Chapter Text
This was probably the first time Adrien had ever been late in his life. The only other time he could think of was the day he was born, where his mother went into labor nearly a week after the original due date. Nevertheless, Adrien Agreste was never late.
The model had managed to sleep through all three of his morning alarms, waking up nearly an hour after his usual wake up call. Panicked, Adrien flung himself out of bed and swiftly prepared for his day, finding himself showered and fully dressed in record time.
With no time for his contact lenses, Adrien shoved rounded spectacles on his face, bid his cat farewell, and dipped out the front door.
The 23-year-old cursed under his breath, hastily running long fingers through his tufts of golden hair. A hurried glance at his phone alerted the young man that he had approximately fifteen minutes to hustle downtown to the agency or else he’d have to hear yet another lecture from his father about how disappointed he was.
Adrien picked up his pace, nearly sprinting down the hall towards the elevator. He mashed his pointer finger against the down button and waited, taking this time to finish buttoning his navy blue cardigan and readjust his favorite light blue scarf.
The wait for the elevator had been mercifully short, and as Adrien’s luck would have it, there was only one other person on board, as opposed to the usual twelve residents crammed inside. Adrien stepped in, pressed the lobby button, and stood back, watching the numbers slowly drop.
He took another peek at his phone. Thirteen minutes. The agency was a ten minute commute from Adrien’s apartment, so if there were no other obstructions, then he would be able to make it with three minutes to spare!
He sighed in relief, feeling some of his tension leaving his shoulders.
The scratching of a pencil against a sheet of paper fell upon his hears, reminding the blonde that he wasn’t alone in the elevator.
Adrien slightly turned in the direction of the noise and felt his breath hitch in his throat. His green eyes wide in wonder, mouth agape, and heart started to wildly thump in his chest. Despite his best friend Nino teasing him for being a romantic, Adrien had never considered himself capable of falling in love at first sight.
No, Adrien was much more logical than that. Or, at least he thought he was.
Beside Adrien, sketching away in a worn sketchbook, oblivious to the starstruck boy beside her, was a small girl with dark hair tossed up in a messy topknot and bright blue eyes, which were currently focused on whatever she was drawing.
Adrien couldn’t hear the soft elevator music playing in the background, nor could he hear the pleasant chimes of the elevator as the two strangers descended towards the lobby.
At this point, he could only hear his own thoughts and the impossibly loud stuttering in his ribcage.
The girl was about the same age as Adrien, despite being so small. She was dressed impeccably, donning a black and white striped top, a bright red A-line skirt, and a pair of nude chunky-heeled shoes; as the son of a world famous fashion designer, Adrien took a moment to admire the girl’s effortless look.
The slightest movement from the girl, a quiet huff followed by a wrinkling of the nose, brought Adrien’s attention to the delicate spattering of freckles that lightly dusted her nose and cheeks.
His heart gave another jolt.
Who was she? Adrien had lived in this apartment since he was 21 and had never seen such a beautiful girl before.
Any plan for Adrien to introduce himself was thwarted as the elevator rang and the doors opened to the lobby. The girl looked up and glanced over her shoulder at Adrien, catching him off guard with the vibrance of her pretty bluebell eyes.
She politely smiled, bowed her head as a silent greeting and exited the elevator; Adrien stepped out as well, watching in awe as the girl weaved in and out of the crowd towards the main entrance, not paying attention to the goofy grin he had plastered to his face.
Adrien made a mental note to be late more often.