"Marinette, you really need to let loose sometimes. You barely drank the other night, and left early. You're working yourself to death." Alya complained as they both sat down at a table at a bistro somewhere between both of their jobs. Alya worked for a tech start up which suited her perfectly. Marinette sometimes envied her for how much she loved her job. Working for a fashion magazine wasn't the most terrible job she'd ever had, but it wasn't what she wanted to be doing with her life.
"I'm fine, Alya. I just have a lot to do right now." If only she knew that Marinette's tight schedule had nothing to do with work. There were times where she wanted to tell her best friend that she was Ladybug. Alya would shit herself, though. She'd run a blog all about Ladybug for years. Even after this time, the novelty of a superhero hadn't worn off on a lot of people. There were still hundreds of people in this city who wanted to know who Ladybug was.
"Can we at least go out this weekend? It's just one night, please? I'm begging." She'd have to tell Cat that she wouldn't be able to make it out to patrol, but maybe one night off wouldn't hurt.
"Let me see what I can do about work and I'll let you know." Alya lit up and clapped her hands together. It didn't take much at all for her to get excited. The girls finished their lunches and headed back to work. Marinette was sitting at her desk fitting together another article when her phone rang. It was Adrien.
"Adrien, hey. I don't have long to talk, though." She headed into the breakroom for a cup of coffee so she could have her conversation in peace.
"It won't take long. So, Alya said we were all going to go out on Friday, is that true?" Marinette sighed as she mixed sugar into her coffee.
"I promised her I'd try to get work finished so I could. I have to admit I'd kill for a night off." Though she'd miss that pesky cat and his wiles.
"Great. I could really use a night out myself. It's been a while." Adrien seemed just as busy as she did, but she also had no idea what it was like being a model. She was sure the pressure to do well for his father made him even more susceptible to stress than even she was.
"Then let's try to make it Friday." By the time they hung up, Marinette was feeling a little better about the whole thing. She was sure Cat wouldn't mind if she ditched one night. She was always on time and always there every night. Even superheroes needed a night off sometimes. Marinette worked through the rest of her day anxious about telling Cat that she wouldn't be able to make it out for patrol on Friday. When she got home from work she paced back and forth in her bedroom.
"Tell Tikki what's wrong." Marinette looked over to see Tikki sitting on the bed regarding her with concern.
"Am I a good Ladybug if I take a night off?" She chewed her lip and started down at the little creature before her.
"Of course you are. You're Ladybug, but you're also Marinette. You can't forget that you have a duty to your real life as well." Leave it to Tikki to always offer some wise words. Marinette sunk down onto the bed next to Tikki and covered her face with her hands.
"If that's the case then why am I so nervous about telling Cat that I won't be there on Friday?" Tikki smiled and drifted up to her shoulder.
"That's because you like him, silly. It'll mean one night of not seeing him, and you aren't sure if you like that. Don't forget that I'm there for everything and I see all that happens." Marinette sat there dumbfounded. What if Tikki was right? This was all getting so confusing. She was trading a night with Cat for a night with her friends. Adrien would be there. It would be a good time to find out how she really felt. If she could handle not seeing Cat, if she still felt those deep feelings for Adrien.
"Maybe, but I already promised my friends. So, I'm just going to tell him tonight and that'll be that." She nodded in self-assurance, and stood up feeling more secure in her decision. She needed to know how she truly felt. About both of them. How odd to be caught up in a love triangle with two people who didn't even know about each other. It was getting close to ten so Marinette transformed into Ladybug and filtered out of her window to go meet up with Cat, her stomach churning the entire time. When she got there she didn't see him, so she just waited.
"Hello, my little ladybug. Tell me how much you've missed me." She smiled as he came up behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders. She could feel her body warming to his touch.
"I've missed you about as much as snowmen miss the sun." It wasn't her best quip, but it was all she had in her distracted state.
"Just as I thought. You truly do miss me when I'm not around." He walked around to face her, and stood extremely close. Here we go again, Ladybug thought. He was going to tease her then pull a Houdini as he had the two nights before this one. Ladybug backed up a step, Cat followed. It was as if she were prey and he was hellbent on catching her. She continued to back up until she felt the wall of the alley hit her back. She had nowhere to go now. Cat stood in front of her with a devilish smirk on his face. She wanted to slap it off his face and kiss him at the same time. "So, little ladybug, tell me how you really feel."
"I believe I already have." She wasn't going to give in so easily this time. She just needed to keep her wits about herself, and lead him to believe that he had no effect on her. Easier said than done.
"No, I think we both know that's not how you truly feel." Could he see through her that easily? He placed his hands on the wall on either side of her and leaned in until his mouth was at her ear. "I think you're lying to both of us if you say you don't miss me." She couldn't suppress the shiver that ran through her body at the feel of his lips on her ear. What was going on? He had backed off for a while, but now he was coming on stronger than ever. What had changed?
"I-I don't know what you're talking about," she whispered. She wasn't being very convincing, but her head had begun to feel muddled and foggy anytime she was around him lately. He threw his head back and laughed, and she felt irritation rising up. Was he just playing with her? "If you're just playing games with me, I'd like for you to stop it."
"Games? I'm playing no games with you, little ladybug. Games are for children, and we're both grownups now." Another shiver took her over when his tone darkened into something more promising. "You're so responsive. Why now?"
"What do you mean?"
