"Look out!"

Adrien whipped around at a raw-throated scream. His blood froze. He had never imagined Ladybug could sound that way.

Who was she yelling for? What could make Ladybug so scared?

Then he saw the crumbling building, the rubble ready to bury him alive.

He gaped. He tried to move, tried to think of a way he could get away.

There wasn't enough time to transform. His eyes darted to the side for a possible means of escape. He could dive to safety if he were Chat Noir, but as it was he could not move fast enough.

He was going to die here, as Adrien Agreste.

Chat Noir would vanish without a trace. Would anyone figure out what had happened to him?

He closed his eyes. He braced himself.

The breath was knocked out of him violently. His body rotated in the air as something else took the brunt of the impact beneath him with a feminine grunt.

The ground shook from the impact of the falling building a half second later, but he was alive, still.

Adrien opened his eyes to see Ladybug lying underneath him, wincing. He leaped to his feet, shaking from adrenaline. "What happened?"

"I tackled you," she said. She stood carefully and pulled out her yo-yo. "Make sure to get away from the action faster next time."

"Sorry," he said sheepishly. "It was an accident."

"I'm just glad you're okay," she said. Beneath her mask, her cheeks flushed. It was barely perceptible, but it was such an unfamiliar sight that Adrien noticed immediately.

"Right," Adrien said, hoping his own cheeks weren't reddening. "Um, good luck with the akuma."

Ladybug dashed away without another word, and Adrien rushed to transform and join her. But nothing, not even the angry roar of the akuma victim, could drown out the echo in his ears.

"Look out!"

The bone-chilling scream, the grief in her voice -

Why? What made her care so much about him? Did Ladybug suspect something? Did she know he was Chat Noir?

Or did she know him, his civilian identity?

But what teenage girl he knew cared enough to grieve like that for Adrien Agreste?

"Dude, listen," Marinette overheard Nino saying in the library, "I know something's up that you're not telling me."

Marinette peered through the spaces in the books to see better. "Nope," Adrien said absently, paging through a reference book. "I've told you, Nino, everything's fine. My dad actually had dinner with me last night, and I've been doing well in French -"

"I don't mean anything bad," Nino said, wiggling his eyebrows. "There's a girl, isn't there?"

Marinette squeaked and ducked, as though she expected Nino to look in her direction. Thankfully, neither boy seemed to hear.

"There's no girl," Adrien said, but his casual tone was clearly feigned, and he turned the pages too quickly to have been actually reading them.

"Why didn't you tell me, man?" Nino asked in a lower voice, and Marinette strained to hear. "Who is she?"

Adrien sighed and shut the book with a thump. "I can't say."

"What?"

"I would tell you if I could," Adrien said, "but I can't. Yet, at least. It's...complicated."

"So it is Ladybug! Alya was right."

Marinette choked, but luckily her coughing fit was covered up by Adrien dropping the six-hundred page encyclopedia on his own foot.

"What? Where...where did she get that idea?" Adrien stammered.

"You're not too subtle about your crush on her, bro. And we all know she saved your life a few weeks ago."

"But - but she -"

"And Alya got a picture of her hanging out on your roof. Bro, are you dating Ladybug?"

"No!" Adrien said. "We're friends. She's just dropped by a few times since she saved me."

"I knew it!"

"She's checking on me, that's all. I have to go check out this book." He grabbed a thick volume from the shelf without even glancing at it and practically ran for the checkout desk, cheeks flaming.

"But you like her!" Nino protested, following after him. Marinette flattened herself to the shelf, but they didn't seem to spot her. "Isn't it possible she likes you too?"

"I don't know, man," Adrien said, taking his book back from the librarian. "I should go home, get some studying done. Talk to you later."

A moment later Marinette was alone in the library. Stunned, she slid down the shelf and sat heavily on the floor.

"Are you all right?" Tikki whispered from her purse.

Marinette chuckled softly. "Yeah. I'm good."

