Découvrir

by Yilena

As she reconnects with a forgotten childhood friend, Marinette skirts the line of being reluctantly famous on the internet, and managing her feelings for someone new. AU.

14. 14

AN: I am trash and apologise greatly. I can assure you I'm not giving up writing, or on this story, and I feel awful about the long time since my last update. Thank you for all the love and reviews, I really appreciate it.

Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Chat Noir © Thomas Astruc

"A-Adrien," she stuttered, eyes clenched shut as she tried to shuffle away from him. A splutter of laughter escaped despite her best attempts to keep it muffled, and the breathy laughter upon her ear in response proved that he was thoroughly amused. She pushed at his chest, attempting to create distance. Instead of accepting the hint, the blond persisted, teeth nibbling against her earlobe once more and causing her to shudder and laugh in response. When he pulled back and breathed upon the dampened skin, Marinette made a high-pitched noise and pulled away, almost falling off of the couch in process.

"I never knew you were ticklish here," he remarked, sounding positively delighted. "That'll be fun in the future."

The blush along her cheeks darkened. The softly exchanged kisses that had developed into them leaning into each other, breaths loud and uneven, and had developed into a few minutes of searching as his fingertips had slowly travelled beneath her shirt, connecting with the bare skin of her abdomen and causing her to shiver in surprise from the warmth he offered. He'd brushed against her side, never testing to see whether she wanted to go further—or, rather; upwards—and his lips had pressed tentatively across her jawline as he moved. Marinette simply clutched at his t-shirt, scrunching the material into a ball, not quite getting the courage to allow her hands to wander, too. And when he'd taken advantage of the exposed skin of her neck, she'd gasped. When he continued and gently nipped her earlobe, however, she'd pressed her lips into a firm line and tried to muffle the restrained laughter, not wanting to ruin the intimate moment.

It was ruined when he gently bit her cartilage, though.

Puffing her cheeks out dramatically, Marinette shook her head. "I'll never give you the opportunity to do so again."

"Are you trying to say we'll have a relationship without your neck?" Adrien questioned, raising his eyebrows.

"...Don't—"

His lips twitched. "Will it be... neck-less?" And with that said, he pointed towards the prominent necklace that was on display, the single strap of black that wrapped fully around and complimented her skin.

"I'm done with you," Marinette groaned with a sigh, pulling her shirt down so there wasn't a sliver of her stomach on display. "You really can't go a day without using a pun."

"Would you like to bet on that?" the blond questioned, a lopsided grin appearing.

At the offer of the bet, she tilted her head to the side slightly, considering the request. It would've been quite amusing to see him stumble over his words at times, trying not to use his odd sense of humour, though she sincerely wondered about his wants. When he'd requested for her to call him the nickname she'd fondly typed through all those months, she'd really thought he'd been joking (hoped, rather). And then when they spoken during the weeks, never quite being able to meet in person due to busy schedules, Marinette had almost forgotten about the request until Adrien had found free time and arrived at her apartment, clad in the large scarf once more.

It had taken her over thirty minutes for her to call him it, and afterwards she'd hid her face in her hands while he laughed fondly and embraced her tightly—the start of their current situation.

They hadn't seen each other since the day after they'd started dating (almost a month), but having him there beside her, feeling the warmth seeping through as he lazily had an arm wrapped around her shoulders once more, pulling her close into a make-shift embrace, Marinette felt any budding doubts about their relationship be pushed away. There wasn't any reason to doubt him; there'd always been rumours about his relationships—along with Nino's now, too, since they seemed to be a package deal in the media—so now that one cousin had proclaimed his relationship, while Adrien had stated his was changing soon, the magazines were running rampant with rumours and suggestions of who the new power couple could be.

Somehow, Alya and Nino had been able to meet up outside with a paparazzi being tipped off about them, and she'd even visited Nino's apartment, taking a picture as proof that showed the usual setting that was shown on the webcasts. Their relationship had taken off wonderfully, and the goofy smile that was upon the red-head's lips at times was just so warming to see that she didn't tease her about it.

Rose wasn't upset, though. While she still had her fits of destroying her merchandise that was associated Nino—even the replica spectacles that were like his—the small blonde-haired female didn't take her anger out of her room-mates any more, thankfully. While they didn't talk about the real problem, their usual conversations were back, and that was enough for the time being. The grouchy Rose that was secluded and stuck to herself was so uncommon and didn't suit her at all, so seeing her smile, and for it to be genuine, was great (even if it wasn't directed at her former-idol). While they didn't get together to watch Nino's interviews any more, Marinette instead made baked treats of the blonde's choosing for them to nibble on when they watched a film.

Marinette narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "Not if it involves me saying something embarrassing again."

"Nicknames are very natural, I'll have you know." He sniffed.

"I'm sure," she replied, rolling her eyes. "Go for it, then. Let's see how long you can go for without uttering a pun."

He looked thoughtful for a moment, pulling her closer to his chest. "Just spoken?"

"No," Marinette clarified, feeling her lips curl into a smirk. "No typing or even miming them. If you're going to suffer, it's going to be fully."

"My, you're a cruel one."

She leaned forward, pressing a chase kiss to his cheek—that was void of stubble—before retreating before he could pursue further. "I'll finally have some peace from your terrible sense of humour—but what will you get out of this?" Marinette questioned, grinning widely at him. While there wasn't actually venom in her words, as she was usually pleasantly exasperated with his puns or simply baffled that he thought they were good at all, she genuinely wondered what he was hoping to get out of it.

As it turned out, he was looking for the best possible outcome. "How about a small reward a day?" Adrien requested at first, raising his eyebrows when he noticed her dubious look. "Fine, I'll correct myself. What about one kiss per day?"

She poked his nose briefly with her index finger. "I haven't seen you for weeks, Adrien. It would just add up so my lips would hurt."

"Fine." He huffed, leaning forward—and downwards slightly—to press their foreheads together. "I wouldn't want to force you to kiss me either. Can I just earn pictures of you instead?"

She blinked. "Everyday?"

"Well, that's the goal." Adrien grinned widely, bumping their noses against each other before pulling away, allowing her to rest her chin against his shoulder. "As nice as the Ladyblog is, I'd much prefer pictures that are only intended for my eyes." At that comment, however, warmth blossomed along her cheeks as she took his words to mean private things, only for him. And from the widened eyes and lips that parted, not quite making a sound at first, Adrien was just as surprised, too. "I-I didn't mean like that—not saying that I wouldn't want that—"

Marinette really tried not to laugh. The corners of her mouth curved upwards, though, displaying her amusement from him fumbling over his words.

"I just want to see you doing the normal things, okay?" the blond whispered. The blush upon her was mirrored on him, and seeing it made her smile grow. "Even if it's you with toothpaste around your face, I'm completely okay with that."

She kept a straight face. "You want me foaming at the mouth for you."

"You!" Adrien said suddenly, reaching down and jabbing her lightly in the side. "You can't make bad jokes when you're trying to seal away my great sense of humour."

"I never said you can't do jokes," the dark-haired female quipped, raising her eyebrows as she wormed away from his teasing hands. "Just not the puns—your favourite."

He jutted his lower lip out dramatically. "And will I be rewarded with your foamy mouth?"

"...Do I have to leave the toothbrush in my mouth, too?" she questioned, shrugging her shoulders. "It might be a bit hard, but I think I'll manage."

There wasn't much left to talk about before they busied themselves once more. Marinette greedily accepted the offered lips, applying pressure and having uneven breaths escape every time they pulled back slightly. She played with the hairs on the nape of his neck, feeling the soft tresses and admiring how nice they felt to tug. As his tongue languidly trailed over her bottom lip, Marinette tightened her grip, allowing him access in the process; the result was a low groan from him, that was muffled by her mouth, but loud enough to hear nonetheless. Marinette grinned against him—surely he could feel her the happiness and smugness she was emitting—and he responded by pulling her closer upon the couch.

They broke away with a gasp. She trailed kisses upon his jaw as she repositioned herself upon his lap, knees on either side, and applied her weight rather than hovering awkwardly. If she had been aware of the pulse within her head that was loud and demanding before, then when she settled down and felt slight friction between her legs, then the unsteady thrum that was suddenly amplified made her certain that the blush across her cheeks was from arousal. Adrien pulled her closer, chests pressing against each other, and she bit gently into the flesh of his neck, being rewarded with a strained breath.

His hands trailed underneath her shirt once more, cooler than they had been and causing her to shiver from the vast difference, and she placed teasing kisses along his jawline as she made her way back to face him. After a chaste kiss upon his lips, Marinette leaned her head back ever so little, just to look him in his ever-green eyes to gauge his reaction.

There was a silent question there—was it too soon to continue?

The answer came soon after that. She looked at his reddened lips, feeling pride that she'd accomplished that, and the gentle smile that appeared upon them; the soft dimples upon his cheeks, the flush across his skin that mirrored her own, before, finally, peeking up to see the endearing look within his eyes. There was no hesitation there, not really, but the message was clear once more—he wasn't going to push her. The stilled hips and lack of movement from his lower-half proved that, too, and she beamed right back at him.

