Author's Note:
I do not own any of these characters.
Marinette woke up and felt something behind her. She was confused for a moment and then remembered about the sleep over. She rolled over and found Adrien sleeping on top of the covers. She smiled to herself, uncovered herself, and rolled the rest of the way around to embrace Adrien from behind.
Adrien was strong for them last night. Stronger than she had been. Her parents were right, this was going to be difficult. She was ready to throw their plan out the window, and for the silliest reason ever. As if giving in would make it easier on Adrien and help him control things. As embarrassed as she was at herself, she was just as proud of Adrien.
She kissed his back and nuzzled her head into him. He stirred slightly and let out a quiet, "Mmmm, Bugaboo." Marinette smiled brightly at the thought of him dreaming about her and bit her bottom lip. She nuzzled him again to see if he would say something else. She raised her head to listen... but nothing... she heard nothing.
She put her head back down and just enjoyed his body heat for a few minutes. Reluctantly, she had to go take care of an urgent need that she could no longer ignore. She slipped around him and down the ladder, noting that Alya and Nino were still sleeping also. She quietly headed down and took care of her business in the bathroom.
After washing up, she checked the time and found it was about 9:00 AM. Wow, she thought, we must've been tired last night. She snuck down to the bakery and liberated some pastries for breakfast. She snuck back into the room as silently as possible. Nino and Alya stirred a little, but seemed to refuse to wake up, even at the aroma of the freshly baked goods.
Marinette grabbed a chocolate croissant and headed back up to her bed. Adrien stirred a little as she slid back down beside him. She waved the croissant under Adrien's nose. She giggled at how it twitched. He licked his lips and smiled, still dreaming. Marinette leaned over him and kissed his cheek. This pulled him out of his slumber and he turned his head to look up at her and smiled.
She kissed him and said, "Thank you for being strong for us last night." He smiled and nodded slowly before letting out a yawn.
"I smell chocolate," he said softly. She raised the croissant back into his view and he smiled brightly. Taking the croissant, he sat up on the bed and broke it in half. He handed out half of it to Marinette who just took a bite of it still in his hand instead of taking from him. Adrien chuckled quietly and took a bite of his half.
Marinette frowned a little and took his half out of his hand, and then held it out to him. Adrien swallowed the bite he had taken, smiled, and leaned over to take another bite from the half in Marinette's hand. He held up Marinette's half and she took another bite. They were lost in the moment until they heard, "Something smells good," emanating from below.
They peeked over the side to see Alya crawl over Nino, nose in the air and eyes shut, headed for the plate of pastries. "Dude!" Nino cried out as Alya made her way across his torso on her hands and knees. Adrien and Marinette had to stifle their laughs. Poor Nino, they thought.
Nino, now at least partially awake, sniffed the air and fell in behind Alya, crawling towards the treats. Adrien and Marinette couldn't help it this time and started rolling in laughter.
After breakfast and everyone taking turns getting dressed for the day, the four teens decided to go to the park. Once there, the girls sat on the park bench while the boys goofed off trying to balance themselves walking around the outer rim of the fountain.
As the girls watched the boys and giggled at them acting like they were going to fall only to recover mere seconds before falling in, Alya turned to Marinette, "So..."
"So, what?"
"So, I planned to get a thank you sometime this morning for getting you and Adrien to share the bed last night," Alya smirked with one eyebrow raised.
"Alya!" Marinette groaned. "We need to talk about that." Alya's face dropped, Marinette looked serious. "You put us into a very difficult position last night. We're still trying to stick to our plan."
Alya rolled her eyes at Marinette, "Your plan involves waiting an ungodly amount of time."
"Maybe," Marinette cut her off before Alya could continue, "but it's our decision to make, not yours." Alya looked a little guilty at being called out like that.
"I know..." Alya sighed. "But, I guess it's just the single most awesome thing I've ever experienced, and I want that for you..." she trailed off.
"I understand. I've certainly heard that it's great. But, it's up to me and Adrien as to when we decide to take that step." Marinette leaned in and placed her hand on Alya's. "I appreciate you wanting me to be happy, but pressuring me or forcing me and Adrien into situations we didn't plan to be in, doesn't make me happy."
"I'm... I'm sorry," Alya whispered. "I'll button up about this. Just know that I'm here for listening and to give advice if you need or want it."
"Thank you." Marinette smiled, "You're my best friend and I love you. I value the experience you have, even if Adrien and I don't go as fast as you'd like."
"No. Thank you." Alya smiled sheepishly. "The truth is, I was scared to tell you about me and Nino. I was afraid you'd be mad at us."
"I'd never!" Marinette piped up, a little hurt at the assumption.
"I know you wouldn't," Alya interrupted, "but this is a big deal... and fear has a way of overruling the logic in your head. I was so scared you'd treat me differently." Alya smiled nervously. "It's just... It's just that it changes so many things... and I didn't want it to change us. I... I thought if you and Adrien did it, then we'd be able to keep what we have. It's stupid... I know." Alya hung her head and tear fell onto her glasses and rolled off, onto her lap.
