Author's Notes:

Sequel fic to Day 13: (Spiderman) Kiss

It was an accident.

She hadn't meant to kiss him. Not really.

Her fingers strayed to her lips, trying not to focus on the rather surprising feel of loss after the desperate, fleeting contact.

Ladybug inhaled, closing her eyes. It was just the tide of emotion, the sheer terror of watching Chat Noir fall.

Ladybug had barely gotten into position in the nick of time.

The distance was much too high, his descent was far too fast. He had been far too reckless, and she'd have only one opportunity to catch him. This one chance meant far too much.

She could let herself think about it. She didn't dare.

When she thought, she got caught up in her thoughts. And she, really, truly couldn't bear the thought of losing him.

Please.

She aimed, clearing her mind and letting the Ladybug confidence take over.

Please catch him.

Her eyes following the shot, her lip worried something awful at the realization that the slightest bit more wind might have made all the difference between catching him and not.

Please let him be safe.

She didn't breathe until after she'd snagged him from the air, as he'd swung safely to a stop.

And it was as if the dam had broken loose. She'd wanted to hug him. To shout at him for all his recklessness.

But she was practically shaking, her words failing her as his lips curved up at her.

Hadn't he realized what a near thing it had been? It could have all gone wrong in so many ways. Would have gone wrong if she had doubted her powers for even one more instant.

It was like she'd used every scrap of Ladybug confidence on that throw that had saved him, leaving her just with her own woefully inadequate self-confidence.

She still wasn't even sure how it had happened, aside from her moving forward. She certainly hadn't planned to kiss him. She had just closed the distance between them, gasping in relief.

In that moment it had felt right…maybe even necessary. She wasn't sure what she would have done if she'd lost her partner. She couldn't even imagine trying to handle any of this without him.

She wasn't even sure what her life would be like without him in it.

When she'd pulled away, he had looked nearly as shocked as she felt.

At least now she wasn't panicking because she feared she was going to lose him.

Her words - her confidence - had abandoned her entirely.

She would have to deal with it later. Her partner was safe for now.

And she did still have a butterfly to catch.

It had been days since it happened, and she really wasn't sleeping well.

Visions of Chat falling to his demise were haunting her nightmares, with her helpless to do anything but watch. She would wake up gasping, a sticky sheen of sweat, matting her bangs to her forehead, her pigtails to her neck.

When she fell back into a fitful sleep, her mind would wander to the smell of leather and night. His warmth. The unexpectedly softness of his cheek.

The shock in his glowing emerald eyes, that melted into something warm and sweet. Pure curiosity pinned her in place, so she couldn't chase after butterflies. Not this time, while in the safety of her dreams.

At least she could sleep a little; but when she did wake up, she was feeling extremely guilty.

After all, Chat wasn't who she was supposed to like. He wasn't who she was supposed to kiss.

She felt distinctly unfaithful. Not that she could really find her courage to tell Adrien she liked him. Not that she could explain to Chat what was going through her own head. Not when she wasn't even sure she'd understood that herself.

Tikki had tried to help her work through everything in her head, but she kept spinning her wheels. It still confused her greatly how she had managed to talk it through, but even that hadn't been helping. She just wasn't sure what she'd wanted.

That just made her feel even more selfish.

It was one thing to try to pretend nothing had happened in the heat of battle, but once the pressure of battle had ended, tension had rushed in, filling up the void.

She needed to talk to him...and soon. She wouldn't stop hearing about it from Tikki. But what exactly was she supposed to say?

"Hey?" Sorry for kissing your cheek. I don't seem to understand my limits?"

"Sorry for confusing you. I'm not even sure what I want, and I'm amazed you still even want to be friends with me. Let's not even get into the fact that I can't act on my crazy crush."

"I'm just glad you're alive. I was worried about you."

He had leaned closer, extending his hand to her like an olive branch in the wake of a particularly long battle, giving her the chance to tell him something.

Anything.

But it seemed like just being Ladybug had exhausted her reserves of confidence.

Ladybug bit her lip. It was killing her to see him so sad...when she was so clearly the cause. It wasn't fair to him, but her mind was no closer to giving him any sort of meaningful answer.

The hurt was naked in his eyes, as his gloves strayed to the back of his neck.

"I…" Her eyes locked with him, but the words wouldn't come.

Ladybug winced and turned on her heel to head home. She didn't want to leave, but their time was already limited.

"Goodnight, Chat Noir," she whispered, swinging away.

She still didn't have a good answer for him. But she was going to have to figure it out soon.

Ladybug grit her teeth, tossing her yo-yo at the boxer Akuma. Tikki was right. She had left it too late.

Days had passed. She still wasn't any more certain of her feelings or her hopes for a path forward.

But her Chaton had grown tired of waiting. He was reckless, even more so than he had been on that fateful day not even a week ago now. He wasn't waiting for signals and plans.

Chat Noir snarled at the Akuma, claws extended as he leapt forward to attack.

Troubled, she'd watched him, scanning for her opportunity to strike.

The Akuma had thrown him back and Chat was back on his feet in an instant, eyes narrowed and claws curled.

She'd caught his gaze for just a second. She allowed herself to smile. Just that simple act meant it was far more likely for them to fall back into their usual rhythm.

He was watching her. Waiting for her.

If she was being honest, that alone left her a little breathless.

Her eyes flashed as she'd registered the rogue motion a split second too late, the Akuma throwing the baton across the roof and knocking him down the roof.

"Chat Noir!"

This time, she didn't even hesitate, the yo-yo spiraling out of her hand to catch him. Ladybug threw her own weight off as a counterbalance, hooking the string over a steady looking beam on the way down.

Ladybug dropped in pendular motion, still swinging as he'd come to a sudden halt tangling them both together in her yo-yo string. He dangled up by one foot and her right-side up, their heights uneven but their faces were mere inches apart Just enough to make it easy to talk to him if she felt so inclined.

And perhaps even if she didn't. It had been far too difficult trying to find the right words. Not with him staring back at her, lips parted.

Her gaze darted back up along the rooftop, scanning for some sign of the Akuma to jump down. It seemed the Akuma thought better than to take the shortcut they had.

Dragging in a ragged breath, her hand cupped his cheek, tilting his lips down just enough to reach to hers.

It had only been a few seconds. That was all the time that she would dare with an Akuma still running loose. Time still felt like it was slowed.

"Wow." His green eyes were wide, blinking as he pushed away just enough to meet her eyes. They never left her own, never marking the blush on her cheeks that was surely bright enough to match his own. "Ummm...Was that an accident?"

Ladybug hesitated, considering only for a moment. She smirked, tapping a gloved finger to his lips. "Not this time, Chaton."

His grin was slow, his eyes dangerously soft. "I'm glad."

Closing her eyes, Ladybug pressed her forehead to his. "But, really. You can't be so reckless, especially if the middle of battles. I hate when I have to worry about you like this…"

Chat Noir's grin widened, eyebrows waggling. "If you wanted a captive audience, all you had to do was ask, my Lady."

Ladybug's eyes narrowed. Shaking her heard wearily, she heaved a heavy sigh, snapping the yo-yo back and letting him drop the final few feet to the ground. Her hands fell to her hips. They still had an Akuma to capture. Perhaps her partner would settle down and be a bit more serious later.

The surprisingly tender smile had never left his face, even as he'd rubbed his head, righting himself at her side.

Then again, she mused as her lips curled up slightly, he probably wouldn't.

She knew him far too well.