Master Fu grabbed an old fishing hat and put in on his balding head to shield himself from the sun. Adrien waited for the man to get ready and then they left the house. He followed closely behind Master Fu as they left the neighborhood. Like before, Adrien got multiple glances from old ladies who wished that they were young again. However, this time he did a better job of responding. He would wave or say "hello", causing the old ladies to whip themselves into a frenzy. They all found him incredibly handsome.

"Where are we going?" Adrien asked, noticing that he was entering the familiar part of Paris. The part where he had fought yesterday's akuma was coming into view. He recognized the familiar park where the statue of him and Ladybug was.

"You'll see..." Master Fu replied, not wanting to answer the youth's questions right away. The man functioned with an air of mystery that Adrien did not appreciate. He didn't like being out of the loop.

The pair stopped walking in front of a familiar bakery storefront.

"We're here."

"Isn't this the bakery Marinette's family owns?" Adrien wondered, looking at the sign. "Why would he be taking me here of all places? We already got breakfast..."

Adrien followed Master Fu inside the shop. The air was filled with the aroma of sweets and freshly baked bread. Adrien's stomach growled even though he had already eaten breakfast. Apparently having a bigger body meant you needed to eat more food. It felt like he hadn't eaten anything all day!

"Maybe I will end up buying something," Adrien said, eyeing some lemon tarts that looked like just came out of the oven. His stomach gave another hungry growl. "I'll definitely have to buy something."

"Mr. Fu, how wonderful to see you!" Marinette's mother came rushing out from behind the counter. She bent down and gave the man a big hug. "Why did you come by? I thought you normally came only on Fridays. I do have your usual order if you want it. Freshly baked too." Sabine gave the man a wink and pointed back at the display counter. "Free of charge for you of course."

"No thank you," Master Fu politely declined. "I have actually come to talk to you about this young man here." He gestured to Adrien who stepped forward and nodded. "Good morning, ma'am," Adrien said in a quiet tone. He had met Marinette's mother before, but as his younger self. It felt weird to reintroduce himself.

"I was wondering if you needed any help part time," Master Fu continued. "He's looking for some work while he stays with me. He's been in a bit of a rough situation and might only be around for a few days, but he's a hardworker. I thought if anyone could use him it would be you, Sabine."

Sabine smiled and clapped her hands together. "Of course! We'd be delighted to have his assistance even if it is just for a few days. We're always so busy here and with Marinette going back to school tomorrow, we'll be down an extra hand." She turned to Adrien and shook his hand vigorously. "What's your name, young man?"

"Felix..." Adrien replied, still wincing at the name. "It's nice to meet you, Felix," Marinette's mother said. "I'm Sabine and I'm the wife of the head baker here. We run this place together with our daughter, Marinette. You might see her running in and out of here throughout the day, so don't be alarmed. She might even drop by to help this afternoon. She's a very lovely girl."

"Don't worry, I know Marinette," Adrien chuckled. "I'll leave him to you then," Master Fu said as he headed towards the door. "I'll see you later, Felix. Feel free to bring home any leftovers." The old man laughed at his joke and then left with a satisfied grin.

"Let's get you started right away!" Sabine rolled up her sleeves and then hurried into the back room. She came back with a long, pink apron. "Sorry, it's the only color we have, but you'll be glad you're wearing it. Flour tends to make a mess. You'll want to keep your hair pulled back like that too." Adrien took the apron and draped it over him. He tied a knot in the back and asked, "How do I look?"

"Like a true baker," Sabine laughed. Something about Felix felt very familiar to her almost as if they had met before. Sabine knew she hadn't though. She would've remembered a handsome face like his. She guided him to the back room and pulled out several globs of dough the needed to be kneaded.

"Do you know how to knead?"

Adrien nodded his head. He had a vague idea of what kneading was. "Good," Sabine sighed. "Because I don't and I was afraid I'd have to go get Tom. It's his special skill and I've never been very good at it. I don't have enough arm muscle, but it looks like you'll do just fine." She poked Adrien's arm muscle and laughed. "You seem like a strong boy."

Sabine heard the bell ring at the front entrance and she said, "Oops! Sounds like a customer. I'll leave you to this then. I'll check on you in a bit." She hurried back up front to serve a customer and Adrien looked down at the heaps of dough.

"I can do this!" He thought confidently. "It doesn't seem that hard." Adrien cracked his knuckles and began to knead the dough, letting his fingers run through the gooey substance. "This is kinda fun!" Adrien smiled. He kneaded each heap of dough and before he knew it, he was finished. His arms were a little sore afterwards, but if felt good to do some hard work.

"I'm finished," Adrien said, poking his head out of the backroom. The bakery had calmed down since it was after the breakfast rush. Sabine was straightening the displays when a large man came into the bakery. He was carrying a giant bag of sugar over his back and he lifted it like it was a feather.

