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Adrien had always defended his father from his friends; sure, he was reserved, even cold, but not heartless. But he was beginning to see just how callous his father could be.
When your son comes to you because his best friend’s entire apartment building burnt down, your response shouldn’t be, “Well, that’s unfortunate,” like it was just something mildly unpleasant. It’s unfortunate when your plans to play lacrosse are interrupted by a thunderstorm, or when you drop your croissant in a puddle. When you lose your home, it’s devastating.
Adrien seemed to be waiting for his father to say more, but when he didn’t, he prompted, “So, can they stay with us?”
Gabriel blinked, taken aback. “I should think not,” he said.
Adrien opened his mouth indignantly. They had plenty of room; there was no way his father could use that as an excuse, so what was the problem? But before he could speak up--and land himself in trouble--Nathalie interrupted the conversation.
She had been lingering nearby, chatting dully about something official and businesslike, no doubt, but when Adrien began to talk she had fallen back. Now, though, she drew both men’s attention back to herself and gasped, slapping her hands over her mouth quickly to stifle the noise. Gabriel tried to ignore the outburst, as it was unusually unprofessional of his assistant, but sweet Adrien, ever oblivious, quickly shifted the focus of his concern.
“What is it, Nathalie?”
Nathalie lowered her hands and smiled sheepishly. “I’ve refrained from saying this before,” she began, “but I live in the same building as your friend Nino and his family.”
Gabriel shrugged and took a sip of coffee, turning back to his newspaper. “That’s fine. You can stay here until you find suitable accommodations.”
Adrien rounded back on his father, openmouthed, but Nathalie held out a hand where only he could see and said, “Thank you, sir, but I wouldn’t want to impose. I’m sure I can stay with my brother and his family for a while.”
“It’s no trouble at all,” Gabriel said distractedly. “But if you’re fine, fine, that’s fine.”
Adrien gaped at him, and after a moment Gabriel seemed to notice this and looked up. “Yes, Adrien?” he asked irritably.
“So, hang on. Do you even realize--no, you know what, I know you don’t,” Adrien folded his arms. “So you’re fine with letting Nathalie stay here, but no one else? Don’t try to tell me it’s because we don’t have enough room, because that’s clearly not true. Nino’s whole family could probably stay in my bedroom, and you wouldn’t even notice. So what is it? I know you don’t like Nino, but can’t you get over that when there’s something bigger going on? And his parents are good people!”
“Adrien!” his father bit out, cutting across him. Adrien’s mouth snapped shut, and Gabriel pinched the bridge of his nose. “Fine. You’re right. We have the space, and it’s the right thing to do. Tell your friend he and his family are welcome to stay with us for the next few days, if you like.” He folded up his newspaper and threw it down on the table. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have work to do, and you should leave for school before you’re late.” He got up and stalked out of the dining room. Nathalie gave Adrien a quick, surreptitious wink, and followed after him.
It was much later that afternoon when Adrien returned, Lahiffes in tow. They didn’t carry much; each of them carried just one piece of a 5-piece luggage set, still shiny and stiff. They were obviously cheap, from the smell of them, and Nathalie tried not to wrinkle her nose as she welcomed them in.
“I’m Nathalie Sancoeur, Mr. Agreste’s personal assistant.” She smiled stiffly at them and extended a hand towards Nino’s parents. “Mr. Agreste is extremely busy, so if you need anything, please let me know.”
Nino’s mother shook Nathalie’s hand. “Hi. Mona Lahiffe. I don’t think we’ve met, Ms. Sancoeur. This is my husband, Damian, and my daughters, Charlotte and Lidia. And, of course, you know Nino. Thank you so much for your hospitality.”
“It was Adrien’s doing,” Nathalie said briskly. “Now, if you’ll follow me, I can show you the guest rooms.”
Nathalie led them up the grand staircase to the upper floor. Adrien picked up his and Nino’s bookbags and brought up the rear.
They walked past Adrien’s room and turned the corner into a long, wide hallway, at the end of which were two doors, one on either side of the hallway.
“There are two beds in the room on your left, while the room on the right has one,” Nathalie said, pointing to each door in turn. “They’re connected by a bathroom, which has been stocked, adequately, I hope, with towels and toiletries. Refrain from making too much noise, and stay away from the staircase to the top floor. Mr. Agreste has invited you all to dinner this evening, so please don’t be late.” Her tablet chimed. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to return to work; I’ll leave you to settle in.”
The clicking of her high heels echoed down the hallway as she left. Nino’s parents entered the room on the right, while his sisters took the one on the left, and the heavy doors swung shut behind them. Nino looked at Adrien, frowning, and shrugged.
