(After Sapoti)
"Your friend is quite something" Chat remarks, "I didn't get the chance to say before you ran off with her, and I was tackled by those kids" he eyes her as they look out over Paris from the rooftops.
"She is. I'm really glad she took the responsibility well, and gave me back the Miraculous like she promised" Ladybug says, swinging her leg over the edge of the building.
His eyebrow arches, "'Gave it back'? You mean, she didn't get to keep it?"
She shrugs, "Yeah, the Guardian told me we can't risk having more Miraculous' out in the world."
"How many more could there be?" He asks, sitting down next to her.
Ladybugs eyes widen, remembering the box of Miraculous' secret compartments, "A lot."
He leans back in surprise, "Oh. Wow."
"Yeah."
"Well, if they all turn out as nice as your friend, I don't think I would mind the new company." He leans back on his elbows, admiring the city.
Ladybug tries to suppress the twinge of jealousy awoken inside her. She never thought she would have a problem sharing this life as Ladybug with anyone but Chat; as if the inclusion of other people lessened their relationship. Alya was doing a great job of concealing her identity from Marinette. Even when they passed a newsstand with the headline 'Paris' Newest Superhero?' with the silhouette shot of Rena Rouge against the sky, Alya was able to keep cool, though she could only imagine the internal combustion happening in her head.
"You're not still mad about the other day, are you?" She asks self-consciously.
He looks confused at her, before realizing she was talking about his rooftop surprise. "No, of course not. I understand that you were busy." He shrugs it off, seemingly not bothered.
"That's not really the part I was referring to." She clarifies, solemn.
His face doesn't change, "I could never be mad at you, Bug-a-boo" he replies in an even tone.
She nods, "Good, good." There's a pause before she tries to change the subject, "I just don't know how often Rena will be joining us, or when someone else would be joining us" she says quickly, turning away.
Chat leans forward to try to see her face, "Am I sensing a bit of jealousy, M'lady?"
She scoffs, flustered, "What? Me? Jealous? I'm the least jealous person there ever was. I was voted 'least jealous' in middle school. I'm not jealous." She frantically spurts out, realizing how unconvincing she sounded.
He sits up, suppressing a laugh, "You know, even if more heroes join us as we continue to protect Paris, none of them could compare to you."
"I-uh," Ladybug feels her cheeks grow warm.
"No one could replace you on this team... or in my heart." He ventures, pushing his luck.
She hesitates, her breath catching in her throat, "C-chat," she whispers out on a shaky breath.
"I don't want to be that guy who's always waiting for the girl to change her mind, and I especially don't want to be the guy who imposes himself on a girl to make her feel guilty, but here I am and I'm sorry. Forget I said anything." He turns his body away from her.
She can't help but feel sorry, even though it's not her fault she doesn't share those feelings for him. But she can imagine how the situation would change under different circumstances. "I'm sorry," the words spilling from her lips anyway, "I don't want to lead you on."
There's a long pause before he whispers, "I understand,"
"Is there... anyone else?" she starts, not exactly wanting to go where she's going.
His ears lift slightly, "'Else' as in..."
She presses her lips together, trying to pull his thoughts away from her. "Anyone else you're interested in?" Besides me? she mentally adds.
He gives the tiniest smirk, not blind to her tactics but decides to play along for her sake as well. "I guess." He rocks his head back and forth, as if playing with the name in his head.
Ladybug sighs with slight relief. "Well why don't you, you know..." she flounders for a second, now really knowing what tone to take.
"Ask her out?" Chat fills in. Ladybug nods. He smiles at her slight awkwardness, a side he rarely gets to see in her. His shoulders rise and fall with his breath, "I don't know. She's just a really good friend. I've never really thought about her in that way" he says but his eyes give off a different message.
Ladybug catches this, smiling to herself, "Are you sure about that?"
A slight blush crosses Chat's cheeks. "I don't know..."
"I think you should give her a shot." She encourages, nudging him a little.
He smiles, genuinely giving into Ladybug's advice, "Alright, I think I will." He sits up a little straighter, looking out into the distance, "Marinette, do you wanna go out sometime?" he practices saying, "Yeah, it feels right" he says turning back to Ladybug.
