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meduarts · 2 years

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Managing Life (Part 1/?)

Summary: Marinette has been Audrey Bourgeois' secretary ever since she voiced out her dream of having her own business. Audrey thinks that she should learn more about the nooks and crannies of running a fashion business. However, fate has other plans for her, and honestly, what can our resident guardian could do to counter fate?

Disclaimer: I do not own MLB or DCU. A/N: It has been quite a while since I write fanfiction. I hope this is good enough for now!

Taglist: @timinette-is-best, @peach-blueberry-pie, @tinybrie, @taewinterbear95, @its-maemain, @flyhighdreamer, @kokoroluna (Tell me if you want to be a part of the taglist!)

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"Mme Bourgeois, I have booked the flight to Gotham and arranged your stay at their best suite in Wayne Hotel for 7 days in Gotham during the Gala week."

Marinette reported her progress with polite professionalism like she always uses during this private meeting with her boss, Audrey Bourgeois the CEO of Style Queen. It has been over 5 years since the fall of Hawkmoth and the ex-Parisian hero had hung up her superhero costume and continued her life as usual.

Sure it took some trips to therapy sessions and many breakdowns after that fateful encounter, but like always our hero picked herself back up, brushed the dust, and took another step toward the future. The year when Hawkmoth was defeated was her last year at Dupont. It was a somewhat bittersweet graduation present if she was being honest. When she graduated from Dupont, she did so without even mending her relationship with her classmates.

She left Dupont without looking back, her classmate decided that the girl who can weave words so sweet is a better gem than Marinette and Marinette gave them her answer by letting them go.

After that, she went to IFA and graduated early with honors. While going to fashion school, Chloe successfully roped her to have an internship under the Style Queen. Which landed her a permanent secretary position and is working under Audrey as an apprentice as of today.

"Magnifique! I can always count on you Marinette! Did you make sure that your own accommodation is planned perfectly as well?"

"Naturally, Mme Bourgeois."

Audrey nodded, pleased at how competent Marinette is. "Excellent news, darling. Do you have your dress ready?"

Marinette went quiet and averted her gaze from her boss. Audrey frowned at her changed behavior and sighed heavily. "You do know that you are coming with me, right Marinette?"

Marinette kept quiet.

"Marinette," Audrey called with a pointed tone. Her apprentice fidgets one of her tics when she got found out doing something she wasn't supposed to do.

"Marinette, you know what this Gala meant, yes?"

"A Charity gala, Madame?"

Audrey laughed her signature condescending laugh and waved her gloved hand. "Cease your joking, Marinette! It is a chance for you to spread your wings! Make more connections! You understand why I'll take you with me, non?"

"To make sure your dress stays perfect, Madame?" Marinette snarked playfully.

"Hmm, that is true, yes. But! Aside from that, I want to brag you of course!"

Marinette tilted her head in confusion. Her lips formed a cute pout as her eyes narrowed in confusion. "Brag me, Madame?"

Audrey raised from her leather seat and walked towards the window behind her white marbled desk. "Yes! Marinette, you are an amazing aspiring designer, an amazing secretary and I have nothing to teach you any more about fashion because you soaked it all up like a sponge."

Marinette stayed quiet during her boss' tirade, though her mind began to swirl in a whirlwind of mess. What did she mean she didn't have anything to teach her anymore? She still has a long way to go! It's not her time to spread her wings! She was sure she'll plummet when the first problem occurs in her business! Not to mention, she knew that her design isn't up to par yet to other professional designers for her to build a business.

Sure she has celebrity clients here and there and whenever she opens out her website for the commission the list would be full in no time. However, comparing herself with Style Queen or even the now-dead Agreste Brand, she still has a long way to go.

"Marinette Dupain-Cheng cease those self-deprecating thoughts that I know you're thinking right now! Honestly! I have raised you to have self-confidence but it seems that your biggest enemy is yourself!"

Tell me about it, Marinette scoffed internally but stopped her train of thought nonetheless. The young woman raised her head and look at her boss with a pensive look and Audrey gave her a rare soft smile.

"Marinette, you are a great designer, your business though it is small, will grow quickly. I have nothing more to teach you, it's time for you to find a new mentor. Spread your wings, embark new horizon, non?" Audrey spread her hands as a grand gesture, she then winked at Marinette to add a little bit of effect. "Think about it."

"Understood, Mme Bourgeois." Giggled Marinette merrily. Audrey chuckled and clapped her hands. "I'll inform you of my decision, tomorrow morning."

Audrey claps her hand with a victorious smile, "Magnifique! Now! I require-"

"Your special brew coffee and your sweet snacks for the break and the latest fashion magazine as well as your mani-pedis private appointment," Marinette replied immediately with a sardonic smile. Her boss smirked and winked at her and Marinette excused herself from the office.

Once the huge doors of the office closed she let her shoulder slump and exhaled heavily. Her heart was heavy at the thought of leaving Style Queen, she loves her job, though it isn't actually a full-time designing job, she made a good amount of money and the working hours didn't clash with her time to finish her client's commission, so all in all a win-win situation.

However, deep down she knew that Audrey was right, she had hit a point where she could grow no further here. Her design flourished through the years and more celebrities approached her privately to purchase her designs, but honestly, she doesn't know what to do next. Audrey had told her in order to build a big fashion business she would need a mentor that dabbled in a business empire and sadly enough though her network is vast none of them are from a flourishing business empire.

Marinette reached her personal desk and slumped on her seat while massaging her temple. She could feel a prod from her breast pocket and looked down to see her faithful friend peering up at her with their big eyes. Marinette gave Tikki an encouraging small smile.

"It's alright, Tikki, I'll manage." She whispered quietly at her. Even though this particular floor is only inhabited by her office and the big boss, she could never be too safe.

"I know, Marinette. I just figured you need a pat, that's all." Tikki giggled sweetly at her chosen.

"Thank you, Tikki. It definitely gave me a boost." She chuckled and tickled Tikki's soft head with her finger. She took a deep breath and decided to shelve the thought about her growing business aside, she had work to do. She popped her knuckles and straightened her back.

First thing first, the mani-pedis private appointment.

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Marinette finished her work a little later than the normal 5 o'clock, there's a lot of work to be done as the Style Queen's assistant. But she didn't complain, it made her busy so she doesn't have to wallow in depression and anxiety that had always waited for her in the corner.

She gathered her things meticulously, made sure that Tikki is safely tucked in her bucket bag that she had made herself, and left the building to go home. Her penthouse wasn't far from where she worked, so it had been a pleasant quiet walk home.

Once she arrived home she let Tikki out of her bag and went to a room that she named, 'The Kwami Abode'. It was one of the more spacious rooms with a large window facing the Eiffel tower, in the middle of the room stood a glowing tree, the whole tree branches and trunk were white with shimmering iridescent purple and blue, and the leaves were crystal it formed a dome covering the egg-shaped Miracle box on the top of the tree trunk, hanging by the branches were different color pods there were 19 in total for all the Kwamis and each pod was decorated for their personal preference.

The room was painted a soft lilac color and it has layers upon layers of protective magic. Once Marinette had bought herself a place to live using her own commission money and her pay as Style Queen's secretary, she made sure to reserve a room for the Kwamis. She doesn't want them to be cooped up in the Miracle Box, so using her magic she created the trees and pods so that the Kwami could lounge around in peace.

Tikki was delighted that her chosen held such great magic and the other Kwamis were equally delighted that their guardian is thoughtful enough to build them a proper place to stay in.

Marinette smiles as Tikki gave her a small kiss on her cheek and flew to her pod, from one of the pods Pollen flew out and let out an excited squeal.

"The Grand Guardian Is Back!!!" The Bee kwami immediately zoomed toward Marinette and gave her cheek a hug.

Hearing Pollen's excited squeal the other kwamis namely, Trixx, Barkk, and Duusu flew out from their respective pods and swarmed Marinette with hugs of their own. The young Guardian smiled warmly at their excited greetings and left the Kwami Abode to start on dinner.

While making the Kwami's dinner, she was lost in thought again about her future. So lost that she almost chopped her fingers but thankfully Plagg stopped her by nudging her palm with his head. Marinette blinked a few times and her eyes locked at Plagg's electric green. The Black Cat God gave her a look.

"What's going on in your head, kitten?"

Marinette set aside the knife she was holding and let out a deep sigh, "It's nothing, Plagg. I'm just being ridiculous."

"Utterly ridiculous?" Plagg snarked with a shit-eating grin.

Marinette scoffed and rolled her eyes.

"I'm serious though, pigtails, what's going on? You wanna have a therapy session with your favorite kwami again?"

"Oh come on, Plagg. I haven't been wearing pigtails in years! You've gotta find a more creative nickname than that. You're losing your touch. Also, my favorite Kwami happens to be Wayzz." She winked as Plagg gave a betrayed gasp.

"How dare you, pigtails! I raised you from when you were just a lovesick kitten! Taught you everything you know about mischief and chaos! And this is how you pay me??? Betrayal?? Favoritism???" He wailed dramatically.

Marinette laughed out loud, holding the kitchen counter so she wouldn't fall. Plagg grinned as he watched his precious kitten laugh freely, it doesn't happen too often, not nowadays at least. Marinette had closed herself off from any potential friendship because of the trauma she had from her former classmate. Her only friends, namely Kagami, Luka, and Chloe, didn't see each other as often as they'd like. But they tried at least.

"Anyways, don't try changing the subject, kitten. What's wrong?" Plagg asked again. Marinette stopped her laugh and smiled weakly at Plagg.

"I'm not getting out of this conversation, am I?"

"Nope, kitty cat! C'mon, y'know you can confide your worries to dear old Plagg!"

Marinette snorts and rolled her eyes before huffing silently. "It's about my future. Audrey told me that I might need to find another mentor since she doesn't have anything to teach me anymore. It's a great opportunity but I'm content with what I have!"

Plagg hummed and floats closer to Marinette. "You're scared of change, aren't you?"

Marinette holds her shoulder and hunched forward while biting her lips anxiously. "Maybe...Okay... Yeah, I'm scared. It's just... I think she wants me to leave France and I'm just..."

"Not ready?"

The former ladybug nodded meekly at that. Plagg reached out to touch her cheeks. "Listen to me, Bugs. I know how scary it is to get out of your comfort zone, but I can feel you restless. You are a true Holder, A True Soul even! I can tell that your creative soul is dying to leave this place. Paris is safe now, it has been safe for 5 years, and you made sure of that. The people had their time to move on forward. But you? This might be your chance to do so."

"But what about, you guys?"

"What? You think we're going to hate leaving Paris? Kitten, you are the Great Grand Guardian of the Miraculous. Where you go we follow. Besides, I think I speak for all of my siblings that we just want you to be happy."

"Plagg is right my Queen! You made sure we live in comfort and we also want the same for you!"

