Chapter Three

Adrien's shoulders were slumped as walked back to school. Marinette had every right to be angry but he'd hoped an apology with an explanation would have curbed that anger into something less volatile. Apparently, he'd been wrong. He'd hurt her more deeply than he'd first thought. It made him wonder how long she'd been nursing these feelings for him, perhaps it was much longer than he'd imagined. He was no stranger to unrequited love and it stung to know that one of his closest friends had been secretly harbouring such for him.

Knowing what it was like to be rejected, he wanted to soften the blow and to reassure her that they could still be friends. When he'd arrived at Marinette's place he'd half expected her to shun him and have him sent away. When her mother had indicated that she would talk to him he'd felt a bubble of hope rising. Unfortunately, that premature bubble was popped the moment she'd cut him off. For now, all he could do was give her time to cool down. Yet it seemed imperative to him to fix their relationship.

Slipping his hands into his pockets he considered his options. He could write her a letter. No, she'd probably tear it up and throw it away in her current frame of mind. Send her flowers? No, too romantic and it'd drive home his rejection.

Walking back into the school grounds he spotted Alya and made his way to her. The moment she saw him she crossed her arms and gave him a disapproving stare. "Hey Alya," he said with uncertainty. "Any ideas how I can fix things with Marinette?"

Snagging him by the collar she dragged him away from prying eyes and into a more private alcove. "You broke her heart, Adrien. She's not going to be able to simply accept your apology and move on right away."

He looked at the toes of his shoes. "I get that but there's got to be something I can do."

"Give her some space. At the moment she needs friends to lean on and right now you can't be one of those friends."

"You're right, I just feel like I should do something."

"Imagine if you were totally head over heels for some girl and she turned you down flat. Would you really want to be near her?"

Adrien's jaw tensed. If only Alya knew he had experience that exact scenario, although Ladybug had been far gentler with Chat Noir's heart than he had with had been with Marinette's. It was probably why he was completely fine with being around his partner because he remained hopeful that their relationship would eventually evolve into a romantic one. At least when she realised the dude she was into wasn't for her. He mentally shook himself, he was being side-tracked.

Alya was staring at him and he knew she was waiting for his answer. "It would be uncomfortable at first."

"You think? She's not exactly in her happy place right now."

He paled as he considered the ramifications. Marinette was swimming in negative emotions which meant she was a likely target for Hawkmoth. He returned his attention to Alya. "Alright, I'll back off."

"Good. Thanks for understanding."

"Thanks for listening."

With Alya's hasty departure, Adrien considered how to protect Marinette from a possible akuma. There was little he could do while stuck in school, plus his afternoon routine meant he wouldn't be free until after his Chinese lesson. Once that was over he'd be free to camp out on a nearby rooftop on a private stakeout as Chat Noir. It would be better if he could talk to her and assess her mood but he'd need to come up with a reasonable excuse to call upon her. It wasn't like he regularly stopped by as his alter ego.

All afternoon he picked his brain for possible excuses but nothing seemed viable. That evening after Chinese lessons, Adrien was so anxious that he had to force himself to eat. His painfully slow dinner raised Nathalie's ire and she ushered him into his room with an impatience he'd rarely witnessed. Apparently, his father had been testy with her this week too. Left to his own devices as usual, Adrien set up his iPod to play his faux piano practice and transformed into Chat Noir.

In less than five minutes he was sitting on a rooftop not too far from Marinette's home. He'd hoped that she would be on her balcony and that he'd be able to nonchalantly appear and start up a conversation, pretending he was on patrol. No such luck. The only positive was that her lights were on in her bedroom.

Easing closer, he peered inside and cursed to himself. Alya was over. He shook his head in annoyance. He should have expected that. Returning to his previous vantage point he sat down and considered his options.

Chat Noir was so lost in thought that he didn't immediately register when Marinette and Alya climbed out of the skylight and onto the balcony. It was only when their voices carried on the wind and his cat ears pivoted that he leapt to his feet to stare at them in shock. His movement caught Alya's eye. "Oh my gosh, it's Chat Noir! Chat Noir, over here! Is there an akuma?" she yelled waving frantically at him.

Unable to supress a smile, the black clad hero extended his baton and swung across to the girls. He landed elegantly on the metal railing and dropped into a squat. "No akuma tonight, I'm just out and about."