"I've spent years chasing after you and you never showed an interest. But suddenly…" She didn't have an answer for that. It's like one day she woke up and just noticed him.
"I don't know, Cat. I'm not sure why now. I just…I see you." His bright green eyes looked down into her own pale blue eyes and he stared for what felt like forever. She was captivated and unable to look away. Then, he finally gave her what she'd been craving. He lowered his mouth and pressed his lips against hers. His lips felt unnaturally soft, and they fit against hers so perfectly.
Cat finally kissed her. He had planned to draw this thing out until she could no longer handle it, but he had no self-control. He wanted her far too much. Inside he was jumping up and down in pure joy, but outside he tried to remain calm. Her full lips felt so wonderful and warm. He licked at the seam of her lips, and she greedily opened her mouth. His tongue darted in and found hers, and they tangled together. He moved his hands to cup her small face before exploring her mouth further. They were supposed to be patrolling, but he wasn't sure how much of that they would get done tonight. He heard a soft moan escape from her, and it reverberated all the way through him. Using his tongue, he traced circles around her mouth before lapping at her tongue once more. She tasted sweet like fruit. He didn't know if this kiss was going to be enough for him. What if she regretted it? Begrudgingly, he pulled away slowly, and saw they were both breathing heavily. She couldn't lie and say she wasn't affected by him anymore. He could see it in her eyes that she wanted this just as much as he did.
Ladybug brought her hand to her lips and felt them gently. They felt swollen and they tingled more than they had before. That was one hell of a kiss, she had to admit. It was as if time had stopped around them and they were the only two people in the world. For those few moments where his lips were on hers, she forgot about everything except him. And…it had been nice. She didn't worry about work, or Hawk Moth, or her friends, or even Adrien. Everything was forgotten except this strange and elusive man before her. He was right. They weren't children anymore. They were adults, and that had been a kiss of intention. She looked down and could see how hard he'd gotten. When she looked up he had the decency to look sheepish.
"This suit doesn't really hide much, you know." She laughed and shook her head, but inside she felt something akin to excitement. Knowing that he wanted her that badly made her feel incredible. Like she was something to be desired. She didn't know if he'd feel the same way if he met her in every day life, though. What if it was all just novelty because he didn't know who she truly was and they had their costumes to cloak them? The suits would prevent them from doing anything other than kissing, so obviously nothing more would happen. They couldn't know each other's true identities. They'd decided that when they were teenagers, and it was safer that way.
"There's something I need to talk to you about," Ladybug said, suddenly remembering Friday night.
"What is it?" He looked down at her with his ever-present smile.
"So, I have a thing on Friday. I don't think I'll be able to patrol then. I hope that's okay." She looked at him through her lashes and saw relief cross his face. That wasn't the reaction she'd been expecting at all.
"I actually have something to do then, too, and I wasn't sure how to tell you. This is great news. Now I won't feel like a total ass for ditching you." Ladybug rolled her eyes for what had to be the millionth time in all these years of working alongside him.
"So, it's settled then. We won't meet Friday night." He nodded in agreement, and they began to make their way out of the alley.
"Admit you're going to go crazy without your daily dose of Cat Noir." She could do nothing but laugh, though she thought she probably really would miss him. Especially after tonight. She'd dream of that kiss, she was sure of it.
"I might miss you just a tiny bit. But only because patrolling saves me from sitting at home bored all night." She walked ahead of him, being sure to swing her hips a little as she did.
"Yeah, you keep telling yourself that." He watched her walking up ahead and thought he would probably be the one to lose his mind first. He wanted more of her, but had no idea how to make that happen. He knew that nothing more could happen while they were in this form, but knew she'd be totally against revealing their identities to one another. She'd been against it since the first time he suggested it. He hid this from everyone in his life, but he wanted to share it with her and only her.
"Are you going to drag along all night or are you going to catch up?" He smiled and jogged to catch up to her. He could stand behind her all day long, but he couldn't forget that they were also out here for a reason.
After she got back from patrol, Marinette lay on her bed smiling to herself. He had finally kissed her. It was the best kiss she'd ever had, and that made her wonder if he was good at everything else, too. She'd only been with one other man before, and it was nothing to write home about. As much as she knew they could never have more than a kiss, she also ached for so much more. Then, the guilt hit her. What was she doing? She was supposed to be in love with Adrien. Adrien was the one who had occupied her teenage thoughts up until now. The high from tonight's kiss slowly came crashing down around her. She felt like she was betraying Adrien somehow, though they weren't and never had been together.
"Why don't you look happy? Isn't this what you wanted?" Tikki sat on the throw pillow on the bed and regarded Marinette.
"Yes, I think, no, I don't know! I feel guilty because of Adrien." She hung her head as she dressed for bed.
"Well, you don't owe him anything. He's seen other women before, and I doubt he feels guilt over it." For some reason, that didn't make her feel any better.
"Maybe, but I still feel guilty. We'll just see how Friday goes, and then I'll make some decisions then." Friday would hopefully tell her who had her heart more. Adrien, or Cat. Right now, she was more confused than ever. That kiss had been the stuff dreams are made of, but it left her feeling a little lost. She climbed into bed and was determined not to use the sleep aid tonight. She didn't want to need a pill to help her sleep. Unfortunately, she was up until four in the morning mulling over her thoughts and feelings about the two men in her life.