Marinette lifted Alya's head so she had to look at her. "It's not stupid. Stuff like that happens. We hear about it all the time. But, I am... at least I always thought I was... different and that I'd never judge someone for something like that. It's just that... it's difficult enough for me to keep my hands off of Adrien and... I'm sure it's difficult for him too... but we made a promise to each other that we really want to try and keep. We just don't need any additional pressure. Our hormones are doing that job quite well."
"I understand. I'll back off. Just... come to me if you need to talk." Alya smiled at Marinette.
"I will. I promise." Marinette smiled back.
The boys had stopped playing on the fountain when they noticed the girls were no longer laughing at them and could tell the conversation had grown serious. Adrien and Nino decided to take a walk to give them some privacy. "What do you think they're talking about," Nino asked while adjusting his cap.
"I'm not sure, but it might have to do with the two of you camping out on the floor," Adrien guessed. "Marinette was pretty sure it was Alya's idea."
"Yeah," Nino huffed, "I told Alya she wouldn't be happy. But you know Alya, she was all like they'll thank me in the morning. But, there's no reasoning with her when she's like that, dude. I'm sorry if it caused problems."
"Nothing a cold shower didn't fix," Adrien replied. Nino nodded. He certainly understood the need for cold showers at the beginning of his relationship with Alya. He thought for sure his parents were going to kill him for hiking up the water bill so high.
"Dude. It's perfectly normal at this stage for her to want to take it slow." Nino postulated.
"It's not that," Adrien interrupted. "Marinette was actually willing to last night, but I knew she'd regret it today if we had. We made a pact after all."
"A pact?" Nino asked. "Alya's been keeping things from me again," he said hanging his head. He knew that Alya would withhold information if it meant Nino had a chance to talk her out of one of her schemes. Alya would cave when faced with logic after all. So, she tended to keep quiet about certain details if it went against her master plan.
"Yeah," Adrien sighed, breaking Nino out of his thoughts. "We decided that our wedding present to each other would be that we had never been with anyone else."
"Dude!" Nino started. "That's legit. Nearly impossible... but legit."
"Thanks..." Adrien said rubbing the back of his neck. "I'm beginning to understand the nearly impossible part. I almost caved last night. It took every ounce of strength I had to go downstairs to take a cold shower instead of giving in. It didn't help when Marinette offered to join me either."
Nino snorted. "Just like Alya..." Nino shook his head. "Maybe it's all girls... I know that Alya would tease me mercilessly before we finally... you know. They seem to get pleasure in seeing our faces contort in weird ways. It's like... they're not ready, but still want to make sure we haven't lost interest."
Adrien nodded. "I'm guessing just telling them we're still interested doesn't do the trick either. Like they need to see for themselves."
"It must be..." was all Nino could reply and then stared off into the distance, lost in thought.
"Does... Does it get any better after... you know?" Adrien asked hesitantly and just above a whisper. He looked away trying to hide his embarrassment at even asking such a question.
"Dude," Nino responded and Adrien felt even guiltier, sure he had offended Nino. "Don't be embarrassed..." Adrien's head shot up and he looked at Nino. "It's perfectly normal to have questions... I still have questions sometimes. I'm happy to answer anything you want to ask." Adrien nodded in appreciation. He certainly didn't feel like he could talk to his father and the Gorilla never spoke, so he felt he couldn't get a male perspective from anyone other than Nino. "But... to answer your question... no, it doesn't get any better. If anything, I think they get even more insecure and have to test the waters even more. It's like they have this fear that gets triggered as soon as it happens that makes them worry they're going to be left now that they've done it."
"Wow..." Adrien whispered with this far off look on his face. "I guess you're right. There's such a double standard about all of this. I don't think I could live with myself knowing I did something that made Marinette afraid I was going to leave her."
Adrien and Nino circled back around and noticed the girls had gotten up and were headed their way. They were happily rewarded with a kiss each for being gentlemanly enough to let them talk. Alya turned to Adrien, "I'm sorry if I caused any problems last night. I promised Marinette I'd cool it and let the two of you go at your own pace."
"Thank you," Adrien said with a grin. "I appreciate that. Everything worked out fine. No hard feelings."
The four friends turned around when they heard a scream. They looked at each other and smiled. Well, three of them smiled while Nino just shook his head. Alya ran off, cell phone in hand. Adrien looked at Marinette and they shook their heads at Alya's excitement about running into danger. The rest of the group ran back to the bakery and up to Marinette's room.
"Plagg, Claws Out!"
"Tikki, Spots On!"
The two superheroes blushed at each other and then looked at Nino who had a goofy look on his face. Cat Noir shook his head, "Such a fanboy!" Nino just smiled even bigger in reply.
Cat Noir and Ladybug were out the balcony and headed towards the akuma when Cat Noir observed, "Our first akuma fight as boyfriend/girlfriend! We should bronze it and hang it on a wall." He winked and Ladybug giggled while rolling her eyes.
"You're impawsible!" she quipped and Cat Noir grinned widely at her cat pun.