Ladybug's brain short circuits for a second.
"Uh, Ladybug?"
Her mind mentally reboots, taking in everything around her. 'Right now, I'm Ladybug, on a roof with Chat, but I convinced Chat to ask out a friend of his, "Marinette", is it a different Marinette, or could it be....'
"Ladybug."
She snaps back to the present, "So, uh, this friend of yours, Marinette, what is she like?" She asks, walking a dangerous line of revealing herself, or even learning Chat's identity by mistake, but curiosity overwhelms her.
"Oh she's great, super nice, sweet. She's really into design. She's actually done stuff for Jagged Stone before!" He brags in her favor, but all of this just sends Ladybug into a tailspin.
'If Marinette... if I get asked out tomorrow, I'll know Chat's identity!' She silently freaks out over this fact. Her brain struggles to find a way out of this before blurting, "Actually maybe that's not such a good idea," she turns and sees a confused look on his face, "asking her out..." she finishes.
A bitter twinge is added to his features, "What? Why would you say that?"
She just shakes her head, unable to come up with another explanation.
"Do you have something against Marinette? Do you know her too?" Chat's voice easily becomes accusatory, getting more frustrated with Ladybug's conflicting advice.
"No no no, it's not that-"
"Then what? Are you jealous?" He raises his eyebrows.
"No!" She says firmly, 'Jealous of myself? What have I gotten into?'
"Then what is it?" He tries to look her in the eye but she's unable to face him.
When she doesn't respond he stands up in a huff, "It's getting late. I'll see ya." He says, keeping his statements terse before vaulting away.
---
Marinette lingers in bed the next morning, not very eager to go to school. Tikki flies out from under the bed. "Tikki, what am I going to do? What if Chat still plans on confronting Marinette, I mean, me?" She moans into her pillow.
"Can't you call in sick?" Tikki squeaks.
She shakes her head, "I've got a huge science test today I can't make up. Plus, I can't call in sick for the rest of high school" She mumbles before finally pushing herself off the mattress and getting ready for school.
She spends most of the school day hiding behind walls, keeping out of sight of her classmates when she can. She even avoids her friends, getting to her classes right before the bell to minimize interactions.
Adrien becomes concerned more than anything else. He confides to Plagg at his locker, "Is it just me or is Marinette acting strangely? I haven't even been able to say hi."
Plagg eats the cheese hidden on the top shelf of his locker, "Who knows? Maybe you're just unlucky; wouldn't be the first time." He says as he strokes his whiskers.
His lips press together in thought. "I'm sure I can catch her after the final bell."
"Are you just doing this to spite Ladybug? What's the rush?" Plagg questions before flying back into Adrien's bag.
He shakes his head slightly, "I've just got to do this. For myself." He shuts his locker and heads to his final class.
As the final bell rings, Marinette makes a mad dash for the door, finally relaxing once on the open streets of Paris, where it was less likely for her to run into anyone she knew/ potential Chat's.
Just as she's about to cross the street to her home, she hears her name, "Marinette!"
She turns in surprise to see Adrien running to join her on the street corner. Her mind tells her to run home, but her heart still swells when he says her name, so she stays put. "Hey Adrien," Her smile is a little goofy and lopsided as he comes beside her.
"Hey. Sorry about running after you, I just, I haven't really seen you all day and I really needed to ask you something." He rests his hand on the back of his neck, a little sheepish.
Marinette can't help but feel more at ease at this sight, a side she rarely gets to see in him. Her mind wanders off from her stress of hiding all day. "Yeah?" she says, a little dazed.
He clears his throat, shuffling his feet slightly, "Marinette, I was wondering if you'd like to go out sometime?"
Her reality shatters around her. She feels as if she's floating, or falling, she couldn't tell which. Her mind collapses into battle with itself, 'OhmygoshAdrienjustaskedmeout!! But does that mean he's also Chat Noir? Doesthatmatterthismeanshelikesme! Yeah but does this mean I have to tell him I'm Ladybug? Can I do this without letting on I know his identity? Justsayyesandworryaboutitlater!'
