"Karaoke?"
Marinette looked up from her sketchbook to stare at Alya. The redhead bounced in her seat excitedly and nodded vigorously, causing most of her hair to flounce about, making the half-Chinese-half-French girl laugh.
"Everyone in our class is going. Kim and Alix planned the event, and I JUST saw the message about it!" Alya pouted, "Looks like we're the last ones to confirm."
Marinette went to check her phone, and sure enough, there were 3 text messages from Alix, the oh-so-short girl from her class. Granted, she grew quite a bit over the years, but was still the smallest by far.
Hey Marinette! Kim and I planned to have a party after graduation, to you know, commemorate all the awesome years we've had! You in? :) - Sent at 11:45AM
We're probably going to be doing karaoke and just having some snacks. - Sent at 11:47AM
Everyone in the class has already confirmed going, except you and Alya! Let us know soon, alright? - Sent at 2:38PM
Marinette smiled and replied to the texts (We're definitely in! :D Thanks for the invite!),before throwing a smirk in Alya's direction.
"You didn't see the message until now? I thought you always had your phone on you!"
Alya had arrived earlier in the afternoon, randomly, catching Marinette in the middle of sketching out a design. Alya didn't seem to mind talking as Marinette worked, and the future reporter rambled on for ages about one thing or another before discovering the text.
Alya's tinted a slight shade of red, and began muttering about distractions and dinners while the designer grinned.
Guess she was too into talking about Nino to notice her phone buzzing, Marinette thought with a small smile.
Alya had heaved a mouthful about Nino getting her a gift for graduation, how he had planned to take her out for dinner and spoiling her silly before they're due to head off to university.
With a pang of her heart, the black haired girl remembered the reason they were planning a party in the first place. University.
Marinette remembered she had been delighted when she was accepted into Ecole de la Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne, and everyone was happy for her; her parents, Alya, Nino, and ... Adrien. When Marinette received the letter confirming her acceptance, she had instantly told Alya. Her peppy bestie had continued talking about it in school and Nino and Adrien overheard their conversation, giving their own celebratory comments.
"Congratulations! I knew you could do it, Marinette! And it's in Paris too! You won't even have to go far!" Adrien's words filled Marinette with happiness, and she just smiled at him like an idiot.
Even at the end of their high school years, she still hasn't managed to pull a confession to Adrien. The blond boy who had sat in front of her in class four years ago, the sweet, charming teen who always managed to make her tongue-tied. She lost count of how many times Alya had tried to convince her into telling him her feelings, and she tried, she really did, but every time she faced Adrien, her brain turned to mush and nothing came out of her mouth.
It wasn't that she couldn't talk to him. No, they had become friends over the years, even hanging out once in a while. It was the confessing part that was the hardest. She was never able to find an appropriate time to tell him. She always told herself, 'he was busy', 'we're friends now, that would be weird', and finally, recently, as graduation loomed closer, 'we're going to different universities. There would be no point'.
Adrien was planning to study at Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge to go into physics. The university was all the way in the United States, all the way across the globe. When Alya heard it from Nino, then relayed it to Marinette, she was, without a doubt, crushed.
Adrien knew his father would send him to a university of high rank, no matter what field he chose to study. He was surprised his father had even agreed to his decision to pursue physics. He thought it would take convincing, but Gabriel had allowed it and even applied to all the good schools for him before Adrien could even registered his father's words. He had wanted to go to a school near Paris, or in France, at the very least, but his father had other wishes for him. With enough money to send him literally anywhere, it wasn't shocking he was sent to one of the best universities. Halfway around the world.
He would miss everyone he met in France, and vowed to come back for visits as often as time would allow. He felt lucky he had so many good friends he could return to, all who patted him on his back, congratulated him, and saying how much they'll miss him. The one person who didn't say anything about it was Marinette.
The shy girl kept quiet about his university, avoiding his attempts at making eye contact. Out of all the people who said they would miss him, he knew she would be the one who did the most, and her silence proved it. Adrien became aware of her feelings for him ("FINALLY", Nino had exclaimed) two years ago, when he noticed all the pictures of him on Marinette's wall during one of his visits as Chat Noir. He had never really been inside her room, most of the time just on her balcony, but after being invited inside during an especially cold winter night, one look at her walls made everything clear. When Nino questioned how he had figured out, he barely managed to dodge the question by mumbling something about an epiphany.
