Chapter Text
Restless. That’s the word you’d use to describe Nino right now. Bouncing his legs, tapping out a beat with his fingers, and a concerned expression on his face. Seconds. Minutes. Time passed slow, and it was insufferable. When there was a reply, it had only been 10ish minutes, but when he opened the message, it terrified him, though it was one, single word.
[23:19] Help
“So… did he respond?” Said Alya, breaking the silence. No response. “Nino?” He was just staring at the text, unmoving. She decided he was taking too long and looked over his shoulder, peeking at his phone. She too had stayed frozen in shock, but she, on the other hand, had the capacity to speak and to not leave her friend in the dark. “Oh no… Mari, you need to see this.” A chill crawled down her spine; she gasped before bringing her hand up to her mouth instinctively. It was just one small word, yet the importance, the weight it carried, the power it had behind it had inspired fear, dread.
His worries, doubts, fears. What he’d so desperately hoped wasn’t true, was right before their very eyes. What are they supposed to do? How should they know how to handle such a situation. They were just teenagers. Collége students. Adults were supposed to take charge in these scenarios, but… Adrien was their friend. And his safety, his life … was in their hands now. But what should they do?
oOoOoOoOoOoOo
Adrien woke up in a cold sweat. He thought aloud, “Well, that was one hell of a dream.” Try ‘nightmare.’ He corrected himself.
Ow. Pain. Too much.
He had a huge migraine, and it seemed he’d forgotten where his painkillers were.
What… time. Did I put?… where… Reaching over to his nightstand, he pulled out the drawer in search of acetaminophen, ibuprofen, aspirin; anything. With each movement, he winced.
Maybe… the bathroom?
He walked over to the medicine cabinet— which usually held his makeup, but sometimes he’d put random things in there thinking he'd remember them later, but in actuality he’d freak out because he couldn’t find them. On the third, left shelf, right in the middle, was a small bottle of fast-acting ibuprofen.
Four capsules. Half cup of water .
He threw his head back as he downed the water and medicine. Back to bed.
Time is… What time?
He checked his phone for notifications; maybe his friends messaged him that everything was set for tomorrow.
[4 missed calls]
[10 unread messages]
After checking his inbox, he was… for the most part, awake. Most of the texts were spam, and the missed calls were from Marinette. Probably about the clothes she wanted me to look over. But… there was a message from Nino… They hadn’t texted each other in a while because they both prefer phone calls and video chats. And because it was so rare to see a text from him, it scared Adrien a bit.
[23:07] Hey dude, you good? You didn’t come to study with us, so we thought your old man said you couldn’t come. Just wondering how you were taking it.
[23:07] I missed you.
So it wasn’t- it was real ? That all happened? If he was losing consciousness before, he was certainly wide awake now.
Horror .
Fear .
Radio static filled his body and the feeling that something was crawling in his flesh and under his skin came back full force. It was getting harder to breathe as the events that took place earlier that night relayed in his mind.
Stop. Please. Stop, no. Please no.
Putting his hands in his hair, he pulled and he tugged.
No. No, no, no. Please, stop.
Scraping turned into tearing at his face.
No, stop. I can’t- I can’t breathe. Stop it!
Salted water stung his cuts, adding to the pain.
Please! I’m begging you; stop! Please! FUCK. I CAN’T.
Because of his throat closing up, he felt lightheaded. There wasn’t enough oxygen in his lungs. He felt like passing out when he could hear the faint sound of a ringtone over his beating heart. Breaking free from the flood of adrenaline, he reached over to find his phone. He was still in a spiraling state that hindered his sight and respiration, so it was hard to function properly. Eventually, he found it before the ringtone stopped. Pressing the green button, he answered the call; though he had no idea who it was. He just had the feeling that he needed to answer it.
“ Adrien. Adrien, you there? Adrien is that you? Adrien, talk to me… please. If you can…”
With tears still pouring down his face and a shaky, broken voice, he said, “Nino…?”
“Hey…” And there was the calm and soothing voice of his friend. “Can you tell me where you are?”
Where am I? It was a good question, but he wasn’t sure if he had the answer. He looked around and took in his surroundings as best as he could. “Uhh-mmm… I- I think I’m in… my- my room.” How did he even get in here?
“Ok. Can you try naming five things you see?” Nino asked.
What can I see? He attempted to wipe the tears from his eyes, but it didn’t help much. He told him he could make out his lamp, the pool table, the shelf, his window, and his bed covers. His friend helped him with his breathing, while Alya and Marinette were figuring out what to do. Should they call the police? Should they report it to CPS? They didn’t know. They’ve never dealt with something like this before.
Nino whispered, “Are you feeling any better?”
“Yeah… Thank you.”
“Anything for you, Mech. Anything .”
