Chapter Text
Chloe is used to being alone; she had been for a while, despite wishing to be with someone, a part of her can't seem to find someone she would settle with.
She stares at the open envelope on the other side of the room, contemplating whether to come or not. She was supposed to finish her paperwork, but her mind was somewhere else.
She had been invited to Alya's baby shower, and if she wanted to come, she would be running late now, but her mind couldn't seem to decide whether to come or not. Stuck in her mind, finding every possible consequence that might happen if she did go, and the only thing that is even making her consider coming is also stopping her from coming altogether. She's a mess, opposite to what she's trying to appear as.
It has been a week since she received that invitation, and it has also been a week since thoughts about a certain blue-haired girl occupied her mind. Chloe knew that meeting the girl was something that was always bound to happen now that she was back in Paris, but deep down, a part of her hoped that meeting her would not be as soon as this baby shower.
The clock strikes 7:00 pm, making her completely late. She went for her phone and composed a message instead, deciding to just not go at all and express her apologies to Alya.
She's not going. That's it. So she buried herself with paperwork, tried to find papers she could work with, distracting herself from thinking about her. She got back to staring at the documents on her table, the opened files in her laptop, burying herself with more work, trying not to think about the party, the people, and the girl she couldn't get over, even after all the time they had been separated.
She thinks she's starting to lose her mind as she stares at the blank document for her upcoming proposal. She might just be having delusions as the blank document stares back at her, and all she can focus on is the blue-haired girl who appeared as her phone lights up.
Hearing her phone ringing a certain tune reserved for someone special. Her stomach dropped, knowing damn well that this was something she could no longer avoid. As much as words echo in her mind, she knows that ignoring the humming of her phone is impossible.
She’s her weakness. Against everything that had happened, she answered the phone.
"Mari?" Chloe answered the call.
"Chlo? Are you busy? Are you doing anything? I don't want to intrude, but I just need to hear you right now." Marinette said in quick succession, the panic in her voice heard as she asked away.
Chloe knows that in this moment, everything about her that screams she should not do anything drastic died down. The only thing that she could manage to think about was the person on the other line.
She let out a breath she didn't know she was holding and said, "I'm here, tell me everything."
For some, that could be a stupid thing to do, but for Chloe, it had been something she was waiting to hear.
"I'm here outside of the hotel. Can I see you?" Marinette asked, uncertainty heard in her voice as their last talk wasn't exactly as nice as they would have liked to think it happened.
"Come by the rooftop, meet me there." Chloe requested to meet on the rooftop, it had been a special place for her, for the both of them. That's why, even though Chloe had been in Paris for a couple of weeks now, she still couldn't go back there. Until now, with Marinette.
The elevator opened, and Chloe took in the scene right before her. It was just as she remembered, kept as it was, just as she requested. It was one of her orders before going to another country, not to change anything. She walked around, remembering the moments shared in every corner, shared with who was once her lover.
Marinette Dupain-Cheng.
Just as Chloe roamed around the garden, the elevator opened, revealing the girl she had been thinking of. She looks different now, but still the same Mari she has known most of her life.
The blue-haired girl only lifted her head as she got out. Now stood frozen, face to face with the girl she once let go.
"Mari, come here, sit by me." Chloe offered, as she doesn't think she could stare at Marinette any longer. Awkwardness filled the air as Marinette started walking to the bench they had spent most of their teenage years on.
Chloe sees Marinette fumbling with the strap of her bag, clearly contemplating what she's going to say as she tries to open her mouth, but no words seem to come out. Chloe can't help but chuckle; she is still the same girl she knew.
Marinette heard the noise come out from the girl beside her, "What?" She asked.
"Nothing, just fascinated that old habits do die hard when it comes to you," Chloe answered, smiling at the other girl.
This answer had Marinette let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. She thinks to herself that, despite everything, Chloe is still the same Chloe she knew.
"Come on, Mari, let out with it, you came here because of something, right?" Chloe pushed, wanting to keep the awkwardness at bay. "Is it because of the baby shower Alya is having tonight?"
"Yes, how'd you know?" Marinette asked curiously, thinking how Chloe managed to update, knowing she just got back home.
"I was invited, but I couldn't come, work, and all that." Chloe excused.
Marinette didn't seem convinced, knowing Chloe, but a part of her is glad knowing that even though they had broken up, their friends still include her. "Oh, sorry about the intrusion, you must have been very busy right now."
"Nothing to apologize for, I was just wrapping up for tonight. So, before we get off topic, care to share what led you to this part of the city?" Chloe asked, remembering the panicked sound of Marinette's voice when she was calling.
"I felt alone and unaccomplished, and throughout that party, I was just reminded of the life I have wanted but I don't have," Marinette explained shortly, trying not to let it sound like it affected her.
Chloe understood; she had always known the dreams Marinette had, and she had been a part of it at some point. She scooted closer to the girl, placed her hand on her shoulder, and pulled her against her body.
Marinette's walls completely broke then, now completely crying. "I was just reminded of everything that had happened, everything that is happening in my life right now. All along, my friends and I were thinking that it would be me settling down first, that I'd be the one with children first, but that certainly didn't happen. Not happening soon at all." She said between cries.
Chloe can't do anything but console the other girl, also heartbroken with what's happening. Deep inside, she knows that this meeting was not good for the both of them. Remembering how their last interaction went, this goes against everything they have talked about.
Marinette cried, she cried and cried, until she could no longer cry anymore. And Chloe lets her, she stayed, let her cry on her shoulders until she grew tired, until Marinette fell asleep.
Chloe decided to carry Marinette back to her room. Took care of the girl as she slept soundly on the bed that had comforted them both before. Seeing Marinette peacefully sleeping now after all the heavy cries, after letting out all the pain she had been carrying all along, the burden of her responsibilities that she never truly agreed on. Chloe is now seeing Marinette, free; it must be freeing to finally get all of that out.
As Chloe watched her sleeping, the ringing of a phone brought her back from her reverie. She got up, saw "Alya" on the phone, calling Marinette. Knowing this girl might be worried about Marinette, she answered against her better judgment.
"Hey, Alya, Mari's with me, no need to get worried." She answered the phone, not letting Alya speak before she finished what she had to say.
"Oh, Chlo, yeah, okay, thank you." Alya was caught off guard, not expecting the voice she heard. "Even with everything that happened, you two really end up crawling back to each other." Alya hung up the call.
Chloe was left, phone still by her ear, realizing that with everything that had happened between them, the push and the pull, here they are, back in each other's arms. Whether that's healthy or not, it seemed like they just can't let go of each other, the person they got used to being around, the comfort only the other could give, the familiarity that can never be beat. They have been each other's safe space, since then until now.