Hi guys! This is my first time doing this so please be patient. I am going to try my best to do this right but there may be some mistakes along the way. I'm really excited about this and I hope you guys are too! So, here we go!
The night was peaceful. The room certainly looked peaceful. He could practically feel the warmth radiating off the bright room. The bright room. Why… Why was it bright? It was almost midnight. A strange pull grabbed him and pushed him onto the terrace. The icy grip of the night immediately left him as his knuckles rapped on the smooth glass of her room. Startled by the idea of what he was doing, he drew his hand back. What am I doing? What is my excuse? But before he could respond to his own brashness, she was up from her desk, coming over, reaching out to pull the door open. "Chat Noir! Is something wrong?" She blurted quickly, glancing behind her for a split second before looking back up at him. Chuckling nervously, Chat responded with a quick shake of his head. He knew he was screwed coming here for no reason at midnight as Chat Noir.
"Um…" Awkwardly, Marinette let her hands drop to her side. "Sorry. I shouldn't have come here. I was just…" Think! "A little hungry!" Marinette tilted her head to the side, eyebrows drawn together. "You… you, Chat Noir, left your house, came to this bakery, ignored the normal door and knocked on mine, at midnight, when you are a stranger to me?" Rubbing his neck, Chat Noir swallowed to stall while he thought. What do I do? What do I do? Why did I come here? Why am I even awake right now? I should have just stayed in bed. Cursing his own stupidity, Chat Noir opened his mouth to respond. "I-I shouldn't have come. I'm sorry for this, I-I don't know what got into me. I just couldn't fall asleep…" Man, why did she have to look at him with such big, wide, bluebell eyes that reminded him of-Ladybug! Oh god, what would she say if she saw him right now? A warm, soft hand on his shoulder jolted him out of his thoughts. "Chat? If you need food, or even a safe place to stay the night, you're welcome to rest here. I'm sorry I questioned you. I should just trust Paris's superhero." Pride, trust, and another emotion he wasn't going to confront just then sprung from his chest, pounding his heart, and pushing his lips into a smirk that would make him totally understand if she reconsidered her offer, so Chat Noir remarked daringly, "Yeah, I am pretty great, huh? But, Princess, your offer is too great for a humble hero like me!" Thinking quickly about how loud his stomach protested his statement, he added, "Though if you happen to have an extra pastry, I certainly wouldn't complain…" Rolling her eyes and deciding to ignore his 'humble' comment, she muttered a "Sure, whatever" and started to descend the staircase to the bakery part of her home. Taking the opportunity of being alone, Chat let out his breath that had previously been held. "That was close," he muttered, ignoring the way he could practically see Plagg smirking at him in his mind. Taking a glance around, Chat Noir felt guilt fill him. I shouldn't be here. She probably thinks I'm a stalker or something. His thoughts fled as interest caught him on the hook of Adrien Agreste. Pictures. Pictures everywhere. He'd never noticed that before. Huh. Why does that make me so happy? Telling himself over and over again that it wasn't love or pride that he felt, he forced his gaze over to her desk. The only things on it were a sketchbook, a pencil, and her diary. Curiosity telling him to do it, mind telling him not to, he just wandered over to look in her sketchbook. Empty. His eyes were constantly being drawn the diary. It would be so easy to just peek inside… Giving in, Chat's long claws curled around it, flipping through a couple pages. To his surprise, Adrien happened to be taking up much of Marinette's thoughts. Eyes widening as he read, he learned all of his classmates secrets. He learned how much she loved him-no, Adrien-and how much she depended on Alya. But then, he read something on a completely different level that tugged at his brain.
Oh, and on patrol, it was so pretty! The sun set perfectly to glow on the Tower, and the moment was even better with my partner. I think the Eiffel Tower is officially my favorite spot to just sit and relax. It was so great!
Ladybug. She had loved that too. Was Marinette…? Could she possibly be? Shaking his spinning head, Chat Noir realized just what he had been feeling that had made it so hard to speak that night. He was in love with his lady through and through. Marinette, Ladybug, all of her. Now he just needed to figure out how to tell her... "Chat Noir! What are you doing? That's-That's mine! No looking!" Running up and grabbing the book from his stunned hands, Marinette struggled to not shake as her cheeks raged in a fire she couldn't suppress. Did he see? Did he know? Rubbing his neck, Chat chuckled softly. "So… a crush on Adrien Agreste, huh? That's, um, nice." If it was even possible, Marinette's face flamed even more, her beautiful bluebell eyes bulging. "Um… yeah. Is-is there anything else you read about in there?" Realizing just how nervous she was, Chat decided to brush the news off for now. Instead, he focused on what she had just admitted. She likes me! She has a crush on me! Wait… but Adrien isn't the real me… Disappointment suddenly drowning him, Chat realized just who Marinette had a crush on. She didn't love him, she loved the perfect person his father made of him. Testing his theory, Chat went onto dangerous grounds. But before he did, his eyes caught on the yummy pastry the girl was clutching. "No. But I still really want that chocolate. Do you charge?" His joke sounded so out of place in the awkwardness that had them both smothered. But, it all broke when she let out a good-natured laugh. "No, silly kitty. Here." After breaking it in half, Marinette handed the slightly bigger half to him while she nibbled on hers with a very studious look. "Spill." She had seen through him; she knew he still had something to say. "I just… I was just wondering why you like this kid… Adrien… so much. Is it just a celebrity crush, or do you actually know something about him?" Holding his breath, Chat waited for her confession. Secretly, without admitting it to himself, he wanted her to have a good reason.