“Thank you…” Adrien fell asleep listening to the sound of Nino telling stories and humming.
oOoOoOoOoOoOo
Fuck the sun. Daylight is a bitch. Adrien wishes he had curtains. You would think, to avoid people spying on him, they would cover the windows. BuT nO! ThEy JuSt HaD tO lEaVe ThEm WiDe. FuCkInG. oPeN. He was awake now, so he might as well get up. His face still hurt, along with his hip and elbow. I hope a shower helps.
While undressing, he looked at himself in the mirror. Holy fuck. His elbow was just a little red, but that wasn’t the biggest problem. There was a small bruise and a couple scabs on the left side of his face. Gabriel’s ring must’ve nicked him when…
But the worst part was the bruise on his hip. It was pretty bad, sort of yellowish purple. There was a little red and brown in there too. It didn’t look very pretty; bruises weren’t really supposed to be pretty. He really hoped a shower would help ease the pain. With hot water hitting his skin, he felt his muscles relaxing; even if it was only a small relief. It was a bit taxing— all the scrubbing and stretching his limbs— but he got through it. He didn’t bother with makeup or breakfast; he didn’t have time. He was going to be late if he didn’t get a move on.
To his surprise, he got out of the mansion without being seen. Maybe Father’s on a trip? But… he didn’t say anything…
He had worn a hoodie to school to try and cover up last night’s errors. It was one of Nino’s, so he felt at least a little safer wearing it; it almost felt like he was being hugged by him. Nino always made him feel better, and sometimes he felt like he didn’t deserve it. When he voiced his insecurities, he always said he’d love Adrien enough for the both of them. Until he believed him.
Running up the steps, he made it to school just before the bell. It was a little chilly, so thankfully he had an excuse to wear a jacket. Hopefully, he would reach the classroom before it started.
Yet like a doofus, he tripped over his own foot and fell, hitting his head. Hard . He didn’t even reach the door. There were gasps and murmurs, but they were muffled. They must’ve heard him? Man, he did not want to get up.
“Oh my god, dude. Are you okay? Let me help you up.” The mysterious rescuer grabbed Adrien by the armpits and hoisted him up. “ Oh god , you’re bleeding. Mme. Bustier, I’m taking him to the nurse.”
“Al- Alright, let’s hope he’ll be okay.” She said as they walked out.
“Hey… you good, Mech?” The person gripped his shoulders and led him away from prying eyes.
“W… What?” He responded muzzily. Wait. Only one person calls me that. “…Nino?”
The boy in question took his face in his hands, cradling it. He assessed the damage and examined the wounds. All the while, his own face became pinched toward the center; his eyes held so much more emotion than he let on. “Mon dieu…” He inhaled through his teeth, and his brows furrowed. “At least my jacket is mostly black.” They both laughed a little. “But I’m serious… Are you alright?”
Hesitating, he took a moment to think. Am I? Am I okay? “Uhhhh no. No, I don’t… I don’t think so.” He said.
Nino’s face shifted to a look of distress before he spoke once more. “… Let’s get you to the nurse.”
oOoOoOoOoOoOo
“Oh dear. You’ve broken the skin.” Sissy said. Clearly. “You said you fell on your face?”
They had gotten to Sissy’s office and Sissy cleaned him up and gave him a warm compress to put on his forehead. Sissy told him not to mess with it too much, wouldn’t want to worsen it. “Honestly I don’t recall what happened exactly. All I remember is putting one foot in front of the other and then tripping on something. Next thing I know, my whole body hurts.”
“Did you see what happened, M. Lahiffe?” Sissy said while typing on a computer.
“I just heard a big thud and went to see what it was. Turns out it was Adrien?” He chuckled nervously. “Madame Bustier wasn’t too happy about me getting up from my seat though.”
“Okay, M. Agreste, I need you to refrain from touching your head, okay? I’m not exactly sure if you need staples or not. It is a fairly large break in the skin, and it’s not necessarily shallow. If it doesn’t scab soon or if it starts bleeding again, you might.”
Adrien didn’t want metal anywhere near his head. First off, that’s definitely a violation of the human body. It’s not supposed to be there. Secondly, that would mean that it would scar. And it would be pretty hard to miss; it was adjacent to his eyebrow. Why was his bad luck seeping into his civilian life? Was it his own fault? His father would be livid if he found out he was going to get a scar. What if the scar looked hideous? What if the cut became infected? What if he loses more blood because the wound reopens? What if blood gets on his clothes ? Father would be so mad. What if he gets so mad he yells at him? Or worse, what if he hit-
“Hey, get out of your head. You’re spiraling again.” Nino brought him out of his thoughts, he was right. Adrien had been overthinking, and—unfortunately— he’d been doing so in front of the school nurse. “It’s gonna be okay. If I have anything to say about it, that is… You trust me?”
Nino had offered him his hand, and he took it. “Yeah. I do.” He said, smiling softly.