Sabrina was the worst best friend in the history of best friends as her eyes flickered towards Adrien yet again.
She saw him more the nicer that Chloe got and the braver she got, and naturally, that meant Adrien hanging out with Chloe and by default Sabrina.
Sabrina hated herself for wanting his looks to be prolonged, for his eyes to remain rooted on her and not Chloe, and for her not being good enough. No one that could be bought and had to slave over something to be even considered worthwhile was the type for a model to want to stare at or even want to date or kiss.
Sabrina had never kissed anyone before, actually; she'd dreamed about kisses, practiced on stuffed animals that she'd told no one that she had, and she'd practically melted whenever it seemed like anyone could want to kiss her, ever. It was usually just her imagination running off with her lagging behind to pick up the pieces. Like now, Adrien's eyes had flickered over to meet hers and a smile lit up his flawless face, and Sabrina was putty in the make believe.
"Sabrina, go get something or do something." Chloe commanded as she sat up straighter, and like a soldier following his commander's orders, Sabrina listened. She was too weak to garner Adrien's lasting attention; she'd heard enough talks of Ladybug and seen enough of how strong and domineering Chloe was to take a hint.
She slipped into the kitchen and politely asked Mrs. Cesaire if she could cook with her, practice; Chloe had told Sabrina once despite apologizing for it later on that she had to learn to cook for a guy to look twice at her. Even though Chloe hadn't meant it and had just been irritable that day, Sabrina took it to heart and spent many days practicing cooking, wanting to be good. She found that she liked it, liked the work; she didn't love it, not the way that she did learning and by default, Geography, but she liked it well enough.
She doubted that Adrien had ever been taught to cook, and a part of her relished the thought of treating him to a home cooked meal, made with the love that he desperately deserved.
If she grumbled under her breath about what she hoped for, the chef that tutored her in cooking didn't say anything; besides, Sabrina could ask her mom to help or her dad to teach her to grill. She'd loved the little lessons that she had at home; Sabrina held true that to truly be good at something, you had to be well rounded in it first. Cooking was the same thing for her, you had to learn many recipes, learn from many different types of cooks, and spend ages practicing the art of making a tasty and hopefully gorgeous dish.
Sabrina had even fussed over measurements and directions in her attempts; she wasn't determined enough to go to culinary school, but then again, she never wanted to pressure herself into a field that she only, merely liked.
In her own way, Chloe pampered her: just enough to give her old clothes or play fun games with her. Sabrina cherished those moments, and she couldn't quite believe herself: falling in love with Chloe's childhood friend and crush?
Sabrina noticed the little things that sometimes she wondered if Chloe noticed like the way that sometimes Adrien's most meaningful smiles were crooked or that he wore clothes like a safety vest, to hide away in, or how his jokes usually focused on puns or that he seemed to admire Cat Noir and yet wallow in his faults.
Sabrina noticed all of the little things, had for a while; she loved learning new things, and there was a certain kind of fun about studying people especially when she had a crush on the subject in particular. She'd thrown herself into studying Adrien in the way that she used to study Chloe.
She loved the quirks that Adrien had, the way he fell into model poses sometimes without thinking about it like it was just beyond ingrained in him which both looked completely endearing and broke her heart, or the way that he ran his fingers through his hair, sometimes messing up the fine locks, when he was nervous.
He's adorable without meaning to be, and Sabrina thinks that has less to do with his modeling and more to do with who he is deep down. She's pretty sure that that's why Chloe's so attracted to him despite the woman trying to play it off, and she's pretty sure that Chloe isn't aware of why she likes him in the way that she isn't entirely aware that Sabrina likes him.
Either way, it's a mess, and Sabrina shouldn't notice the little details about him like she's an addict to all things Adrien, but she can't quite help it. He's a jumbled mix of so much, and she kind of likes it.
It reminds her of why she throws herself into things, doesn't accept halfway from herself, since she always expects to be better for her parents and better for Chloe since she deserves a loving female friend and better for Adrien or some fictional boyfriend that just may like her one day.
She takes in pressure like a sponge and holds on to it, pushing to rise above it.
It isn't quite enough to just be good, she has to be better.
Chloe doesn't come get her, but Adrien waves at her on his way out; Sabrina's heart does its own version of a happy dance that she never wants to let go of.
Sabrina feels like she blinked and all of a sudden Adrien was there, talking to Chloe, just a short hello and trying to unwind the woman from him, and then he's speaking to Sabrina like a long time friend.
"Hi, Sabrina! How are you?" Adrien is half leaning on the wall, and Sabrina has to fight herself to keep off a swoon that she really shouldn't be feeling.
"G-Good." Sabrina takes a deep breath at Chloe's sharp look, "Actually, fine, I'm fine."
"That's good to hear. How are you feeling about our Geography project in class?" Adrien just radiates a sort of confidence sometimes that isn't so quick to fade, and Sabrina is half tempted to thank him for it even though it's just his reaction and not meant just for her.
"Good. I'm excited for it." Sabrina hopes that she doesn't sound too nerdy especially since she, Chloe, and Alix are working together. She just hopes that the partnership goes well, "And you?" She feels a little more relaxed where school comes in though she always worries if someone will find it weird that she looks forward to projects and to a lesser extent sometimes homework too.
"I think that it will go well." His smile oozes a warmth that Sabrina wishes that she could just cling to; Adrien's working with Marinette, Nino, and Alya. She'd heard more than one whoop she was sure from either Nino or Alya when that was assigned.