Widening her eyes, Marinette's mouth hung slightly open for a second. Why does he care? I'm a little civilian, a stranger, and he wants to know about a stupid crush I have on a model? Well, if she started rambling, it was his fault. Curiosity killed the cat, not her love-struck talk. "Well, it's probably just a celebrity crush, but…" Sighing deeply, she gathered her thoughts. "… He's really sweet and he stays composed and selfless even though his father pressures him to be perfect and I know he starves himself for his father and he is so grateful for a friendship that he'll even take Chloe and I know he should be able to express himself in all his nerdy glory but instead he holds it all in just to please other people!" Out of breath and embarrassed beyond repair, Marinette hung her head. "It's really embarrassing to have a celebrity crush-I-I'm sorry I rambled. You can go ahead and make fun of me now…" Met with silence, Marinette just waited. Something was prone to come from those smirking lips(at least, she assumed he was smirking).
She… she understands. That's not just a celebrity crush. That's-that's true feeling. How did she know oh god what do I do now? My lady, she loves me, not just Adrien! Excitement slowly filled his toes, spreading to his knees, then going to his arms at and alarming pace. He didn't care if she was hanging her head in shame, he wanted to kiss her there and now! Instead, he resorted to quickly swooping forward to encase Marinette in a hug that he tried to put all of his cat warmth into. He could feel tears running down his cheeks, and he knew she was probably confused, but he didn't care at all. He wasn't worried about anything with her in his arms! Snuggling his head into her neck, he rested his tail on her lap, the tip twitching with pleasure. Pulling away slowly, Marinette looked at him with concerned eyes that engulfed him in a sea of blue cuteness. "Chat? Are you… okay? You look a little shaken. Is there a reason you're crying?" Reaching up a tentative arm, Chat Noir stroked some of her beautiful raven hair behind her ear. "Not yet, Princess. Soon. Not yet. For now, just get a good sleep." He didn't want to leave. He really didn't. But he felt like if he stayed another minute he was going to throw up the delicious pastry from his joy. So, giving her a small, two-fingered salute, he dropped off of her roof, falling until he extended his baton, relishing in the feeling of freedom, of love, of everything. By the time he got back to his father's mansion, Chat felt like he was completely ready for tomorrow, whatever it would bring. That is, until he realized just how hard it is to fall asleep when you're thinking about how your crush is actually a girl who just happens to have a crush on you too.
If there was only one confusing thing in her life (which, sadly, wasn't true) it would be why Chat Noir had come to her house for comfort and food. Why was he even up? It was a strange end to the day, and it didn't help that that day she hadn't been able to get any good inspiration for her designs. She had planned to make some special clothes for when she or Chat needed to be warmer for the winter, but when she sat down to draw them, she couldn't get one good drawing out of herself. Then when she discovered Chat reading her diary, she had lost it. If he had happened to come across one of her pieces on Ladybug, she would be doomed. Thankfully, it seemed as though Chat hadn't come across anything of the sort-instead, he had her talk about Adrien. Not that she didn't like to. But confessing all of the things she liked about the blonde model was not her image of a night with Chat Noir. Now, she had to go to bed thinking about Adrien, worrying about her identity's secret, and wondering about Chat. Which meant even more sleep than she was losing trying to think of just one good design. Why does Chat even care? She tortured herself with the question once again. Thankfully, Tikki was there to save the day. "Still thinking about Chat Noir?" The shy Kwami asked her, emerging from her little cookie fort that Marinette had built for her earlier that evening. Sighing, the bluebell-eyed gave a tiny nod. Pursing her lips together, she tried for a proper response. "Yeah… I'm just really confused as to why he would just up and visit at midnight. And why did he get so emotional when I talked about Adrien?" Tikki just chuckled, speaking through it to say, "Maybe he just really loves you Marinette, and talking about some one else you like makes him sad!" Laughing at how silly that sounded, Marinette walked over from her desk and flopped on her bed, wrapping herself up in the sheets. "Yeah, and I like Nino!" Joking about her friends brought Alya into her mind, and realized just how psyched she would be if she knew what had happened that night. "Do you think I should mention anything to Alya, Tikki?" With a slight shake of her head, Tikki frowned. "No, I think you and Chat Noir are better off not saying anything about it. Plus, it really wasn't that big of a deal. Chat has been to you before." With an equal frown, Marinette responded, "You're probably right. But he's never been here other than for an akuma attack!" Sighing, Tikki simply said, "It'll all be okay soon Marinette. Things will work out and you will understand." Questions still buzzing in her mind, Marinette snuggled into bed and fell asleep soundly. Things will be better tomorrow…
Well, at least for Marinette, they will. Sadly, black cats aren't as lucky as ladybugs.
So that's chapter one of hopefully many! I really hope you guys liked it and I'll be trying to get the next chapter out by Saturday but no promises. This part was meant to move really quickly but others won't be this rushed... This chapter isn't a center for the story though, the center will be the next one! Anyways, I would appreciate some helpful criticism so yeah. XD See you guys again soon!