Half of Marinette was kicking herself for not having seen before what now was obvious; the other half was still trying to deny the thing as a complete absurdity, but there was nothing to do anymore: Adrien Agreste was Chat Noit. How she could realize it, she couldn't explain not even her, she only knew that that denigrating speech was not the jealousy of a crush, or the envy of a rejected, no, it was like the person with whom Chat Noir was really angry was himself; and when she defended Adrien, Chat Noir listened to her not as if he was challenging her, but as if he had a real need of the words she uttered...as if they could save him, somehow. In the end, while she was walking to school and everyone thought about the dreaded chemistry lab, the thoughts of the pigtailed young woman were all directed to what looked like a puzzle of which she had just fixed all pieces: the boy she loved and her adventure buddy were the same person.
It was in this thinking situation that Alya found her: "Ehi, Marinette, what's the matter? Worried for the lab?" "Eh? Uh? Ah, yesyesyes, that, sure...what else could be?" Added with a goofy air as usual, which relaxed the ladyblogger. "Well, I have a news that will make you happy...Nino asked me to be paired with him, therefore, guess who finds himjself unpaired?" "Wha...no, it's not poss...seriously?!" Hands in her hair, the brunette seemed on the verge of a crisis. "A-ha...and Nino says even it was Adrien's idea! For us to stay together, since we are already together...yes, well, you got it, don't you? But the thing doesn't change, you and Adrien will be together for an entire hour, so, try to take advantage, sis'." The hazel-haired admonished her playfully. The bell called them in class, or better in lab, since it was at first hour. But, Marinete thought, if Adrien really was Chat Noir, then he knew what they told each other...maybe he was trying to get close to her even in civilian form? Sure, there was always the chance that she was wrong, after all she wasn't famous for her mind clarity...at least, not when she wasn't Ladybug, and not even in those occasions she was safe from mistakes. Chloé's akumatization was a more than clear example. Always busy pounding, she found herself at the lab's desk, and he was already there, as beautiful as the sun, with a bright and friendly smile. Nothing seemed to confirm and everything seemed to deny her theory. Sure, now she too knew it, feigning normality was a fundamental requirement for those who conduct a double life, so the fact that Adrien didn't show any escape from the ordinary was not to be considered a solid proof..."Hi Marinette. Ready to explode some test tubes?" "Eh? Oh, yes, sure, I'm a texploder, I mean, I explode at the idea, I mean, you are an exploding...oh heaven." As usual she got silly. An epiphany of those proportions fell on her head not even twelve hours before and she still vomited stupidities of that genre. "Ooook...I hope you're not angry for not being with Alya...you know, I thought it was a nice thing to make them work together." "Yeah, yeah, it was a great idea..." He smiled. She too, but you could see it was a bit forced. She only hoped he did not notice. "Now that I think about it, Marinette, this is the first time we work together at school." "That's true...you once worked with Alya, but never with me..." "Well, we could have the chance to know each other better!" Said the blonde with enthusiasm. Don't faint, Marinette, don't faint…
Her goofiness and her shyness were pilot and copilot of her body as of now: for all the lesson, Marinette made nothing but mistakes, that Adrien readily and gently corrected her, always with a smile on his lips. Marinette made a precise mental note of lighting a candle in Notre-Dame, because thanks to who knows which miracle, everything went well until the end...until…
"Nonono, why everyone has green water and we have only yellow one?" The ringing voice of Chloé made itself hear through the desks. Sabrina was sick, so her lab companion was Mylene, who could not help but babble: "I-I don't know, I should have done something wrong..." "Obviously it was you to do wrong!" "Well, hard to make mistakes, Chloé, if you keep watching fashion catalogues all lesson." Kim teased her. "Mmmrgh...now I'll take care of this!" The blonde grabbed a flask filled with an unknown blue powder. "Blue and yellow make green, right?" "No Chloé, that's not how..." all useless: the powder caused an eruption of brown mud that stained both girls from head to heels. "Iiiiiihhh, my clothes, my shoes, my hair...it's all your fault! Now clean!" "Mine? My fault? It's you who caused that mini-geyser!" "Well, it wouldn't have happened if you'd have done your duty before!" Ms. Mendeleiev, witnessed the argument, sentenced: "Well, it's a pair work, so you'll clean together!" "What? I remind you that I'm the