The only things that I own are the cover and the plot.
Cover created using Pic Collage
Hopefully you enjoy
Tikki stared across the street not really focusing on anything in particular as she waited for the crosswalk light to turn on.
….There was that kid again.
She'd seen that kid almost everyday for the past two weeks. Always in the same place, it was odd when she thought about it, she couldn't recall ever seeing him before two weeks ago and yet she knew actually how he would act. It was almost like clockwork.
He was leaning against the metal post of the stoplight, he'd push himself off, give her a little wave and then walk across the street, going the way she'd come.
Tikki had considered the possibility that he was stalking her but he never approached her in a threatening manner or otherwise and he never showed up anywhere else she went so she never had the chance to call him out on it.
She'd come to expect his presence at the stoplight, it just started to become a habit. She accepted it as normal.
He always wore the same thing. Black jeans, black boots and a black hoodie zipped all the way up. She thought that a bit odd as well though she supposed that he just owned multiple pairs of black jeans. She never saw what color shirt he was wearing underneath the hoodie because it was always zipped up, but she would bet a week's wages from the veterinary clinic that it was black like everything else he wore.
She looked at the crosswalk light and then at the rushing cars between them. She was about to do something very stupid.
She waited for a slight break in traffic, heart pounding in her chest she darted out into the middle of the road like a startled animal and half stumbled half ran across the street, nearly going deaf from the symphony of horns that blared in her ears.
She felt herself falling and braced to catch herself and prevent her face from coming into contact with the pavement.
Hands reached out to steady her and arrest her fall, setting her upright on her feet, a laugh broke through the ringing in her ears.
"Well, the ladybug's got luck."
"What?"
"You just ran into traffic and didn't get splattered on a windshield."
"No, I mean.. what did you call me?"
The boy gestured to her. "Ladybug?"
She glanced down at her red top, her red and black polka dot pleated mini skirt and black tights.
"Oh." Duh.
"Is there a reason why you ran across the street? I mean most people don't usually dart into oncoming traffic. You don't really strike me as the adrenaline junkie type."
"Well when I first saw you, you struck me as goth."
The words were out before Tikki could stop them and she felt her face go red, the guy laughed. "All the black right?" He asked, gesturing to himself.
"I'm sorry... I didn't mean to offend you."
He waved away her apology. "I deserve it, it's what I get for calling you an insect." The boy smirked, likely trying to suppress an amused laugh.
"I'm Tikki," she extended her hand into the space between them, an invitation and a challenge all at once.
The boy's chartreuse green eyes narrowed to slits, probably understandably suspicious of what the consequences would be of befriending a girl willing to run out in the middle of traffic, but he reached out and took her hand anyway. "Plagg."
"Is that, like a nickname or something?"
He just shrugged. Okay, change topic then.
"Black brings out your eyes."
Plagg blinked, raising an eyebrow. Taking a moment to process her compliment.
"Not many people can pull off that shade of red hair."
Tikki flushed again from embarrassment and reached up to tug self-consciously on a strand of her cherry red hair. "It was a dare." She explained.
"Dyes hair red...runs into traffic. Maybe you are the adrenaline junkie type."
Tikki snorted and rolled her bluebell eyes. "Hardly." She was aware that the sounds of cars had stopped from behind her. Plagg moved around her, placing a hand on her shoulder. "See ya around Ladybug."
"Yeah... okay I guess." she turned around to watch him walk across the crosswalk and was pulled out of her daze when her phone buzzed.
She pulled it out of her purse and squeaked in panic when she caught sight of the time. She was late!
She pushed the door to the veterinary clinic open, out of breath from running two blocks to reach the building.
"There you are." Mister Fu said, calmly looking at her from behind the corner. "I'm so sorry I'm late." Tikki apologized, frantic.
"I was wondering when you were going to show up late."
"What?"
"Oh, come now Tikki, darling you're on time every day. Showing up late once isn't going to get you automatically fired, I understand that you teenagers have lives outside of work, you have school and a social life to worry about."
"I wouldn't call my social life eventful enough to warrant being late to work."
Mister Fu just smiled.
"Go get ready for your shift our first appointment is in twenty minutes."
"Hey Ms. Depain-Cheng, what's in the box?" Tikki inquired when the dark-haired woman entered the clinic.
"Someone abandoned them on the back doorstep of the bakery, Marinette wanted to drop them off yesterday but she had classes."
Ms. Depain-Cheng had reached the desk and Tikki peered into the cardboard box to see three black kittens.
She took the box from her best friend's mother, "We'll give them a check-up and call the animal shelter to come pick them up….. do they have names?"
The older women shrugged. "Not that I know, why don't you name them?"
Tikki looked down into the box, biting her lip in thought. Two of them had blue eyes, the third had green, pale and shot through with specks of yellow.
"Jinx. Onyx, Sable." She would probably end up calling them something else by the end of the day, despite having a passion for animals she could never seem to give them the perfect names.
