She remembers when they first met, back when they began school.
Nino'd went up and talked to her, already asking about whether she liked a song that she'd never heard and therefore, he had to show her.
He'd brought in a small, CD player the next day, fiddling through the songs on the CD that was in it until he found the right song; she'd been so thankful that their teacher hadn't minded if they sat and listened to the CD player before school started.
She'd loved the song of course, and naturally, they started to share little tidbits about themselves and their lives with each other; eventually, it led to hanging out at Marinette's parent's bakery.
Marinette had taught him to bake more than chocolate chip cookies then, and she'd naturally found herself laughing with him over the silliest things.
She'd adored her newfound best friend, and naturally, the days spent together grew into a blur until he spent every day at the bakery with her pretty much especially the hot Summer days when they'd meet up to just talk and have fun, slipping out of the bakery to play video games, or finding their way to the park not far away from her house.
Nino was her best friend long before anyone else stepped in to claim that spot; she'd spend her days laughing and joking around with him, loved when they had classes together, and naturally knew all of his secrets, and he knew all of her own.
Marinette didn't worry about whether they'd stay friends, never felt the need to worry, as school started up, and suddenly, she was letting two more people in her life to become just as constant as Nino did.
He'd befriended Adrien even when Marinette took to stumbling through her words around the blond model, and she'd befriended Alya.
Alya definitely was more energetic than Nino, more spontaneous, and definitely was up for girl time and talks; she was supportive, and there was something extra special about just being her friend.
It felt different to hang around a female friend than a male one though it never made her cherish her and Nino's friendship any less.
She still spent a lot of her time hanging out with her first best friend though often times that merged into four person meetups and hanging out, laughing at shared jokes, and the simple joy of it all.
Nino was the first real friend that she'd known, was one that kept her steady when her world was in a disarray. His calm nature soothed her frantic one, and honestly, she couldn't think of a better person to be her first friend, her male best friend, because Alya had implanted herself so thoroughly in Marinette's life that she couldn't deny her being another best friend.
"So do you and Alya talk 'girl' talk all the time?" Nino muttered, nose wrinkled in feigned distaste, and she smiled over at him despite his playful distaste for 'girl' talk.
"Not all the time." Marinette smiled, moving past her best friend to knead some dough that he'd somehow forgotten just a moment or two, "But we do talk boys some times, and fashion."
"You talk fashion with everyone, Mari. That doesn't count in your case." Nino informed her with a slight, playful air that made her want to laugh in giddy joy.
"Okay, okay. Point taken." She smiled up at him, "But to your point from earlier, we do talk boys since that's what you were really asking."
"Darn it. She's a mind reader, that woman." Nino shot her a look that told her that he was just joking anyway. She knew that regardless.
"Well, it's one of my many talents." She nudged him as she walked by, "Baking, design, being your friend."
"That last talent is your best friend." Nino shot her a grin, "Hands down, it's my favorite."
"You better be kneading that dough, mister. Before I set you up with frosting the cupcakes that should be cool enough to frost now." Marinette smiled, looking perfectly amused.
"You know that I'm terrible at frosting." Nino pretended to complain, "Hand me that dough back. I'm actually good at kneading."
"Okay, okay." She shot him a look, "But the dough's mine now."
"Marinette." Nino play whined, dragging her name out as long as he could, "Come on."
"Don't do this to me." She chided, but her smile didn't come off her face regardless. There was a certain joy to friendship that made you feel so much younger than you actually are, friendship that made you laugh, and goof off like children.
She loved her childhood friend in this way, the love of two people that see all the dorky sides of each other, and play along with them anyway. He's her best friend, one of her first, and she'll always see him as something akin to a brother.
Time had a funny or rather endearing way of bringing two people much closer even if they only started with one song; one song was all that was needed to forge a friendship so strong that she was positive that they'd always be friends with each other.