"Oh, you're back!" Sabine smiled as she ran over to the man who Adrien recognized as Marinette's father. She gave him a hug which he somehow returned despite holding the sugar. "While you were gone, Mr. Fu stopped by and he gave us this young man." Sabine pointed at Adrien who waved back awkwardly. "He'll be helping out part time for a few days. He just finished kneading the dough, so I'll leave him to you. It seems like he did a good job too. He might justs give you a run for your money, Tom."

Tom nodded and approached Adrien with a smile. "Welcome to our bakery," he grinned, giving the boy a pat on the back. The strength of the pat almost knocked Adrien over. Tom set the bag of sugar on the ground and admired Adrien's dough kneading job. "Sabine was right. This is pretty good," Tom said. He picked up the dough and put them back on their racks. "We'll let them rise and then we can bake them tomorrow. Right now we should get started on an upcoming cake order. Can you decorate a cake...err?"

"Felix," Adrien said, filling in the blanks. "I've never done it before, but I'll do my best."

"That's the hard-working attitude I like to see. Follow me." Tom lead Adrien to a giant table where dozens of types of frosting and decorations were laid out. Tom took three different layers of cake out the giant freezer and set them on the table. "Just take one of these knives and slather frosting over the cake. I can even it out once you're finished. This will go a lot faster with two sets of hands."

"I've never seen you around here before," Tom said, starting idle conversation. "I thought I knew everyone in the neighborhood."

"I'm new..." Adrien lied. "I'm staying with Master Fu for a while."

"Fresh out of university I assume?"

"Yeah, you could say that."

"I remember those times." Tom gave a hearty laugh. "I jumped around from job to job until I finally earned enough money to open this place. Without Sabine though, I never could've done it. She's the light of my life besides my daughter of course. Do you have a special someone?" Tom wiggled his eyebrows, prying for more details. He was the type of boss that wanted to be best friends with his workers. A strong relationship was essential for a good work environment.

"I do," Adrien smiled, thinking of Ladybug. "I don't know if she likes me yet, but we'll see."

"I can't imagine any girl turning down a handsome man like you."

"Thanks sir."

Adrien liked Mr. Dupain-Cheng. He was kind-hearted and funny. Adrien instantly felt at home working in the bakery. The atmosphere was warm, not just from the oven, but from the love of its owners. They had worked hard to build the bakery into what it was today. Anyone who walked into the bakery could feel the welcoming vibes.

There was a loud door slam from the back room near the area where the bakery connected to the Dupain-Cheng household. "I'm back!" A sweet voice rang out through the bakery. Adrien heard footsteps and suddenly Marinette appeared in the doorway. She looked at Adrien with wide-eyes.

"What are you doing here?" She asked. Secretly, she was thinking, "Well, this day just keeps getting better and better. First I figured out how to cure Chat Noir and now Felix's here." Marinette felt a slight twinge of guilt. Her strange attraction towards Felix conflicted with her feelings for Adrien, but she brushed it off as nothing more than a silly crush. It was normal to feel at least a little something towards a man that beautiful. It didn't come anywhere near rivaling her feelings for Adrien.

"I work here now," Adrien said in a soft voice. "I just got hired this morning."

"Have you two met before?" Tom asked, slightly confused. "Felix, this is my daughter, Marinette. Marinette, this is our new part-time worker, Felixl. He's been a hard worker already. I think he might even be better than you."

"Papa!" Marinette gasped, pretending to be insulted. Then she giggled and said, "That's okay. I was never that good at baking anyways. I always just end up making a mess. Anyways, I'm going upstairs to work on homework now." She kissed her father on the forehead and gave Adrien a smile. "Work hard you two!"

Marinette's presence sent Adrien spinning. She smelled overly sweet like sugar and she was even more beautiful than when he saw her this morning. Her lips were plump and pink. Her laugh gave him goosebumps and her eyes were intoxicating. He couldn't pull his gaze away. His heart dropped when she left to go to her bedroom. He wanted to grab her and talk to her more. He didn't want her to leave.

"Woah... Why am I acting so weird all of a sudden?" Adrien wondered. He put his hand over his heart to calm himself. "It's just Marinette. I see her almost everyday and this never happens. Why am I getting possessive all of a sudden? I can't seem to calm down."

"That's my little girl," Tom remarked proudly. "She always has an energetic spring in her step, but watch out. She can bite when she wants despite that cute face."

"I know." Adrien had seen Marinette take Chloe head on in fights and win. The girl had a secret fire that burned brightly, but she never showed it when Adrien was around. With him, she was quiet and reserved unless something else upset her. They were good friends, but Adrien felt like he never got to see the real Marinette.

