Chapter 1: Declaration

~LadyBug's P.O.V~

I was looking out into the distance in a carefree manner. It had been a pleasant Sunday, no angry citizens, no big disasters, and best of all, no akuma attacks.

I had spent my morning in the bakery with my parents, then talked about nothing in particular with Alya over the phone for a little while. When the afternoon came along, I slipped out quietly to meet up with Chat Noir. Together the two of us dashed from rooftop to rooftop keeping a lookout, and doing small various tasks around the big city. The most recurring job-, much to Chat's annoyance and my own amusement-, had been saving defenseless cats from branches that were too high to climb down from.

After all our running around, we made our way to the Eiffel Tower, nimbly leaping to the top taking the best seats in the city to watch the sunset over the horizon.

We talked about various things, but all chatter quieted down as the sun lowered in the sky. My inner designer couldn't help but be inspired by the spectacular display of color that blended across the sky. Brilliant oranges, pinks, and purples tinged the clouds as they faded into a dark blue where the light was fading. In areas where the sky had already darkened, city lights flickered on here and there, until the city became an ocean of tiny stars.

I wished I had my sketch pad, I sighed to myself.

"What are you thinking about?" Chat asked, bringing me out of my thoughts.

I glanced away from the gorgeous view to find his head cocked to the side, like he'd been observing me as intently as I had been the sky.

"Just that the city looks especially nice like this," I shrugged, leaning back into a more comfortable position.

"Yeah," he agreed. "I wish everyday could be like this."

"Me too," I nodded.

We sat a few moments longer and as the last bit of sun disappeared from immediate view, I stretched my arms and steadily got to my feet.

"Thanks for sitting with me," I yawned.

Getting swiftly to his feet as well, he made a point of giving me a playful bow. "Anything for m'lady," he winked.

"Yeah- yeah," I rolled my eyes. "Just watch out for trees on your way home. I won't be there to save you when you can't get down little Kitty."

"Still not funny," he crossed his arms in a slight pout.

"Whatever you say," I chuckled, turing my back on him. "See you tomorrow," I waved.

"Ladybug, wait," he called.

Before I could get very far, he grabbed a hold of my arm stopping me from throwing my yo-yo.

I looked at where his hand had grabbed onto me, and met his gaze with a puzzled expression. "What is it?" I asked.

"Well I...I- just, I wanted to tell you something before you left." He stroked the back of his neck bashfully. One look at his face was all I needed to know something was up.

"O-kay," I raised my eyebrow unsure of what I should expect. "I'm all ears," I said, I leaning back onto a metal beam behind to make a point that I was listening.

Chat hesitated, glancing at me like he was torn about whether or not he was going to tell me why he bothered to stop me. For a moment I didn't think he was going to say anything, (which was strange indeed for Chat Noir) but that all changed in a blink of an eye. Straightened his chest, and looked me dead in the eye with a sudden wave of confidence, gliding over until he was directly in front of me. He shifted the hand that was holding my arm down, so we were clasping hands in a very intimate way.

I probably would have stumbled backwards from surprise, but the beam I rested on held me in place leaving me staring at him like a gaping idiot."I-isn't it a little late to be joking around Chat Noir?"

"I'm not joking," he shook his head without any sign of falter. "Ladybug," he said, gazing at me intently. "I love you."

I nearly choked, but Chat didn't seem to notice as he continued his declaration of love.

"Since we first met, I've been in love with you. I've wanted you to know how I felt but the moment never seemed right. After spending all this time with you, all I can think about is how I'd like for the two of us to get to know each other better. I'd very much like for us to do this again, but next time, I want you to go with me as a date."

I continued staring at him like an idiot. "You're serious."

He nodded. "Of course."

"So when you… b-but we… "I stuttered in incomplete sentences. "You weren't just teasing me this whole time!?"

"What? No," his face finally faltered. "What made you think I was joking?"

"I-I don't know," I stammered. "I figured you flirted with all the girls."

"No," he shook his head. "Only you."

"...Ah," I said, wishing I had leapt off the tower when I'd had the chance. "Chat.. that's so sweet of you and I'm flattered. Really I am but… there's someone else who I-.. I really like."

He lowered his gaze letting go of his grip on my hand and taking a step back. "I see," he whispered.

I was afraid he might fall to pieces before me so I wracked my mind for something else to say.

"I'm sorry I didn't realize you felt this way sooner... I hope you don't feel like I was leading you on because I promise that's not-"

He held up a hand silencing my mindless ranting. "Say no more," he flashed a cheery smile. "I understand."

My heart broke for him.

Reaching out, my hand slowly rested on his shoulder in what I hoped was a comforting gesture. "Don't let this get you down Chat. You'll find someone else soon, I'm sure of it."

He nodded his head in agreement, I could tell he meant to keep our conversation good-natured. "You sure know how to let 'em down gently m'lady, you must get asked out all the time." He joked, giving me absolutely no indication of how hurt he might be. It only made me worry more.

"I'll probably see you tomorrow then." He concluded, grabbing my hand from where it rested on his shoulder. He held it longer than necessary before setting it down and turning to the edge of the tower. "Goodnight," he called over his shoulder.

"G-goodnight," I replied, but he had already leapt out of earshot leaving me rooted to the spot all by myself.

"Ughh," I groaned sinking my face into my hands shaking my head back and forth as if I could make the rotten feeling go away. I spun from the direction Chat had gone and swiftly flipped off the side of the tower.

We'd get past this, I would make it up to him tomorrow.

I was sure of it…