"You've done so much for us and it's time for you to be a little selfish, who knows maybe you'll meet the love of your life out there!" Duusu exclaimed excitedly.

"Besides, your power has improved greatly, Grand Guardian. I think making another 'Kwami's Abode' in your new residence wherever you will be would be an easy task. We believe in you." Wayzz added as he joined the conversation.

Marinette felt tears prickling from her eyes, she sniffed and looked up at the Kwamis around her. "Thank you. Thank you so much." She whispered.

Her heart settled for the first time in a few years, no lingering anxiety as her decision was made. Perhaps, the Wayne Gala would lead her to a better life, a new exciting adventure, a place where she could finally call home.

"Well, it looks like we're all going to take a trip to Gotham."

TBC

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#maribat #ml marinette #marinette dupain cheng #dickinette #marinette as secretary #marinette x batfam #mlb x dc #marinette cheng

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miraculouslbcnreactions · 29 days

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Wait, is it true the writers said Marinette and Gabriel are meant to represent individual creative spirit versus corporate greed?

Taken from the writer's commentary on the final two episodes

In the next scene, we can see Marinette taking the miraculous that have been standardised and industrialised by Gabriel and putting them back in shape. The writers specify that this is a parabole about craftsmanship vs industrial production. The miraculous will now be adapted to every person, but we can’t see what they look like just yet! In this new world, the powers are all shared, among people who they trust and know will work for the common good. They joke that the "Avengers" shot at the end with all the heroes is something they’d been dreaming of.

There's also that bit from her confrontation with Gabriel where he randomly acts like he's The God of Fashion (taken from S5E20):

Gabriel: I don't think you understand, child, so let me put things differently. Life is like fashion. You think you have a choice, but all you have is the illusion of choice. And I decide what choices are given to you. Marinette: You're wrong! (Shows Gabriel her sketchbook.) Fashion is about listening to people, it's about understanding who they are, what excites them and creating the clothes that will help them express their inner world. Help them connect with others and make their dreams come true. Gabriel:(Laughs and takes her sketchbook, then browses its pages.) No, that's not fashion. That's making dresses for your dolls. Fashion is a product, a marketing strategy, an industry that relies on uninterrupted trend renewal that forces you to either throw away everything you have and buy more or, worse, to be out of fashion. Thanks to the clothes I create, the celebrities who wear them, the advertisements I design and the Alliance rings that broadcast them, I create an idyllic vision. A perfection that everyone aspires to achieve, while keeping it just out of their grasp. You finally understand the difference, don't you? You listen to people's desires and create what they want. Somehow, people make you. Whereas I create people's desires. They buy what I decide to buy. They think what I want them to think. I'm the one who makes people. You think you love Adrien, but you're just under the spell of this world I've created. A world where Adrien is the star, shining high above. A world where you're just part of the crowd below looking up at him. (Shuts the sketchbook.) That is why nothing can ever happen between you two.

So, yeah, this is apparently supposed to be them talking about some kind of central theme of individual creators vs mass production? The problem is that it basically comes out of nowhere. If the writers really wanted to have this be some sort of message, then they needed to establish this a lot sooner because Marinette has had no issues with his fashion company nor has anyone else.

An example of a way to do this would be to have Marinette win the hat competition in season one, Adrien models it in season two, and then give us a series of episodes where Marinette gets to learn about the production process for her hat. She gets to see it mass produced and then gets to learn how fast fashion works and, by the end, she's no longer a fan of the fashion industry even though she still loves fashion. It would be a much better environmental message then the nonsense we've been given, too.

But the show didn't give us anything like that. We've never seen a single Gabriel brand product save for the stuff Adrien wears and the alliance rings, which are phones more than fashion accessories, so it makes sense that they'd have a uniform look. Even if phones were made to order, you wouldn't see much variety in the base product save for color. The customization on a phone is the background and the alliance lets you customize your "background" (aka your Adrien, Lila, or Kagami) as we saw in Jubilation when Socqueline was showing off her alliance.

Side note: I realized that Jubilation takes place before I started writing mini episode reviews, so I wanted to make a quick note of how creepy it is that you can customize your alliance avatar given who the avatars are. Gabriel and Tomoe seriously took their 14-year-olds and told people of all ages to treat them like dolls, which is extra creepy given how many fans Adrien has. That has some messed up in-universe implications that make me shudder. What were the writers thinking?

#ml writing salt #ml writing critical #ml season 5 salt

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madsdawls · 7 months

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Words can't really describe how disappointed and equally angry and disgusted I am by this collab. Not only did this collab come out of nowhere and literally NO ONE asked for it to happen but it's just a glaring reminder that Mattel is now viewing G1 Monster High through a cash cow lense and is milking money out of exclusively G1 fans because they know the G1 generation are all grown up and have adult money to spend so why not churn out G1 dolls with a bigger price tag more each time? and so they give us this mediocre soulless collab that does not capture the spirit of Monster High in anyway. Meanwhile the MH fans that were willing to shell out $5 dollars for the oh so special Fang Club that was supposed to have exclusive dolls and was good for the whole year? well the year is almost over and we only got ONE doll just one and the year is almost over nevermind that the membership didn't help anyone get ahead on other Mattel Creations MH drops despite them promising members get first access to things not yet made available to the public.

Now onto the collaboration dolls themselves this collab features four brand new characters which I think could have been executed so much better and this was not the line to launch them in. For one the dolls to me all look like some odd variation of Frankie at first glance because of them all having the same green skin tone but then when you look at them closely they all look like reused molds of Lagoona, Frankie, Rochelle, and Bloodgood but now they're green. I think if these are a new set of ghoulebrities going to be implemented in MH they should have introduced them in G3 but I'm pretty sure these are just throw away characters made for the collab which begs the question why didn't they use already established characters with an interest in fashion?! I don't think a brand like MH should be making cash grab collabs with fashion brands but if they did I think they should have chosen different characters that represent the MH brand.

This fashion collab NEEDED Clawdeen Wolf considering she is the aspiring fashion designer ffs this would have meant everything to her character to represent MH and if they had to have a "new" show stopping character to hype this collab this was their chance to debut a Moanatella Ghostier doll aka the unrivaled fashion designer of Scaris and for the other two dolls I would probably pick Garrot du Roque (yes a boy doll) and Rochelle Goyle. I'm mostly just so so angry because this collab just spells doom to me for the future of G1 MH's dolls or content because it's clear Mattel only cares about money and milking fans with nostalgia bait and half assed projects with the Monster High label slapped on them and not about making creations under the MH name that are actually made with passion and that fans will love.

#doll collecting #monster high #monsterhigh #doll collector #mattel #mattel creations #mh g1 #monster high dolls

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jaegerisim · 9 months

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together, lie, through

for the word game :)

Hiii I don't have my docs here on my phone but all 3 words are part of my wips

Together is part of my elmax post s5 fic!!

The high of having Max all to herself without Lucas or The Party gave El the confidence to ask Max a question.

"Do you ever think of how the word <<together>> could mean so much more than just friends?" El whispered to Max.

For lie is my byler exes fic:

"I'm in deep shit. How am I supposed to tell Sam that the guy we met at the banquet was Mike Wheeler, the guy I dumped 4 years ago?" hissed Will in between drags of his cigarette. "I can't believe you lied to me about this, Jonathan!"

''What choice did I have, Will? Tell you the truth and risk my brother not coming to my fucking wedding 'cause he's a coward who can't face his own goddamn ex?" snapped Jonathan loosening his tie.

For through is my Stonathan and Byler band au called "Did Someone Break Your Heart?"

"This is my boyfriend, Mike. He's a fan of your music and so I invited him over to tonight's gig. That's ok with you right, Will?" smiled El.

Will only nodded as he kept smoking nonchalantly his cigarette, as if he wasn't constantly sneaking glances at Mike.

Of course, Jonathan could see through his act, and he would have teased his younger brother about it if it weren't for the extremely hot guy standing next to Mike.

"This is Steve, by the way. He is an aspiring fashion designer that goes to Mike's university and wanted to tag along." El explained while she pointed to Hot GuyTM.

And that's it!! 🩷✨

#byler #will byers #mike wheeler #el hopper #jonathan byers #steve harrington #max mayfield #byler snippet #stonathan #elmax #snippet #stonathan fic #elmax fic

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yuuniee · 4 months

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So far, in terms of Yuus/MCs, I have:

— Real life Cinderella who used to live under her mother’s rule (Renée)

— Rich girl who was spoiled rotten if she behaved well (Sakae)

— Ex-delinquent who changed for the better and became a wise person (Yuusuke)

— Curious sickly boy who never got to see the outside world but still made friends (Ian)

— The girl who aspired to be a fashion designer but got all her dreams shattered by her father (Lilith)

— The girl who was a novice fashion designer who was shining brightly until her supposed friends pulled a horrible prank on her (Dorothea)

— History freak who wanted unconditional love from her grandmother and was willing to do anything for it (Manar)

— Autistic tech genius who made various machines from scraps just to make his mother proud and earn his father’s love (Matthew)

— Professional boxer who was forced to live up to his father’s dream and be famous like his family for generations (Cengiz)

#twst oc #twisted wonderland oc #twst yuu #twst mc #renée rose menken #sakae satou #yuusuke hamamoto #ian anderson #lilith aries fontana #manar abboud #matthew arnold #cengiz altınışık #dorothea minerva mccartney

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minevn · 9 months

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(I'm sorry for the mistakes) What do LI do in life?

Minato: Minato has been helping his grandparent's out at the shop ever since he moved in with them! It first started with getting things ready in the displays and helping his grandma get orders ready. Then on the weekends Minato would get fishing lessons from his grandfather until eventually he was the one who got most of the fish and delivered them to where they needed to be.

Haruto: Haruto is a CEO of his mothers interior design company that was handed down to him in her will. Haruto and his mother are both clean freaks who enjoy nicely decorated homes. Haruto enjoys his job, he likes what the job entails. Honestly, he's not even sure what job he would do if not interior decorating, no job is cleaner in his eyes.

Jun: Jun is college student majoring in fashion and in her free time is an influencer. She wants to make beautiful, trendy outfits for everyone to wear! She enjoys doing silly little challenges and showing off her designs online. She'll lose her mind if she finds out you watch her and if she see's you wearing her designs.

Hoshi: Hoshi works as a cook in his dad's restaurant with his dad. Hoshi honestly doesn't have any aspirations, nothing that he's ever been like "Oooo! I wanna be that! That's my dream!" He's tried many other things, but nothing too appealing for a life long aspiration. He's pretty fine with being a cook, he likes it enough.

Habiki: Habiki works as a host for his dad's restaurant(At least in the beginning) and he hates it. Unlike his younger twin who has no dream, Habiki does have a dream. They want to go on stage and play the violin, they want to make beautiful music for everyone, mainly themself.

