Chapter Twenty-Four: Bûche de Noël.
After collecting the bûche de Noël from the bakery, Adrien finally gets to take Marinette out on their date.
Tuesday 24th December 2019. 1.45 p.m. Tom and Sabine Boulangerie-Pâtisserie.
By the time they got to the bakery on Christmas Eve most of the customers had already been and gone. As always, Tom and Sabine only opened for half of the day so that they could spend some quality family time together later on while still making sure their customers were able to get fresh bread for the day and the bûche de Noël for their own festive celebrations.
Technically, that's why Adrien was there.
As Gorilla was the only adult in the mansion, he had been tasked with collecting the bûche de Noël for the Reveillon meal in the Agreste mansion later that day. Naturally, Adrien had to come along too so that Gorilla could keep an eye on him. At least, that's what they would tell Gabriel later when he returned from his business trip. In actual fact Adrien was there to collect Marinette for their first official date and Gorilla was going to be a taste tester for Tom and Sabine - they would later claim that they had to hide in the bakery for a bit when a fan saw Adrien.
That hadn't even bothered to take the car this time, Gorilla deeming it unnecessary for the short trip from the mansion to the bakery, especially as Adrien would be walking with Marinette on their date. So long as they were back in the bakery for 3.30 p.m. then Adrien could get back to mansion in plenty of time to greet his father.
They walked through the door just as Sabine finished serving another customer. "Thank you, goodbye." Sabine waved the other customer away and turned to greet them with a pleasant smile on her face. It melted into a truly delighted smile when she realised who it was and Adrien felt giddy with joy that she was so happy to see him. Marinette's parents had been wonderfully welcoming, even more so after he had accidentally revealed that he and Marinette were dating after their snowball fight on Saturday. She quickly rounded the counter to hug him and shake hands with Gorilla. "Adrien, Christophe, it's so good to see you here," she grinned. "Are you all set for your date today?"
"I hope so," he chuckled. "Is Marinette?"
Sabine nodded. "She was just helping Tom in the back, although it would be more accurate to say she was doing her best to ignore her father's woeful interrogation skills. We haven't been able to get a word out of her about this date yet and it's driving Tom crazy!"
Adrien laughed. "That would be my fault. I'm hoping to surprise her today so she doesn't know what I have planned."
"A surprise? How exciting!" Sabine grinned. "I'll go and fetch Marinette now. You two can help yourself to anything you'd like from the counters."
Gorilla began to look through the counters with interest but Adrien did his best to ignore the temptation in front of him. He had planned to get a small bite to eat while he was out with Marinette today, and there was the Reveillon meal with his father later, so he didn't want to spoil his appetite - no matter how divine, how delectable, how delicious all those treats looked.
"Adrien!"
That was all the warning he received before Marinette ran up to him and he eagerly swung her up into his arms. God he had missed her. He leaned down to kiss her but remembered at the last minute that they had an audience and kissed her cheek instead. "Hey love. Ready to go?"
"Almost. Here," Marinette ran behind one of the counters, letting Adrien admire the Christmas themed jumper dress she was wearing, and grabbed a box. She hurried up to him and held it out. "I saved the best one just for you."
He cracked open the lid to reveal a truly exquisite looking bûche de Noël. The chocolate looked like actual bark, it was decorated with a marzipan sprig of holly with bright red berries, and topped with a dusting of icing sugar for snow. He easily believed her when she said it was the best as it was the best one he had ever seen. "It's perfect. How much?"
Marinette's happy smile turned sassy. "One kiss."
"One kiss. You're undervaluing such magnificent work. It should be at least 100."
She laughed. "You know, you're right. It should be."
"Save that for outside you two."
Adrien and Marinette both blushed at Tom's gentle joke, having completely forgotten that anyone else was even in the room. Adrien counted his blessings that he hadn't actually kissed her just then. What kind of impression would that have given to her parents.
Marinette couldn't even look at her parents. "Right, well, bye mama, bye baba, I'll be back soon!"
She grabbed Adrien and pulled him towards the door but they could clearly hear the rest of Tom and Sabine conversation as they left, furthering their own embarrassment.
Sabine chuckled. "Do you remember being that young and madly in love?"
