Marinette and Adrien stare at each other in silence.
Why isn't Adrien freaking out? Marinette eyes Adrien, confused, but doesn't say anything. Didn't he care that she kissed another guy, especially a famous superhero? Another minute passes. "I kissed Cat Noir, Adrien. It was after I left your birthday party. Cat Noir came to visit and we started talking and I just kissed him without thinking. I'm so sorry."
"You don't have to be sorry, Mari. I kissed Ladybug. I caught her outside my window." Adrien laughs, adding, "She came to wish me a happy birthday. And I kissed her. I'm sorry, too."
You didn't actually cheat on me, though. "I didn't expect you to react this way." Marinette crosses her arms. "I thought you'd be angry, disappointed, or even a little jealous. But you seem so calm and released while I'm trying to stop my heart from ripping out of my chest."
Adrien wants to tell her everything. Just give up the truth, but he couldn't stop thinking about what Plagg said. What if Hawk Moth found out their true identities? They'd be putting themselves and their loved ones in danger. The last thing Adrien wanted was to hurt Marinette.
"I'd be a hypocrite if I reacted that way, Mari." He reaches for her hand. "You kissed Cat Noir. I kissed Ladybug. In our defense, we were both in emotional positions and we made a dumb choice."
"You still want to be with me, Adrien?" She asks, confused. "For real?"
Adrien pulls her closer. "Of course. I meant what I said, Mari. You mean everything to me."
Marinette starts crying and hugs Adrien. He wraps his arms around her waist and holds her tight. "I just feel so horrible, Adrien. You don't deserve to be with someone like me."
"Don't say that." Adrien rubs the back of her head. As Marinette continues to sob, a tear of his own sneaks down his cheek. He closes his eyes. Marinette deserved to know everything. It's not fair that Adrien knows her secret identity while she's left in the dark. Adrien opens his eyes, about to tell her everything, and sees Plagg floating in front of him, shaking his head no. He leans back and smiles. "Up for a late night walk?"
Smiling through the tears, Marinette grabs his hand. They walk under the Eiffel Tower and look up, mesmerized by the bright lights. "It's beautiful," She whispers, losing herself in a trance as the lights blur with her tears, "It's like staring into Heaven." She leans her head on Adrien's shoulder, sighing. Everything's going to be okay.
Adrien leans down, kissing her forehead, and smiles to himself.
"How did you even manage to sneak out?" Marinette asks as they continue walking.
"My bodyguard was distracted and Nathalie and my father were in his office." Adrien didn't mention the part about turning into Cat Noir to race to the Eiffel Tower. "Probably another meeting."
"What if your dad finds out?"
"I stuffed my bed with pillows," Adrien says, laughing. "I don't think it's fool proof, but..."
Marinette laughs and shakes her head.
Adrien squeezes her hand tighter as they walk to the park. It's empty. No one's here. Probably because people are home and sleeping instead of walking around Paris at night. He spots the fountain and turns to smirk at Marinette. "There's something I've always wanted to do."
"What, Adrien?"
Adrien jumps on the fountain, holding a hand out for Marinette. She takes it and steps up. "Haven't you always wanted to play in the fountain?"
"What?" She asks with wide eyes. "Won't we get in trouble?"
"There's no one here."
Adrien jumps in, splashing some water on Marinette, She laughs and follows him in. They start chasing each other around the fountain, slapping and kicking water until the other is soaked. Marinette trips on a pipe and tackles Adrien, sending them crashing into the water. Now they're both soaked. Her face burns red as she lays on her boyfriend. Laughing, Adrien pushes wet hair out of Marinette's face, cupping her cheek. He leans in and kisses her. Marinette grabs his face, leaning into the kiss, and screams as cold water runs down her back.
"We're going to smell like chlorine," Marinette jokes, moving wet hair out of her face. She reaches out and messes with Adrien's hair.
"Just a price to pay." Adrien grabs the collar of Marinette's coat and pulls her closer, kissing her again.
"HEY!" A cop shouts, shining a flashlight in their direction. "What are you two kids doing?!"
Adrien and Marinette look over with wide eyes. "Come on, Mari!" He grabs her hand, helping her out of the fountain, and they take off running from the cop.
"Stop! Get back here!"
They duck into an alley, hiding behind a dumpster, and soon lose the cop. He passes by. Adrien and Marinette face each other, erupting into a fit of giggles. "I can't believe we just ran from a cop."
"I'm used to running," Adrien admits, peeking out. "Fans chase me all the time."
"I don't think that cop wanted your autograph, Adrien," Marinette says, rolling her eyes.
Adrien grabs her hand. "Let's just hope he didn't recognize us." He stands up. "I think it's safe to go." Still holding her hand, they walk out of the alley, keeping their heads low. They run down to the subway, laughing. They jump on just as the doors close.
"Where are we going?"
"Wherever it takes us." Adrien faces Marinette, smiling.
Marinette shakes her head. "You're crazy."
"Crazy about you." Adrien steps forward and kisses Marinette again. He could never get sick of kissing her. Marinette wraps her arms around his shoulders, grateful they're the only ones on.
"What if we end up in a completely different city?" Marinette asks, keeping her arms around Adrien.
"Then we'll just have to ride back."
She rolls her eyes.
Adrien licks his lips. "You taste like fountain water."
"I wonder why," She teases, tapping his nose. "So... are we good? For real? You don't secretly hate me for kissing Cat Noir?"
"Yes. We're good. I could never hate you, Mari. You don't secretly hate me for kissing Ladybug, do you?"