Kage: Kage is a job-hopper, they can never keep a job too long and don't really have any jobs they want. They try to find night shift jobs or jobs where they can stay inside. Currently, in game they work at the graveyard, making sure that no one is digging up bodies or anything, often cleaning the graves as well.

Kei: Kei is a hacker, legally and illegally. He has his own little cyber security business that helps with stopping hackers from hacking your computer. But he often hacks into places like he shouldn't, places that contain confidential info that is only supposed to be seen by few eyes. He enjoys his job and studies for a bunch of other things as well :3

Yani: Yani's a coder, for video games. She makes the characters, the music, the backgrounds, everything. She does a few other side jobs, but never keeps jobs long, things like cashier at a convenience store. Yani also enjoys animating and has a fairly large following on her animation channel. She also take's commissions. She doesn't buy a lot of things so has quite a bit of money saved up.

Aki: Aki is a model. She often helps Jun model outfits, but she'll model any kind of outfit. She often makes it on covers of magazines and has a ton of fans, helps get Jun some exposure! Sometimes her job can be really stressful with obsessed fan and high, unrealistic expectations.

#💝-minevn #visual novel #yandere vn #🎤-asks #🐠-Minato #📙-Haruto #🎀-Jun #🍽️-Hoshi #🎻-Habiki #👤-Kage #💻-Kei #💕-Yani #🐍-Aki

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devilishstylist · 1 year

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Sera is currently working hard to become an aspiring fashion designer, despite starting her career much earlier than her peers. Deep under Sera's enthusiasm and kindness hides a reticent personality.

She's supposed to be a self-insert character from The Bad Guys but I made her a furry character in general. The more I think about it the more I see her as an OC… and I haven't seen the movie yet because of busy schedule so eh.

#🎀.png #🎀 serenakin #ok to rb #self insert #self insert art #self insert oc #furry #anthro #sheep oc #original character

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syneilesis · 2 years

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[fic, wip] Let It Stand | chapter one

Let It Stand

Ikemen Prince | Chevalier Michel x Main Character (Emma) | T ao3 link

Emma gets a new editor. This editor doesn’t like her that much.

A/N: Here it is! The Novelist AU Nobody Asked For. I confess that I know very little about the publishing industry; this was just written for fun. Originally this is supposed to be a one-shot, but I'm having a difficult time writing the second half, so I'm splitting this into three parts. I was gonna title this Stet as a pun, but I ultimately chose its definition lol. Emma's novels in this fic are Ikemen games lmao but it's been a while since I've played the alluded routes.

chapter one

“What do you mean my editor suddenly disappeared?”

There was silence at the other end of the line, punctuated by a heavy exhale then followed by a distant scream. Emma didn’t know who it was and why they did. She imagined that Sariel was in his office, and that there was probably some poor intern who bungled up the photocopying machine and was now facing Sariel’s slithery wrath. She silently prayed for the intern’s unfortunate soul.

“Not to worry,” Sariel’s baritone voice came back on. “We’re conducting an international manhunt right now, so it’s not going to be a problem—”

“Wait, international manhunt?!”

“—in the meantime, we’ll assign another editor to you as a substitute for Luke. We don’t want our schedules derailed just because one of our editors thought it nice to have an unannounced vacation.”

Emma was still stuck in ‘international manhunt’. “Excuse me, Sariel, what do you mean by ‘international manhunt’?”

Sariel’s voice was cheerful, which was an indication. “Expect an email from your new editor any time this week.” The line clicked.

Emma stared at her phone, willing for Sariel to materialize from the aether, just to explain what he meant by international manhunt. It sounded ominous—not for her, but for Luke. She hoped that wherever Luke was right now, he’s happy and enjoying life, because the moment Sariel found him it would be game over.

Outside the storeroom where Emma remained staring at her phone, the door chime jingled and Rio greeted the customers with bubbly energy. It’s a slow day, but the weather was nice. Emma thought about inviting Rio later to boba tea and telling him about Luke. Rio might be able to decode what Sariel was saying. She really couldn’t move on from ‘international manhunt’; it was going to drive her insane, she just knew.

“Emma!” Rio called. “Special order pickup!”

“Coming, coming!” Emma pocketed her phone and sighed. Work first, worry later.

✏︎

Emma was a reader first and writer second.

Her first book was about a girl who became a princess, and it stamped an indelible mark on six-year-old Emma’s mind—the magical transformation and the swell of true love. The climactic kiss between prince and princess after defeating the evil dragon. It was all so grand and exciting that she made her parents buy all the fairy tale books they could get, which filled half a wall in her room. Each book was an adventure, a journey, a window to all the things she couldn't experience and feel but wanted to someday.

In her teens she tried writing. At first: fanfiction. Exploring some untouched aspects in the stories she liked, Emma learned how to translate her imagination into words. It was a heady feeling—all the possibilities. After graduating from college she went on to original fiction, having enough encouragement from her readers and a few published stories here and there.

Rhodolite Press took her in with her debut novel, about an aspiring fashion designer who time traveled five hundred years into the past and met a haughty but competent feudal lord. It sold well—not to the point where it became a bestseller, but well enough that it ensured Emma the possibility of writing a second novel. Her readers, most of whom emigrated from her fanfic days, were solid and loyal, and she enjoyed interacting with them.

Luke was her editor, a towering teddy bear with the discipline of a lumpy bedsheet. If it weren’t for her literature degree, Emma would have floundered with an editor such as Luke. Though to be fair to him, while he forwent the technical aspects of fiction writing, Luke had impeccable intuition when it comes to storytelling. It would be nice if the warlord panicked over the main character so I can see that he’s already fallen for her, he had once said, after returning the original manuscript to her, pages clean and unmarked. It boggled Emma back then, expecting a thorough commentary of her characterization and narrative choices. But she noted Luke’s observation and revised the manuscript anyway. The second time they met, Luke was smiling and said, I really liked how he cried after he lost her. That was when Emma realized that she could work with this, with him.

And now, with Luke vanishing to who-knew-where, Emma was worried. Who could be her substitute editor? She hoped that they’d get along well. She’d adjust her work ethic, if need be.

✏︎

The email came on Wednesday, terse and to the point:

from: [email protected] to: [email protected] subject: Manuscript Editing I’m taking over while Four-Eyes is looking for Jumbo. Read my comments. Send the revised version in two weeks. CM

Emma blinked at the message. Then blinked again. Rubbed her eyes and blinked some more. The words didn’t change.

She opened the attachment; it was her draft manuscript littered with highlighted passages and comments. There’s less white and more color. Not a single page was spared from scrutiny.

She randomly picked one comment and it read: The mechanics of the portal is unexplained. If anybody can access that portal, how come only a few do that? Everybody would get curious about it, don’t you think.

Another one: The antagonist is weakly written. Motivation is vague; his goal is underwhelming. It does not match well against the motivation of the male lead.

And another: It is unclear whether this important scene happened within a dream or reality. How consequential is a dream in this world? And why is it brought up near the end of the story? There is no buildup at all. Review your world structure.

Emma read and read and read the comments. By the time she had reached the end of the document she’s ready to challenge C. Michel to a fistfight. The notes were less a review and more an execution. Was C. Michel a legitimate editor? Emma thought about the other writers who were assigned to this jerk.

She closed her laptop without replying. A walk to clear her mind was in order. It wouldn’t do her good if she replied right now, with her mood ready to erupt like a volcano. It wouldn’t be professional, and she’s also scared of Sariel anyway.

“Rio, I’m going for a coffee break,” she called out. With Rio’s affirmative, Emma donned a light jacket and went outside.

✏︎

Thirty minutes later and a white chocolate mocha on hand, Emma decided that C. Michel maybe had a point.

There were some parts, she felt, in her manuscript that required revising and restructuring. She wasn’t too keen on the world building aspect of this particular novel, but perhaps she had to flesh out the mythology and history in order to have a better grasp of the magic system embedded in the narrative.

If only C. Michel had been kinder with his words. They needed the editing more than hers.

The ringing of her phone jolted her out of her thoughts, and her brows raised when Sariel’s name appeared on the screen.

“Did you find Luke?”

“There had been a slight mistake,” Sariel said, which didn’t bode well for Emma.

“Um, what mistake?”

“Apparently somebody meddled with the names of editors available to handle you—” There was laughter in the background, and Sariel let out a resigned exhale. Emma could feel the exasperation coming through despite the mechanical filter of the speaker. “Chevalier isn’t supposed to be your editor.”

“Chevalier?” That’s what the C stood for?

“That’s right. Chevalier has enough work to last for ten years. I don’t want to saddle him with another task. I was actually thinking of asking Leon to guide you. He’s closer to Luke in approachability than to Chevalier.”

So. Chevalier was always like that, huh. Was it because he had a lot on his plate and the stress morphed him into a rude asshole?

Then Sariel said: “I’ll make the necessary arrangements.”

Emma didn’t know what possessed her—her smarted pride, perhaps, or the sheer number of Chevalier’s offensively incredible comments—to hastily say, “Wait, Sariel—”

There was a pause. “Hm?”

“If it’s all right with you—with Chevalier, if he agrees—then I’d like to stick with him as my editor.”

That pause became a deafening silence, as if the air was sucked out of the room. Emma could picture Sariel taking a moment to stare at his phone and confirm what he’d heard. She didn’t blame him.

“This is …” He hesitated. “This is quite a surprise. I’d like to ask why.”

Why, indeed.

Emma bit her lip and groped for the right words. “To be honest, I got upset with Chevalier’s feedback on my manuscript. He could have worded a lot of things differently. But when I finally understood what he was saying, it dawned on me that I truly wanted to improve my novel. I’m going to revise it according to his remarks. I think … I think I need that kind of guidance.”

She waited for Sariel’s response, tense amid the evaluative quiet. When Sariel finally said, “I see. I’ll talk to Chevalier about it,” Emma released a relieved sigh, before realizing that she voluntarily offered herself to a bossy snob.

“Are you sure about this?” Sariel asked, telepathically sensing Emma’s burgeoning regret.

“I—am,” she said, almost sounding like she swallowed something bitter. “Bring it on.”

That elicited a chuckle from Sariel. “Fine. I’ll call you when something comes up.”

“Right. Thank you.”

The moment she hung up, doubt filled her very core. What was she thinking—why would she willingly enter a tiger’s den? To hell with proving something—she didn’t need that level of stress in her life!

Emma frowned at her already-lukewarm drink. She’s beginning to anticipate a lot more coffee in her future.