“Come on, man,” Adrien said, forcing cheerfulness. “You’re staying in my room!”
They brought Nino’s things into Adrien’s room and dropped the bags on the couch.
“Hey, so, you’re cool with sharing the bed, right?” Adrien asked.
Nino’s frown vanished, and he scoffed, reaching out to grab Adrien’s hand and lace their fingers together, pulling him in closer. “Yeah, I’m fine with that.”
“Good.” Adrien rested his forehead on Nino’s. “Is there anything else I can do?”
“Dude, you’re doing so much already,” Nino said. “I don’t know, I just…” He trailed off, and his eyes dropped to the ground. He took a deep breath and looked earnestly at Adrien. “Thank you.”
Adrien squeezed Nino’s hand. “It’s no problem, Nino. I’m here to help.”
He leaned in for a kiss, but they were interrupted by a knock at the door. The two of them broke apart, and Nino tried to look busy unpacking while Adrien answered it.
It was Nino’s sisters. “Hey, nerd,” one of them said. “Mom and Dad have to go meet with the insurance guys, so they told me to keep an eye on you while they’re gone.”
The other one pushed past her sister into Adrien’s room and stared around in awe. “This is your bedroom?” she asked in disbelief.
Adrien scratched at the back of his neck. “Uh, yeah.”
They stood there in silence for a few minutes; Nino fiddled with his bags, while one of his sisters texted and the other walked around admiring Adrien’s cool stuff. Adrien stood nervously to the side, not quite sure what to do with his hands.
Something clattered to the ground, and he whirled around to see Nino’s sister standing with a DVD case in her hand, and several more scattered on the floor. She smiled sheepishly. “Sorry. I saw you had Wii Sports Resort, and I got excited.”
“We can play it!” Adrien exclaimed, already vaulting over the back of his couch to turn on the television.
Later that evening, after dinner (which, predictably, Adrien’s father failed to attend) and several more hours of video games (during which Adrien finally managed to tell the twins apart), they got ready for bed. Adrien lent Nino some sweatpants and a shirt, and they crawled under the covers together.
Adrien had been planning to stay awake until Nino was asleep, so he could talk to Plagg and apologize for having to keep him hidden basically 24/7 for the near future. But Nino’s breathing refused to slow down or even out, and after a few minutes, Adrien realized why. Nino’s back was to him, but the sound was unmistakable.
Adrien rolled onto his side and placed a hand gently on Nino’s arm. “Hey,” he whispered.
Nino sniffled and ran his hand across his face, before turning to him and managing a weak smile. “Hey,” he whispered back. “What’s up?”
Adrien felt like his heart might break. “Dude, you know I’m here for you, right?” he asked, tracing his thumb in slow circles over Nino’s forearm. “And I mean it.”
“I-I know,” Nino mumbled. His smile cracked, and he fidgeted in place for a moment before turning onto his side and throwing an arm around Adrien’s waist, burying his head in the crook of his neck. Adrien felt the neckline of his t-shirt growing wet.
Adrien wrapped his arm around Nino and rubbed his back soothingly. “Don’t worry, man, because I love you, and I’m always here for you.”
Nino paused, and picked up his head. He stared at Adrien breathlessly. “You what?”
Adrien blinked, mentally rewinding. At such a close proximity, he could still see the tears brimming in Nino’s eyes, and he wiped them away. “Oh. Yeah.” He drew his hand away from Nino’s face and buried it nervously in his hair. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to spring that on you, because I know you’re going through a lot right now, but I just--”
Nino started to grin, a real, genuine smile spreading across his face. “Adrien,” he interrupted. “I love you, too.”
“Oh. Cool.”
“Yeah, cool.”
Both boys were doing a terrible job of keeping a straight face, and they couldn’t take it anymore; they burst out laughing, before remembering how late it was.
“‘Cool?’” Nino asked, chuckling quietly. “You’re such a--” he broke off in a huge yawn “--such a dork.”
“Yeah, well, you knew that,” Adrien countered. He kissed Nino’s forehead. “We really should sleep, though.”
Nino snuggled down deeper into the covers, still keeping one arm loosely wrapped around Adrien. “Good night, dude.”
Adrien smiled softly. “Good night.”
As Nino drifted off to sleep, feeling the weight of Adrien in his arms, he couldn’t help but feel that, despite all the circumstances, he was incredibly lucky. The next couple of weeks would be rough, but he had his family, and he had Adrien, and they would pull through.