Marinette

The door closed behind them and Marinette placed a relatively calm Emma down onto the floor, before finding the closest wall and collapsing against it. She tried to catch her breath and think about the situation at the same time – something she was finding equally impossible to do.

What in the name of all things holy was that?

With a forceful push, she used her finger to reposition her glasses on her face before gripping her thighs as she remained sitting in her squat. She felt like she'd just done a mammoth workout. She was sweaty, unkempt and out of breath... a couple more seconds in that room and she was sure she would have been out of a job too. They just lied to Gabriel Agreste... her boss! The owner of the company. Not only had they lied about a child she still knew nothing about, but also a relationship she was quite certain didn't exist. How the hell were they going to get out of this?

"Well, that could have gone better."

Gone better!? Gone... better! The Titanic was more successful than what had just happened in that room.

Marinette lifted her head to look at the tall, strapping, idiot of a man standing in front of her. He had to be joking! Nobody could be stupid enough to think that wasn't the worst conversation of all conversations. He fell in a fountain because of a dog? Who would be stupid enough to believe that?

Scoffing, Marinette had to do everything in her power to control the laughter bubbling inside her. She was quite sure if she started laughing, she'd end up passing out and collapsing on the ground — whether through humour or mortification she was yet to decide.

"You," she said, shaking her head in disbelief. "You!" she said again, this time an edge in her tone which only ever appeared when she was decked out in polka dots and hiding behind a mask. For some reason, Marinette's subconscious wanted to go all Ladybug on Adrien and for once in her life she was going to go with the flow. This was definitely a job for her alter ego.

Stalking over towards the model, who was sheepishly rubbing the hair at the base of his neck; she grabbed his shirt collar and dragged him to the nearest open door, throwing him into the store closet before slamming the door shut behind them.

"What the hell was that?" she sneered. Glaring at Adrien to the point she thought her eyes would cataclysm him to ash – if she had her partner's ring on, of course, she stood and waited for an answer. Any answer!

"I panicked, okay," Adrien fretted back. He began to march around the storeroom, each step he took was another building block on her wall of anxiety. 'I panicked' would not cut it with her. Panicking and accidentally spilling coffee over your hot boss/baby daddy was panicking, making up lies and almost explaining to your father about how Emma came to be was more than that.

"Panicked? Panicked? You do realise nowhere on my medical records do I have a pregnancy or if he tries to look Emma up, he'll find she doesn't exist. What are we meant to do? Pay someone to fake a birth certificate?"

Adrien stopped his pacing and looked at her with a face which made her want to scream. "Adrien! We can't do that! We don't even know whose child this is! It could just be an elaborate joke! This child is not ours! We've never been together and I think I'd remember if we'd done 'you know what!'"

"Oh, I agree with that!"

"And your father! He is mad! I mean I know he's not exactly the BFG but what just happened in there was terrifying!"

"BFG?" Adrien questioned, his bottom lip sticking out as he attempted to place the acronym.

"You have got to be kidding me! You don't know the Big Friendly Giant?"

"Listen, Princess —"

"It's Marinette!"

"Sorry. Marinette, I know this isn't ideal but there's a lot I need to tell you about Emma but unfortunately I can't do it here," Adrien replied, stepping towards her and offering a hand out reconciliation. "Please, believe me when I tell you I was shocked too, but I wouldn't have lied without good reason. I have a damn good reason. I just can't tell you yet!"

As much as Marinette would have liked to have told him 'no, I don't trust you', one look in his eye showed truth and honesty, his eyes glistening in the remorse of making her do this. Ignoring his hand she moved to an overturned bucket and sat down.

"What do you plan then? Everyone, and I mean everyone, in the whole world now thinks we're together and that we have a toddler. We can't just brush it over, we need a solid story. Not just random dogs and nights of passion in a hotel room."

Marinette's cheeks grew rosey from the thought of a night with Adrien Agreste. She'd never had a night with anyone and this hunk of a male before her would be the perfect water to end her dry spell. As long as he kept his mouth shut!

She quickly dropped her head, she can't be thinking about Adrien's body at a time like this.

Priorities, Marinette! Priorities!

"We make this work. You can move in with me and we can replan from there. We can stage a break up in a couple of months, and just say that the pressures of work and having a child got too much for us. We were too young and inexperienced. We say we're remaining on good terms, go our own ways, and myself and Em —"

"Hold up!" Marinette stalled the conversation as she held up her hand. "Why do you get to keep Emma?"

"She was brought to me to look after."

"But shouldn't a baby stay with her Maman?"

"She's almost 2. I've got it covered." Adrien shrugged. Shrugged! Marinette felt the lava in her veins begin to boil. How dare he just take her child!

"And who exactly put you in charge? You don't exactly seem like a type who could look after a child."

"Pfft," he retorted, "coming from the girl who was shaking like a leaf back in there."

"Your father's scary," she growled back. How dare he try and put her down! He wasn't exactly Mr Brave back in there.

"You think I don't know that!"

They sat in silence for a while. Marinette picking the skin around her nails and Adrien rubbing his neck and hair.