✏︎

from: [email protected] to: [email protected] subject: Re: Manuscript Editing Four-Eyes asked me if I’ll continue being your editor. All that time and energy I spent reviewing your work would be wasted if you pulled out. I have no patience for a blustering writer.

from: [email protected] to: [email protected] subject: Re: Re: Manuscript Editing Dear Mr. C. Michel, I hope this email finds you well. I have expressed to Mr. Sariel my desire to have you remain as my editor while the search for Luke is ongoing. I have found that your wisdom in editing is crucial for my growth as a writer, and thus seek your continuous guidance. I am currently revising the parts you pointed out in your comments and will do my utmost to send you the edited version on the date you’ve provided. I look forward to our prosperous partnership. Have a nice day! Sincerely, Emma

✏︎

Rio offered to look into Chevalier Michel.

“He probably has a profile page on the website, but I’ll ask around for some further information if you want.”

He and Emma stayed in the bookstore after it closed for some inventory, with Emma crouching by the romance section and Rio starting with nonfiction. The fluorescent lights flickered, which nudged Emma into noting that they need to replace them soon.

“That’s sweet of you, Rio, but it feels weird to do it behind his back, you know?”

Rio paused midway in taking out a hardcover and shot Emma a funny look.

“It’s not weird at all! He should’ve introduced himself in the first place—he should’ve been professional about it!”

Rio had a point. If it were other people, acting the way Chevalier did would result in getting fired, but Chevalier had held on to his and, based on what Sariel had revealed, juggled more workload than other editors. Emma never recalled any dark undereye circles or stress lines maligning Luke’s carefree face, which meant that he took only what he could handle. Chevalier tackling work ‘to last for ten years’ would imply that he was competent at his job; plenty of people relied on him, and that included Sariel.

Rio had been tinkering with his phone while Emma agonized over Chevalier and job stability, and she was about to remind Rio to go back to work when he cried in triumph and rushed towards her, phone screen tilted in her direction.

“Look, I found him! Let’s see … it says …”

The sunny tone in Rio’s voice petered off and he suddenly went quiet. Emma craned her neck to see where his gaze was trained on and—oh.

“Oh, no,” Rio whispered.

“Oh, no,” Emma agreed.

On the screen was Rhodolite Press’s website, displaying the information page of one of its editors. A profile picture was affixed on the top-left of the page, and in that picture was the most beautiful man Emma had ever seen. Blond hair framing his ivory face, with eyes the color of the sky reflected on a placid lake, an aristocratic nose and steel-set lips embraced by a magnificent jaw. He was all elegant curves, sublime geometry. Emma was certain she would never meet another one as beautiful as him.

“Emma, you’re blushing!” Rio’s voice was frantic. “Don’t fall in love with him!”

He snatched his hand back and Chevalier’s radiant face disappeared before her. It was ridiculous for Rio to think that a pretty face would sway Emma quick and easy; she only had to remember his manuscript comments and her simmering ire for him would rekindle like it never went away.

“I won’t, Rio, don’t be silly.” She glanced at her inventory list; she doubted they’d finish work tonight. “What are his credentials?”

He read Chevalier’s profile overview aloud, and Emma felt her brows rise and her eyes widen.

“—best editor of 2018, 2019, and 2021. In just three years, he singlehandedly catapulted Rhodolite Press onto mainstream radar to the point that Obsidian Publishing expressed interest in acquiring them in the past. Edited consistently bestselling books. Hm, hm, graduated top of his class, has master’s degrees in publishing and comparative literature … O-Oh, Emma, I’m serious—don’t fall for him!”

“Honestly, Rio! Stop that. I’m not going to fall in love with him. He’s my editor who writes mean comments that drive me mad! How could I fall for him when he’s my primary source of stress?”

Rio seemed appeased by that, but a pout still lingered.

“Anyway, what else can you find? Are there any bad rumors about him?”

“Well …” Rio kept scrolling on his phone. “It says here that he started out as a writer and published a few books, but now he’s focused as an editor.”

“Oh? What books did he write?”

“No. No, Emma.” Rio pocketed his phone definitively and adopted a chastising tone. “We’re behind work and need to finish our inventory.”

The panic that settled over Rio had Emma laughing. It was cute, in a sisterly kind of way, that Rio—almost comically—was keeping up with the facade of an aspiring husband around Emma. It’s one way of easing her worries, and Rio knew that, so he wore that role like second skin. Sometimes, Emma wondered if Rio was serious about it because it felt at times that he was being too sincere.

“Fine, fine, let’s get back to work.” And because she couldn’t help it: “You know that I’ll just google him later, right?”

Rio’s wailing could be heard throughout the street that night.

✏︎

And Emma did. Google Chevalier Michel.

One novel, one nonfiction, and three translations (one on philosophy, one on politics, and one literary novel). Emma checked if the bookstore had copies of any of Chevalier’s books; there were none, and she found that his books were no longer reprinted, which was unfortunate. Fascinatingly enough, his books were published by Rhodolite during its pre-mainstream days.

His nonfiction book was interestingly a monograph about historical literature. It was most likely an expanded version of his master’s thesis, based on the back cover description. The summary of Chevalier’s novel, titled A Solitary Moon, launched Emma into an upright sitting position.

A Solitary Moon was about an art historian who fell in love with the woman in a painting and spent the rest of his life searching for her. It piqued Emma’s curiosity, more so because never in her entire exchange with Chevalier would she peg him as a romantic. How could a man like him—curt, gruff, and irritating—conceive, much less write, a love story?

The novel had a Goodreads page, with a couple of reviews dated some years ago. It had an aggregate of 4.6 out of five stars. Impressive.

Most reviews praised Chevalier’s prose and his talent for imagery. Some had high hopes for his writing career. Few lamented his stoic approach to emotions, but overall, the readers enjoyed his novel. Emma belatedly realized that her mouth hung open in shock.

There was one bizarre review that captured her attention, though:

My boy Chev wrote a novel! This is great! Have to give it 1 star though, just to even things out hahaha

It was from someone named Lulu SH, and it had three likes. Emma just chalked it up to the nature of the internet.

Now she wanted to read his novel. She wanted to know what the fuss was about, even if she’s late to it. She wasn’t certain if reading his novel would shed light on Chevalier, but there had to be something she could glean from it.

If the bookstore didn’t have any copies of the novel, maybe the public library did.

✏︎

He came in like a whirlwind of bad news.

Emma had a healthy, functioning radar for trouble; it helped her on a number of occasions when she had to bail Rio out from picking a fight with customers—not to mention those who’d bother her on the way to work.

When the door chime tinkled and a streak of purple flashed in her periphery, alarm bells rang inside her head, loud and frenzied. It confused Emma, who had no reason to suspect the color purple, so she tore her gaze away from the logbook and redirected her attention to the source of her sudden discomfort.

A handsome man stood in front of her wearing the most suspicious smile in the world.

“Finally we meet,” he declared.

Emma weighed her options: there was neither a bat nor a stick in proximity to her, so should the man make a move to harm her Emma had no weapon to bludgeon him with; her phone was tucked away beside the cash register, three shelves between her, but she’s a slow runner so the man could have caught her long before she could reach the counter; Rio was out on an errand and there were no other customers—she could stall for time until Rio returned, and they might have a greater chance of overpowering the man.

She chose to stall for time.

“I’m sorry,” she began, silently proud her voice didn’t tremble, “but should I know you?”

If anything, the man’s smile grew wider. “The Four-Eyed Fiend would say you shouldn’t, but I’ve always wanted to meet you. We have a mutual friend—ha—Chev, Rhodolite’s beloved editor. Let’s bond over him.”

‘Chev’? Did he mean—“Chevalier Michel?”

The man clapped his hands in delight. “Are you having a difficult time with him? He may be your temporary editor, but I can share with you some secrets to win him over. I know a café that makes excellent mille-feuille. We can talk about him there.”

His suspicious smile became winning as he talked, like he’s used to getting his way through life. He did give off an air of being spoiled, indulgent—his movements languid that bordered on sensual.

“No, thank you. You haven’t even told me your name.”

“I haven’t, have I?” His eyes narrowed in amusement and the alarm bells inside Emma’s head rang louder and louder. “My name is Clavis. I already know who you are, so you don’t have to introduce yourself to me. Now that we’re acquainted, off we go.”

He grabbed Emma’s wrist and panic set in. “Wait, Clavis, wait—Rio hasn’t returned yet! I can’t leave the store unmanned!”

Clavis paused, glancing around the bookstore and finding no other people. He released Emma and pondered over this development as if it was some national security problem, a hand migrating to his chin, humming in deep thought.

“Well, if we can’t go to the café …” Clavis began. Emma had a wishful thought that Clavis would drop his attempt to ‘befriend’ her and leave the store, never to return.

Of course, her wish went unheard.

“Then I’ll just have to bring the café here, hahaha!”

Emma blinked, wasn’t sure if she heard right. “I beg your pardon?”

✏︎

Rio returned to the shop forty-five minutes after Clavis arrived, but by then Clavis had already: 1) set up a makeshift coffee table and chairs for him and Emma; 2) filled said table with the most mouth-watering pastries and the most heavenly coffee Emma had tasted; 3) ordered somebody else to entertain customers as they passed by Clavis and Emma, shooting them curious glances as they did so; and 4) spoke about Chevalier like he was some walking encyclopedia of the guy, regaling Emma frame by frame of what Chevalier had done to a young but arrogant writer who took offense at Chevalier’s admittedly brusque manuscript comments and thought it wise to disparage the editor. Emma winced at the story; even if she hadn’t personally met Chevalier, she agreed that it was in character for him to flay people alive for something they’d foolishly done.

“Right, right?” Clavis laughed, and something in his laughter jogged a memory from Emma.

“Hey—you’re that guy! The one who Sariel said meddled with the list of my editors!”

Clavis grinned, rakish and gleeful. “How did you know?”

“I heard you laugh while I was talking to Sariel on the phone. You sounded like you enjoyed giving Sariel stress ulcer.”

“Haha, it’s all very exciting, isn’t it? You have me to thank for arranging Chev as your editor.”

“I wouldn’t go that far, Clavis.” For emphasis, Emma took a large bite of chocolate cake. It tasted divine. “He may have given me helpful feedback on my novel, but he could’ve been nicer about it.”

“Nice? A nice Chev? I can’t wrap my head around the idea of a nice Chev. The world would end before that happens.”

“Emma, what’s going on?! Who’s that guy with you?”

“Rio!” Emma was midway to standing before she thought the better of it; the pastries and the coffee called to her more strongly than she expected. “Clavis and I were just talking about, um, work. He’s from Rhodolite Press.”

Clavis did nothing to alleviate the suspicious look Rio tossed his way; in fact, he seemed to stoke it further by waving and wagging his fingers, as if to taunt Rio that he got to disrupt whatever normal day they should be having.

Rio tore his eyes away from Clavis and then did a double take. “Emma, who’s the guy behind the register?”

“As I was saying,” Clavis intervened, denying Emma a chance to answer, “I thought it would be fun to put your novel in Chev’s editing pile. I’m so glad you liked it!”