"I might not be young but I'm still madly in love," Tom grinned and winked at his wife before turning to Gorilla. "Christophe, excellent, shall we get to the taste testing?"
Marinette pulled him through the door and around the corner and sagged against the wall with a sigh. He didn't blame her. Things could only get better from here. He hoped. He prayed.
With that thought in mind, he reached out and took Marinette's hand, interlocking their fingers immediately.
Marinette smiled softly up at him. "Where to first, kitten?"
"You'll see, my love," he brought her hand to hip lips for a kiss.
Their first port of call, as it so happened, was Bastien's cafe.
Marinette appreciated that. It was a lovely little cafe, warm and homely, but it also afforded them the most privacy. After he had asked her out on Saturday, and inadvertently told her parents and Gorilla about their new relationship, they'd managed to have a talk about going public. With Adrien's celebrity status it wasn't as easy as holding hands in public and telling their friends. No.
Firstly, they couldn't risk it getting back to Gabriel before they told him, so that meant keeping it low key enough to avoid any lucky paparazzi shots. It also meant they couldn't tell Alya or Nino just yet because as much as they loved their friends they weren't quiet at all. One happy shriek from either of them and their relationship would be all over the news.
Secondly, there were enough reporters prying into Adrien's life as it was. Keeping it quiet for as long as possible would mean less interference from the press into his life but also into Marinette's. She was a somewhat famous teen in her own right, having designed for Jagged Stone and Gabriel Agreste, not to mention being the daughter of the owners of one of the best bakeries in Paris. The press would have a field day with her connections, especially as she wanted to go into fashion herself. If they played their cards right and Gabriel didn't object then they would get all the help they needed from Nathalie and the Gabriel PR department.
Besides, she didn't want to share him with the world just yet.
"Ambrose, Marie!" Bastien greeted them as soon as they walked through the door. "Delightful to see you again!"
Marinette was surprised that Bastien had given her a cover name too, but she didn't get the chance to ask either him or Adrien about it. The second Bastien saw their joined hands and correctly deduced they were there on a date they were seated in the warmest booth in the cafe and looking at his special Date Menu. Meals and desserts to share between a happy couple.
They both decided against a heavy meal, instead choosing a plate of sandwiches and following it up with cookies and ice cream. Plagg was delighted with the cheese from their sandwiches and most of their cookies ended up in Tikki's bag. The conversation flowed easily between them, talking about anything and everything that came to mind, and they were both surprised to find that they had finished their food between topics.
Adrien paid, wrapped an arm around Marinette's shoulder, and waved to Bastien as they left. "I hope you didn't mind going there for our first date, Marinette."
"Why would I? I love that little cafe," she grinned up at him, wrapping an arm around his waist. "So what else do you have planned for us, kitten?"
"It's a bit of a trip," he smirked. "Are you up for it?"
She was.
It was a pleasant surprise for them to transform and run about during the day. Normally their outings ended up in a game of rooftop tag that doubled as a patrol, but today Chat Noir had a specific destination in mind so he headed straight for it with Ladybug close behind him.
Ladybug was intrigued when they landed on a small theatre roof two arrondissements over but she held her questions and let Chat lead her inside, hand in hand once more. She was delighted when they emerged onto a small hidden catwalk above a stage where a choir was setting up and all manner of performers in beautiful outfits were rushing around.
Chat held one clawed finger to her lips and tugged her forward along the catwalk, pausing when they reached a small door. It led into a long-abandoned private viewing box that had only recently been cleaned up - there were two chairs next to a low table, all in need of some TLC to bring them back to their former glory, and in the corner under a dust sheet were several more very broken chairs. A bouquet of red roses lay on the table, along with two champagne flutes and a bottle of sparkling pomegranate juice.
Ladybug pressed her hands to her lips and looked around. She could feel tears pricking at her eyes and blinked them away. "You did all this for me?"
"You say that like I wouldn't do more if you wished," Chat chuckled and pulled her over towards the balcony rail.
