones except for Nino. So, when she was guaranteed safety if she only mothered a child, she willingly agreed. It sounded like the perfect arrangement when your world seemed to be falling apart. Marinette also had reason to believe that Alya had been coerced by Nino and other women from the camp into believing that having a child in exchange for safety was a considerable arrangement.

The only problem was... that safety could never be guaranteed no matter how many children they had... and that child would never be guaranteed to survive.

Marinette scoffed when Alya remained silent. "That's what I thought. You only sacrificed your preferences because you knew you would be safe. People would protect you. I guess you weren't planning ahead for what could happen if you no longer had that protection."

"I can take care of myself!" Alya retorted stubbornly.

Marinette rolled her eyes. "Sure. That's exactly what it looked like when I practically came to your rescue."

"You didn't come to my rescue." Alya growled, "I was luring that... thing to me on purpose. Don't you see? I was going to let it get me."

Marinette's eyes went wide. "What?" She couldn't believe what she was hearing, or better yet, what Alya was implying. "You were going to let it get you? To tear you apart? To tear your baby apart?"

"It would be better that way!" Alya shouted back. It took Marinette a few seconds to realize that tears were now heavily cascading down her crimson cheeks. Her exclamation, however, caused Marinette to wince. They couldn't risk drawing any more Blanks to them. "I can't raise a baby in this world! You were right. I have no idea what I'm doing. Getting pregnant was the worst decision I could've ever made!"

Marinette shook her head. "You don't get to decide when that baby dies." She outstretched her hands, coaxing Alya to hand the sleeping baby over to her. "I meant it when I said we were in this together, and that Brick was now all of our responsibility. You and Nino don't have to raise him alone. He deserves a chance now that he's here, don't you think?"

But Alya clung onto the bundle in her arms tighter. "What chance does he have? There is nothing left to live for anymore! The world is over!"

"The world isn't over until we decide it's over!" Marinette hit her chest with her fist. It hurt, but she needed to get her point across. "And as long as I'm around, I'm not going to let you give up! And I'm not going to let you take away Brick's choice either!"

Alya whimpered, her bottom lip quivering. Marinette softly waved her arms in an up and down motion, a silent, warm and open welcome for Alya to hand over the baby to her. Thankfully, Alya finally obliqued and hesitantly handed the sleeping baby over to her. As soon as Brick was in her arms, Marinette let out a relieved breath she hadn't even realized she'd been holding in.

Marinette shifted the baby in her arms and Brick cooed in his sleep, fisting and flexing his little fingers on nothing but air. Marinette couldn't help the soft chuckle that escaped her lips as she watched him.

"I need you to promise me something..." Alya began, her voice wavering slightly. Marinette looked up just in time to catch the sorrow in her eyes. "Promise me that if I don't make it... or if Nino doesn't make it... you will take care of Brick for us. That you'll raise him as your own and teach him everything you know."

Marinette immediately frowned. "Alya, that's not—"

"Promise me, Marinette."

"That's not going to happen." Marinette insisted sternly, "You're going to be able to raise him. You both will. Remember, we're going to a sanctuary. A safe place, where you can raise a child safely."

Alya looked unconvinced, and her expression looked completely hopeless. "Just promise me that if we don't make it, you will raise Brick. Please promise me that. I can't go on unless I know you promise."

Marinette swallowed uncomfortably, her gaze falling back down to look at Brick. He was still sleeping, completely unaware of what his guardians were discussing; unaware of what his own mother had tried to do to herself and to him. Unaware of how cruel the world was. How lucky he was to not know what a Blank was, or what it was capable of. One day he would though. One day this little boy would have to completely skip his childhood and learn how to become a man. For the sake of his life, and for the sake of others.

Marinette wasn't sure if she was capable of raising such a character.

But in order to keep herself sane, Alya was asking Marinette to make a promise. No, begging her really. Marinette had long ago stopped making promises, and had stopped holding expectations, the day she lost her family and the day she lost her first group.

But for Alya's sake, she would make one more promise that she hoped she wouldn't have to keep.

"I promise."

That answer seemed to be enough to satisfy Alya, enough to earn her a small smile, but that only caused Marinette's insides to twist uncomfortably into knots. She decided she wouldn't voice her discomfort as they continued forward to go find Nino.

Marinette figured it would be best to keep those feelings hidden for now.

A little way ahead of her, Alya had already begun her ascend up the tree, intending to wake up Nino who had somehow attempted to sleep through all of the chaos. From what she could see, neither Luka nor Adrien could be seen, which led her to believe they had probably already gone ahead to refill on provisions like water. She only hoped they were remaining civil.

SNAP.

The sound of a boot breaking a twig in two caught her attention. Marinette whirled around, holding Brick close to her chest as she scanned the forest behind her. It had been faint, but Marinette had definitely heard it. Her expression hardened as she carefully studied the vast wilderness.

When she didn't hear the noise again, Marinette slowly unclasped her bow from behind, carefully loading it with an arrow.

The forest was deathly silent, minus the breeze that flowed through the trees, swaying their brown-leaf branches back and forth. The weak branches seemed to groan with the slight jostle, quaking in the silence.

Marinette's eyes narrowed. Something wasn't right.

Marinette spared a quick glance at the tree where they had spent the night. Alya was already making her way back with Nino at her side. Nino was dressed and his pack was on his shoulders. He seemed unable to contain his yawns as he listened to whatever Alya was telling him.

Then, Alya's gaze found Marinette, and she frowned slightly. Oblivious to the suddenly strange atmosphere, she called out to her. "Marinette, what are you—!"

Marinette raised her pointer finger to her lips, signaling her friend to be silent. Alya and Nino both seemed to get the message rather quickly as they suddenly stopped in their tracks, only a few yards away from where she stood.

Over the years, Marinette had grown accustomed to being able to distinguish certain sounds. A Blank was clumsy, careless even, and was far from stealthy. The sounds it made when walking usually resembled that of a drunk man. An animal tended to make careful and quick steps because it was always on high alert for predators. But this sound was neither of those.

It only happened once, which meant it was a mistake.

Whoever had done it was a human.

Out of the corner of her eye, Marinette suddenly caught a blur of movement. Instantly, she turned and released her bow, the arrow shooting straight through the air. When it hit its target, the victim fell behind the trunk of the tree he'd been hiding behind, thrashing on the ground as he screamed at the top of his lungs. The thrashing stopped a second later the moment his last breath left him.

Marinette quickly jogged towards the victim of her arrow, with Alya and Nino trailing right behind her.

When she rounded around the tree, Alya was the one to gasp. "He's one of the guards."

Alya and Nino exchanged a worried look. Nino was the one to clear his throat. "That means Xavier knows we've escaped."

Up ahead, the brush rustled again, but this time, it was simply Adrien and Luka coming over the clearing. Marinette looked up just in time to catch Adrien's gaze in the near distance.

"We're being tracked..." she realized shakily. Her worried eyes snapped to Nino and Alya, and then she cried, "Run!"

They instantly took off running in Adrien's direction. Realizing his friends were running and unsure of what was happening, Adrien simply turned in the opposite direction and grabbed Luka by the arm, bolting.

Marinette slung her bow over her back and started running herself, using both of her hands to help stabilize the sling so that Brick wouldn't be bounced around too much.

"What's going on?!" Adrien shouted as soon as Nino caught up beside him.

Nino didn't have to answer him. In the distance, the booming uproars of men followed.

Alya, however, was lagging behind. She hadn't fully recovered from giving birth. Marinette grabbed a hold of the young mother's wrist and tugged, forcing her to stay ahead.

"Run faster, Alya!" She worriedly implored.

Alya was already breathing heavily, and her hands were clutching her stomach. "I'm trying!"

BAM!

A gunshot rung through the air, the bullet whirring right past her ear.

Marinette briefly looked back over her shoulder. "THEY HAVE GUNS?!"

She never saw any guns on site. Everyone in the clan either had knifes, machetes, or amateur weapons like baseball bats.

Where did the guns come from?

"It's Xavier!" Alya cried, panting heavily, "He's the only one who has a gun!"

Another gunshot rang through the air, and out of instinct, both women ducked their heads to seemingly avoid it. More shouts up roared from the forest deep.

"Shit!" Marinette cursed, hiking the baby further up her chest. Brick started crying, not enjoying the loud sounds of gunshots or being jostled so much. "Luka!" She called up ahead. "How much further!?"

"We're almost there!" He shouted back.

But almost there seemed like a stretch. There was still no ocean in sight.

The shouts of enslaved men continued to grow louder and louder as they inched closer. Marinette glanced back over her shoulder, only to find that some of the men tracking them were now visible, rapidly approaching with knifes in their hands. Out of instinct, she tried picking up the pace, even though her legs were already beginning to burn.

"They're right behind us, Alya! Move faster!"

Alya struggled immensely to move faster, but she somehow managed.

BAM! BAM!

Two bullets that time. One hit the tree right in her peripheral. The other flew over her head. Marinette found herself chuckling—Xavier's aim was terrible.

She ended up jinxing herself the moment his next bullet hit her shoulder.

BAM!

"OW! Dammit!" Marinette cursed and stumbled forward upon the impact. Thankfully, she was able to remain on her feet, especially since the baby was in her care. However, the loud noises along with the jostling from running caused Brick to let out a series of strangled screams.

Alya instantly stopped and whipped around. "MARINETTE!"

"I'm fine!" Marinette assured her through gritted teeth. "Keep moving!"

Marinette never got to personally meet Xavier, because he claimed to be such a busy man (according to Adrien), but man was he an ass.

"There's the ocean!" Alya exclaimed happily at the same time Luka called back to alert them that he had spotted the Liberty. When the ocean finally came into Marinette's view, she found herself running faster, desperate to get to safety.

All five friends ran out onto the docks with Luka in the lead. Behind them, more shouts ensued, along with several more gunshots.

Luka rushed to open the door, and then flung it open. "Quick! Get inside!"

The rest of them ran faster down the slippery docks. Adrien gave the boat a quick once over as he ran, and even had the audacity to complain. "This is the rust-bucket that's supposed to save our lives?!"

"You'd rather get shot instead?!" Nino shoved his way past him.

Adrien looked back over his shoulder, his eyes widening when the shouts only grew louder. "Yeah... nah. Let's get the hell out of here!"

The two childhood friends rushed through the entrance of the boat first. Luka, however, remained at the door, gesturing wildly for Alya and Marinette to run faster. "C'mon! Hurry!"

Alya was a little ahead of Marinette. The ravenette glanced over her shoulder once more, watching as the men began to emerge from the forest. They came flooding down the docks like an army of ants. They intended to conquer and destroy.

Alya made it to the boat first. Now she and Luka both stood at the door, each desperately gesturing she move faster. With every last bit of strength she had left, Marinette pushed herself to pick up speed.

BAM!

Another bullet flew through the air, heading straight for her. Without even thinking her actions through, Marinette dove for the door, turning so that her side would hit the floor to protect Brick from the impact. She slid inside like that, and the door was quickly closed behind her. The bullet that had almost struck her through the eyes indented the metal door a second later.

Inside, everyone was panting heavily. Luka rushed past them to get the boat started. It lurched forward, a sign that they had pulled away from the docks. Several more gunshots could be heard faintly from outside, but none of them could pierce through the boat.

She found herself sighing in relief when she realized they had made it.

Brick was still wailing at the top of his lungs. Alya instantly moved to take him from Marinette, who was too weak to remove the sling herself. Adrien knelt down beside her, and then gasped when he realized she was bleeding.

"You were shot..." he said it so low as if it hadn't registered, and then he was panicking, struggling to rip off his shirt so that he could stop the bleeding. "Oh my god, you've been shot!"

His exclamation got everyone's attention. Nino quickly moved to help assist. That was the last thing Marinette remembered before passing out. Nino speedily ripped the collar off Marinette's shirt, exposing her bare shoulder.

"We've gotta get the bullet out." He said urgently, "Anybody got tweezers?"

"There should be an emergency aid kit down below." Luka called back.

"I'll get it." Alya volunteered and quickly disappeared downstairs.

Adrien worriedly took Marinette's limp hand. "Dammit... I know she told me to run, but I shouldn't have left her behind."

"Blaming yourself won't help anything, mec."

The boat suddenly jerked again, the engine sputtering as it struggled to run.

Adrien sighed heavily, "How are you not more worried than I am? She was carrying your son. He could've died. They both could've died."

Nino shrugged, his eyes downcast and focused on Marinette's wound. "Yeah, but they didn't. That's what matters. Besides, being in her arms is probably the safest place for Brick. Marinette is the only one out of us all who has survived all on her own. If anyone out of us all can survive, it's her."

Adrien wasn't given the chance to respond. Alya returned upstairs a moment later with Brick (who had now calmed down) in one arm and the emergency aid kit in the other. She handed it to Nino, who briskly opened it and rummaged for a pair of tweezers. In the process of his search, he handed Adrien a bandage, as well as Isopropyl rubbing alcohol.

"Does anyone have a torch?"

"Right here." Luka entered the main room with a flashlight in hand, which he handed to Alya, who then handed it to Nino. Nino flicked it on before handing it to Adrien. Adrien, with wide, fearful, and tear-stained eyes, stared at the torch as it began to tremble in his hand.

"Mec, you've got to calm down." Nino said sternly as soon as he noticed his friend was shaking almost uncontrollably. "I need you to hold the light for me, and I won't be able to do this right if you keep shaking."

"I'm sorry," Adrien croaked out. "I'm just so scared right now—"

"I get it, but right now, Marinette needs you, so you gotta calm down."

Inhaling a deep breath, Adrien closed his eyes and forced himself to relax.

Breathe in, breathe out. Breathe in, breathe out. Breathe in, breathe out.

The shaking in his hands slowly subsided once he forced his adrenaline to die down. Adrien opened his eyes, no longer coated with fear, but with a new sense of determination, and held the torch steady for Nino.

Nino offered him a single nod. "This is going to be painful, and there's a good chance Marinette might wake up. If that happens, I'm going to need someone to hold her down."

"I'll do it." Luka placed a hand on Nino's shoulder. "Where should I be?"

"Sit behind her head. That way you can prevent her from lurching forward."

Luka did as he was told, silently moving to sit behind Marinette's head. For a brief moment, he and Adrien exchanged a look, a silent rivalry ensuing through just the look in their eyes.

"Okay," Nino breathed out evenly, his tweezers raised. "Let's get to work."

They worked for hours in removing the bullet, cleaning the wound, and bandaging it up. During that entire process, Marinette didn't move an inch. Nino had said it worried him at first, but with a steady heartbeat and even breathing, he also added there was no reason to panic. Even with Adrien refusing to leave Marinette's side at first, Nino assured him that she should be fine.

And he was right. Marinette was fine. In fact, she could hear music.

It was very faint, but she would always recognize that song being played anywhere. Jump Around by House of Pain was humming somewhere from behind her, low enough so that it wouldn't disturb anyone, but you could still jam out to it if you wanted. It was one of her favorite classics, the most played song on her portable solar-charged music player. Grunting, Marinette slowly opened her eyes, blinking several times as she tried to adjust her eyesight to the light. There was a sharp pain in her shoulder as soon as she moved an inch, causing her to wince.

"Marinette?"

She slowly turned her head to the sound of her name, finding Adrien looking right back at her. There was worry clouding his beautiful, green irises, something she wished she wasn't the cause of. But she already knew why he was looking at her like that. She remembered why her shoulder hurt so badly, and she also knew he partially blamed himself for it.

"Hey," she smiled up at him weakly, "Is that Jump Around?"

Adrien chuckled, if not a bit sadly. "Yeah. Luka has an old record player in here, and one of the records just so happens to be a House of Pain album. We were all singing to it earlier on repeat for hours."

She found herself smiling at that, because she couldn't even blame them. When was the last time anyone got to carelessly listen to music and sing along carefree to it too? Something as little as that made everything seem so normal.

"That's one of my favorite songs." Marinette hummed contently.

"Yeah?" She felt Adrien lightly run his fingers through her hair, tenderly massaging her scalp. It felt nice. "How are you feeling?"

She yawned. "I'm okay. My shoulder hurts a little bit."

"I bet. You gave me a bit of a scare, y'know."

"Sorry," Her smile was fond as she reached up to caress his cheek, and he instantly leaned into her touch. "But I'm okay. It's just a scratch."

"It's definitely not just a scratch," His chuckle was bittersweet. "You lost a lot of blood. It's a good thing Nino knew what he was doing, otherwise I don't know what would've happened. He saved your life, and for that I owe him mine."

"Remind me to thank him then," Marinette said softly, yet her voice remained stern. "Because that means I owe him my life too."

She supposed they owed each other. Nino had saved her life and Marinette had saved his son's life. She hoped the slight tension lingering between them would wear away because of it.

"Could you help me sit up?" Marinette asked him softly.

Adrien nodded and readily moved to prop her up. The strain hurt her shoulder, but Marinette held back a wince as he worked to get her upright. He then moved behind her, pulling her up against him so that she could use him as a backrest.

Marinette chuckled lightly as he gently wrapped his arms around her middle, securing her in his hold. "Thank you."

"Anything for you." Adrien replied into the crook of her neck as he left a chaste kiss there. Marinette leaned further into his touch, deciding she rather deserved this special treatment she was receiving.

It gave her the chance to take in her surroundings; to reminisce over what had once been one of the best times during her youth (even despite her heartbreak with Luka.) The Liberty wasn't that different from what she remembered. Back when she was dating Luka, she used to come over to his houseboat all the time. This was where their group of friends always hung out, after all. They even started their first amateur band here. She remembered having the privilege of designing all of her friends' costumes, shooting what she deemed to be "top of the line" music videos, and helping some of her friends discover their hidden musical talents.

The inside of the Liberty looked more intact than the outside. It looked as if Luka had been taking well care of it even after the apocalypse had struck. Every single picture frame that still hung on the wall was straight and untouched, as if the place was normal. They didn't get to see things like that anymore.

It made her realize that there was still a little bit of normality left in her life.

One picture in particular had her in it, she realized. It was a picture of their amateur band—a group photo they took after releasing their first music video on YouTube, which received over a thousand views. To celebrate, they'd taken that photo. In it was Luka, his sister Juleka, herself, and their two other friends who were also a couple, Rose and Ivan.

"Hey, Adrien?"

"Hm?" He hummed softly from behind her.

"I hate to make you get up... but could you get that photo for me?"

Adrien lifted his head from her shoulder, his eyes matching her line of sight. He nodded and pressed a kiss to the top of her head, slowly standing to make sure that she could still sit up just fine without his support—which she could... (he was just being a worrywart.) She watched with a fond smile as he carefully removed the framed photo off the wall and moved back to sit down behind her. As she slowly settled back against him again, his hands came around her and brought the frame to her lap.

Marinette gently took the frame from his hands. She couldn't help but smile as she ran her fingers over the image delicately, removing the film of dust over the glass of the frame as she did so. They were all smiling widely at the camera. Luka's arm was wrapped around her shoulder in the photo.

She really missed her friends.

"Is that you?" Adrien's finger gently pressed against the glass, pointing at a younger version of herself.

"Yeah..." She nodded, smiling fondly as she recalled the memory. "I never told you, but I used to be in a band."

Adrien arched a brow, chuckling as he said, "Oh really?"

"Don't sound so surprised." Marinette smacked his arm lightly with the back of her hand. "I created all the costumes, not to mention recorded all the music videos. If Wi-Fi and phones were still a thing, I'd show you."

"That does seem like your area of expertise. I honestly couldn't see you playing an instrument." Adrien teased, though she also knew he was being genuine. She watched him raise his hand to run his fingers along the image, ghosting over where her fingers had been moments prior.

He frowned, however, when his gaze began to study the other people in the photo. "What happened to them?"

Marinette frowned as well. She stared long and hard at the image of her long-lost friends. "I'm not sure." She told him truthfully, "When the apocalypse hit, we all lost contact with each other and then we were all separated."

"Oh..." She shifted to look up at Adrien, only to find that his expression was practically unreadable. "I'm sorry."

Marinette shrugged, turning her gaze back to the frame. "It's okay. I just hope they didn't suffer."

"They probably did." Marinette and Adrien both whipped their heads around to the sound of a new voice, only to find Luka standing solemnly behind them. He was wearing a sad expression of his own. "The world we live in now is nothing but suffering."

Marinette grimaced. "I'm trying to think a bit more positively when it comes to death nowadays. Adrien's been teaching me that."

She didn't even have to look at him to know that Adrien was feeling proud.

Luka nodded, as if he understood, but there was no agreement in his eyes. "I suppose, but I do know that Juleka wasn't as fortunate."

"Your sister?" A wave of panic rose inside Marinette. Juleka has once been her very good friend. "What happened to her? You never said."

"Well... you never asked." Luka countered softly, his smile bittersweet. "Juleka just didn't have it in her."

"Didn't have what in her?"

"The strength or the courage." Luka's touching smile vanished in a matter of seconds and a frown quickly replaced it, as if he seemed to have recollected some memories that had not been kind to him. "I know you all must've thought me a coward, but I was braver than my sister. Much braver. And when it came time for us to leave the boat, I was able to... but she couldn't."

Marinette pressed her lips together. Juleka was the kind of person who was as loyal as a friend could be, but she'd always been insecure. Luka didn't have to spell it out for her to understand. Juleka's lack of confidence was what got her killed.

"Did you... you didn't leave her behind, did you?" Marinette just had to ask him, even if her assumption was wrong, because she needed to make sure that Juleka wasn't dead because of her brother's cowardliness.

Luka's eyes widened in horror, and he shook his head. "Of course not! I would never! I tried to save her... I really did... but there were just too many... and... and I..."

Luka couldn't even finish his words, which Marinette could completely relate with. It was the same for her whenever she thought about her parents and her brother. It was hard to talk about the people you lost.

Marinette nodded silently, letting him know he didn't have to continue. She'd rather not know herself either how one of her friends passed. If it was a death caused by the Blanks, she didn't want to know.

Luka left them alone after that—mostly because Nino practically dragged him back up to the deck, interrogating him with questions—like if he knew for sure how to sail the boat. Of course, Luka took that to offense.

Marinette couldn't help the smile that pulled at her lips as she listened to Luka faintly defending his sailing skills, and to their childish bickering back and forth.

Out of the four years she'd been all alone, she wouldn't have guessed that she would miss hearing other people simply talk the most.

"Are you okay?" Adrien's hand brushed against her shoulder.

Without having to say anything, she raised her hand to rest it on top of his, their fingers interlocking. Adrien pressed his lips to the back of her head.

Marinette found herself smiling, because she could see a future for them all. Something she hadn't been able to see for the past four years.

"Yeah, I'm okay."

All they had to do was sail across the ocean and make it to the states. They would be halfway there to the town she deemed their 'salvation' just by doing so. There, Marinette would finally be able to breathe, and actually live, surrounded by whom she considered to be her new family.

And with those thoughts in mind, the atmosphere felt a whole lot lighter—so light that when Adrien suggested they lay down and her head rested against his chest, she found falling asleep that night to be peaceful and easily welcomed.

However, their first night spent on the Liberty was not a normal one. Marinette woke up in the middle of the night to the sound of something strange...

Banging.

At first, she thought it was all in her head. Not having to sleep in a tree for the first time in forever meant that she was really comfortable, so it was only natural to conclude that the ruckus was all a part of a dream that she was having. It made sense considering Adrien made a bed for them on the floor with multiple, cozy  blankets all sprawled out that they'd found in the Liberty's storage units. And as for pillows, well, Marinette liked to believe Adrien's chest fit the job description well. So, it was only natural for her to sleep like she hadn't slept before.

But it wasn't a dream, much to her dismay. Because when Marinette heard the sound again, it was enough to have her sitting up in a heartbeat and have her actual heart already pounding with adrenaline. Her sudden uprightness didn't exactly help her aching shoulder either.

Adrien immediately stirred underneath her. When she leaned back to look down at him, his eyes were already wide open and staring at her on high alert.

"What is it?" He whispered when their eyes connected in the darkness.

"Did you hear that?" She asked him in a low whisper, hoping she wouldn't wake anyone else up if it wasn't necessary.

"Hear what?"

She glanced around the dark room. "I heard... banging."

"Banging?"

"Yeah." She nodded as she surveyed the room. "You didn't?"

"No, I didn't hear anything," Adrien grunted as he propped himself up on his elbows, his voice hoarse. "Are you sure you heard something?"

"I'm sure." She insisted, barely finding his eyes in the darkness.

It didn't take him long to find the genuine concern in her eyes.

Grunting, Adrien sat up and reached to the side of their makeshift bed to pull on a shirt. "I'll go take a look around." Next, he reached over for his torch and flicked it on. "Stay here."

Marinette rolled her eyes, even though he most likely couldn't see it. "I should check it out."

Adrien let out a whispered chuckle. "I'd rather you not."

"I'm a better fighter than you."

"Marinette, you're injured, and besides, we're in the middle of the ocean. What are any of us going to have to fight?"

Marinette plopped back into their bed and grunted, pulling her arms up to her chest. They'd been sailing for hours now, but it was hard to tell where they were when their sailor was currently sleeping as well.

But she supposed everyone did need their rest.

She pulled one of the blankets up to her neck, pinning it underneath her chin. "Whatever. Just hurry up and come back. I'm cold."

Adrien chuckled softly and leaned forward to press a tender kiss to her forehead. When he pulled away, she found his warmth short-lived and herself longing for his comfort. Adrien stood to his feet and carried the torch in front of him, beginning his inspection.

Marinette laid back down in the comfort of their blankets, letting out a shaky breath as she tried her best to find warmth without Adrien. It was hard to do so when the blankets were so thin, but despite feeling chilly, she found herself slowly dozing off again.

Until she felt someone gently shaking her good shoulder.

When she peaked an eye open, she found Adrien looming over her, and she also realized that the sun was beginning to rise, pouring through the Liberty's curtained windows.

Had she been sleeping for that long?

When Adrien realized she was awake, he offered her a soft smile. "Hey."

The right corner of her lips twitched upward into a half-smile. "Hey, you." She greeted him. "Did you find anything?"

Adrien shook his head. "I took a look around, but I didn't see or hear anything unusual. Everything seems to be normal."

Marinette frowned slightly at that. "Are you sure?"

Adrien nodded, offering her what she realized was a sympathetic smile. "I'm sure. I'm sorry, but I'm not sure what you heard."

Disappointed, Marinette frowned. She could've sworn that the sound was real; that it was actually a legit noise and not something that she'd concocted in her head from the lack of sleep she was receiving.

But apparently, Adrien hadn't found anything, and she'd been the one to wake him up, basically waste his time, and take away some of his sleep.

"I'm sorry." She deflated. "I shouldn't have woken you up."

Adrien waved a hand at that. "Don't be sorry. You did the right thing. You have every reason to be a bit cautious."

"Do I? Or am I just being paranoid?"

Shaking his head, Adrien gently reached out for her hand. "Marinette, it's okay to be scared. Fear keeps us from getting too comfortable."

Marinette looked at him wearily. "Fear also keeps us from living."

Adrien offered her a sad, half-smile, though she knew he couldn't deny the half-truth to her words. "Babe, fear is what keeps us alive."

They had both been right, and later on, they finally discovered what the loud banging noise was... and where it had been coming from.

"Mates...?" Luka called out when they were in the middle of eating canned spaghetti that had been found in the Liberty's kitchen cabinets. "You might want to come down and take a look at this."

He was below even below deck, and so, everyone wearily went down the dark, cold stairs that led into what looked like the abyss. But what shocked Marinette the most was when she came to stand beside Luka, following his line of sight as he pointed out of one of the Liberty's circled-shaped windows, which offered a clear underwater view of the vast sea.

She couldn't help the horrified gasp that escaped her lips when she saw them.

The Blanks—the one thing she thought could never follow them after they sailed—were swimming like free-divers in the ocean blue.

The sight had her feeling nauseous in a matter of seconds.

"How is that possible?" From behind her, Adrien placed a calloused hand on her good shoulder, his breaths coming out ragged. "I-I thought they couldn't swim."

"They can't," Marinette said, her eyes refusing to look away from the creatures that were clearly swimming. "But... they can now."

"They're evolving." Luka marveled, though no one was impressed by the revelation. "Blimey, look!" He pointed, "They've even got pads on their hands... almost liked webbed-feet."

"Honestly, Luka, no one here gives a damn." Alya deadpanned, "We're more concerned about how this happened, and what it means for us."

"Well excuse me for pointing out an important factor. In fact, this should actually be documented." Luka raised a finger at the idea, a lightbulb going off in his head. Documenting the Blanks wasn't a bad idea... though discovering that they had the ability to change wasn't exactly something anyone wanted to document about either.

Marinette was too stunned to tell him that he should be the one in charge to document them. Instead, Luka seemed to read her mind and stepped back from the window, turning and rushing back upstairs. She figured he was off to go see if he could find some paper and a pen.

"This shouldn't be possible," Marinette whispered as if the sight had finally clicked. She was horrified. "If this is happening, then that means—"

"Hey," Adrien squeezed her good shoulder. "Let's not go there. We're not sure about anything right now, so it's best not to assume."

"What exactly is there not to be sure of?" She worried her bottom lip nervously. She was probably panicking, no matter how many times she continued to chant in her mind to remain calm. "They're clearly swimming now... and I know for a fact that they couldn't do that before!"

"Are you sure?" Alya questioned.

"Yes definitely!" Marinette wasn't going insane. She remembered her time living up in the lighthouse and watching as the Blanks reached the ocean and turned in a different direction. Unfamiliar with the water, they avoided it, and yet now they were somehow smart enough to understand that it couldn't harm them? When did they learn that? "I... I-I remember watching them walk away from the ocean. The only reasonable explanation for this is that Luka is right, and that they really are evolving."

"Okay, let's just stay calm." Nino interjected, his eyes moving to her specifically. The look he offered her wasn't even that of a truce—he looked bothered. In fact, it was almost as if he was looking to blame someone for the Blanks having the ability to evolve. As if that could ever be her fault when it was never in her control to begin with.

But that wasn't quite it. It was then when she realized why he was looking at her that way. This whole idea of travelling across the ocean to look for a place safe from the Blanks had been her idea. Back in their homeland, they hadn't encountered evolving Blanks, and perhaps Nino thought that made their homeland safer.

Little did he know that if the Blanks were evolving somewhere, the ones back in their homeland would eventually evolve too.

Nino was still looking at her when he said, "Freaking out never helped anyone, Marinette, so keep calm. We don't want to lose our heads."

Marinette squared her shoulders and offered him a glare. "Don't tell me what to do, or you might just lose your head literally in a minute, Nino."

He gaze instantly hardened. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that you're blaming me for this. You better stop directing your words only at me, or we're going to have a problem."

Nino took an intimidating step forward and titled his head slightly, but not out of curiosity. His expression was filled with rage. "All of this is your fault. We just discovered that we are headed to a place where Blanks could be even smarter than they were back at home. That means we know nothing about them and that they are unpredictable. Had we stayed back at home, we wouldn't have to worry about encountering smarter Blanks."

"The Blanks back at home would have evolved too." Marinette's eyes narrowed at him. "Or did you think they were just going to stay the same and not be affected at all? If some of the Blanks are starting to experience changes, all of them will eventually."

"So, we could have prepared for that change. Instead, we're walking straight into the lion's den without knowing anything about these smarter Blanks."

"How could we have prepared for Blanks to evolve if we didn't even know it was possible?"

Nino's jaw clenched. He couldn't argue with that because it was true, so instead, he looked for another way to accuse her. "You know, I wouldn't have had to say anything if you knew how to keep yourself calm."

Marinette took an intimidating step towards him. "I'm not sure where you saw panic in me, but I'm starting to think it's you who can't remain calm."

"Okay, that's enough!" Alya shoved herself in between them, Brick clutched in her arms. Thankfully, their son lived up to the title of his name and could literally sleep like a brick, so the baby wasn't at all disturbed by their petty arguing. "I don't know what is going on between you two, but it needs to stop right now."

Nino turned to his girlfriend with his mouth agape, gesturing to Marinette with a violent wave of his hand. "Are you really going to ignore what she just said to me? She threatened me!"

"You also accused her of something that she can't even control." Alya folded her arms across her chest.

He gaped at her as if she had gone insane. "How is that worse than her threatening my life?"

"She wasn't actually plotting to cut off your head. It was a figure of speech."

"You don't even know that for sure!"

"Not capable of defending yourself, huh Nino?" Marinette interjected in a teasing manner, smirking when Nino's angered gaze snapped back to her in a matter of seconds and his frown visibly deepened. "Can't say I'm surprised, considering you always seem to hide behind your woman."

"Watch yourself, Marinette." Nino seethed, pointing a threatening finger her way. "You may be my girlfriend's new best friend and Adrien's girlfriend, but I won't hesitate to take you out of the picture if I need to."

Talk about a real threat. Marinette smirked and opened her mouth to cockily respond, but she was beaten to it when Adrien stepped forward.

"Woah, woah!" Adrien suddenly looked angrier than she had ever seen him before. "You better back off, Nino!"

Nino's gaze snapped to Adrien's. "Are you seriously taking her side after she threatened me first!?"

"I don't care if she supposedly threatened you first, don't threaten her!"

Marinette felt her heart swell with adoration for her boyfriend. The way Adrien willingly defended her against someone whom he considered like his brother pulled a wide smile to her lips, despite their current situation.

Nino looked incredibly pissed. When he stepped forward, as if looking to square his friend up, Adrien didn't back down. However, Nino was shorter than Adrien, and therefore, had to look up at the blonde, who seemed to be mirroring his intense anger.

"Back off, Nino." Adrien said lowly.

Nino raised his chin. "Or you'll do what?"

"Or I'll leave your sorry ass behind, and you won't make it to the sanctuary."

Nino bristled at that, and so did Alya. "What are you saying?" Alya interjected, taking a hesitant step forward. "Are you saying you would leave him to die because of a silly argument? That you wouldn't help him? Help us?"

"I'm saying he better remember where his place is." Adrien said, his voice low and firm. He turned his gaze away from Alya and back to Nino, who now had a blank expression on his face. "I'm the only one who knows how to get to the city. Without me, you are dead. Remember that."

Nino didn't even flinch. If anything, he only grew angrier. "And without me, where would you be, huh? I'm the one who kept you protected inside the clan. You'd be dead without me."

"I never needed you to protect me."

Nino's gaze hardened even further and his jaw set. It was the angered look of betrayal. "You owe me just as much as I owe you!"

"I don't owe you anything!"

"You owe me your life—!"

A loud crunching sound broke their heated argument. In a matter of seconds, everyone had quickly turned their attention to the sound, only to find Luka leaning against one of the boat's pillars with his arms folded, holding a bag of stale 'pirate booty' chips in his hand.

When he realized all of their eyes were suddenly on him, he shrugged, "What?" He asked as he shoved another chip in his mouth. "Don't look at me like that. I found these in the cupboard while I was looking for something to write with, and things were just starting to get good."

Adrien and Marinette simply groaned, whereas Nino shot Luka probably the ugliest glare in existence.

No one asked Luka if he had any more bags of Pirate Booty.

While munching on stale chips, Luka pulled out an old-looking, brown leather journal from underneath his arm and a mechanical pencil that had been stuffed into his back pocket. She was slightly relieved to see that he had actually been serious about documenting new information regarding the Blanks.

Since the outbreak had occurred, she'd never once thought about writing down her own knowledge despite having plenty of time to study the Blanks herself. However, Luka seemed to be smart that way and thought ahead. It would be wise to have knowledge that they could pass down in the form of writing if they were no longer around to tell it themselves.

Luka silently moved back to the glass window to begin his first journal entree, and the only sound left that could be detected in the tense silence was the crunching sound of Luka's every bite, even until night rolled along.

Luka remained at the window with a torch in his mouth, continuing his writings even after everyone had gone to bed.

Marinette, however, couldn't take her eyes off Adrien.

In most instances, if someone would've teased her for it (like Alya tended to do much too often for her liking), she probably would've socked them in the face for trying to get her to blush at the obvious: that she enjoyed admiring her man.

But she wasn't staring at Adrien because she was admiring him.

She was staring at him because she knew something was wrong.

After their heated argument with Nino, everyone had parted ways for the night. Thankfully, no one had resorted to using their fists, but Adrien and Nino weren't exactly on speaking terms at the moment either. After all, Nino had threatened to kill her... even if she may have done that to him first. But she wasn't afraid. She knew Nino couldn't kill, let alone resort to killing her. From what she knew so far about him, he was incapable of doing so.

But Adrien... well, she wasn't so sure if he was capable of killing.

When she'd first met him, alone and without a weapon, she thought he was too weak, too soft, and too mellow. When she saw Adrien tonight, however, she saw a completely different person and an emotion she didn't know he was even capable of processing.

She saw rage.

And Adrien was still angry, even after everyone (besides Luka) had gone to bed for the night. She could tell just by the way his shoulders were raised into his neck, leaving him completely tensed. Even after convincing him to join her in their makeshift bed on the floor, and lifting his shirt over his head for him, she could still faintly hear him grinding his teeth, as if he were about to lose whatever composure he had left.

And when she opened her eyes, it was no surprise to her that the spot beside her was cold with Adrien no longer there. Instead, he was sitting up, his bare back facing her.

Marinette sighed heavily and sat up as well, pulling the blanket up to her neck. "Adrien, what are you doing?"

He grunted, not bothering to turn around and face her. "Keeping watch."

She rubbed at one of her eyes, suppressing a yawn. "You don't need to keep watch, Adrien. Just come back to bed please."

Adrien shifted, but he made no move to come back and lie down. "No."

Marinette bristled slightly at that. "Adrien—"

"I said no."

"Oh, don't worry, I heard you the first time." Marinette's tone was a warning on its own as she moved so that she was now behind him and propped herself up on her knees, leaning against his back and innocently seeking his warmth. Adrien grunted with the extra added weight but didn't push her away. She draped the blanket around her shoulders, trying to wrap them together in a cocoon of warmth.

"Sorry, I'm not trying to be snappy." He murmured stubbornly.

Marinette kissed the back of his neck, where the little hairs were beginning to need trimming. "I know. Why don't you come back to bed and relax?"

He shook his head. "I can't."

Marinette slowly removed her lips from his neck and instead rested her cheek against his shoulder blade. "Why not?"

Adrien let out a heavy sigh. "Because I don't trust Nino."

"He's not going to do anything." And Marinette knew that for a fact. Nino was too much of a lap dog to actually take the first bite.

"You don't know that for sure."

"Adrien," Marinette sighed, pressing a kiss to his shoulder. "I do know that for sure. Nino doesn't have it in him."

Adrien grunted, though he didn't have to say anything else for her to know that he still wasn't convinced. "How do you know that for sure?"

"Because I could see it in his eyes," Marinette said as if it were that simple. "You can tell everything about a person just by their eyes, you know."

Adrien hummed, but it seemed his stubbornness still refused to give in to her assurances.

"Besides," Marinette whispered against his fare skin. "You should know by now that I'm fully capable of taking care of myself. If Nino and I ever got into a fight, he wouldn't stand a chance."

Much to her relief, Adrien finally chuckled softly. Hearing him laugh had her smiling against his skin.

"You're right," He murmured, and she could hear the smile in his voice, but something else still clouded his mind when he continued, "But I'm still taking back what I said."

She frowned in confusion. "Which is?"

"That I owe Nino my life. I take that back completely."

Marinette's frown only deepened further. "Adrien—"

"No, Marinette, I know what you're going to say, but I can't trust him." Adrien interrupted her, shaking his head. "Not after everything that he said and certainly not after he threatened to kill you so casually right in front of me."

"He wasn't actually going to kill me—"

"And you shouldn't have threatened him either."