Marinette shakes her head. "No, of course not." She hugs Adrien. "I just want to move on and leave this behind us."
Adrien smiles and pulls her closer.
***
Adrien walks Marinette home. It's almost one in the morning. If her parents were awake, they'd be furious.
"That was one of the craziest dates I've ever been on," Marinette tells him, rocking their intwined hands back and forth.
"So you admit it was a date."
"We did stop for hot pretzels. So, yeah." Adrien and Marinette face each other outside the bakery. "Today's been one crazy day, hasn't it? So much for your birthday."
"I got to spend it with you, Mari. So, best birthday ever." He leans down and kisses her. "Yeah. Definitely best birthday ever."
Marinette pouts. "It sucks you have to go back home."
Nodding, he says, "I know, but we can video call as soon as I get home."
"I'll be waiting by the phone." She kisses Adrien's cheek. "Goodnight, Birthday Boy."
"Goodnight, Mari."
Marinette walks inside.
Adrien heads home.
Plagg pops out from Adrien's jacket. "So, I see the two love birds are good now."
"We've always been good, Plagg. We belong together."
"But let me guess..." Plagg sighs. "After your video call with Marinette, Cat Noir's going to go see her?"
He nods. "I don't want to ruin what Cat Noir and Marinette have. What we have, I mean. Besides, it's fun teasing and flirting with her."
Plagg crosses his arms, saying, "I wouldn't go and flirt with her now, Romeo, or she might throw a certain cat off her balcony."
"Don't you know cats always land on their feet, Plagg?"
***
Marinette lays her bed, fresh from a shower and in her pajamas now. She holds her phone, on a video call with Adrien. The light from the screen illuminates her face in the dark. She checks the time. Almost three am. She can forget about sleep now. She stares up at her ceiling, wondering why Cat Noir hasn't stopped by yet. She said he could come.
"It's getting late," Marinette whispers, yawning. "I should probably go to sleep."
"Same here." Adrien fakes a yawn. He's too excited to go see Marinette as Cat Noir, he's wide awake. "See you tomorrow morning."
"Goodnight, Lovebug." Marinette blows a kiss to the phone before hanging up. She sits up, rubbing her eyes as she stares at the ceiling trap door. "Why do you think Cat Noir hasn't come, Tikki?"
"Why are so so worried about Cat Noir?" Tikki teases.
Her eyes widen. "What? I, uh, no reason. I should apologize for earlier. I overreacted."
"Maybe the cat took a cat nap?"
Marinette yawns. "Probably."
"So..." Tikki flies in front of her face. "Have you thought about that internship with World Wide Fashionista?"
Marinette's eyes widen. "No! I completely forgot about that! After everything that's happened today, it slipped my mind." Climbing out of bed, she goes and checks her email. Just like Michael said there's an email waiting for her. On the bottom there's a question for her, asking if she accepts. She has to click yes or no. "Even if I wanted to go, Tikki, I can't. Ladybug is needed in Paris. I can't be in two places at once."
"But this is everything you've dreamed for, Marinette!" Tikki stands in front of the computer screen. "You wouldn't give up being Ladybug for that?"
"No, Tikki! Ladybug's important to me." Marinette turns her computer off. "I love being her. I love helping people. And I love Cat Noir. Even if he's flirty and annoying sometimes. He's the best partner ever." She starts to cry, whispering, "Yeah, it sucks that I have to give up this amazing opportunity, but I have plenty of other chances to be a fashion designer. I only get once chance to be Ladybug."
Tikki watches Marinette. There's a duel going on between her head and heart.
Marinette wants to go, but Ladybug has to stay.
"It's not wrong to be selfish sometimes," Tikki whispers, floating over to Marinette.
"You want me to give up Ladybug?" She asks, holding Tiki. "Give up you?"
"Not at all! I love you, Marinette." Tikki kisses her nose. "But I want you to be happy. I would never want to hold you back from living out your dream. I support whatever decision you make, whether you chose to stay or chose to go."
"Thanks, Tikki." Marinette kisses her forehead.
There's a thump on her balcony. Tikki hides. Marinette races over, climbing up to let Cat Noir in. "Did your tail get stuck or something?" She asks, stepping back so he can come in.
"I had to take care of a few things," Cat Noir says, grabbing her hand and kissing it out of instinct.
Marinette and Cat Noir sit on her bed, facing each other. "I'm sorry for earlier. I overreacted."
Cat Noir shakes his head. "No, I understand." He scoots closer. "I'm sorry if I ruined things between you and Adrien."
"You didn't."
"So, how are you and Pretty Boy, then?" He asks with a smirk.
Marinette grins. "We're good, actually. And did you know Adrien kissed Ladybug?"
Playing along, Cat Noir's eyes widen and he gasps. "WHAT?! That blonde airhead gets to kiss Milady while I'm over here with nothing but my overlooked love and appreciation?" He pouts, crossing his arms. "You think you know a person."
Marinette giggles and Cat Noir smiles. He finally notices her eyes; she'd been crying. Why was Marinette crying?
"Today's been such a crazy day." Marinette hugs her legs, smiling. "Adrien and I played in the fountain at the park and a cop chased us. Literally! It was insane. We even got hot pretzels."
"Sounds like you had fun."
"I did. It was so much fun. It was nice to be able to let loose and forget about responsibilities for a couple hours."
Marinette and Cat Noir stare at each other, keeping a safe distance this time. She reaches out and flicks his bell, smiling at the sound it makes.