"Y-yes." She finally says in a shaky voice, having dreamt about this moment for years but never with this context.
His eyes raise, physically perked up, "Great! I'll pick you up around 5 tomorrow?"
"Sounds great," she answers on reflex as Adrien starts walking back towards the school, beaming at her.
Once he's out of sight, Marinette sprints to her house, nearly getting run over by a car in the process. She bounds up the stairs past her parents and into her room, throwing her bag onto her bed, she starts pacing frantically. "Tikki, I don't know how to feel about this..."
She flies out and tries to keep pace with Marinette, "Isn't this what you've always wanted?" she squeaks, "Whether or not Adrien is Chat Noir, this is practically what you've been dreaming of since we met."
Marinette groans, "But I never imagined it'd be this complicated." She keeps her eyes down as she paces, unable to make eye contact with the pictures of Adrien on her walls. "Maybe this was just a big coincidence. Adrien doesn't have to be Chat Noir, and Adrien and I can date in peace and start making a list of names for our future hamsters..." She half smiles, getting a little lost in her daydream.
"Marinette." Tikki calls her back to reality. Marinette stops and looks at her Kwami. "Marinette, I think we have to consider the larger probability that Adrien is Chat."
Marinette starts pacing again, more frantically, grabbing her diary from her desk and flipping through the pages, "I'm just, it's not how I imagined my life going," she opens to a marked section of pages, "I planned out everything. And nowhere did I plan for Adrien and Chat to be the same person. I have separate life paths for each of them, mostly ending with the hamster thing for Adrien, and defeating Hawkmoth for Chat" she explains.
"And those two can't overlap?" Tikki prods, trying to get Marinette to accept a new path.
She opens her mouth but hesitates, stammering slightly, "It's, it's, I've already written it down, in ink!" She shows Tikki the page. "It's also, kinda, written in here, in ink..." her finger rests on her temple, "metaphorically."
Tikki sighs and guides Marinette to her bed, "The future is always changing, nothing is set in stone, or ink." She gestures to her diary. "Is the fact that Adrien Agreste is Chat Noir really that bad?"
She takes a deep breath, her shoulders relaxing, "I just can't picture Adrien having a 'Chat' side to him, or Chat having an 'Adrien' side, you know? It's hard."
Tikki rests on her shoulder, "'Marinette' and 'Ladybug' are two sides of one person..." she adds.
"-So is 'Chat' and 'Adrien', I know," she says, finishing the thought. "You're right." A smile breaks free from her lips. "When do I break it to him that he's dating Ladybug after all?"
Tikki perks up and flies up to her face, "Oh, I'm sure he'll be heartbroken,"
Marinette lets out a laugh, "Since when do you use sarcasm?"
"Seemed appropriate" she shrugs, proud of herself. "I guess you can tell Adrien/Chat whenever you feel is the right time."
Marinette looks at the time on her phone, "We should probably make sure he's who we think he is before revealing too much." She gets up from her bed, stretching, "Maybe he'll tell Ladybug about his day... Spots on!"
She transforms and leaps out of her room towards their usual meeting place.
--
As she approaches, she spies Chat playfully twirling his baton on the roof, seemingly in a better mood than when Ladybug last saw him.
She arches her way up and onto the building, softly landing a few feet from him. "M'lady," he greets, continuing to twirl his staff.
"Hey," she pauses a moment, "sorry about yesterday, about how we left things..." She trails off, unable to find an appropriate word to describe it, especially considering what she knows now.
His ears perk up, but he continues to toss around his staff, "Oh, don't worry about it, Buga-boo. I should actually thank you,"
Her eyebrows shoot up, "'Thank me'? For what?" She tries her best to hide her preconception of the situation.
"For convincing me to ask my friend out on a date." He leans on his extended staff, a shy smile blown across his face.
Ladybug nods, "Oh? By the look on your face I'd say it went well. You asked that Mary-nette girl?" She smiles encouragingly, hiding some of the enjoyment she feels holding her secret.
He drops his head in slight embarrassment, hiding his goofy smile, pushing the hair back from his face, "Marinette, yeah,"
Ladybug tilts her head to the side, her heart pounding a little faster as she recognizes 'Adrien' in Chat; solidifying them as a single person.