She shifted, rearranging her position upon him.

Adrien stiffened, noticeable enough for her to look at him with a curious expression. His lips were pressed into a tight line, corners still upturned and looking quite humorous, and she quickly deduced the problem when she paid attention to the pressure against her. Well, it was flattering, to say the least. With a mischievous expression, she wriggled once more, pretending to attempt to become more comfortable, and purposefully pressed against him in the process.

He audibly sucked in a breath.

It was empowering in a way. Marinette bumped her nose gently against his, wrapping both of her arms lazily around his shoulders while keeping eye contact, and tilted her head slightly to the side in an inquiring way. "Adrien?"

He blinked.

Glancing once more at the redness across his cheeks, the dark-haired female merely smiled in return. With the reassurance that he wasn't going to push her away, she shifted her hips, taking in a deep breath from the teasing friction that was created. The arms that were wrapped around her stiffened, too, and the fingertips that had been pressed against her gripped at her warm skin, nails gently scratching the surface and acting as a reminder that it was really happening. She gnawed at her lower lip in slight self-consciousness as she rolled her hips, knowing full well that her underwear was growing damp at the rate that they were going, and she idly wondered whether she'd worn a pair that matched her brassiere at all—because if he did happen to see them, the very thought of them not being a pair seemed important at that moment. The ridiculous trail of thought was forgotten when he pulled her closer, nose sliding to connect with his cheek rather than press against his once more, and pressed his lips firmly against hers.

Marinette welcomed the contact, gripping at the golden tresses of his hair as they applied pressure against each other's lips; gone were the tentative, gentle and uncertain movements that had been there when they'd first wandered into her apartment, and instead they seemed more confident and sure. And as she gently bit into his lower lip, taking the initiative, she sighed happily as their tongues met. The loud breaths were replaced with the occasional moan, and as Adrien embraced her and rutted against her, the pulse between her legs increasing from the sudden attention, she wasn't at all embarrassed as a noise of enjoyment escaped her. There wasn't any space for self-consciousness any longer with what they were doing; she was too preoccupied with shifting her hips to meet his movements, enjoying the feel of his clothed arousal against hers, and fully embracing the offered pleasure.

When her moan wasn't completely muffled, the answering shift of his lower-half proved that he enjoyed hearing the noises.

She wished she'd worn a skirt.

They separated with a gasp, lips glistening and considerably more swollen than before, and she opened her eyes and blinked in surprise, having not anticipated the sudden halt. His grip on her hips tightened, causing her to still in uncertainty, and the teeth that were biting into his lower lip certainly weren't her own at that point. Adrien looked flushed with hair that was in a disarray—that was purely her doing—and she didn't protest when he leaned his forehead against her shoulder.

She recovered with deep breaths, running her hands gently through his hair in a comforting move. The lack of movement made it abundantly clear that her underwear was more than damp, and she was thankful that it wasn't made of flimsy lace that would've caused her jeans to be stained, too. His arousal was still pressed against hers, warmth offered through the material, but she didn't make any movements to continue.

It was some moments later when he finally said something, and it came out in a groan. "You're driving me crazy here, Marinette."

Well, wasn't that a good thing? "The feeling's very much reciprocated," she responded teasingly, pulling on his hair gently.

"I-I just need a minute." His voice was breathy, hoarse, and knowing that she was the cause of it caused her cheeks to flame even more so. The realisation of his words hit after, and she stilled, trying not to worsen the situation. They hadn't been undressed, or even doing anything too adventurous, yet the blond having to take a breather to recover made the dilemma between her own legs more than understandable.

All that was going through her head, however, was, "If that's what you'd want as a reward per day, I really wouldn't mind."

His body shook against her with laughter, and she could feel the vibrations from their close proximity. "Something else other than our lips would hurt if the amount you owed added up greatly," Adrien pointed out. She could feel his grin against her neck as he moved closer, placing soft kisses upon her exposed skin. "I'd never want to force you to do anything, though. You're always welcome to push me away."

"I'd rather push you down," she blurted.

"My, aren't you rather suave today?" the blond teased, teasingly biting her neck. "I'm just happy that I finally got to see you."

Well, she wouldn't have minded if he wanted to see more of her, too (somehow, she didn't end up blurting that out as well). She ruffled his hair affectionately, knowing that it was probably a lost cause to fix at that moment because of her wandering hands. "I'm happy, too," Marinette confessed softly. "I'm still surprised that you want to date me at all, if I'm being honest."

"Stop that," he reprimanded, biting her harder than before and causing her to gasp aloud in surprise. "I won't be having any of that self-conscious talk here, Marinette. You're pur—" Adrien cut off abruptly, nuzzling his face further into her exposed skin. "I said nothing."

"What was that?" Marinette sang, sounding gleeful. "Was that an almost pun, boyfriend?"

He huffed. "Absolutely not—even if we haven't started our bet yet."

"That's right." She hummed, fiddling with his hair. "We haven't decided what you have to do when you lose, eh? Good thing it hasn't began yet. You would've lost horribly in less than an hour." And as her thoughts flickered to what she could possibly claim as a reward, the results were mostly age appropriate because of their current positions. "What will I have you do, I wonder?"

His tongue trailed the skin that he'd bit before, soothing the marked area and causing a shiver when he withdrew slightly to breathe upon it. "Anything you desire, my lady."

"Well, I very much desire you," Marinette announced unabashedly with a grin, "but I don't quite think you're ready to show me you using those soft hands on yourself—especially because of the lotion you've mentioned before."

"Goodness," Adrien murmured, sounding pleasantly surprised. "Where's the shy girl that had trouble saying she wanted to kiss me gone?"

The laugh that escaped her was genuine, short and breathy. "If we're going to be correct here, then I typed it." The nip upon her neck caused her to gnaw on her own lower lip, trying to restrain the sudden moan from the burst of pleasure that had appeared. "I find it hard to be terribly embarrassed when I think of the awful puns that have slipped through your lips. Every single one of them is an ego boost for me."

"That stings."

She tugged lightly on his hair. "Are you capable of feeling shame? Sometimes I have to wonder."

His laughter tickled her neck, making her squirm slightly and press against his arousal in the process. Marinette stilled for a moment, gulping.

"You've probably already seen my worst moments," he replied, amusement clear in his voice. "It would be very time-consuming to think about all the embarrassing things I've done; I much prefer to just accept my stupidity as a fact of life."

"Your worst moments?" Marinette questioned, running her fingers through the golden tresses in a soothing manner. "Honestly, I can't think of a single negative thing about you—I even find myself fond of what could be considered negative traits."

He hummed. "Well, that's reassuring. And to think that this relationship happened because you managed to hit me in the face."

"With a ball, Adrien—not to mention that I don't even remember that. You could be making it up for all I know." Marinette huffed, pushing him lightly by the shoulders so they could look at each other once more, noses almost brushing against each other. "This relationship started because your cousin mentioned me in an interview."

The blond blinked. "Well, you've never really looked at my interviews, right?" At the lack of response, his lips curled into a brief smirk that appeared quite smug. "I've mentioned about my childhood best friend over the years, but I doubt you've seen that at all. Most assumed the girl—yes, I specified—to be Chloé. I didn't specifically say your name because I thought you were ignoring my letters."

"I'm still surprised that you believed me at all," she murmured softly, hands trailing down to grasp the fabric of his shirt nearby his navel lazily. "You had no reason to, Adrien... I-I still don't quite understand why you do."

"You—I never thought you'd be the type to spitefully ignore me, Marinette. I admit I was pretty peeved when I was younger—which was apparent in my rather emotional early teenage years—but I don't resent you for it." His voice was soft, gentle, and held no spite which caused the guilt to tug at her heart. She knew that they had never arrived; she'd collected the mail in the mornings while her parents baked more often than not, especially when she was home-schooled for the first year after her accident. "It's not as though I could walk off and place my letters into the nearest postbox."

For a moment, Marinette furrowed her eyebrows in confusion at his words. "You... didn't deliver them yourself?"

From there on, it started to become clear what had happened. Adrien explained tentatively that he hadn't thought of the possibility, and because he'd only just brought it up with his last meeting with his father, he hadn't connected the dots. Gabriel had assumed she would use the young impressionable mind of Adrien and somehow take advantage of him, despite being just as young, and therefore his mail had been checked before they were sent from then on.

It didn't sit well with her. There was an uncomfortable feeling swirling in her stomach as she thought about the fact that their ruined friendship had been because of one man, one that cared in a very paranoid way for his only child, yet she couldn't find it in herself to stay mad for too long. Even if he had reached out before her accident, the small letters wouldn't have been enough to rekindle their relationship from afar. The anger fizzled out, and she found herself feeling sympathetic towards the sheltered child that he'd become when he was separated from his cousin, along with his only friend (besides Chloé at that point).

