Red Strings And Markers

n i n e

Alya smirked. “Don’t try being coy around me, Marinette. I see you.” Alya said.

Marinette’s eyebrows furrowed, looking at her friend confusingly. “You see me what?”

“You know what they say, use food to win your man’s heart!”

At that, Marinette realized what she was talking about and gasped loudly, grabbing everyone’s attention. Alya shushed her and pushed Marinette to the in between of train cars.

“I-I am not! You know how papa is whenever we go out in groups! He always packs food for us.” Marinette stammered.

Alya nodded, a knowing smile on her face. “Mhmm, good cover up Marinette.” Alya replied, crossing her arms across her chest.

Marinette blushed but rolled her eyes, going into the diner car.

“You tired?”

Marinette was now sitting in her seat, the train having departed to Brussels. She had been yawning, drawing clothing designs on her tablet. Adrien watched as she drew, admiring her skill.

“A little. I had little sleep last night.” Marinette cursed herself for yawning again.

Adrien chuckled. “Excitement?” Marinette nodded. “You can sleep if you want.” Adrien said, patting his shoulder.

Marinette blushed and looked back down at her tablet. “T-Thanks but I-I think I’ll be okay.” She said just above a whisper.

“No problem.” Adrien stood and reached up to the luggage compartment above their heads, grabbing a red blanket and laid it across their laps.

Marinette thanked him softly and Adrien watched as she continued drawing. It went from a hat, to a coat, to a dress until it started to blur and Adrien’s head started to bob. He began leaning towards Marinette, eventually his head found hers and he fell asleep.

Marinette froze, a hot blush on her face as she glanced up at him. Unable to see, she pulled up her phone and shot a text to her best friend. She looked up and saw the couple cuddled, Nino with headphones in and asleep, while Alya was on her blog on her phone. When she got the notification, she looked up at them and smiled.

“He’s asleep.” Alya sent her reply.

Marinette let out a sigh and turned her tablet off, putting it away in her bag. Alya turned back to her phone and Marinette felt like she couldn’t do anything else but listen to the sound of his breathing and the train rolling over the tracks.

The waters of the English Channel were so calming and relaxing that she didn’t realize she had fallen asleep herself.

When Adrien woke up, the train was in a station, quiet, except for the soft talking that was around from the passengers that stayed in. He glanced forward, finding that the couple had left the train, probably going to the restroom or for a snack.

Adrien glanced down beside him, expecting to see an empty spot where Marinette was supposed to be, but he felt like his eyes were deceiving him.

Marinette was there, sleeping against his shoulder. Adrien watched as she slept, all her features were smooth and her skin shone with the soft light provided from the train. He looked down at her lips and they were parted, wishing he could lean down to kiss them. His hand unconsciously moved up to cup her cheek, his thumb stroking the smooth, plump bottom lip.

“C-Chat…” Her voice was soft and dreamy, some thing of pleasure immediately grew in his belly. He was more than glad that she was dreaming of him, but he was envious.

How could Chat make Marinette swoon, while as Adrien, he could barely do anything?

Cursing his alter ego and finding himself as his own competition, he held Marinette in place, before laying himself on her lap. He laid on her arms purposely,  in some hopes for her to notice in a half-awake state, that he was there and would respond in some way. Adrien watched as Mariette eyebrows furrowed and she lazily pulled her arms from under Adrien, settling her arms on him.

In Marinette’s half-awake state, she felt hair and ran her fingers through the locks, causing a soft purr to come from Adrien’s throat. Although the cat wasn’t in him right now, he found himself often purring when he was calm and happy – an event that only happened when he was with Ladybug or Marinette.

Adrien got comfortable in Marinette’s lap, his eyes growing heavy with her fingers running through his hair. He inhaled the scent that she provided, it wasn’t as strong as Adrien but it still enchanted him. He let himself fall asleep in her lap, mentally laughing at his alter ego.

When Alya and Nino returned back to their seats, they found Adrien in Marinette’s lap, Marinette resting on Adrien’s back and on her arms. Alya couldn’t help through soft smile that came over her face.

“Sometimes, you’d think that Marinette would just find out while he’s asleep.” Alya had a pen in her hand, going towards the sleeping two, but Nino grabbed Alya’s arm.

“Let them find out on their own if they are or not. What’s the use of us rushing them?” Nino asked.

Alya gave a sigh, looking back at the sleeping two. “You’re right.” Alya said softly. She gave her pen to Nino and went to the sleeping two, pulling the red blanket over the two. “I’m just happy they’re progressing.”

In the hand that wasn’t tangled in Adrien’s hair, Marinette’s pinky had a frayed string from the blanket. And as if pure coincidence, that same string had been unraveled and tangled around Adrien’s pinky too.