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Everyone expected the heir of the Gabriel Enterprises to marry his only son. Adrien wasn’t oblivious to Marinette’s crush, even if she had gotten better at hiding it over the years. He wasn’t against dating her either, she was a good friend and he knew they would have a happy life, but he took it too seriously. Even at 23, he couldn’t imagine settling down. He wouldn’t bring himself to date Marinette without seeing her in his future. He was hyper-aware that he was treading on shaky ground, and if he rushed into anything without thinking it through, Marinette would be the one worse off.
He thought being an adult would mean having more courage to get things over with, but lately Adrien found himself excusing himself whenever Marinette would bring up anything to do with ‘couples’ or ‘love’, even if it was just her talking about the wedding dress she was designing for Alya. He knew it was stupid and he was being paranoid (Plagg made sure of that). He just didn’t want to get into a conversation like that with Marinette, and not be able to tell her what she wants to hear.
Marinette was important to him. Maybe even more so than Nino. She helped restore his relationship with his dad, treated him like a normal person and helped create an opportunity for him to follow his dreams into studying STEM and leaving the fashion world behind. He was forever grateful and treasured their relationship, but no matter how he tried, Adrien just couldn’t imagine being with Marinette in a romantic way. Besides, Adrien was a firm believer that you didn’t need just one person to ensure your happiness. The weight of being the sole source of Marinette’s happiness was also too heavy for him to bear. As much as she had grown to know him as her best friend, he could tell she still had the fantasy of three kids and a hamster in the back of her mind from the hints Nino and Alya dropped.
He knew he was thinking about this too seriously. Marinette wasn’t a porcelain doll, there was no real harm in going on a few dates and seeing how things went. Especially with Alya’s new position in head editor at Vogue, she could veto any articles about their relationship until they were ready to commit to staying as friends or dating. He was just… scared. What was love, really? How did you know you were in love? How could you tell that love would last the long haul? His father’s relationship with his mother had bordered on obsessive. Could he really give Marinette the kind of relationship she wanted when all he knew were broken relationships? Sure, they got along great, but it was different when you lived with someone.
Which brought him back to the present moment. He was sat in front of his laptop, a word document open with his best man’s speech for Nino and Alya’s wedding half-written. Nino and Alya had moved in together a few months before Nino proposed, so most of the questions Adrien had regarding love they hadn’t had to worry about. Their relationship had already started changing in small steps towards that happy, marital bliss people wrote about in songs. He knew they still had their fights, but he also saw the way Nino smiled more in the mornings even though he was still more of a night owl. Adrien almost believed in the magic of love when he heard Nino had set his alarm early just to make Alya pancakes in bed for her birthday.
He hadn’t expected writing his best man’s speech for Nino would end with him doing an introspective on his thoughts regarding love. He sighed, saving what he had before closing his laptop and pushing himself into a spin away from the desk. There was still more than two weeks before the rehearsal dinner, and the wedding was another week after that. He could finish his speech another night.
Adrien tapped his spoon timidly against the glass, the whole room turning to look at him. He cleared his throat and gestured towards the newlywed couple beside him. “To Nino and Alya. Individually, you are both some of the most driven people I know. You have both pursued your dreams into careers that aren’t known for being stable. Yet, you stayed true to yourselves and forged forward, letting all the punches roll over you like waves. You both are strong individuals, and in your relationship you both encourage that. You are each other’s biggest fans, always lending a shoulder to cry on and a hand to be lifted up. You celebrate each other’s successes and cheer each other on during every trial. Watching you two grow together as a couple while still supporting each other in your individuality has taught me so much about love. Love makes you a better person. You both have proven that to me, and despite all you have gone through, your commitment to each other has always seen you both to the other side. Now you have made it official, I know that your bond will only continue to grow. Marriage is not a chain tying you together, but a foundation from which both of you can count on continual support and strength. Relationships take work, but I know that you, Nino and Alya, are more than capable. I love you both and wish you all the best on this new adventure. Cheers to the happy couple!”
He raised his glass in a salute, before leaning over to give Nino a firm hug as the guests’ applauded. Alya gave him a squeeze on his shoulder, mouthing ‘thank you’ as he settled back into his seat. His palms seemed to ooze sweat with the way he was needing to run his palms over his pants every 30 seconds. All this wedding cheer was making him slighty uncomfortable. It seemed like everyone around him had been obsessed with love lately. Alya and Nino (for obvious reasons), the press with his non-existent love life, and Marinette with her daydreams. He was tired of the expectations and rumours. But after seeing Nino and Alya’s reaction to his speech, he felt like he shouldn’t let that ruin his chances at that same happiness he saw radiating from his best friend and his new wife.
He did not love Marinette. At least, he didn’t know if he loved her or not. He hated being told what to do so his gut reaction was to reject any notion of romance between him and his father’s apprentice (but that wasn’t fair to himself or to her). He still didn’t know what romantic love was like to experience, but maybe if he opened himself up to the possibility…
Adrien had been scared of falling in love. There were expectations and cameras and scripted dates and too much could go wrong. Ladybug had been clear in her rejection of any romance between them so it was safe to love her. But Marinette… with her there were consequences and that was too risky. In the corner of his eye he noticed the string quartet changing their sheet music before starting up another waltz. He rubbed his palms on his pants again before finally standing up and walking over to her. He bowed politely, offering his hand (which had betrayed him and was already starting to sweat again!).
“Milady, would you like to dance?”
Marinette giggled shyly, nodding as he led her to the floor. Everyone expected the heir of Gabriel Enterprises to marry his only son. Adrien decided that if he did, it would be for love.