She wetted her lips. "I hope this doesn't offend you, but your father sounds quite controlling."

"Controlling?" Adrien repeated, raising his eyebrows. The smile across his lips wasn't sincere at all, and it didn't show the dimples of his cheeks. "That doesn't cover half of it, honestly. My chauffeur is supposed to have a double job as a bodyguard, too, because he's so damn paranoid."

"Oh." She didn't know quite what to say there to express her thoughts. While she'd assumed that his chauffeur had been from his own choice, the mention of him acting as a bodyguard, too, was quite strange. All the times she'd seen the blond walking around the company—which hadn't been that many, but it had been over a few weeks—the chauffeur hadn't been with him. At the mention of that, though, she recalled that Nino had nothing of the sort. There was no one escorting his cousin around, and it made no sense why he didn't receive the same amount of paranoia. "At least you get to live alone, right?"

At that mention, he laughed (and his smile finally reached his ever-green eyes). "As alone as living in a hotel can be."

"You live in a hotel?"

"Yes," Adrien confirmed. "The same one as Nino—thankfully it's not owned by the Bourgeois family. Their hotel is far too popular and attracts more attention than I'm comfortable with."

Chloé's family owned a large hotel near her home, where they lived in, too, and it had raised in popularity since Andre Bourgeois had finished his time as mayor (despite the backlash for his performance). It was where Alya's mother worked as a chef, and where multiply high-class parties were held in the large bar and lounge area on the first floor. It was no surprise that some rooms would be rented out for individuals to live in, though it was new information that Adrien wasn't too fond of the high-end hotel.

"Oh," was all she could say.

Alya had been to Nino's apartment—that's what it had been referred to as, and it hadn't been revealed at all where about it was located. The hotel had to allow pets, as Plagg travelled between the two rooms, and it was quite spacious because of the view that the webcasts allowed.

Adrien picked up on her contemplation. "You're curious."

"Of course." She blinked. "I'm trying to deduce where this mystical home could be; it's somewhere where your cat could be allowed. I haven't paid much attention to the hotels nearby, sadly."

He laughed at her musing. "How about I take you there instead?"

"To your apartment?" Marinette asked, sounding more high-pitched than normal from the sudden question. "I—really? I'd completely understand if I don't want to, I-I mean if you don't."

"Why wouldn't I?" His arms tightened around her waist, pulling her into a clumsy embrace where their chests were pressed against each other. "You've been more than accommodating with letting me inside your home, so why wouldn't I return the favour?"

There had never been the thought to be embarrassed of her home. It was a cheap little apartment that the three of them could afford with money left over; the pipes were noisy when water was used, the couch was awfully lumpy and uncomfortable, and the hallway was quite narrow so two couldn't fit through the door at the same time. At the same time, she'd grown fond of their tiny home, simply because it was something personal for them to share. On the other hand, Adrien's was bound to be spacious, complete with proper pipes and expensive furniture that probably didn't belong to him in the long run, and she doubted that there was a lot of personal decorations since he travelled a lot.

After her musing, she teased, "At least you didn't have the gall to say I invited you here—you turn up like a stray cat. It would be terribly rude to ignore you."

"I'll have you know I haven't been a stray since you've given me attention," Adrien commented, bumping his nose briefly against hers. "So, would you like to come over? I wouldn't mind taking you back with me, if you wanted."

She shifted on his lap, cheeks still burning from their close contact. "I—of course I would," Marinette breathed, leaning in as he squeezed her waist fondly. "When are you thinking of? It'll probably be weeks before we see each other again with your schedule."

He made a humming noise which meant he was thinking in an exaggerated manner. "You could meet me there after a shoot, though. We'd be able to see each other more often then."

"Wouldn't that be late?" Or early in the morning when she was usually busy. From what she could make sense of his schedule, nothing was booked with his times in mind. Their bedtime calls were never at a set time, and sometimes she'd wake up to the sound of her cell phone after an hour or so of sleep.

"Well, you could always stay over," Adrien offered, placing a chaste kiss on her lips. "Only if you want to—I'm not pushing you for anything. I'm just trying to say we'd be... alone there."

Licking her lips, Marinette pondered the offer. While it was true that they would be alone, therefore didn't have to mind their loud chatter when others were busy and trying to concentrate, but it also meant that they would be solely in the company of each other without interruption. When they'd been on their first date, Marinette had spent the two evenings at her parents' home, so there was no enclosed space for them to take advantage of (the closest they'd come to was the couch they were on right at that moment, or within his car while his chauffeur and bodyguard promptly ignored her presence).

And then she realised his words—that he wouldn't mind taking her back with him. "D-do you mean now?" Marinette stuttered, portraying the sudden nerves that had erupted. It was silly, really, that from all their time together and contact, the very thought of being alone in his home had her stomach churning from the possibilities. "I—"

"Whenever," Adrien chimed in, dimples showing as he smiled at her voice that had become slightly higher-pitched. "I could always come pick you up."

"No." She placed a brief kiss on his lips that time. "We spoke about this before, right? I'm not going to use you for anything unless I have to. I'm not going to take advantage of you."

He blinked. "It's just a ride, Marinette. It's not like I'm offering to buy you a personal taxi service."

"It's a slippery slope," the dark-haired female replied adamantly. "I refuse to do that to you, no matter how little. If my legs are injured or I've lost my wallet, then I'll think about taking up your offer. But it's only then." While it had been her pride that had stopped her accepting the offer before, the mention of Gabriel thinking that she'd take advantage of him when they were children was swirling within her mind. If he caught wind that his son's girlfriend was using his status at all, then it wouldn't have ended prettily (even if they had never met). "I'm with you for you; not for anything else."

A hand that was embracing her raised to her neck, caressing the skin and brushing against the hairs at the nape of her neck. "You're worrying," he observed, evergreen eyes staring with his brow furrowed slightly. "Marinette, I'm offering this to you because I want to do it. I don't feel like you're forcing me to do things for you." It seemed as though he understood her inner turmoil instantly, and the surprise was clearly shown upon her expression. "Stop being so paranoid," Adrien murmured, gripping her hair lightly. "All of my offers are things normal boyfriends would do, right?"

"I don't quite think you count as normal," she muttered in reply.

He snorted. "Think of it this way, then; if I offer something outlandish, just tell me I'm getting out of hand, okay?"

It wasn't too clear what that would be, though. The relationships of her friends were usually rocky and involved more drama than she was used to, and her closest friend was currently dating his cousin, so Alya was clearly experiencing the same difference in their statuses.

"You can buy me a coffee, not the whole shop," she attempted.

"I'd still love you if you were tubby after eating all that," Adrien said with a laugh. "You're more than welcome to buy me things, too, you know? If you want to try and keep it even so I'm not overly spoiling you."

Their conversation dissolved into silly nonsense once more, that she was quite fond of, and during the chatter she remained firmly seated upon his lap, arms wrapped around each other and noses brushing constantly. Although they didn't kiss for more than a few moments—most likely not to make their interaction purely sexual—there was still a close kinship as they spoke. Marinette shook with laughter at times, and the blond grinned with fondness when he recounted some instances of when they were little. She'd heard parts of their interactions from what her parents had known, but hearing them from his point of view, especially when they sneaked into her parents' kitchen and left flour-prints everywhere, was entertaining.

Marinette had her face pressed against his neck as she stifled her laughter when someone entered.

"Fucking hell!"

She almost fell off his lap from recoiling, head turning to gape in surprise at the newcomer. Alya was standing there with her hands on her jeans-clad hips, red curls messy and windswept around her face, with an exasperated expression.

"You have a damn room for a reason, Marinette!" she chastised in good humour, throwing her hands up for emphasis.

With cheeks burning from embarrassment, the dark-haired female stood up from her position, hands brushing the non-existent lint from her clothing. "I didn't know anyone would be home yet!"

"That doesn't mean you have to grind on each other in the kitchen," Alya teased, placing her belongings onto the empty countertops. "And I'll have you know, I'm actually later than usual. There was a queue in the store."

"Oh," she said dumbly.

Behind her, Adrien laughed off his surprise. "Sorry, Alya."

"As you should be," the red-head responded, huffing afterwards. "Honestly, what if it had been Rose? She might've thrown something at you two—I'm the civil one in this household."

"Only when you're getting some," Marinette muttered, tucking strands of hair behind her ear to distract herself. "S-so you finished classes already?"

There was small talk between them, and it was certainly nice that they all seemed to get along (well, if Alya didn't then it would've been awkward with her boyfriend at times). After the blond politely declined the invitation for dinner with them that evening, he collected his belongings and started towards the door, placing the overly large scarf around his shoulders once more despite the warming weather.

There was a lot of teasing once he'd gone.

-x-

'Coccinette
to Bulle-Chat
Subject: Teurgoule

Adrien,

Thanks for the new name suggestion.

Yours,
Marinette.'