mayor's daughter, and..." "Ehi Chloé, is that the new women foulard from Gabriel?" Who talked, among the general surprise, was Adrien, who pointed at the catalogue which Kim mentioned. "Exactly dear Adrien, how it shows you're an expert about it..." The sweetiness of the girl was disgusting, feeling that Marinette shared with all the class. But most importantly, how could Adrien ignore so gladly the poor Mylene and talk about fashion with that diva? "Uhm...you know Chloé, I always admired how you manage to always obtain whatever you want," said Adrien, "sometimes I wonder if I too am capable of it. Wait, how about we discover it?" That placid good giant of Ivan had gotten up, and before the carelessness of the model looked on the way to lose whatever was of good and placid in him. Adrien, meanwhile, had taken out the cell phone and was searching for a number. "For example, I have inside here a lot of numbers of people who work for my father, including a certain Cecile...well, I doubt you know her, but she's a big name, she's selling director of all Paris' metropolitan area and neighbourhood, and she likes me quite much...so, now I'm asking myself, for you, how much time I take to convince her..." Adrien was not really thinking of gifting her that foulard, right? The boy was as of now at the center of the attention of the class, and was attracting also their disgust, but did not seem worried, on the contrary: he lifted the cell at head level showing Chlkoé a number recorded as Cecile and his thumb ready to make the call. "...to make sure that neither you, nor your so called friends, not even no Bourgeois or linked to this name could never even hope to enter one of our shops to buy even the dust on the shelves?"
...a tomb would have been quieter than that class. The easiness with which Adrien had pronounced what for Chloé was equal or worse than a death sentence was terrifying: the general thought was he had been akumatized. The directly involved was a mask of horror: she batted the eyelashes, pouted the lips and with enticing ways said: "Oh Adrien, you would never do such a cruelty to your oldest and dearest friend, riightttt?" *CLICK* Adrien had never stopped looking at her or smiling, neither he stopped when he started the call. The silence was such that there was no need of the speakerphone. -tuuu-tuuu-tuuu... "Hello?" "Hi Cecile, I'm Adrien: listen, I wanted to ask you a little favor..." "NO, ADRIEN, WAI..." "Ssshshshsh, ssshhhh...it's not educate to interrupt people at phone, Chloé. So Cecile, it's about a little strap at the rule you should make at the selling sector..." "NO ADRIEN, I BEG YOU! I'LL DO WHATEVER YOU WANT, BUT I PLEAD YOU, DON'T DO ME THIS!" "...just one moment, Cecile...yeeees?" If there was a prize for the cutest bronze face, Marinette would have been ready to give him the whole podium. He seemed become insensible. "Ok, I get it, I've been bad, tell me what I have to do to be forgiven and I'll do it!" Adrien changed expression so slowly that nobody noticed how much his gaze became cold and his smile vanished until he dictated with clenching teeth his conditions: "Bucket. Rags. Mop. Clean-this-mess." Nobody moved. "Now!" Chloé ran out of the class like a bolt to take the tools. Adrien retook the smile and came back to the phone. "Sorry for the late Cecile...anyway, it's about those new foulards, you know, the limited edition ones...yeah, you should send one as a homage by me. … I know, I know, but it's for a friend of mine! … Thanks, you're always understanding! … Yeah, right, ehm...Rue de la Concorde number 15. If you could do it by today, I'd be very grateful! Thanks again, we'll see each other later!" *CLICK* All present eyes were pointed on him, open mouths and ears ready. He played dumb. "...what?" DRIIIIINNN "Oh, the bell! Mylene, maybe it's better if you go change yourself. Don't worry for the laundry, send the bill to me." Adrien Agreste...just offered...to pay the laundry for Mylene? "No, you don'..." "Mylene, it's not right you pay for somebody else's mistake." "But neither you!" "Eeeeh, call me crazy then, but I want to do it! Ivan?" Ivan did not know what to do anymore, expecially with the young fashionista. "Go with her, it's right it's you who stays by her side." Now Ivan knew what to do: crush him. The moment Mylene had been better, he would have crushed him in a grateful hug. For the moment, the couple left the class. Adrien came back to his place, unbothered by the pandemonium he had unleashed. Marinette was crystallized staring at the now empty point where the mean phone call happened. Alya was rightfully worried for the friend, she shook her lightly, but were Rose's words to wake her...well, more or less… "Rue de la Concorde number 15...Marinette, but isn't it your address?" Alya's eyes became two frying pans. Marinette simply fell down unconscious face first.