Adrien was twenty years old when he first became Chat Noir and met Ladybug. Four years later, amidst the toughest time of his college career, he meets Marinette Dupain-Cheng.
A College/Reverse Crush AU exploring what would happen if Marinette was fo...
It was as she was a metre away from the pair, awkwardly sandwiched between two girls having a conversation, that she caught what the black haired second year was saying, and why his face resembled that of a wet paper towel.
"So, what makes you think you'll have time for this anyway?" he was saying, arms folded tightly across his chest.
Adrien shuffled from foot-to-foot and, though Marinette couldn't see his face, she could tell he was uncomfortable. Call it instinct.
"Well, I've set time for it aside in my schedule," Adrien replied, his voice far too guilt-ridden for Marinette's liking. "Of course there might be some weeks where it's not possible to come because of deadlines and stuff but I made the decision earlier that I can't spend all my time working hard or I'll burn out."
"Uh-huh," the black-haired guy's (Terrance? Tony? Seriously what was his name?) tone was so flat, it could have been used as an ironing board. He rolled his eyes. "Sure, rich boy. You're all the same."
Marinette felt the beginnings of rage flutter in her chest, like a dozen tiny embers ready to converge into an unstoppable blaze at any moment. She stepped forward, her icy smile a contradiction as well as a warning.
"Is there are problem here?" she asked, standing by Adrien's side. He seemed startled by her sudden appearance, but didn't say a word beyond that. Perhaps he was trying to prevent a scene, unaware that Marinette had a fair idea what had been going on.
"Nothing, we were having a conversation," Black-Haired Guy replied with a shrug. "It baffles me, is all, how rich assholes like this-" he gestured with his thumb towards Adrien- "can get away with slacking off on something like a PhD. Guess it must be easy to not take life seriously when you have all the money in the world right?"
The embers in Marinette's chest roared to life and her hands curled into fists. Her gut reaction was to kick this guy's ass to the curb, and if she'd been a little younger and more rash, that would have been her course of action.
But she was older now. She wasn't a dumb sixteen-year-old just getting used to having superpowers. No. She was a young woman with responsibilities, and a reputation she was trying to build outside of her Ladybug persona.
So she tried a different approach. A quiet, seething sort of anger.
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"Look Tim-" she began, her voice dripping with venom. As predicted, he didn't heed the sharpness in her tone.
"My name is Lloyd," he corrected with a scowl.
"Listen Todd," she countered, making it very clear she didn't give a damn what his name was, "if you want to be part of this club, you better start treating your fellow members with the respect they deserve. I mean who do you think you are to judge Adrien just because he's wealthier than you? Nothing gives you the right to make such snide comments and, to be honest, I don't want that kind of attitude in a club I'm president of. So either buck up or get out."