He blushed, remembering back to that time; Marinette had brought up some cookies and hot chocolate to warm him up. He had escaped the heated confines of his room after a small dispute between his father regarding a photo shoot and bounded across Paris until he found himself atop the roof of a small house across a familiar bakery. He didn't expect to end up there, but that's where his feet took him, and that's where he stayed. That night had been filled with teasing, laughter and warmth, much unlike the dark, cold prison he could no longer call a house, much less home.
It was only a month later when visits to Marinette as Chat Noir increased, and slowly but surely, the thread between his precious Lady and Princess connected. His realization had caused a night of restlessness and concerns, which was excruciatingly annoying to the much grumpy Plagg, who lost out on sleep with the constant worries pouring out of his charge's mouth.
"I can't believe they're one person. I've acted the same way around both Marinette and Ladybug; what if she thought I did that to everyone? What if she hates me?"
Plagg groaned, "She has pictures of you taped on her wall, there is no way she would hate you."
"Yeah, but that's the other part of me! My Lady only liked Adrien; Chat Noir doesn't mean anything to her."
At that, Plagg flew close to Adrien's face.
"That's not true," the black kwami said, sounding strangely gentle. "You're her partner, you two are a team. You mean everything to her."
Adrien sighed, and grumbled something incoherent.
Plagg rolled his eyes and reverted back to his lazy self. "So are you going to feed me some camembert? I'm starving."
"You're lazy and annoying, you know that?" Adrien tossed a piece of cheese towards the floating creature, and Plagg caught it gleefully.
The small kwami's munching was the only sound heard as Adrien sat in silence, absorbed in his thoughts.
"So are you going to tell her you're Chat Noir?" asked Plagg, mouth full of cheese.
Adrien's reply was instant, although it wavered a little as he answered, "No. My Lady wanted to keep her identity a secret, and I'll respect that. I won't tell her I'm Chat Noir, nor will I tell her I know she's Marinette. It's just better that way."
Plagg just stared at the young blond before floating away and leaving his charge alone with his scrambled thoughts.
The next day had been awkward for Adrien, stuttering every time Marinette even looked at him, and when she tried to make conversation, he would create some excuse and walk away quickly, leaving Marinette to wonder what in the world she had done to make him like this.
Oh, how the tables have turned, Adrien had thought to himself, chuckling humorously.
He got better over the weeks, and was finally able to form coherent sentences around his designer friend without tripping over his words. For the first week upon discovering Marinette and Ladybug were one and the same, Adrien had hoped for no akuma attacks, and as luck would have it, there were none.
That meant he spent less time with his Lady, but he thought that it might be a good chance to calm down before seeing her again. Well, he saw her everyday, but it was easier to avoid Marinette than his crime fighting partner.
As he began accepting his Lady and his Princess as one individual, he observed more, noticed more. He saw that the way Marinette smiled at other people was alike, but not the same as the way Ladybug smiled at Chat Noir. He saw Ladybug shining through Marinette at times, reflected through her strength, her bravery, her kindness. He saw all the things he didn't see before and wondered how there was any possible way he had not made the connection earlier. As he watched, he fell. Marinette, Ladybug, Marinette, Ladybug. It was as if all the pieces of the puzzle were falling with him, forming a final piece that completed the picture. Marinette, Ladybug. The heart that he had thought was reserved for Ladybug, and for Ladybug alone, began opening to another person … and they were the same girl.
He had laughed at that, but it filled him such so much bliss, Adrien thought he would burst. His chest felt lighter than it had ever been, and his smile was genuine, always in the state of near laughter. His fondness of Marinette grew as the years went on, then finally transitioning into their last year. It was at that point he had decided to go study Physics. What he hadn't expected was his father to send him so far away.
Figures. Adrien thought in distaste.
When he had heard Marinette got accepted into a university for fashion design, he was truly happy for her. At least she would be close to where she called home. At least she had one.
No, Adrien shook his head. I do have a home.
Images of Marinette, Nino, Alya, and all of his friends and classmates flew into his mind. Home is where the heart is. I have a home.
And that thought was what made it so much harder to leave.