“‘Liked it’? He said that my protagonist was an idiot!”

“Haha! Classic Chev.”

Clearly Clavis was living in a different reality from her. He deliberately misinterpreted anything Emma said about her experience with Chevalier as her editor.

“He wanted me to delete a whole chapter! A whole chapter!”

Clavis nodded in sympathy—or in schadenfreude, because that seemed more consistent with his personality in the forty-five minutes Emma had known him.

“In another chapter, he said that I had the main character and the male lead fall in love with each other so quickly it didn’t seem realistic. But my goal was exactly that—the magic of love!” Somehow the cake on Emma’s plate disappeared; ranting about Chevalier took a lot of energy. She procured another slice of cake—cookies and cream this time. It was equally divine. “How would he write about love?” she continued, waving her fork like it was some metronome for haranguing. “I want to know. I can’t rely on his Goodreads reviews alone. I have to read his novel.”

As if magic words themselves, her last sentence froze both Clavis and Rio. Clavis, sensing blood, perked up in predatory glee, while Rio clicked his tongue in irritation.

“No—you really googled him, Emma!”

“You want to read Chev’s novel?”

Their piercing and expectant gazes discomfited Emma. She shifted on her seat and took a huge gulp of her coffee, which was tragically lukewarm now.

“Um,” she said, convincingly. “It stopped reprinting, if I recall correctly.”

“Well, Miss Writer, today is the best day of your life,” Clavis announced, his excitement vibrating out of him like a defcon 1 alarm. Emma debated whether to decline him outright or inch away from him until she’s outside the bookstore altogether. “First you’ve met me—a very handsome, very attractive man; and second you’re going to get Chev’s novel—courtesy of me! No need to thank me, of course. I already know that I’m kind as much as I’m handsome. Now, do you want an autographed copy? Because I can needle Chev into signing a book. Don’t be shy—say, ‘Yes, please, Master Clavis, you’re my hero!’”

“No thank you, Clavis. I can always go to the library to borrow a copy.”

It’s Clavis’s turn to click his tongue. “Tch. You’re no fun at all. But I’m still giving you one, because Chev has some extra copies in his office that I can pilf—ask for.”

“Were you about to say ‘pilfer’?”

“Of course not, you must’ve been mistaken,” Clavis said without missing a beat. “All right, ladies and gentlemen, I’m afraid I must leave you now. Busy man and all. Don’t miss me too much.”

He made a show of bowing with exaggerated flourish, like a circus ringmaster, and then strode towards the door, patting Rio’s shoulder along the way. The sound of the door shutting was a relief that had Emma heaving an exhausted sigh, and Rio took over Clavis’s place across the table.

“He paid for this, right?” Rio asked, as he hoarded all the bread. They were, unsurprisingly, soft and divine as well.

Emma sighed once more.

#fic #ikemen prince #ikepri #ikemen prince fic #ikepri fic #chevalier michel x emma #chevalier x emma #novelist au #stet fic

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mlwritersguild · 2 years

Text

Parisian Holiday, by @deinde-prandium and @2manyfandoms2count

Assigned monuments: The Pantheon & the Canal St Martin

AO3 link; Alternate Universe, No Powers AU, Royalty AU, False Identity, Inspired by Roman Holiday (1953), Paris (City), Fluff, Fluff and Humor

Summary:

During a state visit to Paris, Prince Adrien Agreste finds an escape from his strict timetable. In the process, he crosses paths with Marinette Dupain-Cheng, an aspiring fashion designer turned tabloid reporter on a reluctant mission to score an exclusive scoop. She knows all about Prince Adrien. Or so she thinks.

For two days, Adrien becomes Félix, an ordinary tourist in Paris, and Marinette, his personal tour guide. As they make their way through Paris' most famous monuments, they might become a bit more than that – if their secrets don't get in the way.

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

Arts and History – The Pantheon

(Place du Panthéon, 75005 Paris)

A staple of the Parisian skyline, the Pantheon is also a cultural hotspot. Beyond the eternal rest place of French notables (Voltaire, Victor Hugo, Pierre and Marie Curie, Josephine Baker, to cite a few), it is also an architectural wonder with its impressive triple dome and colonnade facade, and boasts an extensive art collection. Physics enthusiasts take note! The Pantheon is one of the places you can witness the Earth’s rotation, thanks to Foucault’s Pendulum. End your visit by climbing up to the Panorama, and enjoy the stunning 360° view of Paris!

Even though she’d been the one to drag them down the sewers, Marinette was glad to re-emerge into the streets. There was something to be said about seeing where you put your feet, and knowing that if you did, you weren’t likely to step into something you didn’t want to identify.

She stole a glance at Adrien – Félix, she reminded herself. It was safer to think of him as such, lest she slipped up in conversation and gave the whole jig up. There was just too much at stake.

She had to admit that, so far, the prince was defying all of her prejudice against the upper crust (not that she’d had a particularly bad opinion of it before meeting him, but she had expected him to be a lot snootier). As they wandered around, a slight frown creased his royal brow, but something told her it had more to do with him falling for her sewer crocodile legend, than falling on the questionable sewer floor.

Just for that, she decided to give him something to smile about.

“So, Félix,” she said breezily. “Where would you like to go next?”

Adrien’s attention snapped to her, his eyes wide. “Where would I want to go?”

“You’re the tourist.” Marinette shrugged, amused by his surprise. “You don’t have indefinite time to see everything.”

“Right,” he sighed wistfully. He dug his hands in his pockets and kicked a stray stone off the pavement. His face remained closed for a moment, and Marinette feared that she'd been a tad too harsh; then, he lit up with a hopeful smile. “Anywhere I want?” he asked.

“Mhmm,” she confirmed.

He stared at her with star-struck eyes, like she’d offered him a pony, or whatever it was princes dreamed about. She felt her heart flutter in her chest.

“The Pantheon,” he finally announced, just as Marinette’s cheeks started to warm.

“The Pantheon,” she repeated, stopping in her tracks.

“Yep.” He stopped, too, and beamed at her.

“You’re in Paris for two days, and you want to see a bunch of dead people?” Marinette said slowly, scrunching her nose. Maybe she’d been right in thinking royals lived wildly different lives, after all.

“Actually, it’s not the dead people I’m interested in, even though I’m sure they’re all very important,” he chuckled. “I’m after Foucault’s pendulum.”

Marinette stared at him blankly.

“Not to steal it or anything!” he added quickly. “It’s just a really big deal in physics.”

He likes physics, she thought. It hadn’t been her favourite subject in school, but she supposed it hadn’t been uninteresting.

Adrien’s eyes turned to pleading.

“Fine,” she sighed, turning around and going back on her steps, mentally figuring out the fastest way to the monument. She heard a pitter-patter as Adrien jogged up to her, looking every bit like a golden retriever with his newly-cut hair falling in his eyes.

Marinette suppressed a smile at the sight.

The things she did for her job.

-----

“Wow,” Adrien marvelled as they stepped through the colonnade and into the Pantheon’s great marble hall.

Marinette could only nod in agreement. Their weekday visit meant that the monument was fairly empty, reinforcing the magnificence of it all; she felt tiny walking out in the open, the dome higher above them than she’d expected. She stared at the overarching fresca in awe, illuminated by a round window cut out at its apex.

“Ah, there it is!”

Her attention snapped back to Adrien, who strode towards the centre of the room where a balustrade defined a round area. Inside, a long wire hung from the ceiling, attached to a golden sphere which swayed to-and-fro with a small amplitude.

“I’d expected the movement to be more impressive, but I guess this still proves Foucault’s point,” Adrien muttered, resting his elbows on the barrier.

“And what would that be, again?” Marinette asked.

“That the Earth is spinning on itself,” he replied matter-of-factly. “See how the pendulum doesn’t go back on its tracks?” Marinette nodded. “Well, the pendulum’s axis doesn’t actually move; we do. If we didn’t, it would have a truly linear path.”

“Excellent explanation, young man,” a voice startled them.

A man, wearing what Marinette assumed was the Pantheon’s guards’ uniform, complete with peaked cap, had made his way to Adrien’s side, and had apparently been listening in.

“Would you like to reset the pendulum?” he asked Adrien.

Her companion’s jaw went slack. “Could I? Really?”

“Wait, why does the pendulum need to be reset?” Marinette asked.

“You see, young lady, in an ideal universe, the pendulum would swing all day long…” the guard started, hopping over the barrier to retrieve the pendulum.

“...but the friction makes it lose its momentum!” Adrien completed as the man handed him the wire.

“Exactly.”

Marinette watched Adrien reverently let go of the pendulum, which sailed through the circle before crossing it again in another direction. He looked mesmerised by the sight, his delighted smile widening with each trip of the pendulum; it truly baffled Marinette that he could be so enthusiastic about something so… simple. It made her wonder how he’d put up with his royal status, and his father’s reported strictness, for so long.

Her eyes wandered to the hall’s paintings as she decided to make his rebellious outing as memorable as possible. When they landed on Adrien again, he’d stood up slightly, and looked like he was looking for something.

“Everything okay?” she asked.

“Well, the guidebook said something about being able to climb up and get a view of Paris…” Adrien said sheepishly.

Marinette nodded and joined him in scanning the room for any signs. Their guard friend caught their search and made his way back to them.

“Maybe I can help you now,” he said with a smile.

“I think you probably will,” Marinette smiled. “We're looking for the way up the dome.”

“I'm so sorry, it hasn't reopened yet.” The guide grimaced and shook his head. “You'll have to come back in April!”

“Oh.” Adrien looked down at his shoes, his smile falling in the process.

Marinette's hands instinctively found their way to his forearm, squeezing it reassuringly.

“We’ll have to look into it. Thank you so much for your help!”

The man touched his cap and thanked them for the break. Adrien smiled at the joke, but Marinette noticed it didn’t quite reach his eyes.

She found herself needing to bring back his prior enthusiasm.

“Don’t worry,” she squeezed his arm again, and started guiding him towards the exit. “If what you want is to rise above Paris, then I have just the place for you.”

**********

Walks and Wanders – The Canal St Martin

(Quai de Jemmapes - 75010 Paris)

Extending over four kilometers, the Canal St. Martin has linked the Port de l’Arsenal to the La Villette canal basin since 1825. Punctuated with locks, swing bridges, Venetian-style footbridges, and lined with chestnut trees and squares, it is the focal point of one the most romantic places in Paris. Visitors can watch boats travel across the canal, while lovers and friends can soak in serenades by the water from the banks or bridges.

Adrien breathed deeply, taking aim in quiet concentration. Flicking his wrist, he let the rock fly toward the water at a perfect angle. It spun as it gently skimmed across the canal - once, twice, three times, leaving tiny ripples in its wake.