He lifts his head back up, smirking, "You sure you're not jealous right?" He jests.
Ladybug stifles a laugh, unsuccessfully hiding it in a cough, "No, believe me, no. I'm just really happy for you; you have no idea." She softens up. With a slight spring in her step, she wraps him in a hug.
Surprised but unquestioning, Chat returns the embrace, finding comfort in them being open with each other.
After the separate, Ladybug asks casually, "So, where ya taking her for your date?"
As he opens his mouth to answer, Ladybug throws up her hands, "Wait, uh actually, I want to be surprised." She says quickly.
Chat raises an eyebrow, "You want to be surprised?"
"Uhhh, yeah, you know," Ladybug stammers, "for when you tell me how the date went, after the date, the date with Marinette, I want it as a whole story, location being part of that, so, 'surprised'..." she stumbles through the explanation, waiting to gauge his reaction.
His expression relaxes, "You're funny sometimes, M'lady. Alright, I'll tell you everything afterwards." He nods before extending his staff out and vaulting himself off the building, shooting a finger-gun towards Ladybug, expecting her to catch up as she leaps after him for patrol.
--
It really sinks in to Marinette the next morning.
She wakes to her alarm, rolling over in bed absentmindedly, when her eyes fly open. "I HAVE A DATE WITH ADRIEN AGRESTE TODAY" she yells, jumping out of bed, scrambling for her clothes. "WhatshouldIwearwhatshouldIwear?" She mumbles, taking a breath, "It's just Chat..." she tries to reason with herself, "butit'salsoAdrien!" She continues throwing clothes behind her.
Tikki emerges from her sleeping spot, "Marinette, your date isn't till after school. I think you should worry about your date clothes later before you're late for class." She points out.
She screams again, looking at the clock, "Ahh, you're right!" She runs out of the room to wash up, when she returns she throws on her usual clothes, and bolts out the door.
Upon entering the school, Marinette skids to a stop next to her locker, finally taking a deep breath.
"Hey," Alya strides up next to her, "you seem a bit higher strung than usual, is something up?" She looks her over, scanning for any hint.
Marinette smooths her hair when she finishes gathering her books from her locker, "Oh, yeah, I'm fine, I guess I forgot to tell you-"
"Marinette!" Adrien calls out a few feet away, joining the two girls at the locker.
Marinette practically jumps at the sound of his voice. She turns slowly to face him, something happening when she looks into his eyes-
Chat's eyes. She wonders how she could have been so blind all this time.
Her heartbeat slows to a more healthy pace, the grip on her bag loosening. "Hey, Adrien," she replies coolly. Alya can't help but notice this unusual reaction.
"We still on for our date tonight?" He asks, his kind eyes melting into hers.
Alya's eyebrows raise, watching the interaction between the two. "Yep, can't wait!" Mari replies with the same demeanor, closing her eyes and smiling in a moment of excitement.
Adrien's smile spreads at this response, he nods, "Awesome" A bell chimes throughout the school, "Oh, see ya later, I guess, probably," he laughs at himself and waves bye to Marinette and Alya.
"See ya," Mari waves before closing her locker, turning to be confronted by Alya, "Um, yeah, I kinda forgot to-"
"Adrien asked you out and you didn't tell me?!" She scolds before throwing her arms around Marinette, "I'm not mad, I mean only slightly, but I'm so happy for you!" She releases her and they start walking towards class, "And what was that when Adrien walked up? I've never seen you grow calmer in the presence of that boy."
Marinette shrugs playfully, "Ha, I don't really know, maybe something has come over me." She jokes.
Alya chuckles in return, "Well, whatever it is, I guess it's working." She says as they sit down for class.
--
The day goes by in a blur. In between classes Marinette and Adrien only have time for stolen glances and hidden rosy cheeks afterwards.
As the final bell rings, Adrien meets up with her at her locker again. "Care if I walk you home?" He queries, tilting his head to the side.
She tries to suppress her grin, "Of course not. But won't Gorilla be mad at you?" She closes her locker and they head out of the school together.
