The Situationship

A cast out of Hollywood, and the popcorn from the candy stand

Adrien knocked on the door tentatively. He was 5 minutes early and he knew exactly how some girls were if you did such a thing, but he'd been so bored at home alone. It was quite amazing how living in an empty apartment could motivate your need to leave, so much so that he was ready to rock about an hour before he needed to be.

Moving his tie around slightly, he checked the apartment number for the tenth time, making sure his contacts weren't playing him up and blurring the 10 into an 18, before pulling his phone out again and checking the text message from Marinette. He was certain he was in the right place. So why was he so anxious?

Since he'd arrived back in Paris he was on edge, everything affecting him in the most pathetic and useless ways. As he walked down the street to get supplies for his cupboards, he was constantly looking over his shoulder just in case fans decided to chase him down the street. As he ate Nutella out of the jar, he couldn't help but panic that his father was going to storm in at any second and scold him for eating so disgustingly and carelessly. Worst of all, as he picked out his own outfit for a public appearance, he couldn't help the overwhelming desire to call Nathalie (which he did, but she didn't answer!).

His past was haunting him, and after a stern word from Plagg, he pushed it back where it belonged. It had been years since he'd graced these streets with his presence. Adrien Agreste was no longer known here, but the signs still lying around the city told him his alter ego was. Salt was being rubbed deeply into his wounds. Chat Noir was still everywhere. From billboards to tourist trap shops, to the sides of buses – the heroes were still big in Paris.

He looked down at his ring again, losing count of the number of times he'd tried to transform. It was futile. Whatever had happened had taken the magic out of his ring...unfortunately, it hadn't taken the cheese obsession out of Plagg.

Along with something else. Plagg had gone out on his search for Ladybug, only to have quite the awakening when neither she nor Tikki could see him – only Adrien. An added extra to the fear of what had actually happened that night in the theatre.

"I don't think she heard you knock," the kwami said, sticking his head out of Adrien's pocket.

Pushing him back down, Adrien stretched up to knock again. This time, though, his fist missed the wood, instead falling through the doorway and into the open as he came face-to-face with Marinette, narrowly missing punching her in the face.

"Good evening," he said, plastering on a smile. She looked different to when he saw her last time. He looked her over from head to toe but couldn't quite pinpoint what it was. Had she grown? Had Botox? What the hell was different?

Comment on her hair, a voice said in his head. You're just standing there like a doofus.

"I like your hair. Is it shorter?"

He couldn't be positive, but he was almost certain his internal monologue was having quite the time insulting him. To be honest, he couldn't blame it, especially as he was now certain her hair was not, in fact, shorter... It was longer. A lot longer.

"Extensions, Dumbass!" Adrien suddenly called out, Marinette almost falling backwards from his outburst. "Sorry, just...insulting myself. I - um - I see you've had extensions!"

She tilted her head to look at him, almost as though she was waiting for him to speak again. He tried to come up with something that would make him sound less like an idiot. Instead, the silence was broken by her smile, his own answering in response.

She pinched a section of the extension and ran her fingers down it. "I have. Do they look okay? Dominic said they should last me the next couple of weeks. Then, as long as he can take photographs for his portfolio, I can get them refitted."