"My father has never been to my apartment. He wouldn't know if you two have or haven't been living there. I keep my apartment private."

The conversation she overheard in the coffee shop suddenly made sense. Nobody and he actually meant nobody went to Adrien's apartment. But living with Adrien Agreste? That was a whole other world of awkwardness.

"What was with those little stories anyway?" Marinette asked. "Are you a part-time comedian or something?"

"I was flustered! Plus I wasn't the only one talking out of my ass."

Marinette couldn't help the snort. He wasn't wrong! "I was flustered too! But mine is 100% more worthwhile. Thanks to you, my boss thinks I've been having a secret affair with his son for three years and I've bore the sole heir in the Agreste bloodline. Your father's a control freak! He's going to kill me, or worse... fire me!" groaned Marinette.

"I think, maybe, you need to have a little look at your priorities."

Marinette stood to her feet and pointed a finger into his chest. His strong, hard chest which almost broke her finger from its impact. Man of Steel? Maybe? She couldn't help but wonder what was hiding behind that shirt.

"Why? You worried about becoming a single father for the child we don't have?" The growl that left Marinette's throat shocked herself. She was seconds away from apologising when Adrien spoke up again.

"She is here, Marinette, and she's ours! From what I understand there is nowhere else she can go."

Marinette sighed, settling herself back onto the bucket and letting her arms hang limply between her knees. What the hell was she going to do?

"Is she from another dimension or something?"

Just as Adrien looked as though he was finally going to give her an answer, the phone resting on her hip let out another couple of chimes – her phone obviously grabbing a slither of signal. She was sure it wouldn't remain that way for long. As soon as they left the tight confines of this small room, she was positive the alerts would once again be calling for her to face reality, and explain to everyone how she suddenly had a toddler — including her parents. Her parents!

"Oh no! What am I going to tell my parents? I live with them, I'm quite sure they'd know if I just happened to be pregnant or have a baby living with me." She looked to Adrien, praying he had a magical answer about how this could be explained, yet the look in his green eyes told her the complete opposite. It was fair to say he was as much out of his comfort zone as she was.

"Is it just your parents I need to worry about, or..."

"Or? She questioned, unsure where Adrien was going with this.

"You know..." Adrien once again started to rub against the back of his neck, Marinette now growing increasingly worried he was about to have a bald patch.

"Stop that," she said, standing once more to remove his hand from his head. She grabbed his hand before revoking it like he'd burned her, quickly stepping backwards and straight into a bucket. Oh, great! Now she was about to fall over.

As Marinette began to do a crazy windmill with her arms, Adrien launched himself forwards, grabbing hold of her — only to be too slow. Marinette's back hit against the shelves, Adrien just about to cushion her head from the blow against the hardwood.

"You okay?" he whispered, his hot breath hitting her neck as she took a nice, big sniff of his scent, her hand holding and fisting in his shirt.

"Come to Maman."

Marinette's eyes shot open as she realised she'd just spoken out loud. Couldn't the floor just swallow her already? Obviously the world had more to throw in her direction though, as with the most perfect timing, the door began to open and the light from the hallway blinding both of them and freezing them to the spot.

"Um – sorry to interrupt." Nathalie's face completely went against her words. She wasn't sorry at all, and from the red hue taking over Adrien's face from their position, Marinette was quite sure Nathalie thought she was interrupting something. "But I think you two forgot about someone."

Stepping to the side, Nathalie revealed a small child — complete with stuffed bunny — jumping on the sofa outside Gabriel's office. Her grandfather's office. Moving swiftly forward, Marinette grabbed the small child from the sofa causing her to scream bloody murder as loud as her little lungs would let her. Marinette looked around unsure what to do and noticed the chaos left in the small child's wake. A broken plant pot. A tipped over chair. A magazine with Lila's face on it ripped down the middle (ha!).

Emma began to kick as hard as she could, throwing the bunny down onto the floor and continuing into a well practised meltdown.

"We're just not used to having her here with us," Adrien said, moving to Marinette and grabbing Emma from her arms, the toddler swinging her legs once more and nailing him right where it hurt. He placed her down, his face purple and a vein trying to explode out of his head.

Unsure whether to comfort Adrien or deal with Emma, the answer was chosen for her as the child proceeded to lie down on the floor and roll around, screaming and crying at the top of her vocal cords. Allowing Emma to scream out her pain, Marinette headed in Adrien's direction, her hand ready to comfort him.

"Will you get that thing out of my building!"

Emma's screaming came to a dramatic stop as she rolled just enough to see her grandfather (upside down) standing at the door with a face like thunder.

Marinette moved in the opposite direction to Adrien, instead scooping the child from the floor and hoisting her up onto her hip before making her way towards the elevator.

"And both of you..." Marinette froze, not even realising Adrien was there beside her, the three of them huddling together like a colony of penguins. "I expect you both in the meeting tomorrow with the investors. I require you both to be professional. Leave that child in care."

"Emma," Adrien responded. "After mother. Her name is Emma and it would do you well to remember that."

Turning swiftly, Marinette thought she was on the tilt-o-whirl as Adrien all but dragged them both into the lift and out of the building.