He shrugs, "He'll probably follow from a distance, if that's okay." He takes her hand in his as they walk the streets of Paris.
Marinette eases into this, remembering the times that her and Chat had held hands. Those times never felt as natural as this moment; though, Ladybug and Chat were usually under much more dire circumstances when it came to hand holding.
"Where should I expect we'll be going later this afternoon?" Mari inquires, letting their hands swing between them slightly.
"It's a surprise. But it's nothing you need to prepare for." He ensures as they cross the street to the bakery.
"I'll see you at five then," She nods as she stops right before the bakery entrance.
Adrien bows slightly, "Can't wait, Princes-, er Marinette." He stumbles slightly over his words as a black limo pulls up behind him along the curb. They wave to each other as he gets in and is driven away.
Once out of sight, Mari runs up to her room and closes the door, taking a deep and slightly shaky breath as she slides her back down the wall, hiding her face in her hands.
Tikki flies out of her bag, "Is something wrong, Marinette?"
She shakes her head, looking up at her Kwami, her eyes slightly puffy, "No, everything is perfect, everything is just so perfect. Adrien and me, Chat and Ladybug, it's like it was meant to be." She closes her eyes in bliss.
"Most Chosen share a connection, but you and Adrien have the strongest one I've ever seen. I'm glad you two have finally untangled yourselves." She perches herself on Mari's knee, "Speaking of which, when are you planning on telling Adrien about your identity?"
She hesitates, getting up to wash her face, "I'm not sure. I was thinking about whether I should do it was 'Marinette' or 'Ladybug', or to him as 'Adrien' or 'Chat'..." she trails off slightly, taking her hair out of her pigtails and brushing them out.
"If you have a moment alone tonight, I think you should tell him." Tikki brings up, bringing Mari's focus back.
She puts her brush down suddenly. "Already?"
"He's wanted to know Ladybugs identity ever since he met you. I think he deserves to know that he's dating her." Tikki adds, hovering next to Mari in the vanity mirror.
"You're right. No more secrets. Everything out in the open. Just uh, I'll tell him tonight. For sure." She replies statically before starting to pace.
"He was vulnerable with you when he asked you out; now you have to let yourself be vulnerable and tell him you're Ladybug." Tikki preaches, trying to pull Mari back together. Mari looks up from the floor to her friend. "I know it's hard, but it's the next step you have to take."
She groans and flops onto her bed. "I know. But everything is perfect now. What if telling him my identity makes it weird between us or something?" She covers her face with her hands.
"We know he has feelings for 'Marinette' and 'Ladybug'; I have a feeling that he'll be more than understanding." Tikki reasons, hovering over Marinette.
She keeps her face covered a moment longer before sitting up. "I'll tell him. Tonight. No exceptions." She swears, moving towards her dresser. "But now I have to figure out what to wear,"
—
Marinette anxiously watches the front door from her room window, checking her phone for messages intermittently and watching the time turn to 5:27. Tikki sits in the window sill, watching her Chosen grow more and more anxious.
Mari smooths her knee length skirt repeatedly over her bouncing leg. "Maybe his father told Adrien he was grounded, maybe he took his phone away for some reason," she justifies quietly to herself.
"I'm sure there's a perfectly good explanation," Tikki interrupts, "it's not like him to do something like this."
"But I feel like he'd find a way to contact me if something came up," she says, her head hanging over her phone.
Tikki's foot bounces, looking around the room, "Um, let's just think about something else and then before you know it he'll be here or text or something." She flies over to Marinette's computer, shaking the mouse to wake it. A 'breaking news' story flashes across the screen and starts playing, Nadia's voice cutting in "-too much for Chat Noir?"
Marinette's heart jumps and she runs to the computer, leaning forward on the desk towards the footage of Chat Noir being tossed around by an enormous arm made of water in the river. "The villain, calling himself Aquaster, appeared in the river approximately 45 minutes ago, threatening to floor all of Paris, when Chat Noir showed up. There still have been no signs of Ladybug." Nadia states.