The next two weeks were boring and mundane, she still saw Plagg on the street corner most days but she never really knew what to say to him to start up a normal conversation and she wasn't willing to test her apparent 'luck' by running into traffic again. Despite Plagg's assumption that she was an adrenaline junkie.
Tikki waited for the crosswalk light, clockwork, habit. She was halfway across the street when she noticed that Plagg hadn't moved an inch.
The metaphorical clock had been broken.
"Hey," Tikki said, feeling more than a little awkward. Plagg just smiled and waved. He wasn't walking away so that meant he obviously wanted to talk but she had no clue what to say. He was still technically a stranger all she knew about him was his name.
"...So? How've you been?" she attempted to start the conversation again. He just shrugged. Not a talker. Tikki guessed.
"...hey….is...it okay if I give you my number?"
Tikki blinked surprised by the question. "It's okay if you don't want to give it to me I just thought that it would be a good idea, have more of a chance to talk where you don't have the urge to run across roads."
He isn't going to let me live that down is he?
"Oh….um….sure." Tikki knew that it was probably a less than wise idea to give her number out to someone who was practically a stranger but she figured she would be old enough to deal with any of the consequences if things went downhill she could always file a restraining order.
"Cool." He said, reaching into the pocket of his hoodie and pulling out a black Sharpie.
"You…..carry that around with you?" Tikki asked.
"Never know when you'll need one, I uh...left my phone in my apartment."
Ok fair enough.
"So... you're going to write your number on my arm? What are we in middle school or something?"
He rolled his eyes. "Just give me your arm." Tikki knew she could refuse, but what was the harm in giving him a fair chance. Get to know him before you make more judgements.
She rolled her sleeve up to the elbow and stretched it out to him.
Tikki let out a long suffering sigh as she trudged into the apartment, throwing her purse on the sofa in the living room and half glancing at the kitchenette before deciding that rest took priority over hunger and made her way to the bedroom. Collapsing onto the lower half of the bunkbed.
It didn't feel as comfy as she remembered. Um... Tikki. You're lying on top of my textbook."
Tikki groaned and rolled over onto her back. "What are you doing on my bed?" Tikki asked, already half asleep.
Mari giggled. "This is my half silly, you called dibs on the top bunk, remember?"
Tikki groaned again at the prospect of trying to climb a ladder. "I can't move."
"I take it your shift at the clinic went well?" Marinette questioned, trying to smooth out the wrinkles that Tikki had made on the pages of her textbook.
Another groan from Tikki. "I'm absolutely exhausted Mari."
Tikki wasn't one to complain so Marinette knew she wasn't complaining for the sake of complaining.
"Want me to heat up some leftover pizza?"
"I'm in the mood for cookies."
"The bakery is a block away, it would require walking." Mari warned. Tikki sat up with a visible effort. "Cookies are worth my legs falling off."
"You'd kill for my parents homemade chocolate chip cookies."
"If there's a line in the bakery I just might." Tikki replied, the picture of seriousness as she bent to tighten the laces of her black tennis shoes.
"What's that on your arm?" Mari questioned, grabbing her friend's wrist and pulling it closer to her at the same moment that Tikki responded.
"Just some guy's number."
Marinette froze, gaze traveling from her friend's arm to look Tikki in the eye. Mari blinked once. Twice, a grin spreading on her face so wide that Tikki was just waiting for her face to split in half.
"Mari it's not really-"
"Call HIM!"
"-a big deal." Tikki sighed, exasperated by her friend's enthusiasm.
"Not a big deal? Not a big deal? Tikki, some guy gave you his number! You're three years older than me and I've known you since I was in the seventh grade. In all the time I have never once seen you in a relationship. Even I have a relationship and you know what a clumsy stuttering mess I am."
"I'm not looking for a relationship Mari, you know that. I don't have time, with the clinic, and classes I don't have time!"
"I'm not saying turn it into a relationship. I'm saying call him. Just once, for me please!"
"No….don't give me the puppy dog eyes….. Mari….. no….fine!"
Tikki marched into the living room to fish her phone out of her purse, tilting her arm to better read the slightly smudged numbers.
Three rings passed without an answer and Tikki couldn't decide if she even wanted him to pick up,
She went back into the bedroom, Marinette had her nose buried in her textbook but Tikki knew she wasn't focusing on homework at all, she was just trying to make it seem like she wasn't eavesdropping- through to be fair their apartment was so small that there wasn't really anywhere you could go without being overhead.
in the middle of the fifth ring background noise finally entered her ear. "Hello?" The voice on the other end was definitely male and he sounded confused.
"Who is this? I don't recognize this number."
Tikki's eyebrows knit together and she saw Mari set down her textbook out of the corner of her eye, dropping the pretense of trying to study.
Tikki's confusion only grew. It didn't sound like Plagg, most people sounded different on the phone but still….she pulled the phone away from her cheek to double check that she'd dialed the number right. Glancing between the phone screen and her arm. It looked right….maybe it was a wrong number? But why would Plagg give her a wrong number if he was the one who wanted to give her his number in the first place...was this some kind of joke?
"Hello?" The voice on the other side of the phone asked. Tikki pulled the phone back to her ear. "Sorry….um who is this?"