The lighting was dim, with all the stage lights focussed on the performers, but it was easy to see how beautiful this old theatre had been once upon a time. It was going through some hardships but the performance going on downstairs was lively and passionate and the audience was enthralled. There was a small musical group set to one side, larger than a string quartet but much smaller than a full orchestra, and elegantly garbed in black tie, and they began to tune their instruments for a happy little waltz.
"I looked them up. They do a special Christmas Concert every year on Christmas Eve for local families. Carols, dancing, pantomimes, small theatrical performances - it's a real variety act," Chat murmured into her ear as she drank in the beautiful sight.
"I love it."
"I was hoping you'd say that. It isn't quite a film, dinner, and dancing, but I was hoping it would be a good first date."
"No," she shook her head emphatically. "Not a good first date. A perfect first date. This is so us, Chaton."
His answering smile was so full of love. "Then would you care to dance with me, my love?"
"I'll probably step on your toes."
"It'll still be a perfect date."
And it was.
Ladybug let Chat waltz her expertly around the small space, giggling as he twirled her and dipped her, giggling even more each time she tripped over her own feet, until their waltzing gradually turned into swaying. Her arms found their way around his shoulders, one hand trailing up into his hair and scratching just the way he liked it and just hard enough to get him to purr, while his settled comfortably on her hips. She tucked her head under his chin and sighed happily.
Perfection.
When the waltz music died down, a panto was ushered onto the stage, and they moved from their impromptu dance floor to the table where their drinks were waiting. It was a wonderful performance and Ladybug found herself giggling a lot, particularly when Chat almost choked on his drink because he was laughing so hard. A magic act followed and then they called for the intermission.
Chat reluctantly stood up then. "We need to head back now."
Ladybug didn't look disappointed, which just made him love her all the more. His inconvenient schedule would be a pain for them to work around, but there would be time for many more dates to come. He grabbed the bag he had stashed to one side and started gathering their things, screwing the cap back onto the bottle and placing it and the glasses carefully inside, then setting the bouquet on top.
They raced back to the 21st arrondissement and found a quiet spot at the back of the school to transform back before walking around the corner arm in arm. When they were outside the side door of the bakery, Marinette pulled him up short and looked at him with a wry grin on her face. "So… is this the part where you ask me for a kiss?"
Adrien huffed out a laugh. Such a tease! "Not quite, sweetheart. I had something else in mind first."
"Oh? What was that?"
"This."
He quickly pulled out the small jewellery box that had been burning a hole in his pocket for the length of their date and watched as the teasing smile on her face turned into a shocked expression, then into an understanding one, before settling on excitement. He had expected the shock, considering the box was very similar in size and shape to a ring box. When he had ordered this particular piece online he had expected it to come in a longer box.
One day in the hopefully not too distant future, he would do this with a real ring box. One day he would take her out dancing, give her flowers, and then pull out the ring. But much as he loved her, much as he knew she was the only one for him, they weren't ready for that yet. Adrien could see that she knew he wasn't proposing, not yet, but she was still excited to see the gift he had for her.
He licked his lips nervously and tried not to fidget with the box. "After we found out, I wanted to get you something to show you how happy I was that you are you." Adrien willed her to see his sincerity, to see the love he felt for her. "This isn't a gift from Chat Noir to Ladybug like the blanket, or a gift from Adrien to Marinette like the one you will open tomorrow... this is just a gift from me to you because I love the fact that you are you, and because I love all of you."
Marinette stared at him.
As he had spoken those wonderful, beautiful words, she felt her heart overflow with all the emotion she felt for him. This wonderful, dorky, goofball she was blessed to call her friend and partner. This amazing boy who was giving her his heart. She was so overwhelmed by the intensity of her emotions that she couldn't even begin to speak so she decided to let her actions speak for her.
She pushed herself up on her tiptoes, pulled him to her, and kissed him with every iota of passion she felt. If he knew nothing else she would make sure that he knew that he was her heart, her soul, her everything, and she cherished him fiercely.
"I love you too. All of you."
"You haven't even opened it yet." Stunned and breathless was a good look on him, she decided.
Marinette giggled. "I love you for you, not because of any gift." She leaned up to kiss him again, this one more tender and affirming than the last. "But if you bought this just for me, because you love me and you thought I would like it, then I know I'm going to love it too," she touched her nose to his and nuzzled him gently. "How could I not when you're you?"