Satisfied, Adrien watched as the stone slipped below the surface. Despite the calm stillness of the canal, he could feel the hum of the city, its energy thrumming through his veins. He smiled, marvelling at how much he’d seen in such a short time. The whole day had been a whirlwind…just like the tiny powerhouse standing next to him.

Plop!

Whirlwind, indeed. No wonder she seemed to be struggling with their current activity.

“I don’t get how you’re so good at this,” Marinette grumbled. “Is it that whole physics thing? Something something momentum Foucault’s pendulum?”

Adrien chuckled, oddly thrilled that she’d remembered his interest in physics. “The physics of skipping stones is fascinating. Did you know the Japanese have a different word for it? Mizu kiri – it means, water cutting.”

Her eyes narrowed. “Are you trying to tell me that you learned how to skip stones in Japan?”

Adrien’s cheeks warmed, remembering the brutal critiques of a five-year-old Princess Kagami during their stone skipping “lessons” at the Japanese Imperial Palace. “Ah, I didn’t – I mean, no,” he stammered. “My friend taught me when we were kids. I’d practise at a pond near my house.”

At least it wasn’t a complete lie.

Marinette smiled in reply, but there was something in her eyes that made him think she wanted more. Not in the way that Chloe or Lila or even his father wanted things from him…rather, she looked at him like he was a puzzle, seeking to uncover a new piece with each stop on their tour.

Truthfully, he felt a little like that about her, too. The more Adrien got to know Marinette, the more he longed to learn about her. And as vital as it was for him to keep his identity a secret, with each moment they spent together, the more he wanted to tell her…

Adrien shook the thought from his mind. “I could teach you?” he offered instead. “There’s a technique my friend taught me.”

“Your Japanese stone skipping master?” Marinette deadpanned.

“Fencing partner, actually,” he corrected. He picked up a rock lying nearby, and held it out to her. “Let’s see what you’ve got.”

Pursing her lips, Mariette took the rock from his hand, then hurled it with all her might. It sank into the canal with a resounding plop , and she groaned.

Adrien grinned. “It’s an easy fix,” he said. “You’re raising your arm too high when you release it. Force helps, but it’s the angle that really matters. That, and finding the right rock.”

He bent down to select another stone. He reached over to grasp one, turning it over to examine its shape, only belatedly registering the small gasp that seemed to come from his companion. Adrien looked up to find a wide-eyed Marinette staring down at him. It was then that he realised he was kneeling right at her feet. “Sorry,” he mumbled, his cheeks colouring to match hers. “I just wanted the perfect one.”

“Of course,” she replied. He wondered if her voice was just a little breathier than before.

“Right, so…rocks,” he continued awkwardly. “They should be flat and smooth, and not too heavy. This one should work, but don’t throw it yet.”

“Why not?”

“There actually aren’t that many good rocks to choose from, so we need to save them,” he said. “First, I want you to practice shifting your weight like you would if you were going to throw it.”

Marinette scowled. “But how am I supposed to know I’m doing it right if I’m not throwing anything?”

Adrien blushed as the solution came to him. Tentatively, he stepped forward. “Um, I could…”

A beat passed, and Marinette’s eyes widened with understanding. “Oh,” she squeaked. “Yeah, that could work.”

Nodding, Adrien skirted behind her, gently placing one hand on her shoulder and grasping her right hand with the other. “Keep your arm parallel with the surface of the water,” he murmured in her ear. “That way, when you release the stone, it follows the same trajectory.”

Marinette nodded, letting him guide her hand in a small arc before moving it across the front of her torso - once, twice, three times, their movements languid as the water of the canal. Adrien paused at the last pass, suddenly aware of the fact that she was effectively standing in his arms. He inhaled shakily, taking in the faint scent of strawberries…

Focus, you idiot, he said silently. The last thing he needed was for Marinette to realise how much her closeness was affecting him.

“So…you fence?”

Adrien exhaled, grateful for the distraction her question posed. “My childhood was very…programmed. Lots of different activities,” he said. “My father said it would build character, and my mother said it would help me learn about myself.”

“Were they right?”

“Doubtful,” Adrien admitted. “I mean, I’m grateful for the opportunities that my family gave me. Truly. But I can’t say I really know who I am, other than a disappointment to them.”

Marinette froze in his arms. “You’re wrong.”

There was a touch of defiance, almost anger, in her voice that both surprised and amused him. “Oh?” he countered. “Who would you say I am, then?”

“Well, you’re a terrible drunk,” she snipped, refusing to turn around. “And despite all those activities, you’ve led a pretty sheltered life, which is probably why you’re scared of heights and enclosed spaces. But…you’re smart. And kind. And ridiculously talented at so many things, but humble. Like, I know you speak six languages – not because you told me, but because you’ve been helping tourists get directions all day. And you’re a total physics nerd, but the way you explain it doesn’t make me feel stupid…” Marinette sighed. “You’re just…a good person. That’s who you are.”

Adrien remained silent, stunned by an assessment of his character that, for once, had nothing to do with his wealth or lineage. Although she’d known him for less than a day, Marinette seemed to understand him in ways no one else did. She seemed to see things in him that he’d never thought to see in himself. What’s more, she seemed to believe in him.

He wanted her to believe in him.

He wanted her.

And he wanted to tell her everything.

The words slipped out before he could stop them. “There’s something else you should know about me.”

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kleoyeager78 · 1 year

Text

Fashion designer | 1

My greatest aspiration has always been to live in Paradis and establish myself as a legendary fashion designer.

Because no one ever believed in me and always dismissed it as a childish fantasy, I never really believed it would come true and eventually gave up on it.

But today, I suppose I could say that everyone was wrong in that assumption because I am currently traveling directly to Paradis on a plane to fulfill that very dream.

I'm still not sure how any of this happened.

I was looking for a place to live online when I came across a website for roommates. I just so happened to find an apartment with amazing living standards in my budget, and of course it was in Paradis. I took this as a sign to pack up my belongings and move to my new apartment.

If I said I wasn't nervous, I'd be lying. For one thing, I didn't have a guaranteed job, and despite applying for several before boarding the plane, no one had contacted me. And two, if this does not work out, I will be homeless because my parents have told me not to return given that they do not support the lifestyle I am attempting to live.

My parents do not consider fashion design to be a legitimate profession. They believe that the only real jobs are those for which you go to college. That's probably why they kiss my sister's ass since she believes the same thing and does everything they tell her.

Since I can remember, I've always heard that I should act more like my sister. For a while, I let that discourage me and thought it would be best to settle for a life similar to my sister's. However, when I discovered that my dream apartment was available, it reminded me of the life I used to yearn for. So, I thought, why not pursue that dream once more?

And that's how I ended up here on a plane heading to Paradis.

I was too nervous to do anything on the plane, so I spent my time figuring out how to get to the apartment. During my research, I discovered that if I took the bus, it would stop two minutes away from the apartment, allowing me to simply walk after getting off. So, as soon as I stepped off the plane, I made my way to the bus stop.

I waited for the bus for about five minutes.

There was only one other person on the bus besides myself when I entered. A redheaded girl with a bag of chips in her hand who appeared to be making a little mess with them. I sat near the front so that when my stop came, I could simply exit and walk away.

The whole bus ride was silent for the most part except for the constant chip bag rattling.

When the bus arrived at my stop, I noticed the girl getting off as well. I didn't think much of it because the only thing on my mind was getting to my new home, but I became suspicious when the girl began walking in the same direction as me, as if she was following me.

I began walking faster to my destination and felt relieved until I heard footsteps right behind me, causing me to panic and rush to my house, double-checking that I had the key.

I thought I was safe when I arrived at the apartment, but as I inserted the keys into the lock, I noticed someone standing next to me. When I looked up, it was the same girl who had been chasing me, but this time she was smiling and waving.

“Hi there” she shouted even though I was right next to her.

Although she was just chasing me I didn’t really get a bad vibe from her now that she actually spoke. “Hello”

“I'm sorry about earlier I was just making sure you got in the house okay” she said scratching her neck a little when she realized how much she scared me.

“Huh” I said confused on what she meant.

“Oh I'm your roommate Sasha by the way,” she said, realizing my confusion.

Everything started to make sense after she said that. It made sense now why she was chasing me and why she asked me that question. “Ohhh” I said, shooting her a smile. “I'm sorry for making you run” I chuckled, making her chuckle too.

“Don't worry about it I don't blame you, the people around here aren't really that trustworthy I would run too” she laughed but her statement made me stop laughing and caused me to give her a serious look.

“I thought this was a nice area,” I said.

She started to laugh more. “Who told you that? This place hasn’t been nice since the early 2000s”

“What?” I asked, utterly confused.

“Yeah I think the pictures they posted are from like ten years ago this place is as run down as the pizza shop down the street.” She walked towards me and twisted the door open.

When she noticed the utter horror on my face she decided to try to comfort me. “Don’t worry on a good day the rats act a little civil'' she said with a reassuring smile but if i'm being honest it only scared me more.

“We have rats?” I said, still standing outside.

“Yeah but only by the dumpster” she said, making me sigh in relief. “I haven't seen any crawl through the cracks.” she added, making my relief go right away.

“Cracks?” I asked, making sure I heard right.

Sasha laughed and dragged me into the house and shut the door. “I should show you around”

She began by showing me my room, which, as she mentioned, had many cracks and looked nothing like the pictures, but I suppose I couldn't complain. When I saw a luxurious place in my price range, I should have known something was wrong.

She showed me the bathroom and also warned me that it's better to see if the water works before I enter the shower since it doesn't work all the time.

The Kitchen was the final stop. If I'm being honest, the best part was the kitchen. It had fewer cracks and was actually nice. If you exclude the medium-sized hole in the wall. But Sasha said her friend was coming over to fix it.

When the tour was done I gave Sasha my phone number and went back to my room to unpack. I was very happy I decided to give most of my stuff away because I wouldn’t know where to put it.

I felt extremely hot after unpacking my belongings. Sasha also mentioned that the air conditioner didn't work, so it was better to open a window, but she also warned me that the rats had fights right outside my window, and I didn't have a window screen to keep them out. So, despite the fact that I was hot, I couldn't do anything about it.

I sighed laying on my bed and thinking to myself.

“So what if I didn't get my dream apartment I can still make my other dreams come true” I said smiling to myself.

“Hell yeah you can girl” Sasha said from the shower making me jump.

That was another thing: the walls were thinner than paper so privacy wasn’t really a thing.

I just chuckled and shouted back “thanks Sasha!”

a/n~ this has been in my writing ideas for a couple months now so I decided to try it and I like it a lot so far! What do you think? Also this is kinda based on that Cruella movie I love so much but not really.

