"She wanted me to tell you she was giving it to you as a friend," Nathalie finished.

Adrian looked to the side and smiled faintly. What a good friend. Although she always seemed on edge around him, she clearly valued his friendship. She did tell him that she was a fan of his, so he always just chalked up her nervous babbling as fangirl excitement. Regardless, as time went on, they'd grown closer and her babbling had become more coherent. He smiled sweetly to himself as he remembered when she had the confidence to kiss his cheek when he left their Hero's Day picnic. Seeing his friend grow stronger made him happy, because as she grew more confident, he got to know her better. He withdrew from his thoughts to reach out and take the homework from Nathalie.

"Thank you."

Nathalie gave him a small nod and a faint smile before receding from his room. Adrian looked down at the note stuck to the top of the pile of papers in his hands.

"See you at school tomorrow
Love, your friend, Marinette."

He smiled at her sweet note. She had drawn a cute little cartoon of her blowing a kiss. The cartoon seemed more romantic than the accompanying words. He focused on them and considered the possibility of Marinette having a crush on him. The wave of feelings that came next was unexpected. There were a few times he questioned his own feelings for her, but it felt bittersweet. He always felt like he was betraying Ladybug when he thought of his deeper feelings for Marinette. His love for Ladybug was sincere, and he has already admitted his feelings for her. He felt some need to stay faithful to her, despite her making it clear she didn't want to be with him. This tangled up his feelings for Marinette, and he had a hard time understanding what he wanted. He really valued their friendship and adored the time they shared. It felt almost wrong to think of her as anything more than a friend, as if that would mean being friends wasn't enough. He loved being her friend, but he had to admit that part of him craved something more.

He frowned and looked back at the cards Plagg dumped next to him on the desk. He slid the red heart-shaped one from the stack and opened it before him with a sad smile. His eyes ran down the page. It filled his heart with hope to think Ladybug somehow found his poem and answered him. Ladybug wanted to know his innermost thoughts and dreams. Ladybug loved him. A stupid grin plastered itself to his face while his mind went wild. Plagg knew that look and brought him back to reality.

"How do you even know Ladybug wrote that? She's made it very clear she's..." Plagg paused, considering his words. In reality, the person Ladybug loved really was Adrian. It was only Cat Noir she had turned down. Of course, Adrian didn't know Ladybug's true feelings because Adrian didn't know her true identity. Plagg had to chose his words carefully
"...interested in someone else," he finished. "Maybe you should turn your energy elsewhere. Just cut your losses." Plagg threw up a chunk of camembert and caught it in his mouth, feinting apathy towards his owner's plight. Adrian looked back at Marinette's note. Side by side, the handwriting in the card was a perfect match to his classmate's note. It stared at it for a full minutes as the gears turned in his head. Adrian's face lit up in excitement, but it was short-lived as doubt rolled in. He turned to look at Plagg.

"Could Ladybug's true identity be… Marinette?" Adrien almost whispered the words, afraid to say them aloud. His mind was reeling. He thought of how similar their personalities were. Both were thoughtful. Marinette constantly helped both her friends and enemies. Ladybug empathized with the akumatized victims, understanding their motives. Ladybug was so clever.
Adrian easily got wrapped up in his thoughts again. Ladybug had such magical blue eyes.
And you know what? So does Marinette...

Plagg took a long time to respond to Adrian's question. "How would I know? You had a chance to find out a long time ago, and you blew it. Besides, you said yourself that it should be her decision to tell you if she wants to. And she clearly doesn't."

Adrian's lips turned downward at his reply. He knew he was right, but it definitely felt like Marinette could be Ladybug. He had to find out now.

For now, he pushed the cards away and started on the homework he missed. He'd have to think of a way to confirm his suspicions later. He didn't want to sneak around and snoop into his friend's business, but he had to know. How amazing would it be if he was right? An optimistic smile lighted his face while he churned through his homework.