"It wasn't even a legit threat. It was literally word play!"

"How was anyone supposed to know that?"

"If he wasn't so uptight, he would've known."

Adrien glanced over his shoulder to look at her, frowning, "All I know is that I don't trust Nino anymore. I don't owe him anything, especially my life."

"If you say so," Marinette poked his shoulder. "But that can't be all that's bothering you. Anything else on your mind that you feel like sharing?"

He chuckled softly, shaking his head as he finally turned around so that he could face her. "How do you know me so well?"

She shrugged, moved backwards to allow him the space he needed. As soon as he was facing her again, she crawled into his lap.

Adrien laughed, wrapping the blanket around them both as soon as she was comfortably settled. "You're so needy."

Marinette gently leaned her head back, only so that she could stick her tongue out at him. "I'm cold."

"Uh-huh. That's just another word for needy."

Marinette pinched his thigh underneath the blanket, earning her a whispered yelp. "Tell me what's going on inside that big head of yours, blondie."

Adrien rolled his eyes playfully at the nickname, but sighed defeatedly, "I've just been thinking..."

"Well," Marinette chuckled, "That can't be good."

Adrien shot her a mischievous smirk. Marinette wriggled and tried to suppress her giggles when he tried to find a patch of her skin to pinch in return as payback, only to fail miserably when she somehow twisted effortlessly out of his reach. All too soon, they both settled in a comfortable silence, their whispered laughter dying down. Sighing contently, she leaned her head back against his chest.

"What have you been thinking about?" She asked him.

Adrien's defeated sigh was enough to tell her that what he was currently thinking about wasn't something that would make either of them smile.

"I...I was thinking about... death." He admitted.

Marinette frowned deeply, "Why would you be thinking about that?"

Adrien chuckled softly, "Not in the way you're thinking." He assured her, though his laughter didn't sound anything close to comforting. It sounded forced. "I just meant... how capable are any of us when it comes to granting or witnessing death?"

Marinette hummed, slowly contemplating his question. "I believe anyone is capable of killing when it comes to the people they care about." And she meant that deeply. She would've never deemed herself a killer before the outbreak, but she had killed more than once before. She liked to believe it was because certain circumstances could bring out a side of you that you never knew existed.

But her words didn't seem to comfort Adrien. "Have you killed anyone before?" He asked barely over a whisper, as if he were afraid to even ask. "Someone who wasn't a Blank?"

Marinette suddenly tensed, the hairs on her arms bristling. She knew there was no way to hide the reaction that question gave her, especially when Adrien most likely felt her tense up against him.

So, instead, she decided to be honest with him. "Yes."

Adrien's reaction was immediate. He shuddered. She frowned the moment she realized he seemed afraid, but the blonde didn't seem to want to part from her either. If anything, his arms tightened around her.

"Why?" He asked.

Marinette swallowed heavily, licking her chapped lips. "They were a threat. They were trying to kill me, and I was simply protecting myself."

She felt Adrien's hands, which were now settled against her stomach, shift slightly as his fingers worked to caress the cloth that covered her skin. In her mind, she really hoped he wouldn't ask who she had to kill.

But she should've known better. Adrien was a curious guy.

"Who did you kill?"

It was Marinette's turn to shudder. The memories of that day began resurfacing as fast as a tidal wave, and she gasped audibly when the sad, overwhelming sensation only seemed to intensify and feel as if it were the present again.

"My brother." Marinette whispered, "I had to kill my brother."

Adrien gasped. She knew that to him, that answer was completely unexpected. When Marinette had first mentioned her family's passing to him, she didn't dare elaborate back then, but she did make it seem as if her entire family was killed due to the Blanks.

Slowly, Marinette leaned over to her right to reach for her machete which was laying on the floor beside their bed. Adrien released his grip around her middle slightly, only so that she could have enough room to reach over for what she needed. As she did so, she could feel his hands shaking, as if he was suddenly afraid of her, or what she was capable of doing. Marinette sighed and sat upright again, leaning back against him and holding the unsheathed blade in her lap.

"I killed him with this." She traced the pad of her finger along the blade. "It was his. He used to do a lot of hunting with his friends. The only reason I keep it with me now is because I owe him that much. I owe to carry a piece of him with me for however long I live."

She felt Adrien's chest rise as he inhaled a shaky breath. "What did he do to deserve death?"

"He blamed me for our mother's death, and for our sister." Marinette said, her voice completely void of all emotion. "He was convinced I sacrificed them for my own life, but I didn't. It was their own fault for going outside, for being the kind people they were, and for trying to help those who were weak and abandoned out on the street."

Marinette remembered the day clearly. It was the first day of the outbreak, when no one knew what was going on. They never had a chance. She remembered the streets being flooded with people as they ran from something no one understood yet. She remembered others being trampled over; left to die out on the streets because they couldn't keep up.

She remembered how compassionate her mother was and how loving her sister was. Their hearts were too pure and kind for their own good.

And because of their kindness, they were killed.

"My brother was furious with me." Marinette glanced down at her hands, which were tightly gripping onto the handle of the machete. "He started accusing me of absurd things—yelling hysterically at me, and then he pulled out this machete..." She lifted the weapon at eye-level, making sure that Adrien could see it. "...And started crazily slashing it in my direction. He threatened to kill me, and so, I defended myself."

She heard Adrien exhale a shaky breath. "He sounds terrifying."

"In that moment, he was, but he was a good big brother," Marinette said sadly, tracing her thumb idly along the handle of the machete now. "He just couldn't handle the loss, and because of it, he lost his mind."

She looked down at the machete in her lap again, a small smile forming on her lips as good memories of her brother resurfaced. Even though her brother was a good person, she liked to believe that side of him had always been there.

It was just a matter of figuring out how to find the key and unlock that door.

"Do you miss him?" Adrien asked her after a moment of silence, his voice so soft that she almost didn't hear him.

"All the time." She said, and she meant it. There wasn't day that didn't go by where she didn't think about her brother. A part of her wished that he would've been strong enough; that he was alive today.

But a part of her was also glad he didn't have to live in this world anymore.

"The scars on your back..." Adrien broke the silence again, this time with a question she knew was bound to come up eventually. He was hesitant as he searched for the right way to word his curiosity—as if he thought the line he was about to cross would be him walking on shards of glass. "Did he...?"

"Not my brother..." Marinette shook her head. "Those were from my father."

Adrien audibly shuddered. "Your father... he was abusive?"

Marinette nodded. She slowly slid her hand over his when it started to tremble against her middle. She threaded their fingers together, hoping her touch would help him relax. "It's not the kind of abuse that you might be thinking of."

"Oh yeah?" He laughed darkly, and there was definite hatred behind it. Pure hatred for a man that he would never get to meet. "You mean the physical kind? 'Cause that's exactly what I'm thinking of."

"No," she shook her head. "I'm talking about the un-intentional kind."

He looked at her oddly. His open expression of confusion was enough of an opening for her to continue and explain what she meant. "My father suffered from PTSD. He was in the army and having to fight in war kinda messed up his brain. Certain things would trigger him to relive his days during war... and every time that would happen, he would go ballistic."

"What type of things would trigger it?" Adrien asked cautiously.

Marinette let out a heavy sigh as she began to recall a vivid memory of her childhood—one in which she wished she could forget. "My brother and I were pretty young—I was about six and my brother... maybe nine. One time, we were wrestling each other, and my brother pushed me back. I lost my balance and fell into a vase, and it made a loud sound when it shattered on the floor. That sound is what triggered my father. One minute, he'd been sitting on the couch reading the morning newspaper, and the next, he was storming over towards us looking so furious. My brother took off out of fear and avoided his anger, but I wasn't as lucky."

It was a horrifying story to tell. Her fingers involuntarily squeezed his, and he squeezed hers back, assuring her without words that her father couldn't do that to her again.

"How many times did something like that happen?"

"Too many times to count," Marinette admitted truthfully, "But every time he realized afterwards what he'd done, he'd feel awful about it. Sometimes my brother and I would hear him crying. He would leave sometimes for days at a time because he was afraid of being home and hurting us."

Adrien's other hand began to rub up and down her arm. "Did your father ever get therapy? What did your mother do about all of that?"

Marinette slowly shook her head. "We couldn't afford therapy, and the insurance we had wouldn't cover it either—because I guess they didn't care about the people fighting for their rights, but whatever, I guess. Karma got them for that. But we were kinda... poor... so, you know, we didn't exactly have funds to spend on luxuries like personal assistants and chefs like your father had—"

"I get it." Adrien chuckled softly at that. "You weren't rich like me, and that's totally okay. I was only asking because I know therapy can be a big help for people who suffer with those kinds of things."

"Hmm." Marinette hummed in agreement. "That's true. I just wish he would've had those opportunities. Sometimes I wonder if it would've made a difference."

"What ended up happening to him?"

Marinette felt tears well up on her bottom lids, threatening to spill over. As much as her father had caused her pain the majority of her life, she still loved him regardless of it. Watching him be in a constant battle with himself had never been a satisfaction to her. "My mother got pregnant with my little sister. After that, my father left for good and never came back. I think he was afraid of hurting her too, so to save her the pain, he decided it would be best to not be a part of her life. I'm not sure what happened to him after that."

Nothing else needed to be said after that. Adrien continued to silently comfort her, rubbing a hand up and down her arm. The silent wonder remained though on what had happened to her father, and she supposed she would never find out. A part of her wondered if he was still alive—if his survival instincts from his life in the army kept him alive, but a part of her also knew he was probably dead... maybe even a Blank himself.

Perhaps it was a good thing that he was no longer alive. After all, not everyone was capable of handling the new dangers humans themselves had thrown right in their own faces. Only a lucky few got to say that they were strong enough to endure the new hardships.

And even then, were they really even lucky?

No, no they weren't.

There was nothing lucky about running for your life.

That in itself was a discouraging thought, yet they continued on their journey nonetheless despite continuously having to run for their lives. They had somewhat of a break from that, though, because for twelve, long weeks, they remained isolated on the Liberty.

During that lengthy time, Adrien had plenty of stories to tell, and Marinette always found the time to listen to them, even when it was late at night, and she was slowly falling asleep. Adrien told her stories from his early childhood—stories that brought a smile to her lips as she pictured a little blonde boy running around the house butt naked while his mother chased after him. She especially liked the stories Adrien told about his mother. He barely remembered her, and yet, he spoke about her so fondly as if she'd been a part of his life this whole time.

Some of his stories, however, weren't as fond. He went into more detail about his mother's disappearance when she asked, which had apparently left a vacant hole in his father's heart that could not be filled by anything (or anyone) else. Marinette found that a bit hard to believe at first considering Adrien was convinced his father had once cheated on his mother with his one of his personal assistants. However, his mother's disappearance caused his father to become isolated, cold, and unfriendly. It was why Adrien and his father were never close.

He then told her about how he'd come to learn about the secret city, the sanctuary that they were currently trying to find—the city that Marinette was not entirely convinced existed. He went on to tell her about how the clan had come across an abandoned campsite while scavenging for useful resources. It was then when Adrien found a portable radio stashed away in a backpack and chose not to tell anyone about it. Instead, he held onto it.

At the time, he thought he could use it to contact someone.

What he didn't expect was for someone to contact him.

A man who called himself Timothy had called through the radio one night, startling Adrien awake. Since this had all happened before he was separated from the clan—and since he also hadn't told anyone else about the working communication device he'd found—it startled him when someone's voice echoed through it at random because he didn't want anyone else hearing it.

Adrien had eagerly replied in secret, intending not to wake anyone else in the camp.

And during their conversation, Timothy gave Adrien vague but complete instructions on how to get to their sanctuary.

However, that was the last time Adrien had spoken to Timothy. Unfortunately, the radio was destroyed whenever their group leader, Xavier, found out about it, and the only reason Adrien wasn't banished from the group for keeping it a secret was because Nino had jumped in to protect him.

Back then, Nino hadn't known what he'd been protecting Adrien for. No one else had known about the radio, or the city that Timothy claimed could save them all, so when Xavier found out, it was only natural for him to keep it a secret and, after careful consideration, ensure Adrien didn't die.

And that's when Marinette realized why Adrien had called himself important.

He was important because he was the only one who knew how to get to the city.

That was why Adrien had been confident about not being kicked out of the clan, because he figured he was too valuable to be disposable—even if he didn't follow the rules regarding the repopulation act. But they left before they could even test out that theory—and yet, Xavier still came after them, shooting so widely she doubted he cared about who he hit. That only meant he wasn't as anxious about losing Adrien as she thought. He was furious. She had no doubt that his intentions had been to kill.

She had no idea who he planned to kill, but she had a pretty good idea that after Adrien's second betrayal, he was on the top of Xavier's list. After all, if Adrien was dead, this journey would all be for nothing considering they would never make it to the city. That in itself would be a successful revenge, even if Xavier were to doom himself in the end. Thankfully, though, Xavier couldn't follow them, and they would most likely never cross paths with him again.

After Adrien described Nino's successful attempt in saving him from getting thrown out of the clan, Marinette was quick to remind him about Nino's loyalty when he'd told her that story (even though she really disliked Nino.) But Adrien huffed stubbornly, claiming he still didn't trust Nino regardless of that.

Marinette couldn't blame him, she supposed. But that didn't mean she didn't wish they would make up.

In the middle of the night one night, the Liberty jerked into a hard stop. The movement caused everyone to wake up instantly. Startled awake, Marinette herself stood to her feet and rushed to look out one of the small windows.

It was then when she finally saw land.

Adrien was just as excited as she was. He joined her at the window, placing a hand on her shoulder as he marveled the land they hadn't seen in months now. Despite that it was too dark to even see it properly, that didn't stop them from cheering together and celebrating that they had made it across an ocean to the other side of the world.

When sunrise came the next morning, Marinette realized it was snowing.

"Snow?" Somehow, Adrien had woken up as well. He was standing behind her again, looking over her shoulder, but his tone of voice was laced with confusion—the same emotion she was currently feeling as they both watched white flakes fall from the sky. "How can it also be winter here? Winter was about to start in Paris, which doesn't make any sense."

She wished she had an answer for him, but she had no idea herself. Marinette frowned. Logically, she knew it shouldn't have been winter on the other side of the world, when in Europe, winter had just begun itself. Surely, they should've been welcomed with warmer weather?

But for some reason, the whole world seemed to be experiencing winter at the same time, and that didn't seem normal or right.

"Let's bundle up." Nino said, already taking his son into his arms and wrapping the baby up in another thin blanket. Brick, however, whimpered the moment he was disturbed and struggled to escape from being bundled up. Marinette could only assume it was because the baby was already hot.

No one argued. Instead, everyone gathered up their belongings and packed the extra blankets. When they stepped outside, it was freezing.

Brick had been strapped to Alya's chest, hidden from view beneath a few, thin blankets that had been wrapped around him. Alya had a single blanket wrapped around herself and her son as well, but it wasn't of much help with the cold winds that were beginning to pick up.

"I hope you know where you're going, Adrien." Nino slung his backpack over his shoulder, shoving Adrien slightly as he passed him. "Otherwise, we'll freeze to death before we have to worry about a Blank."

Adrien grunted, staring daggers into Nino's back. His hands tightened around the straps of his backpack. "I know where we are."

"Good. Then get us there."

Marinette turned to accompany Adrien, only to find that he had already pursued forward at the head of the group, making sure he was in the lead and away from anyone else. Marinette shook her head and smiled as she watched him march, knowing fully well that he was pouting underneath all that stubbornness.

"Marinette?" She turned her head to the right, finding Alya matching her steady pace. "Can I talk to you?"

Marinette offered her a smile. "Just because the boys aren't talking, doesn't mean we can't."

Despite her serious expression, that seemed to earn her a chuckle from Alya. "Touché." She hiked her baby a little higher up her chest, as if he seemed to be slipping. Marinette could only assume that having to care for a little kid in these conditions was anything but easy. "Well, I was just wondering if you could teach me how to hunt, or at least wield a weapon properly."

Marinette raised an eyebrow slightly. "Really? You're serious?"

"Yeah." Alya nodded, "If I'm going to be raising this little boy, I need to know how to do it right, and I can't constantly rely on you all the time either. I have to be independent in some areas."

"I like the sound of this version of you better." Marinette smiled, and thankfully, Alya mirrored that smile. "Sure, I'll teach you everything I know."

And with that said, Alya looked lighter. "That would be great." She said, and the sight even made Marinette feel better. With Alya looking to better her survival skills, Marinette could be at peace knowing that her friend wasn't interested anymore in ending her own life.

And she could be at peace knowing Brick would be okay.

"What about me? Will you teach me too?" And suddenly, Luka was at her side again, offering her the widest grin. She wasn't surprised that he had eavesdropped on their conversation, but just because he had done it didn't mean she would let him get away with it.

"Not if you keep listening in on my conversations," Marinette snapped, causing him to quickly step back and create some appropriate distance in between them. "And I guess I can.... since it'd be cruel of me not to."

"Why would it be cruel of you not to?" Luka furrowed a brow in confusion.

"Well, because then you'd die..." Marinette stated plainly, "And that would be kinda cool—I mean, cruel. I definitely meant to say cruel."

Beside her, Alya instantly burst out laughing. Marinette couldn't help the smirk that tugged at her lips as Luka clearly caught on to her implication, frowning when realization struck him.

"Hey, don't look at me like that." Marinette failed to hold in her chortle too. "I meant to say 'cruel' from the beginning. I fixed my mistake the moment I noticed."

"Haha very funny." Luka deadpanned, looking anything but amused. "Thanks for having my back in this world, Marinette."

"Well, I don't exactly have a choice, but you're welcome."

"Hey Marinette!" She was distracted momentarily when she heard Adrien call her name, and when she turned to look ahead of her, she couldn't help the smile that tugged at her lips as she found him jogging towards her.

She bid Alya and Luka farewell for a moment as she excused herself and jogged to meet Adrien halfway.

When they reached each other in the middle, Adrien was panting slightly, his breath already showing in front of them like a cloud of smoke.

Marinette smiled, "What's up?"

"There's a house up ahead." He told her breathlessly. She found herself looking over his shoulder, only to find an endless forest covered in white. Since they'd left the Liberty hours prior, the snow hadn't subsided, and if anything, it was getting harder for them to trek through the white substance.

"Is it empty?" Marinette asked him cautiously.

Adrien shrugged, his teeth involuntarily chattering as he said, "I don't know, but I really think it would be a good place to consider spending the night in."

"I don't disagree," Marinette said, "But it's important that we check the house thoroughly. Let me go up ahead and—"

"No need." Adrien held up a hand. "Nino already went ahead to check it out."

Marinette couldn't help but gape at him. "And you let him go by himself?"

"Why wouldn't I? He's a grown man fully capable of doing it himself."

"Are you serious? What if there's a Blank inside and he gets bit?"

"He's not a baby, Marinette. He can handle it."

"Are you out of your mind right now?" Marinette shoved past him, shaking her head as she plunged through the snow down the path where footsteps were still visible. "Nino doesn't know the first thing about killing a Blank. He won't know how to handle it. No one here can handle it, no one but me."

She heard the snow crunch behind her as Adrien followed her. "Oh yeah? Well, for your information, I can handle them too."

"Oh really?" She scoffed at that. "Well, that's news to me. Did you learn that before or after I saved you from a hoard of Blanks?"

"Must you bring up the past?" Adrien groaned, embarrassed.

"Only when you're trying to be stubborn... and stupid."

Adrien groaned again, but this time, it was laced with a sense of guilt more than it was with embarrassment. "You're right. I'm being a little stubborn—"

"Only a little?" Marinette snickered when Adrien bumped his shoulder with hers, briefly flashing her a playful smile.

"Okay." He chuckled, "Maybe a lot. I'm just... really annoyed with Nino."

Marinette hummed as if she understood—because she really did, but annoyance was a dangerous emotion to dwell on in their world. "Enough to send him to his death?" She asked thoughtfully, her brow slightly raised.

She watched as Adrien flinched, and he met her eyes briefly with a look she couldn't quite decipher. "No." He said lowly, "That's not what I was trying to do. He offered to go up ahead, but I honestly just can't trust him."

"We've already been over this, Adrien. Nino won't hurt me."

"Marinette, I've known Nino for a really long time." Adrien's eyes fell to his feet as they trekked through snow side-by-side. "He used to be someone who never bluffed. So, when he says things, I take him seriously."

"Even if Nino wanted to kill me, he wouldn't be able to," Marinette told him sternly. "Nino may not bluff, but he hesitates. I don't."

Adrien glanced up at her again from the corner of his eye, and she could easily see the hopelessness laced in his irises that caused her heart to squeeze in guilt. In a way, Marinette sympathized with his uneasiness. She knew how it felt to have constant worry about losing someone you cared about.

But she also knew that she was superior to Nino, in a sense that, if they were to fight, blade to blade, she would win.

"If Nino were to come at my throat with a blade, I would kill him without hesitation, Adrien. That's something I can certainly promise."

Adrien's eyes searched hers thoroughly. Marinette wasn't sure if her words made him distraught or not, but from the way he was currently looking at her, it was obvious that he understood she was being completely serious. If she had to, she would kill any sane civilian if they came at her first. She wouldn't want to, but she would. Her prerogative wasn't with humans, after all. It was with the Blanks. 

The blonde swallowed, his eyes never leaving hers as he said, "I know."

She held his gaze. "I just need to make sure that we understand each other... that I will do everything in my power to protect this group. But if someone was to turn against me, I would end their life, and that includes not just Nino, but Alya, Luka... and even you."

Adrien's eyes widened slightly. "I would never betray you—"

"I know you wouldn't, Adrien." She assured him softly, "It's just an example."

He still didn't look convinced. "So, you're basically saying that you would end my life if I... turned against you?"

Her gaze never softened. If anything, it only grew harder. "Yes."

Adrien chuckled bitterly at that, his eyes darkening slightly. "Well... what else can I say to that then? It looks like you don't fully trust me."

"This isn't about trust." She told him. "This is about being prepared in case someone here loses their mind and can't deal with the pressure anymore. Any that you can break at any second, and that's something I'm prepared for."

"And what about you?" He asked her, his voice rising in slight frustration. "What if you lose your mind, do you expect me to kill you because of that?"

"I've already lost my mind years ago," Marinette said emotionlessly, "But if I were to lose it to the point where I became a threat to everyone else, then yes, I would expect you to kill me."

"You can't be serious?" Adrien blanched, his face going a ghostly white. "I would never kill you. Not unless you changed. You hear me? I wouldn't!"

"Even if it put everyone else in danger?" She questioned, matching his horrid expression with a raised brow.

Adrien grunted as if he was having an inner battle with his inner turmoil. "Call me selfish, but yes. I don't care about them as much as I care about you. I couldn't let you die."

Marinette raised her head to meet his eyes once again and nodded. The smile that slowly pulled at her lips afterward must've greatly confused him, but his answer was exactly what she'd been expecting.

"Then let's keep that same energy when it comes to Nino, or anyone else in this group." Marinette placed a hand on his shoulder. "You might not care for them as deeply as you care for me, but we are all a family now, and if we all don't get through this together, what'll be the point in any of this?"

She needed Adrien to understand this. Whether any of them fought, disagreed, or got angry at each other, it didn't matter, because that was all part of what made them a family. The only thing that mattered was making sure they all would make it to the sanctuary.

Adrien nodded slowly, as if realization dawned on him. She could see the guilt that quickly overwhelmed him as soon as he realized what he'd done. "I...I don't know what to say. I feel terrible." And then his eyes widened in fear. "I...I let him go off on his own! What if—"

"Let's just get to the house." Marinette stopped him before he could spiral out of control. There was no need to panic. It wouldn't help them now.

When the house finally became visible over a hill of white snow, there was no sight of Nino anywhere. She could hear Adrien's breath hitch in his throat, and her heartbeat involuntarily began to race as they slowly neared the house with careful, quiet steps. It was too eerily quiet—something that didn't exactly make her feel any better, and Adrien's labored breaths weren't exactly helping with her concentration either. When they reached the front door of the house, Marinette reached forward to twist the doorknob open...

...Only to find that it was locked.

"It's locked?" Adrien whispered.

She nodded silently, carefully moving around to trek along the side of the house. Adrien's boots crunching in the snow was enough of an indication that he was following her.

"Can't you just break down the door?" He asked quietly from behind her.

"And risk ruining our stay for the night?" Marinette countered, "No way. If Nino's inside, he might've locked the door. So, let's find another way in."

"But why would he lock the door?" Adrien frightfully asked, "He knew we were coming, and besides, how else would we get in?"

Marinette didn't have an answer for his first question, but to answer his second question, she merely smirked and pointed up.

And when his eyes followed, there was no mistaking he understood her perfectly when his gaze landed on the window that was cracked open.

An irritated groan escaped his lips.

She rubbed her hands together and cracked her knuckles.

It was difficult at first, but Marinette was able to climb on Adrien's shoulders, despite his complaining. She would've offered to lift him up instead, had it not been for the fact that not only could she not lift him, but she also didn't have enough confidence sending him inside alone and knowing he could defend himself.

So, she squeezed through the window, and once inside, told him that she would open the front door for him.

Adrien acknowledged her with a hasty mention that he was cold, so she better hurry up and let him in, and the sound of boots crunching in the show was her sign that he was already heading back around to the front of the house to wait for her. Marinette playfully shook her head at how dramatic he was being and slowly lowered herself to the floor. As her eyes adjusted to the room, she quickly realized she was in a tiny bathroom. The toilet seat was open, revealing a rust-filled bowl with no water inside. She lifted the lid of the tank and found that it too was also empty—a sign that someone else might've scavenged the house before them and emptied it as a source of drinking water. From the way the wallpaper was peeling, it seemed the rest of the house wasn't too far behind. She had reason to believe this place had been abandoned long before the apocalypse had hit.

As she scanned the small, dark room more thoroughly, it was easy to acknowledge the torn shower curtain and even the rusty sink with a missing faucet.

When she reached the door, the knob was missing.

"Seriously?" She mumbled to herself, looking to see if she could find it on the floor somewhere. But from the condition this place seemed to be in, it was less likely she would find anything.

The first thing she did was press her ear against the wooden door. Her knuckles followed with a soft knock, and as she breathed out slowly through parted lips, she waited to see if she could hear any movement on the other side. When all seemed silent, Marinette backed away a few steps and ran forward, slamming her good shoulder into the wooden mass.

The door fell off of its hinges easily.

On the other side, she was met with a very unfortunate sight. Not only did the home reek with a horrific rotting smell, but right beside her, sat a lifeless Blank. Well... at least what looked to be lifeless. It was sitting on the floor, its legs outstretched, leaning against the wall with its head hung.

It didn't stir, but she pulled out her machete and cut off its head nonetheless.

She didn't trust those things.

As she worked her way around the house, she quickly found the front door and unlocked it, slowly opening it. She was met with Adrien's shivering figure, and he eagerly pushed his way inside to escape the cold. She could tell he instantly regretted it as soon as he smelled the stench.

"Ew!" He quickly plugged his nose, meeting her eyes desperately. "What is that horrible smell?"

"Dead bodies and lots of mold." Marinette supplied. Her eyes continued a search around the area from where she stood. The house had clearly been raided. Everything was misplaced, items she couldn't even recognize all scattered across the floor. She wouldn't even be surprised if there were other carcasses in the home, nor would she be surprised if they were alive.

Almost urgently, he asked, "Blanks?"

"One. So far, at least," Marinette answered quietly, "But I think it was already dead before we got here. Either way, I double checked."

Adrien slowly glanced around the large living room they stood in with unsure eyes, and she knew just by looking into his eyes that he had the same thought she had. They couldn't stay here. The air inside was probably harmful, and the environment was decaying.

Not only that, but this wasn't a safe place for a baby either.

"So, what do we do?" Adrien asked her. "It's getting close to sunset—should we just sleep in a tree and pray we don't freeze to death?"

Marinette's eyes worriedly scanned the room, but no matter how hard she tried to deem the place safe, she knew they couldn't stay here. But where were they supposed to go in order to escape the cold? It wasn't as if they had many options. They were in the middle of the forest, so it wasn't as if they could look for another house, and the Liberty was miles back, so even if they all agreed to head back, they wouldn't make it in time before the sun set. And travelling at night was not an option.

So, sleeping in a tree was their only option.

"We need to get back to Alya and Luka." Marinette said, "After we re-group, I'll find us a tree for the night. At this point, it's our only safe option."

"What about Nino?" Adrien asked worriedly, "He's not here, and he's supposed to be here. Shouldn't we go looking for him—?"

"Adrien, we can't travel at night. We just can't. I'm sorry."

"But he'll be out at night by himself! He'll freeze or get eaten!"

"I know, but there's nothing else I can do. Nighttime belongs to the Blanks, remember? Our best bet is to find a tree to sleep in and... hope Nino makes it through the night."

"But what if—"

"Adrien!" Marinette grasped his shoulders, shaking him slightly. She needed him to calm down before he lost himself. She needed him to remain levelheaded. "Right now, we need to focus on Alya and Brick. If that baby doesn't get enough heat, he will die tonight. So right now, that's my main priority."

It didn't take long for Adrien to understand their new goal, and although he was still reluctant to leave the area without Nino, he understood that it needed to be done. As the forest slowly grew darker by the second, she and Adrien trampled through snow as quickly as they could. With the white substance currently up to their knees, it was practically impossible to beat the setting sun.

"It's getting dark, Marinette." Adrien's teeth were chattering, and not just out of fear. Along with the setting sun, the temperature was also dropping rapidly.

Marinette simply trudged onward. As long as she could still see, she believed they would be fine, but to appease his fear, she handed Adrien her torch, and when he turned it on, it brightened the forest around them and helped to better navigate their path.

And it also helped to spot Alya and Luka leaned against a large tree.

"It's about time you prats showed up!" Luka exclaimed as soon as he recognized them, sounding frightened. "Care to explain why you basically left us behind?"

"Now really isn't the time to explain." Marinette leaned the palm of her hand against the same tree trunk they'd been resting against, looking up to hastily examine its branches. Although she couldn't see them very well, she didn't have the time to be picky about where they slept for the night. "I need you both to climb, as fast as you can. We're running out of time."

"Running out of time?" Luka repeated, confused. "What do you mean?"

"It's getting dark," Adrien said. "It isn't safe for us to be out at night. The Blanks are extremely active."

Marinette quickly moved to assist Alya, who was seated in the snow and leaned against the tree still. She had her baby clutched to her chest, buried underneath the blankets she had, but Marinette could still tell she was cold—if her shivering was anything to go by.

"Alya?" The ravenette carefully squatted down to her level and placed a hand on her friend's shoulder. "How's Brick?"

The brunette whimpered and slowly lifted her head to meet Marinette's eyes. "He's cold." She whispered hoarsely, "We all are."

"I know." Marinette replied.

With shaky legs, Alya stood to her feet with Marinette's help.

But then, Alya tried to take off her sling.

"Woah, wait! What are you doing?" Marinette scrambled to push Alya's arms down, which would keep the sling hidden under her blanket, but Alya simply tugged her arms out of her hold, not seeming to agree. "You can't risk taking him out. It's too cold."

"I want you to keep him tonight." Alya whispered, sounding defeated. "I know you'll be able to keep him warm."

"What are you talking about? You can keep him warm too."

"Marinette please." But Alya was persistent, and before Marinette could even blink twice, the sling was already in her arms. The baby didn't even stir, which worried her slightly, but she had no time to dwell over it. Instead, she buried the baby underneath the blanket she had wrapped around herself. She exchanged a silent look with Alya, and enough was said in between that look for Marinette to suddenly understand her actions.

Alya wasn't worried about keeping Brick warm. She was worried she wouldn't be able to keep herself warm.

And if she couldn't stay warm, Brick wouldn't stand a chance.

"Okay." Marinette agreed, nodding once. "I'll keep him for the night."

"Thank you." Alya breathed, relieved. She hesitantly offered her a small smile with severely chapped lips, as if she were afraid smiling too wide would risk cracking them further. Marinette didn't blame her. She could already feel the cold doing a number on her own skin—whether that be her lips, her nose, her fingers, or her even ears, each part of her body was slowly freezing, and she knew she couldn't be the only one. Adrien was still shivering beside her, indicating he wasn't too far behind.

"Wait." All of their attention was back on Alya when she suddenly frowned, looking around almost frantically. "Where's Nino?"

Adrien and Marinette exchanged a look, and it was easy to spot the guilt that clouded Adrien's eyes. "We don't know." He admitted sadly, averting his gaze from Alya to avoid her reaction. "He went ahead to inspect this house we were planning to stay in tonight, but when Marinette and I got there, he wasn't there. He was just... gone."

Alya's face went extremely pale in a matter of seconds, and Marinette couldn't tell if it was from the cold or from the realization that Nino could be in serious danger. "Did you look for him?" She whimpered, her voice sounding utterly broken as she tried to keep herself composed.

Marinette shook her head, deciding to answer for Adrien, who seemed too guilty to even meet Alya's eyes again. "We didn't have a chance to thoroughly search the area. It started getting too dark."

"But... he's all alone!" Alya exclaimed a bit too loudly than what Marinette would have preferred.

"I understand that, but—"

"He doesn't know how to survive out here! And with Blanks being so active at night like you say, what kind of a chance does he have?!"

"A slim chance." Marinette hissed out a bit irritably. She was getting annoyed, and not just with their current predicament. She was annoyed with Nino for disappearing. When she found him in the morning, she was going to personally ring his neck. Alya's expression quickly fell slack, but it was no time to feel sympathetic for her. It was time to be realistic. "Very slim, but not exactly impossible. If he can survive the night, he'll be fine."

"And if he can't?" It was Adrien who asked her that, uncertainty clouding his features. She met his eyes with a hard look, knowing fully well that he was well-aware of how much danger Nino was currently in. He knew just as much as she did that if Nino didn't survive the night, he would certainly die.

Whether he froze to death or be devoured by Blanks.

Marinette sighed, "If he can't survive the night, Nino isn't strong, and I don't have time to be babysitting the weak."

Alya's breath hitched, and Adrien's eyes widened, but neither of them said another word. Instead, Luka cleared his throat, suggesting that they all head up in the tree before it got too dark. Alya was the first to make her descend with Luka volunteering to help lift her up. With the extra weight of Brick strapped to her chest, Marinette was grateful for Adrien's assisted help as well. As they all settled on their own branches for the night, a new problem arose which Marinette realized only had a problematic solution.

It was too cold, which meant in order to keep themselves warm and keep the baby warm, they would have to strip and share each other's body heat.

And when she told Adrien this, his cheeks burned a crimson red.

"Wha-What?" He stammered out.

"We're going to have to strip our clothes so we can share our body heat if we don't want to freeze to death." Marinette told him sternly, not even blinking an eye at the thought of being completely bare in front of Adrien. But she had to put those thoughts aside, because this was about survival. "We'll put Brick in between our bodies and cocoon ourselves in the blanket. He might have slight frostbite in the morning, which I can treat accordingly, but at least he'll live."

Adrien's gulp was audible, his eyes completely focused on nothing in particular. At first, she thought he hadn't registered her words, until he asked in a trembling voice, "We have to strip.... completely naked?"

Was that all he heard her say?

Marinette huffed out a heavy breath. Against her will, her bangs slowly fell into her eyes, and even when she tried to blow them away with another huff, they refused to tuck back into place. With her gaze downcast, they did, however, help cover the blush that was rushing to her freckled cheeks. Just because she acted emotionless regarding all of this didn't mean she wasn't feeling similar emotions as Adrien. He was anxious and probably embarrassed. Neither of them had seen each other in that way, and situations like this weren't exactly ideal when it came to couples sharing said intimacy for the first time.

"Yes." Marinette lifted her head to meet his eyes as soon as she felt that she could handle his gaze. "We don't have a choice, Adrien. This is serious."

Adrien met her eyes as well. "I know." He said and ran a hand down his face. "I'm sorry... I'm just nervous? I mean, I get it. It's a matter of life or death, but it also means so much more to me."

"What do you mean?" She asked, confused. "You mean you feel embarrassed?"

"No," he shook his head. "I mean that being undressed with you was something I thought we'd do when we're... you know... married."

Marinette's eyes widened in a matter of seconds, and she even leaned away, a bit taken aback. That was not what she'd been expecting.

"Married?"

Adrien slowly nodded, revealing a sheepish smile, and only confirming what she thought she heard. Marinette frowned in confusion. "What are you talking about? You've been thinking about marriage?"

"Yes?" Adrien's answer was cautious, his emerging smile nervous.

Marinette almost couldn't believe what she was hearing. "You... you want to marry me?"

Again, Adrien nodded, "Well... someday." He admitted, his chuckle nervous—though, it didn't hide the clattering of his teeth that the cold brought with it. "I see myself spending the rest of my life with you. I thought maybe... when we reached the sanctuary, I could properly ask you to marry me, and someone could marry us."

It took Marinette a moment to compose herself, mostly because, in their world, marriage was the last thing on her mind. She considered marriage to be a dream she once had as a young girl; a fantasized dream with a non-existent man. Their world was so much different now, and since it had changed, the only thing her mind thought of now was surviving.

However, it was obvious to anyone who looked that she and Adrien had feelings for each other; more than just platonic feelings, for sure. There was no other label on their relationship besides that, although she was fairly certain Adrien already subconsciously considered her to be his girlfriend... and she kind of considered him to be her boyfriend too at this point.

She figured once they reached the sanctuary, they would be free, and then it would be safe to actually use those labels. Then they could all live together, and she would be with Adrien.

The thought of a proposal, marriage, rings, and a ceremony, however, was something she hadn't thought of in a long time.

"Would that be something you would want?" Adrien asked her cautiously.

She met his eyes again, unsure of what emotion they held. Half of her felt thrilled, but the other half was afraid. Nonetheless, she remained honest with him. "I mean, yes. I see myself spending the rest of my life beside you... but are you sure that's a commitment you want to make when you're not even guaranteed it?"

Adrien frowned slightly at that. "We will make it to the sanctuary, if that's what you're worried about. That's all the assurance I need."

"Adrien, none of us are guaranteed to make it there."

"I believe we will. Is it really that much of a harm to hope?"

"It is if you confuse hope with firm clarity, then yes."

To that, Adrien looked away, almost as if he were ashamed. "I have to live life with hope. If I don't, I'll lose myself... and I can't afford that. I-I have too much at stake."

Marinette smiled sadly. She understood him, really, she did, but there was no room to allow feelings to consume one's reality. Feelings, if taken too seriously, could get one killed.

Which is why, Marinette had tried avoiding her feelings at all costs.

But Adrien had a way of making her abandon most of her original idealisms.

She placed a hand against his cheek and coaxed him to look back at her. "Adrien, I care about you in more ways than you can even imagine, and as important as this conversation is, I think this is something we should deeply discuss. But now is not the best time to be doing so. We should focus on getting warm, okay? We'll talk about this more in the morning."

That seemed to bring a smile back to Adrien's lips. He leaned into her touch, and even placed his hand over hers.

"Okay."

Marinette pulled away from him with a smile on her lips, but it quickly vanished and was replaced with a serious frown as soon as she turned to face Alya and Luka, who were seated on a nearby branch. Alya was trembling underneath the blanket that was wrapped around both her and Luka's shoulders. Luka had his arms wrapped around Alya; a worried expression etched in his features.

She felt even worse for them, knowing that the only way to survive would be incredibly awkward for the both of them. But it needed to be done. She couldn't let either of them die.

"Listen to me," Her words were directed at Luka, who quickly looked up to meet her eyes. "We're going to freeze to death if you don't do exactly what I'm about to say. You both need to strip in order share each other's body heat, and then cocoon yourselves in your blankets."