"I've created a monster," he retorted as he shook his head. "I'm feline frisky. How about we end this quickly and make out on top of the Eiffel Tower."
"Now, now, kitty," Ladybug started, "we're supposed to be role models." She winked at him and he smirked.
Upon arriving at the scene, they instantly noticed the akuma was holding something familiar... Alya. They both groaned and went into action. She should know better than this, especially now, Ladybug thought, fuming at her friend for getting too close, yet again.
The battle was short, but the akuma victim had thrown Alya at one point and Cat Noir barely caught her before she became road kill. He sat her down gently and then scolded, "Please don't worry us like that, especially now that you know just how much we really care for you." Alya blushed with embarrassment and nodded. She felt doubly bad when Cat Noir was hit from the side and plowed through the brick wall and into the building they were standing in front of.
Cat Noir ran out the front door and gave Alya a thumbs up to indicate he was okay. The suit really did help, at least for a while, as long as it wasn't a continuous pounding. Cat Noir yelled, "Cataclysm!" and then ran off, sliding between the feet of the giant akuma victim and causing him to fall into a hole in the street.
Ladybug couldn't get close to the akumatized necklace because of the giant's long arms, so she called out, "Lucky Charm!" A red and black spotted pair of giant-sized handcuffs fell from the sky. The akumatized victim's eyes grew wide as he saw them and he started shaking his head vigorously. He threw his arms as wide apart as he could to keep from being chained up. He was so distracted by the handcuffs, he didn't see Cat Noir run up and grab the necklace.
He swatted at Cat Noir and hit him hard just as he threw the necklace to Ladybug. Ladybug watched in horror as the giant's hand lifted up and a new Cat Noir shaped pot hole filled with the actual Cat Noir was left in the street. She heard a weak "Ouch" coming from his direction as she broke the necklace. She knew she needed to stop Cat Noir from being hit again, and dropping the akuma victim's transformation was the fasted way to do that. Ladybug caught and purified the akuma without even taking her eyes off of Cat Noir.
She ran over to Cat Noir as the akuma victim changed back into a large man with several tattoos who was dressed in a suit and had gotten upset at not being able to find a job after getting out of prison. Cat Noir grinned toothily and held up a shaking thumb before his hand dropped back down. She was beside herself with fear until Cat Noir reminded her with a shaky whisper, "Miraculous... Ladybug..."
Her eyes grew wide and she blushed in embarrassment at forgetting that she still needed to fix everything. She threw the giant handcuffs into the air and yelled, "Miraculous Ladybug!" Ladybugs swarmed all around fixing the building, the street, and most importantly Cat Noir.
Cat Noir grinned at Ladybug and winked. "All better. Thank you, My Lady." Ladybug just jumped on him and hugged him as hard as she could.
With tears streaming down her face, she whispered in his ear, "This is going to take a little time to get used to... a little time to remember that we've been doing this for a while now without knowing who was under the mask and that knowing shouldn't change how we fight."
Cat Noir just shushed her and petted the back of her head. "I understand," he said soothingly. He extended his baton and took them high into the sky, away from all the onlookers starting to gather. A little tilt of the baton and they were careening towards the Eiffel Tower. He retracted the baton, allowing them to free fall while Ladybug still held on to him. He raised one hand and caught a beam, flipping them up and over, landing them on his feet softly.
He sat down, with Ladybug still holding onto him. Their transformations dropped, leaving Marinette and Adrien sitting on the Eiffel Tower, with Marinette still holding on with a death grip. Tikki flew up to look at Marinette while Plagg flew up to look at Adrien. Both of the kwamis had concern written all over their faces, just thankful that the fight wasn't affected too much.
Tikki smiled at Marinette and hugged her cheek. She whispered into Marinette's ear, "Don't worry, it'll get easier. But... you need to let go of Adrien so you can see he's okay. That's the first step."
A teary-eyed Marinette nodded and slowly loosened her death grip on Adrien. She hesitated and then leaned back into Adrien's arms with her eyes closed. She felt over Adrien's face with her hands, before opening one eye. He was blurry and she had to rub her eye to get the remaining tears to evacuate before she could see his beautiful smile. She opened both eyes and looked over his face in expert detail, looking for the slightest hint of any damage, even a split end on his perfect head of hair.
Nothing. She found nothing physically wrong. She whispered, "Are... Are you in any pain?" Adrien shook his head and smiled brightly. Ladybug had never fussed over him like this before and he was enjoying it... a little too much.
"Well..." he smirked deciding to press his luck, "my lips hurt a little. I think you should kiss them and make them feel better." He waggled his eyebrows and gave his best Cat Noir grin. Marinette rolled her eyes and then leaned in to kiss him.
"Silly kitty," she whispered. "Don't you know I couldn't imagine a world without you?" Adrien's eyes brightened as she called back to a previous rooftop encounter they had when he almost revealed his identity, thinking he had a rival to compete with.
"My lips feel much better. Thank you." he whispered. Marinette rolled in his arms with quiet laughter. He was certainly unhurt from the fight.