-x-

'Nathaniel Kurtzberg:
Would you like to have coffee sometime? It seems we have a lot in common, more than I originally thought.'

Marinette blinked at her cell phone screen, surprised that Nathaniel had contacted her first at all.

The filming for the television show was postponed for more than a few weeks, and although she had a lot of questions as to why it had happened, she never bothered Nathaniel via cell phone. Even if they'd exchanged numbers, it hadn't been for his work. Marinette sat through the classes that he was supposed to be in with no desk-mate beside her for weeks, knowing that he was absent from other classes, too, and didn't do much about it. She knew that he took exams and gave in projects when needed, and that the professors understood the reason behind his disappearances throughout the months.

Alya was still baffled, however. They chatted when they were alone and the red-head mentioned that he never appeared in classes, and mentioned that she wouldn't know how to approach him if he did appear at all. Silencieux was one of her idols—if he could've been classed as that—and knowing that she'd known him for over a year in person and ignored his presence must've been quite overwhelming to think about. While Marinette had blinked and shown her surprise on her face at the time, she didn't dwell on the topic when she was alone—it was just another person nearby to her that led a successful life (with wasn't very rare at that point).

It seemed that out of all of her friends, their household were the ones that had barely made it with their careers. Rose was lost and continuing her education to please her mother, Alya had success with her blog that she couldn't put her actual name on without outing Marinette in the process, and Marinette's own success went as far as the internship with her actual name. It seemed that the only way to further her pursuit of success was to reveal herself—but that was daunting just to think about. There was a reason why Nathaniel hadn't done it (perhaps the same reason why he barely spoke in person), and knowing that she could perhaps be pestered in her personal life because of it had her gulping.

On the other hand, it would mean that the public would view her relationship with Adrien on less of a severe level difference. Would his father approve of she wasn't someone of no status?

Goodness, she was thinking of his father. They hadn't even been dating that long; just over a month and she was horribly paranoid of his disapproval. Of course their eventual meeting would never go over well; she was the child that he'd shut out in the beginning, fearing for her taking advantage of young Adrien. There was a chance he'd repeat his previous actions and disapprove all over again.

There wasn't much he could do about it, though. Adrien's chauffeur barely had any say in his actions, and he already lived alone—

She needed to stop.

Marinette ran her hands through her hair.

"Hey, Marinette," a voice called from behind, moments before a hand tugged lightly on her shoulder to cause her to still.

Bewildered, she turned around to see the cerulean eyes, that were covered in precise smokey make-up that never looked sourly out of place, looking at her with a neutral expression. Chloé's face was a mask of no emotions, not portraying her original intention for calling her attention to her.

With lips in a thin line, never tilting to express her mood on either side, the blonde continued to say, "I'm not sure if you've heard from Adrien yet, but I'm having a gathering this upcoming Saturday."

"Okay," Marinette replied slowly, not understanding the point straight away.

She was supposed to, though, from the sudden dumbfounded look that flickered across the taller female's face before it was smoothed over again. "That means you're invited," Chloé clarified tartly.

That was certainly a surprise. Aurore had been the cause of her first invitation—while she received none in their first year of university—and Chloé certainly knew about the extent of her relationship. Was it a hand-in-hand invitation, or was she extending it in a offering of getting to know each other? "Oh," was all she could say at first before she cleared her throat, hoping to sound more coherent afterwards. "I-I wasn't expecting that, honestly. Thank you. I'll try and make it, I guess."

Chloé was staring at her with slightly narrowed eyes—and she noted that there was a fleck of mascara caught in the corner of her eye that wasn't supposed to be there—and it seemed as though she was considering how to reply. The two of them had stopped awkwardly in the hallway, other students fluttering past them without batting an eye at the odd duo that were conversing, and she couldn't help but think that it was, perhaps, one of their most civil conversations to date. When the blonde had first invited her, back when Nathaniel had been missing one afternoon, there was still distance and awkward interactions but they had certainly improved in the passing months.

She was disillusioned if she thought Chloé wanted to get to know her for her, though. Chloé was one of Adrien's closest friends, so, of course, she'd consider Marinette in a different light for a while and try to decide for herself whether she was worthy; which was quite silly, really, considering that Chloé had already asserted that she cared about Adrien previously.

"No invitation to show this time?" Marinette questioned.

Chloé held her gaze blankly for a few seconds. It was unnerving at first. "No," she finally replied somewhat quietly, and the answer itself was another surprise. Chloé loved her invitations, especially when the security staff had to be shown them to allow her guests onto the premises. "Adrien is identification enough for you."

She resisted the urge to snort.

"Al—okay, thank you," she stumbled over her response, cheeks warming in embarrassment from the stare. And before she could think of the repercussions, she blurted, "I really appreciate that you're willing to invite me despite our differences."

Chloé arched an eyebrow. "It seems we have something in common now."

Someone. "I—yes," Marinette replied awkwardly, tucking the loose strands of hair behind her ear in a nervous gesture. "I-I'll see you there."

With a nod of her head, Chloé set off in a different direction leaving a pondering Marinette behind in her wake. Adrien certainly hadn't mentioned it but she wasn't going to complain; he was busy, their conversations often trailed off somewhere silly, and she was certain that it wasn't something to be angry about.

She wasn't going to be needy—if he wanted her there, then she'd come. From her knowledge the only friends of his that knew of their relationship were Nino and Chloé, while three of hers knew, and it wasn't a titbit of information he was going to reveal to those that he couldn't trust. If there was going to be an individual that loved to gossip present, then she'd rather avoid them and the upcoming annoyance that would happen afterwards. The mail she was receiving already was a nuisance, and possibly having any more would've caused her to grip her hair in frustration more often than not.

Her plan was thwarted on Thursday, however.

Aurore had strut towards her outside the gates of their university, her high-heeled boots creating enough noise to alert her to the upcoming figure behind before arms were wrapped around her shoulders and pulling her into a tight embrace. Marinette had chortled in joy from the sudden affection, turning around and smothering the blonde with her own tightened arms and laughing into the flowing golden locks (that smelled suspiciously like perfume).

The blonde had directed them to their ever-present coffee-shop that they frequented, ordering their drinks and acquiring a table without much trouble, and happily chatted about different topics. Marinette couldn't hold back her laughter—which came after she'd already swallowed some of her beverage, thankfully—when Aurore took it upon herself to invite the dark-haired female to Chloé's that upcoming weekend. The hilarity came from the fact that Aurore was certain that she hadn't been invited yet because of Chloé's stubbornness, along with Adrien's schedule, so when she wiped her damp mirth-filled eyes and explained in a breathy voice that Chloé had already done so a few days previously, the female across from her narrowed her eyes in suspicion.

"Really?" Aurore questioned, crossing her arms beneath her bosom. "And how, exactly, did that happen?"

"The same as this conversation with you—she forcefully manhandled me," she quipped.

Aurore shot her a flat look. "You're not becoming friends, are you?"

She blinked. "Isn't that what you've been wanting for the past year?"

"Fuck off." The blonde wrinkled her nose in disapproval. "I may have been all for your friendship before, but now that you're talking behind my back I'm having second thoughts."

"...We're not even talking about you," Marinette pointed out, trying not to laugh at the disgruntled expression on her friend's face. "My, are you becoming jealous?"

"As much as it embarrasses me to say so, I think I might really be if you two start having coffee dates together without me," she responded, curling her upper lip to reflect her words. "You were kinda just mine, you know? Now with Chloé finally opening her eyes and realising you're not so bad, I'm going to have to share you with everyone."

Although the words were exaggerated, it was clear that there was some layer of truth to them. Marinette considered herself if they had swapped roles and could fully understand the sudden frustration, but it was bound to happen if she began dating someone's best friend; that person had to finally acknowledge the one that they had never been too fond of, just to not offend their friend in the process. She was simply thankful that her relationship with Chloé had never been full of arguments or heated words further than the occasional curse.

With a small smile, Marinette replied, "You'll be the one I always have a date with here."

Aurore snorted. "This is our sacred place."

"I always knew you valued our relationship."

"Of course, darling." She grinned. "When you become famous, I'll be the one the reporters will be flocking to so they can hear about our love life; forget your boyfriend."

When, not if. It was inevitable that her relationship with Adrien would be revealed and have attention drawn to her, and it was her choice whether it would be for being his girlfriend or for other reasons.

Revealing herself as Lady would only add on extra attention and strain, perhaps causing her performance at university to suffer because of it.

So, with a lopsided smile, Marinette commented, "Don't you mean if? I'll be the best kept secret."

"Good luck with that, then," the blonde rolled her cerulean eyes in amusement. "There's going to be some buzz when I start acting again, so just being outside with me would cause some eyes to look at you."

A teasing remark left her lips before she could think better of it. "It'll also mean Kim will want to know you again, eh?"

The resulting whack to her arm caused her to yelp loudly and draw attention to them.