Luka's eyes went wide in a matter of seconds, and clearly, Alya was conscious  enough to lift her head in equalized shock.

"W-What?" Luka squeaked out. "But.. but she has a boyfriend!"

"There's no way you expect me to do that!" Alya exclaimed angrily, her stubbornness clearly distracting her from the obvious reality—that if they didn't do it, they would both die. Brick would be left without a mother, and if Nino was still alive, he'd be left without his love.

"Would you rather turn into an icicle?" Marinette bit out sarcastically. Her tone was stern enough to have Alya leaning back in shock, a bit surprised by the harshness that laced her words. "If you don't do this, you'll both die. Is that what you want?"

Luka rapidly shook his head, despite the blush that fanned his cheeks in embarrassment. Alya looked torn on what to do. Marinette sighed and was about to lecture Alya on how important this was in order to stay alive for Brick's sake, until she saw Luka move to place a comforting hand on Alya's shoulder.

When Alya snapped her gaze up to look at him, Luka offered her a sheepish smile. "I know we don't know each other at all, and I'm sure you don't trust me, but Marinette's right, and I don't want this to be how I die. I swear I won't do anything inappropriate. You have my word."

Alya's eyes went wide in surprise at that, and with a silent nod, she seemed to accept these terms despite still feeling uncomfortable about the idea. Marinette's eyes briefly met Luka's, and when their eyes connected, she offered him a soft smile, which he returned. She turned her gaze away from them the moment she saw Luka gently take a hold of Alya's hand, to grant them both with the privacy that they definitely deserved in such an awkward circumstance. She turned her attention to Adrien instead, who was already silently stripping his clothing. Her cheeks quickly flushed as reality finally started to settle in for her. Instead of dwelling over the nervousness that was slowly beginning to tamper with her judgement, Marinette moved to undress herself as well and quickly buried herself underneath the blanket with Brick pressed into her chest.

A few moments later, Adrien joined her underneath the blanket and pressed his chest against Brick's back, pressing the baby closer into Marinette's chest and gently encasing him in a cocoon of warmth. The baby whimpered softly, his eyes still shut tight, and his eyebrows wrinkled, but he made no other sound. Instead, Brick remained asleep, and complete silence followed as Adrien proceeded to wrap himself around Marinette.

An awkward silence ensued afterwards, though the clattering of Adrien's teeth definitely helped with making sure things weren't too awkward between them. Marinette moved to rub her hand up and down his upper back, hoping to create some sort of friction that would help with fighting the cold, but Adrien was still shivering. Hell, they were all shivering. Despite this being their best solution, there was no denying that it was still freezing outside.

"Are you warm enough?" Adrien's whispered question broke the awkward silence in complete concern. She briefly met his eyes and nodded silently, though there was no assurance in them. She definitely wasn't, but to appease his worry, she wouldn't tell him that.

"I'm fine... for now at least." She whispered softly. "I think the only one who might not get frostbite tonight is Brick, though."

Adrien chuckled, his laugh soft, though there was a hint of concern in his voice too as he then asked, "Do you know how to treat frostbite? Isn't it dangerous?"

"Yeah, I do." Marinette said quietly, "Usually a warm soak will do the trick. If we're able to boil water over a fire, we should be fine. But..."

She paused, meeting Adrien's eyes unsurely. Frostbite could be easy to treat, but in their current predicament, depending on how bad it affected them, it could also be incredibly dangerous and only treatable by someone with a medical profession.

And it wasn't as if they could walk into a doctor's office anymore.

"But what?"

Marinette sighed heavily, "But.. if it gets really bad, sometimes doctors have to remove the skin, and that's kinda impossible in our current situation."

"Could you do it if you had the right tools?" Adrien asked.

"I-I'm not sure. I've never gotten frostbite that bad before."

She heard Adrien audibly swallow, his Adam's Apple bobbing slowly. "Well, then I guess we'll just have to hope none of us get it too bad."

Hope. That word was becoming exhausting to hear. As much as Marinette appreciated Adrien's optimistic outlook on life, that perspective had once been an annoyance to her when she'd first met him. She was somewhat tired of relying on hope. It seemed that even the very existence of the sanctuary they were searching for was only hanging by a thread of hope.

In reality, they didn't even know for sure if the place was real.

Adrien slowly leaned closer without another word spoken between them and broke her away from her thoughts of uncertainty as he delicately pressed his lips to hers. Upon the contact, they both sighed into each other's mouths, the touch warm and greatly yearned. The kiss was slow and sweet, the couple merely appreciating the other in a moment of intimacy which they were experiencing for the first time together. With one hand in her hair and the other wrapped around her and Brick, Adrien caressed her bare skin on her back with soothing circles, while his other hand kept her close to him.

They ended up falling asleep like this in each other's arms, with her nose buried in the crook of his neck, and she found that even she was hoping herself, hoping that the love they had for each other would keep them warm enough throughout the night.

When the sun arose the next morning, it was to Marinette's great surprise that the snow had actually completely melted. The sun was fully out, its heat beating on the earth, and the sudden uncomfortable heat wasn't even what woke her up.

It was the whimpered sounds of Brick whining, and the feeling of him suckling on her chest, trying to get milk that she could not provide, that caused Marinette's eyes to widen in a matter of seconds—all remaining tiredness completely vanishing into thin air. Frantically, yet gentle with her movements, she had to practically pry the baby away from her chest, who continued to complain even louder, which ended up waking Adrien in the process.

As soon as the blonde grunted, indicating that he was starting to wake up, Marinette rushed to cover his eyes—which were thankfully still closed—with the palm of her hand. "Please, whatever you do, do not open your eyes."

The blonde beneath her jumped slightly at the contact. "Well good morning to you too." Adrien chuckled hoarsely, blindly reaching up so that he could place his hand on top of hers. "Out of all the ways I expected to wake up this morning, this was not one of them, but I'm relieved to know we survived the night."

Despite her embarrassment, Marinette found herself smiling nonetheless as Adrien continued to gently caress her skin with his fingertips. When she finally did look down at him, there was no surprise that his lips had already stretched into a wide smile, and when she pulled her hand away, she was thankful he actually kept them closed.

"Yeah, I am too." Marinette breathed out a relieved laugh of her own. "Except we do have another problem."

"Is Brick okay?" Adrien's concerned voice immediately asked, already jumping straight to conclusions that something bad had happened to the baby—though, she didn't blame him for assuming the worst. They both had expressed their concerns the night before about frostbite, after all.

"Uhh... yeah... he's perfectly fine. In fact, he's trying to nurse."

"Oh?" She could see the smile already tugging at his lips, and the one raised eyebrow in amusement. She was sure that if his eyes were open too, she would have spotted a playful gleam in them.

"Don't you dare smile. It's absolutely humiliating."

But the blonde beside her didn't listen, and she should've known that he wouldn't. Adrien chuckled, his smile still remaining prominent despite her audible groan of disapproval. "It's perfectly natural, Marinette. There's no reason to be embarrassed."

"Easy for you to say. You didn't have to pry him off of you."

Adrien laughed loudly at that, and she couldn't help but chuckle as well despite telling him not to laugh. His laughter was simply contagious, and as much as she wanted to, she couldn't deny that the situation was a little funny.

After Adrien sobered, he proceeded with another question. "So, if Brick is fine, what is the problem, m'lady?"

Marinette rolled her eyes at his cheekiness, opting to ignore the nickname he'd used for now despite the faint blush it brought to her cheeks. "Don't you feel it?" She decided to respond with a question of her own, her voice once again reverting back to a tone of complete and utter seriousness.

Adrien didn't respond right away. It took him a few seconds to formulate an answer, and she was sure it was because he was trying to figure out what she meant. But it didn't take him long to figure it out. "It's warm." He breathed out in realization. "Really warm."

"Exactly," Marinette murmured, "The weather here seems to be changing drastically. It's completely unnatural and unpredictable. It's almost as if the weather switched between winter and summer in the span of one day. I... it's rather concerning."

The blonde beside her hummed as if he agreed, though she knew his optimistic self would only agree to a certain extent. "Sure, it's a bit weird, but why should we be so worried?" Even despite keeping his eyes closed upon her request, he squeezed her hand gently, as if he were striving to somehow comfort her. "So, the weather is a bit out of whack. We can handle it."

Even with him trying to express his positivity, it did nothing to cease the uneasiness that resided in the pit of her stomach. "I have no doubt we can handle it." Marinette said, "What I worry about is encountering something I've never had to deal with before. We don't know if these drastic weather patterns affect the Blanks at all."

"What do you mean?" He asked, sounding a bit worried.

"Don't you remember the Blanks we saw swimming?" She watched as he offered her a silent nod, an invitation for her to continue. "Those Blanks evolved. I don't know how, but they did. I've been watching their behavior for years and never once did they swim. They always avoided the water. There's a huge possibility that the inconsistent weather could have an effect in more Blank evolution."

And who knew what the extent of that evolution was. If the Blanks were evolving, how far would evolution take them? How strong would they get? How advanced would they become? Would they become intelligent enough to actually hunt humans who still had an intact mind and soul? As if the Blanks didn't already hunt... it was still possible to get away, if not with a few bumps and bruises, but would it be possible to get away if the Blanks grew smarter?

She wanted to make it to this so-called sanctuary before she had the chance to find out.

"If that's true..." Adrien breathed out shakily, "We need to be more careful on our travels."

Marinette wholeheartedly agreed. Her skills only went so far depending on how well they worked against the Blanks, and if the Blanks were evolving, her skills needed to do the same. So, their journey continued with even more caution than before. That caution began with climbing down that tree.

What worried Marinette was the unusual weather, but what worried her further was that there was no Blank in sight.

She wanted to believe that it was just a sign of good luck, but Marinette knew better than to believe in superstition.

She handed Brick over to Alya as soon she met the young mother on the ground, more than happy to have the hungry baby out of her arms. Alya and Luka—who both seemed to be in a better mood that morning—didn't seem awkward around each other at all. In fact, Luka didn't even hesitate to help Alya prepare Brick to nurse, all the while keeping his eyes respectfully away from Alya's slightly exposed chest.

Despite appreciating his efforts, Marinette felt a bit uneasy about the interaction. She wasn't sure what had happened between the two of them the night prior, but she liked to believe Alya hadn't already moved on from Nino to Luka either. Because even as they continued on their path, the results of ever seeing Nino again had become rather predictable.

They never found Nino, and they would never see him again.

Lest they came across his walking corpse.

After a month of further travelling, they all stopped looking for Nino. Marinette never really proclaimed that she had ever stopped searching either. Everyone sort of accepted that their friend had ultimately gone missing, and that he was probably roaming the woods as a Blank himself.

But despite that harsh reality, Adrien seemed to take it the hardest. Even harder than Alya. Marinette knew he blamed himself for Nino's disappearance and allowed his guilt to consume him over the matter, and even though she'd assured him plenty of times that it wasn't his fault—that because Nino was weak, he would've perished nonetheless—Adrien didn't seem like he would ever bounce back from the loss of Nino.

After all, Nino had been his best friend for many years even before the apocalypse. She knew that it was hard to lose someone you cared about deeply and that Adrien would need time to properly grieve over not only losing a friend but overcoming his guilt too. Plus, the last time Adrien had spoken to Nino had been over a threat that they never resolved.

It was obvious that Adrien needed his space during that time, so Marinette devoted herself to helping Alya with Brick, and so did Luka. It was almost as if they all became a happy little family in their devastating world. They found time to share laughs and smiles, fond moments of Brick saying his first word and taking his first steps.

But Adrien... Adrien was never engaged in those moments.

When Brick turned a year old, Marinette, Alya, Luka and Adrien were all living in an abandoned cottage they'd found in the woods. When they found the place and deemed it safe to spend the night, it was agreed by vote that they would live there throughout the entirety of Brick's infant years so that they could travel more at ease with a boy who could learn and understand the dangers of the world they lived in.

For his birthday, there was no cake to shove his little hands into, but they did sing him a song. All three of them sat in the middle of the living space with the baby in the middle, and it was a night where they could celebrate the fact that they had all survived another year together.

Except for Adrien, who spent that time hidden away in their bedroom.

That night, after their quiet celebration came to an end, Marinette quietly crept into the bedroom she shared with Adrien. She found him already underneath the thin sheets of their full-sized mattress. It was somewhat dirty underneath due to having to be kept on the ground, but it was way better than sleeping in a tree. A lot more comfortable too, they would all agree. Adrien's back was faced towards her, and he didn't even stir when the bedroom door creaked open.

Marinette watched him in silence from underneath the doorframe for a few seconds before she sighed in defeat and slowly moved to close the door behind her. The creaky, wooden mass shut with a soft click, the sound being the only thing that echoed through the room. The silence that engulfed her was only a reminder of how she had once lived alone all those years ago after she'd lost her family and her first group... and the loneliness, although something she had once never minded, was something she no longer wished to have.

After all, Adrien had been the one to show her that she didn't have to be alone anymore. He'd been her first friend after losing everyone she'd ever known and had even been the first person she'd come to deeply fall in love with.

But truth be told, Adrien had not been himself since the loss of Nino almost a year ago. In fact, Marinette couldn't remember the last time she had kissed him, embraced him, or simply had a conversation with him. It was painful seeing him like this and not being able to do anything to help, but it hurt even worse seeing him push everyone away.

Including her.

Marinette silently slipped into bed beside him and laid on her back, her eyes looking up towards the ceiling. She wasn't tired. In fact, she was itching to do something; anything really that would either keep her mind off of Adrien or give her an excuse to not have to lay there beside him. But it wasn't her turn to stand guard that night, which meant she was unfortunately blessed with a full night's rest.

Except, she wouldn't be able to sleep anyway, so what was the point?

Adrien shifted beside her, and she held her breath as he turned onto his other side to now face her. At first, she thought he was still asleep, until she heard him exhale heavily through his nose. So, he was awake then, and she could even feel his eyes on her.

But Marinette didn't move. She didn't even turn to look at him.

"How was the party?"

Marinette pressed her lips together into a thin line. She was surprised to hear him speak, let alone that he had a bit of interest in their celebration. His voice was whispered and hoarse, a sign that he didn't use it often anymore. There was no hopefulness behind his tone either. It merely sounded empty and cold. Bitter, even.

It left a bad taste in her mouth.

"Fine." She said as she kept her eyes focused on the ceiling.

She felt as Adrien moved again, and she struggled to keep her expression impassive as Adrien purposely moved closer to her. "Just fine?" He asked in a low whisper.

Marinette couldn't help but furrow a brow. She was unsure of how to respond. She couldn't tell whether Adrien was genuinely wanting to have a conversation with her, or if he was just trying to make things less awkward between them by pretending nothing was wrong.

Just thinking about what could possibly be going on inside of his head was exhausting in itself, and suddenly, Marinette felt extremely tired. Now, sleep didn't sound like such a bad idea.

"Yes, it was fine." She huffed, "Now can you please be quiet so I can sleep?"

She hadn't meant to be harsh, per se, but Marinette was not in the mood to pretend like things were normal between them, and if Adrien thought that was going to be the case, he was clearly mistaken.

From the corner of her eyes, she watched as Adrien sat up slightly, holding up his weight on his elbow as he leaned over her slightly. "Can we cuddle?"

His question caught her a bit off guard. Her eyes widened. When was the last time they had done that...?

"No, Adrien. We cannot."

The disappointment was evident in his voice as he replied, "Please, Marinette. You don't even have to cuddle me back."

"I said no."

"Please, Mari—"

"My answer is no."

"C'mon—"

"Stop, Adrien."

"Just this once—"

Something inside of Marinette snapped. Whether it was her composure, her willpower, her sense of impassiveness, or her patience, she wasn't sure which it was or if it was all. She sat up slightly, holding herself up on her elbow as she harshly turned to face him, furious blue irises meeting sincere green.

"No. Stop asking."

She didn't dare shout, lest she draw in the Blanks' unwanted attention, but her voice was definitely raised. Enough to emphasize that she was clearly annoyed. Adrien's eyes widened slightly in shock at the harshness laced in her tone and he leaned back, as if he'd been slapped physically in the face. Hurt flooded his irises in a matter of seconds, and she wanted to feel awful for being the cause of it, but Marinette was hurting too. And perhaps her pain wasn't as relevant as his, but it was valid. Marinette exhaled slowly through her nose, attempting to calm herself down from her mini outburst. She hadn't meant to blow her temper, but she was so frustrated and tired. She was tired of going in circles with Adrien. She understood it was natural to grieve, and Adrien had been given plenty of time to do so, but he had pushed them all away—her included—and then proceeded to act as if what he had done wasn't wrong at all.

She, on the other hand, couldn't pretend as if everything was fine.

Adrien licked his lips as he searched her eyes unsurely. She wasn't sure if he was even able to do so in the dark, but she would give him an A for effort in trying.

"Did... did I do something wrong?"

Marinette leaned her head back and let out a noise somewhere between a laugh and a frustrated groan. "Are you serious right now, Adrien?"

"Well... yeah. Why are you upset?"

"Are you really asking me that right now?" Her voice was strained as she struggled to keep herself from shedding any tears in front of him. But she was emotionally drained. "Why do you think I'm upset? Adrien, you've been acting like none of your friends even exist in your life—that I don't exist—and all of a sudden you want affection? It doesn't work like that. I'm sorry, but it doesn't."

Adrien furrowed his brows in confusion. "But... I haven't meant to. I've just been mourning. Nino was my best friend—"

"Adrien, I know Nino was your best friend, and I know you needed time to grieve, but it's been a year." Marinette sighed and began to rub at her temples the moment she felt a headache coming on. "You can't mourn forever. You have to move on. This might sound insensitive, but you're not the only one who has lost someone important to them. Nino was Alya's lover. I can assure you his presumed death has hit her a lot harder than you might think."

Her voice was soft as she tried to tell him the truth (however hurtful it must've sounded), but Adrien took her words to offense, and instantly sat up to look at her more fully. "That's actually really insensitive, Marinette. I've known Nino much longer than Alya has. Our pain can't possibly be compared, and you don't even know what kind of pain I'm going through. It's not like you've been by my side trying to help me get through it."

Marinette's eyes widened at his words. How dare he. She had tried her absolute best to be by his side in the beginning, only for her and the rest of their friends to be constantly pushed away because all he wanted was to be alone.

"Are you serious?" She huffed out a bitter laugh. "I tried to be by your side in the beginning—so did Alya and Luka—yet you were the one who pushed us all away. That's your fault; and on top of that, 'I don't even know what kind of pain you're going through', really? Do you not remember my backstory?"

Adrien frowned at her. "You don't know what it's like to lose your best friend, and it being your fault."

"I lost a whole group of people who took me in, and it was my fault. Don't tell me what I do and don't know."

"That's not the same thing—"

"Who says? They were all killed by Blanks! And I watched it happen!"

Adrien inhaled a sharp breath, his eyebrows pinching together as if he were about to object that fact once again by saying it could not be comparable to what had assumingly happened to Nino. But she knew he couldn't... not without it being completely unfair... because the instances were practically identical.

"At least you didn't have to watch Nino get devoured... or watch him turn." Marinette muttered bitterly—her bitterness directed at none other than the walking carcasses themselves. "Because that's an image that will never leave your head. It'll haunt you for as long as you live."

Adrien said nothing in response, his silence giving Marinette the leeway to continue.

"What's that saying you told me once?" Marinette asked him when he remained silent. "'There's no point in living this life if you have no one left to live it with?' Are you going to ignore your own advice now?"

That time, Adrien looked away from her, huffing out a breath through his nose stubbornly because he knew she was right. He was pushing everyone he cared for away... and pretty soon he would push them so far away that they would be completely out of his reach. And after that, he would be alone like Marinette had been. Completely alone because after losing everyone, she had been too afraid to get close to anyone else ever again.

Her mentality had always been to survive. Whether she was thriving or not, surviving was all that had ever mattered. For the longest time, she had always thought surviving alone was the better option because you had no risk of losing anything or anyone you might've cared for... besides your own soul. But Adrien had been the one to teach her otherwise, to show her that she was wrong, to convince her that they were stronger together.

If Adrien stopped believing that way, then everyone else would lose their hope.

"Okay," Adrien let out a heavy sigh, the sound vibrating off the walls like a distant echo, his voice resonating defeat and exhaustion. "I shouldn't say that you don't know what I'm feeling. Sorry... about that."

Instead of answering him, Marinette merely pulled her bottom lip in between her teeth, watching him with a rather concerned expression. She didn't know what else to say. Was that all he was sorry for? Not for pushing his friends away or for completely ignoring her up until now? The immense pain she was feeling in her chest was incredibly suffocating, a pain she hadn't felt since she horridly watched her mother and sister be devoured, or when she had to murder her own brother in cold blood, or when her father beat her...

Her thoughts were quickly scattered the moment a loud banging sound reverberating through the cottage. Marinette's head shot up from her lap, her eyes instantly finding Adrien's which had already turned to focus on her. His gaze was hard, sharpened even, as he watched her closely, and just like before, they exchanged a silent conversation just through their eyes.

Marinette was the first to jump out of bed, already on high alert as she rushed towards their bedroom door and swiftly, yet silently, swung it open so that its rusted hinges wouldn't cause too much noise. The wooden flooring groaned with every careful step she took, an indication that Adrien was right behind her, because, well, her footsteps were incredibly light and stealthy with years of practice and would never make such a sound. The two of them treaded down the long, dark hallway in silence, their only source of light helping them to see being the dim candle that was left lit in the living room for those who kept watch for the night. With a knife clutched tightly in her fingertips, Marinette stepped into the light with her small blade raised.

Only to find Luka peeking through one of the cabin windows.

Exhaling in relief that it wasn't a walker that had somehow chewed its way inside, Marinette lowered her small blade and tucked it back into her belt. "What are you doing?" She asked in a low whisper, and she watched in slight confusion as Luka quickly backed away from the window at the sound of her voice, allowing the curtains to fall back into place.

When he turned around to face her though, his face was clouded with fear.

"Did you hear that?" He didn't answer her question, and instead, asked his own as a rebuttal.

"That loud noise?" Marinette asked, to which he nodded. "Yeah... that's why I came out here. It sounded like someone was knocking... or rather banging on the door."

"That's because someone was banging on the door." Luka said, his eyes hesitantly glancing off to the side to focus on the closed-curtained window once more. "It sounded so precise, I thought it was another sane person, but when I went to check, it... it was a Blank."

"What?" Adrien gasped out in utter disbelief, but the sound seemed to come across as a sarcastic laugh to Luka when Marinette noticed the way Luka's brows slightly furrowed at Adrien's silent implication: that he was going crazy. "You're telling me that a Blank actually raised a fist to the door and knocked as if he actually knew what he was doing?"

Luka didn't answer Adrien. In fact, he didn't even turn to look at the blonde. Instead, Luka kept his eyes fixated on Marinette as if Adrien wasn't even in the room. "Should we be worried? I did take a look out the window, but I promise the Blank didn't see me. I saw him knocking with his fist like a person as if he remembered how to do it—"

"As long as the Blank didn't see you, we should be fine," Marinette assured him. "It has no reason to pursue barging in here if it didn't see or hear anything."

"Should we consider boarding some wood planks against the door?" Adrien interjected with a suggestion.

But despite his clearly audible suggestion, he once again went ignored. Luka looked to with Marinette uncertainly. "But why was he knocking on the door to begin with? How did he know how to do that? Are his memories resurfacing—?"

"Luka, it's best not to worry too much. We know they're evolving."

"So... do you think their evolving is making them smarter?"

"It could be. The change is to be expected."

"Um hello?" She faintly heard Adrien's voice somewhere in the midst of their conversation. Despite not showing it, she was too overwhelmed in her own thoughts to really acknowledge him. "Are you guys ignoring me?"

"This change should worry you, Marinette! It's frightening!" Luka went on.

"I am worried." She assured him. "I just know how to worry without panicking."

"I think that walking corpses becoming just as intelligent as we are is a valid reason to panic."

Instead of openly agreeing with that statement (because she knew it was somewhat true), Marinette moved to place a comforting hand on his shoulder. Luka's dim, blue eyes fluttered up to meet her gaze, the obvious fear haunting him written deeply within. To the best of her ability, she tried to muster a smile that hopefully looked comforting for his sake. "Panicking won't do us any good. If you allow yourself to panic, you won't be able to think logically, and you, especially, need to keep yourself levelheaded, Luka. You're the one who's putting together all the research that will ultimately benefit mankind in the future. You won't be able to benefit anyone if you're too busy panicking."

She watched as Luka exhaled a shuddered breath. With a simple nod as his response, it was safe to assume that he agreed with her and had calmed down. Taking a step back away from him, her smile turned more genuine. "Maybe you should get some sleep... or spend an hour or so documenting what you just discovered. I'll take over your shift."

"Really?" His eyes seemed to light up at the idea of sleep... or perhaps he was more excited about working on his research. Nonetheless, he smiled gratefully at her. "That would be great, thanks."

Her smile widened as she nodded. Luka collected his things and quietly headed down the hallway towards his bedroom. Marinette silently moved to sit in the center of the living room where a pillow and thin blanket had been laid out.

She could feel Adrien's eyes on her the entire time as she settled.

"You and Luka have grown rather... comfortable around each other."

That had been his introduction to break the silence. His comment, unnecessary as it may be, was an expected one. She knew Adrien well enough to know that sometimes he had a tendency to get jealous where jealousy was not needed. "I suppose we have. We're good friends now."

"That's good... I guess."

She wasn't sure why that comment bugged her so much. "What do you mean by that?"

"Nothing..." Adrien shrugged idly, "I just think it kind of weird to be friends with your ex... in like a general context—"

"If you're implying I'm cheating material, you might want to reconsider what you say next." Marinette looked up to catch his gaze, frowning. Now she knew why his words bothered her... and his implication was unappreciated.

"I never meant that—"

"Then what exactly did you mean by that comment?"

She watched as Adrien swallowed nervously, but his frown only deepened. "I just meant that... I don't know... you might still have feelings for him?"

"Unbelievable." Marinette scoffed and rolled her eyes, suppressing the bitter smile that was ever-so-tempted to pull at her lips.

"I never said you would act out on those feelings—"

"Unbelievable." Marinette repeated, and this time, she couldn't stop the bitter laugh that followed. "How could you think that? After I told you everything that Luka has done to me? Sure, I've forgiven him, but forgiveness does not mean that I have feelings for him."

Adrien remained silent to that, his expression void of any emotion as she further tried to read him. In truth, she was more disappointed than hurt that he even considered her feelings for him to have changed... or that he would even think for a second that she would move on without ending things properly between them first. She wasn't that type of person.

Plus, after standing by his side this whole time, trying to comfort him despite him pushing her away, she would have thought that would've been enough to convey just how much she cared about him.

"I'm sorry," Adrien finally broke the silence again with defeated sigh. He ran a hand down his face, licking his already chapped lips as if he were nervous. "I'm being stupid. Those are just my insecurities talking."

Marinette knew that... but that realization didn't make her any less irritated with him. "What could you possibly be so insecure about? Do you really think I would just leave you for Luka just like that after everything we've been through? And for Luka? He could be the last man on earth and I would never get with him."

"Can you blame me?" That was his anxious response. His eyes held the matching fear. "I can't even be upset if you decided to do that because I've been the world's worst boyfriend."

Marinette wanted to roll her eyes—and she almost did, actually, had it not been for the fact that she knew if he saw her do such a thing, it would probably make him feel even worse. "Don't you think you're overreaching just a bit, Adrien? There are far worse guys out there—"

"Maybe... but I've given plenty of reasons for you not to stay with me." He ignored her, continuing his rambling. "Why would you stay when there's a possibility he could treat you better than I ever could?"

She wanted to laugh at the idea of Luka somehow treating her better than Adrien. She didn't.

"Adrien..." Marinette sighed, her head already hurting just by listening to his logic. "I wouldn't leave because I care about you. There's only one of you. No one would ever be able to replace you. That's what happens when you end up falling in love with someone."

It took Marinette a few seconds to realize her minor slip-up, but as soon as her brain had caught up with her tongue, it was too late. Adrien was already looking at her with wide eyes, his mouth slightly agape as if he hadn't expected those words. Which... made sense! Because she hadn't expected them herself.

She had just told him that she loved him!

Of course, she supposed it shouldn't have been that much of a surprise considering their relationship. Despite it never having a label, they were girlfriend and boyfriend in everyone else's eyes. They acted like most couples would. So, if they were technically together and romantically involved, it wouldn't be unnatural to express their feelings.

But holy hell, she just told him she loved him.

And for the record, she never made it to that stage with Luka.

"You... love me?"

There was no way she could pretend that she hadn't said it, so instead, Marinette remained impassive as she nodded. "Of course I do. Very much. How could you ever doubt that? We talked about our mutual desire to get married, remember?"

Adrien suddenly looked torn. "Well yes... we did, but you never really confirmed that was what you wanted? I mean... you said we would talk about it later and we never did. Plus, we had that conversation a year ago. Feelings can change."

"Adrien, if my feelings had changed, I wouldn't still be sleeping in your bed."

That seemed to take Adrien aback... but she wasn't really sure why. It was the truth. She had remained beside him this entire time, sleeping beside him despite wishing he would open up to her instead of always having his back turned to her. Only a person who loved someone who acted so coldly would stick around.

"I love you so much that the thought of losing you scares me." She admitted when he didn't respond. Her voice shook, the vulnerability sounding behind her every word seemingly catching his attention when his eyes jumped up to find hers once more. "There isn't a day that goes by where I don't worry about losing you. The possibilities of losing you are an endless list. Tell me... if I didn't love your stupid ass, would these worries and fears of mine even exist?"

A faint form of what had to be a smile tugged at the corner of his lips, but he didn't break out into the all familiar grin that she missed seeing. Instead, his eyes held fondness as they searched hers thoroughly. Marinette found herself searching his as well, her lips pulled into an uncertain grimace despite wishing she could simply embrace him and erase whatever tension remained lingering between them.

"No." The almost breathless chuckle he released as he shook his head definitely helped to dissolve most of the tension. "No, they wouldn't."

He was smiling slightly now, but even despite that, Marinette couldn't find it in herself to mirror his expression. Instead, her grimace remained rather prominent as she silently patted the vacant spot beside her, inviting him to join her on the floor. Adrien did so very willingly, crossing one leg over the other as he leaned back against the wall. Their arms lightly brushed, but neither moved away from the other. It was probably because they both longed for each other's touch—something they hadn't shared in a long time.

With his head leaned back against the wall, his eyes fluttered closed as he let out a heavy sigh.

Marinette was too busy staring into her lap to observe his profile.

Adrien had told her before that she'd never confirmed what she wanted—and perhaps that was true when it came to speaking said words—but she considered her actions to be rather obvious, and Marinette had always assumed actions naturally spoke louder than words. Inside, she knew what she wanted. She wanted to be with Adrien; there was never a doubt in her mind about that.

Marinette heavily exhaled through her nose, still not turning to gauge his expression. "Let's have that conversation then, since I wasn't clear about what I wanted."

She felt Adrien shift beside her, as if he were trying to make himself more comfortable on the hard floor. When he finally decided to answer, he had already settled—so she would've thought he'd fallen asleep had he not spoken. "I'm listening."

She let out a shaky breath through parted o-shaped lips before she admitted the undying truth. "I want to marry you."

There was a breath of relief that seemed to escape his lips upon her confession. "I'm really glad to hear that the feeling is mutual." He said, and she could hear the smile in his voice.

She found herself smiling softly. Marinette shyly reached out for his hand.

Adrien quickly met her halfway, as if already sensing her next move, and interlaced their fingers.

"But I'm also scared of losing you." She once again admitted, her gaze slowly falling to their entwined hands. "I want to be with you so bad, that the idea of even losing you has me worried I might lose myself. That's why I'm so hesitant. That's why I'm never straightforward with my feelings."

She felt Adrien gently tighten his hold on her hand. "Marinette, you're not going to lose me."

"I thought I almost did." Her eyes turned to meet his, uncertain blue-bell orbs finding his piercing green. There were a million emotions shifting in the color of her irises, the biggest being worry that had yet to cease—even despite currently having him at her side. "Your physical body has always been here, but you were so emotionally disconnected for so long that honestly, Adrien, I really did think you were gone."

Adrien seemed to choke up upon hearing her words, his eyes glistening with tears.

Marinette started to feel her own eyes water just at the sight. "You... you were almost like a Blank. Your physical body was here but your mind was gone, and do you know how much that scared me? My worst fear is having to witness you get bitten... or watch you turn—"

A few tears slid down his cheeks. "Marinette, stop—"

"Or having to kill you myself just so you won't suffer—"

"Marinette—"

"I know I acted impassive about having to kill any of you if I needed to when we talked about that back on the boat, but honestly, I don't even know if I could kill you, Adrien, I don't think I could... and if I can't do what needs to be done to protect this group, that makes me weak, and I can't afford to be weak—"

"Stop that, Marinette. You're not weak—"

"I am. I am weak! I can't even guarantee anyone's safety here, because I don't even know if I can do what needs to be done. You all have become like my family... I can't lose another family—"

"Marinette, please, stop—"

"I've lost too many people. I can't lose anyone else—"

Adrien couldn't handle her rambling any longer. He surged forward and wrapped his arms around her, eliminating the distance that had been between them for so long. Marinette too also craved this closeness, because as soon as she was in his arms, she found herself clinging onto him, crying onto his shoulder as she finally allowed herself to let go of all these burdened thoughts she had been forced to carry alone for so long.

"I'm sorry," Adrien whispered as he cried alongside her. "I'm so sorry."

She couldn't even respond to his apology—at least not verbally. She found herself clinging onto him even tighter, the fabric of his shirt wrinkling in her closed fists. Marinette's numerous tears left a wet stain on his shirt, but in that moment, neither of them cared. They were too absorbed in one another, trying to repair what had been torn due to the distance that had been created between them because of him. But perhaps words weren't even needed in that moment.

The two of them remained wrapped in one another for what felt like hours. Eventually, the soft cries that they shed for each other died down, and had it not been for the fact that she could still feel Adrien's un-labored breathing, she would've thought he had fallen asleep in her arms.

And truthfully, she was starting to fall asleep herself.

As her eyes struggled to remain open, a part of her longed to be able to give in to the temptation. Adrien seemed to have the same idea as his head lolled on her shoulder, but she had given Luka the night off and had taken his place. For that reason, she had no choice but to remain responsible.

She slowly pulled away from Adrien, and he made sure to let her know just how unsatisfied he was with that when a groan close to a whine escaped his lips. Marinette met his tired eyes with her own, a fond smile pulling at her lips as she softly brushed his long bangs away from his eyes. Adrien offered her a tired smile in return and leaned into her touch when she placed her hand against his cheek.

Their reuniting moment was shattered the moment a triple knock sounded.

Both Adrien and Marinette froze, their gazes instantly darting towards the door. They quickly shared an uneasy look with one another, remaining rooted in their spot on the floor; the couple unsure of how to proceed. Luka had mentioned that the being who knocked like a sane human had actually been a Blank. They had assumed the Blank had wandered off after receiving no response or motive to press forward. But now it was possibly back.

Why did it return?

"So..." The chuckle that escaped her lips sounded off. "Were you expecting company?"

The uneasy smile that followed her rhetorical question was meant to lighten the mood, but even she couldn't find it in herself to genuinely laugh at how ironic she sounded. Adrien seemed just as frightened as she was, his mind probably too preoccupied to even acknowledge she had spoken.

He eventually responded with a whispered question of his own. "Do you think it heard us?"

Marinette wasn't sure for herself, but she liked to believe that it hadn't. Although their moment of reuniting had been intense and emotional, the tears they had shed had been done so quietly. Their own friends hadn't even heard them, let alone did she think it would be possible for anything outside to have heard it.

The Blank must've had another reason for returning.

To find out what the motive was would be a difficult—if not impossible—task.

Marinette extracted herself from Adrien as she slowly stood to her feet, and he easily let her slip out of his embrace. As he stood up from behind her, Marinette brought her finger to her lips, and a nod was all it took from him for her to know that he understood the assignment—that they needed to be incredibly quiet. She tip-toed her way towards the door, each step she took remaining incredibly careful and precise.

When she reached the window, Marinette slowly peaked through the curtain.

And what she saw on the other end had her letting out a shuddered breath.

Outside stood Blanks as far as the eye could see—a herd so large, she was sure it consisted of thousands. They were all huddled against each other, remarkably quiet. There were no groans of the dead. It was almost as if they were being quiet on purpose... as if they knew who was inside.

As if they were trying to trick them.

"What is it?" Adrien's whispered voice inquired; his tone filled with concern.

Marinette turned to look back at him with a look of horror. "We're trapped."

Another knock sounded, which had his eyes shifting to the door before they were quickly back on hers. "What do you mean we're trapped?"

"There's thousands of Blanks out there surrounding the house!"

"How?!" Adrien whispered back with just as much panic in his voice. "And why?!"

"I wish I knew..." She let the curtain close once more. Marinette then closed the distance between them and took hold of his hand, squeezing gently. "But we need to wake the others right now. Those Blanks somehow know we're in here... and because of that... we're not safe in here anymore."

"Where are we supposed to go if they're surrounding the whole house?!"

Marinette wasn't even sure herself. "Right now, let's just focus on waking Alya and Luka. We need to be prepared for the worst."

Her boyfriend nodded, though the troubled look on his face had yet to cease. "We should've boarded the doors and the windows with wooden planks like I suggested earlier." He pointed out as she tugged on his hand, coaxing him to follow her quietly down the hallway towards the bedrooms.

She shot him a deadpan look. "Do you really think a couple of wooden boards would be any match for an army of Blanks?"

In response to that, Adrien had... well... no response, because deep down he knew she was right.

Marinette reached Alya's bedroom first. The door was slightly ajar, and as she pushed it open, it creaked on its hinges as the light from their torch shone into the room. Alya seemed to have just woken up herself because she was leaning over the homemade bassinet that Luka had created for her baby. Brick seemed to be wide awake as well, making cooing sounds up at his mother.

At the sound of the door, Alya turned around to face them.

The smile she had for her baby quickly fell at the sight of them. "What's going on?"

Marinette's lips were pressed together into a thin line before she sighed, "We might have a problem—"

"Might?" Adrien interjected in disbelief. "We definitely have a problem. There's a herd of Blanks literally surrounding the entire house."

"What?!" Alya's eyes widened in fear. "Are you serious?!"

Marinette wanted to glare at Adrien for encouraging panic, but that would have to wait for later. She raised a finger to her lips instead. "Try not to be too loud. There's a possibility they could hear us, and if they do, that might give them a reason to actually attack."

Alya silently nodded, but the fear in her eyes remained. "If they somehow know we're in here, why aren't they attacking?"

"It's almost as if they're playing with us," Adrien responded. The mere thought of the Blanks being that intelligent was enough to have him shuddering. "As if they know we're afraid of them."

Marinette nodded in agreement to that. "Luka was right about them evolving... and their evolution is advancing very quickly. We shouldn't underestimate them anymore."

"First they learn how to swim and now they learn how to trick their prey?" Alya also shuddered. "How are we supposed to outsmart them if they're becoming as smart as us?"

"By finding their weakness." Everyone turned to the sound of the new voice. Luka was standing underneath the doorframe of Alya's bedroom, a small journal tucked underneath his arms. "You might not think so, but these things have a weakness. Once we figure out what that is, we can have the tactical advantage again."

"And how are we supposed to find out what their weakness is?" Alya asked.

"By doing what any scientist does." Luka said, "Studying the product."

"You want to study the Blanks?"

"I already am. I've made some great research so far."

"What kind of research?"

"Mostly their habits, their traveling patterns, their relationships with one another." Luka flipped open his journal. "You know, these things seem to recognize their loved ones."