She pointedly still felt a bit sore over how Marinette had handled everything before, and so she just chose to ignore the choices that the young fashion designer to be made.
"That's good to hear." She hopes that she just doesn't sound like a dull echo to the model's ears, "Do you want to study later or something?" She knows that she's stepped out of line when Chloe nudges her hard in the ribs and that she'll be watched more closely by her best friend. She hadn't meant to say too much; it just sort of fell out.
"I'd love to." Adrien chorused, "How about at my place, Sabrina, in a couple of days. My father probably won't let me out to study at yours without meeting you first."
"That makes sense." Sabrina nodded, "Sure." She wasn't going to say no since she really wanted to study with him even though she knew that Chloe would have a fit later. Hopefully, her best friend would forgive her. Besides, Adrien didn't like Sabrina like that, did he? He liked confident women, someone like Chloe or Alix or Marinette, sometimes, but especially someone like Ladybug or Rena Rouge when she'd made her brief stint.
Sabrina wasn't bold enough or brave enough to catch his eye.
The thing about a mansion is that it's really big, nothing like the hotel hallways, just narrow enough that Sabrina spent time at to play with Chloe, and nothing like her modest house that blends into the backdrop of Paris. It just feels big, wide, and empty; Adrien's smile is strained when he speaks to his father, but he leaves his door open when they enter his room like a command or like he's on autopilot.
Sabrina doubts that he's aware of quite how far obedience has seeped into his bones. She realizes, it's sort of like her. She's often obedient to a fault. She won't say a word.
Adrien's room is fun especially when in the middle of studying, Sabrina models an outfit that's as dark as Cat Noir's suit and reminds her of the superhero and when Adrien dons a secret Ladybug suit that he kept stashed in his closet.
She'd never laughed so hard, especially when his favorite part about the getup is the flirting and playfulness that comes along with it; with Chloe, it was always about the action, and Ladybug somehow overshadowing Cat Noir. With Adrien, it's all about the puns and the pick up lines since they don't have a make believe Akuma nearby.
Whenever she tells a pretty good pick up line, 'I could drown in your blue eyes if you'd let me,' or a halfway decent one, Adrien doesn't turn her down for a little while, just kind of accepts it with a smile. Somehow the lines stopped being about how the superheroes actually looked, and her feelings spoke volumes in broad daylight.
"L-Ladybug, can I wander through the forest that your eyes have become for me and truly be free?" She shouldn't make references to his green eyes, but with Adrien, she felt like she could be free or more confident. He'd be her crutch or catch her when she fell. Already, this was probably the most fun that she'd had in a while.
"You may," Adrien's cheeks lit up in a delicate red, and Sabrina wondered vaguely if it was the line or if it could be because of her somehow. Could she ever come to know the taste of his lips, the almost sugar like calling that lit her veins on fire and tempted her so?
Today, she would not. She'd just enjoy when flirting became natural and honest, and how friendship sometimes spawned between the strangest of people.
She had no idea how she came to be sitting on Adrien's floor in her Cat Noir costume playing Ulimate Mecha Strike Three; it just sort of happened.
Her Ladybug was at her side or her new one anyway since Chloe had recently been giving her the silent treatment and was waiting for her to come back around. She'd eventually probably move on to Phase Two which undoubtedly was more direct.
Sabrina half-cheered when she did arguably well against Adrien before he beat her before the round was over. "Really now, 'Bug, you have to be so good at this?" Sabrina questioned, relaxed in the knowledge that Adrien really was okay with her here like this.
"You can't beat the 'Bug." His eyes shone like the moonlight over a crystal clear lake, and Sabrina was half tempted to figure out if his kiss was just as smooth or just as cool.
"Oh, I can't?" Sabrina bit back a laugh as she leaned towards him, lips pretty darn close, "What if I cheat a little?" She wouldn't bother cheating at the game since the current match was over and since she believed in getting there with hard work, but the idea of jumping as close to character as possible and teasing him was just too tempting.
"Well," Adrien muttered, face once again pink, "Two can play at that game."
Sabrina wasn't sure how it happened or how teasing turned into reality, but they might have accidentally leaned too far in to the other, and somehow their lips met in the middle.
She sighed, eyes fluttering closed, glasses pushed somewhat awkwardly against Adrien's face. It felt perfect, soft as a marshmallow, and yet somehow something much sweeter and much more full, full of life, perhaps?
Her belly squirmed, and she couldn't help the joy that ate at her, making her feel like she was floating on clouds even as eventually Adrien pulled away from her.
"You, you taste like strawberries." Adrien muttered, and somehow the random statement sent Sabrina into a fit of laughter, the happy, bubbly kind that sort of just floated in the air when you were too happy to consider stopping or consider being normal.
"Sabrina," Adrien's face turned pink when finally laughter that he'd ended up joining in on faded away, "I really like you."
"Like, like. I mean, you do?" She stared at him wide eyed, moving to wipe her glasses clean as if it had been a problem with her slightly fogged up glasses and not her ears.
"I want to date you." Adrien's cheeks grew darker, and Sabrina wanted to kiss the dark pink away and relax. She wasn't confident enough to close that distance, so she'll try it out one day when she's braver or bolder.
"M-Me too." Sabrina took a steadying breath, "I want to date you too." Perhaps there was something to be said about quiet evenings and video games when the gaming session turned into a spontaneous cuddling session especially when now, Sabrina had hope for a much brighter future with the man that she was pretty sure that she more than liked.