Marinette turns frantically towards Tikki, "We have to get down there now. I can't believe I was so oblivious." She scolds herself, but not wanting it to hold her back she cries, "Tikki, spots on!" And within seconds she zips her way towards the river.
--
Chat is slammed into the face of a building, his head ringing from the impact. He tries to shake it off, but his breath is shaky. He falls to the ground, landing on his feet, but now leaning heavily on his staff.
Aquaster was the torso of a man, 8 stories tall, completely made of the river water he was siphoning off to fight and floor the Paris streets. He turns his back on Chat as Chat catches his breath.
After a few more deep breaths, he slowly builds up to a run, ready to launch himself at the Akuma again, attempting to nab the Akumatized object at the heart of the Aquaster. He raises his staff to vault himself, but Ladybug swings in front of him, planting herself in his way.
Unable to slow down in time, he rams into her, sending them both over the fence and down towards the cold river below. Ladybug gets a grip on Chat as she grapples a light post above, saving them from splashing into the water.
"Not your best timing, M'lady," Chat smirks as they set back down on the sidewalk.
"I know; I'm sorry I didn't get here sooner, I can explain," she admits sheepishly, only able to imagine how much Chat has gone through on his own so far.
He shakes his head, "No time. I kinda have someplace to be right now so let's wrap this up," he says confidently, readying his staff again.
"Fair enough." Ladybug smirks. "Lucky charm!" She extends her yo-yo up to the sky, a fire extinguisher landing in her arms with a dull thud. Ladybug scans the environment, quickly piecing together a solution. "Distract him. Go for the akumatized object when it's open." She gestures with the nozzle of the extinguisher, giving it a test spray, a cloud expanding from the nozzle.
Chat gives a knowing smile before launching himself back into the sight of Aquaster.
Ladybug watches as he focuses Aquaster's attention away from Ladybug. She's then able to throw her yo-yo across the river and attach it to the fence on the other side. Securing her end, she creates a tightrope spanning the river.
"Super hero agility don't fail me now," she mutters as she finds her balance on the taut string, clutching the extinguisher to her chest. She takes a few tentative steps forward, finding it easier than she anticipated with her abilities. Gaining her stride, she makes it to the center of the river, positioned right at the back of Aquaster.
A constant mist of water clings to her, batting her eyes to keep her vision clear. The akumatized object, a pendant, is suspended before her behind a mass of rushing water as the river fed into his form.
Ladybug expels the extinguisher right at the pendant, the kickback from it causing her to lose some of her balance, but she quickly adapts her footing to the varying propulsion, freezing the water around the pendant, having to use her full concentration to keep herself from falling into the river.
Aquaster turns his attention away from Chat, seeing Ladybug at work. He reaches an arm back to swat her in her completely focused state.
Chat, seeing Ladybug in the eminent path of basically a solid wall of water, reorients himself mid-air and makes a beeline towards the heart of Aquaster.
The last bit of water solidifies around the pendant as Chat bursts through the chest of Aquaster, grabbing the ice-locked Akuma with one arm and Ladybug in the other; pulling her off her feet and out of the way of Aquasters fist.
They plunge into the river together, resurfacing moments later, gasping for air.
"Cataclysm!" Chat calls out as Aquaster makes another attempt on them, disintegrating the ice and the pendant inside it, causing a purple butterfly to escape.
"De-evilize!" Ladybug cries, catching the butterfly while treading water. She releases the purified butterfly and throws the extinguisher upwards, "Miraculous Ladybug!"
In a flash, the duo is placed back onto dry land, the carnage from Aquaster reversed. They breathe a sigh of relief. "Thanks for getting me out of there," Ladybug remarks. "I can explain why I was late,"
Chat rests a hand on her shoulder, "That doesn't matter to me. I knew you would come and help finish him off." He smiles as his Miraculous beeps. He looks toward a nearby clock tower, "5:58?! I'm so late, sorry, I've got to bounce,"
"But, uh-" She reaches out for him as he breaks away.
"I'll explain myself later, M'lady, I promise!" He calls out before vaulting himself over the Parisian rooftops.
She lets out a slow sigh, muttering under her breath, "That makes two of us." She watches as he disappears into the city in the direction of her house.