That seemed to shock everyone in the room. Alya was the one to indulge her curiosity. "How?"

Luka shrugged, unsure himself. "It could be that because they're growing smarter, memories from their past lives are resurfacing in bits."

"If that's happening, do you think it's possible to turn these people back to normal?" Adrien asked, "By reminding them of what they once were?"

Luka turned to look at the blonde, his expression unreadable. "Reminding them of who they once were could help, but I don't think that's the ultimate cure. Whatever made these people turn into monsters isn't a mental illness—it's some sort of disease. Something that destroyed the brain and is eating away at the body, but somehow keeping these creatures alive without a beating heart. For all we know, the disease could be from a type of bacteria that can live in any condition. There's a good chance all of us already have this bacteria in us."

The silence that stretched on between them was chilling. So... they had been doomed from the start.

"I think the cure is probably going to be some type of antidote that can be injected into the bloodstream."

His last statement seemed to surprise Marinette. She couldn't deny that the thought of a cure had crossed her mind before, back when the outbreak was fresh, and she was rather naïve. Now she was almost certain there was no cure though.

"You actually think there's a cure?"

Luka turned to her, his expression entirely serious as he nodded, "Yes, I do."

She found herself frowning at him. "How can you cure someone who's already dead?"

He folded his arms over his chest. "How are we sure that they are entirely dead? Clearly there's still some type of brain activity occurring."

"Brain activity doesn't equal life." Marinette said, "You said it yourself that the disease has rewired the brain. Everything else about them is dead. They have no heartbeat, their bodies are rotting away, and they don't even breathe in oxygen considering their lungs no longer work."

"Yes, but if the brain is still active—"

"The brain doesn't matter if the heart and soul are already gone."

They stared at each other with narrowed eyes for a good long minute before Luka averted his gaze, clearly annoyed. "I'm not going to give up on the idea until I've tried it. It can't be ruled out if it's never been tested."

"And how exactly are you doing to test this theory?" Marinette placed her hands on her hips. "Because I'm pretty sure you'd need to test a brain—and not a brain that's already been impaled with a knife. You'd need a brain that's still active... and an active brain can only come from a Blank that's still moving."

"And you're correct." Now that seemed to be something Luka could instantly agree on, surprisingly, considering their previous argument. "Which is why I'm going to catch one."

Everyone in the room fell silent at that. Alya was the first to blow her top.

"Are you insane?!" Alya hissed out before anyone else could voice out their thoughts on the absurd matter. "Catching a Blank for your little science project is too dangerous and it puts all of us at risk!"

"My 'little science project' could ultimately save lives!" Luka argued. "It could make our world normal again, bring back everything we once knew! It could end this nightmare!"

"And at what cost?! Our lives?! Did you honestly expect us to sit back idly and watch you tamper with death itself and not have a problem with it?"

Luka's jaw set as he glared at the young mother. "Maybe I thought you would all have my back on this. Marinette does."

"Woah. Leave me out of this." Marinette interjected sternly, "I was all for you observing the Blanks and taking notes... but experimenting on one that isn't fully dead? Alya's right, Luka, that is incredibly dangerous."

Luka turned to face Marinette angrily. "How else do you expect to find the answers we so desperately crave? There's only so much observing from afar that I can do. Some answers can only be found deeper under the skin... literally."

"Sure," Marinette could agree with that. "But we don't have the means to keep a Blank captive and guarantee it can't break loose."

Alya and Adrien nodded in agreement. It seemed no one was interested in keeping a Blank as their prisoner—and they had every right to be wary. After all, with the Blanks seemingly growing smarter, there was no way to tell just how intelligent they were.

And if a Blank was capable of remembering how to knock, there was a pretty good chance it could figure out how to escape its bounds.

"Maybe we should just focus on trying to get out of here and figure out a solution to that problem later?" Adrien suggested nervously.

The response he received to that was a series of pounded thuds sounded on the door that round which caused everyone in the room to jump, indicating that the Blank was losing his patience. It forced everyone to shove down their disagreements and focus on finding a way out. Thankfully, Marinette already seemed to have some sort of plan in mind.

"Good idea." Marinette hurriedly agreed and instantly planted out her train of thought. "I might have an idea of how we can get out of here."

She quickly laid out her plan—which included that someone would need to be a detour in order to distract the Blanks while everyone else escaped through the back door.

And of course, Marinette initially planned to be that distraction.

She knew Adrien would immediately object, and she stood corrected when he instantly frowned at her, shaking his head the more she continued to describe how she would do it. Everyone else seemed to be okay with her plan though. In fact, they probably thought she was best suited for the job, considering her expertise lay in being able to avoid Blanks. She'd been doing it since the beginning of the apocalypse, after all.

As they all began to part ways to enact the plan, Adrien caught her wrist.

Marinette turned to look back at him, her lips pursed. "What is it?"

The frown he wore deepened. "I don't like this plan."

Of course, his worry and unease were to be expected. She was putting her life at risk, even if she believed she would be just fine once this was all over.

Marinette offered him a somewhat sad smile. "I'll be fine. I know what I'm doing."

"What if something goes wrong, then what?" He asked, still refusing to relent. He was still struggling to believe that they would all walk out of this just fine. "We just reconciled... and now I'm just supposed to let you go risk your life?"

"If you want to get to the city, I can guarantee we will have to risk our lives more than once."

Adrien still looked unsure, his expression slowly morphing from gnawing disappointment to pure pain. His hold around her wrist tightened, refusing to let her go despite the fact that if they didn't act soon, no one would be getting out alive.

Marinette found that they both had the tendency to act selfishly when it came to their feelings for each other. This was one of those moments where he was putting them before everyone else, and she couldn't even blame him for doing so.

Marinette let out a heavy, defeated sigh. "Adrien, I have to do this. Think about Brick. Or better yet, think about Nino. What is the best thing you can do to honor him?"

It took Adrien a moment to actually have an answer to that question. "By protecting his family?"

"That's right." Marinette nodded, "Think about Alya and Brick right now, especially Brick. We can't let the Blanks have him—not after all the effort we've all put into keeping him alive."

"Right... okay..." Adrien slowly allowed his grip to slip away from her wrist, his arm coming back to his side. He clenched his fist instead and nodded as if trying to convince himself that this was the right course of action. "For Brick."

Marinette suddenly stepped forward and stood to her toes, pressing a hard kiss to his lips. Adrien sucked in harshly, his lips instantly molding into hers, and for a brief minute, neither one of them were willing to pull away. For a quick moment, nothing else in the world mattered but each other. It was just them, and for a second, she didn't mind being selfish.

When they eventually parted, their foreheads remained pressed together, because, in truth, neither of them wanted to part from the other. Slowly but surely, Marinette was the first to pull away, her eyes still closed as she took those last few seconds to savor that closeness she shared with Adrien. When she finally did open her eyes, it seemed Adrien had been doing the same. His eyes fluttered open a moment later, a sad look swirling in his irises but a fond smile pulling at his lips even despite that.

Marinette instantly matched his smile. "I'll be fine. Trust me on this, okay?"

His fond smile slipped a bit, revealing his heavy unease, but he nodded nonetheless, assuring her that he did trust her... he just worried for her.

Marinette couldn't tell him not to worry, because even she was worried.

They slipped apart after that. Adrien moved to join the others while Marinette hastily made her way toward the front door. Inhaling a deep breath shakily, her fingers twitched as she reached for the curtain. Even despite her assurance that her plan would work, she hesitated to pull it back.

Because as soon as she did, the Blanks would have no doubt that she was there, and she was certain they would immediately attack.

Regaining herself, Marinette took another deep breath through her nose. Then, pushing her worries aside, she allowed her determination to arise, and in one swift motion, she pulled back the curtain.

Her eyes widened the moment they connected with the Blank who had knocked on their door. Its forehead was pressed against the glass, its lifeless, white eyes staring directly at her, piercing through her soul. A shuddered breath left her parted lips, briefly fogging a small portion of the glass.

The Blank's eyes instantly moved as if it could see her breath. Her breath hitched.

For a moment, it seemed time had stopped as they stared at each other. For the first time in Marinette's life, she didn't know how to handle the situation. Since the apocalypse had begun, handling and dealing with Blanks had always seemed pretty simple considering people knew how to outsmart them.

But right now, she was staring at someone who was just as intelligent as she was, and she didn't know how to outsmart herself.

The moment ended as soon as the Blank finally blinked. Her head tilted slightly in confusion at that, but Marinette wasn't given much time to dwell over that when the Blank opened its mouth, its jaw extending far too unnaturally to therefore expose its rotting insides.

And then it leaned its head back and smashed its opened mouth into the window.

Marinette instantly jumped back, the glass cracking from the sudden impact. Along with its harsh aggression, it drew the attention of all the other Blanks. Each of them turned their heads to the sound. She felt her heart drop into the pit of her stomach. She'd never felt so afraid in her life knowing that all of their eyes were now on her. The same Blank slammed his head into the window again without any warning, startling her further. The sound of cracking glass reached her ears and some shattered pieces even fell at her feet.

It dawned on her rather quickly that the window wouldn't hold for much longer.

It didn't take long for the other Blanks to follow their leader's lead.

In what felt like a hazy blur of slow motion, Marinette instantly turned on her heel. To sprint to the back door where the rest of her friends had escaped out of would have been ideal, but these Blanks were too intelligent. She needed a better plan. Something that would ensure the Blanks' attention was solely focused on her at all times.

Which meant... she planned to lead them into the attic and escape from the roof and into the nearby trees.

Adrien would've scolded her and held her back had she told him of her plan entirely. She knew he meant well, of course, but Marinette knew that avoiding risks would always be an impossible task in the world that they lived in. When she decided to take on the role of being the decoy, she was already prepared for a shattering possibility—that she might not make it out of this alive, and because of her sacrifice, her friends would be able to escape unharmed and continue on to safety.

She was willing to make that sacrifice if need be. If that was her fate, she was willing to embrace it. As long as their friends made it. As long as Adrien made it. As long as Brick made it.

Marinette leaped onto the rickety, wooden, attic steps, which gave her a lucky five-second advantage. She was ten steps up by the time the first Blank slammed into the bottom of the staircase and began to clamber up the first step... but that didn't mean she was out of the woods just yet. She knew she was fast, but the Blanks were too, and when fueled with a sense of determination, it seemed they gained an extra powerup of speed.

She speedily crawled up into the attack just as the staircase began to shake violently beneath her. Had she still been on it, she would've lost her balance and fallen into the deathly mouths that awaited her. Despite wearing pants, her knees were already aching from the rotting wood she crawled across, and her palms were already littered with splinters. However, she wouldn't allow either form of pain to slow her down.

Behind her, the Blanks growled and shrieked. Marinette awkwardly stumbled to her feet, and with an arched back, tried to avoid hitting her head on the wooden beams that helped support the roof. Then, she quickly scrambled towards the small, circular window on the far back wall of the attic. Her hands quickly flew to the lock and fumbled to get it open, but with already trembling hands and ragged breaths, her adrenaline refused to calm down.

And because of that, she couldn't open the window.

"Calm down, calm down... stop shaking." She muttered repeatedly under her breath, but to no avail, her body refused to listen. Marinette surveyed her hands in front of her for a brief moment, only to find that the trembling seemed to be growing stronger rather than dissipating. Marinette cursed under her breath as she abandoned the idea of relying on her hands. Instead, she lifted her leg and kicked her foot into the windowed glass.

SMASH!

The glass instantly shattered into a million pieces upon the force she inflicted, but some of the pieces came flying at her and sliced deep, tiny cuts across her cheeks. That did nothing to help her circumstance when drops of blood began to acuminate and trickle down her skin. The smell of her blood seemed to further fuel and encourage the Blanks—if their growing sounds were any indication of their further motivation.

Marinette quickly moved to clear the rest of the glass that stood out and could be a risk for puncturing her skin, but in doing so, her hands received more than just splinters. There was nothing to protect her skin from the sharp edges of broken daggers of glass.

Something sliced her leg. Marinette hissed. Her legs began to sting as the remaining glass pieces further slashed her skin. She moved to extend her legs out through the now open window first, but was suddenly jerked back when lanky, dead-like fingers wrapped around her vulnerable wrist.

Her head jerked to look over her shoulder, only to gasp in fear when she was met with the open jaw of a hungry Blank.

She reached for a dagger of glass and slashed it across the Blank's face. The hideous beast instantly let her go and stumbled backwards, giving Marinette the opportunity to slip through her escape hatch. She stumbled across the delicate roof, and with one faithful leap, she jumped into the nearest tree.

She didn't quite stick the landing like she had hoped. She slammed face first against a prickly branch, almost losing her grip around it. She slipped slightly, and her nimble fingers ached, but she readjusted her grip, refusing to fall into the jaws of death itself. She tried to fix her position, and her limbs shook as she held onto that branch like a lifeline, but when she was finally upright, each leg dangling over one side of the branch, she exhaled in relief.

She was safe.

Marinette slowly turned to look over her shoulder, her eyes finding several Blanks that had followed her onto the roof. A part of the roof had caved in, indicating that it hadn't been strong enough to hold them all. She then looked down, only to find the rest remained circling around the house or around the tree she was currently residing in. None of them had taken the courage to follow her lead and jump after her, and even if they had decided to try it, she doubted they would make it.

What mattered most was that none of them had noticed her friends' escape, which had been her primary motive.

With that in mind, Marinette let her head fall on the branch and closed her eyes. The relieved smile that tugged on her lips was one of pride.

She had succeeded.

Marinette allowed herself the chance to simply catch her breath. Only then was she able to fully grasp the extent of her wounds once she calmed down, and the worst of the brunt seemed to be her forearm where the Blank had gotten a hold of her for a brief moment. Its fingers had dug into her skin, leaving four, long, bloody scratches in its path.

And the wounds were deep.

It stung when she used her shirt to gently dab her wounds in hopes to stop the bleeding, but even she knew that these wounds would require a bit of medical attention. Of course, she was prepared for that, but something like this had never happened to her before. In fact, Marinette had never been so close to death before until then, because a Blank had never gotten close enough to touch her before.

She had no idea if scratches from a Blank were as deadly as its bite.

Adrenaline slowly began to course through her veins once more, giving her the strength she needed to begin pressing forward. Because the forest was so vast, Marinette was able to begin her dangerous trek through the trees as soon as the sun began to set. Considering each tree was so close together, this allowed her to continue moving without having to set foot on the ground, all the while, using the setting darkness as a way to lose the Blanks and (hopefully) shake them off her trail without having to kill them all.

The sky grew darker and darker with every branch she climbed to and from. Eventually, the sounds of the Blanks growling in frustration slowly fell further and further from her ears until crickets and the silence around them was the only thing that greeted her.

It didn't take her long to spot her friends in a nearby tree despite the darkness that had now fallen. As soon as they spotted her, Adrien was climbing through the trees to meet her halfway. He immediately wrapped her up in his arms, exhaling a heavy breath on her brow. However, the intensity of his hug applied pressure to her very injured arm. Marinette couldn't help but hiss in pain despite wanting to keep her wound unnoticed. Adrien, however, noticed right away and pulled back immediately, eyeing her in absolute worry.

"What's wrong?" He asked her, his voice filled with concern. "Are you hurt?"

"I'm... I'm fine." She tried to assure him that even as he leaned back. She couldn't help but hiss again when his hands lowered down her arms and slightly rubbed against her poorly bandaged forearm. When he realized she was in pain there, his eyes moved down to inspect it, only to gasp when he found her blood all over her right sleeve and on his hand.

Marinette squeezed her eyes shut and looked away from him. "It's just a scratch."

"Just a scratch?" His voice had risen an octave higher. "You're bleeding a lot."

"I'll be fine once I stitch it up. No need to worry."

He didn't sound like he was convinced. "You need a doctor, Marinette. How have you not fainted?"

She shrugged, unsure herself. "Adrenaline rush?"

Adrien pulled her closer to him, and she let him, because she was already starting to feel her eyes close against her will. "How did this happen? Did a Blank get a hold of you? Did you fall? Did—"

"Adrien," Alya came up beside him then, frowning deeply, "Stop pestering her. She needs rest, and she can't rest if you keep asking a ton of questions."

"But I—"

"No buts. Give her to me—I'll tend to her wounds."

Adrien huffed loudly at that, but he obliqued, handing an almost unconscious Marinette over to Alya who already had her arms outstretched.

"You can't blame me for asking a bunch of questions." He said stubbornly once Marinette was safely in her arms. "She's really hurt."

"I can see that." Alya replied in a monotone voice.

"Stop talking about me as if I'm not here." Marinette gruffly mumbled. She winched when she was shifted to lay down uncomfortably. "It's just a couple of scratches."

"That's what you said last time about the bullet." Adrien argued.

"And I was right, wasn't I? My arm's fine and good as new."

"Yeah. Except who was the one who patched you up?"

The air seemed to thicken around them when silence ensued. Alya sucked in a harsh breath at the vague mention of Nino but said nothing. Marinette remained silent as well, her eyes closing as if seeing nothing would keep the memories of Nino away.

Adrien, realizing his slip-up, instantly panicked. Eyes wide as saucers, his apology came out jumbled. "I'm sorry—I didn't mean to open up the pain of the past or anything—"

"It's okay," Alya assured him, genuinely meaning so. "I understood your point, and he's right you know..." the young mother gently brushed some of Marinette's stray bangs out of her face. "You can't risk being so reckless when we don't have Nino around. He taught me some stuff, but I don't know it all."

Marinette nodded; her eyes still closed. "Sure, but I wasn't being reckless."

"Really?" Adrien interjected before Alya could respond. "You let hundreds of Blanks chase you and you jumped from the roof into a tree while already being injured. What exactly would you call that?"

The ravenette pretended to contemplate an answer, but in truth, Marinette already had a response on the tip of her tongue.

"Uhhh... I'd call it survival. My plan worked, didn't it? We're alive."

Adrien scrunched up his nose, clearly not liking that answer. Annunciating each word, he said, "You. Could. Have. Died."

Marinette frowned at him, his tone already starting to bother her. "Thank you for saying what we all already know, captain obvious."

"This isn't a game, Marinette." Adrien said sternly, "You put yourself in a lot of danger, concocted an unnecessary, risky plan—and for what? Glory? "

"Did you just accuse me of doing this for glory?"

Adrien ignored her question. "We could've found a different way, made a different plan, done things safer. Don't you understand that you could have lost your life?"

"Don't you think I know that?" Marinette snapped back at him. Seemingly stunned by her outburst, Adrien and Alya simply watched her with wide eyes, but Marinette wasn't nearly finished. "I knew what I was up against, but there wasn't any time to come together in a little circle and share our ideas with the class."

Adrien quickly opened his mouth to respond, but Marinette shushed him instantly. "And don't you dare try to tell me that my actions are to gain glory. That is the stupidest shit I've ever heard in my life. Accuse me of that again and my fist will show you just how much punching your face will be glorifying."

Adrien opened his mouth, only to shut it again, speechless.

"Yeah... that accusation was pretty low, ya' twit." Luka decided to fill in the silence, his smile smug. "Since when has Marinette ever been selfish? Minus that one time when she tried to steal my boat, of course."

"You mean that one time when you refused to share your boat that you abandoned?" Marinette threw right back at him, one amused brow raised.

"Eh. Semantics. The point is, you're not really a selfish person."

"Touché." Alya interjected, agreeing with their raven-haired captain.

"Wait," Adrien's attention was solely on Luka. "Did you just call me a—"

"Twit?" Luka finished his sentence for him and nodded. He didn't seem to be ashamed of his choice of vocabulary either. "Yes, I did. It means you're an—"

"I know what it means, brit."

"That's not even offensive." Luka let out a low chuckle. "Besides, I could've called you something much worse, ya' wanker."

"Hey," Marinette shared a look between the men, her eyes lingering on Luka. "Would you quit with the name calling? That one was harsh."

Adrien looked between the two confusingly. "What does it mean?"

His question went entirely ignored by the both of them. Luka remained unperturbed. "I'm British, Marinette. It's my nature."

"You promised you would remain civil. Name-calling is not being civil."

"You can't expect me to completely cut out name calling." Luka actually pouted.

"Hey! Don't ignore me! Tell me what that word means!"

"Whatever." She rolled her eyes, hissing slightly when the pain in her arm decided to throb again. She sent Adrien specifically the look, the one that said she wasn't going to explain the word to him. "Just shut up please."

"Yes please." Alya agreed. The young mother had already rolled up the rest of Marinette's sleeve, exposing her oozing wounds, but the swab was still pressed in between her fingertips, having yet to soak up the blood. "I can't concentrate with all of you bickering."

"Me neither," Marinette added, her eyes closing a moment later. "Concentrating on getting some rest, that is."

"All right, message received." Adrien said, but he was still reluctant to leave. Marinette could tell because she could still feel his presence—even despite her eyes being closed—him lingering like he always did when he was unsure about something.

She slowly peaked an eye open, only to find him looking down at her. When their eyes met, he tried to mask his anxiousness by putting on a smile for her.

But she could see right through him. She could read him like an open book.

Marinette tried to return his smile, but if she had a mirror, she was sure hers would look anything from reassuring. She was exhausted, and she was certain her smile mirrored such.

Wordlessly, Adrien leaned down to press a kiss to her forehead.

Then he pulled away, and her eyes fluttered closed a second later.

Alya quickly got to work on patching up Marinette's wounds to the best of her ability, relying solely on what Nino had taught her. Adrien climbed to another branch to give her the space and silence that she desired. But in doing so, that left him perched beside Luka, who seemed to be just as dissatisfied at being shooed away.

Adrien crossed his arms over his chest, huffing in annoyance. "What does wanker mean?"

"If I told you, things might get uncivil between us." Luka didn't even bother to look up from his bag. "Luckily for you, I intend to keep my promise to Marinette when I swore to her that I would stay civil around you."

Adrien didn't like that answer. In fact, that only bothered him even more. A question that had been lingering in his mind left his lips before he could even consider stopping it. "What's your deal with Marinette?"

"My deal?" Luka chuckled, shooting the blonde a strange look out of the corner of his eye. He too had his arms crossed and shoulders squared, as if he knew an interrogation was near. "What are you on about?"

"Oh sorry, let me rephrase..." Adrien spat out a bit bitterly. "Your relationship."

There was a brief moment of silence in which neither of the men spoke. Luka merely stared, his eyes closely watching Adrien's. Adrien, as stubborn as he was, refused to look away, his green eyes having no intent of backing down from the unspoken staring contest that had been unintentionally started.

And then, rather suddenly, Luka broke the contest with a wide grin.

"Ah, I see what this is..." Luka ran a hand through his raven-colored hair, chuckling. His electric-blue highlights that were bleached on his ends were starting to fade. "You're jealous."

The blonde scoffed at that, averting his gaze. "In your dreams."

"I don't need to dream it if it's happening right in front of me." Luka turned to face him fully, his smile amused. "You're dating the woman, and yet, you somehow think I'm a threat? Talk about being insecure—"

"I'm not insecure."

"So, what is it then? Could it be because you don't trust her?"

"I have trust in Marinette." Adrien assured, "What I don't have trust in is you."

"Why? Because I dated Marinette six years ago?" Luka raised an unamused brow. "Honestly, mate, grow up. All of us here are adults now and no one is planning on stealing your woman."

Adrien's eyebrows furrowed. "That's not what I'm implying—"

"Then what exactly are you implying?" Luka interrupted, his eyes narrowed. "That while you were moping around for a year and neglecting your woman, she went and found comfort in someone else? That she cheated on you? That I made a move on her or something?"

Adrien quickly opened his mouth to object, only to quickly shut it once more.

Seeing his reaction, Luka shook his head in disbelief. "Figures." He scoffed loudly, "You really think the worst of people, don't you? What are you going to do next? Send me off to my death like you did to Nino?"

Adrien frowned deeply, his brows furrowing angrily, "Leave Nino out of this."

"Why should I? You're the one who sees a threat and then gets rid of it."

"That's not what happened with Nino!" Adrien argued—or more like exclaimed in order to defend himself. He never tried to kill Nino. That was never his intention. "Nino offered to go up ahead! It was entirely his choice!"

"And that's your word against who's exactly?" Luka countered, nowhere near intending to back down. "Nino isn't around to say otherwise, so who's to say you're not lying to save your own skin?"

In that moment, Adrien was left speechless. To defend himself was pointless now. Luka was right. How could he prove he was telling the truth if he was the only witness to Nino's last day with them?

"Sucks having a bunch of accusations thrown at you, doesn't it?"

Adrien huffed out a defeated sigh. His arms slowly fell to his sides. "I'm... I'm sorry. It was wrong of me to assume that you or Marinette would do that."

"Apology accepted," Luka answered instantly, his tone entirely nonchalant now. "But only because I promised Marinette that I would do my best to get along with you."

"Right..." Adrien offered their captain a weary glance. "For Marinette."

They were interrupted by Alya's call, her exclamation explaining that she was finished with patching up Marinette's wounds. Luka was the first to stand from his crouched position on a branch, his hands grasping the branches above him. He gave Adrien one last, hard glare, his perceived reputation of him rather clear.

"For the record, Marinette and I are just friends." He said lowly, even punctuating the words to make them clearer. "Good friends, in fact. My intentions are to make it up to her for everything I've done in the past, and that's that. We clear?"

Adrien nodded in nothing but shame. "Yeah... we're clear."

After that heated exchange, they continued on their journey through the trees to avoid any Blanks that still lingered on the ground around them. As they moved slowly, Marinette shot a Blank one by one with her bow, even though they all insisted she shouldn't be wielding such a weapon with an injured arm. Marinette rolled her eyes at that—after all, she felt as good as new. She was readily eager to help Alya carry Brick too, except Alya wouldn't dare let her with an injured arm.

So instead, Luka offered to help carry the babe. They took turns in doing so, even though Marinette complained most of the time that she wasn't incapable.

Hours passed as they carefully trekked through tree limbs. Once in a while, one of her arrows would whoosh through the air, piercing through a Blank's skull upon impact. That sound was usually followed by a complaint from Marinette, because every time an arrow was shot, she couldn't go back and retrieve it.

When the moon welcomed the dark sky that night, they all stopped to sleep amongst the birds in their nests. Marinette spent most of her time carving herself new arrows until the sun slowly rose the next morning.

An additional hour passed as they continued through the trees. They stopped, however, when they reached a dead end.

The end of the forest greeted them... and so did an entire landscape of a deserted city. Skyscrapers that reached the clouds towered over them by the dozens, leaving no room for the imagination that this had once been a powerful and wealthy city. In the distance, it was easy to make out figures moving in the streets, though those figures were far from human. They stumbled around abandoned vehicles and wandered aimlessly through decay.

They were Blanks, and the city was infested with thousands of them.

"What do we do now?" Alya whispered from beside her.

The city stretched as far as the eye could see. Surrounding it were walls of mountain ranges. To go around the city would take longer, and not only that, but the mountain ranges made one who passed through them extremely vulnerable.

There wouldn't just be Blanks up there either. She was certain humans were probably living up there as well and wouldn't be the friendliest to strangers.

"We go through." Marinette answered.

"Are you sure you want to go through that very infested city?" Luka questioned from behind her. He grunted as he further heisted up Brick's sling. "Not to judge your leadership or anything, but there's a lot of Blanks down there."

"Too many for comfort." Adrien also added, sounding weary.

Marinette nodded in determination. "It's our only option. If we go through the mountains, it'll take longer. Plus, we also have no idea what to expect up there. There could be people living in those mountains."

"Is that such a bad thing?" Alya asked, confused.

"Unfriendly people." Marinette rephrased.

"Oh."

"How do you plan to get through all of those Blanks?" Adrien asked, sounding worried. "They'll see us, won't they?"

In response, Marinette simply offered him a smirk. It was all she needed to assure him that she already had a brilliant plan in mind.

"There's absolutely no way I'm doing this," Alya said a moment later.

The group of friends were now on the ground at the edge of the forest, still hidden beneath the sanctuary of the trees. They were all standing in a circle, and in the center of them, lay the most recent of Marinette's victims to her trusty bow and arrow.

"It's the only way," Marinette said as she unsheathed her pocketknife.

"I'd rather walk through the mountains for years non-stop than do this," Luka commented beside her.

On her other side, she heard Adrien swallow uncomfortably. "I'd rather go through the mountains and get mugged by bandits than do this."

Marinette lowered herself to the ground and kneeled in front of the lifeless Blank. Inhaling deeply, she began her work by cutting a line down the Blank's middle from his collarbone down to where his intestines lay. From behind her, she heard Alya gag, and rustled leaves indicated someone had preferred not to watch and had turned around. She had a good guess it was Adrien and his weak stomach.

"Just hold your breath." Marinette commented nonchalantly.

She continued cutting the corpse open, mindful that what she would be greeted with wouldn't be an appealing sight. The insides of the Blank spilled open, and his guts littered the forest floor. Beside her, Luka gagged. Marinette sheathed her pocketknife and shoved it into her pocket. Before anyone could question how she planned to proceed, Marinette dove forward and submerged her hands into Blank remains.

"Oh my god..." Alya shuddered from somewhere behind her.

When she retracted her hands, only the black, sticky blood of the Blank remained. Marinette then began to rub it all over herself, embedding its stench in her clothes and molding its scent with her own.

If the Blanks smelled this and not her, she believed they would leave her be.

"I think I'm going to throw up... again." Adrien said as he watched her. He threw a hand over his mouth a second later. "There's no way you expect us to do this."

Marinette turned to look at him and flipped her hair over her shoulder. "Do you want to get to the sanctuary or not?"

"Of course I do, but—"

"Then you better get busy. We want to get through the city before nightfall."

A strange noise escaped his throat in what could only be deciphered as disgust. Adrien's gaze slowly lowered to the corpse at his feet. Inhaling deeply and holding it in like she'd suggested, he kneeled in front of the Blank, squeezed his eyes shut, and shoved his hands into it as she had done.

Luka and Alya both gasped in disbelief from behind them.

As Adrien slowly began to rub the Blank's blood into his clothes, Marinette turned around to face her other two friends. "Who's next?"

Luka instantly shook his head. "No way."

"Either you do it yourself..." Marinette raised her now black hands, wriggling her fingers at him. "Or I'll fling some of its guts at you."

Luka offered her a scowl, clearly not overjoyed about smearing oozing Blank blood all over himself. But honestly, who would be? It was nasty and horrific, but Marinette was willing to do whatever needed to make it to the sanctuary.

Plus, she figured there wasn't anything a nice bath couldn't fix.

After Luka finished spreading the blood all over himself, the only one who remained was Alya. Brick, who was already on Luka's back had gotten a bit of blood smeared on his cheeks and sling (curtesy of Marinette), and thankfully, he didn't fuss too much about the stench. He was actually more cooperative than his mother, who stubbornly kept shaking her head even despite being threatened to have guts thrown at her (also courtesy of Marinette.)

This, of course, resulted into an argument.

"C'mon Alya," Marinette groaned out, frustrated. "There's no other way. We all want the same thing, right? To make it to the sanctuary?"

"Of course I do, Marinette! But I don't want Blank blood all over me!"

"It's not permanent! There's a reason why water and baths exist!"

"This isn't your everyday dirt being washed off, this is blood!"

"So what? You're gonna tell me you've never bled before?"

"Paper cuts are not the same as covering myself in blood!"

"I was thinking more along the lines of accidentally cutting your finger with a knife, but paper cuts work too, I guess."

"Alya, love, we don't really have time for this," Luka interjected softly, his expression sympathetic, because he, of course, understood how she felt about what they had to do. They all did. "But the sooner we get through the city, the sooner we can get this off of us. Please, we need you to work with us here."

Alya still hesitated, but after much convincing, Marinette was finally able to get her to comply. With four friends and one baby covered in icky black ooze, they carefully left the darkened forest behind them and ventured down rolling hills into the infested city.

They were greeted at the entrance by Blanks dressed in law official uniforms. They'd be impossible to kill if they came after them, Marinette realized, due to their protective helmets. However, due to the Blank blood coating their bodies, the Blanks seemed entirely disinterested in them. The corpses lumbered right past them, continuing on their way—to wherever they planned to go.

Internally, Marinette did a victory fist bump in the air.

"It actually worked." Alya gasped in a whisper beside her.

"They actually think we're one of them." Luka chuckled in disbelief.

"Smell isn't the only thing that'll save your skin." Marinette said quietly. She purposely dragged one of her legs behind her, intimating the way most Blanks tended to carry themselves. With a smirk thrown over her shoulder at her friends, she added, "You gotta play the part too."

Luka rubbed his hands together at that. "I knew all that theatre in Lycée would pay off."

Alya looked at him, stunned. "You were in theatre too?"

Her question was left unanswered as Luka proceeded to do what he always wanted—pretend to be a Blank and actually fool the other Blanks. Along with smell and playing an act, Marinette and her friends were close to reaching the end of the city blended in disguise amongst the thousands of walking corpses.

However, their good luck came to a halt the moment Brick started to cry.

It started with a whimpered whine. The noise was faint, but to Marinette, it sounded like a cricket on a silent night. She slowly turned around to draw less attention, finding Luka already staring at her with a frightened look on his face. Strapped to his back, Brick was starting to fuss, and his faint sounds seemed to be enough to get some of the Blanks to start looking in their direction.

"Get him to shut up." Marinette hissed in frustration—but it wasn't directed at Luka, it was directed at the fact that their plan was starting to fail, and if Brick kept it up, they would all be in danger.

Luka slowly slid the sling around to his front and opened it slightly so that the baby could see his face. That didn't help in the slightest—because when Brick recognized a familiar face, his whines only rose an octave higher. That caused them all to wince. It seemed what he really wanted was to get out of the sling.

"Luka!" Marinette hissed out again, this time her frustration clearly directed at him. Around them, more Blanks began to turn towards the sound, their snarls rising like low rumbles in their chests.

"I'm sorry I'm sorry!" He whispered back, his entire expression a definite example of a wince. "I thought if he saw me, he'd shut his little hole—"

"Uhhh guys...?" Adrien's weary voice interjected, "We've got company."

All around them, Blanks were beginning to accumulate. Brick's whining had escalated to dramatic wails, which could not be shushed no matter how much Luka tried to console the upset child. The Blanks were slowly closing them in, and with that, their disguises were completely compromised.

"W-What do we do?" Alya worried at her side.

"There's too many of them." Adrien added on her other side.

Marinette surveyed her surroundings with a sweep of her eyes. Surrounding them almost entirely, the Blanks would've had them trapped in a circle, but to her left, Marinette spotted an opening between the rotting corpses. It was their chance, and she wasn't about to waste it. Marinette grabbed Luka by the wrist and yanked him, throwing him in front of her.

"Run!"

Luka did as he was told. He took off running through the opening and she followed right behind him. Extending her bow, she loaded an arrow and released it, striking a Blank right through the eyes. She quickly loaded another, intending to keep his path clear—as long as Brick made it to safety.

Behind her, she could hear Adrien's heavy breathing followed by Alya's frantic panting.

She released another arrow on a Blank that had his jaw opened wide, its intention to grab a chunk of flesh out of Luka's arm. It wouldn't make it, of course—not on Marinette's watch. When the arrow hit, the corpse spluttered before collapsing backward. Luka shot her a brief, grateful smile over his shoulder as a form of silent thanks.

"WATCH OUT!" Adrien suddenly screamed at the top of his lungs.

Her gaze snapped to her left, finding a staggering Blank nearing her at a rapid pace with his arms outstretched. No time to load her bow, Marinette unsheathed her machete at her hip and swung, slicing its head off. To her right, another one seemed to have the same idea as his compatriot. She sealed his fate with her machete puncturing through his skull.

Adrien let out a relieved chuckle somewhere from behind her.

In front of her, Luka pressed Brick as close to his chest as physically possible even as the baby's cries grew louder. His legs carried him as fast as they could, and as they ran, evading the Blanks (somehow) as they did so, the end of the city neared by the second.

"We're almost there! Keep running!" Marinette shouted.

"You don't have to tell me twice!" Was Adrien's witty response, and then he was running at her side, shooting her a Cheshire grin. Her eyes widened in disbelief. How he could joke at a time like this she would never know.

She swung her machete again when a Blank grew too close to Luka and the baby. Her skill was enough to get Luka out of the city streets. He began his trek up the rolling hills, and because of how steep it was, it seemed the Blanks didn't know how to follow. When they tried, they tumbled down the hill.

"Get to the hills!" Marinette shouted, relieved. "The Blanks can't climb up!"

When she reached the hills herself, Marinette instantly turned around to give Adrien a hand. She hoisted him up just as his leg was inches close to one of the Blank's open jaws. She knifed it with her pocketknife when it tried to reach out for them with its lanky, rotten fingers. When it was dead, she fell back onto her butt in the tall grass, exhaling a heavy, relieved sigh.

They made it. Somehow, they were able to make it in one piece.

"Hey, wait..." From behind her, Luka suddenly dashed forward to be at her side, the wailing baby still clutched tightly to his chest. "Where's Alya?"

Marinette's head instantly snapped up, her gaze urgently surveying the thousands of huddled Blanks below. Much to her dismay, Alya was nowhere to be seen amongst them.

Adrien's head whipped around frantically, taking a look around for himself. It seemed Alya was nowhere to be found on top of the rolling hills either. "She was right behind me!" He exclaimed, horrified.

Marinette instantly stood to her feet. She shoved her backpack off of her shoulders, tossing it towards Adrien without warning. Somehow, he still caught it with ease, but he was watching her confusingly, unsure of what she planned to do. Marinette didn't have time to explain anything to him, though. With only her machete strapped to her hip, Marinette jumped down the rolling hills and rushed back into the hoard of hungry Blanks.

"MARINETTE!" Adrien's agonizing screams echoed painfully through the air, but she had to force herself not to look back over her shoulder.

Marinette had told Alya that she would be able to raise her baby in the city of sanctuary, and she was not about to lose the young mother here.

Marinette simply let her feet carry her. With her machete raised high, she plowed her way through the Blanks and sliced off any head that got too close. As she passed, Blanks lumbered after her, arms outstretched, teeth exposed, snarling and hissing and groaning. She somehow evaded them all.

In front of her, a clearing suddenly opened up. It was then that she saw Alya running towards her, the young mother covered in a mixture of Blank blood and dirt. When she realized she was being rescued, Alya's eyes resembled relief. With a hand outstretched, Marinette grabbed ahold of Alya's as soon as she reached her, and together, they ran.

Her machete pierced and slashed the Blanks as they ran. Like slow motion, the corpses fell to the ground only inches away from their feet. Alya was screaming, but to Marinette, the sound echoed inside of her mind like it was miles away in a maze of chasms. Their footsteps sounded like the thud of a kick drum every time one foot hit the ground after the other. The sound of her machete slicing through flesh mimicked that of someone ripping sheets of paper—and then the hills came into view; the hills that once they made it to them, they would be safe. Marinette felt more blood rush to her calves; her adrenaline rose; sweat beaded down her forehead and into her eyes; her breath quickened.

And then she and Alya leaped in unison to safety.

Marinette collapsed on her hands and knees in the tall grass of the rolling hills. Alya too mimicked this action before deciding to roll on her back instead. They were both breathing heavily, each trying to catch their breath. Luka and Adrien were quickly rushing to assist them, though their concerned rambling only sounded like hums behind the ringing in Marinette's ears.

She could make out Alya assuring him that she was fine, even though Adrien stuttered out through choked sobs how sorry he was for accidentally leaving her behind. Alya patted his arm, reassuring him that she didn't blame him. Adrien's response was to embrace her in a choke-holding hug.

Luka kneeled down beside her, placing a hand on her back. "Are you okay?"