"This is Adrien. Adrien Agreste."
Out of the corner of her eye Tikki saw Marinette tilt her head in what was most likely shock, confusion, curiosity or a mix of all three at the sound of her boyfriend's voice coming from the other side of the phone.
Despite the fact that Adrien was Marinette's boyfriend and the fact that Tikki and Marinette were roommates Tikki had had only about a dozen interactions with the boy. He and Marinette usually went somewhere else to hang out, the park or Marinette's parents' bakery. Tikki rarely tagged along,-she didn't want to be an awkward third wheel.- "Oh. Adrien hi, I'm sorry I was looking for someone named Plagg, I must've dialed wrong."
"Say the name again."
"Plagg?"
"Ah. Roommate. Gotcha, hold on a sec." She heard movement on the other line and took the pause in conversation as an opportunity to turn and face Marinette who was tapping away furiously on her phone.
Tikki debated asking what she was doing but the less she knew about Marinette's scheming the better.
"Hello?"
"Hi... Plagg... it's Tikki."
"Oh hey! Sorry I didn't give you my cell number I thought that would be a bit too much."
Tikki saw Marinette had torn her attention away from her phone and was now staring at Tikki again with rapt attention an unnaturally wide grin plastered on her face.
Tikki groaned. Glaring at her overly excited roommate.
Quit staring at me! She mouthed.
Plagg had heard her groan. "Oh...uh I can call back if you want…" he said sounding a bit disappointed.
"No!" Tikki screamed loudly enough to make Marinette jump and she wouldn't doubt that Plagg was at least a little bit deaf now. "Sorry," she mumbled, lowering her voice. The first part of her apology directed to both Plagg and Marinette.."..I'm not mad at you, just...give me a minute." She told Plagg.
Walking out of the bedroom and into the bathroom, shutting the door behind her to get a measure of privacy.
"Sorry," she said into the phone again. Hopping up to sit on the counter so she wouldn't have to stand and pace. "nosy roommate." Tikki added, trying to clarify why she had sounded annoyed.
Plagg snickered from the other side of the phone. "Tell me about it." Adrien's muffled protest reached Tikki's ear from out of the background. "I heard that! All of it!"
Plagg laughed harder in response to Adrien's protest. "Good. You were supposed to!"
"Just give the girl your cell number already so I don't have to hear everything you two say to each other! It's the twenty-first century for crying out loud. They have text messaging now."
"You got a pen?"
"Nope. Hold on I'll put you on speaker. That way I can take the phone away from my ear and type your number directly into my Contacts list."
"Okay sure that works."
Tikki put the number into her phone and thanked Plagg before hanging up.
There was a squeal from the other side of the bathroom door.
"Marinette!" Tikki scolded, throwing the door open and glaring down her friend, who in turn crushed her in a hug.
"Celebratory cookies! My treat. I texted Alya, she's meeting us at the bakery. Come on."
When cookies were involved. Tikki couldn't say no.
Alya screamed and hugged them both so hard that Tikki was afraid she'd get a broken rib.
Not that she cared. She hugged Alya back. "How's the internship in New York?"
"Fantastic!" Alya gushed as they retrieved a plate of deserts and claimed a table by the door. "They're talking about hiring me into their traveling program. Report on stuff abroad. Which basically means that I can come back to Europe and still keep the job."
"That's great!" Marinette squealed. "You can move back in with me and Tikki."
Tikki rapidly nodded her head, too busy chewing on a cookie to verbally reply.
"Thanks guys!" Alya said, reaching for a blueberry muffin. "So enough about you me what's new with you guys?"
"Marinette's dating Adrien now!" Tikki blurted, quickly swallowing her cookie with a pleased smirk on her face as Marinette started to blush.
Alya inhaled sharply a grin slowly spreading across her face "Adrienette lives!"
Marinette sighed. "Come on guys we're seriously going to bring up that dumb 'ship' name you two came up with in middle school?" She was met with fiendish grins from both of her best friends.
Well if that was how it was going to be.
She refused to go down alone.
"Well Tikki has a crush on Adrien new roommate!"
Tikki almost choked on her second cookie as the teeth-baring grins turned to her.
"It is not a crush." Tikki almost screamed.
Marinette lifted an eyebrow, she wasn't quite done yet.
"Oh please, he gave you his number!"
Another unnecessarily loud inhale from Alya.
Tikki flinched. "So?"
"So?! So? Now you can hang out with me and Adrien without feeling like a third wheel!"
"I thought you said that you didn't care if I turned it into a relationship or not?"
"I don't." Marinette reassured her clearly distressed friend.
"You guys can hang out without being a couple."
Tikki wasn't going to give Mari the satisfaction of knowing she was right. Okay so maybe she had overacted.
"Friday is weekly movie night, Alya you should invite Nino and then we can all carpool over to Adrien's apartment it will be just like old times!"
Marinette's blubby excitement was contagious. Tikki couldn't help but agree they likely would have dragged her there anyway.
Can't beat 'em join 'em.