A shock runs up her spine, "My house!" She exclaims, grappling the nearest building and swinging as fast as she can to beat Chat to her own house.
'He has to detransform somewhere, that gives me some time,' she tries to reason out in her mind, the air rushing through her hair and against her face.
With full momentum, she bursts into her room from the open window. Sprawled put on the floor and trying to catch her breath, she hears a knock on the door downstairs.
She scrambles to her feet, as she hears her parents answer the door, and footsteps heading for her room. "Spots off!" she whispers as she gets in front of the mirror. She lets out a sigh of relief when she sees her outfit and hair are as they were before transforming.
Tikki flies out of her earrings, "Marinette, why did you change back? We could have just shown him your identity instead of rushing back here." She accuses.
She brushes her hair frantically, "I-it's just not the right time. I couldn't do that to him. Ahh!" She exclaims with the knock on her door.
"Marinette?" Adrien asks through the hatch, "Are you up there?"
She clears her throat, "Yep, one sec." Turning back to Tikki, "I'll know when to tell him." She picks up a small cookie and places it in her purse, motioning Tikki to get in.
She gives a curt nod before hiding away for her treat.
Marinette opens the entrance to her room, letting Adrien join her. He smiles wide, "You look amazing, as usual, you ever look bad," he cuts himself off, "I mean, wow" he concludes.
"Thanks," she feels a rush of blush all over her body, turning her face slightly away from him, "You look great too."
The slight blue of his collared button up contrasted his eyes nicely, highlighting their lighter tones. "Thanks," he holds out his hand and leads her down the stairs.
Her parents send them off with well wishes and an implied curfew for them to keep.
Stepping out of the bakery, Adrien holds open the door to his awaiting limo, letting Marinette duck inside with him following behind. They strap in and the vehicle moves with a slight lurch, Gorilla at the wheel.
Marinette glances out the window and back to Adrien next to her, "Will you tell me where we're going now?"
He chuckles softly, "I'll just say, someplace private with good food."
She smiles gratefully, "My kind of place," she adds, hoping it's private enough to reveal her identity.
They pull up to a seemingly abandoned apartment building on the edge of Paris' dining district. Mari raises an eyebrow as Adrien gets out of the vehicle. He reaches out his hand, "Trust me?"
Her shoulders ease, "Of course" she says solidly, taking his hand in hers.
He leads her inside the empty building, just walls and a light coating of dust. He calls the elevator and they step on alone, hitting the button for the roof. The elevator contrasted the rest of the building as being well lit and maintained. Mari unconsciously tightens her grip on his hand.
"You're not scared of heights, are you?" His voice dropping from concern, his thumb rubbing the back of her hand.
She realizes her reaction. "Oh, no, just, if it was anyone but you, I'd be a bit more freaked out by this." She looks up and down the rows of elevator buttons and the counter, dinging as they reach the 10th floor, then the roof.
As the doors slide open, they step out of the building and into the cooling breeze of night as the sun starts to dip below the horizon. Marinette's free hand flies to her agape mouth as she takes in the sight of a canopy of fairy lights draping around a table set for two at the center of the roof. The white iron furniture seemingly as delicate and as detailed as lace.
Adrien leads her to the table, pulling out her seat for her before sitting in his own spot across from her.
"This...this is really fancy for a first date." She jokes, but still speaking to the truth of it. A few waiters come out and place their salads and meals out in front of them before disappearing back down the elevator to the floor below.
He shrugs, his hands resting on his thighs, "I-I just wanted to make a good impression."
"You did, you really did." She notes, smiling; a nervous smile spreading across his face as well.
They eat and make pleasant conversation, sharing childhood stories and interests, laughing at each other's jokes and memories.
As they finish up dinner, and as the last of the sun's rays disappear, Adrien sets down his fork and recounts, "The rain...that day I lent you my umbrella, I remember it so vividly, the sky and the puddles and everything, and I've always kinda wondered why." He reaches across the table and rests his hand on hers, "I think I understand now..."