"Did you see anything interesting? Wait can I do an interview with you?" Alya beamed as she bounced up and down on her toes.

And right there was an excuse he was looking for. "Sure, why not."

Alya let out a delighted squeal and dropped down the skylight. With her gone he took the opportunity to study Marinette. There was a looseness to her stance which he took as a good sign, her taunt anger seemed to have left her. His eyes searched her face, picking up the dark smudges and red rims around her eyes. It pained him to know he was the cause. "You look tired," he said as he dropped from the railing and moved towards her.

"It's been a rough day."

The corned of his lips quirked up as he gently teased. "Do I need to take you out for a run across the rooftops?"

Her eyes brightened and his heart unexpectedly sped up. "Don't tell me you got stood up again."

Chat Noir chuckled as he rested his elbow on the railing beside hers. "No, I haven't been trying to woo Ladybug. I know she's got someone else on her mind." He jumped when Marinette laid her hand on his arm.

"I'm sorry," she whispered and he was confused by the look on her face. He could have sworn that guilt flittered across her features but he was distracted from further analysis as her hand tightened. "I understand now," she whispered.

"It's okay. It's only a matter of time before Ladybug falls for me." He said with a wink and a smirk, yet he felt like Marinette saw through him.

"That might not happen, Chat." His chest constricted at her words.

"Maybe not but I live in hope." Her fingers squeezed his arm but before she could say more Alya returned. It surprised him that Marinette didn't let go. He cocked his head towards her as he spoke to Alya. "Your buddy here has kept me locked down. So, what do you want to ask?"

Alya's hands trembled in excitement as she held up her phone. "Okay, okay. Wait, is Ladybug around too? It'd be great to interview you both."

"It's just me. Alas my lady has left me to patrol alone." He said with feigned distress.

Marinette's giggle had him raising a masked eyebrow. "You don't take my heartache seriously, do you?"

The mirth receded from her eyes. "Sorry Chat, it's just that you tend to joke around about everything."

"Ah, but what is the world without laughter?" He slouched down so his face was level with hers, keeping her attention away from his sly hand that reached out to tickle her side.

"You really are a flirt," Alya laughed.

Chat Noir shrugged. "What can I say, I like Marinette."

Alya's jaw dropped. "Wait, are you saying you're into Marinette?"

His eyes widened and his head pivoted between the two girls. He wasn't going to reject Marinette twice in one day, even if he was incognito. "Whoa, I'm not about to admit to anything like that when you're filming me. Where's the real interview questions?"

A predatory grin spread across Alya's face as she stepped closer. "You are into Marinette."

Leaning away, Chat Noir could feel his cheeks burning at the accusation. "She's a friend. I like her as a friend." He hoped that was enough to satisfy Alya and to make Marinette feel better not worse.

Instead Alya's jaw dropped. "You're friends with Marinette? Does that mean you visit her regularly?"

"No!" They both said in unison.

"I think you both protest too much," Alya smirked smugly.

Chat Noir crossed his arms and stared down his masked nose at the budding reporter. "Right, interview over and you better not put that on your blog. It's pure speculation."

Marinette snatched the phone from her friend and stopped the recording function. "He's right, Alya. You better not post that."

Alya sent a sly look between the two before conceding. "Fine but you owe me a proper interview, Chat Noir."

He raised his hands in surrender. "If I must. But I should probably run it passed Ladybug, she might worry that I'll reveal something I shouldn't."

An elbow poked his side and he turned to look at Marinette. "You need to shut your mouth, Chat. You're giving Alya more ammunition. I'd suggest you bring Ladybug to this interview. She might need to rescue you."

"I'll see what I can do." Chat Noir casually draped an arm around each of the girls' shoulders. Hoping that the overt flirting would convince Alya that he wasn't serious about either girl. It was pretty clear that Marinette was out of the danger zone with Hawkmoth while her best friend was around. "Well it's been fun. Until next time girls." Stepping back, he blew a kiss to each of them before disappearing into the night.


No akuma so far, will Chat need to hang around to make sure it stays that way? And will Ladybug join her partner in an interview with Alya? Find out soon.

Thanks to everyone for reading, I'm very excited to have reached 50 follows on the first two chapters - happy days!