Anyway ily

#aot fanfiction #aot x reader #aot x y/n #attack on titan #attack on titan fic #armin arlert #annie leonhart #eren jaeger #eren x reader #mikasa ackerman #jean krischtein #historia #attack on titan ymir #reiner braun

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hcnayun · 10 months

Text

❝ this is how we become magic, we walk through fire and become more holy ❞

Age: 31

Gender identification: Cis female, she/her

Residential area: Downtown

Occupation: owner of Humming Bee & former model

Two positive traits: Resilient & engaging

Two negative traits: Impulsive & stubborn

Length of time in Providence Peak: 6 years-ish

Faceclaim: Im Jin-ah

80’s and 90’s music playing in the background, fashion magazines scattered about, a jaw sculpted by the gods, countertops covered in fruits and vegetables, a hair tie around a delicate wrist, a history of survival shining from dark eyes, and a shoe collection that could rival a warehouse

trigger warnings: abuse, stalking, drug and alcohol abuse

The path to Providence Peak was a bumpy road and one made mostly by choice. Hana Yun was born in South Korea into a conservative and traditional yet very loving family and was raised in New York City. The Upper East Side of Manhattan to be more specific. There here days were lived out in a penthouse suite of a five star hotel her parents owned. One of many around the world. That kind of wealth and opulence didn’t give Hana much of an advantage or spoil her. No, her parents were strict and informed her and her siblings early on that they would have to forge their own path in life. Things weren’t just going to be handed to them. Of course, there was a promised inheritance but it would only come when deserved. As Hana and her siblings got older it was realized through obtaining a university degree or displaying discipline and sound decisions toward building a steady life.

Around age 13 Hana showed the first signs of veering from parental expectations through truancy. Rather than dutifully go to her classes or stay within the walls of her private education she would explore a vast city. Usually that meant she was at the shops given that at the time her obsession was fashion and her aspirations were to be a model. At age 14 she got her first tattoo and made her mother cry. That was the day her parents realized Hana would be a lost cause. Hana had never really been one to conform and generally always marched to the beat of her own drum. Those were traits her parents equally admired and feared in their young daughter. Thankfully, Hana had the ability to make something of those attributes and landed a few modeling gigs after being scouted by an agent while trying on heels in Bloomingdale’s. Not only did she have height, the Korean-American had a ballerina type lithe figure. Despite not being old enough to legally drive Hana found herself desirable to an all consuming industry.

All the wrong influences surrounded her. Managers and agents who were supposed to be looking out for the teenagers best interests, at least that’s what they had promised the Yuns, they only enabled and essentially became ‘yes men’. Not necessarily to be detrimental to Hana’s growing into a stable adult life but because of the inability to turn away all the good fortune and opportunities that came their way. Hana was a star on the rise. With a killer jaw line and an uninhibited personality she was loved by photographers and designers alike. From ages as young as 14 and 15 she was seen in the glossy pages of Vogue, Vanity Fair, and Harper’s Bazaar apart of fashion campaigns for top brands and designers. What that instant success and thrust into the machine of the fashion industry meant was the accessibility to things a child should never be exposed to. Not only by the time Hana was a legal adult had she been scarred by the treatments of immoral types she also had tried a variety of drugs and drink. When she was hot and in-demand Hana’s handlers did whatever it took to keep her going.

Eventually she burnt out and her body crashed from the non-stop lifestyle she’d been leading for half a decade. At 20, she may have made her own wealth but it had come with exhaustion and some dependency on substances of the most unhealthy kind. She’d been around the world and had some incredible experiences but what Hana had missed out on was being a kid, a teenager like her friends in a city like New York. There were some realizations and epiphanies that came from a hospital bed with her family at her side and agent pushed to a corner when she was being treated for exhaustion. In no way could she continue to live like this. Life wasn’t meant to be one non-stop party. No person was meant to work without break for years. So, it wasn’t until she was an adult that Hana listened to her parents and let them be the guidance she needed. She went into therapy and began a spiritual journey that awakened her to a much healthier lifestyle. Activities like yoga and pilates along with vitamins and clean eating became the way of life instead of things that were never meant to be put into her body.

By the age of 25 Hana had all but given up on her lustrous career in modeling and fashion and became a practitioner of mind, body, and soul. Instead of being another student in another class she’d become an instructor and trainer in the art of meditation, yoga and pilates. Unfortunately the noise of New York City was still all too loud and temptations were difficult to turn away when she had a weakness to her and they were so easily offered up to her. Despite the challenge that wasn’t what moved Hana to a city in the midwest, somewhere near the Rockies Mountains— it was obsession. A photographer that had been abusive toward her in her youth and yet someone she’d been forced to work with countless times claimed to love Hana like no one else every had or ever could. The former model had become a target of harassment and threats which escalated into dealing with a full-on stalker that the police couldn’t do too much to protect her against.

Given the way she’d turned her life around and had eventually become someone her parents could be proud of Hana had received her inheritance, and that coupled with the money she’d made in the modeling industry she was able to buy a studio in Providence Peak, Colorado and put the mess behind her.

#providence.intro #introduction.#biography.#character study.

3 notes · View notes

its-taeil-time · 2 years

Text

Jeong Yoonoh

☁︎ - fluff // ✶ - angst // ☽ - mature

✧ total: 29 ✧

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one-shots

five plus one [28.8k] ☁︎✶

➥ chef!jaehyun, aspiring chef!reader, enemies to lovers

Five times world-renowned chef Jeong Jaehyun tried to end your journey to be a chef because you weren’t ‘qualified enough to be a chef’ and that one time you proved him wrong.

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don’t you dream impossible things? [27k] ☁︎

➥ high school!au, coming of age!au, basketball captain!jaehyun, childhood best friends to lovers

this was inspired by the little discourse on my blog about what Taylor Swift songs you guys (and me) associated with different nct members! with that being said, this was more or less based off of 'you belong with me'~ (as well as starlight and you are in love!)

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planet girl [21.9k] ☁︎✶

part one. cupid [6k]

part two. jupiter [5k]

2.5 intermission [0.9k]

part three. planet girl [10k]

➥ soulmate!au, college!au, cinderella!au, cupid!reader

When Jaehyun turned twenty-one, he started to hear his soulmate’s voice singing an unfamiliar song in his head. He should be happy, right? Wrong. There are two things wrong with this:

He’s taken. He’s off the market. He’s in a 3-year relationship and, The voice singing in his head is not his girlfriend’s voice

Now what?

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romeo roulette [21.2k] ☁︎✶

➥ office!au, soulmate!au, fake dating!au

if finding your soulmate is the same as a damn game of russian roulette, you are determined to not pull the trigger at all. except, you know who your soulmate is and he doesn’t—and given a choice to pretend, you find that jaehyun is the lesser of the two burdens to bear.

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runway [18.7k] ☁︎✶☽

➥ model!jaehyun, fashion designer!reader, enemies to lovers

there are some things that come with dedicating your life to fashion: a taste for finer fabrics, a splash of love for art, and an appreciation of the human body. none of these are supposed to include the hottest model you have ever laid eyes on, or the fact that you completely, utterly hate his guts.

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he fell first, and he fell harder [18.7k] ☁︎✶

➥ basketball captain!jaehyun, slow burn, childhood best friends to lovers

jeong jaehyun really loves basketball. but also, he’s terribly in love with his childhood best friend of seventeen years, you.

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ordinary people [18.3k] ☁︎✶

➥ fake dating!au, slow burn, ceo!jaehyun, childhood friends to lovers

Jaehyun’s parents are coming home for Christmas and he may have made the biggest mistake of telling them he has a ‘girlfriend’. Insert you, his best friend, who so happens to be the only girl he knows and trusts. You, on the other hand, would have never expected Jaehyun to show up at your door at two in the morning with nothing but a proposition; to be his fake girlfriend. And man, are you in big trouble.

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moon river [17.1k] ☁︎✶☽ (implied)

➥ arranged marriage!au, slice of life!au, president’s son!jaehyun, doctor!reader

Your mother warned you of many boys. She’s warned you of the immature ones, the players, and even the fools and cowards. But man, she has never warned you of guys like Jeong Jaehyun, the President’s son, who seems to be falling in love with you with every passing day even though he’s already engaged to someone he’s been set up to marry.

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SUN&MOON [14.6] ☁︎✶

➥ fake dating!au, enemies to lovers

Asking Jeong Jaehyun to accompany you to your family’s 1-week Christmas vacation as your boyfriend has its consequences. One can surely get through 1 week of pretending to be in love with an enemy, right?

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hesitate [14.5k] ☁︎✶

➥ figure skater!jaehyun, figure skater!reader, figure skating!au, winter olympics!au, childhood best friends to lovers, exes to lovers

The many times Jeong Jaehyun hesitated in life and the two times he didn’t. — or alternatively, in which Jaehyun realized that throughout the years as a pairs skater, the only constant he had in his crazy athletic life was you. He would never hesitate to say that the person who kept him going for so long was and always will be you. Jaehyun would never hesitate in admitting his love for you and as you complete your last short program together before retiring, he was determined to do it every day of his life.

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if we were a movie [14k] ☁︎✶

➥ theatre major!jaehyun, theatre major!reader, college!au, drama school!au, slow burn, childhood friends to lovers

For someone who was always the understudy and never the lead, scoring this role was huge for you. All you had to do was pretend to be in love with your best friend. No big deal, right? Wrong. It was the biggest deal because, for the past four years, you had been hiding your feelings for Jung Jaehyun.

If this were a movie, he would be your perfect match and the story would end happily with the credits rolling to a perfectly timed soundtrack. Too bad this wasn’t a movie— this was real life and life came with complications.

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seven letters [10.1k] ☁︎✶

➥ soulmate!au, slight fake dating!au, childhood friends to lovers

On a camping trip, you find a message in a bottle that’s been washed up the shore, only to find out that it’s a message from you in the future. Your message tells you three things:

1. You must make Jeong Jaehyun fall in love with you because, 2. He’s your soulmate and 3. Because of your future self’s mistake, he ended up falling in love with someone else.

the story untold [6.6k] ☁︎✶

➥ part two of seven letters, soulmate!au, childhood friends to lovers

Jaehyun finds himself catching feelings for you, his best friend. But the problem is that he’s in a relationship with someone else. In hopes of receiving a sign, the last sign he expects to receive is a letter. A letter from his future self.

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the wedding [9.5k] ☁︎

➥ rival!jaehyun, friends to lovers

jeong jaehyun’s your long-time friend, and as far as one could remember, every single and little thing you both do ends to a competition; it turned into a permanent kind of relationship you have for over a decade now. no one expects that it would ever change, not until a childhood friend of yours from high school decides to make you two as his singers for his upcoming wedding.

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heat [5.8k] ☽

➥ sugar daddy alpha!jaehyun, omega!reader, a/b/o

He’s a hot, young, rich, alpha in an all alpha pack, and he’s been sugar daddying you and taking you on public dates for a while now. You finally decide whether or not Jaehyun is the alpha who gets to claim your omega side.