Marinette nodded. She could hardly breathe at that moment, but she would be.

"That was risky, love." Luka nudged her shoulder lightly, chuckling, "I don't know how you did it, but you saved her. Good on you."

She found herself matching his grin. She didn't know how she'd done it either.

Adrien moved over towards her after he released Alya from his bone-crushing hug. His expression was a bit timid but definitely relieved. "You scared me real hard, you know," he said. The back of his fingers gently touched her cheek a moment later. "But I'm glad to have you back in one piece."

She smiled up at him. "You and me both."

Their reunion was shattered a second later by the heaving cries of Brick. Alya slowly stood up and outstretched her arms towards Luka. "He's probably hungry. Let me nurse him really quick before we continue."

"Out in the open?" Luka gaped at her as if she'd gone mad.

Everyone chuckled at his concern, even when he frowned at them for their unspoken teasing. Pouting, he slowly removed the sling and handed the crying baby over to his mother. Once Brick was safely in Alya's arms, the men turned their backs to her out of respect. Marinette moved to also do the same, until she caught something out of the corner of her eye the moment Alya lowered the collar of her shirt.

"Alya wait!" Marinette surged forward, throwing a hand between Brick's eagerness and Alya's breast. Upon the contact, Alya flinched and stared up at her friend in utter shock, and so did the men, who turned around at the sound of urgency in Marinette's voice, only to be greeted with the exact same weird sight.

Because Marinette was currently touching Alya's boob.

Alya glanced down at Marinette's hand, then her gaze snapped back up to her eyes. "What are you—get your hand off of me, Marinette!"

Marinette didn't move a muscle. "You can't feed him!"

"Why not?!" Alya demanded, aghast.

Wordlessly, Marinette's other hand quickly reached out for the collar of Alya's shirt. She pulled it further down, revealing the bare skin of the mother's right shoulder. Alya, of course, protested and tried to shove her raven-haired friend away, but all Marinette could do was simply stare at what she deemed to be her failure. Wrecked internally, she forced herself to remain entirely nonchalant and even kept her voice from shaking as she revealed her unfortunate find.

"Because you've been bitten."

Upon this revelation, Marinette heard the shuddered gasps of both Adrien and Luka. She watched as Alya's eyes instantly widened in fear, and slowly, she turned her head to get a view of her own shoulder. Sure enough, her own red blood was slowly oozing out of a bite-sized wound and had even seeped through her shirt. Her skin had been ripped by a Blank's teeth, revealing mangled flesh that was slowly starting to turn black due to the quick spread of the cursed disease.

"No..." The word left the young mother's lips like a shuddered plea. Horror clouded her auburn irises. It seemed even she hadn't realized she'd been bitten, but even Marinette couldn't blame her. Adrenaline had a way of abstracting one's senses. "I-I didn't even feel it... how...?"

Brick's cries continued to grow louder and louder due to the absence of his mother's milk. No one said a word or did anything to try and comfort the boy. Even his own mother was too stunned to respond to his distress.

Marinette was the first one to make a move... and that was to unsheathe her machete from its holster.

Adrien's eyes flickered to the movement almost immediately. "W-What are you doing?"

The raven-haired woman didn't look up. In fact, her sweaty, tangled bangs covered her eyes, hiding the absolute pain that swirled in her dim-blue irises. Luka turned to look at her as well, but he remained silent, his bottom lip quivering as tears beaded on his bottom eyelids because he knew what needed to be done.

Even Alya knew what her fate was now. "Luka... take Brick please."

Brick's wailing continued on like a siren. It was the only sound that kept the tension from being absolute silence. Luka was torn; torn between wishing there was a different way versus wanting to assure their safety. His fingers flexed at his sides, conflicted. "But Alya—"

It was then when Alya lifted her head, her eyes pleading, "Please."

Luka's eyes held absolute sorrow as he reluctantly stepped forward. He slowly took the crying baby from his mother's outstretched arms. It was then when he saw her tears rolling down her cheeks, which caused his own to silently spill.

"There has to be another way!" A clammy hand flew to Marinette's shoulder, belonging none other to the optimistic blonde she'd fallen in love with. Adrien's voice was strained as he begged for her reconsideration, but there was nothing left to consider. There was no antidote. This was the only way.

"I'm sorry," Her voice answered lowly, "But there's nothing else I can do."

However, that apology wasn't just directed at Adrien. It was meant for Alya too. After all, Marinette had once promised Alya that she would be able to raise her son in a sanctuary, and now, that promise had been broken. Marinette's distraught irises conveyed sorrow and remorse as she slowly lifted her head. When their eyes locked, Marinette had to force herself not to acknowledge the tears that involuntarily cascaded down her own cheeks.

Because Alya was smiling at her. It was a sorrowful smile, but it said wonders.

Alya didn't blame Marinette for her fate in the end.

"I know." Alya whispered hoarsely, her smile quivering slightly even as her own tears fell and stained her chapped lips. "Goodbye, Marinette."

Marinette bit at her bottom lip to suppress the sobs that threatened to escape.

"Goodbye, Alya."

And then, with eyes squeezed shut, she swung her machete, even despite Adrien's agonized cries, and decapitated one of the best friends she'd ever had in her entire life.

Silence ensued like a dastardly plague after that day, just as contagious as the disease of the walking dead. The only difference between the two was that the damage it caused couldn't be seen on the outside as a resemblance of rotting flesh. The inside of one's mind and spirit is what ends up paying the price. It rolled heavily on everyone, clouded many judgments, and forced the group to take a break in order to properly grieve over the loss of a friend.

The cold weather returned hours later when the sun set once again. A tree became their sanctuary for the night, and even though the winds were chilly, that couldn't beat the coldness already embedded in their hearts.

No one had said a word since the unfortunate passing of Alya Césaire. She had been a good friend, even despite the differences they once faced. Along with her sudden absence came the realization of the added responsibility Marinette now solely carried in order to fulfill the promise she had made: to become a mother for a child that wasn't even hers. Raising a baby wouldn't be an easy task (it never was even when she helped Alya), but Marinette wasn't ready for something like that. Perhaps she would never be ready for it.

When the sun rose the next morning, the hoard of horrid Blanks piling at the bottom of the rolling hills had surprisingly given up and had wandered back into the vast, deserted city. They decided to bury Alya's body on those hills.

To carry a piece of her with her, Marinette kept the necklace Alya wore around her neck. Marinette didn't know what it symbolized or how important it was to the young mother, but she planned to give it to Brick one day—the day she would tell him about his real parents.

They continued through the woods in dead silence. Luka kept Brick in his arms, eventually lolling the crying baby to sleep with whispered assurances and light bounces. But that was only a temporary solution to their problem. Without Alya, Brick couldn't nurse, and he was nowhere near close to being completely off of breast milk. He still relied on it too much, and no one here could give it to him. With every tree that past, it seemed the unfamiliar wilderness grew vaster, civilization dead behind them.

Marinette bit at her bottom lip unsurely. Her eyes settled on the infant that was once again crying in Luka's arms. They couldn't keep going on like this. Not only was it unhealthy for Brick, but his crying would only lure in more Blanks. They needed a place to properly rest, and they needed food.

For once in her life, however, Marinette didn't have a plan.

"Hey..." Adrien softly placed a hand on her shoulder, startling her out of her reverie. His eyes were red, and his cheeks were stained with tears, a blatant sign that he had been crying as the hours since Alya's death passed. "What's our next move?"

Marinette looked unsurely between the three of them that still remained. It felt like the shadow of death loomed over them all no matter how hard they tried to survive. Perhaps expecting that she could protect them all was her mistake. To actually even think that they could make it to this city was sounding more and more bizarre. If they already lost some, who was to say they wouldn't lose more?

Who would be next? Would anyone even get to the city in the end?

Would all of their efforts end up being for nothing?

"I...I don't know." She admitted truthfully. In truth, her mind was blank.

Adrien hummed in thought. His hand lowered from her shoulder to the small of her back, rubbing gentle circles into her spine. "Bounce your thoughts off on me. Maybe I can help." He suggested warmly.

"Well..." She licked her chapped lips. "Brick needs milk."

That, of course, was the only thought going off in her mind like a siren, only because Brick's crying was a constant reminder of his severe hunger.

Adrien nodded in agreement. "So where can we get some?"

"Our best bet would be formula, but that's a stretch." Marinette ran a hand through her greasy hair, her stress evident. Her pigtails had fallen out a long time ago, the hair ties lost somewhere during their journey. "The next best thing would have to be animal milk, preferably a goat."

"Well, we could've looked for wild mountain goats, but we already passed the mountain ranges."

Marinette chose to ignore that statement. Whatever he meant by it—whether it be an innocent comment or a jab at her choices to avoid the mountains and go through the city instead—the last thing they needed was an argument to fuel any possible vendettas.

"We need to find a farm."

"And pray the animals are still alive," Luka commented on her left. She wasn't surprised he held back simply to match their pace and eavesdrop. Typical Luka. He shrugged nonchalantly when Adrien shot him the look. "What? The Blanks could've eaten the poor things already."

Adrien rolled his eyes, turning his gaze to look forward once again. "This forest seems to go on forever." The tone of his voice conveyed that finding a farm nearby seemed to be impossible. "Hopefully we'll stumble upon a valley soon."

"An abandoned farm would be a nice find," Marinette added. "The fencing along the land could be modified for better fortification against the Blanks, and it would be a nice place to raise Brick until he's old enough to understand how dangerous the life around him is."

The men both silently nodded in agreement. They could all agree that they had more of a chance of making it to the city with a young boy than they did with an infant. A boy who was old enough to understand the Blanks was a boy who could be taught how to live amongst them. But waiting for that child to grow was the biggest hindrance in reaching their destination.

They traveled for three weeks through nothing but dark forest—a sight of scenery they all longed to see change. They spent every night huddled in a tree, hardly enduring the changes of the weather as it switched from cold to hot like a light switch on a wall. They encountered a few Blanks as they traveled. Most who were slain by Marinette's machete were lethargic and rather easy to kill.

To most that would have been a sign of good luck, but to Marinette, that only heightened her senses. That was unlike the Blanks. With their evolution, they should remain moving forward, not backward.

Luka continued his documentation on the Blanks as they walked—and of course, that was one thing he made sure to write down. His theory was that not every Blank was evolving at the same rate. He didn't have an answer as to how that could be possible when she asked, though.

During their travels through what seemed to be an endless forest, Brick's cries eventually ceased, but not because his hunger had been cured. He no longer had the strength to cry, nor did he have any more tears to shed. He remained eerily silent after that, not even stirring in his sling as he was jostled from step after step. The all took turns in carrying him, watching with concern as Brick's red eyes slowly glanced between his carriers with absolutely no signs of emotion.

His lack of noise and baby enthusiasm was concerning, but his lack of expressing his recognition for them? That was what worried her most.

Finally, after what seemed like months of walking, they reached another clearing through the trees. A vast stretch of valleys rolling over one another, decorated with different color flowers as far as the eye could see. It seemed like a piece of paradise untouched by the Blanks. It looked like heaven.

And in the center of it all, stood two buildings side-by-side.

"It's a farm." Adrien breathed out, astounded.

With the little energy they had left, the three friends raced towards their salvation. With every leap through colorful flowers, pollen and bees rose into the air, but no one was concerned about a sting or an itchy nose. Instead, their legs pumped harder, their adrenaline rose, and even their breaths grew ragged.

As they neared closer and closer, an intact fence surrounding the property came into view. On the other side of it, several animals roamed freely. She could see a horse, a couple of cows, and even a few goats.

Nonetheless, she slowly stopped running until she was standing still only a few feet away from an easily climbable fence. That caused her friends to slow down as well. They eventually stopped beside her, breathing heavily.

"Why'd you stop?" Luka rasped out.

Marinette silently pointed at the fence. Her eyes surveyed it along the land. Considering the state of their world, she was surprised to find not a single part of the fence was broken. It was all intact, and she had reason to believe it wasn't because Blanks hadn't tried to get past it.

Someone must still live inside.

"I don't think this farm is abandoned," Marinette said. She then leaned down to pick up a rock, and without explanation, threw it at the fence. As soon as the rock hit the metal-linked fence, a crackle of electricity burnt it to a crisp.

Adrien and Luka gasped in horror beside her.

"Just as I suspected." She stated plainly, "It's an electric fence."

"Greaaaaaaaat." Luka dragged out the word dryly. "So then how are we supposed to get what we need?"

Marinette simply pointed to her left, and the men's eyes quickly followed. On a wooden post painted all white hung a single bell with a small rope attached to it. A doorbell.

"We ask."

"And what if they're not friendly?" Adrien asked worriedly, "Farmers are known to have really good aim. They're handy with... you know... shotguns."

"His shot can't be any better than mine." Marinette wasn't perturbed and shrugged her shoulders, her carelessness enough to imply that if the owner did have a shotgun and intended to use it, her bow would certainly be faster. The men shared an unsure glance, but before they could suggest a different approach, Marinette jogged over to the bell and pulled on the rope.

A loud ringing noise ensued. With the silence that the valley provided, the ringing was so loud, that Marinette idly wondered how it didn't attract any Blanks. Or perhaps the bell was never rung, simply because no one had ever ventured out into this wilderness.

Not a second later, the door to the home on the farm opened, revealing a woman. She was dressed old-fashioned, wearing a dress that looked like she had knitted herself with an apron fastened around her waist. In her arms, she held a shotgun, readily aimed at Marinette's head.

Marinette quickly raised her hands into the air, as did Adrien and Luka.

"We mean no harm!" Marinette quickly insisted though she allowed her demeanor to remain calm. Strapped to her front, Brick was bundled, but his head full of hair could be seen poking out from linen, something she knew the woman with the gun must've noticed, and surely had room in her heart to consider. "We just need a place to rest and milk for our infant."

The woman slowly lowered her gun just an inch, just enough to reveal her face. She was blonde and had bright blue eyes. For a moment, she still seemed uncertain, but her stance shifted from completely being on-guard to a bit considering. Her gaze remained as cold as ice, though, and Marinette couldn't blame her.

"Are any of you bit?"

Marinette instantly shook her head. "None of us have been bitten. You can check us all if you don't believe me."

The woman lowered her gun to her side. She stepped off the porch with long, careful strides. Marinette's hands lowered to her sides once more, as did Adrien's and Luka's. She stopped when she reached the fence, keeping at least five feet of space between herself and them.

Her eyes slowly wandered to the bundle strapped onto Marinette's front. "How old is the baby?"

"About a year old." Marinette answered truthfully.

"And you're his mother?"

The mention of Brick's true mother arose the lingering sadness that had been trailing behind them since her death. Marinette swallowed heavily, the guilt of Alya's death plaguing her the most. "I'm not his biological mother, no. His real mother was bitten."

The look that crossed the blonde woman's face resembled her deepest condolences. She stepped forward and unlatched the gate, opening it for them. "My name's Chloé." She said, still sounding a bit unhinged more than she did friendly, but she was welcoming them into her home even though she didn't have to, so for that, Marinette owed the blonde her life. "You can follow me with the baby. I've got a crib and can whip him up a bottle of milk really quick."

"Thank you, Chloé." Marinette let out a relieved sigh. "I'm Marinette."

Chloé glanced over her shoulder to offer her a small smile. Her eyes then wandered past her, where she watched the men seemingly mesmerized by the fence that hadn't electrocuted her when she touched it. "And who are those two idiots you're having to drag along?"

Marinette didn't find any offense in that. Instead, she chuckled, "The blonde is Adrien, and the other one is Luka. We're all that's left."

"The fence isn't on anymore, boys!" Chloé suddenly called over her shoulder in amusement. Both Adrien and Luka's heads shot up to look at her with wide eyes. Smirking, she added, "It won't electrocute you when it's off!"

As if to make sure she was telling the truth, Luka tapped the fence quickly with the tip of his pointer finger. Of course, nothing happened.

Chloé shook her head as she chuckled. When she reached the front door of her home, she turned to face Marinette and offered her an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry about what happened to your other companions. You four can stay here as long as you'd like."

"I appreciate that so much, thank you." Marinette said. With a silent nod from Chloé, the two women stepped into the house.

Chloé's home was extremely well kept on both the outside and the inside. The wooden floorboards looked like they were polished every day, a wide variety of old china decorated the inside of several glass curios, and many shelves aligned the once empty walls, filled to the max with books—almost like a personal library for that of a bookworm.

"Wow..." Marinette couldn't help but marvel at the living space. Even the wallpaper and furniture looked brand new. "Your house looks so... nice."

"Thanks," Chloé said. "It was my father's barely used summer home."

Marinette's brows shot up high upon her forehead. "So, he was super rich then?"

Chloé chuckled, "Yes, he was unfathomably wealthy. Sadly, that made me spoilt as a child and for most of my youth."

Marinette couldn't help but indulge her curiosity. "What was his occupation?"

Before Chloé could formulate an answer, the floorboards loudly groaned from behind them. Slightly on edge, Marinette turned to look over her shoulder. Her shoulder sagged in relief when she realized it was just Adrien who had finally entered the home with Luka right behind him. He was skeptically looking around, uncertainty clouding his features. The noise seemed to catch Chloé's attention too, because she also turned around.

And then her gaze clashed with Adrien's, and her eyes widened.

Adrien's eyes also quickly widened in a matter of seconds. "Chloé?"

Marinette's eyes glanced between the two, unsure of what was happening.

"Adrien?" Chloé took a hesitant step towards him, and then another. When she eventually reached him, her hands shakily rose to cup his cheek. They simply stared at each other in what seemed like awe, or as if they'd seen a ghost.

"Y-Yeah?" He uttered, his voice shaky.

Chloé was searching his eyes, his face, and every inch of him really, as if she thought her eyes were playing tricks on her.

"Adrien Agreste?" The name left her lips with uncertainty as if the person who it belonged to didn't exist anymore.

But he did, and he was standing right in front of her. He nodded, a choked sob escaping his lips.

A shuddered gasp escaped Chloé's lips, and then she was lunging forward, wrapping her arms around his neck. She started crying on his shoulder, and Adrien buried his face into the crook of her neck, letting out his own pained cries. His fingers tightened in the fabric of her dress as he held her close, almost as if he were afraid of letting her go.

Marinette and Luka simply shared a confused look, unsure of what to make of the situation before them.

When they finally pulled apart, Adrien wiped away his lingering tears with the back of his hand. With a watery chuckle, he gestured at her with a wave of his hands. "I can't believe it's you! What are you doing here?"

"What are you doing here?" Chloé eagerly countered with his own question. Her face was beaming with excitement. "This is the United States. You're in the United States!"

"I know!" He exclaimed just as excitedly.

"How did you even get here?"

"We sailed here, on a boat!"

"Seriously? That's insane!"

"I know!"

"Ehem... I hate to break up whatever this is..." Marinette interjected unsurely and cleared her throat awkwardly when both Chloé and Adrien's excited gazes slowly turned toward her. "But what exactly is going on?"

"Oh!" Adrien suddenly lit up. "I'm such an idiot—Marinette this is Chloé, my childhood best friend; the girl I was telling you about that was the only friend my father ever allowed at my house."

Oh. Oh. Marinette remembered. In fact, she also remembered clarifying with Adrien that Chloé had once wanted to marry him.

"You didn't tell me your Adrien was Adrien Agreste." Chloé was beaming so happily that Marinette felt bad for feeling a bit jealous. "Him and I go wayyy back." She turned to face him once again, a frown slowly finding its way to her lips. Struggling to keep in her tears, she swiped a finger underneath her bottom eyelid. "I thought you were dead, Adrien."

He mirrored her pained expression. "I thought you were dead too."

"I tried to contact you... after the apocalypse hit," Chloé admitted mournfully, "But it was no use. I could never get through."

"Why are you in the states?"

"We were vacationing. Father wanted to squeeze in a break before his re-election. Little did he know we'd never return to Paris."

"Wait... so you've been stuck here for six years... all by yourself?" Adrien gasped in horror.

With a mournful expression, Chloé nodded silently. "I didn't exactly have a way to get back. I also figured there wouldn't be much to return to."

"Your father's re-election?" Marinette interjected confusingly.

Chloé turned her attention to Marinette, offering her another nod. "Yes. My father was the mayor of Paris."

"So, you're Chloé Bourgeois?" Marinette gasped in realization.

Chloé offered her another nod. Her smile slowly turned sheepish, revealing her unease. "I know my name doesn't give off the best reputation—"

"Oh no, I didn't mean it like that." Marinette quickly assured her with raised, placating hands. "Only that I remember when your trip was announced. It happened right before everything went to hell... and no one ever knew what happened to you or your father."

"Well, as you can see, I'm alive," Chloé gestured to herself with a chuckle, but her irises held brokenness in them. The smile slowly fell away from her lips, only revealing it further. "But my father turned."

Marinette offered her an apologetic grimace for prying. Adrien placed a hand on her shoulder. "I'm so sorry, Chloé. When did it happen?"

Chloé pressed her lips together as if to bite back a sob. "He didn't even last the first year. When it was us, there wasn't a fence surrounding the house so the dead would just walk right up to the door. Took a chunk out of my father's arm before he even made it to the front door."

Adrien squeezed her shoulder as his way of trying to comfort her. Marinette licked her lips. "Did you build that fence yourself?"

"I did," Chloé said, brightening up a bit. "It took a lot of scavenging. Most of it came from an abandoned city... but to get there is a three weeks' time, and the city is infested with thousands of those things."

"I think we might've came from there." Adrien supplied with a shudder. "I hadn't seen so many Blanks in one place before."

Chloé arched a single raised brow, her smile slowly morphing into confusion. "Is that what you call them? I just call them the dead."

"Marinette came up with the name," Adrien replied with a shrug. "I suppose it kinda stuck with all of us."

Chloé didn't respond to that, but she did smile, and her smile was surprisingly genuine. Her eyes slowly turned to Marinette, and then to the baby still wrapped in the sling on her front. "Let's get that baby some milk and put him to bed."

Marinette nodded and hastily followed after Chloé into the kitchen.

She watched as the blonde woman moved to open the fridge. Filling at least three of the shelves were glass bottles of milk. Marinette eyes widened when she realized it was actually keeping them cold.

"Solar panels." Chloé answered as if she could somehow sense the unspoken question. "I got those from the city. I wasn't even sure if they would work, but they do. Crazy, right? Don't know where I'd be without them."

Marinette simply nodded, unsure of what to even say.

Chloé poured some of the milk into a worn-out bottle, something that had probably been her own when she was a young child. Chloé had vaguely explained this place was a vacation home, and she probably came here many times as a child. Many memories were still trapped inside of this place for her.

The microwave dinged softly, indicating the milk was ready.

Complete silence followed as the bottle was handed to Marinette once Chloé had deemed the milk wasn't too hot. Then, Marinette offered the bottle to Brick, who instantly latched on as soon as the rubber tip of the bottle was brushed gently against his lips. Marinette sighed in relief while she watched him eat. With a small smile at the interaction, Chloé silently beckoned the young woman to follow her.

Marinette followed, and Chloé led her down a hall. To the right, a bedroom door was already cracked open which Chloé further pushed open to reveal a white-painted crib in the center of what looked to be a refurbished nursery. The crib sat atop a white, fuzzy rug that looked so clean it seemed as if it had never been stepped on, and a matching changing table sat in the corner of the room looking as if it had never been used. The room was decorated in gender-neutral colors, almost as if whoever had decorated this room had been expecting.

Marinette turned around to face Chloé, her features twisted in confusion. "Why do you have all of this?"

Chloé's sad smile was impossible to miss. "It was meant to be for mine, but... I-I had a miscarriage."

"Oh..." And suddenly, Marinette felt bad for asking. She couldn't even begin to imagine how painful that must've been. On the other hand, Chloé's confession revealed more about her past that she might've not wished to share just yet. Chloé had been pregnant. She had possibly been married too. Either way, this wasn't just a vacation home to her. She had been planning to start a new life here. "I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have asked—"

"It's okay." Chloé assured her with a wave of her hand.

But her sad smile remained, and Marinette knew that this room was only a sole reminder of what she had lost. That's why it looked so untouched. She probably didn't have the strength to take everything down and redo the room, and it was likely she never would.

In the back of her mind, she wondered if Adrien knew anything about this.

Again, silence fell. This time, Marinette found it to be incredibly tense. Chloé moved across the room, pulling out what looked to be a hand-knitted quilt from a drawer of the matching dresser. She laid it out inside of the crib.

Marinette slowly stepped forward, and Brick hiccupped in her arms. He had finished his bottle a while ago and was already falling asleep, finally full and content. She moved to gently lay him down and he didn't fuss an inch with the  movement. In seconds, Brick was sound asleep, catching up on all the needed rest he'd lost since his mother's passing.

And he wasn't the only one who was exhausted. Marinette ran a hand through her oily locks, sighing in relief. What she would give to lay down for just a few minutes...

"You're welcome to take a shower. I have hot water." Chloé playfully wiggled a brow. That was enough to have Marinette chuckling. A nice hot shower sounded wonderful. She couldn't even remember the last time she'd had one of those.

"That would be nice, thanks." Marinette smiled. She then leaned over the crib, smiling down fondly at the baby. She was almost certain a form of a smile could be seen on his lips as if he were finally content and happy.

Marinette gently pushed the baby's hair out of his eyes. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a sad and longing look in Chloé's irises as she watched the interaction.

A frown pulled at Marinette's lips in seconds. She couldn't even begin to imagine what Chloé was feeling right now. But the topic was left hanging in the air like a thick fog of tension.

Marinette straightened her posture. Chloé seemed to snap out of her reverie and turned to offer her a smile. "You're good at this."

Marinette shrugged, unsure of how that could even be true. Had they not found this farm, Brick would have died in her care. And she was apparently good at this?

She was absolutely horrible at this.

"I have no idea what I'm doing."

"No one does." Chloé chuckled lightheartedly at that. "That's what makes motherhood such a challenge."

That had a small smile pulling at Marinette's lips. After that, the tension between Marinette and Chloé seemed to be gone for good.

Life on Chloé's isolated farm seemed incredibly peaceful, but it took a lot of time for Marinette and her friends to believe such. The first night they spent under her roof hadn't been the easiest. Everyone was on edge. Between the loss of their friends and almost losing the baby, it was hard for anyone to sleep that night, despite how tired they all were. Marinette spent the whole night wide awake with her head resting on Adrien's shoulder. Together, they stayed seated in front of one of the main windows of the home, staring out into their dark world.

They did this for many nights. Chloé insisted there was nothing to fear, and that even if a few Blanks were to appear, the electric fence was guaranteed to keep them out. Nonetheless, that didn't settle their nerves. It took two weeks before Marinette finally allowed herself to succumb to sleep. It took Adrien three.

Luka seemed to be sleeping just fine from day one... until he admitted to having nightmares about Alya's death that kept him up all night.

In conclusion, none of them were okay. The only one who seemed to be thriving in his new environment was Brick. Once his diet was back to normal, the little boy's happy smiles started returning. The house was filled with his baby babbles. At first, the noise worried Marinette, but once again Chloé was there to assure her that the house was too isolated for any Blank to hear him unless they were nearby.

Marinette learned rather quickly that Chloé had a lot of confidence in her electric fence. Unlike her, Marinette didn't. A fence wasn't invincible. A fence wasn't enough.

As time went on, Luka and Adrien both began to warm up to the possibility of safety on Chloé's farm. Adrien started to smile more, acting more carefree as he longed to rekindle his friendship with Chloé. Marinette didn't mind his desire—in fact, she found herself genuinely smiling as she watched the long-lost friends laugh and goof around with each other. What truly worried her was the fact that everyone was beginning to lower their guard.

They tried to convince her that there was no longer a reason to be so on edge, but Marinette wouldn't budge. Days turned into weeks as her friends continued to flourish under Chloé's roof. Weeks turned into months as Brick continued to grow and hit more important milestones—like crawling across the living room carpet for the first time or taking his first steps from Marinette's arms into Adrien's.

Brick was fourteen and a half weeks old when he said his first word.

"Mama!"

Everyone in the room froze because Brick was a little late in the talking department. They figured the delay had to do with the trauma he'd experienced, either his malnourishment or the absence of his mother at such an early age. Nonetheless, Chloé and Adrien had been sitting on the floor, caging Brick in the center with their legs. They were encouraging him to practice his walking, and Brick was more than happy to oblique when he was being cheered on.

However, Brick surprised them all when he said that word again and raised a slobbery finger, pointing it across the room. Their heads snapped to follow the movement, only to find Marinette standing underneath the threshold that connected the living room to the kitchen with her arms folded across her chest. Her eyes widened when she realized his little finger was pointing at her.

"Oh my god." Chloé breathed out in astonishment. "He finally said his first word!"

Adrien was grinning uncontrollably. His eyes raised to meet Marinette's, his irises filled with adoration and love for her. "He just called you mama!"

"Uhhhh..." Marinette raised her hands in mock surrender. "No. No way. Absolutely not. I'm not his mother. I'm just-I'm only helping raise him!"

"Puh-lease. You're his mom." Chloé's voice was deadpan. "You basically adopted him."

"I didn't! He-He's Alya's son! She was his mother!"

"Marinette," Adrien offered her a sympathized smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. "You out of all people should know that blood doesn't make family."

He didn't elaborate, and he didn't need to. He was referring to a time in her past—the group of people who'd taken her in after she'd lost her family; the people Marinette had once considered to be her new family.

Deep down, Marinette knew that was true. Blood didn't make family, and she really did believe that. But perhaps shouldering the responsibility of motherhood is what scared her. How was she supposed to raise a child? How was she supposed to keep him alive?

Sure, Marinette knew plenty about survival, but she was good at surviving on her own.

Being responsible for someone else's life was a new challenge she would have to master.

"Mama?"

Kneeled behind the thicket, Marinette spared the boy beside her a glance out of the corner of her eye. Her face was painted in mud as if to mask her appearance. "What is it?"

He was kneeling beside her, an equally painted face. "Are you going to kill it?"

It seemed she had spaced out. Snapping out of her reverie, her eyes raised over the brush and focused on the approaching Blank. He was lumbering slowly, both of his arms missing from his skeleton.

"You try first," Marinette said quietly. "Show me how much you've been practicing."

Grinning, he raised his bow and extended his arrow. Inhaling deeply through his nose, he paused to adjust his aim before he released the arrow. The arrow shot through the air, piercing the Blank right above his right eye. The creature fell backward, his snarls dying out with him.

"Well done!" Marinette praised him with a proud smile. "You've improved a lot since our last hunt. I'm proud of you, Brick."

"Thanks Mama," The boy beamed happily, "I've been practicing every day."

"I can tell. How have things been at home while I've been away?"

Home. Not the farm. Chloé's home was now considered their own, despite the fact that they were never meant to stay on the farm forever. Marinette had voiced this concern shortly after Brick had turned six, but her desire to continue their journey was quickly shot down by both Luka and Adrien. They had both grown too comfortable with just settling, and Adrien's passion for finding the disease-free city was like a distant memory.

Marinette wasn't happy with Adrien's disinterest in leaving. They had a big argument about it. Chloé, of course, took Adrien's side in the matter, insisting Marinette was absurd for wanting to continue traveling with a child. Being six years old at the time and already very aware of the outside world, Brick insisted that he would be just fine.... but no one really ever paid his opinion any mind except for Marinette. They all thought he was too young to understand anything.

But Brick understood a lot more than he let on.

Marinette started teaching him the dangers of Blanks at a very young age, probably at the age when most parents had to try and convince their kids that monsters under the bed didn't exist. Both Adrien and Chloé had feared that her elaborate drawings of Blanks and what they could do would surely give the little boy nightmares, but Brick had proved them wrong. With the mind of a curious child, he watched, and he learned.

Now, he was nine years old and already a great hunter with a bow and arrow, carried a fantastic arm with a knife, sword, axe... you name it! Was incredibly skilled in hand-to-hand combat, and a master at stealth and silence.

He was like a mini version of her, but a boy.

"Things have been... okay..." Brick replied with a shrug. "Adrien gets on to me a lot."

That was another thing that boiled her insides. On top of never wanting to leave the farm, Adrien was entirely against the idea of training Brick to become a fighter and a defender, and no matter how hard she tried to understand him, she couldn't fathom why he wouldn't want Brick to be prepared for the world he had yet to see.

Luka kept his opinions to himself upon the matter of Brick's training, knowing fully well that even if he did disagree, he wouldn't be able to stop Marinette when she had her mind set on something (including how Brick was raised), but Adrien was quite the opposite. He always wanted to make his opinions known.

This was why, despite the fact that they were together, and Adrien was supposed to be like the father figure Brick never got to have, Brick still didn't see the blonde as his dad. Perhaps that, along with their constant disagreeing and arguing, was why Adrien was always so angry.

"What does he get onto you about?"

"Everything. About what I eat, how I talk, the fact that I go outside..." Brick sighed in frustration. "It's just not fair! When you're not home, I have to listen to him, and he's so mean."

Once she deemed the coast was clear, her head rose above the thicket, and she stood to her feet. She then slung her bow over her shoulder. "I'll talk to him, okay?"

Brick nodded and stood up as well, but his expression remained bothered. "Are you going to leave again?" He asked.

Marinette shrugged, unsure of it herself. When she deemed Brick was old enough to be okay without the constant presence of a mother figure, she began taking trips out into the wilderness alone, keeping mark of the treks she made in hopes that she might come across the city she was still determined to find (for Brick's sake.)

But she was never successful. All Marinette came across were trees and Blanks. She had yet to find the so-called sanctuary of Adrien's stories.

"If you do leave... could I go with you?"

She spared her son a knowing look—one that he was all too familiar with. She didn't even have to say a word for him to understand what that meant.

"I'm ready!" He insisted pleadingly. "You've seen how much I've improved!"

"And you've done a great job," Marinette assured him gently. "But I can't just take you with me without the others' approval. Even though I'm your mom and I raised you, the others helped me. Everyone there has a say in your life because we're all a family."

Brick let out a frustrated huff. "Well, it doesn't feel like we're a family."

Marinette pressed her lips together into a thin line and gruffly swiped her hand underneath her nose. She couldn't even deny his words, because she knew they were true. They were far from a family. She and Adrien were far from being together, too. They couldn't be any more far apart.

Sighing, she slung her arm over her son's shoulders and tugged him closer to her side. "I know."

Together, they walked side-by-side until the forest finally cleared, revealing the familiar, spacious valley in which their little farm stood. In the distance, she could make out someone in the animal's pen—probably Luka trying his best to milk the cow even though he sucked at it no matter how many times Chloé showed him how. As they neared closer, she also realized Chloé was out in the garden, keeping her pretty roses and daises from wilting.

And then there was Adrien, standing under the threshold of the front door, his arms folded across his chest.

"I wonder how long he's been standing there like a grouch." Brick snickered so low it was only possible for her to hear his snarky comment.

"Be polite." She whispered out of the corner of her mouth and gently patted his shoulder, releasing him from her side hug. Once released from his mother's embrace, Brick clobbered up the steps in a rush, passing Adrien with a shove of his shoulder. The blonde turned to watch him run inside, aghast, before his angered gaze was back on her.

She offered him the sweetest feigned smile she could muster. "Hello grouchy."

She shouldered past him as she sauntered inside, and he leaned away to let her pass.

"Where the hell were you guys?" Adrien ignored her irritating teasing as he turned and rounded after her. He followed her into the kitchen with his fists clenched at his sides.

"We went practice hunting like we do every Sunday." Marinette answered nonchalantly. She opened up one of the higher cupboards, pulling out an empty glass.

"I didn't even know you were back."

Marinette hummed idly at that. She turned on her heel to face him, eyeing him up and down with lazy, narrowed eyes. "I didn't expect you to. It's not like we really talk to each other much anymore unless you want to count arguing all the time as a healthy way of communication."

Adrien's throat bobbed. "Why didn't you tell me you were back?"

"Sorry. It just... slipped my mind, I guess." Her apology was hurried and rehearsed as if she was always prepared to say it in order to reduce possible chances of a heated brawl. Without another word, she turned back around to face the counter and turned on the faucet, filling her glass with the tap.

"Sorry doesn't cut it, Marinette." Adrien said sternly, "You can't just take Brick and not tell us. Do you know how worried we all were when we woke up this morning and his bed was empty?"

She took a sip of her water, eyes narrowed at him over the glass. "You wouldn't have been worried if you paid attention to what we do together every Sunday."

"How was anyone supposed to know you were going to be back this Sunday if you didn't even tell any of us you were back?"

Rounding on her heel, Marinette glared up at him. "You know what? It doesn't even matter. Brick is here. I'm here. We're both fine. It's not something we need to argue over."

"Apparently it is because you still do whatever you want with him without concerning anyone else." Adrien stubbornly bit back.

"Brick is my son." Marinette placed a hand on her chest. "I can do whatever the hell I want with him."

Adrien's jaw was set. He was angry, but she really didn't give a damn.

"And while we're on the topic of Brick, stop treating him like he's a slave trapped in this damn house while I'm gone. Let him be a kid, for god's sake."

"He can't be a kid in a world like this. He needs to grow up."

"He's only nine years old. He's not going to have an interest in growing up if you make it uninteresting. That's why we train and go on hunts; it keeps him motivated."

"Well, woopty-doo, good for you. What a great relationship you guys have."

His sarcasm didn't go unnoticed by her. Marinette rolled her eyes. "Maybe if you were nicer to him, he'd want to have a relationship with you too."

"Being nice isn't going to get him to respect me."

"Well, being mean surely won't."

Adrien scoffed and folded his arms across his chest. "Then since you know so much about parenting, why should I even bother trying to do it too? Looks like you got everything under control, huh?"

Marinette shook her head in disbelief, and a wry smile even pulled at her lips. She set her glass down on the counter before pushing herself off of it. "You're right... I do have everything under control, but parenting isn't a competition, so stop trying to compete with me. If you really want to give up on him, go ahead. I won't stop you."

She moved to shoulder past him, but something caused her to stop in her path. Perhaps it was the strain on their relationship or the fact that she hardly recognized him anymore. A memory surfaced to the front of her mind, something Adrien had shared with her in the past.

She turned around to face him again, her eyes painfully searching his. "But maybe you might change your tactics when you realize you're treating Brick exactly how your father treated you."

And then she left the kitchen, allowing him to swallow her words.

Many moons passed after that argument. Adrien didn't bother to take her words to heart either. He continued to be as cold as ever, brushing off anyone, including her. The attitude he exhibited to them all wasn't new, but the only one whom he never treated as nastily was Chloé.

Adrien smiled around Chloé. Adrien even laughed around her. He looked like a completely different person whenever he was around her. In fact, he reminded Marinette of the man she'd met wandering up into her lighthouse all those years ago when he was around her.

Before, Marinette had watched two reunited friends enjoy each other's company with a fond smile on her lips. Now, it hurt to watch them interact. Most of the time, Marinette would avert her gaze or exit the room whenever they entered. Perhaps that in itself was just another reason why she chose to go on these lengthy trips. As selfish as it might've seemed, it was her only escape from all of the hurt and pain bottled up in her heart.

Marinette didn't like to assume, but her insecurities nagged at her constantly.

She often wondered if Adrien now had feelings for Chloé instead of her.

One night, unable to sleep, Marinette simply lay in the bed she had once shared with Adrien, looking up at the ceiling. Adrien had moved out of their shared bedroom a while back when he claimed he wasn't getting a good night's rest. It had nothing to do with the mattress, of course, and his words had hurt to hear. Now, she usually slept alone, wondering if Adrien had chosen Chloé's bed as his new sleeping arrangement.

Her door creaked on its hinges as it was slowly pushed open. Marinette didn't even have to glance up to know who it was.

Brick stood at the door, his hands shyly fiddling with the hem of his shirt.