-x-

She'd arranged to meet Nathaniel at the beginning of the weekend, before she was, maybe, due at Chloé's make-shift party that evening. Marinette brushed any remaining flour off of her jeans and button-up white shirt, making sure there were no specks of her morning activities with Alya were remaining. As it turned out, the invitation to Nino had been extended to her red-headed room-mate, and she wanted to make a good impression by baking something sweet to offer the other guests (or, rather; she hoovered while Marinette did the baking).

Placing a small bag upon her back, that was pastel-coloured and one of her favourites, she pulled the hair by her crown into a ponytail as she allowed the door to close behind her. Rose was still desperately trying to convince the three of them to have matching trinkets for their keys, but with the amount that the blonde almost lost them, she hadn't been able to convince them quite yet. She'd even attempted to place them on their keys by herself while they were sleeping a few times in the past, and Marinette had been thoroughly confused by the googly-eyed creature that had found itself in her possession one morning.

Passing the mail without bothering to pick it up, Marinette felt a sense of relief from knowing that she didn't have to hide the mild harassment any longer. It was more stressful than she had expected, and Rose was having fun attempting to rip them up in the evenings over dinner (complete with grunts and disapproving noises).

She fiddled with her cell phone momentarily before calling the one entitled 'Prince Chat'. After a brief inquiry before, Marinette had mused that it seemed like a lot of trouble to have two cell phones, and Adrien had explained with a laugh that the one they'd conversed on first was his personal, and the other was for business deals and such.

"Yes, how may I help you?" he answered, sounding slightly out of breath.

For the past few days he'd been attempting to mix up his answering phrase, but with no luck thus far. Marinette stifled a laugh, the only outwards reaction that she was amused by his words being the slightly audible breath through her nose. "Sorry, did I call at a bad time?"

"No, not at all," the blond attempted to assure her, though the breathless quality of his voice was still present. "It was beautiful timing, actually. I just finished a shoot and was changing back into my previous clothing."

"Oh." She blinked. "You forgot to say you had a shoot last night."

"I was trying to keep this one a secret," Adrien explained with a laugh, voice stable once more. "It'll be a big surprise when it's out, okay? So just wait patiently until then like a good girl."

The dark-haired female rolled her eyes. "Yes, sir," she replied sarcastically. "Is it appropriate to ask if you're fully dressed right now?"

By the look from a middle-aged man on the street that she was passing, it wasn't. Grinning at him in apology, she wasn't offended when the stranger promptly ignored her and walked away faster.

"My shirt's not buttoned right now, but otherwise I'm almost decent." Holding back a flirtatious retort as she walked past someone else on the pleasantly warm street, it didn't take long for him to continue despite her lack of a reply. "And before you ask, yes, I'm beside others right now. I can't give you a picture just yet."

She snorted. "I wasn't going to ask!"

"I'm sure." It was clear that his lips were curling into a smirk, tone bordering on arrogant. "You're going to go and meet your friend around now, right?"

"Oh, yes." Adrien was bound to have met Nathaniel already from working, but she doubted that her sometime class-mate wanted it revealed that they knew each other outside of that. "I'm trying to figure out where we're meeting right now. I think I might be late."

Though she couldn't see him, she suspected that he rolled his eyes. "Are you asking me to give you directions?"

"No, not really." She chortled. "Nathaniel just gave me some pretty vague directions and described the paint of the café. I'm sure I'll find it someday."

Adrien hummed; the noise was exaggerated and teasing. "Can you tell me what you're wearing so I can tell officers if you go missing?"

She huffed, making sure it was audible. "If I could, I'd hit you right now. He's not luring me away to murder me in an alley."

"How can you be so sure?" From the shaking of his voice, it was obvious he was trying not to burst into laughter and give away his amusement. "I'm just worried about my girlfriend right now, especially since she won't let me give her a lift anywhere."

"To be fair, it wouldn't be you," Marinette retorted, "it would be your lovely chauffeur who I'm pretty sure would adamantly refuse to look me in the eyes."

Although it was mostly a joke, she had noticed that his father's employee was silent, brooding, and simply looked over Adrien rather than giving advice constantly (and that was probably why their relationship worked well, since he didn't have someone else taking the role of a somewhat father figure as a constant presence in his life). Adrien laughed at her comment and proceeded to joke about it, too, and she knew that she didn't hit a nerve there. They conversed as she walked through the streets, checking the different coloured buildings and looking to see whether they were the right kind of shop. It took a while before she found the terracotta-coloured café which had black beams and a chalk sign on the pavement.

Tucking loose strands behind her ear, Marinette announced with a confused voice, "I think I'm here?"

"You really don't sound certain about that."

"Well, I'll peek in and see if he's in there. If not, I'll just message and ask where to go," she proposed, musing aloud. "It won't be too hard to figure out."

There was rustling and muffled voices on the other end, and then from the sudden sound of an engine she assumed that he'd made it outside to breathe some fresh air (hopefully with his shirt buttoned up by then). "You still have a chance to tell me what you're wearing."

After a forced fake laugh, that sounded sarcastic to her own ears, Marinette replied, "You had a toothbrush picture this morning, just like you wanted—you can't have my current outfit, too. That just seems wholly one-sided since I'm probably not going to receive anything until later."

"Well, you'll be seeing me later instead," Adrien announced clearly. "Isn't that good enough?"

She blinked.

"Oh," she replied dumbly. "You mean..."

"Marinette?" There was confusing in his voice, and she was sure his eyebrows were knitted together to match his tone. "Unless you've changed your mind, I thought we were going to Chloé's together?"

Well, he hadn't specifically asked her about it—she was sure she hadn't fallen asleep during their nightly call and somehow agreed during her snooze. "I... I wasn't sure?" she said instead, testing the waters. "I know a lot of your friends will be there, and I didn't want to assume anything."

"You—" Adrien started, still sounding perplexed. "I guess this is my fault for not bringing it up sooner; Chloé assured me that you'd agreed to go already. It just didn't click that it was tonight until this morning, and I didn't really have time."

"Oh," she said again, surprised. "I didn't want to push you for it."

He made a disapproving noise. "Marinette, it's just meeting some of my friends. It's not going to cause the apocalypse to introduce my girlfriend to people I know."

"If you're sure..." Marinette trailed off, fiddling with her strands of hair once more.

"Of course." And with those words, she smiled. She planned to just let it pass and not worry about it if he hadn't asked her—though he still hadn't—as it wasn't something that would break their relationship. In the long run, it would've been a simple detail that was insignificant. "Alya will be there, too, so you can drag her away and hide if you're wanting to."

After a blink, she asked, "Really?"

"Nino's asked her already, so I assume so?"

"I was questing whether you'd really let me wander off if I felt like it."

Adrien huffed. "Well, I'm not your keeper."

They hung up with kind words, and once she'd opened the heavy door and glanced around the café, she spotted a mop of shining red-coloured hair that was pulled back into a tiny ponytail at the nape of his neck.

It wasn't a hairstyle he had often—usually sticking to allowing it to be loose and cover one of his blue-coloured eyes at times—though it complimented his somewhat delicate features and smooth skin. Marinette approached slowly, realising quickly that he was absorbed in sketching within his sketchbook and hadn't noticed her approaching footsteps.

With a smile, Marinette tapped him on his shirt-clad shoulder and guffawed when he jumped and almost dragged his pencil across his paper clumsily.

His eyes were wide in surprise when he turned around and saw her, then they narrowed slightly at the mischievous expression on her face. "Hello," Nathaniel greeted quietly, and she was glad that he'd spoken that much at all.

"I'll buy us our drinks," she offered, making it clear that she wasn't taking no for an answer. They were keeping each other's secrets and he was one of the reasons that she was maybe advancing from a simple university student, and she was entirely grateful for it. After she'd ordered and carried their monotone-coloured mugs, that were too large and had to be held with two hands to be picked up safely, she settled in across the table on a chair that had a cushion on it.

They skirted around the subject at first. Sipping their drinks, ignoring the open sketchbook on the table and making small talk—as in, their sentences were short and awkward at first—it was a few minutes until she tucked strands behind her ear and wetted her lips in an attempt to gain some confidence.

"I want to thank you," she started, placing her two hands back onto the warm mug. "I know you didn't know it was me, but thank you nonetheless."

"I-I should be thanking you instead." He cleared his throat, cheeks tinged pink. "Y-you inspired me a lot and—"

She felt her cheeks burn and quickly shook her head, attempting to grasp his attention. "Should we save ourselves the embarrassment and try and move on? We're keeping each other's secrets because of business, though I can assure you I'd keep it if we were only friends."

Fiddling with his hair, Nathaniel pulled the tie out and pocketed it away for later. "I'm sorry I haven't been in class lately."

"It's fine, you have a lot of work to do." She offered him a smile. "I'm sure Alya would've had a heart attack if she saw you in hers—she's still not quite over the shock."

His voice was quiet, barely there, but thanks to privacy and lack of customers she could hear him with ease. "I understand. I'm in the same predicament with you right now."

