Disclaimer: I don't own Miraculous Ladybug.
A/N: I already posted this in AO3, but yeah! Here's a take on a Miraculous Ladybug Christmas featuring Adrinette fluff in the shopping mall. I hope you guys like it! Please read and maybe drop a review! :) I hope you have a wonderful, miraculous, blessed Christmas!
...
Ribbons and Wrappers
Due to procrastination, Marinette decided to have her gifts wrapped in the mall department store's gift wrapping services. To her surprise, the free lane in front of her was handled by a boy with a very familiar, well-combed mop of blond hair.
"A-Adrien?"
"Hey, Marinette!"
...
It took Marinette months to save up for several gifts she knew her parents wanted. On a bustling snow day, she donned her pinkest and warmest jacket and boots before paying a visit to the local mall. She snagged two baby blue aprons with a cheat sheet for measurement conversions (buy one take one sale! Marinette thought excitedly), a silicone spatula set, nesting prep bowls, and a set of icing nozzles in her father's favorite baking supply store. She knew her mother would give her father new non-stick pans, which prompted her to check around the bakery kitchen to check what she could add.
Oh, if only the holidays gave her a break in being Ladybug. The atmosphere in the city was supposed to be cheerful and loving and bright. Of course, this was the case… but it wouldn't prevent several relationships to strain or accidents to happen that would eventually build up negative emotions for Hawkmoth to detect. Akumas were still being let loose and Marinette couldn't believe she had to handle three within the week. And it was only Wednesday!
This gave her less time to work on the gifts she had to make. She still hadn't finished the Ladybug-themed jacket she would give to Alya or the floral dress she would give to her mother (she still had to buy buttons and other things, which was why today was a great day to go to the mall), and she hadn't started on her gift for Adrien! At least, though, she already bought a present for Ivan for the class Secret Santa and for Miss Bustier for being such an amazing teacher. She would give everyone else a small box of pastries (her father would handle it; anything for his daughter!).
Due to this uncalled for procrastination, Marinette decided to have her gifts wrapped in the mall department store's gift wrapping services. She immediately maneuvered through the crowded store and trotted to the large gift wrapping station. Many large boxes of appliances stood in the middle of the area. The customer seats weren't fully occupied, thank goodness, and there was apparently one free lane she could go to without scuffling with panicking and rushing shoppers.
As she approached the free lane, she couldn't help but notice how familiar the person handling the lane was. She couldn't conclude anything since the boy's back was turned. She could swear his hair was the same shade as Adrien's wheat gold blond hair. It was also combed the same way – she would know, seeing as she was sitting behind him in school.
He turned around, and Marinette almost dropped the paper bags she was carrying.
"A-Adrien?" she said a little too loudly. Other people moved their gaze on her, but Marinette was too focused on Adrien to see their expressions.
He flashed a very charming smile at her, his green eyes behind thin black-rimmed glasses glowing with excitement. "Hey, Marinette!"
What was he doing here?
Why was he wearing a uniform?
Oh. My. He looks great in a uniform! And he's wearing glasses!
"Y-you're probably thinking what I'm doing here, huh?" he asked, rubbing the back of his head, smile turning nervous.
Marinette's lip trembled, but she immediately smiled. "Y-yes! W-why are you working here?"
Adrien chuckled. "Long story short: my father didn't want me to use my savings from working for him to buy a present for Nino. So… here I am working. Not under him."
The girl's eyes widened, placing a hand in front of her mouth to hold back a gasp. "Why?"
"He said Nino's a bad influence," Adrien sighed, lip curling downwards for a moment. "Let's keep this between us, okay?"
Marinette nodded. She was somewhat aware of Adrien's life at home (not because of stalking!) because Alya often shared Nino's stories to her. It was obvious Gabriel Agreste triggered Nino's akumatizing, but did he really call his son's best friend a bad influence?
"So… I never pegged you to be someone to have other people gift wrap your gifts," Adrien said, breaking the silence between them. Marinette placed the paper bags containing her gifts on the counter and watched Adrien unload them individually.
"I… I've been really busy so I-I have no time to wrap them," Marinette confessed, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear and avoiding Adrien's gaze. "A-and! And I don't want my parents to have a peek on their presents when I arrive h-home," she added.
"Smart," Adrien laughed, grinning as he pulled out the pair of aprons. "Whoa, these are cool."