The final year was Marinette's best and worst. In their senior year, she had managed to get into a great university close to home, make friends with Adrien, and have her designs used in a fashion show. Nothing made her prouder than watching her clothing walking down the runway, with someone in it, of course. Alya kept hitting her best friend's shoulder every time her designs appeared, and Marinette was sore by the end of the show, but grinning, regardless. Marinette had gotten a ticket to the fashion show modelling her designs (obviously), but was pleasantly surprised when she was offered a second ticket to bring a guest. Alya was invited without a second thought.
"DO YOU SEE THIS?" Alya screamed in Marinette's ear, and the teen leaned away, covering them, as her friend jumped up and pointed, her phone focused on the stage.
"Alya, shush," Marinette had tried to tell her, but it was no use. The red head could never keep her voice down when excited.
It wasn't as if everyone else was being very quiet either, though. The entire audience was cheering and clapping, phones and cameras out, very much like Alya. Marinette was flattered and beamed with pride when her jacket came out on stage and the crowd hollered in approval. Not to mention Adrien was the one modelling it. He looked over at the two of them, and winked, smirking when Marinette made a tiny eep before hiding her red face behind her hands. Alya waved enthusiastically and the boy gave a small one back, turning to walk towards the curtains.
Adrien disappeared behind the heavy cloth, and Alya sat down, grinning. Marinette casted a peek at her best friend, receiving a laugh and a pat on the head.
"Too bad Nino isn't here," Marinette blurted. "It would have been fun with all of us here."
Alya shook her head in amusement. "Nah, this isn't his kind of thing. Plus, I've gotten it all on video for him, so he's not missing anything. Say hi, Marinette!" The aspiring reporter pointed the phone camera to the black haired girl.
Smiling and giving a tiny wave, Marinette giggled when Alya stood back up as another design came strutting down the runway. Nino had asked Alya out at the beginning of last year, with the help of Adrien and Marinette, much to their excitement. It wasn't a huge event, but just the sight of Nino shyly giving Alya a hug after she said yes was so adorable, Marinette had almost started tearing up. Nino had asked the designer what Alya's favourite flowers were, and gave her the job of distracting his long-term crush while he rushed around with Adrien, picking things up before meeting at the place where Marinette was supposed to lead Alya: the park.
When they arrived, Nino approached Alya with a huge grin, though you could tell he was extremely nervous. Pulling out the flowers, he stammered out a confession as Marinette and Adrien scuttled away to give them their privacy and watch from a distance. When the duo saw Alya smile and give a nod of her head, they cheered and laughed together, Marinette's own crush temporarily forgotten. Alya had teased her about it later though, smiling slyly and raising her eyebrows.
"C'mon Marinette, even Nino worked up the guts to confess. I'm sure you can too!"
Marinette just shrugged as her face blossomed into a rosy colour. Alya sighed, and shook her head at her hopeless friend.
The worst part, Marinette decided, was definitely the looming aspect of departure. Everyone was going their separate ways. Alya was going to Dauphine to study journalism, and then transferring to college to get better experience in the work field. Luckily, it was in Paris, and Marinette could still see her.
Don't worry, the redhead had assured confidently. I'll still run The Ladyblog, of course.
Nino didn't have any plans to go into university or college. He was a diligent student, but further education never interested him. He wanted to travel the world as a DJ, to one day start a company of his own. It was a brilliant goal, and everyone made sure to have him know it. It was worth everything to see the happy smile on his face and the proud puff of his chest when all their classmates had encouraged his dream. He promised Alya to send postcards from every place he went to, and she promised to keep every single one. When presented with a handmade scrapbook from Marinette to keep the mementos, the couple gave her such a long hug, Adrien told them to let her go before she passed out.
Nathanael planned to study art (surprise!), Max wanted to be a maths professor, and Alix decided to go into history, much like her father. Rose and Juleka applied for the same university, the petite girl studying industrial design and the other, cosmetology. Even Chloe had found a passion, and shocked everyone by announcing her pursue towards photography.
Marinette wonders what Chat's going to do.
Everyone was heading on a separate path, and that scared Marinette. Granted, she was happy her friends had found things they wanted to do, places they want to be, but she would miss them terribly. She's not ready to part with them.
Marinette knows it will be the most difficult part of the year, if not her high school life, to say goodbye. As graduation closes in, the designer's stomach twists uncomfortably, uncontrollably.
She missed them already.