"Oh." Marinette blinked. "It's hard to connect the pictures to the version of myself that you know, I suppose."

"I never tried to picture your face, honestly," Nathaniel remarked, hands cupping his mug for warmth, mirroring her current stance. "And now that I've seen it, I feel..." As his cheeks coloured to match his hair, Marinette felt her own warm in unison. "I feel embarrassed that I never connected the dots."

Marinette assured him that it shouldn't have been obvious at all, and that was her goal in the end, and the fact that she sometimes wore the same clothes that were posted in a picture that very day was far too uncommon for many people to notice. When he commented that the shop section was a smart idea, especially because of her university course, she had to agree with a small smile. Nathaniel explained tentatively that he didn't see his education getting him further than where his life was already at that point, and she felt somewhat sorry for him at first; then she remembered that he'd decided that route even after having found success in his career. Perhaps it was to make his family happy while he does his own work on the side, and as long as his grades were more than passable, they didn't seem to be concerned about him.

Their afternoon was comfortable after some time. They smiled, spoke and laughed while a few people trickled in and placed their orders, and the red-head bought the next round of drinks (despite her protests). He was still the shy Nathaniel that she'd met over a year ago, yet she felt like she was seeing a whole other person at the same time; one that wasn't too wary to talk, someone that willingly offered more information about himself rather than shying away and avoiding eye contact. It was refreshing that they were open with each other, and there were only a few subjects that they hadn't touched upon that involved the both of them.

Wetting her lips once more, Marinette glanced at the other tables to make sure there was no one within hearing distance of the both of them. "Is it okay if I ask you something about work? It will be related to our personal life, so it's not completely out of the blue."

"That's fine." He blinked. "I can't answer a few things, especially to do with—"

"I know," the dark-haired female assured him with a small smile. "I'm not sure if you've started recording any voice lines yet, or if you're acquainted with those you've hired..." It became clear that sounded as though she was fishing for information, so she shook her head before he could open his mouth to respond. "Have you met with Adrien yet?"

There was a furrowing of his eyebrows before he recognised the first name, asking, "Agreste?"

"I—I'm kind of... friends with him?" It came out as a question. "I'm dating him." That sounded better, voice not quite as quivering at the end although it was still barely a notch above a whisper. "I haven't told him that we're class-mates because I didn't know if you wanted that to get out."

Nathaniel was visibly taken aback as he processed the information. Perhaps he hadn't been reading the gossip magazines lately—well, it would've been more surprising if he had—and therefore hadn't seen the connection between them. Before she could reassure him that he was someone to trust, the red-head cleverly uttered that Adrien was under the contract not to reveal his identity to the outside world as well, then stated that he hadn't revealed that he was Silencieux yet, as there had been no sessions for them to voice their characters. It was a relief that he was giving her the chance to tell him for herself, and when their conversation turned back to banter and light topics, she laughed too loudly when Nathaniel stated that he thought Nino's personality was too ostentatious, and that was why he'd selected Adrien for the part from the samples he was given.

"I can't even remember how many of those ridiculous points I've earned in classes any more," Marinette proclaimed, tucking her hair behind her ear. "It's just been so long, and I don't understand the point of them any more, too. I must've been a nuisance in class." It seemed like a while other era when she used to mutter and reward each of them points from nice actions in class (especially since she merely looked at her in return to her words).

Nathaniel shook his head, cheeks tinged pink. "It was nice." She'd learned by then that he flushed easily, embarrassment clear on his face and upon his ears, despite the topic of the conversation. It was amusing to see how self-conscious he became on it—especially because of the nickname Chloé had dubbed him with when they saw each other, most likely because of his blushing—and she avoided pointing it out; rather, she smiled softly and silently reassured him that it was just fine. "I regret not talking to you sooner."

"Eh," she murmured, shrugging her shoulders. "It's a hard choice to make and it's not as though you instinctively knew that I wouldn't freak out over your career. I could've leaked it and caused hell for you."

He wrinkled his nose, cursing the mug in his hands. "Somehow that hasn't happened yet."

Gnawing on her lower lip, contemplating her options, Marinette decided to branch out—he was someone that understood her position, slightly, after all (plus he wouldn't tell Adrien). "Before Adrien and I starting d-dating," she started, stumbling over her words and growing hot in the cheeks from what could've been classed as embarrassment or happiness, "someone leaked my address and name—not my cell phone number, thankfully, but it's still out there."

He blinked, cerulean-coloured eyes looking large and surprised, and enquired whether she required police assistance. The thought caused her to pale and quickly explain that the most she'd received were a load of postcards or letters with messy scrawls upon them. Nathaniel insisted that it would only grow worse, and although she knew that he was correct, she shook her head and dismissed the topic, wanting to move on. There was no need to add the fear into her mind; if it really did increase and cause her be suspicious, then more would need to know about her situation (a harassed girlfriend of a celebrity would be quite common, but a nuisance).

When they parted, Marinette hovered by the door, unsure whether their friendship was comfortable enough to warrant a good-bye embrace; so, instead, she awkwardly touched his shoulder and laughed at her own stupidity as they said their farewells.

Imagining Chloé's face when she invited Alya into her apartment for the evening was more than enough to amuse her as she walked home. Nino hadn't broken the news to the blonde, and it was entertaining to picture the different scenarios, especially when Nino was going to be right by her side at the time.

She wasn't suspicious when she arrived on her street. There weren't any strange looking cars, individuals lurking in the nearby alleyway—that had more cardboard boxes along it than necessary—and the only reason why her lips pressed into a thin line of confusing was when she walked near enough to see that someone was taking pictures of the front entrance.

They had a hood up, cell phone in hand taking pictures—that had the sound confirming that that was indeed what they were—and were edging towards the parking area at the back, documenting their way. She took note of the black bag against their hip, strap firmly upon their right shoulder with red-and-black buttons decorating the material.

She wasn't going to ask what they were doing, they could've been taking a picture of a friend or thinking of purchasing or renting a apartment, and it wasn't within her nature to question strangers upon the street. Yet when they were alerted to her presence, head whipping around and meeting hers for a brief moment before hastily putting the cell phone away and sprinting down the street, that was when she considered running after them.

It wasn't normal to look at her and run. The strange behaviour combined with their attire caused warning bells to ring in her head.

-x-

There hadn't been an opportunity to talk it over with her room-mates. Alya had promptly came home after seeing her friend and dived onto Marinette's bed, prattling about her day and complaining about the snooty professor that had been in one of her lectures. They had waited for Rose before starting dinner, only for that idea to be shot down when the blonde messaged them to say that she would be staying around Alix's for that evening—the two had a growing friendship, more so than before, since the small tiff that had happened between them before.

"I doubt there'll be food there." Marinette wrinkled her nose, looking into the mirror upon her wall as she fiddled with her hair. "We could always order something afterwards."

The red-head snorted. "If we're not too pissed, that is."

"If we drink on any empty stomach, we're going to be the first to fall there," she pointed out, grumbling under her breath when a strand of hair refused to stay down. There were nerves, of course, just as there had been when she'd first been invited to Chloé's—but that was just a hand reaching out to her back then. Now, at that moment, they were surely going to ask more questions about herself, pester for information about their information—if they were the type of friends to do that—but at least she wouldn't be alone there, as Alya was surely going to feel the same torment and embarrassment at times. "Try not to make Chloé too mad, okay?"

A loud laugh was the only answer.

Assessing herself in the mirror—taking in the white shirt with the red ribbon tied around her collar, and scarlet pleated skirt—she was pleased here there were not any visible wrinkles in the material. Snatching a cardigan and a small bag to hang off of her shoulder on her way past, Marinette collected her belongings and peeked into Alya's room to see whether she was ready.

"...You do have underwear on, right?"

Bent over and busying herself with tying her leather sandles, Alya looked over her shoulder to raise an eyebrow. "I think the question is asking whether I'll have it on later, rather than now."

"I wouldn't be surprised." She rolled her eyes. "Sure you won't be too cold in that dress?" And it was a legitimate question; the material was slightly transparent, allowing a look at her brassiere if stared at closely enough, and floated gracefully beneath her knees. It was a modest look for her friend, the pastel green-coloured material contrasting nicely with the strands of dark-coloured hair.

"I'll steal Nino's jacket if I'm cold." Alya waved a hand in a dismissive gesture.

Of course. "What if he had the same idea for this evening?"

"Then we'll both huddle up to you until you give in and allow us to steal your clothing," she replied happily, sounding amused for the proposed idea. "I'm sure Adrien wouldn't mind you embracing him for body heat, especially after your little show in the kitchen."

Her cheeks warmed instantly from the reminder. "Shut it, you. I was right beside him when you sent me a seductive picture of you—I could've shown him and embarrassed you completely."

Alya childishly stuck her tongue out before standing straight, running her hands over the material of her dress. "I'm sure he would've complimented it regardless."