As soon as Tom left to talk to Sabine, Plagg popped his head out of Adrien's shirt. Adrien's new clothing style wasn't as comfy as the old one, but it would have to do. "So Marinette, huh?" Plagg winked with a devious smile.

"What are you talking about?"

"Kid, don't play dumb. I could hear your heartbeat race when she came in. It sounds like someone has a little crush."

"A crush? She's my friend, Plagg. I'll admit I felt a bit funny when she was around, but that's never happened before. It must be because I'm stuck in this body. It doesn't mean anything."

"And I thought you were the most hormonal when you were a teenager..."

"Shut up! Don't make this weird. I'm already uncomfortable enough as is. I don't need you making things worse." Adrien heard Tom coming back and shoved Plagg's head down. "Were you talking to someone?" Tom asked with a confused look. Adrien shook his head and said, "Nope! It must be your imagination."

Meanwhile, Marinette was upstairs in her bedroom, thinking about the bakery's newest part-time worker. She was lying on her bed, replaying her conversation with him over and over in her head. "Tikki, he's just so... so..."

"Handsome? Gorgeous? Breathtaking? I know. You told me already," Tikki giggled. She was blushing too. "Are you cheating on Adrien?"

"Of course not! Adrien is even more beautiful than Felix. I love Adrien with all my heart. He's kind and smart and handsome and..."

"Where were you going with this?"

"My point is that I still love Adrien, but there's nothing wrong with admitting that another boy is good-looking."

"Extremely good-looking..."

"Yes," Marinette blushed. "Extremely good-looking. What are the chances that he would work here? We met for the first time this morning and now he's back again. Should I go talk to him? What if he thinks I'm annoying? I'm probably just a little girl to him."

"He'll like you, Marinette!" Tikki pipped. "Everyone always does. And he reminds me of Adrien. He has the same kind aura. He'll warm up to you in no time."

"Now that you mention it, he reminds me of Adrien too. They have similar green eyes and smile, but Felix is way older and scruffier. It would be like if Adrien aged ten years and decided to grow his hair out. I don't ever see that happening though. Adrien is wonderful just the way he is. It's hard to imagine him all grown up."

"I can't imagine you grown up, Marinette." Tikki tried to imagine what Marinette would look like in the future. "I don't think I'd change very much," Marinette laughed. "I've had the same face since preschool and I've been this tall since the fifth grade. There isn't much left to change."

The only thing that ever changed about Marinette was her hairstyle. Last she, she wore her hair up in a bun everyday, but now she was a fan of the pigtails. She couldn't really change her hair anymore either. It was a part of Ladybug's iconic look. She was stuck with it.

"I just hope that Adrien isn't a fan of mature girls," Marinette sighed, blowing a piece of hair out her face. "You of all people know that I'll always be like a little kid at heart."

"I wouldn't want you any other way!" Tikki smiled as she gave Marinette a tiny nudge. "I can't imagine you being serious all the time. Plus that would make being Ladybug very boring, all work and no play."

"Speaking of Ladybug," Marinette said suddenly. "I should probably send Chat Noir a message and let him know that I found a way to return him to normal. The poor cat is probably having a rough day. It'll be good for him to finally hear some good news."

Marinette made sure her trapdoor was shut tight and then transformed into Ladybug. She unhooked her yo-yo and dialed up Chat Noir. She stared at the dorky picture of his face that was his contact screen as she waited for the call to go through. He never picked up and Ladybug frowned. "He must be busy," she thought. "It is the middle of the day. I'll leave a message."

Ladybug held the yo-yo to her ear and started to speak. "Hey, it's me. I figured out a way to turn you back to normal. I just have to use my miraculous cure again, so all we need to do is wait for Hawkmoth to unleash another akuma. Until then, sit tight like I said. I... uhh hope everything's going okay. Talk to you soon and call me if you have any problems."

With a sigh, she hung up her yo-yo and quickly detransformed. Tikki flew out the earrings and gave Marinette a sad smile. "He'll be fine," Tikki reassured the blue-haired girl. "He's Chat Noir! I've seen him take on akumas three times his size! He can handle this."

"That's what I keep trying to tell myself, Tikki, but I have this nagging feeling that he couldn't sit still. He's probably out there unnecessary creating problems for himself. Not to mention, it must be scary to suddenly be an adult. It's like the whole world changes..."

Downstairs, Adrien had finished helping Tom frost the cake. They had taken a break for lunch, but they were back at it again. Tom smoothed out all the frosting layers and then they were ready to decorate. "This is a fairly simple cake," Tom explained. He carefully picked up a flower shaped out of fondant. Tom had prepared dozens of them the night prior. "Just stick these flowers along the lines of where the cake layers meet. Once that's finished, you can add the topper and I'll do the piping."

