Adrien loved hosting the New Year’s Eve party every year, always eager to fill up the house with loved ones. It was a beautiful contrast to the empty house he grew up in.
Louis, Emma and Hugo commandeered the living room along with the children of his friends. He had put on a kid’s movie in the hopes of keeping them entertained, but they weren’t interested in the movie at all. No, they were preoccupied with the giant sheet of paper in front of them as they came up with a plan to make it to midnight without following asleep.
As a former superhero turned parent, Adrien’s heart swelled with pride at the sight of his kids coming up with a battle strategy. He was especially proud when Louis suggested a buddy system to make sure their partner didn’t fall asleep. Try as they might, he knew the kids would be out like a light by nine, maybe ten if their plan worked.
His parents stood by closely, watching over the kids as they talked and caught up. Of course, Tom and Sabine did ninety-nine percent of the talking, The Gorilla happy to listen and make hums of approval. He had always been a man of few words.
In the kitchen, his friend and whatever former classmates were in town joked around the kitchen island. Adrien couldn’t help but laugh as Kim chugged a beer, insisting that his thirty-year-old self could still handle as much alcohol as he could when they were still teenagers. Alya filmed the whole thing, Wayhem and Ondine cheering him on knowing full well there was no stopping her husband. The others watched, snacks in hand as they watched the chaos unfold.
“Ah, Kim took on another dare?” Marinette came up beside him, more snacks in her arms. “Who instigated it this time?”
“Max did,” he chuckled, the regret clear on Max’s face. “Told him how statistically improbable it was that his alcohol tolerance was the same as when he was younger.”
She hummed in understanding as Kim grabbed another bottle. “You do know that at this rate, you and Ivan will have to carry him to his car again, right?”
“Yeah, we know. We already promised Ondine we had Kim handled.” Taking the bags of chips out of her arms and set them on the table so he could kiss her knuckles. “What do you say we get out of here, Milady?”
“And go where exactly?” Marinette laughed, shaking her head. “It’s our party. We can’t exactly leave.”
“Just outside for a bit of a breather.” He tugged on her hand and grinned when she didn’t resist, grabbing a throw blanket on their way out to the back porch. Adrien sat down on the bench before pulling his wife down onto his lap and wrapping the blanket around them.
“This is nice,” she sighed, leaning back against him. “It’s so chaotic in there, I didn’t know how badly I needed some fresh air.”
“I know what you mean. I needed this.” His arms tightened around her waist as he nuzzled into her neck and made her giggle.
“Have any New Year’s resolutions, Kitty?” She shifted sideways in his lap so she could run her fingers through his hair, brushing them out of his face. His eyes closed as he savoured the feeling while he thought about it.
“I want to be a better husband, a better father.”
“I don’t think you can be better when you’re already the best,” Marinette corrected, pressing a kiss to his cheek. “That doesn’t count.”
“Ah, it doesn’t?” Adrien gave her a childish pout before thinking. “I want to make as many new memories as possible. I don’t care what they are, just as long as there’s plenty of them.”
“Even if one of them is cleaning up after Kim at two in the morning?”
“Of course!” She shook her head at that knowing there would be a disaster to clean up after. “But most importantly… I want to make more time for moments like these… The quiet ones where we can just breathe.”
“That does sound nice, doesn’t it?” Marinette leaned down to rest her head on his shoulder, absorbing the warmth he gave off. “Well then, I’m looking forward to them.”
Adrien was too, especially after he and Ivan carried Kim to his car in the middle of the night. He really did not have the same alcohol tolerance as before.
