Miraculous Ladybug - A knock on the skylight

A knock on the skylight

Turning around one more time, he glanced at the skylight above his head and let out a silent sigh, his chest visibly deflating.

"Plagg is definitely going to be really grumpy when he realises I woke him up for nothing", he thought with a half-hearted smile.

His heart filled with sorrow at the thought of leaving her, but before he could sneak out through the skylight, Marinette woke up. Chat Noir froze, unsure of what to do. He just stood there on her bed, staring at her as she stirred under the covers. Marinette blinked several times and straightened up on her elbows, trying to understand what was going on in her room. She squinted her sleepy eyes and gasped when she instantly recognised her partner. She couldn't help but notice his sagged shoulders and his cat ears lying flat on his head. Something was wrong.

"Adrien? What are you doing here? Are you okay? Are you hurt? Is there an akuma?"

"No no, there's no akuma, don't worry", he replied quickly, realising his presence in his partner's room in the middle of the night could have been misinterpreted.

Looking ashamed, Chat moved toward her in a slow movement.

"I-It's nothing. I'm so sorry to bother you, M'lady, he stammered. But... hum... you said I could come here whenever I wanted to, that you would always leave your skylight unlocked for me just in case, and I really really needed to see you, so..."

The surprised look on Marinette's face gave him mixed feelings; he scratched the back of his head and lowered his eyes.

"I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have woken you up for nothing, that was selfish of me", he apologised. I'll go now, please, go back to sleep, I..."

But before he could escape, he felt a soft tug on his belt.

"Kitty, please don't go", she begged softly, her deep blue eyes shining with fondness and concern, and Chat Noir's heart skipped a beat under such a kind and reassuring gaze.

Marinette held out her arms and that was the only sign Chat Noir needed. His bright green eyes shone with visible relief in the dark. Without being asked twice, he pounced on the bed and dove head first into her embrace, almost tackling her in his momentum. Marinette yelped when she felt herself tipping backwards but Chat Noir's arms locked around her and they both fell on her giant cat cushion, his gloved hand instinctively protecting the back of her head. A small giggle escaped from Marinette's lips when he buried his face into the crook of her shoulder and started purring. She locked her arms around him and Chat Noir melted under her touch. His tense body instantaneously relaxed and he let out a sigh he didn't know he was holding.

"You never bother me Kitty", Marinette said with a comforting voice while stroking his hair. "And you know you're always welcome here".

Chat Noir's purring intensified and he cuddled closer to her, nuzzling her neck. His throat didn't feel so tight anymore.

There was no other place he would rather be right now. Marinette was the only person in this world who made him feel safe. And loved.

They both stayed silent for a while, just basking into each other's warm presence. Marinette was absent-mindedly stroking his hair, but she definitely could tell something was bothering him. He glanced at her, casting her a bright smile but Marinette wasn't fooled: this was his model smile, this wide yet sad smile that didn't reach his now misty and heavily clouded eyes.

She knew that Adrien was not the kind of person to ask for help and would rather sulk in his own sorrow all alone in his room. But ever since they discovered each other's identities, he progressively opened up to her and let her see his more vulnerable side. Marinette knew that this was a side of him he was not really comfortable with showing to anyone, and she was more than happy he trusted her enough to confide in her whenever he felt down instead of bottling up everything inside like he used to do.