Marinette suppresses her reflex to squeal, biting her tongue as the blood rushes to her face. "That day changed everything for me too." She confides. His eyes light up, she squeezes his hand, "And I need to tell you something else about that day..." she admits.
A wave of concern comes over his face, "What is it?"
Marinette takes a quick scan of the roof, making sure there were no lingering staff. "I-I...I..." she bites her own tongue, unable to let herself reveal herself. "I... I also fell for you, that day" she admits instead; finding that revealing her love is easier than revealing her identity.
Adrien smiles sweetly, "It's like we're made for each other. It's my fault for waiting so long to confront you. Everything seemed so complicated, when you were there all along,"
Marinette melts at his words, but forces herself to focus. She looks away at the ground, trying to think of a way to get it out. "'Made for each other'... that's what I said to you, about Ivan and Mylene," she starts.
He straightens up a bit in his seat, "'Ivan and Mylene'?" He moves his chair closer to her so they're shoulder to shoulder, noticing that Marinette still seemed to be internally struggling with something.
She nods, leaning into him slightly, "Yeah, when Ivan got un-akumatized, I said to you, 'They're made for each other'," she smiles suddenly, remembering, "then you said... 'Like us, two'."
Adrien's eyes don't leave hers as she looks over Paris. He interjects quietly, "But, that can't be. You still hated me for that gum incident at that point..." he trails off, his mind struggling to get over the barrier in his mind.
She turns back to face him, her hand slowly running through the side of his hair. "May I make a request?" She whispers, realizing what she's about to do.
"Anything." He swears.
She turns her body to face him straight on, "Can you close your eyes, and not open them till I say so?" She proposes, her hand dropping to caress his face.
He nods, "I trust you" he says before closing his eyes softly.
She moves slowly as to not startle him and allow him time to stop her. She leans forward in her seat, moving out to the edge, and drapes her arms around his shoulders and behind his neck.
His breathing stays steady, hiding the fact that his heart is threatening to leap out of his chest.
She bring her lips close to his, waiting for a moment do any sign to stop. He gives the shallowest of nods in reply.
Their lips meet delicately, gentle and cautious with each other, their hearts echoing.
Mari takes a second to murmur something under her breath, in intelligible to Adrien as he brings his hands to her waist.
A flash of light shines briefly in front of Adrien's eyelids, but he is unfazed.
Marinette pulls back from him slightly, "Open your eyes," She intones.
He opens his eyes slowly, locking his gaze to her blue eyes, realizing the spotted mask now framing them.
Adrien's breath catches, seeing Ladybug intertwined with him, their arms still around each other. He tenses up slightly, taking in the situation as Ladybug holds her own breath waiting for his response.
"M-Marinette?" He stutters, unsure, despite his best logic.
"Yes, Chat...?" She ventures, her hands sliding from his shoulders to his arms.
Adrien releases a pent-up chortle, letting out some tension at the sound of her calling him by his other name. He clears his throat, "Wow, not used to that," he pauses and takes a deep breath. "So, you're Marinette, er, Ladybug, um both." He states, trying to lay out the facts. She nods. "And you know I'm Chat,"
"I wanted to tell you, but I couldn't and I'm sorry- "she defends, "I didn't mean for this to happen when I told Chat to move on from Ladybug, I couldn't have known-"
He suddenly pulls Ladybug close, holding them together in a tight embrace. He leans his head on her shoulder, finding the space in the crook of her neck. "This is the best surprise ever," he whispers, hugging her with no sign of letting go.
"So, you're not mad at me? After I turned you down repeatedly as Ladybug and it's probably my fault it took us so long to realize the web we made for ourselves." She feels her eyes starting to water, trying to blink the tears away, "We could have been together, happy, if it wasn't for me insisting on keeping our identities secret and never opening myself to Chat Noir," a thin stream of tears breaks away, "I'm sorry." She lays her head on his shoulder.
Adrien places a comforting hand on the back of her head, "Knowing you, all of you, as a friend, have been the happiest years of my life." He assures her, "Every moment with you has been, and is, valuable to me, more than you'll ever know. And I would do it all again just for the chance to relive this night again and again." He kisses her hand, "And... I look forward to knowing you as more-than-friends, M'lady."