Marinette gave him a small smile. "My father's a great baker, but sometimes he takes out his recipe card filled with conversions. He also has a pad paper just in case he needs to solve. Next year, I'll get him a calculator," she joked, stifling a giggle.
Adrien, however, didn't hold back. He fell into a fit of giggles (manly giggles), catching the attention of his co-workers around him and girls passing by. While his co-workers either sent glares or fond smiles, the girls chattered to themselves quite loudly. Marinette's ears turned red when she started hearing them swoon over "that cute counter boy" and plot to buy "presents" so they could make him wrap them.
"It's a good thing I have these glasses. I'm amazed people don't recognize me just because of a change in wardrobe." Adrien feigned a cough before adding, "Except you, of course."
He gave her a little wink, and Marinette bit her tongue to avoid rambling or giggling in front of him. If only she asked Alya to accompany her! But then again, Alya had always wanted her to face Adrien alone. 'Have some courage, girl!' is what Alya would tell me. Or yell.
"Where'd you buy these nifty gifts? I'm pretty sure they're not from this department store," Adrien asked, eyeing down the neon blue spatulas. He took out the box of nesting prep bowls and exhaled with a smile. Marinette assumed he was relieved he would only be wrapping boxes and a few other items.
"I-I bought them from my dad's favorite bakery supply store," Marinette replied as she rubbed her palms together. Boy, the aircon in this store is really cold! "T-they had a sale today."
"I'll check it out later," Adrien told her as he pulled out a glossy pink cylindrical wrapper from below the counter. "My chauffer wants to bake some cookies of his own."
The figurative butterflies in Marinette's stomach fluttered as she stared at him with pure admiration and awe. He was so nice and considerate! She couldn't imagine what a world like this had done to deserve such an angel to walk its ground.
"D-does your f-father's assistant know about this?" Marinette asked, breaking the timid silence between them. She watched Adrien spread out the pink wrapper filled with white polka dots and red cursive "Merry Christmas!" greetings.
"Natalie? Nah. No. I-uh, I didn't bother to tell her. She would tell Father if she finds out," he replied. "I only told my chauffer, which is why I want to give him great gifts for being a great secret keeper. And, of course, I told you."
The room suddenly felt hotter, and Marinette wondered whether someone tampered with the temperature control or if her face was on fire. Only she and his chauffer knew about this. She knew one of his secrets. She knew Adrien's secret. And Adrien trusted her.
Well, he couldn't really do anything if Marinette saw him working. But he didn't keep reminding her to be silent about it, at least. That was trust, right?
"I'm amazed they made Ladybug and Chat Noir-themed wrappers this year," Adrien said, pointing at the wrapper he spread out. "It's not red and black like Ladybug's outfit, but I think you like pink, right?"
He knows my favorite color!
Or maybe it's because of my pants?
"I love pink!" she blurted out a little too enthusiastically. The other workers were busy, however, in wrapping the presents assigned to them while listening to their customers give directions. Which reminded Marinette… didn't workers have to tell customers they could sit down at the waiting area while they wrap their gifts?
No matter. Whether Adrien knew this or not, she was still spending some quality time with him.
"I could tell," Adrien chuckled. "I initially thought to use the Chat Noir wrapper since you find him cool and all, but maybe it's a little too much?"
She bit her lip. Anything that has to do with that cat is too much! It was a mystery to her how exactly Adrien perceived her ever since she said Chat Noir was cool. Of course, she mentioned that the masked hero wasn't as cool as Adrien. But what if he thinks I'm madly crushing on Chat? That stupid cat!
"Y-your choice of wrapper is better," she answered, trying to hide that underlying disappointment she felt on the possibility that her crush thought she had a crush on someone else. And of all people, it had to be Chat Noir.
"How do you want me to wrap this, by the way?" he asked. He placed the box of nesting prep bowls on top of the plain white face of the wrapper. Marinette moved closer to the counter and scratched out the tape firmly keeping the top of the box closed. She opened it and cocked her head sideways.
"Hmm," she began, tapping her chin. "Oh! W-we can put the icing nozzles and the aprons inside."
"Do you want me to remove the price tags?" he asked. It sounded more like a suggestion than a question.
"T-thank you," she whispered.
He grinned at her. "Don't thank me just yet. I haven't started wrapping anything."