Marinette offered him a soft smile, and that was all the confirmation he needed.

Silently, Brick climbed into her bed. She lifted the covers for him, and he eagerly disappeared underneath them. Already feeling better now that he was there, she wrapped her arms around him, peppering his face with as many kisses as she could. Brick giggled uncontrollably as he tried to scramble away. His giggles amplified her own laughs.

He truly never failed to make her feel better, even when he had no idea she was hurting.

Eventually, Brick fell asleep wrapped in her arms, but Marinette was still wide awake. She decided to extract herself from him and head into the kitchen for a glass of water.

What she found in the kitchen surely did not surprise her as much as she thought it would.

Adrien had Chloé pinned up against the counter. Not only were their lips locked as they kissed each other senseless, but Adrien's jeans were pooled at his ankles.

Her very audible cleared throat is what broke them apart. Chloé quickly scrambled to pull up her underwear. Adrien seemed confused as to why they had stopped. It took him a moment before he pulled up his jeans and decided to turn around, and when he did, he almost stumbled on nothing.

Marinette was able to put the pieces together rather quickly. He was wasted. Chloé had taken advantage of that.

But it still didn't hurt any less.

When Adrien fully turned around, and his eyes found hers, a dopey smile pulled at his lips. "Marinette~ why did we stop? I was having so much funnnn~"

It was enough to have her choking back a sob, and he instantly noticed. Drunk Adrien's smile instantly vanished, revealing an innocent frown. He stumbled on air as he tried to approach her with outstretched arms, but Marinette could only back away from him, silently shaking her head at him. That only deepened his frown.

Chloé quickly clung to his side, grasping his bicep. "Marinette, I can explain—"

"Shut the hell up, Chloé." Marinette warned with a pointed finger her way. It was enough to have Chloé shut her mouth in a matter of seconds.

Confused, Adrien slowly followed Marinette's pointed finger, only to find Chloé clinging on to him as if he were a lifeboat. He eyed her confusingly and tried to extract his arm from her hold. "Chloé...? Why are you here while Marinette and I are having sex?"

Marinette's choked on her saliva. Chloé's face was also beat red. "Adrien—"

"You weren't watching, were you?" He asked with such a sharp tone that had even Marinette flinching back. "Because that is low, and I'd be pissed at you if you were."

His question was left unanswered. Adrien's confused expression slowly morphed into anger. Marinette watched it all spiral out of control as Adrien ripped his arm away from Chloé's grip and rounded on her in absolute fury. "You were watching?!"

"No Adrien!" Chloé insisted with raised hands. "This is all just a big misunderstanding—!"

"Misunderstanding, my ass." Marinette decided to interject with a hiss. "You took advantage of him! You used him!"

"I didn't, I swear!" Chloé genuinely seemed guilt-ridden, but Marinette wasn't convinced. She was seeing Chloé in a whole new light now. "He came on to me—!"

"Thinking it was me! And you let him!"

"What's with all the yelling?" Everyone turned as Luka groggily entered the scene. He paused underneath the kitchen threshold as he rubbed at his eyes. Yawning, he blinked several times in an attempt to clearly grasp his dark surroundings. When he finally did, he was silent for several seconds before he asked, "What in the bloody blazes is going on in here?"

But it was too late to explain. Luka's eyes widened when he realized what was going on, and then his eyes snapped to hers, searching her face to see if what he'd just concluded was true. As soon as he saw the tears collected in her pained eyes, his expression grew furious, and then he was marching over towards Adrien.

No one had time to stop him before Luka swung a punch at the blonde.

"Luka!" Marinette cried as Adrien stumbled back, crashing into the kitchen counter. The brunt of the force caused the cabinets above him to shake, the glass dishes inside them clinking loudly. It didn't matter to Luka though; he was enraged.

Before he could swing another punch, Marinette threw herself in between them. "Stop Luka!"

"Get out of my way, Marinette." Luka seethed through gritted teeth. His eyes were ablaze like a fiery furnace, locked on Adrien's figure which was now slumped on the floor.

Determined, she stubbornly shook her head. "Stop, please. It's not what you think."

"It's not?" He laughed mirthlessly at that. "So, you didn't just find your boyfriend and this slag getting off over the bloody counter?"

Chloé didn't object in regards to the insult. Perhaps because she knew it was true.

"I'm angry too," Marinette said seriously, "But Adrien isn't the one you should be taking your anger out on, okay? He's wasted. He doesn't even know what's going on. He literally thinks he was having sex with me, and that Chloé was watching."

"Uh-huh. Well, I don't believe that rubbish." Luka said harshly, "What kind of man doesn't know which woman he's making love to? A prick, that's who."

"You mean a man so drunk he's unable to think rationally?"

Luka huffed stubbornly, his arms folding across his chest. Despite that, his fists were no longer raised, and that had Marinette exhaling in relief, and slowly, her arms lowered to her sides once more. Not saying anything more, Marinette simply kneeled in front of Adrien. He was holding his nose, silent tears cascading down his cheeks. He hadn't said a word since Luka had knocked him on the floor.

Hesitantly, Marinette placed a hand on his shoulder. It tensed under her touch. "C'mon, let's get you cleaned up."

She helped him up with an arm underneath his armpit, and Adrien let out a pained groan as he struggled to stand up. Blood dripped from his chin onto the tiled floor. Chloé made a whispered comment that it would stain the tile, but no one paid her any mind.

As Marinette silently led a drunk Adrien down the hallway towards her bedroom, Luka returned to his bedroom—but not before shooting Chloé the ugliest glare a person could ever muster. She instantly shrunk back. Luka pointed an accusing finger at her.

"Even if Marinette is wrong and Adrien did willingly cheat, you went along with it knowing fully well that he was a taken man." He sneered in disgust. "And now after what I've seen, I can't wait to leave this bloody farm."

And then he walked away, leaving Chloé to fall to the ground, shedding silent tears that no one would feel sympathy for.

Down the hall, Marinette was guiding Adrien to the bedroom they once shared. He still hadn't said a word. Instead, he clung to her, his steps wobbled and slow. Marinette gently pushed the door open with her foot.

Much to her dismay, their yelling had awoken Brick. He was sitting upright in the bed when she entered, the duvet pulled up to his neck. His eyes widened when he realized his mother was with Adrien.

"What happened? I heard yelling." Brick crawled across the bed as Marinette drew nearer. He flinched away when she had Adrien lay down on the side that had once been his. "And why is he here?"

Marinette offered him an apologetic glance. "Your dad—"

"He's not my dad."

She settled with a roll of her eyes for argument's sake. "Adrien isn't himself right now, okay?"

Brick spared the blonde man a hesitant glance. Adrien's eyes were closed, and his chest rose evenly, but his brows were pinched together above squeezed eyes as if he were experiencing a bad dream. And perhaps he was. After all, having your so-called best friend stab you in the back like Chloé had surely had to be a nightmare.

"What's wrong with him?" The little boy asked after a moment of silence.

Thinking back as to why he was even here in the first place brought a grimace back to Marinette's lips. Chloé had used Adrien, but even if that were the case, she couldn't stop her insecurities from nagging at her. How could he not have known that she was not Chloé? Could he really not tell the difference, or was he actually attracted to Chloé—?

"He's just... a little sick." Marinette supplied with a tight smile. She forced herself to get rid of those thoughts for now. When Adrien was awake and sober, then they could have that talk. For now, he just needed to rest. "He should feel better in the morning."

That seemed to convince Brick for the time being. Instead of pressing forward, he simply longed for his mother's embrace. She accepted him with open arms.

And then she began to hum a tune her mother had hummed to her many years ago.

Her melodic humming filled the bedroom, slowly lolling her nine-year-old back to sleep. She then laid his head on her pillow and tucked him back underneath the duvet. Yawning, Marinette reached for an extra pillow lodged in between Adrien and her son.

But the movement jostled Adrien, and then his eyes snapped open.

They silently stared at each other for what felt like an eternity, glowing emerald irises piercing into her equally fiery blue in the midst of the darkness, until she averted her eyes. There was an uncomfortable silence that loomed between them; something she wasn't quite prepared nor ready to discuss. She moved to prepare herself a makeshift bed on the floor, and then—

"Marinette..."

She hadn't expected him to say a word, and her name leaving his lips had her entire body tensing. Adrien's pained voice had her slowly glancing up from underneath her lashes. Then, he tried to sit up.

"Adrien, you should rest." Marinette said in a hushed tone.

Adrien didn't listen. In fact, he called out to her again, this time his voice a little higher than a whisper. "Marinette—"

"Be quiet, Adrien. If you wake up Brick, I will be really angry at you."

His mouth clamped shut at that, but it didn't stay closed for long. When he broke the silence again, his words left his lips in a whisper. "Aren't you already mad at me?"

"A little bit, yes. I mean... not at you. Just frustrated... but not at you. I'm angry at Chloé." She said absently as she tried to distract herself with the seam of her pillow.

"Why are you angry at Chloé?"

Her fingers tightened in the fabric of her pillow. "I caught Chloé having sex with you. That's why I'm angry."

"What?" A disbelieved, slurred chuckle left his lips. It sounded genuine. "I would never have sex with Chloé."

Her heart clenched at that. "Well, you did, because you were drunk—are drunk." She tossed the pillow to the floor and turned back around to face him, her expression longing and pained. "How long have you been drinking?"

He pursed his lips as she considered her question. "Maybe before you left last?"

"So, two months ago." Marinette stored that little piece of information in her head. That wasn't the first time she'd taken a trip where she had been gone for that long and he had never drunk in her absence before. Why now?

"Why were you drinking?"

Adrien shrugged his shoulders. "'Dunno. I guess I was sad. Wanted the pain to go away."

Her brows furrowed in concern at that. "What pain?"

Adrien didn't respond, but perhaps that was because his head was already lolling to the side. She decided not to worry about that now and let him sleep. Lately, she and Adrien fought a lot about anything, and perhaps that was why he'd never said anything regarding his pain. She felt a jolt of guilt pierce her heart at that. She should've been more observant. She should've made sure he was okay. She supposed she could have asked him what was wrong, but then again, they were usually too annoyed with each other to ever have civil conversations. Most of the time their disagreements arose from how Brick was being raised.

Marinette personally didn't think she was doing such a bad job in raising Brick, especially for someone who had no earthly idea what she was doing when it came to motherhood. Brick was turning into a fine young man and was already skilled in many areas. Along with preparing him for the outside world, Marinette also taught him what could only be found in books. She taught him how to read and write, and as she did that, she also taught him the history of their world and what it had once looked like before the apocalypse had struck.

She didn't have many pictures to show him what the world had once been, so she did her best to describe it from memory. Brick drank in her every word about the world he'd missed out on. He always had questions; he always wanted to know more.

Marinette always found herself wishing for things to be different. She wished Brick could've had a proper childhood. She wished he would've been born in a different time—in a time when Blanks didn't exist.

She wished she and Adrien could be how they used to be.

A soft knock on her bedroom door sounded a few hours later. Adrien had fallen back asleep much to her relief, and Brick was snoring lightly beside him.

The bed creaked underneath her as she slowly stood to her feet. As she moved towards the bedroom door, she spared a look over her shoulder at Adrien and Brick sleeping soundly. They looked so peaceful.

But after everything that had happened, Marinette knew that peace would be short-lived.

She slowly opened the door, which creaked loudly on its hinges. Luka stood on the other side with a backpack slung on one of his shoulders.

Marinette arched a confused brow at him. "Going somewhere?"

"We should be." He answered in a clipped whisper. "This place is giving me the creeps."

"You didn't seem to think this place was creepy the first time I suggested we leave."

"Yeah... well..." Luka looked uncomfortable. "You didn't see what I just saw."

Sensing the alarm behind his tone, Marinette pulled him inside the room. The door clicked softly behind them. "What are you talking about?" She whispered, "What did you see?"

A shuddered breath left his lips, and even in the darkness, there was no mistaking the fear in his eyes. "I think Chloé has been playing us all this time." Luka admitted quietly, "I left her out there, sobbing on the floor, and then all of a sudden, I hear the front door of the house open and close. I take a look through the curtains, and I see her out there digging a bloody hole in the ground."

"That doesn't make any sense." Marinette furrowed her brows. "Why would she be digging outside at this time of night?"

"C'mon Marinette! Use your brain! She's digging a grave."

"For who? A Blank?"

"I'd say for one of us, and I don't want to stick around to find out who." Luka's eyes stared into hers, trying to convey all his worries just through a single look. His hands were even shaking in front of him.

"You think she plans to murder one of us?" Marinette wanted to laugh at the idea, but she couldn't even find it in herself to smile. "Chloé doesn't seem like the type."

"You didn't see the hatred in her eyes." Luka replied with a shudder.

Perhaps Marinette would give the blonde the benefit of the doubt. "Okay, let's say you're right: what are you planning to do? Leave now? We can't travel at night."

"I'd rather take my chances out there than in here. At least out there I can run."

"You haven't been out in the wilderness at night on your own." Marinette said in all seriousness. "The Blanks' senses are heightened at night. If you thought it was hard avoiding them during the day, it's nearly impossible at night. Take it from someone who had to learn that the hard way."

"So then, what do you suggest? We stay here until morning? What if she plans to kill one of us tonight?"

Marinette didn't have an alternate suggestion. If Chloé really was digging a grave, there was a good chance she planned to fill it by sunrise. The best time to surprise anyone was at night when they were asleep, after all.

Without even blinking, Marinette moved across the room in a quick stride. She did it so quietly not even her footsteps could be heard along the wooden flooring. Luka watched her every move in silent caution. Marinette pulled out a backpack from underneath her bed, already packed with supplies, it seemed, as she quickly threw it on her shoulders.

Luka's eyes widened in awe. "You were already prepared for something like this..."

It wasn't a question. Marinette simply looked up at him, her expression unreadable. "Not exactly for murder, but I've always been prepared to leave suddenly."

She turned her sights on her sleeping boys. The only downfall to her plan was that she'd only prepared one of them, and she wasn't prepared for Adrien to be drunk.

"What exactly is your plan?"

"The back door. She leaves it unlocked every night." Marinette moved to grab her jacket. Then, she fastened her machete to her hip. "Brick knows what to do, so don't worry about him. What we need to worry about is Adrien."

"Why Adrien?"

"He's wasted." Marinette turned to face Luka with narrowed eyes. "Travelling with a drunk man isn't exactly ideal. He'll slow us down."

"And attract Blanks?"

Marinette didn't respond. Instead, she turned to gently nudge Brick awake, who was thankfully a light sleeper. He groggily blinked up at her and yawned, his brows furrowed slightly in confusion. She leaned down to whisper something into his ear, and whatever was said had him sitting up in a heartbeat. Then, his expression morphed from sleepy to determined. Brick stood up from bed and quickly moved to collect his things. He did so quietly without even saying a word. Then, his pajamas were shred and discarded as he exchanged them for a fresh pair of cargo pants and a black tee.

Luka turned his attention back to Marinette. "I don't want to be that guy..." he started off slowly, "But if Adrien will attract Blanks for being drunk, are we really going to risk that?"

Marinette's eyes snapped to his in a heartbeat. "What exactly are you suggesting?"

Luka swallowed uncomfortably from the intensity in her gaze, as well as the iciness in her tone. "It's not like I want to leave him behind—"

Marinette scoffed indifferently, abruptly cutting him off. "You're insane."

He gaped at her. "You can't possibly think I'm in the insane one when Chloé is the one literally planning our deaths."

"Exactly, and you want to leave Adrien here. Chloé will kill him."

"Chloé obviously likes Adrien. Why would she want to kill him?"

"If Chloé is crazy enough to murder one of us, she'll most likely kill Adrien if he's unwilling to be with her." Marinette explained, "This idea is prominent in psychopaths. 'If they can't be with me then they can't be with anyone'."

"Bloody hell... so you think Chloé is a psychopath?"

"You tell me. You're the one who saw her digging a grave."

Luka didn't have a response for that. Instead, she watched as he swallowed uncomfortably.

"I'm ready Mama." Brick interjected quietly. He was already fully dressed, and on his back was a backpack of his own and a smaller bow slung over his chest.

She placed her hand on the boy's shoulder. "Good. Then it's on to step two."

Brick's response was a determined nod. Luka simply watched the interaction in confusion, mouthing step two under his breath like it was some foreign word.

The boy quickly moved to the bedroom door, twisting the knob so carefully that not even the creak in the rusted hinges could be heard. An impressed smile pulled at her lips as she watched Brick carefully disappear out into the hall, his right hand fastened at his waist where his knife was hidden underneath his shirt.

Marinette turned to Luka. "You're going to help me with Adrien."

The uncertainty in Luka's eyes was enough to imply that he still didn't agree with this plan, but Marinette was not about to leave Adrien behind no matter how easier it might be if they did. She wasn't like Luka. She couldn't just abandon someone like dead weight.

Hoisting Adrien up into a seated position, she had Luka quickly gagged the blonde with half of an old, ripped t-shirt. Adrien was completely out of it and would probably remain that way until the next morning, but Marinette wasn't about to throw precaution to the wind. She needed to make sure he couldn't say a word once they were outside surrounded by extremely active Blanks.

At first, Marinette suggested they each hold Adrien by the arm to balance out his weight, but Luka had a better idea. Instead, he handed his backpack over to Marinette and hoisted Adrien over his shoulders.

With a backpack strapped to her front and another strapped to her back, Marinette stepped out into the darkened hallway. The house was eerily quiet, the silence sending an unpleasant shiver down her spine. She took slow, careful steps in order to avoid causing the wooden floorboards to groan underneath her feet. She could feel Luka right behind her, copying her exact steps.

They rounded the corner of the hallway, which opened to the view to the kitchen. The area was thankfully empty, minus Brick who stood in front of the door which led to the back of the house. He was looking outside through the curtains of the small window on the door and only turned on his heel when he heard them approach.

Even in the darkness, she could make out the worry clouded in his irises, and even more so in his voice when he whispered, "I disabled the fence, but I haven't seen Chloé."

That sent another chill down her spine. If Chloé was nowhere to be seen, there was a good chance she knew they were on to her.

"You checked the front?"

Brick offered her a silent nod.

"And you didn't see her digging in the garden?"

He silently shook his head.

"We need to leave. Now." Marinette pushed her way towards the front door, intending to make a run for it. There would be no chance to analyze anything. If Chloé knew what they were planning to do, they'd already lost their element of stealth.

Brick quickly blocked her way with outstretched arms. "We haven't even checked the field for Blanks yet."

"We don't have time." Marinette pressed impatiently.

"We have to make time." Her son insisted radically. "It's nighttime, remember? We won't make it to the tree line if we don't."

He made a good point. There was a good chance the field was infested beyond the fence, and if it was, they definitely wouldn't make it into the forest—especially with Adrien on Luka's back.

Except the downfall in having to check the field for Blanks meant that they had to put themselves in plain sight.

"Okay, you're right." She offered her son a grateful smile. "Prepare your bow. I'll join you on the porch." Then she turned to Luka, who was watching her in uncertainty. "I need you to watch the front, Luka. Make sure Chloé doesn't surprise us from behind."

"And what am I supposed to do if she does?"

"You have a knife, don't you?"

Luka let out a nervous laugh. "Yeah... but she has a bloody shotgun."

Marinette simply arched a brow. "A shotgun isn't of much use in such close quarters."

Luka said nothing in response to that, but when it came down to the concept of close-art combat, it seemed Luka had the advantage even if he didn't think he did.

"Just keep watch." Marinette said when he remained silent. "I'll be back in a few minutes."

She didn't wait around for him to respond. Marinette slowly opened the patio door and shut it softly behind her. Already on the deck stood her son with his loaded bow, simply waiting for her to make their presence known by the light of her flashlight.

Marinette exhaled deeply through her nose. "Ready?"

Her son offered her a single nod. Then, she switched the flashlight on.

A dozen or so Blanks suddenly became visible out in the field. None of them were close to the fence, but the light from her flashlight caught their attention and caused their gazes to all slowly zero in on the source.

She forced herself to remain calm. This was the first time in years that she had dealt with Blanks at night, after all. They needed to be extra cautious.

"Don't start shooting until I say." Marinette stated calmly. "Now... what would you say is our best course of action?"

She watched as Brick pointed it out to her with his already loaded arrow—a narrow path naturally cut along the long blades of grass and weeds in the field. It was a path she'd made unintentionally herself which had been wonderful in traveling back and forth without worrying about stepping on sleeping Blanks hiding out in the tall grass, and yes, the Blanks did sleep on occasion. In the field, only the ghostly creatures' heads and white eyes could really be seen as they stared lifelessly in their direction.

None of them chose to approach though. Not yet.

"My marked path. An excellent choice, but we'll have to climb over the fence. Think Luka can do that with Adrien on his back?"

Brick silently considered her question before his arrow moved again. She followed the movement with her light until he stopped. A hole at the bottom of the chain link fence greeted her, poorly pulled apart wire by wire.

"I made that a while back because I didn't like climbing over the fence. The barbed wire at the top would always nick me." Brick admitted quietly, "It's big enough to army crawl underneath with our bags on."

"Wow." Marinette was truly impressed. "Well done."

One corner of Brick's mouth pulled upward at the compliment. She left him once more to keep watch as she headed back inside. Luka was still standing in the same place where she'd left him, except he had lowered Adrien onto the floor. His knife was held tightly in his palm out in front of him, his eyes narrowed at the kitchen threshold.

"Any sign of her?" Marinette asked in a low whisper.

Luka exhaled shakily, "I heard something from one of the other bedrooms. Sounded like a door slamming. I think it was my bedroom."

"So, she knows you're gone. We need to leave right now then."

"I couldn't agree more." Luka nodded in her direction as he quickly sheathed his knife and shoved it into his front pocket. He bent down to pick up Adrien, who had been slouched against the kitchen island and hoisted him back over his shoulders. He followed right behind Marinette out the door, but in his haste to leave, he forgot to let it close softly behind them.

The door startled them both when it slammed loudly. Brick was the only one who didn't flinch.

Marinette whipped her head around in horror. Their cover was blown.

"Start shooting now." She sternly said to Brick. The sound of his first arrow flying through the air reached her ears a moment later. To Luka, she pointed out into the field and said, "There's a hole at the bottom of the fence. Crawl through it."

Luka looked torn. "What about you guys or the Blanks—?"

"Don't worry about us. We'll take care of the Blanks. Just run."

With a bit of hesitation, Luka clobbered down the wooden steps of the porch and took off running into the field. Marinette lifted her flashlight and pointed its beam at his retreating figure. The Blanks, attracted to the sudden movement, took off running at rapid speed.

Brick released another arrow. It pierced the nearest Blank right into his left temple. Pinning the flashlight between her shoulder and her cheek, Marinette kept the light stable as she loaded and lifted her own bow. Together, she and Brick took out the approaching Blanks who neared too close to the fence.

She began her descend down the steps and into the field. Brick followed right behind her, keeping his bow raised. They continued to fire arrows at the last remaining visible Blanks who were at arm's length of the fence. The last two collapsed almost in sync—one pierced with her arrow and the other with Brick's. Once the field seemed clear, Marinette turned off her light, grabbed Brick's hand, and took off running down the path.

Luka quickly crawled through the opening and pulled Adrien through by his arms. In the darkness, she could make out his silhouette as he hauled Adrien onto his shoulders once again and headed for the trees. Brick threw himself onto the ground next, shoving his bow through the opening before he crawled through. Marinette followed right behind him. As they stood to their feet on the other end, a sudden ring of gunshots fired from behind them. Out of instinct, they ducked their heads. A series of shrieks from the lingering Blanks out in the field followed.

A brief glance over Marinette's shoulder showed that the kitchen door had been swung open and a figure was standing underneath the threshold as the light from inside the house revealed her presence. Chloé had discovered their escape, but she was clearly too late. Luka had already reached the tree line with Adrien, and with the field being pitch black, there was no way for Chloé to spot them without a light.

Chloé continued to fire her shotgun nonetheless. The sound, louder than their footsteps crunching in the grass, caused the lingering Blanks to rush past in a whoosh with no interest in them at all. The tall grass swayed as if it were being pushed by thick wind as the Blanks slinked towards the house like a pack of wolves chasing a buck.

And because Chloé had no light, she wouldn't see them coming until it was too late.

Marinette never looked back. She didn't look back when they reached the tree line. She didn't look back when she heard the remaining Blanks shrieking. She didn't look back when the Blanks ascended over the disabled electric fence. She didn't look back when she heard the sound of Chloé's bloodcurdling scream.

Brick looked back though... only to raise his middle finger at the home he had grown up in.

Marinette pulled Brick into the sanctuary of the forest and regrouped with Luka. Then, she sent Brick up into a tree and helped Luka carry Adrien up into the safety of the leaves.

They fell asleep on branches as they gasped for breath and calmed their heartbeats.

Nobody mourned the death of Chloé Bourgeois that night.

The following morning began when Adrien awoke with a pounding headache. As she expected, he didn't remember anything from the previous night, but when he realized they were sleeping in a tree in the middle of the forest and not in a cozy bed, he sure did have a lot of questions.

Marinette had to explain it all. From their escape plan to the reason they even needed one: because Chloé had taken advantage of him and wasn't planning to let any of them live after he rejected her.

Adrien shed a lot of tears that morning, more than he had when he lost Nino. Finding out that your long-lost friend had taken advantage of you had to be a hard thing to accept. She couldn't even begin to imagine how he was feeling. Adrien's head fell onto her shoulder as he cried, and she embraced him tightly, hoping her presence and her touch would make him feel somewhat better. He cried until his tear ducts went dry, and he continued to apologize to her until he lost his voice.

Marinette assured him that it wasn't his fault. She told him that there was no reason to apologize. She even told him she wasn't angry at him—that all of her anger had been directed at Chloé, but that didn't stop him from doing so; that didn't stop him from feeling guilty.

They began travelling again once Adrien was able to compose himself, but that didn't mean he was feeling himself again. Adrien stayed glued to Marinette's right side, not saying a word, while Luka stayed glued to her left, eyeing his surroundings nervously. Brick walked a few feet ahead of them all with his bow raised as he carefully calculated the trail.

Marinette couldn't help but smile as she watched him. He was doing so well—had already done so well. All of her hard work and preparation in his upbringing had surely paid off.

"He's almost as good as you." Luka said as he too watched Brick carefully trek through the wooded terrain. It seemed she wasn't the only one impressed to see just how well the nine-year-old had adapted to his sudden, new life.

"He learned from the best." She couldn't help the proud smile that pulled at her lips.

Luka reciprocated that smile, perhaps because he felt like Brick was his too. "He's a good lad. I have no doubts that he'll do well out here—though I do have to wonder what the plan is?"

"To find the infection-free city. I thought that was obvious?"

"The one we're not sure even exists?"

Marinette pulled her gaze away from Brick then, eyeing Luka with a look that clearly said plenty without words. Get to the point.

Luka sighed heavily, "I'm just saying... maybe we should consider hunkering down somewhere else. What we had at Chloé's was good for a long time. Great even. Life felt normal again there. I just don't want to wander around for another five years looking for some sanctuary we're not even sure exists."

"I'd rather go searching for the city than try to find another livable house." Marinette let out a huff of breath though her nose, already feeling impatient. "A house isn't guaranteed to keep the Blanks out. A house isn't formidable enough for what lies outside... but a city that provides sanctuary from Blanks? That's better than any house."

"What makes you so sure that this city is 'Blank proof?'"

"It's a sanctuary. One can only assume the people there have fortified the place with walls." Marinette said with a shrug. "Otherwise, it wouldn't be called a sanctuary."

"I just think it would just be safer and less risky if we found a house."

Marinette's eyes returned forward; her hardened gaze set back on Brick.

"I mean... don't you think that would be better for us anyway?" Luka continued on when she remained silent. "How much longer are we supposed to just wander? How do we even know we're going in the right direction? Think about what's best for Brick—"

"Leave me out of this." The nine-year-old quickly interjected as soon as he heard his name. He remained forward as he said so, not even sparing a glance over his shoulder. Marinette couldn't help but let out a laugh.

Luka pouted at that. "The point is... I don't think him wandering around is what's best for him."

"You don't need to worry about what's best for him." Marinette reminded him in a patient manner. "Brick is old enough to tell me how he feels, let alone what his thoughts are. If he were interested in hunkering down in a house for the rest of his life, he'd say so, and I'm sure that's the last thing he wants, right Brick?"

The boy's response was a single nod, just as she thought it would be. After all, Brick had mentioned to her plenty of times in the past just how much he loathed being stuck inside all the time on Chloé's farm. The sanctuary was a better opportunity for him to enjoy some of his childhood and even meet other kids his age.

If it existed, that's where she wanted Brick to be.

"Fine, but we should at least consider finding a neighborhood or something where we can resupply. We weren't able to bring much with us from Chloé's."

"I agree. If we come across one, we'll be sure to check the houses."

They travelled for several more days through the wilderness after that conversation with no civilization in sight. They continued their routine of travelling through the day and sleeping in a tree at night. During the day, they encountered very few Blanks, all which remained slow and lethargic like they always did during the day. After witnessing the way they changed at night for the first time, Luka suggested a theory she'd been considering since she first stumbled upon a Blank at night: that the sun made them weak, and the moon heightened their strength.

It made sense. Luka wanted to one day be able to prove all his theories with facts. She hoped he would find all the answers she so desperately wanted to know.

Adrien hadn't said a word since he'd overcome his hangover. He remained glued to Marinette's side, rarely ever willingly letting go of her arm. Sometimes, she would have to pry him off of her just so that she could get a drink from a creek, use the bathroom in the brush, or even help her son take down a small group of approaching Blanks.

He was starting to worry her... to the point where one night, when everyone else was already fast asleep, Marinette chose to finally address the reason for his silence.

"We need to talk about what happened, Adrien."

The blonde in question was seated beside her, his head resting on her shoulder. For once, he wasn't hanging on to her like she was his lifeboat, but he still looked defeated and miserable.

Marinette let out a sigh. It wasn't out of frustration or impatience. "I don't blame you for what happened, you know. I'm not upset with you."

Still, Adrien remained silent, as if he hadn't heard a single thing she'd just said.

Her hand moved on its own accord as she went in search for his. She leaned her head on top of his as she found his hands, which were clasped together in his lap. Surprisingly, he let one free so that she could interlock their fingers together.

Marinette gently squeezed his hand. "Talk to me. Tell me what's on your mind."

A heavy sigh of his own escaped his nostrils. For a second, she thought her words would go ignored once again until she lightly felt him squeeze her hand back.

Then, he said two words—two simple words that broke her heart. "I'm embarrassed."

She pressed her lips together, trying to keep herself from saying the first thing that was on her mind: that he didn't need to be embarrassed because what happened wasn't his fault. But that wasn't what Adrien needed right now. He needed someone to understand what he was feeling and why he was feeling it. So, she was going to do her best to understand.

"Why?" She asked softly as her thumb began to caress the top of his hand. "Because you were drinking or because of what happened between you and Chloé?"

"Both." He admitted hoarsely, "I shouldn't have been drinking. None of this would've happened if I would've just kept myself sober."

Marinette hummed as if she understood. "Why did you start drinking, Adrien?"

He let out a shuddered breath. "I was depressed and... and lonely. We were always fighting about Brick or about the stupidest things and I felt like we just... weren't the same anymore. You started leaving for long periods of time and every time I would wonder if you were ever going to come back."

"I'm sorry." Marinette instantly apologized. "That was just my way of coping—"

"I know." He interrupted her softly. "Just like my way of coping was drinking. You don't need to apologize for that."

She held her tongue back from saying otherwise. The last thing she needed was to start another argument.

"What happened between us?" The question left her lips desperately in a whisper. If he hadn't been as close as he was, he probably wouldn't have heard it.

She felt him gently squeeze her hand. "Couples fight all the time—"

"This isn't just your average couple-y disagreement, and you know it." Marinette interrupted abruptly. Unfortunately, her tone came off a little harsher than she intended, and she felt him flinch against her because of it. "We completely disconnected from each other. It almost felt like we weren't even in a relationship anymore."

"I know." Adrien whispered. His thumb was rubbing circles over the top of her hand now.

Marinette exhaled shakily, "Do you still want us to be together?"

"Of course!" He said without hesitation, his voice a tad bit raised. He lifted his head from her shoulder so that he could meet her eyes. "Do you?"

"Yes." She admitted truthfully. She couldn't see a life without him in it.

"Then its settled. We're still together."

He said it so simply she almost didn't see a reason to continue the conversation. However, there was still something nagging at her—something she needed to get off of her chest.

Timidly, she asked, "Did you ever think about what I said? About being a father to Brick?"

Adrien's lips turned even more downward, as if that were even physically possible considering he was already frowning. "Yeah... I did..." he said after a moment of silence "And you were right. I was treating him like my father once treated me. I never meant to and I'm so sorry—"

"It's okay, Adrien." Marinette placed a hand on his shoulder. She couldn't help the small smile that pulled at her lips, though. "I'm glad you realized it for yourself... but you should save that apology for Brick. Maybe he'll give you another chance."

Desperation clouded his irises as his eyes found hers once more. "And what if he doesn't?"

Marinette didn't have an answer for that. She only hoped Brick would find it in his heart to forgive Adrien.

And if he didn't... well... Adrien would always have her.

When she woke up the next morning, nestled into Adrien's side, the first sight she was greeted with was Brick looming over her in silence. To most, that would have frightened the living wits out of them, but Marinette wasn't at all startled. In fact, she even cracked a smile.

Brick didn't smile back. "Are you and Adrien back together again?"

She chuckled. Leave it to her son to get right to the point.

"We never broke up." Marinette told him softly.

Brick's eyes wandered between them unsurely. Marinette could see the confliction swirling in his irises no matter how hard he tried to hide it.

Her smile fell slightly. "Does it bother you that we're together?"

His eyes snapped up to hers then, and he didn't even have to say a word for her to know his answer. Marinette sighed, her smile turning a bit wan. "I know things have been rough between you and Adrien, but maybe you should think about giving him another chance."

"Why should I give him another chance?" Brick asked bitterly, "He was mean to me, and he was mean to you. Did he even say sorry for being mean to you or did you just let him come back with open arms?"

Marinette frowned slightly, but the look in her eyes spoke volumes. "Watch your tone."

Brick instantly dipped his head. "Sorry..."

Exhaling softly through her nose, Marinette moved to sit up. The movement didn't even stir Adrien, who remained deep in sleep. She moved to place a gentle hand on her son's shoulder. "I know you're frustrated, but Adrien and I said sorry to each other."

Brick looked up at her in confusion. "Why would you say sorry to him?"

"Because even though Adrien hurt me, I did some things that hurt him too." Marinette explained softly, "So, that's when I realized he deserved an apology just as much as I did."

Brick remained silent as he processed her answer. She could see the confliction in his irises. An opportunity to teach him a lesson was there, and she wasn't about to let it pass by. Eventually, it seemed he'd accepted her answer with a tight nod, though his prominent pout left her to believe he still had his own opinions upon the matter. He silently moved away from her then, tending to his unfinished pack. Briefly, she caught sight of Luka rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

Eventually, the four of them carefully climbed down from an enormous oak tree. The tall, brownish grass that littered the forest floor reached Brick's middle, and that was unsettling. Blanks, although usually lethargic during the day, did sleep.

And it was in grass like this where they loved to rest.

With careful steps, they trekked through it. Marinette and Brick remained up front with bows raised, whereas Adrien and Luka pressed right behind. A few heads of the Blanks peaked over the top of the grass as they stood, but their heads were pierced through before they could even consider advancing on their prey.

Finally, after what seemed like hours, they reached the end of the forest, and before them, a suburb neighborhood came into view.

"Finally." Luka breathed out in relief.

The neighborhood was fairly large, consisting of (at least) one-hundred different homes. The once smoothed paved roads were covered with thicket and weed. The sidewalks were barely noticeable underneath the overgrown undergrowth. Several cars littered the street. The homes themselves seemed to be in pretty good shape for the most part, minus their minor wears and tears.

Luka was the first to eagerly step forward, but Marinette held out a hand to his middle. "Proceed with caution." She said sternly, "There could be Blanks inside those homes. There could also be unfriendly people. We don't want to run into either."

"Good point," Adrien said. "We should stick together then—"

"On the contrary, I think we should split up." Luka cut off the blonde. "The longer we stay here, the more likely we'll come across danger, but if we split up, we can cover more ground at a faster pace."

Marinette pressed her lips together unsurely. "Although that could be true, rushing will be just as dangerous. I think it would be better if we all just stuck together—"

"Nonsense." Luka waved her off. Then, he turned to the blonde. "Adrien, you're with me."

The blonde in question gave Luka an aghast look. "Uhhh... no way. I like Marinette's plan where we all stick together better."

"Fine." Luka turned sharply on his heel and began marching into the street. He was out in plain sight too, which was the last thing Marinette would've ever advised. "Then I'll go by myself."

"Luka wait—" Marinette tried to call after him in a low voice, but Brick tugged on her sleeve, forcing her to cut her plead short and glance down at him.

"Let him go, Mama." Brick said. "He knows what's best, so let him make his own choice. Besides," her son flashed her a knowing smirk then. "It's his funeral, unless none of his bones remain."

He passed her then with a chuckle, keeping himself hidden amongst the tree line as he neared the back of the closest home. Marinette shook her head as she followed after him. Her son's dark humor would be the death of her.

As she followed her son, Adrien followed her. Even he knew better than to wander off. Brick approached the back patio door of the home. With a knowing nod exchanged between mother and son, Brick kept his bow raised as Marinette kicked open the door.

It opened fairly easily, which surprised her at first until she realized why. The home was unfortunately already raided and trashed. Graffiti littered most of the walls. Empty cans, dirt and glass from fallen picture frames covered the tiled floor. The photos those frames once held were smiling up at them, with faces of children and families that they did not recognize. Overall, the place didn't look promising, but Brick pressed forward, slowly making his way towards the staircase which led to the second level.

The stairs creaked under their feet as they ascended. Two bedrooms were at the top. One door was slightly ajar, but the other door had been completely removed off of its hinges. Brick briefly checked that room first, which had a twin-sized bedframe in the center of the room, a mattress standing upright against the wall, and a dresser against the corresponding wall.

The door to the second room creaked loudly as she slowly pushed it open. Inside, several different garments of clothes littered the carpeted floor. The bed had been stripped entirely, mattress and all, and said mattress was nowhere to be seen. A fish tank containing murky, green water sat atop the dresser. Inside it, a goldfish lay on its back at the surface.

"How sad." Adrien murmured beside her. Marinette chose not to comment on its death.

They ventured onto the next house after that. After deeming the house was clear, what they found in the kitchen cupboard was like gold. Several cans of vegetables, beans and soups sat untouched. Opening up her bag, Brick eagerly helped her fit every can inside. Another cupboard revealed foods that had gone bad—like moldy bread and stale chips. The fridge also had spoiled foods. Regardless of that, Brick insisted they check upstairs for anything else of value.

The second level had three bedrooms. Two doors were fully closed, while the third was slightly ajar. Swallowing nervously, Marinette moved to check that bedroom first. The door groaned on its hinges as she slowly pushed it open...

And the first thing that came into view was a bed, dressed in pink sheets, with a little girl sitting atop it with a book in her hands.

All three of them froze. Brick kept his bow raised, suspicion clouding his features. Marinette and Adrien's eyes had blown wide. Perhaps that explained why the house had canned food, but even so, out of all the things she'd expected to find, a child hadn't been on that list.

The little girl couldn't have been any older than ten. She was wearing tattered clothing—a white dress to be exact—that touched her knees. The ends of the dress were ripped and parts of it even had holes. The girl's hair was knotted and matted, as if it hadn't seen a hairbrush in years.

