The next morning, Adrien made sure to arrive at school earlier than usually. Thankfully, Marinette hadn't arrived. Alsa was standing in the corner typing on her phone. He walked up to her glancing around to see if Nino or anyone else for that matter was around.
"Hi Alya!" He said, giving her a wave and a smile.
"Oh hey, Adrien! You're here early today." she smiled at him, phone still in her hand.
"Yeah, I..uh...I wanted to talk to you about something. But it's kinda...private." He scratched the back of his neck. This was super uncomfortable, but he had to figure this thing out. It had kept him up half the night and he knew he wasn't going to be able to focus on class until he got some more information.
"Yeah? Sure, what's up?" Alya looked concerned as she slipped the phone back into her pocket, giving Adrien her full attention. He glanced around to make sure they were alone before continuing in a quiet voice.
"It's about Marinette." Alya's eyes grew wide, but he didn't let that stop him, "Is she...is she always so...shy?"
"Um…" Alya's face was hard to read.
"It's just that she is always stuttering and never looks me in the eye when I talk to her. I was just wondering if it was just me or…"
"Oh, it's just you." She answered, cutting him off. "For sure."
"What does that mean? Am I imagining it or something?"
"No. I mean, she's really only like that around you." Ayla was staring straight into his eyes, like she was waiting for him to notice something, but she didn't say anything else.
"But why?"
"Look, I can't answer that." Ayla was glancing about, but they were still alone, "Just think about that for a minute."
"Why can't you answer that? Is she afraid of me?" Adrien's mind was spinning. If Marinette was only shy around him, that must mean she was more confident around others. Which also meant she was more likely to be Ladybug.
"I just can't," Alya shook her head, "but no, she isn't afraid of you. Well...maybe more like afraid of a certain reaction from you." Her face looked pained. She wanted to tell him, he could see that. He tapped his chin and tried to think of why Marinette was only like that around him.
"Come on, Adrien," Alya was getting frustrated with his lack of answer. "Think about it. Why would a girl be shy around you? It's not because your mean but because you are so…" She leaned in, wanting him to fill in the blank.
"Um...nice?" He took a wild guess.
"YES!" she nearly screamed it at him. "You're really nice, sweet, charming...a hansom model...a girl just might…" The pieces started falling into place in Adrien's mind.
"Like me?" Certainly he was way off base, but Alya's grin said otherwise.
"Uh-hu...and Marinette is shy around you because….?"
"Uh...she likes…" Adrien froze as the answer became clear to him. Or course. How could he have been so blind! "She likes me."
"FINALLY! Man you are so freakin' dense! Even worse than Nino if might say. Just remember, I didn't tell you anything. You figured it out all on your own. Right?" Ayla grabbed his shirt and pulled him in close, her other hand formed a fist mid-air. A threat.
"Right, yes. Of course Alya." She relaxed and let go of him. "You would never betray your best friend's trust."
"Exactly. Even if it was in her best interest." She winked at him. Marinette was lucky to have a good friend like Alya by her side.
"Thanks, Alya. That explains a lot." He smiled and walked off to the locker room. It might explain Marinette's behavior, but it didn't explain if she was Ladybug or not. In fact, it just made the question all the more complicated. He opened his locker and started unpacking his bag.
Still, Marinette had a crush on him. Why didn't he see it earlier? But of course, he knew the answer. He only had eyes for Ladybug. Had he accidentally overlooked his true love? But if Marinette really was Ladybug that meant….he froze. His heart started to race. If Marinette loved Adrien….and Marinette was Ladybug...that meant Ladybug loved Adrien. Now he really had to figure this out.
Adrien groaned and grabbed his notebook. So much for being able to focus in class.