Somehow Alya's cell phone and purse had ended up in her bag, simply because she'd claimed that it was too much hassle to keep a hold of them without having pockets on her clothing. They'd locked up together—having only one set of keys for the evening—and wandered out to the curb outside, waiting for their ride to arrive. It wasn't a surprise to be informed that they'd be travelling together, so when the familiar black-coloured car stopped beside them, Marinette nodded her head in greeting through the tinted windows where she knew the quiet chauffeur (plus bodyguard, goodness) resided.

"It looks like half of us are going to be cold, then," Nino proclaimed in greeting, stepping out of the vehicle to wrap his arms enthusiastically around his girlfriend. "I'm not removing myself until you're positively sweating." His jeans were tight and protected him from the cold air around them, though the short sleeves on his t-shirt seemed far too light for the weather. His spectacles were on, complete with thick frames, while Alya had opted to wear her dreaded contact lenses after some deliberation for that evening.

Grinning at the sheer happiness on her friend's face, Marinette stepped around them and clambered into the car, scooting along until she was on the far side. Adrien openly lifted his arm, allowing it to rest around her shoulders and pressing her lightly against his chest.

"I'm glad that you're smart enough to dress for the weather, then I also find myself miffed that I'm missing my chance to manhandle you like those two out there," he murmured in greeting, glancing down to meet her eyes with a lopsided smile. "You didn't get murdered earlier, eh?"

It seemed that Alya was the most dressed up out of the lot of them, which was a relief from a chest when she'd worried about the formal-looking clothing that those in attendance had worn the last time. Perhaps it was because it was only going to be those close to Adrien coming, ones he could trust to reveal their relationship without it leaking to the press. With a look at his dark jeans, shirt with rolled up sleeves and a glimpse of his collarbone being shown, she wondered when her cheeks wouldn't burn in admiration when she saw him.

Rolling her eyes, Marinette murmured, "Hello to you, too."

She placed a chaste kiss on his lips, retreating quickly with coloured cheeks and averted eyes as she made sure that the two outside were preoccupied for the time being. Alya would have been insufferable if she'd caught them again, and she wouldn't have put it past her to bring up the kitchen encounter to Nino, which would only provide more embarrassment until she wanted to bury her face into her hands and disappear.

He didn't mind the small peck, however, and simply breathed a noise of amusement through his nose, understanding her thoughts. "I was worried about your well-being."

"I'm just fine, thank you." She sniffed. "And Nathaniel sends his greetings."

Adrien blinked, uncomprehending. "Okay?"

Well, it would've never been that simple. "Silencieux is my class-mate."

"Oh."

And that was that. The blond nodded in understanding, she was unsure of how to respond to that, and then the couple outside climbed into the vehicle and happily engaged in conversation. Adrien's easy-going attitude was wonderful, and she was wholly thankful that there wasn't any unneeded strain on their budding relationship because of nonsense. During their journey there was teasing, jokes, and information about their days that made each other laugh, and Alya especially enjoyed mentioning how distasteful her relationship with Chloé was (even though she muttered half-hearted apologies as the two males were friends with her).

The drive was short, but not enough. "I want to know more about baby Marinette!" the red-head proclaimed, leaning over and resting her head upon Marinette's already crowded shoulder. "Did she win people over with sweets or—"

"Oh, no," Marinette interrupted suddenly, shaking her head in disappointment. With a quick movement, she pushed her friend away for space. "We forgot the sweets from this morning."

Alya appeared shocked for a moment before a smile curled along her lips. "I'll happily eat them later."

"I can't tell whether your plan really was just for an after-party snack or not," the dark-haired female muttered underneath her breath, leaning her weight onto Adrien was she glared at her room-mate. "Do you even know if you're going to be home tonight?"

It was Nino that answered. "It depends if there's any whispers of reporters outside. They sometimes appear outside when we visit Chloé, though it's not too often." Perhaps that was why they hadn't attended the last that she had been present at, and she certainly hadn't heard rumours from Mireille about their appearance when she'd caught another's interest. "There's not going to be too many people there tonight, so we should be okay."

"I've only attended once before," Marinette mused. "How bad can they get?"

When Adrien laughed—she could feel his body vibrate against hers—she turned her head to peer at him curiously. "It's not as awful as going to night clubs," he started, sharing a knowing grin with his cousin. She had done that, too, however, and hadn't noticed any extra attention other than the occasional lustful glance their way. "There are times where she invites new guys that've just been signed somewhere, and sometimes quite seasoned actors and such. If I didn't know her, I would've thought she just wanted to collect beautiful people in one room."

"A real social butterfly, then," Alya commented.

"Absolutely." Nino rolled his eyes. "It can be tedious at times, especially if someone mentions their newest achievement—it can cause a real riot of a conversation of idiots one-upping each other as it progresses." As strange as it sounded, Marinette wondered where Chloé fit into it all; she was the daughter of the ex-mayor, within the family which ran an expensive hotel, and a wandering socialite that liked to befriend others. While she was rude at times, she hadn't done anything for herself (other than talk to others). She'd been friends with Adrien, even in the eyes of the public, since before he'd become famous and could add a few others to the list of childhood friends.

The Bourgeois' had the money and respect attached to their name for her not to bother with her education—or even a job, if she wished to live on her family's funds for her life—yet she was in further education.

Adrien's voice caught her attention from her thoughts. "It's not that bad, Nino," he teased, voice shaking with restrained laughter. "You haven't attended as many as me because you wanted to be sneaky, remember? I've dealt with her silly birthday parties and other such things for years."

The two teased each other for a bit, and while they were distracted with their words, Alya had reached over and began pawing at Marinette's bag, eventually revealing her cell phone with a smile. With a quick wink—that looked more suspicious than it should've—the red-head snapped a picture for the Ladyblog. Marinette gnawed on her lower lip when she saw the image; it didn't show below the top of her skirt, only her chest and a portion of her neck and hair, but clearly displayed that there was an arm intimately wrapped around her shoulders.

Once the cell phone was safely stored away again, their conversation dissolved into amusing topics—Alya mentioned the wardrobe that Nino had left behind and laughed about the crude drawings—and when they arrived, Chloé had been correct in saying that being in the presence of Adrien was all she needed to get past the security guard. The apartment was much the same as before, lavish and decorated, with loud music blasting from the speakers. The exception from the previous time was there was no hired help to serve drinks or greet those at the door; maybe the hostess had had second thoughts to that idea. She quickly located two mops of blonde hair sitting beside each other on the leather sofa.

"Chloé," Adrien called, tugging forward Marinette with a gentle pull of his hand. She looked around shyly as they approached, realising that they were the first to arrive, and shot her room-mate a quick, and brief, panicked look over her shoulder (the red-head was hovering by the front door, attention directed towards the large apartment with brown-coloured eyes flickering around curiously). "We're not too early, are we?"

When the two blondes turned around, Marinette couldn't hold back her chortle. They were clad in the same dress—only different colours on each—and by the disgruntled expression on Aurore's face, it hadn't been intentional. Adrien didn't comment on their attire, and she wondered why Aurore hadn't wandered over and changed at her own apartment—they lived in the same building, after all.

"No, not at all," Chloé replied, standing up and wrapping her arms around his shoulders in a greeting hug. Before she could blink it was over, the blonde pulling back and sitting down upon the sofa once more. "I invited you two earlier so you could get settled in first. I'm not cruel enough to spring everyone upon you straight away."

She'd never connected considerate to Chloé before. "Thank you," Marinette replied quietly, mortified that her cheeks were still tinged pink.

"No need to be shy," Aurore interjected, wiggling her way between the couple, disconnecting their hands in the process, and wrapping herself happily around the dark-haired female's form. When she spoke again, it was quiet so only they could hear. "Are you wanting her to shit a brick by bringing Alya here?"

A snort escaped. "I'm not the one that invited her." The embrace was returned with enthusiasm, and she narrowly avoided having a mouth full of golden hair.

"It's really happening."

Chloé picked up on that. "What are you two muttering about?" she asked, sounding amused. "It's rude to whisper amongst yourselves."

"Are you sure you—"

Aurore's remark was interrupted before she had the chance to soften the blow. "Hey, Chloé!" Nino called, waving his hand happily as he approached. "Thanks for the invite to your tiny shindig, I know it must be hard to hold yourself back from gathering the masses at your door."

The blonde rolled her eyes, the movement fond with a smile tugging at her lips, and she made a strangled noise when she connected the dots in front of her. "Oh, come on!" There was laughter in response, along with a comforting arm wrapped around her shoulder by Aurore, and Nino's grin continued to grow as the reactions were coming out. Chloé took it surprisingly well, almost as positively as she had with Adrien and Marinette, but couldn't resist the occasional comment to tease them or make a retort that was borderline unfriendly.