Her eyes were just as wide when they entered her room, but she didn't scramble away. In fact, she simply stared, unsure of what to make of them, as if she hadn't seen people in years.

Marinette was the first to step forward, her bow already lowered. She crouched down beside the girl's bed to make herself seem less intimidating. "Hey, kid." She smiled softly, "Are you here all by yourself?"

The girl nodded shyly, confirming her worst assumption: the parents had turned.

"What's your name?"

"Enya." The little girl answered as she fiddled with the book in her lap. A quick glance at the pictures showed she was reading The Ugly Duckling.

"I like that name." Marinette smiled softly, "How long have you been here all by yourself?"

"I don't know." Enya shrugged, but it wasn't that hard to guess. Her appearance spoke volumes.

Marinette and Adrien exchanged a worried look. What were they supposed to do with this little girl? They couldn't just leave her here, but to bring her with them would be a huge commitment—

A loud THUMP suddenly sounded through the wall. She and Adrien jumped as they were unprepared for the sudden sound. Brick remained unfazed. Marinette knew instantly, with just how close it sounded, that the noise had come from the next room.

Uneasily, Marinette's gaze turned back onto the girl. "I thought you said you were alone?"

"I am." Enya said a bit sadly. She closed the picture book in her lap and gently set it aside on the bed. "That's a ghostie."

"A 'ghostie?'"

Enya nodded. "That's what I call them."

Understanding quickly flooded Marinette's features. It was a Blank.

"And how did the ghostie get in there?"

The faintest of smiles pulled at the little girl's lips, even if the sadness from before still remained. "I trapped it in there." She stated proudly.

"Did you now? Well, I'd say that was pretty brave of you."

Perhaps she had worded her words wrong or used the wrong terminology, Marinette wasn't sure. All she knew was that those words had done the opposite of what she had wanted them to do. Enya's very faint smile (which had been hard to gain in the first place) vanished altogether, replaced with a deep frown.

And then literal tears began to collect on her bottom lids, spilling over and cascading down her freckled cheeks.

At first, Marinette didn't know what to do. Brick, being tough and extremely like her, wasn't emotional, and when he did show emotion, rarely was it ever showed through tears, unless he experienced physical pain like skimming his knee or gaining a wound that required stitching. It was simple to handle because Marinette knew how to get rid of those tears. But in this situation? The girl hadn't sprained her ankle, broken a bone, or fallen face-first into concrete (all in which were valid reasons to cry), so why the hell was she crying?

Thankfully, Adrien, being the more sensitive one, came to her rescue and kneeled beside her. "What's wrong?" He asked her softly, "Why are you crying?"

Enya sniffled behind her hands. "I'm not very brave at all."

"Why do you say that?" Adrien asked.

Marinette watched with uncertain eyes as Adrien gently placed a hand on Enya's ankle, caressing the skin there as if he were looking for some way to comfort her without overstepping any boundaries. Enya seemed to respond to that eagerly. She smiled up at him through her fresh tears.

"I trapped that ghostie in there." She repeated.

Adrien frowned in confusion. "Isn't that a good thing?"

"No," Enya shook her head. "Because she told me to kill her before she turned, and I didn't."

She and Adrien exchanged another concerned look. "Who told you to do that?" Adrien asked cautiously.

Enya's bottom lip trembled as she replied, "My mom."

"It's okay, kid." Marinette assured her, trying to be just as gentle as Adrien was. "You don't have to kill it. We'll do it for you."

"Her." Adrien corrected her rather sternly. "That's her mom, Marinette."

Marinette wanted to object, because of course, a person who became a Blank was no longer a person, and therefore, no longer had a name, a gender/sex, or personality. That's why they were given the name Blanks. They were blank, empty, void. They were nothing.

Instead of voicing those thoughts aloud, Marinette awkwardly cleared her throat and asked, "How old are you, Enya?"

"Eight."

"You're super close to my age." Brick suddenly interjected. That quickly gained Enya's attention as her gaze shifted entirely over towards him. Because Brick was behind her, Marinette couldn't see his face, but she could sense the genuineness in his voice. Despite being tough and seeming emotionless, he was being open and nice, she realized.

"I am?" Enya asked, hopefulness in her irises. "How old are you?"

"Nine." He answered.

Enya lit up once again, elated to know she had found someone close her age. She bounded off the bed and rushed towards Brick, wrapping her arms around his waist in a tight hug. Not used to the sudden affection, Brick stood unmoving as she hugged him, unsure of what to do. Either that, or he simply wasn't a hugger (unless the hug was from his mother)—if the stoic expression on his face was anything to go by.

Adrien chuckled lightheartedly at the sight. "Hug her back, Brick."

Marinette visibly winced before her son could even formulate a response.

Brick's frown deepened, and the annoyance in his eyes was directed at Adrien in a split second when his eyes snapped to the blonde. "Don't tell me what to do."

Adrien's lighthearted expression quickly turned aghast. Unsure of how to deescalate the situation, Marinette pressed her lips together into a thin line. Brick slowly unwrapped Enya's arms from around his waist in a gentle manner (which honestly surprised Marinette) before he took a step back. He folded his arms across his chest.

Tension filled the home in a matter of seconds. Marinette could sense Adrien was tempted to rehearse a lecture—something that would be useless in a time like this.

"It's okay," Enya spoke up before anyone else could. "Not everyone likes hugs. I should've asked you first if it was okay to hug you. I'm sorry."

Brick's expression quickly morphed into genuine surprise and confusion. He blinked. "Uhh... no worries."

Marinette suddenly stood to her feet, drawing the attention of everyone in the room. "You two stay in here, okay?" She instructed to Brick and Enya. Brick replied with a curt nod as Enya came to his side and grasped at his folded arm. He didn't relent so that she could hold it. In fact, Brick overly pretended she wasn't there. To Adrien, Marinette jutted her head towards the door.

She was already out of the bedroom before Adrien had joined her in the hall. When they were out of the kids' sight, Adrien launched into his frustration in a low whisper. "What the hell was that? Why did he talk to me like that?"

"I don't know." Marinette shrugged, unsure of it herself. She was hoping Brick would've taken her advice about giving Adrien a second chance, but it seemed Brick wasn't quite willing to be forgiving.

Adrien wasn't satisfied with that answer. "Why did you let him talk to me like that?"

"I'll lecture him about it later, but now isn't the time." Marinette replied in a hushed manner. "Let's just take care of this Blank so we can get the hell out of here."

"Fine." Adrien relented, before stubbornly adding, "I thought you said he would be willing to forgive me?"

"I said might. Besides, this is going to take time. You can't expect him to forgive you overnight."

Adrien mumbled something underneath his breath. Marinette was too exhausted to bother asking what he'd said. Instead, she unsheathed her machete as she crept towards the bedroom. Even with her quiet steps, the Blanks sensed her nearing. Its hungry moans rose to eager growls. It began to hit the wooden door repeatedly, probably with the front of its skull.

Adrien flinched back when a rather hard SLAM sounded. Marinette didn't even move an inch.

"On second thought... maybe we should just leave it in there." Adrien suggested timidly, "It's not like it can go anywhere being trapped in that room."

"You think that door would hold it in there forever? Think again."

"Well... if it does break out, we should be long gone by then—"

"—and it'll just get someone else. Besides, we told the girl we would take care of this. I think she'll feel better knowing this Blank is no longer alive."

"And then what are we supposed to do with her? Take her with us?"

"Of course we will." Marinette said as if it were obvious. She turned to look at Adrien in shock when she realized he didn't quite share that same sentiment. "What did you think I was going to do? Leave her here?"

Adrien shrugged. "I don't know, but we already have one kid. Two just seems like we're asking for a hoard of Blanks to swallow us whole."

"Don't be so dramatic." Marinette rolled her eyes at him. "Enya has a better chance with us than she does here. She'll run out of food eventually if she stays here, and what is she supposed to do when she does? Hunt for more? She's eight."

"Okay, but what's to guarantee that she'll make it out there with us? The only encounter she's ever had with a Blank has been with her own mother. She has no idea what it's like out there in the real world, and she's not like Brick."

"There's no guarantee, but at least she'll have a better chance."

The Blank rammed itself into the door once more, as if to say, 'Enough talking. I'm hungry.'

Marinette let out a sigh through her nose. Without verbally explaining to Adrien what her next move would be, Marinette rammed her foot into the door, breaking off the lock from the frame. This gave the Blank the last push it needed to slam itself into the door once more, completely ripping it off of its hinges.

However, in doing so, the Blank was unprepared for her blade waiting on the other end. It pierced right in between the walking corpse's eyes, causing it to go instantly still.

Adrien gaped at her in horror. "A little warning would've been nice?!"

Marinette slowly pulled out her blade, which was coated in black ooze. Wiping the blade on the Blank's tattered clothing, she sheathed her machete, and said with a smirk, "It's like pulling off a band aid. You do it without warning."

"A band aid and a Blank can hardly be compared." Adrien grumbled out, but he was also holding back a smile of his own, and that had her grinning widely.

They cautiously made their way out of the house after that, with little Enya's arms wrapped around Adrien's neck. Adrien had hoisted her on his back, insisting they could move at the same pace with her up there. He figured she couldn't slow them down if she was being carried, except he didn't exactly factor in himself getting tired.

Brick stayed up ahead, only stopping once for her to catch up so that he could ask her if they should check any more houses for supplies. They ended up doing so when Brick mentioned he would've liked to look for new clothes. The fifth house they entered ended up being promising when they discovered a young boy's bedroom upstairs. The pastel, green walls were decorated in dinosaur stickers and the popcorn ceiling was littered with glow in the dark stars. Even a TV with a video game console was left untouched.

Of course, because he had no idea what video games were, Brick wasn't at all interested in the gaming console when Marinette tried to show him what it was. Instead, he went straight for the closet, where he found an arrayment of boy's clothing.

They all stepped out of the room so that he could change. When he was finished, they continued exploring the neighborhood.

They passed a community center which had a fenced in pool behind it. Several Blanks were trapped in the chlorine water, groaning as they struggled to find a way out. Some had already given up, it seemed, as they stood unmoving in the midst of the water. The ones who neared the deepest end of the pool sunk to the bottom with no means to resurface. Marinette wasn't at all perturbed that they drowned (in fact, the sight had her grinning), but what rubbed her the wrong way was truly that they couldn't swim.

After all, back on the boat, the Blanks had evolved and were indeed swimming in the ocean. So, what made these different from those?

A children's playground came into view as they continued walking. The colorful, plastic tube slides were mostly faded in color and cracked from the unrelenting sun. The chains that held up the swings creaked loudly as the gentle breeze swayed them. Enya idly made a comment about how she and her mother used to visit that park all the time.

The neighborhood that had once been lively and filled with many families held a lot of bittersweet memories for Enya. But what it didn't seem to hold, as they continued on, was any sign of Luka.

And Marinette was starting to feel a bit uneasy.

"What an idiot." Adrien grumbled out in frustration. "We were only supposed to look around and regroup, not disappear."

Marinette swallowed uncomfortably. She should've never allowed Luka to go off on his own. Ever since the apocalypse first came to be, Luka had been relying on others to stay alive. First it was with his sister in their houseboat, then it was with Xavier's clan...

Luka had never been on his own before. What if a Blank had gotten to him?

"Let's just keep looking." Marinette said as patiently as she could muster. In truth, she was panicking on the inside. "He's got to be around here somewhere."

Adrien wasn't too pleased about having to search for Luka. If it were up to him, Marinette was certain he would leave their companion behind without even sparing a glance back. Marinette, on the other hand, didn't abandon anyone for the sake of convenience.

They took a left when two roads greeted them, only to find they had led themselves into a cul-de-sac. The sign that usually warned people of such a dead end was missing. Marinette briefly surveyed the area. There was no sight of Luka anywhere.

Frustrated, Marinette violently kicked a stone across the worn pavement. It travelled quite a bit—more specifically, it went straight through one of the front windows of a house and completely shattered the glass. Adrien winced at the damage and Brick smirked, but Marinette couldn't find it in herself to care, even if the noise could possibly attract nearby Blanks.

She'd already lost more people than she could count, and after deciding not to be alone anymore, two more. Had she lost a third?

Suddenly, a head popped up over the windowsill, revealing Luka behind the window she had shattered. "What in the bloody blazes was that?!" He demanded. "That rock almost hit my head you know!"

"Luka?!" Marinette almost didn't believe it was him. But it was. "What the hell! We've been looking everywhere for you! We thought you had turned!"

"We were honestly going to leave you behind." Adrien added dryly. Of course, he was only speaking for himself, and she had to shoot him a look of disagreement, but she was mostly surprised when Brick openly snickered at Adrien's comment.

Luka rolled his eyes at Adrien. "Your bluff needs work, Adrien." He hopped over the windowsill then, avoiding the pieces of jagged glass that pointed upward. He held the tearing straps of his backpack as he sauntered over towards him. "In the meantime, I found food, clothes, and also toiletry supplies, because let me tell you, not having toilet paper has been—"

Marinette socked him in the shoulder before he could even finish.

"OW!" Aghast, he turned to look at her in fury. "What was that for?!"

"For being an idiot. Next time, I'll know better not to let you out of my sight."

Adrien cleared his throat uncomfortably. "Maybe you should keep your voice down, Luka—"

"Oh, put a cork in it, Adrien." Luka was rubbing the spot on his arm where she'd hit him. He looked anything but amused. "You didn't feel how hard she hit me."

"You'll be fine." Brick said, sounding just as unamused. "Stop being such a baby."

Luka's agape mouth was enough to interpret that he hadn't expected Brick, out of all people, to be what most adults would consider disrespectful. Marinette, on the other hand, was proud, and would encourage such savagery any day.

He shut his mouth, deciding he'd rather avert the conversation than catch flies. "Let's just go." Luka grumbled out, annoyed. "We have everything we need, right?"

"Unless you need ice for your bruise?" Brick was smirking. He had no intensions of stopping said savagery and Marinette was living for it.

Luka glared at the boy. "I take back what I said. You're not a good lad."

"You are though." Brick snickered, "Only a 'lad' would be as childish as you."

"Shut up."

"Quit whining like a baby, and maybe I will."

The sounds of a groaning Black caused their bickering to cease in seconds. They all whipped their heads to the sound, finding a lone Blank wandering towards them with outstretched arms and hunger filled eyes.

"Fantastic." Adrien drawled out. To Luka, he added, "You drew it right to us."

Marinette's eyes quickly surveyed their surroundings. There was no other Blank in sight... not yet at least.

"So, this is my fault?" Luka asked, sounding offended. "I don't think so. This is Marinette's fault for smashing a window."

"You were the one who screamed like a frightened little girl." Adrien pointed out.

"Hey!" Enya pouted from atop Adrien's shoulder. "I don't sound like that!"

"Shut up, all of you." Marinette hissed at her bickering group. There was no way she could possibly think straight with all of them running their mouths. Brick joined her side, looking up at her expectantly for what they should do next.

"There's a town a little far up the road." Enya broke the silence with a raised arm as she pointed across the barren street. "We could go there?"

"Lets." Luka hiked up his backpack farther up his shoulders.

Marinette turned to look at Brick, who was already waiting for her next move. "Kill the Blank, then join me at the front." She instructed.

With a curt nod, Brick did as he was told. He loaded his bow as he slowly drew nearer to the Blank. When he was sure he had a clear shot, he released his arrow. It pierced the Blank in the center of its forehead, sending it pummeling backwards.

"Wow." Enya marveled from atop Adrien. "You're really good with that thing!"

Brick said nothing in response to that. He simply stared at her blankly before he quickly positioned his bow over his shoulder and moved to join his mother. Enya watched him retreat with a frown.

Sensing her disappointment, Adrien jostled her slightly. "Don't take it personally. Brick is a really... emotionless person. He's like that with everyone."

"He's not like that with her." Enya stated as she pointed ahead of them, and Adrien's eyes instantly followed. Of course, the little girl was referring to Marinette, the only person whom Brick allowed himself to be entirely open with it.

"That's his mom." Adrien said with a chuckle, even if the sight had him feeling a little bit jealous. "He's very close with her, and if he ever does get mad at her, he always forgives her."

"But what about you? Aren't you his dad?"

It took everything inside Adrien not to crumble at the mention of said title. Instead of revealing the pain it brought, he forced himself to smile. "No... but I want to be."

"I never liked my dad." Enya said somewhat mournfully. It was a very sudden diversion of topic. "He was really mean to my mom and me, and then, when the deadies started coming around, he left us all alone."

"Wow." Adrien couldn't even imagine leaving his family behind. To think some people were that cruel.

Enya didn't reply to that, but the sniffle that sounded from his shoulder was enough proof that it greatly upset her. Good thing Adrien understood that exact same pain.

"My father was mean to me too." He admitted in order to break the silence. "After my mom disappeared, I think he blamed me... so... he got mean and didn't let me do anything."

"How did you get away?" Enya asked.

"I became an adult." Adrien sighed deeply, "My father couldn't stop me from doing what I wanted anymore, so, I moved out of his house and moved into an apartment with my best friend."

"I'm sorry your dad wasn't a good dad." Was Enya's sad response.

Adrien's heart clenched at that. "I'm sorry yours wasn't a good dad either. Maybe... maybe if you'd like... I could be your new dad? How does that sound?"

Enya's response was her little arms squeezing tightly around his neck as she pressed her cheek against his in one of the warmest embraces he'd ever experienced. Her accepting him as a father figure slowly brought a delighted grin to his lips. It was all he needed to start anew, even if Brick never accepted him for that role.

Over time, as they continued traveling, Adrien and Enya developed a bond similar to Marinette and Brick's. Marinette noticed that Enya was overall more comfortable with him and preferred not to leave his side. She wasn't sure why, but their strong connection somewhat bothered her. Perhaps it was because their relationship hindered Adrien from trying to fix things with Brick.

Brick didn't seem to be bothered by it, though. It meant that Adrien left him alone, and so did the little girl. When she asked him how he felt about it, he admitted that he preferred it that way. Sadly, nothing that Marinette said against that would get him to change his mind.

What she wanted was for them to be more like a family, and she thought that would be possible now that she and Adrien were no longer at odds. However, with Adrien's new focus on Enya, he and Marinette were once again drifting apart.

Luka, on the other hand, was the same as ever. Annoying and chatty.

"When exactly do you think we'll reach this sanctuary? Because I have to say, with all this walking we're doing, I don't think my shoes will last much longer."

"I don't know, Luka." Marinette replied dryly. This was the fourth time Luka had asked her this, along with mentioning the want for a new pair of shoes—because it wasn't a need. The soles of his shoes were still attached, and until they weren't, there was no need to go out of her way to get him another pair.

"Surely you have an estimation?"

"No, and if I did, you would be the last person to know."

"We'll get there when we get there." Brick threw an unamused glance over his shoulder at Luka. Once again, her son was a little way ahead of her at the front, where he belonged. She smiled at him in thanks, because her patience was running a bit thin. He smiled back.

Luka scowled. "Nobody asked you, lad. Keep to yourself."

Brick rolled his eyes. "I would, but your whining is pissing me off."

"You're not allowed to use that word, Brick." Marinette said sternly.

Brick instantly directed his frown at her, but Marinette did not waver. In fact, her stern glare intensified. Sometimes, they had stare downs like these when they didn't agree on something. It was rare, but it happened.

"Fine." Brick relented, but he wasn't pleased. He turned back around to face forward. "Sorry."

Marinette acknowledged his apology with a hum, but Luka figured he wasn't done running his mouth yet and snickered. "That lad has quite the mouth on him, doesn't he?"

"So do you. Best take lessons and keep it shut around me, yeah?"

He frowned at her, but Marinette had no patience to deal with him. Leaving Luka behind, she jogged a bit to fall into step with her son. Brick acknowledged her presence with a brief glance out of the corner of his eye.

"How much further do you think this town is?" She asked her son as a form of starting up some basic conversation.

Brick carelessly shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know."

Marinette picked up on that carelessness right away. Lightly bumping her side against his, she said, "C'mon, spill it out. What's on your mind?"

Sighing somewhat defeatedly, Brick turned to meet his mother's eye. "Should we really be trusting this girl? What if there really isn't any town and she's just leading us to her group or something?"

He wasn't the only one to think that Enya's presence was a bit fishy. Marinette had her own reservations about the whole thing too—like how Enya could have survived all this time on her own stuck inside that house. But then again, Enya was only eight, and couldn't even kill her own mother before she turned. Marinette wanted to believe Enya was simply a little girl in need of their help and protection.

"I like your cautious thinking, Brick, but I think Enya is telling the truth. I think she really is all alone." Marinette said.

Her son sighed once again. He sounded defeated and exhausted. "You're probably right. I just... don't really like her."

Marinette arched a brow at that. "Oh? How come?"

"Well, she's annoying... and bubbly. And dramatic too."

"You've only just met her." Marinette couldn't help but laugh. She had a pretty good feeling that Brick's so called 'annoyance' towards Enya was a feeling quite the opposite in reality.

Brick looked away and huffed. "She's still annoying and whatever."

She didn't have much to add to that, so instead she said, "Well... Luka annoys me all the time, but I still let him tag along."

"I'm not sure why you do."

"Because everyone deserves a chance to live, don't they?"

After giving her question some thought, Brick nodded silently to that. A smile pulled at her lips when she realized they had come to an understanding.

"Hey! What's that up ahead?" Luka suddenly called from behind her.

Looking away from her son, Marinette looked up, quickly finding a clearing in the trees. Up ahead, an abandoned truck was parked—an odd place to park any vehicle. There was no road nearby. In fact, the truck looked stuck between two overgrown trees. The paint was chipped in several places and even rust was starting to make an appearance along the rims. That told her the truck must have been sitting there for years.

The driver, however, was nowhere to be seen.

Sounding tired, Adrien's heavy breaths reached her ears as he caught up to her. He was still carrying Enya on his back. Luka, on the other hand, wasn't carrying anything of importance other than his backpack hung at his front and his bloody guitar strapped over his back.

Marinette's eyes met Luka's as she gestured to Adrien with a jerk of her head. "Hey, switch with Adrien and carry Enya for a bit. He'll carry your stuff."

Luka's brows furrowed in horror. His hands immediately flew to the strap of his guitar. "You want me to let him carry my guitar? Have you gone mad?"

"He's not going to break it. Besides, it's just a guitar."

"Just a guitar? JUST A GUITAR?!"

"Keep your voice down." Brick hissed at the musician.

Luka didn't listen. He didn't even acknowledge Brick's words. "How dare you say that about my precious guitar." He pointed a finger at Marinette, his glare completely fixated on her. "You out of all people should know how important this is to me."

"I do." Marinette was entirely unamused. "You considered it more important than our relationship."

Off to her left, she heard Adrien snicker. Her lips also pulled upward involuntarily.

Luka rolled his eyes. "Whatever. The point is: I don't trust anyone else with my guitar."

"No offense, Luka, but a life is more important than your stupid guitar." Brick disclosed.

This time, Luka acknowledged Brick with a glare. The boy wasn't even phased by the look.

Marinette let out a sigh. "Adrien isn't going to hurt your guitar, Luka. Just switch, please. He needs a break from carrying her."

"The girl is like eight years-old!" Luka exclaimed as he gestured to her with a dramatic wave of his hand. "She can walk just fine on her own!"

"That's right I can!" Enya agreed from atop Adrien's back.

"No, that's not an option." Adrien argued. "You've never been out in the wilderness like this so exposed to Blanks. You'll be in more danger if you're on foot."

"You know what will be in even more danger?" Luka interjected loudly, "My spine if I have to carry that girl on my back!"

"I'm not that heavy!" Enya pouted.

Marinette simply blinked at him. "You literally carried Adrien on your shoulders when we left the farm, but Enya will break your spine?"

"He carried me on his shoulders?" Adrien interjected in confusion. Oh right... she had forgotten he remembered literally nothing about that night. Even though she filled him in on the basics, she must've forgotten to mention that to him.

"The adrenaline kept my spine intact." Luka insisted with a huff.

"You're a shitty liar," Marinette deadpanned. "And you're also hella dramatic."

"Oh yeah? Well, if I'm being so dramatic, why don't you carry her, huh?"

Too engrossed in arguing with one another, no one noticed as the calm and sunny atmosphere of the forest grew uncomfortably chilling in a matter of seconds. However, Brick noticed. He was the one to quickly survey his surroundings, and his stance became on edge because of it. His hand reflexively moved to the leather handle of his bow.

Ahead of him, a few bushes suddenly rustled. Brick tensed before turning to his mother.

However, Marinette had her back faced towards him, and she was too busy still arguing with Luka. "I'm the one who has to kill all the Blanks so that you stay alive. I can't do that with a kid on my back."

"Well, hand me your bow and I'll do some killing."

"That's out of the question."

"See?" Luka pointed an accusing finger at her. "You don't want anyone else handling your bow."

Marinette's gaze hardened. "Actually, I just know you can't aim for shit. You'll get us all killed."

The bushes rustled again. Brick urgently tugged on his mother's sleeve. "Mama—"

"I definitely could shoot a Blank in the head. I've just never been given the chance!" Luka went on. His voice had risen loud enough to echo between the trees.

"And you're not going to get one." Marinette argued. "I'm not going to risk my life just to see if you'll hit or miss."

"And how in the bloody blazes is that my fault? That seems like a you problem."

"Literally no one was blaming you." Adrien interjected, sounding annoyed. "Besides, you're the one who literally brought that up."

"I brought it up because it needed to be said—!"

"MAMA!" Brick's voice rose loud enough to end their bickering in seconds. With his urgent shout, Marinette whipped her head, and her eyes weren't the only ones who worriedly searched the boy for any injuries. Thankfully, her son wasn't hurt. But he was concerned.

And when he pointed off towards the brush in front of him, she quickly realized why.

Three Blanks were emerging from the bushes, their vacant, white eyes set on them. Marinette wasted no time in grabbing Brick's wrist and sprinting in the opposite direction. Adrien also took off running after Marinette with Enya still on his shoulders. Luka, scrambling to refasten his guitar, bolted and was missed by a Blank's boney hand by an inch.

"They must be the owners of the truck!" Adrien huffed from behind her.

Confused, Brick questioned Adrien's logic. "Why would they stick around a rusty, old truck?"

"Because they're remembering." Marinette shuddered. To Adrien, she asked, "Remember those Blanks back at the abandoned house?! They remembered how to knock!"

"What abandoned house?"

"You were too young, Brick. You don't remember."

"You think they remembered owning something in their past lives?!" Adrien huffed out from beside her. "We concluded remembering basic things as a possibility... but if they remember that they once owned something.... that becomes more personal!"

"I know!" Marinette couldn't help but shudder. If the Blanks could remember things that were personal, this could also allow them to remember certain people they came across...

...or to hold grudges against them.

"Less talking more running!" Luka shouted from behind them.

With Brick already in front, Marinette decided to follow her son's lead. Brick weaved his way effortlessly through the trees, his bow already in hand with an arrow set just in case they ran into any more Blanks up ahead. Marinette struggled to ready her own bow as she ran. She was out of breath and her calves were already starting to burn... but she couldn't be more tired than Adrien was. His heavy breathing was enough indication that he wouldn't be able to run for much longer with Enya up on his shoulders.

Marinette needed a plan and fast. Climbing up a tree was the logical option, but they wouldn't have enough time to make it up safely with the Blanks already so near and running at incredibly scary speeds.

Which should have been impossible.... because she had only seen Blanks run that fast at night!

She surveyed her surroundings, desperately searching for a solution, but all Marinette was met with were trees. Miles and miles of dark forest, it seemed. There was no guarantee of when they would make it to a clearing or a town or any safe place from the Blanks—

"Mama, up ahead!" Brick shouted. That had her gaze snapping up front, only to realize that a short way away, a wooden train track had been built through the forest, and on its track was an abandoned train car.

Marinette's eyes widened. Whether it be fate, good luck or some... deity looking out for them, she almost couldn't believe her eyes. What were the odds...

"GO GO GO!" Adrien cried out.

Snapped out of her brief reverie, Marinette picked up her pace. The sliding door to the train car was already partially open, allowing one person at a time to squeeze through the opening. Brick squeezed through first and disappeared into the car. He stuck his arm a moment later to shoot her a thumbs up, a sign that the car was clear.

Marinette reached the car next, practically slamming into it with how fast she was running. Adrien was right behind her. He lifted Enya off his shoulders and handed her to Marinette. She helped the little girl get inside the car. Then, Marinette went inside, and Adrien quickly followed. Luka reached the car next and quickly unfastened his guitar from his body, practically throwing the instrument inside without even caring who it might hit.

"OW!" Brick's voice bellowed from inside, followed by the sound of Luka's beloved guitar clanging at the bottom of the car. "Stupid guitar."

Luka squeezed his backpack through the opening next. Marinette extended her hand and quickly pulled him inside. The door was quickly slid shut, and then the train car suddenly shook as the Blanks slammed into it, the banging sound of metal sensitive to their ears as they tried to get inside, and their haunting growls echoing through the metal.

"I thought they only ran that fast at night!" Luka heaved out.

Marinette didn't know what to say. In fact, she didn't even know what to think.

Everything that she had once knew was changing so fast. The Blanks were evolving at incredible speeds and she didn't know how to keep up with it.

"What if they remember we're in here and don't leave?" Adrien asked, his question directed at anyone who could answer.

Ironically, she had been thinking the same thing and was already trying to devise an escape plan. However, unlike most train cars that had one opening on each side, this one only had one, which meant they only had one escape. It would be impossible for them to get out if the Blanks refused to leave.

In other words, they were trapped.

Marinette swallowed uncomfortably. "Let's hope they don't."

"But what if they do?" Luka interjected worriedly, "Does that mean we'll be trapped in here forever? I refuse to die in such a disgusting, rusty, dark train car—!"

"Keep shouting and they'll never go away." Brick hissed out.

"Brick's right." Marinette agreed. "We need to stay quiet. Hopefully, the Blanks will forget they were chasing us and move on once they don't hear us anymore."

Another loud banging of metal sounded, startling them all.

Adrien shuddered. "I don't think they're going to leave any time soon."

Enya whimpered, wrapping her arms around Adrien's leg. "I'm scared."

"It's okay, Enya." Adrien lightly patted her head. "I'm scared too."

Marinette was also afraid but indulging in her fears now wouldn't help them escape. Brick seemed to have that same mindset. He was strangely quiet, not even bothering to tease Enya for being so fearful, which he originally thought was childishness. Marinette knew it was because he was somewhat afraid and was looking for a solution just like she was.

In the darkness of the train car, it was hard to see anyone, but Marinette didn't have to see to know that Adrien was right beside her. His shoulder touched hers, and that was all she needed to know. He needed comfort.

Marinette searched for his hand, which she easily found at his side. He welcomed her touch and even squeezed her hand, as if he were afraid this would be the last time he would get to hold her in any way. Marinette rubbed her thumb over the top of his hand to assure him that it wouldn't be.

She intended to get them out of this. She just needed to figure out how.

"Mama..." She felt Brick tug at her free arm. "I think there's an opening at the bottom of the car."

Marinette couldn't see anything, but she trusted Brick, and therefore followed her son as he guided her towards his find. Sure enough, in the corner of the train car, a small hole allowing minimal light could be seen.

However, it was only big enough for a baby mouse.

"I know what you're thinking." Brick said as if he could read her thoughts. "But the metal is rusted over which means it can be broken easily. We could make the hole bigger for one of us to fit through if we wanted—"

"—so that one of us can distract the Blanks." Marinette finished his thought with a grin.

"You must be out of your mind." Luka scoffed in disbelief. "You want one of us to squeeze through that hole? What if you don't make it through the hole fast enough and one of the Blanks sees you? It'll bite you before you have a chance to get back inside."

"I hate to say this, but he makes a good point." Adrien said. "That's a really dangerous idea."

"Do you have a better one?" Brick countered stubbornly.

"Only that we should wait this out." Adrien insisted.

Brick shook his head, scoffing at the notion. "That could take too long, or we might be stuck in here forever. If we wait too long and let the Blanks keep banging on the train car, they're going to lead more Blanks over here until there's too many to run away from."

"I would rather take my chances with three Blanks than a hundred." Marinette added.

Adrien sighed defeatedly and ran a face over his hand. "Even if you were able to make a hole big enough for one of us to fit through, what if one of the Blanks notices the opening and tries to get in here through the hole?"

Luka pointed a finger at Adrien, agreeing with that logic. "Exactly what I was thinking! You'd be dooming anyone who stay behind in here."

"The hole isn't going to be big enough for one of them to fit through..." Brick paused, as if he were considering his next words carefully. "Because the hole is only going to be big enough for me to fit through."

"What?" Marinette grabbed ahold of her son's shoulders, shaking them slightly as if to shake some sense into him. "I'm not letting you go out there to face three Blanks, or possibly more than that, by yourself."

"I have to." Brick insisted, his expression hard. "It's the only way this will work without putting everyone else in danger."

"I'm small enough too. I could help." Enya insisted softly.

"No way." Brick quickly declined that suggestion. "You don't know the first thing about killing Blanks. You'll just be in the way."

Enya didn't respond, but Marinette was certain that if the darkness wasn't affecting her vision, she would see a dejected little girl.

"Do you have to be so mean to her?" Adrien's voice sounded annoyed. He made it extremely clear that he wasn't a fan of Brick's brash attitude. "A 'no thank you' would have sufficed."

"I'm being real, which is more important than her feelings." Brick's voice hardened when it was directed at Adrien.

"Brick..." Marinette gently squeezed his shoulders, trying to re-avert his attention back to her. "What you're suggesting is extremely dangerous. I know I've taught you well... but that doesn't guarantee that this will be successful. You could lose your life. You understand that don't you?"

"I understand." Brick answered, unwavering.

Marinette exhaled slowly, but her breath came out more shakily than she intended. Brick was her son, her pride and joy. He meant everything to her. He was the sole reminder of a friend she once had, who Marinette had to kill, who she had to watch die in her arms. Losing Alya had been one of the hardest feats to accept. Raising her son as her own had been even harder.

If Marinette were to lose Brick too... she wasn't sure if she would have the strength to continue onward.

The whole point of being so adamant about finding this sanctuary had been for her son. Now, it was for Enya too. She wanted the children to have a place where they could be children. A place where they wouldn't have to worry about sleeping with a knife under their pillow.

Finding the sanctuary had never been for her. It had always been for Brick.

"Please be careful." Marinette whispered as she pulled him into a tight embrace. "I can't lose you too."

Brick wasn't much of a hugger, but he didn't even hesitate to wrap his arms around his mother and bury his face into the crook of her neck. Mother and son held onto each other tightly as they struggled to keep their emotions at bay. Finally, after what seemed like hours, they pulled away. Marinette cheeks were stained with silent tears, as were Brick's.

He knew she couldn't afford to lose him, and that's why he shed his tears.

Because he couldn't guarantee she wouldn't.

"You're actually letting him do this?" Adrien's tone was panicked. Marinette felt him brush up against her, his hand finding her shoulder. "What if... what if he turns—"

"Stop scaring her." Brick snapped abruptly. "I'm not going to turn."

"As much as you wish you could, you can't tell the future, Brick." Adrien replied sternly.

"Just let the lad do what he wants." Luka interjected absently. He didn't sound at all phased about the fact that a child was intending to risk his life for him. But then again, Luka was a selfish person and rarely did anything selfless unless it benefited him.

"Of course you don't care what he does." Adrien venomously bit out. "As long as you're not the one putting yourself in immediate danger, it doesn't matter to you."

Luka gasped, sounding offended. "How dare you put words in my mouth—!"

"What... and you do?" Brick interjected, the question entirely directed at Adrien. "Since when have you ever cared about what I do, or even care about me?"

"You might not think so, but I care a lot about you, Brick." Adrien said, meaning every word. "You were my best friend's son. The day you were born... I was so happy—"

"Cut the crap." Brick sneered. "For as long as I can remember, you've never been happy around me. All you've done is treat me like I'm a burden to you or something. I wonder how my real dad would feel... knowing his best friend treats his son like shit."

"Brick—!" Marinette tried to interject, slightly shocked by his language.

"I might not be your real dad, but I'm the closest thing you'll ever have to one." Adrien narrowed his eyes into dangerous slits.

"You will never be my dad." Brick spat.

Adrien eyes quickly widened, hurt glossing over his irises. It was then when Marinette realized there was no turning back. The damage had already been done. It seemed Brick was never going to forgive Adrien.

Adrien straightened his posture. She was certain he was tense and on the verge of tears. She tried to reach out for him, but when her hand brushed his, Adrien pulled away. She felt her heart drop even further into the pit of her stomach.

"Fine." Adrien gritted out. His voice shook ever-so-slightly. "Do whatever the hell you want then."

Brick didn't bother with a response, but his silence spoke louder regardless. Marinette knew her son well enough to know that he wasn't going to show if he was phased at all by their argument. He was going to make Adrien believe that he was unbothered... and that was an emotion her son excelled at tremendously.

She felt her son move away from her, only for his silhouette to faintly be seen as he stood near the small opening. Little light revealed where he stood, but Marinette could still make out how tense her son stood. Whether that tension was there due to the fear of what he was risking... or over the fact that whatever potential relationship could have been between him and Adrien was now ruined for good... she wasn't sure.

Brick exhaled heavily through his nose. Then, he silently got on his hands and knees and began tearing at the rusted metal with his bare hands.

Marinette moved to join him. Together, they peeled open a bigger opening.

The train car shook rather harshly a moment later, jostling them all. The sounds of the Blanks could be heard as they relentlessly tried to get inside.

Finally, after several minutes at trying to break apart the rusted metal, they had created a hole big enough for Brick to slip through. Mother and son shared one last hug before Brick suck his head through the opening to survey his surroundings.

Upside down, he could make out the legs of several Blanks. He counted that four more had joined the original three.

Before Marinette could express her concern, Brick slipped through entirely, disappearing from their sight. Marinette quickly stood to her feet and moved towards the door of the car. Because more light could now shine inside, both Adrien and Luka could make out her figure.

"We need to bang on the door." Marinette whispered to them both. Without waiting for them to join her, her knuckles tapped the metal. The Blanks' noises rose in an instant, clearly enticed by the sound.

"What are you doing?!" Luka hissed out. "We're trying to get them away from us!"

"We need to keep them distracted so Brick can easily sneak out." Marinette said. That was enough to have Luka on his feet and rushing to join her. Together, they continued to knock on the metal, trying their best to keep the Blanks distracted. Even little Enya stood up and joined them.

Adrien, however, remained rooted where he stood, as if he hadn't heard her.

"Aren't you going to help, Adrien?" Luka arched a brow at him, a smug smile on his lips. "Or are you too heartbroken by what that lad said to you?"

"Luka, stop it." Marinette scolded him.

Of course, the musician didn't listen. "He made good points, you know. All you ever did was scold him when we were back at the farm."

Marinette sent a glare at him out of the corner of her eye. "Luka, if you don't shut up right now—"

"Brick was right." Adrien let out a bitter chuckle, completely interrupting whatever chiding had been on the tip of her tongue. "I care about him, but I never showed it. Ever. I was so... stuck on anger. Maybe I was just angry that his parents died, and he never got the chance to meet them, or angry at the fact that I lost my best friend... but I took that all out on him."

Luka clicked his tongue. "You should feel ashamed, Agreste. Absolutely ashamed."

"Luka!"

"What? You know I'm right!"

Adrien sent a glare Luka's way. "I don't care about what Brick said. I'm going to be there for him no matter what... and I'm going to start showing I care, even if he doesn't accept it."