"Thank you," he tilted his head up to kiss her nose and grinned. "Now open it because I can't take the wait any more!"
Marinette gave another giggle and slowly opened the box. She could feel her jaw drop as she saw the beautiful necklace inside.
The necklace was silver, with a long and sturdy chain, and a gorgeous enamel pendant at the end. It showed a black cat lying in a sleeping pose, legs extended, and holding a meticulously crafted red rose in its paws. While the cat itself might have been enamel, the vibrant green eyes and the bright red petals of the rose weren't cheap. In fact, knowing who gave it to her, she would expect nothing less than for them to be real emeralds and rubies.
"Oh my god, Adrien, Kitten, this is…"
Marinette traced a finger across the pendant, marvelling at its beauty. It was the perfect gift for her. Though she might profess to wanting a hamster, everyone who knew her knew that she loved cats. She always had and she always would. But the symbolism of a black cat holding out a rose was all Chat Noir. It was the two of them, him and her, in jewellery form and she loved it.
She smiled up at him again, blinking away tears. "This is purr-fect."
"You like it?"
"So much! Can you help me put it on?"
He nodded at her and took the necklace out of the box carefully, pocketing the box, then flicked the clasp open. She turned around and he placed it over her head, letting the pendant dangle just below her collar bones as he fastened the clasp. Marinette gave a happy sigh when she felt him kiss the back of her neck just above the chain and couldn't resist turning around to kiss him properly. He was too good to her.
"I have a present for you too," she murmured between kisses. "One that's just from me to you, but I don't have it on me right now."
"It can wait for another time." He said. Marinette pouted but he gestured to the front of the bakery with a nod of his head and she could see Gorilla waiting there. He was reading something on his phone and trying not to look too obvious as he waited for Adrien. "I really need to be going home now."
Marinette nodded reluctantly. "I could swing by later and drop it off for you if you want?"
"It's tempting," he grinned, "but after our meal, Père and I will be going to Midnight Mass at Notre Dame. I used to go with maman every year. I'll be busy with him all night and, call me selfish, but I want you all to myself when I get that gift."
"It's not selfish at all. I want you to myself too."
He chuckled at that and gave her one final, tender, lingering kiss goodbye and waited for her to open the door and go inside, before heading off to join Gorilla on the walk home. Marinette shut the door behind her, completely unsurprised to see both of her parents hovering near the door, trying and failing to look like they weren't waiting for her. They should really take lessons from Gorilla.
"Well?"
She just smiled at them, letting them see how happy and in love she was, and giggled at the twin squeals that erupted.
Author's notes. Reminder, I have still not seen all of season 2 and none of season 3. Please check my author's profile for a list of the episodes I have seen.
Slightly late today but we had one heck of a Boxing Day at the in-laws. They hyped the sproglet up then left us to deal with the fallout once we got home. He was literally climbing the walls. Thank god he's asleep now. If I have to hear one more "lighten up, it's Christmas, let him have fun" I think I'll scream.
Replies to reviews.
Rebekmiraculous - I'm so sorry I missed your reviews out when I answered them in my last chapter. I've already got plans for all the Christmas prompts for this year's challenge, but if I do one next year that is certainly an idea I would consider. I hope you enjoy the rest of the story. Merry Christmas to you too and Happy New Year.
yellow14 - I know what you mean about writing time, don't worry. I'll be happy to read them if/when they come along. Also, I bloody love your punny reviews. I needed that after the in-laws today.
owlthewriter - she loves them really, he just needs to work on his timing. She'll be punning back at him too.
Guest - I'm really glad you like this and I'm pretty sad it will be ending myself. Thanks for the review.
ELinkA - You're welcome!
siren8484 - I didn't actually know it was on youtube until a previous reviewer mentioned it. Right now though I don't have the time to watch it with everything else going on in my life. I barely have time to write this, especially after spraining my wrist at the end of November. I'll get some free time soon and then I'll have a catch up binge instead of one episode here and there.
bunnywabbit29 - he is a little cutie! I'm glad you liked it, the visit idea popped into my head back when I was writing chapter 6 and it wouldn't leave me alone until I wrote it.