Adrien should have known this whole thing would get him grief from Nino and Alya.

In fairness, it was hardly the only aspect of the situation he hadn't anticipated. He was surprised at how easy it was to befriend Ladybug - although, he reflected, it was easy enough the first time.

When she dropped by his house the night she saved him, it was only for a few moments. The next time she stayed for a round of Ultimate Mecha Strike. Then she started bringing snacks - hot chocolate and pastries. They talked and told stories on the roof of the Agreste mansion, staring at the night sky.

"So what's it like?" Adrien asked. "Being a hero, defending your city."

"It's hard," Ladybug said. "I didn't think I could do it at first."

"That's crazy. You're amazing at it," Adrien said.

"I thought I couldn't handle it. I tried to give my Miraculous away."

This Adrien hadn't known. "What?"

"Chat Noir helped change my mind," Ladybug said, smiling. "I don't know what I'd do without him."

Adrien's stomach swooped. "Yeah?"

"Yeah."

"Some people think you're a couple," Adrien blurted. He bit his lip. Why did I just say that?

Ladybug just laughed. "Nah. But he's very important to me."

A warm feeling spread in Adrien's chest. "Well, anyone can tell that you're important to him, too."

She hummed. "We're a good team." She rolled over to look at him. "Okay, it's my turn to ask you something."

"Shoot."

"What's something that people don't know about you?"

Adrien smiled. Funny she should ask…but this wasn't the time to tell her. He cast around for something else. "Um, when I was little I always wanted a sibling."

"Me too," Ladybug said. "Never got one, though."

"Me neither." Adrien helped himself to a pastry from the basket she'd brought. "My parents were both so busy. My dad was designing, my mom was modelling. They were able to make some time for me, but there was no way they'd have had time for a second kid."

"Hmm." Ladybug's brows were furrowed and she played with a corner of her blanket.

"Your turn now. Something people don't know about you."

"I don't know...I'll have to owe you one."

"No fair," Adrien said, turning his head to look at her. "This was your idea!"

She laughed. "Okay...okay. Just give me a minute or two."

He waited patiently, listening to the sounds of the city at night while she thought.

After a few moments Ladybug took a deep breath in. "I kissed him once," she said quietly, eyes fixed on the sky.

Adrien choked on his pastry. "What?" he gasped.

"It's something no one knows. I kissed Chat Noir. It was strictly professional," Ladybug said almost defensively, propping herself up on her elbow. "I had to break a spell."

"Wow," Adrien said, hoping his voice didn't sound too much higher than usual. "When was this?"

"Last Valentine's Day." Ladybug said.

"I...can't believe I didn't see that on the Ladyblog."

"Thank goodness you didn't," Ladybug said, flopping back down on the roof. "If anyone had seen that we would never have heard the end of it."

"No one saw? How is that possible?"

"Everyone within a five-mile radius had either been taken over by the akuma or was fleeing to escape him," Ladybug said. "We were lucky."

"Wow," Adrien said again, stupidly. "Were you ever going to tell him?"

"No," Ladybug said.

"Why not? Don't you - don't you owe him that?" he asked tentatively.

"It would only torture him. I don't want to lead him on."

"Right," Adrien said, looking at his feet. He put down his pastry, not feeling so hungry anymore.

Ladybug's eyes were closed and her arms were over her head, her head resting on her hands.

"Ladybug?"

"Mmh?"

"Why'd you tell me that?" Adrien asked

She paused. "I don't know." She stood and dusted herself off. "I should be getting home."

"Sure," Adrien said, scrambling to his feet. "See you tomorrow?"

"Maybe," she said. "Good night, Adrien." With an odd smile, she disappeared into the night.

Adrien stayed out on the roof for another hour, fiddling with his ring, lost in thought.

Befriending her was easy. It was the things they didn't know about each other that made it difficult.

Thanks for reading!

This was written for mlfandomweek day 3: love square

Come bother me on tumblr - I'm peggiecarter :)