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just like magic. [4k] ☁︎☽

➥ fuckboy!jaehyun, fuckgirl!reader

jung jaehyun’s body count is almost as high as yours. however, after yuta spreads a nasty rumor, you learn that jaehyun’s always imagined those girls to be you instead.

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june 24 [3.8k] ☁︎

➥ soulmate!au

Some share the same tattoos with their soulmate. Others have countdowns embedded in their skin, counting down the days left until they meet their soulmate. But you? You’ve stopped aging since you turned eighteen. You’re twenty-three now and on one fine day, fate decides to have you wake up and live that same day; the same 24 hours until you meet your soulmate.

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just us. [2.9k] ☁︎☽

➥ prince!jaehyun, princess!reader

not only do you have to marry a prince you haven’t seen in years, but you also learn that you must consummate your marriage in front of a public audience.

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sweet dreams [2.8k] ☽

➥ exhibitionism, somnophilia, ft. johnny

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under wraps. [2.3k] ☽

➥ dilf!jaehyun, younger!reader

it’s taboo to be fucking your best friend’s dad, which is why you and jaehyun elect to keep your adventures a secret.

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dangerous game. [1.9k] ☽

➥ dilf!jaehyun, younger!reader

jaehyun is your father’s co-worker, but it’s not your fault that he’s undeniably hot.

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angel [1.4k] ☽

➥ jaehyun catches you masturbating

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broken clocks [0.8k] ✶

➥ almost lovers!au

On the day of your graduation, you bump into a stranger who was an almost, a stranger with memories that remind you of how you were both almost what you could’ve and wanted to be… but couldn’t.

only [21.6k] ☁︎✶

➥ part two of broken clocks, almost lovers!au

You like to believe crossing paths with Jaehyun after graduation is just pure coincidence. He always comes and goes. But what if he decides to stay? To stick around? To give what was an ‘almost’ a chance?

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condom test [0.7k] ☽

➥ creampie/ impregnation kink!jaehyun

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series

gold painted canvas [40 parts] ☁︎✶

➥ part social media!au, director!jaehyun, painter!reader

the classic rich boy and poor girl love story but with less prejudice and more happiness

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i like me better (when i’m with you) [27 parts] ☁︎✶☽

➥ kinesiology major!jaehyun, radio dj!jaehyun, liberal studies major!reader, skater!reader, college!au, strangers to lovers

How have two people never met when they’ve shared a group of mutual friends for the past year? That was the first question their friends had. Despite being in the same circle, Y/N and Jeong Jaehyun had never crossed paths. Knowing they would be good for each other due to your similar interests and past experiences, their friends decide to play a little game of matchmaker and give both their hopeless romantics they call friends a chance at love.

Now the second question was: would everything go according to plan?

alternatively, the fluffy strangers to lovers college!au in which your friends are tired of you complaining about being single and find your perfect match in the one and only campus DJ, Jeong Jaehyun.

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blurbs/ drabbles

nothing yet.

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reacts

platonic kissing ☁︎

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timestamps

[17:12] ☁︎

➥ college!au, library!au, best friends to lovers

#nct #nct au #kpop #nct fanfic #nct jaehyun #jaehyun #jeong jaehyun #nct jeong jaehyun #nct jeong yoonoh #nct yoonoh #jeong yoonoh #nct 127

21 notes · View notes

marsrize · 1 year

Text

Drift [AdrienxMarinette]

Summary: Not all relationships are made to last. Adrien and Marinette are going to learn it at their expense. Gabriel Agreste was finally defeated by Ladybug and Cat Noir. Adrien and Marinette started to date and eventually got married at the age of 18. However, their relationship slowly deteriorated over time. Despite the fact that his father was a criminal and had never aspired to follow in his father's footsteps, Adrien took up the torch of the Agreste brand. This brand meant a lot to him. Sure, it represented a lot of bad memories, but it was also the only thing that remained of what once was the joy of his family.

At first, Adrien tried to be the perfect husband for Marinette. He showered her with gifts and attention and they both seemed happy. Adrien was determined to make Marinette happy and prove his love for her. He would often surprise her with thoughtful gifts, like a new dress or a necklace he knew she had been eyeing. He would also make sure to take her out on romantic dates and always pay attention to the little details that made her smile.

"Marinette, I have a surprise for you," Adrien said one evening, as he led her into the living room of their spacious apartment.

Marinette looked at him curiously. "What is it?"

Adrien smiled and gestured towards the center of the room. There, in the middle of the floor, was a beautifully wrapped present.

"For me?" Marinette's eyes widened in surprise.

Adrien nodded. "Open it."

Marinette eagerly tore off the wrapping paper and gasped when she saw what was inside: a stunning, one-of-a-kind dress that looked like it had been designed just for her.

"Adrien, it's amazing!" Marinette exclaimed, turning around to admire herself in the mirror.

"I knew you would like it," Adrien said, wrapping his arms around her from behind.

Moments like these made Marinette feel loved and cherished. She couldn't help but think that Adrien was the perfect husband.

However, as time passed, Adrien's schedule became busier with his fashion empire, leaving him with less time to spend with Marinette. As the weeks passed, Marinette tried to be understanding of Adrien's busy schedule, but she couldn't shake the feeling of being neglected. She wanted to spend time with her husband, to have fun and enjoy each other's company, but Adrien was always too busy or too tired.

One day, as Adrien was rushing out the door, Marinette tried to stop him.

"Adrien, can we talk for a moment?" Marinette asked, her tone hesitant.

"Sorry, Marinette, I have a meeting in five minutes," Adrien replied, grabbing his briefcase.

"It's just that...I feel like we haven't spent much time together lately," Marinette said, a hint of sadness in her voice.

"I know, and I'm sorry. But you know how busy I am with work and everything else," Adrien said apologetically.

Marinette nodded, but the disappointment was clear on her face.

"I'm so sorry, Marinette. I know I haven't been around as much lately, but I promise things will calm down soon," Adrien said, trying to reassure her.

"It's not just that, Adrien. It feels like you're not even here when you are," Marinette replied with a sad expression on her face.

"What do you mean?" Adrien asked, not fully understanding.

"I mean you're physically here, but your mind is always somewhere else. You barely talk to me, and when you do, it's always about work or your father," Marinette explained.

Adrien sighed, "I'm sorry, Marinette. I'm under a lot of pressure with the fashion line and my father's company. It's hard to balance everything."

"I know, but we're a team, Adrien. We're supposed to work together, not be strangers living in the same house," Marinette said, trying to keep her voice calm.

Adrien nodded, "You're right, Marinette. I'll try harder, I promise."

But despite his promise, Adrien's behavior only grew worse over time. He spent less and less time with Marinette, leaving her feeling lonely and unwanted.

"Why don't we go out tonight, Adrien? Just the two of us," Marinette suggested one evening.

"I can't, Marinette. I have a meeting with my father's company," Adrien replied, not even looking up from his laptop.

Marinette felt a pang of sadness in her chest. "Can't you cancel it? We haven't had a date night in months," she pleaded.

"I can't just cancel on my father's company, Marinette. I have responsibilities," Adrien said firmly.

"You always have responsibilities, Adrien. What about your responsibility to our marriage?" Marinette snapped, her frustration finally boiling over.

Adrien sighed, "I'm sorry, Marinette. I know I've let you down."

She smiles at him.

"No... It’s alright, I understand."

Adrien smiled back at her and left quickly. Marinette stood in front of the door for a moment and then slowly turned around, contemplating the emptiness of their apartment. When she had finally gotten together with her crush, this was not at all the kind of life she had imagined for them. When had things gone wrong?

Their relationship only got worse with time.

Adrien sighed as he watched Marinette lazily sketching in her notebook. "You know, Marinette, you could be so much more. You have so much potential, but you just don't seem to care about your career."

Marinette looked up at him, surprised. "What do you mean? I care about my career. I love designing clothes and accessories."

"But that's just it," Adrien said, frustration evident in his voice. "You're content to just design for fun. You don't have any ambition or drive to make it big in the fashion industry. You're not taking your career seriously."

Marinette's expression hardened. "Excuse me? Just because I don't want to become the next Coco Chanel doesn't mean I'm not taking my career seriously. I work hard and I have my own goals."

Adrien shook his head. "I just don't see it, Marinette. You're not pushing yourself to be the best you can be. And it's frustrating because I know you have so much potential."

Marinette stood up, throwing her notebook down on the table. "I can't believe you would say that to me. You don't even know me anymore, Adrien. You're so focused on your work that you don't care about anything else."

Adrien opened his mouth to protest, but Marinette cut him off. "I think we need some time apart. I can't keep trying to make this work when you're not even willing to try."

This was the first time Marinette left the apartment to seek refuge with her parents. Unfortunately, it was the beginning of a long series of disagreements, until the inevitable happens. One day, Adrien and Marinette were sitting in their apartment, and Adrien spoke up. "Marinette, we need to talk."

Marinette looked at him, sensing the seriousness in his voice. "What's wrong, Adrien?"

"I feel like we've been drifting apart," he said. "We hardly spend any time together anymore, and when we do, it's like we're just going through the motions."

Marinette sighed. "I know, Adrien. I've been feeling the same way. But I don't know what to do about it."

Adrien paused for a moment before speaking again. "Maybe we should take a break."

"A break?" Marinette repeated, her voice laced with disbelief. "Adrien, we're married. What does that even mean?"

"I don't know," Adrien admitted. "But something needs to change. I can't keep pretending that everything's fine when it's not."

Marinette looked down at her hands, feeling a wave of sadness wash over her. "I don't want to lose you, Adrien."

"I don't want to lose you either," he replied. "But maybe this is what we need to figure things out."

And so, Adrien and Marinette separated for a while. However, as the weeks turned into months, it became clear that their relationship was beyond repair.

Adrien looked at her, his expression sad and regretful.

"I'm sorry, Marinette. I know I've let you down. I just don't know how to fix things."

Marinette shook her head, feeling a sense of finality wash over her.

"I don't think there is anything left to fix, Adrien. We've grown too far apart. I think it's time for us to go our separate ways."

Adrien looked at her, his eyes filled with sadness.

"Are you saying you want a divorce?"

Marinette nodded, feeling a sense of relief wash over her.

"I think it's for the best, Adrien. We both deserve to be happy, and I don't think we can find that happiness together."

Adrien nodded, looking defeated.

"I understand. I just hope that someday we can both find the happiness we deserve."

Marinette nodded, feeling a sense of sadness wash over her. She knew that it was the right decision, but it still hurt to let go of the life they had built together.

They filed for divorce and went their separate ways. It was a painful process, but ultimately the best decision for both of them. Marinette left with the miraculous, including the cat's ring, and Adrien was left alone with his thoughts, wondering where it all went wrong.

#miraculous fic #miraculous ladybug #miraculous #adrinette

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