Marinette watched him scratch out the stickers from the apron strings, ice nozzle plastic, and bowl box, wondering if Adrien would ask her to sit in the waiting area first. The customers previously beside her were already busy tapping their fingers on their smartphones with legs crossed, while others were busy watching their kids play hide-and-seek in the jungle of large boxes at the center of the gift wrapping service area.
Was Adrien doing this on purpose? Or was he just being nice?
"W-what time d-does your shift start?" Marinette stammered.
"I work on Saturday and Sunday afternoons. Also Tuesday and Thursday afternoons after class. Natalie thinks I'm having group study in Nino's house so it's fine," he replied, tossing the stickers away. "Will the spatulas be wrapped separately?"
"Yes. D-do you guys have that large paper bag with handles?"
"Sure we do. Makes carrying these easier and less suspicious," he replied with a smile. He began cutting the wrapper for the box, wrapping them both in the chatter around. Marinette was thinking of walking to the waiting area, but, "Hey, what do you want for Christmas?"
She blinked. "A-are you my Secret Santa? I-if you are, you're doing a horrible job."
"You'll never know," he grinned widely. "I'm more subtle than this if I were your Secret Santa."
The chances of him being her Secret Santa were low, after all. Her stomach, however, flipped like pancakes when Marinette realized that he asked her what she wanted for Christmas. He was going to give her a gift? REALLY?!
She mustered all her strength to keep her composure. It would be very embarrassing to squeal and say, "I want you for Christmas," whether alone together or in a public place.
"Um… anything cute would do!" she squeaked. Especially if that cute thing is you!
"A Chat Noir plush?" he teased. Marinette stuck her tongue out. Was he serious?
Was he flirting?
"O-oh, not like that," Marinette snorted, brushing the idea off with her hand. Adrien shook his head and smiled, returning his focus once again to the wrapper.
"So, what do you think about the latest villain? A-ben-inable Snowman, right?" he said. "I wonder if Chloe caused it since Ben was one of her butlers, from what I remember."
Marinette smirked. If the akuma possessed someone from the Bourgeois household, Marinette was 99.99% sure it was caused by Chloe. She had to admit, though, that he was one of Ladybug and Chat Noir's toughest opponents. They had to slip and slide through frozen water and stomp through snow-coated rooftops to catch up with him without being pelted with his snowballs. Chat had been especially flirty that day, which didn't make things any better. But then again, he was more helpful than usual, even showing off a burst of strength after the akumatized villain's coldest snowball attack.
"I'm glad Ladybug and Chat Noir defeated him," she said with a fond smile. "I love snow and all, but if it gets any colder, I might as well wear 10 jackets when I leave home."
Silence grew between them once again, but Adrien still wasn't telling her to go sit. 'Have some courage, girl! Go talk to him!' Alya's voice echoed in her mind again.
"S-so, what do you want for Christmas?" she chirped. Adrien's concentration shifted back to her, and he looked as cheerful as ever.
"Anything is fine. But… I'd really like to have a tacky Christmas sweater," he said, smiling. "I haven't had one, ever. My father thinks it's disgraceful to have such 'unfashionable monstrosities', but I think they're pretty comfy to wear and cool to look at."
Marinette giggled. Who knew that the fashionable Adrien Agreste wanted something like that?
"A-are you for real?" she laughed.
"I wouldn't joke about something like that, really. It's also the first thing on my wishlist, so I'm guessing you aren't my Secret Santa," he replied, smirking. Ack! I totally forgot about the wishlist!
"I-I was also wondering... uh…" Marinette, get a hold of yourself! "Why have a part-time job in gift wrapping?"
Adrien was almost done with wrapping the box. "My chauffer had connections here," he told her, taping the final wrapping fold for the box. He readied another wrapper in front of him before continuing, "And it's fun. It's pretty hands-on, which I barely do. It pays well, surprisingly. But what makes me enjoy it the most is watching kids run around here happily while parents try their best keeping the gifts a secret. You hear a lot of life stories with this kind of job."
She nodded, sharing the sentiment very well. She often heard regular customers in their patisserie tell stories to her parents or to each other while waiting. It must be quite an experience for Adrien, since being homeschooled deprived him of years watching this kind of situation in front of him.
"Sometimes kids would play hide-and-seek or chase each other in this area, and parents are so exhausted choosing gifts they don't mind anymore," Adrien said fondly. "I… haven't played hide-and-seek as a kid, really."