Marinette found a smile tugging at the corner of her lips. She hadn't expected Adrien to press forward in a relationship with Brick, not after all that had been said, but she was glad he wasn't planning to give up. Not this time.

Adrien's eyes met hers, and then he returned her smile. With that, he joined her side to help keep the Blanks distracted.

Another sudden jerk to the train car ensued, causing them all to lose their balance and topple into each other. Thankfully, Adrien was able to steady his balance, keeping both Marinette and Luka from tumbling to the bottom of the train car.

The noises from the Blanks grew a bit louder. They were starting to grow frustrated.

"What do you think will happen when they start to get impatient?" Luka worriedly wondered aloud.

Neither Adrien nor Marinette replied. They were too busy hoping Brick could divert the Blanks' attention before it came to that.

As if on cue, something suddenly slammed into the train car, jostling them again. It wasn't the same type of the force the Blanks had made when trying to get inside. Instead, it felt as if a Blank had been thrown against the metal, or something incredibly forceful had pinned it there.

Marinette had a good feeling it was one of Brick's arrows.

She could tell the Blanks began to move away from the car when their groans started to get more distant. Realizing Brick must have been leading them away, she quickly turned to face her friends and said, "You have five seconds to jump out of this car when I open it."

"You're insane." Luka replied, but his sights were set on the door, preparing himself to jump.

On the count of three, Marinette shoved open the door. The Blank that had jostled the train car so suddenly was sitting on the ground, an arrow right through its skull and black blood oozing from its head. Luka jumped out of the car first and almost stepped right on the dead thing, but Adrien easily avoided it when he jumped out after him, holding little Enya's hand in his own to guide her in the right direction.

About a yard away stood Brick with his bow raised. Ten Blanks were quickly following him and two had already been killed. When the Blanks heard noise coming from the train car, they turned around, resetting their course for their original target.

But they weren't lumbering through the forest. They were fast walking.

"Run!" Marinette shoved Adrien's back, forcing him to get ahead of her. Adrien swept Enya up into his arms by her armpits and took off running. Luka stumbled after him, barely having time to sweep his guitar off of the ground and strap it onto his back.

Marinette raised her bow. Steadying her arm, she released an arrow. One Blank fell backward into the grass, dead. Another fell forward a second later when Brick's arrow pierced through its skull. But there were eight left, and with how fast they were advancing, Marinette knew she wouldn't have enough time to kill each one before they reached her.

So, she strapped her bow to her back and unsheathed her machete instead.

Another one of Brick's arrows whisked through the air, sending a Blank face-first into the grass, but the remaining seven continued forward, unperturbed by their fellow friend's death. A sense of relief washed over her when Marinette realized they didn't seem to understand the concept of losing someone... or being angry over it.

The first one lunged at her with arms outstretched. In one swift motion, Marinette chopped off its arms at the elbows, sending its rotting limbs flying past her. The Blank still advanced with its jaw opened wide, but Marinette pierced the Blank through its mouth, her blade re-appearing at the back of its head. It fell on its knees, collapsing completely a moment later. The second one came next, barring its teeth. She chopped off its head entirely.

The third one was pierced through the back of its head from Brick's arrow, causing the fourth one to trip over the corpse. Marinette used that to her advantage and advanced on it, stabbing her blade into the back of the fallen Blank's head. But that left her right in the hindsight of the fifth one, who was able to grab ahold of her arm. Swinging her blade swiftly behind her head, Marinette took off that one's head as well. She raised her blade again and slammed it down, splitting the sixth's one's skull in half. With the seventh one, she ran toward it and speedily decapitated it.

The eighth one was the last to remain, but instead of advancing, it had stopped in its path. Breathing heavily, Marinette lowered her machete, simply watching the creature, confused yet guarded. The last Blank standing seemed to be taking in its surroundings, as if it was starting to realize its friends had been killed.

Marinette suddenly felt a sense of fear wash over her.

It was understanding the concept of losing someone.

The Blank slowly raised its head, its ghostly white eyes landing on her. Marinette swallowed uncomfortably as her knuckles tightened around the leather handle of her machete. Behind it, she could see Brick with his bow loaded and raised, confusion etched in his features as he too tried to figure out what the Blank's sudden strange behavior meant.

Suddenly, the Blank lifted its head to the sky, opened its jaw, and let out one of the most bloodcurdling screams Marinette had ever heard in her life. The sound was so loud, she had to press her wrists into her ears as a way of protecting her eardrums. The sound lasted for a total of five seconds before it abruptly stopped—Brick's arrow being the cause of it.

Marinette gaped down at the dead creature in absolute fright. Out of all these years, Marinette had never seen a Blank do that before. They made plenty of sounds, all in which left one hearing them in their dreams, but that sound, that sound would forever be etched in her memory, and it would haunt her until the day she died.

She watched as Brick bolted towards her then. She opened her arms and braced herself as he crashed into her, accepting her hug easily.

"I'm so glad you're okay." Marinette placed a kiss at the top of his hair. "I was so worried about letting you do that, but you did so well Brick. I'm so proud of you."

"Thanks, Mama." The little boy mumbled into her chest.

He must've noticed that her heart was still racing, because he suddenly pulled away and looked up at her, worry clouding his chocolate irises. "Mama... I've never heard Blanks make that sound before. Why did it make that sound?"

Marinette wished she had the answer for that... but she had no idea. All she knew was that she had a very bad feeling about it.

"I don't know." Marinette answered wearily. She spared her surroundings a quick glance, suddenly feeling like they were being watched. "But we should go and catch up with the others... make sure everybody is okay."

Brick nodded tiredly, agreeing. Refastening their weapons, they began slowly trekking through the forest, following the footprints imbedded in dirt from Adrien and Luka's boots.

They passed the train car. Brick's eyes lingered on the first Blank that had died, slouched as it leaned against the metal car. Marinette was a few steps ahead of him, her eyes entirely focused on the uncharted territory up ahead.

As soon as she stepped over the abandoned train tracks, a twig cracked.

Marinette spun on her heel. Brick was right behind her, tense as ever, but a quick glance down at his boots showed he hadn't stepped on any branches. Marinette's gaze rose above him, taking in the scenery behind him. The forest seemed calm, but it was eerily quiet. Marinette's fingers instinctively wrapped around the hilt of her machete.

"Something isn't right." Marinette said lowly. Usually, the sound of a broken twig that didn't repeat ruled out both Blanks and animals. Last time, she trusted these instincts and killed one of Xavier's men. Her instincts had been right then, but this time, she had reason to believe it wasn't a human that was blending in the brush.

Marinette's breath suddenly quickened. Taking a hold of Brick's hand, she stumbled backwards.

"We need to run, Brick." Her voice sounded calm, but in truth, she was terrified.

"What is it?" Brick asked innocently, his narrowed into slits at the scenery as well. "I don't see anything."

Suddenly, it was as if realization had come flooding in, sending a series of uneasy chills down her spine. Now Marinette understood why the Blank had made that sound and why now she felt like they were being watched.

It was because the Blank had called in some reinforcements.

Before she could answer him, a Blank's head rose over the brush in the distance. Their eyes instantly locked on it. Marinette exhaled shakily through her nose. Brick shuddered.

The Blank stared eerily at them for what felt like hours. Then, another head appeared, and then another, and then another, and then another...

"Run..." Marinette absently tugged at her son's sleeve, almost too shocked to move. In the distance were thousands of Blanks that had emerged from hiding behind the tall grass and brush, all staring lifelessly at them.

It was more Blanks than they had seen at the abandoned city.

Snapping herself out of her shock, she shoved him forward. "Run, Brick!"

Her son took off running, panting heavily as he weaved his way through the trees with no intension of looking back. Marinette sprinted after him. As soon as they started running, the Blanks began their chase after them.

They stumbled over the forest floor as they ran. Behind them, the Blanks were shrieking loudly, having no intention of showing any mercy as they bolted at full speed, intending to not let their prey get away so easily. Marinette started to panic. They were only a few yards ahead, but the Blanks were much faster and could easily catch up in seconds.

What were they supposed to do? Where were they supposed to go? How was she supposed to be able to get them to safety if they couldn't even outrun the Blanks—

"There's a town up ahead!" Brick shouted desperately, "We can make it!"

Marinette picked up the pace, despite her claves already burning. She was exhausted, but she couldn't afford to slow down now. They needed to find a place somewhere in this town that was formidable against thousands of Blanks—

"Marinette!"

Marinette perked up at the sound of Adrien's voice. As she emerged over the clearing, there was a sandy downhill, where the whole town could be seen from that height. At the very bottom, she saw Adrien standing with Enya on his shoulders and Luka at his side. He was grinning up at her, relieved to see that they were okay.

She smiled back when she realized they were okay, but Marinette's smile instantly fell when she remembered what was behind them. The panic quickly resurfaced, as did the adrenaline.

Desperately, she cried, "RUN!"

The panic in her voice had Adrien's lopsided grin vanishing in a matter of seconds. His expression morphed into concern as he watched her descend down the hill... but then the fear quickly enveloped him when he realized what she was running from. Just as she was close to nearing the bottom, the Blanks emerged out of the forest, tumbling down the sandy cliff in swarms.

"Oh, bloody hell." Luka swore underneath his breath.

Adrien and Luka took off running. Marinette and Brick rushed to catch up with them. The Blanks piled at the bottom of the hill, some trampling over the others as they kept on running. Sprinting as fast as her legs could carry her, Marinette finally fell into stride beside Adrien.

He looked at her then, his eyes blown wide in absolute fear. "Where did they all come from?!"

"Didn't you hear that loud scream coming from the forest?!" She countered his question with another, desperate to know just how far that Blank's call had travelled.

"Yeah, I did! What the hell was that?!"

"It was one of the Blanks before we killed it! It called for backup!"

"Are you serious?!"

"I wish I was joking!"

"What the hell do we do?!" Luka was on Adrien's other side, struggling to keep their pace. He spared a quick glance over his shoulder, gasping when he realized just how close their advancers were. "They're gaining on us!"

"Don't remind me!" Marinette shouted at him. It was bad enough that she still didn't have a plan. Every building they passed looked like it was about to crumble to ash at any second. None of them looked strong enough to stop one Blank, let alone a thousand.

"We can't keep this up!" Adrien wheezed out. "They're going to catch up!"

Marinette's eyes desperately darted left and right for a solution. The town had clearly been abandoned a long time ago, probably long before the apocalypse with how barren everything looked. Any of the buildings they sped past were out of the question... so what could they do? What other options did they have?

She lifted her eyes one last time from the road, her last bit of hope almost completely withered. But then, a light reflected, blinding her eyes for a brief moment. Her head snapped to the source of the light, quickly realizing that the sun was reflecting off of the glass windows of a hospital building.

Marinette's eyes lit up and she pointed. "There!"

They all turned in sync without question, a new destination in mind. The hospital wasn't too far away. A mile at most stretched between them. If they could just pick up speed—

The clattering of a Blank's rotten teeth caused her to snap her head to her left, where a few Blanks were running beside her—still quite a few feet away, but close enough to where if they wanted, they could reach her now.

The little hairs all rose on her arms as one of the Blanks turned to meet her eye. Its ghostly orbs held absolutely nothing in them, but for the first time ever, Marinette saw an emotion in there.

She saw anger.

Yet, they remained on the sidelines, simply matching her speed but refusing to attack... yet. Marinette didn't dare slow down. Instead, more adrenaline pumped through her veins, and she found herself focusing on what was in front of her, forcing herself to ignore just how close they were.

The hospital was nearing closer every time she looked at it.

They were almost there.

"They're next to us!" Luka was panicking. Not only was it in his voice, but she could see it in his eyes. The absolute terror these creatures embedded beneath your bones. "Bloody hell... we're not going to make it!"

"Yes, we are!" Adrien tried to assure him, though he sounded just as panicked and breathless.

"No, we're not! They're faster than us!"

"We're almost there, Luka! Just keep running!"

Marinette exchanged a silent look with her son. Brick looked just as panicked as she felt. She could see the fear in his eyes... but she could also see the doubt. The doubt that they might not make it. The closure that this was it. That this was as far as they were going to make it.

She silently shook her head at him. This wasn't the end... at least not for him. She wouldn't let that happen. She wouldn't let her son meet his end here.

"Marinette!"

That time, it was Luka who had desperately shouted he name. When she turned to look at him, she barely had time to register his backpack being thrown in her direction. She was unprepared for the switch and almost missed it. Her hands flew out, fumbling, and yet somehow she caught it and strapped it to her front, but confusion was etched in her features as she searched his eyes for an explanation.

He offered her a sad smile. "I hope you can forgive me for what I'm about to do, Marinette."

It took her a moment before she realized his intention behind those words. Her eyes blew wide in absolute horror, but she had no time to try and convince him otherwise. Luka sharply turned on his heel and started running towards the Blanks, his guitar raised above his head as if it were a worthy weapon for war. He let out a battle cry, drawing as many Blanks attention as he could. Most of them took the bait and aborted the original chase, heading straight for Luka instead.

Agonized tears streamed down her freckled cheeks as Marinette desperately cried out his name, pleading with him; begging him not to do what he was about to do... but her pleas fell onto deaf ears. Luka charged forward with just his guitar in hand, not looking back. Whether he chose to do so to end his own panicked turmoil or to buy them some time... she would never know.

But that day, a man who had always thought about himself sacrificed himself for them.

Marinette turned her eyes away before the Blanks reached him. Luka's shout was abruptly cut off, followed by the screams of the Blanks that reached him. She squeezed her eyes shut when she heard the sounds of his flesh being torn; his bones being snapped. She wanted to crumble to her knees, but she couldn't afford to mourn. The hospital was right around the corner.

And so, she kept on running.

They were greeted with an uphill of paved road that led up to the entrance of the hospital as they turned a corner. A lot of the Blanks had been stopped by Luka's sacrifice, but a hundred or so still remained right behind them. Rushing up to the building, Marinette swung open one of the glass double doors and ushered everyone inside. She was only inches away herself from a Blank's open jaw as she slammed the door closed.

Marinette and Adrien pressed their backs up against the door and braced themselves for impact as the Blanks slammed into the doors, one by one. Their shoes slipped against the tile flooring as they struggled to hold them all back. The sound of the glass giving way reached her ears as the cracks painted a pattern along the glass.

It wasn't going to hold. She needed another plan.

"Go upstairs, Brick. Take Enya with you." She instructed sternly, "Find a room and lock yourselves in it."

"But Mama—"

"This isn't debatable." She snapped. Her eyes were hard as she met his, refusing to let him see the fear that lingered in her irises. "Do as I say."

"But what about you?!" Brick cried out. It was then when she noticed his tears. "I can't leave you here!"

"I'll be fine." She told him. There was no guarantee that those words were true. "I'll meet up with you soon, but first I have to make sure that the Blanks won't get to you guys. I need to make sure that you two will be safe."

Conflicted, Brick searched her eyes. Perhaps he was looking to see if her words really were true. She had to hold back her tears just so that he would believe her. Without another word, her boy rushed forward and embraced her torso. Marinette had to lift her head to the ceiling and squeeze her eyes shut, willing herself not to crumble.

Then, Brick pulled away, looked at her one last time, and took Enya by the wrist.

"Follow me, Enya." Brick said. His voice was incredibly calm despite his lingering tears. It made her realize just how grown up he was. "I'll keep you safe."

Enya spared one last look at them both, but her gaze lingered on Adrien specifically. He wore a small smile when their eyes connected, as if encouraging her to go with Brick and not look back. Enya sniffled. Then, she nodded and allowed Brick to pull her down the hall.

Marinette watched with pained eyes as the children's figures grew smaller while rushing down the dark hallway. Then, they turned a corner, which was presumably the entrance to a stairwell, and disappeared from her sight. As soon as they were gone, she allowed her tears to fall and to completely cry out in agony... because she wasn't sure if she would ever see her son again.

Adrien was crying as well. His head hung in front of him, his tears dripping on the hospital floor.

"We can't give up." Her voice was hoarse as she inclined her head to look at him. He was still looking at the floor, his bangs covering his eyes. "They're counting on us to get them to the city. We have to make sure that they get there—that they don't die here."

Adrien looked up at her then, his eyes filled with sadness. Marinette pressed her lips together, eyeing him uncertainly.

"Are you with me?" She asked him, her voice trembling.

His bottom lip began to tremble. It took everything in her not to fall apart at the sight.

"I'll always be with you." His voice trembled. "I'm never leaving you willingly, remember?"

Marinette choked on a sob and forced herself to offer him a smile, as strained as it may have been. Nodding, she turned her sights up ahead, down the same dark alleyway Brick and Enya had gone down.

The glass behind them continued to crack with every forceful shove a Blank gave it. Looking over her shoulder, she realized it was close to shattering all together.

"On the count of three, we make a run for it." Marinette said. Adrien offered her a curt, determined nod. Exhaling shakily, Marinette looked straight ahead once more. "One... two... three!"

They both jumped away from the door in sync and bolted down the hall. The door only held on its own for a couple more seconds before the glass burst into a million pieces, shattering all over the floor. The Blanks rushed inside, their screeches reverberating through the halls as they ran after them.

Marinette and Adrien scrambled up the staircase. Breathing heavily, all she could focus on was her own pounding heart. Adrien's panting and huffing felt like a distant echo. She kept pushing forward, even resulting to clambering up the steps on all fours just so she wouldn't trip over her own two feet.

She was almost at the second level when she heard Adrien scream. Whipping her head around, she realized one Blank had gotten ahead and had him by his ankle, trying to drag Adrien down to his brethren.

Without even thinking twice, Marinette unsheathed her machete and rushed back down. She sliced the Blanks head off effortlessly and hoisted Adrien up by one arm, encouraging him to keep going. She briefly glanced down at his leg, realizing blood was now oozing out from his skin. As soon as Adrien put pressure on that leg, he let out a wince.

She looked up at him wearily, but Adrien simply smiled and insisted it was just a scratch.

They pushed forward. Adrien forced himself to deal with the pain as they further ran down the hall. At the end of the hall, a window could be seen, the glass completely gone, allowing the hall to be illuminated enough for better eyesight. That's when Marinette noticed Brick. He stood in front of the window with his bow raised. When he noticed them running towards him, he lowered his bow and cried out, "HURRY!"

Marinette forced her legs to move faster. Behind them, the Blanks had entered the second floor, screeching insanely. Their breaths were labored, and their lungs were starting to burn from all of their harsh breathing, but they didn't slow down. They bolted down that hallway as if they were sprinting in a marathon. They carried their feet as fast as they could, their sights set on Brick's silhouette behind the sunlight.

As if it were being played out in slow motion, Brick ran to their left, disappearing into the last room. Marinette made a sharp turn, slipping on the floor as she dove into the room. Adrien did the same and scrambled to kick the door closed behind him.

The door slammed shut. Adrien quickly rushed to fasten the lock. A second later the sounds of Blanks slamming into the door could be heard. Others fell out through the window at the end of the hall, their skulls getting crushed on the pavement below.

Marinette laid on her back on the floor, trying to catch her breath. Adrien laid down beside her. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Enya was curled up into a little ball in the corner of the room. Her eyes were set on Adrien. She looked horrified as tears fell down her cheeks.

It was then when Marinette realized why. Adrien's leg was bleeding.

She slowly sat up, turning her head to look at him. Adrien had his eyes squeezed shut as his chest rose and lowered heavily. Her eyes lowered to his bloody pant leg. She crawled over to his foot and gently rolled up his cargos...

And then she gasped, her eyes already glistening with new tears.

It wasn't just a scratch like he'd said.

It was a bite.

He'd been bitten.

"Oh no..." Marinette raised her hands to her agape mouth. Her fingers were shaking. "Oh no no no no...."

"Marinette—" Adrien tried to reach out to her through her panic.

"NO!" Marinette's shout echoed throughout the room, silencing whatever words had been on the tip of his tongue. Adrien didn't take her outburst to heart, though. Instead, he lowered his brows, revealing his sympathy, his sadness, his regret, and his love for her... all in one simple look.

Marinette silently shook her head at him. This wasn't supposed to happen. None of them were ever supposed to die... but Adrien... Adrien definitely wasn't supposed to leave her. They were supposed to spend the rest of their lives together. They were supposed to find the city that would grant them sanctuary. They were supposed to raise these kids together.

Whatever their future held, they were supposed to face it together.

What was she supposed to do now? How was she supposed to move forward without him? She always feared that if she were to ever lose him... she'd be stuck.

And... and she was already feeling that sinking feeling. A feeling of relinquishment. For the first time since the apocalypse began, the thought of hanging up the towel surfaced. It sounded like the convenient option. It sounded like the easiest solution. It sounded like a dream—something that could erase all the misery she held close all these years. It sounded like a way to end all of their suffering. It sounded like peace.

Adrien must've somehow read her plaguing thoughts, because he shook his head at her. "You can't give up." He said, his voice calm yet stern. "They're counting on you to get them to the city. You have to make sure that they get there—that they don't die here."

It was her own words thrown right back at her, and yet, she couldn't accept them. Marinette let out a sob and fell forward, leaning her forehead against his clothed thigh.

"I-I can't." Marinette shook her head against him. "I can't do this without you."

"Yes, you can." Adrien assured her. His voice sounded so calming, so gentle, so sure that everything would turn out okay in the end. "You've already done it... before you met any of us, before you met me, you survived. If there's anyone who can do this, it's you."

Marinette lifted her head, her tear-filled eyes finding his. Though he was smiling, she could see his own unshed tears glistening at his bottom lids. She found herself crawling towards him and reaching for his face. He welcomed her touch, and even closed his eyes when her fingers softly brushed his crimson cheeks.

"I'm not ready to let you go." Marinette whispered.

"I'm not ready to leave." He countered just as softly.

Her fingers delicately ran over his skin, touching every part of his face. She did this to remember what he looked like, to remember what he felt like, to remember everything about this man that she had fallen so deeply in love with.

His hand came to rest on top of hers, which was still holding his cheek. He held her hand there and kept his eyes closed as he asked, "Remember what I told you all those years ago?"

Marinette shook her head, because she was unsure of what he meant. Adrien had told her countless things. There were many stories he had shared; many jokes he had cracked. There were too many memories between them.

Marinette sniffed. She wasn't ready to stop making memories with him.

Adrien lifted a hand to her face, tucking a strand of her midnight hair behind her ear. "I told you there was no point in living this life if you have no one left to live it with. But you still have Brick, and now you have Enya too. They are your reason to keep living, Marinette."

Marinette swallowed down the lump in her throat and sniffed.

"As long as they're breathing, you can't give up. You have to promise me you'll keep going to the city. Promise me you'll get our kids to paradise."

His words caused another choked sob to escape past her lips. Her tears fell against her will, sliding off her chin and hitting his shirt. Adrien gently ran a thumb underneath her eye, trying to take away as many tears as he could. She leaned into his touch, desperate to savor the feeling of him, for however long she had left of it.

"I promise."

And she intended to never break that promise.

He smiled, his eyes glistening in adoration and in tears. Her bottom lip quivered as she leaned down. She choked out another sob before she pressed her lips to his. The kiss was desperate; an attempt to savor the little time he had left for as long as she could. Adrien urgently complied and deepened their kiss. His hand travelled from her cheek to the back of her neck, holding her close to him. They grasped at each other with the dream of never having to let go, of never having to say goodbye, of wishing there was a cure.

Marinette was the one to break the kiss, their lips brushing as they slowly parted. She kept her forehead pressed against his, though. Her eyes too remained closed.

She wanted to remember everything about this man. She couldn't afford to forget him.

"You can't do this."

Marinette lifted her head from Adrien's and turned, seeing Brick standing nearby. Those words had been from her son; her son who always had a rough relationship with Adrien. The boy who claimed to hate Adrien with every bone in his body. The boy who told Adrien he would never be his father.

And yet... that same boy was shedding silent tears, his expression and words incredibly pained.

"You can't die." Brick reiterated his words, his voice cracking with every word he spoke. "You're the one who makes Mama happy. She needs you."

Adrien smiled sadly at the boy. "I know, Brick. I know."

"And... and I need you too." The next words that left Brick's mouth surprised them both. Marinette's heart fluttered in pained relief, whereas Adrien's eyes widened in disbelief from such a confession. Her son looked away in embarrassment, but that didn't stop his flow of words. "I'm sorry about what I said... about saying that you would never be my dad—"

"It's okay, Brick—"

"No, it's not okay." The little boy shook his head. "We had a hard time getting along, but you were still there. You decided to take my dad's place when he died even though you had no idea what you were doing. I...I didn't appreciate that enough and I should have."

Adrien's smile only widened. "Don't worry, Brick. I'm not angry."

"But shouldn't you be?" Brick questioned, "I gave you a hard time. I was angry at you for not being the dad I wanted."

Adrien's throat bobbed as he swallowed. Then, he shook his head. "That wasn't your fault. That was mine. I'm the one who made you feel like I couldn't be your dad. By the time I realized what I was doing, I didn't know how to fix it... or if you would ever forgive me."

"I do forgive you." Brick quickly rushed to assure. "I'm sorry it took me so long."

Adrien's smile turned a bit wan. "I know, kid. I'm glad I'm not leaving on bad terms with you."

Brick sniffed and wiped at his cheek. "I'm sorry for everything I said to you. I'm sorry for how I acted. I hope you can forgive me too—"

"You're already forgiven, Brick. You don't even need to ask for it."

Brick smiled, but it didn't quite reach his eyes. Marinette reached out to him and placed a hand on his shoulder, squeezing it gently.

"You-you can't go." Little Enya whimpered from behind Brick. Her son stepped aside, only to reveal a distraught little girl wringing her hands together. "You said you would be my dad too. Whose g-going to be my family now if you leave?"

"You have us." Brick answered the question for Adrien in a soft tone. "We'll be your family."

Enya smiled up at him, seemingly relieved.

A genuine smile pulled at Marinette's lips as she watched the interaction between Brick and Enya. It almost made her forget about what she would be losing today.

Suddenly, Adrien let out a wince, causing her head to whip back around in fear. His leg with the bite spasmed, and Marinette quickly rushed to inspect it. Sure enough, the disease had already started its course, working up Adrien's leg. Black lines that looked like veins were travelling up his skin.

Those lines would spread all across his body. When they reached his brain, Adrien would die, and a Blank would be reborn.

Adrien lowered his head back onto the floor and exhaled heavily. Then, she watched as he slowly stuck his hand into his pocket and pulled out a piece of jewelry made of pure diamond. He grabbed ahold of Marinette's hand and placed it into her open palm. When she inspected it, she gasped when she realized what it was.

It was a wedding ring.

"Where.... where did you get this?" She asked, almost too stunned to believe he'd had this in his possession. The ring was beautiful and most likely very expensive, despite the smudges of dirt it had received from their travels.

"I gave it to him..." Enya interjected, grinning widely, "So that he could give it to you. It was my mom's wedding ring."

"On Enya..." Marinette felt like she was on the verge of tears again for a whole other reason. "Are you sure you want me to have this?"

Enya simply smiled and nodded.

Marinette looked to Adrien again, who was already watching her with a fond, tired smile. She clutched the ring to her chest. "Are you sure you want to give this to me?"

Adrien blinked slowly, exhaustion already taking a toll on his body. That was the first symptom: Extreme tiredness. "I was going to properly propose to you when we reached the city." He quietly admitted. "I was hoping we would find a priest there or something—someone who could make it official. I've never been surer."

Without even questioning it further, Marinette slipped the ring onto her finger. It was a little snug, but she didn't mind. The sight of a wedding ring coming from Adrien being on her hand made her grin past the tears. She found herself feeling giddy as she leaned back down to capture his lips in a passionate kiss.

Faintly, she heard Brick let out a 'BLAH' before he turned his back to them and quietly diverted Enya's attention away from their little PDA display as well. That only had Marinette smiling into their kiss, momentarily forgetting about the misery she soon would have to face. Momentarily forgetting about the Blanks who stood outside of that room, shrieking and groaning and slamming into that door, determined to get inside.

They separated a moment later, both of them breathless. Marinette leaned her forehead against his shoulder, wanting to be as close to him as possible and not willing to waste a moment of that closeness she had left.

But then, his skin started to feel hot against her own. She slightly looked up, realizing that his face was flush, revealing red blisters that were starting to form—another early sign of infection. Even his eyes that she had come to love so much were starting to change. The red bands were beginning to show around his irises.

He didn't have much time left.

Adrien ran a hand down her back, rubbing slow, comforting circles. "You're going to have to do it soon."

Marinette shook her head. "I...I can't... not yet."

"Marinette..." His voice sounded concerned.

"I will. I just... I need some more time."

Adrien chuckled, but the sound came out pained. Another spasm shot through him, this time affecting his whole body. The process of turning was a painful one. The longer she waited, the more he would have to experience that pain.

He was breathing heavily now, and his eyes were squeezed shut. "I don't have much of that left, Marinette. You have to do it before it gets too close—"

"I know." She lifted her head, her gaze slowly making its way to his ankle. His pant leg had been rolled up to his knee where only moments ago, black veins were consuming his skin. Now, that whole area was entirely black.

Marinette gently moved to lift up his shirt. He winced, because it hurt to move, but Adrien allowed her to do whatever she wanted. She gasped when she realized just how fast their last moments were going by. The black veins had already reached his mid-stomach, trickling up to his chest.

She had to do it soon. She knew that. She wouldn't dare let him suffer through the whole process... but she was struggling.

How could she kill him when he had become the love of her life?

Adrien smiled up at her weakly when he noticed her troubled face. "I love you, Marinette."

Tears silently trickled down her cheeks as she returned his smile—a smile which held all her love for him and her bitterness for this disease all in one. "I love you too, Adrien."

He closed his eyes and sighed, as if he could finally relax. "Thank you for making these last few years some of the best years of my life. We had so many ups and downs, but I've never regretted meeting you... or falling in love with you."

"Me neither." She sniffed, her lips trembling.

She watched his brows crinkle as another spasm hit him. Her eyes worriedly followed the black veins as they moved like snakes, now creeping up his throat.

"You have to do it now." Adrien told her behind closed eyes. "It's time to let me go."

Marinette's eyes lowered to her side, where her machete still remained fastened at her hip. Her fingers trembled as she reached for the hilt.

"Wait!" Brick cried as he came running past her. She barely had time to process her son kneel down beside Adrien on the other side of his head and hug him. Marinette blinked, truly stunned, but Adrien simply smiled and wrapped his free arm around the little boy. They tightly embraced for a few seconds before Brick pulled away, his eyes boring into Adrien's with so much sadness and regret.

Adrien slowly reached up and ran a hand through their son's hair. "I love you too, Brick. I love you more than you could ever know. I'm sorry I could never show you that."

Brick didn't respond to that with words, but he openly cried, revealing just how much he truly loved Adrien back. Adrien tried his best to smile, but it was tight-lipped. Even his own tears fell heavily down his cheeks.

"I don't want you to have to see this, Brick." Marinette's voice sounded so dull that she barely recognized it. "I want you and Enya to face the wall. Don't turn around until I say."

For once, Brick didn't argue with her. He silently stood to his feet and gave Adrien one last mournful look before he headed towards the back of the room where Enya stood. He grabbed her hand and guided her to the wall, instructing her to face it and not turn around under any circumstances. Enya silently spared Adrien one last look before she did as she was told.

"Cover your ears too." Marinette unsheathed her machete, the metal of the blade scraping against the holster. "I don't want you to have to hear this either."

She didn't turn her eyes away from them until she was sure they had done it. As she slowly turned to face Adrien for the last time, she wished she could cover her eyes and ears as well. What she was about to do... that would forever be embedded into her mind. Having to end her brother's life had been one of the hardest things she'd ever done but ending Adrien's life would be so much harder because she was too invested into him. She had devoted her heart to him. Their souls were intertwined as one. Adrien was her everything.

Marinette's tears cascaded down her cheeks as she sent her beloved one last longing look. Adrien matched that look, adding in his sorrow, his love, his devotion, and apologies for things he had no control over. She slowly raised her machete high above her head and exhaled shakily. Adrien's eyes bore into hers and she found herself faltering. Her closed fists hit the top of her head when a strangled sob left her.

She tried to blink away her tears, but they simply kept on coming. Adrien eyes were also filled with tears. His eyes lifted from hers to her machete, and then he closed his eyes, exhaling shakily as he waited for the inevitable.

"Goodbye, Adrien." Marinette murmured in the silence of the room. The only sound that could be heard beside her voice were the terrorized shrieks and groans of relentless Blanks.

Adrien never opened his eyes again, but he did smile. "Not goodbye." His voice was soft, his dimples showing on full display. "See you again in another lifetime, Marinette."

Her arms shook above her, hesitant to grant him death. Her tears relentlessly cascaded down her freckled cheeks, staining her collar. Squeezing her eyes shut, Marinette let out the loudest cry she had ever emitted, not even caring if it enticed the Blanks outside their door even further. She let her arms fall, let the blade of her machete come soaring down...

The sound of Adrien's skull being sliced open echoed throughout the room. Marinette felt his warm blood splatter across the space, painting her skin and her blade in his memory. With the deed done, she collapsed to her knees and wept.

She cried and cried for hours. She cried until her tear ducts finally went dry.

Eventually, she felt a hand on her shoulder. It was Brick's. His eyes were coated over with emptiness, as if his world had been swept from underneath him. He was staring at Adrien's lifeless body, silent tears still trickling down his little cheeks.

Enya still hadn't turned away from the wall. She was crying softly, but she couldn't bear to look.

"We should try to rest." Brick suggested in a low voice. His tone was emotionless. "We're going to need our strength if we're going to keep going."

Marinette nodded numbly and slowly stood to her feet. Her hands were still coated red in Adrien's blood. With no way of washing him off of her, Marinette was forced to stare at her hands in distraught, her limbs shaking.

Then, her son did the unthinkable. He swiftly pulled his shirt off over his head and began wiping the blood off of her hands with it.

She looked up at him, thrown off guard. "What are you supposed to wear now—?"

"I have extra clothes in my bag." When he looked up to meet her eyes, there was a small smile on his lips that was nowhere near to reaching his eyes.

Marinette tried to match that smile, but her lips couldn't turn upward no matter how hard she tried. Brick noticed this and sent her a knowing, sympathized look. He focused on her wedding ring, making sure not a hint of red stayed on the diamond.

When he was done, he led her over to the single hospital bed in the room. Marinette allowed both Brick and Enya to cuddle up into her sides.

The three of them somehow managed to fall asleep that night. Each of them had their own nightmare that was based on some sort of realistic truth. Marinette believed she would have that same nightmare for the rest of her life.

The following morning, no more sounds from the Blanks could be heard. It seemed they had moved on for whatever reason. At least, that was what she had hoped. Now that she knew the Blanks could understand the meaning of loss and anger, a part of her feared they would exact their revenge one way or another. This fear kept her from wanting to leave that hospital room, her gaze fearfully transfixed on the door.

Brick stood beside her, also staring at the door. The little window in it showed that no Blanks stood on the other side.

But she was hesitating.

"Mama... we should leave." Brick broke the silence with a faint plea. "I don't want to be in here anymore."

She understood what he meant. He didn't want to be in a room where Adrien laid on the floor, dead. Neither did she.

Little Enya stood beside Brick, holding his hand. He had surprisingly allowed it. "Shouldn't we... bury him?" Enya asked innocently.

Marinette wanted that more than anything. Adrien deserved a proper burial... but even though they had thrown a sheet over him, she couldn't even look at him, let along drag him outside and dig up a grave for him.

Brick looked to his mother, awaiting an answer. However, he must've noticed her shudder, because he looked to assure her. "Adrien would understand if you can't."

She met his eyes, the look she had to offer enough to prove that she couldn't.

Brick immediately understood and offered her a small smile. With that, he tugged on Enya's hand, gaining her attention. "I think Adrien would rather have liked to stay where he lost us. I think that would keep his memory close too... don't you think?"

Marinette appreciated her son more than he would never know. Nodding, Enya seemed to agree, and was happy to think that Adrien would live on with them.

And Adrien would live on through them. Marinette intended to fulfil his wish and her promise to him. She would get them to the sanctuary, and they would live out the rest of their days there in peace. She would grow old, and she would watch Brick and Enya grow up. They would be happy there, together, even if Adrien couldn't be with there with them physically.

Squaring her shoulders, Marinette realized she would have to get over this fear. She couldn't let it control her. Adrien once told her that fear is what kept them alive.

And he was right.

She hiked her backpack further up her shoulders. "Let's go."

And so, they did. They carefully opened the door. Out in the hall, no Blanks remained. A peak over the window at the end of that hall revealed to them all the Blanks that had toppled over, meeting their end at the bottom.

Marinette swallowed uncomfortably. She wasn't about to underestimate these creatures. Not again.

"We'll find a different exit." Marinette instructed quietly, "Those Blanks could be waiting for us at the main entrance of this place."

"You think they're still trying to get us?" Brick timidly asked.

"I don't know." She answered truthfully, "But I'm not going to risk it."

She led them down the hall, quietly, insisting they watch their step. Glass was shattered all across the floor, along with abandoned hospital supplies and even remnants of dead bodies that had long decayed over time. A part of her wondered how they had died in here. People must've come before them and slaughtered them, otherwise they would be Blanks.

Did that mean there were other people nearby?

The emergency exit soon came into view. When she opened the door, she was surprised to find that the lights flickered on, revealing a steep stairway that led out to the back of the building.

Inhaling deeply, Marinette kept her machete in hand as she slowly began her descend. Brick gently closed the door behind them, less they draw any unwanted attention, and followed his mother with Enya's hand still held tightly in his own.

When they reached the bottom, Marinette peeked through the small window in the door. Her sight was limited, but from what she could see, there were no Blanks outside.

Marinette held her breath. Then, in one swift motion, she opened the door.

They were greeted by the brightest sun that had risen in their sky since the apocalypse first hit. She knew that wasn't a coincidence. Adrien had always been her ray of sunshine—the nickname of course originating from his natural blonde locks. That thought brought a sad smile to her lips, realizing that even though he wasn't here with her anymore, he still found a way to light up her world.

Somehow, that helped her to realize what the world now didn't matter. It was practically a barren wasteland with hardly any green left. It had a sky above them that was colored a dark green, looking unnatural and toxic. The air was thick and sometimes hard to breathe. The dead walked among them, day by day becoming more intelligent than she could have possibly ever imagined. But none of that mattered. What mattered wasn't how destroyed their world was—but how they intended to fix it. How they intended to keep living through it.

Adrien was right. There was no point in living this life if they had no one left to live it with. In the beginning, everyone that had once been dear to her had perished. After too many tragedies, she had convinced herself that living life alone was for the best, believing that to be the only way to continue living without the pain of loss. She had convinced herself that was the new way of life... but it had never been living. It was just surviving. Doing the bare minimum to stay alive. Barely making it to the next day.

Marinette learned a lot of things from Adrien, one being that her life before meeting him had been the same as the Blanks—wandering through the forest without a purpose. He taught her how to let people in again, how to love again, how to see the beauty that still resided in their desolate planet.

The symbolization of the trees is what used to keep Marinette going, because they withheld strength and never withered.

But now, her children are what kept her going. Her children are what gave her hope for a better future, for a better world, and for a better life.

Them, and Adrien's memory.

_______________________________

Wow... I honestly can't believe that this is it. It took a lot of motivation for me to get this finished and it came out exactly as I had envisioned it. For those of you who possibly saw past my foreshadowing and was anticipating this ending, I was trying my best to be obvious while also being discreet. How did I do?? lol.

Anyway, I want to thank you all so much for being so patient with me and the process of this story. I appreciate everyone who decided to stick around since 2019, when Blanks was first announced. I hope the wait was worth it and that you were not disappointed!

Thank you for reading! I hope to see you again in more future planned works! :)

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