Kim, the personal trainer who was infatuated with Aurore, didn't make an appearance that evening (it was unclear whether he hadn't been invited or was too busy preparing for a new film), and the only other that appeared through the doorway was Max, the male that had held the charity event before. He was pleasant, congratulated the two cousins, and his dark skin had flushed with shyness when he was questioned on the topic of Manon—apparently, they were messaging each other and hadn't worked up to arranging a date between the two of them quite yet.

There were a few stories passed around and they spoke about their upcoming work commitments; Max mentioned a new project he was participating in, Adrien let it slip that he was featuring in an upcoming animated series—not saying he was voicing a character—and Aurore bemoaned the upcoming interviews she was set to give, along with the rest of the cast from her childhood show.

Alya and Marinette had shared a knowing glance when they were questioned about their plans and shrugged in response, opting for a non-committal answer.

No one was too intoxicated towards the end of the evening—the closest was Max who had had two alcoholic drinks—and when Alya and Nino had stood up with twin grins and said they were leaving first, it hadn't hit midnight yet. Marinette had rolled her eyes at her friend's excited expression, wondering whether she'd remember to take the contact lenses out and that her spectacles were at home, and passed her cell phone over with a wink that was more suited to be coming from the red-head. There were a few mumbles from Chloé once the two had disappeared, though no one took them too seriously.

"We can leave whenever you want," Adrien murmured when they were the last two remaining on the couch. Her eyes flickered to the other side of the room where the two blonde females were attempting to teach Max the right dance moves for the current song. "It'll only get worse with those two dancing over there."

She stifled a laugh, placing her glass filled with a non-alcoholic drink onto the coffee-table. "I'm fine to get back whenever. My schedule's free tomorrow, so I suspect I'll be comatose to the world for a while in the morning."

"You're lucky." His grin was lopsided as he playfully bumped his shoulder against hers. "I've got another shoot tomorrow."

"Early?" Marinette questioned softly, leaning against him and resting her cheek on his clothed frame. At his nod, she visibly winced. "It's a good thing you haven't been drinking then; the headache would've been killer."

He snorted. "I'm not that silly, thankfully. I'm only allowed so much leeway with my diet as it is."

"So you can't consume all the alcohol you want? Pity."

"I'd like to see you get away with drinking yourself silly when you're weighed constantly," the blond retorted. "You're lucky you're a secret model."

A self-conscious blush rose to her cheeks from the appointed title. "That's ridiculous," she whispered, "I-I'm more like a child trying—"

The self-deprecating words never came out, though. Warm lips pressed against hers, slightly needy and the pressure wasn't light, though it was still gentle, and she grinned as his fingertips threaded through the strands of her hair. Her arms wound around his shoulders lazily, and she hummed as she enjoyed the sensations, feeling the hot puffs of air blow against her flushed cheeks, the soft noises of their intertwined breaths loud enough for only the two of them to hear. She scooted closer along the sofa, responding to his searching movements and nipped his lower lip greedily to indicate her growing need.

His hand gripped her hip in comfort, fingertips seeking the flesh above her skirt, hiding away underneath the material of her shirt. A groan escaped as his tongue sought out hers, the noise muffled yet still portraying her pleasure, and the tell-tale feeling of her pulse between her legs began apparent. Marinette pressed her thighs together, seeking the private friction as she lost herself in the contact, breaths coming out quickly and uneven as they continued. The sound of the music surrounding them was drowned out from the ever-growing and thundering pulse, and she idly realised that they weren't alone in a room, and it wasn't at all appropriate for the growing dampness in her underwear to appear in public.

Adrien moved before she could. He pulled away and placed a chaste kiss to her reddened lips once more, and her eyes fluttered open to look into his own, noting that they appeared half-lidded and the shine upon his slightly swollen lips caused the need between her legs to increase.

"You're perfect," he murmured, eyes slipping closed once more as he brushed their lips together.

The praise caused her to blush more. The kiss was wetter than before, movements more insistent and she was certain the noise they were producing was louder, too. Her pulse was throbbing, face warm and surely portraying her arousal well, and when she went to further the kiss once more, she opened her eyes in bewilderment when he pulled away.

He grinned widely at her, dimples on display from happiness, and placed kiss to her overheating cheek before holding her hand, tugging them along to the door after she'd collected their belongings. With a glance to his lower-half to realise why he wasn't approaching the trio to explain they were leaving, she waved shyly at Aurore when they made eye contact. Adrien called over the music that they were on their way out, and before Chloé could reply, they had closed the front door to cut her off.

Whether Adrien had called for his double-job chauffeur or if they had waited outside for hours, she was unsure, and as soon as they were safely tucked into the vehicle once more their hands were upon each other. His fingertips were caressing the exposed skin of her thigh, boldly trailing beneath the material of her skirt as they tongues were intertwined once more. She was gripping onto his shirt, shivers of pleasure running through her body. Their mouths broke apart from a small gasp of surprise from her, gazing into his bright eyes and seeing the grin across his lips for a moment before he was trailing kisses along the length of her neck. Marinette threw her head back in a mixture of astonishment and pleasure, pulse thundering in response.

His fingertips trailed teasingly across her inner-thighs, and she almost closed her legs on instinct from the touch—she could feel his grin of amusement against her skin when her legs stiffened. Running a hand idly through his hair as her breathing began to even out, Marinette gasped softly as he nipped at her exposed neck, nails trailing along the skin of her thighs before they made contact with her underwear.

She froze.

Adrien's fingertip deliberately stroked across her clothed protrusion, causing a shudder of pleasure and a noise of appreciate to escape.

Her cheeks flamed as she simultaneously realised that he could feel her dampness clearly and that they were most definitely not alone at that moment. She scooted away, back pressed against the cold door and pushed him away with a burst of strength causing the blond to wobble before he regained his balance.

Where he had been toying with her neck was wet, cold air causing her skin to prickle, and the embarrassment and shock was portrayed clearly across her expression. Her cerulean eyes flickered between him and the front of the vehicle, indicating what her problem was.

He didn't laugh. Whereas he had been sat with befuddled brows and a frown upon his lips before, his expression morphed into one of realisation, and he smiled sheepishly at her as his hand rose to clutch the nape of his neck self-consciously.

"I apologise," Adrien confessed, clearing his throat afterwards. His voice was lower than usual (and it didn't help to cease the beating of her frantic pulse).

Marinette pushed her legs together, smoothing out the material of her skirt. "I-it's okay." Her cheeks flamed further as her voice stuttered and cracked. "I didn't mind."

His answering smile was blinding.

They kept their distance for the rest of the journey—which wasn't too long—and stole heated glances at each other from the corner of their eyes. Once the vehicle had stopped to a halt, Marinette opened the door, sighing from the gust of cold air, and clambered outside.

"You don't have to walk me up," she pointed out when the blond stood beside her sporting a smile (with a discreet glance, she noticed he'd calmed down from their earlier activities, unlike her sticky underwear). "I'll survive the little walk."

"Fine," Adrien agreed, stepping closer and caressing her warm cheek with a soft hand. He kissed her forehead sweetly, pulling back and taking in the redness across her face from the action, before pressing a chaste kiss to her lips. It wasn't filled with lust or passion as it had been before; it was a romantic parting gesture that made her heartbeat increase. It portrayed his care for her, and seeing the soft smile when they pulled enough made her grin widely. "Good-bye, Marinette."

The shadows across his face from the street-lights only made him more attractive; the darkness of his lashes, the curve of his nose and the reddened lips adding to his beautiful appearance.

She wetted her lips.

"Good-bye, Adrien."

-x-

The secret shoot turned out to be quite a big deal the following week. Adrien hadn't given her prior warning, so when Rose had barrelled into her room while trying to restrain her laughter, she had been instantly suspicious. There displayed upon the blonde's cell phone was an image of a billboard that was plastered throughout the country; Adrien with ruffled hair, a hint of a smirk along his lips—no dimples in sight—a shirt falling off his toned frame and showing the dips and curves of his upper-half clearly. The shot ended at the top of his trousers (to her relief), and turned out to be an advertisement for a cologne. When she tore her eyes away from his body, she noticed the bottle that was displayed beneath the text, nowhere near his body.

She'd flushed from Rose's knowing gaze and teasing, diving for her own device to message her scheming boyfriend.

'Marinette:
How quickly could you come round?'

There was only a short period of wait.

'Adrien Agreste:
I'm assuming this is for ravishing rather than an emergency.'

Marinette snorted.

'Marinette:
Then let me have my wicked way with you. A bit of warning about the picture would've been nice.'

There was a small twinge of jealously as she thought of the countless admirers that would gaze at his picture, though knowing that she was the only one that could run her fingertips across the skin with permission was more than enough to banish the insecurities.

'Adrien Agreste:
How about I make it up to you over dinner tomorrow night?'

She didn't hesitate.

'Marinette:
You'll have a lot of kissing up to do.'

His reply made her blush and roll her eyes simultaneously.

'Adrien Agreste:
I'm prepared to kiss you everywhere if I must, princess.'

PREVIEW: She scrolled down in horror, voice coming out weakly, "This isn't good."