Adrien tried to pick up a flower and almost dropped it. His fingers were bigger than he expected and it was hard to move small objects. He was afraid that he would crush them. Eventually, Adrien got the hang of his new appendages and started putting the flowers on the cake. It was coming along nicely. Tom worked on the other detail work as Adrien worked. Within an hour or two, they had completely finished.

"All done!" Tom remarked proudly. "That's your first cake and it's very well done. You should be proud, Felix."

Adrien looked at his work in awe. He did feel proud. He had never made something like this before. It was the first time the boy had done any real work. Of course he had been a model, but that didn't count. All he did was stare at a camera, make faces, and try on someone else's clothes. This right here... this was real work and Adrien was proud to be a part of it.

"This needs to be delivered in thirty minutes, so I'm going to load it into the car and head off," Tom said, boxing up the cake. "Talk to Sabine and see if she needs any help. You'll probably be gone by the time I get back, so I'll tell you now. That was a good first day, son. Welcome aboard. We're lucky to have someone like you working here."

Tom took the cake outside while Adrien went to see Sabine. He asked if there was any more work for him to do. "I don't think so," Sabine answered. "It's almost closing time and we have everything done for tonight. But would you be able to come in tomorrow, say 5:00 or 6:00? That's when most of the work gets done."

"I'll be there then!" Adrien had never woken that up early for anything, but for the Dupain-Chengs, he would gladly do it. It was his first day on the job and he felt like he belonged. Truthfully, he felt a little sad that he would have to leave them when he returned to normal, but he could still always visit the bakery. It gave him an excuse to see Marinette too.

Marinette. That was something that was still racking his mind. Adrien couldn't figure out while she made him feel weird all of a sudden. He attributed it to his transformation, but that still wasn't a good explanation. "Is it a sign that my feelings for Ladybug are going to fade in the future?" Adrien worried, his face turning pale. "That's impossible. I promised to love my lady forever. I can't imagine giving her up."

"Felix, are you okay?" Sabine asked as she noticed the boy's expression twist. "Oh, it's nothing," Adrien said quickly, snapping back to reality. "I zoned out for a moment. I'll be there tomorrow morning, no problem."

Sabine pulled a small envelope out of her apron pocket. "I know it isn't normal for people to pay by the day, but I want you to have this for now. You deserve it. Mr. Fu mentioned over the phone a little while ago that this would probably be your first real paycheck."

She handed Adrien the envelope and he carefully opened it. It was filled with his day's pay, something he hadn't even considered yet. It felt good to hold the envelop in his hands and see his hard-earned money. As a model, most of the money went off into a bank account that his father controlled. Adrien never touched or even saw any of it.

"Thank you, Mrs. Dupain-Cheng," Adrien nodded. "This is really generous of you."

"Go out and get yourself something nice," Sabine laughed. "Or maybe get something for that girl of yours." Adrien's faced heated up and his cheeks turned red. Sabine laughed even harder and said, "Sorry. I overheard yours and Tom's conversation. I wish you the best of luck." She pinched his cheek playfully and winked. "I have faith she'll come around."

"I wish that were true," Adrien sighed. "Too bad the girl I love is Ladybug, the most stubborn, yet wonderful woman in Paris. Maybe I should pick her up a present. It might make her feel better after what happened. She probably feels guilty about it. That's so like her."

Adrien put the envelope in his pocket and left the bakery. He asked Sabine to tell Marinette he said good-bye. She happily obliged. Adrien walked back to Master Fu's with a smile on his face. Today had been a long, but rewarding day.

Once they were far enough away, Plagg stuck his head out of Adrien's shirt and said, "By the way, Ladybug called when you were working."

"Why did you wait until now to tell me that?" Adrien groaned, face palming. He had been waiting to hear from Ladybug since they parted ways. Plagg shrugged and said, "You were really into cake decorating. I didn't want to bother you."

"Just transform me."

Adrien turned into Chat Noir and slipped away under the cover of dark. He took out his baton and extended it. There was one new message from Ladybug.

"Hey, it's me. I figured out a way to turn you back to normal. I just have to use my miraculous cure again, so all we need to do is wait for Hawkmoth to unleash another akuma. Until then, sit tight like I said and I... uhh hope everything's going okay. Talk to you soon and call me if you have any problems."

"I knew she'd figure it out," Chat Noir sighed,a flood of relief washing over him. He wasn't going to be stuck like this forever. "For the first time, I actually wish Hawkmoth would send out another akuma. I want to be back at home in my own bed. Not to mention I'm going to have to miss school tomorrow because of this. I can't really afford to miss anymore days."

Unfortunately, Adrien had no choice. He was at Hawkmoth's mercy. Until someone is Paris was angry enough to become an akuma, Adrien was stuck being an adult.

In the next chapter, Marinette and Adrien go out on a fun, little outing