Oh, Adrien.
"And if I worked in, say, Starbucks, my father would find out immediately. The manager here made sure I'm a trade secret. More on the secret, less on the trade." Amazingly, he laughed at his own joke.
The spatulas were almost done being wrapped. Marinette's time with Adrien was almost up. Her brain was still sponging up the fact that she and Adrien actually had a civil conversation with each other, her stuttering to a minimum. Alya would be proud of her, yes, but she wouldn't be able to disclose this to her. Great, another secret to keep from Alya.
"And… done!" Adrien beamed. Marinette had to admit Adrien's wrapping was clean and crease-free – another proof on his perfection, no doubt.
"You know… customers often provide ribbons so they wouldn't pay extra, but I'll provide for your gifts."
Blood rushed to Marinette's ears. "H-huh? N-no, you d-don't have to!" she stammered, almost pulling the wrapped gifts from him. Adrien shook his head and raised a brow at her, smirking.
"Really, I mean it," Adrien replied calmly. "I also want to practice my ribbon skills."
If he really wanted to… "O-okay. T-thanks!"
Indeed, it took Adrien longer than normal gift wrapping employees to wrap the already wrapped box with the ribbon, but for the wrapped spatulas, he made a tiny ribbon to tape on instead. He smiled to himself, proud of his work, and placed them inside the department store's paper bag with handles.
"Here you go," he said, handing the paper bag over to Marinette with a wide grin. "And here, please give this card to the cashier lady. She'll ask you some questions about my service. Thank you for the great chat, Marinette."
Her freckled cheeks must be really red from how hot they felt. "N-no, thank you for wrapping my presents. And y-you did great!"
"Are you sure you don't want a Chat Noir plush?" he added with a laugh. Marinette shrugged – as long as it's from Adrien, maybe she could tolerate one Chat Noir merchandise in her possession. As long as he doesn't visit my room again.
"I'm just kidding. I'll think of something for you."
They gazed at each other for a moment before the person behind Marinette cleared her throat loudly.
"I… uh, well, see you in class, Marinette. Thanks again," Adrien said, waving at her. Marinette only nodded and smiled, words stuck in her throat, and walked away from the service lane and into the cashier lane. She was third in line, but Marinette was fine with it – she had time to watch Adrien work.
He smiled oh-so politely at the customer after her as they conversed. The excitement of people around her made Adrien's voice inaudible, but she was contented with seeing him work eagerly.
After receiving the gifts, he extended his arm that pointed to the waiting area. The customer complied and walked to the cushioned seats.
Adrien didn't…
"Next!"
Marinette returned to reality as she realized she was the customer being hailed. She placed the paper bag on the counter and handed the numbered card to the lady.
"Hmm… employee 19… ah! Adrien, that fine boy," she hummed. "Are you two an item or something?"
Marinette completely forgot there was air conditioning in the room. Her heart was thumping wildly in her chest and her cheeks were scorching. "N-no! W-we aren't!"
The lady chortled as she checked the wrapped presents. "Really? He seems to like you a lot."
Like… me… a… lot?
"Here's the receipt," she said. Marinette began fumbling her purse for her wallet, thanking Tikki was inside and kind enough to give it to her. Her hands were trembling from the mix of excitement and surprise from being told that Adrien "seemed to like her a lot" in a stranger's eyes.
"How was Adrien's services? Fantastic? Do you want to leave a tip for him?"
"Y-yes. H-he wrapped my presents well and h-he's great at holding conversations," she said in a whisper, handing over her money. "W-where do you leave tips?"
The lady pointed at the wall on Marinette's left. There were small lockers with pigeon holes, a large golden number engraved on each. "His locker is 19. Thank you for wrapping with us and have a happy holiday!"
She gave her thanks and ran to the lockers, giving Adrien additional pay for his gift for Nino without hesitation. She took one last glance at Adrien, who was busily wrapping a pyramid-shaped present (what kind of present is that?!), before leaving the mall, skipping joyfully back home. At least now she had an idea of what Adrien wanted for Christmas… and at least they chatted with each other.
Forget Hawkmoth and his akumas or procrastination with presents – not even they could remove the joy wrapped around Marinette by the glimmer of Adrien's pure smile and the music of his gentle voice.