Stuck In A Bakery (With You), Chapter 41

"Good night."

A dazed Adrien replied "Good night, Marinette," blew her one more kiss, then padded down the stairs back to his guest room. Marinette had done her best to reinforce the two points she had made to him slightly earlier - that her heart belonged to him, and that he was a very lucky guy - and presented impressively persuasive arguments for each, using a comprehensive kiss-and-cuddle format.

As she had walked him to the door, he'd laughed, "Now, I thought that I was tucking you in tonight. Your bed's over there."

"I'm not ready to sleep quite yet," she'd told him. "But the thought certainly counts. And do you really want me to move away from you right now?"

"Nnnnooo... and yes," gasped Adrien. "Because if I keep... kissing you like this... I'll be here... in the morning. And I... really do... have a call that I need to make."

That had made her pause. "That's right. You'd talked with Nathalie earlier, so this would be..." she ventured.

"Yep," confirmed Adrien. "She and I didn't talk last night, and I don't want to leave her hanging."

"And I don't want you to, either," sympathized Marinette. "I am still sharing you, so to speak. We both know that. As... right as this feels... Kagami still matters to both of us."

She laid her forehead against his tenderly. "So, go, talk with her. Give her my best, and tell her to call me one of these days, okay? I'm just going to stay up and think for a little while. Maybe touch base with Alya, if she's still up."

"If you're sure that you don't need a tuck-in when you are ready..." asked Adrien.

"This is her turn now. But if I need one that badly, I'll message you," Marinette grinned back.

Back in his room, Adrien laid flat on his bed, his head propped up against his pillow. The adrenaline rush was fading, but his stomach muscles still felt tight from anticipation and a bit of apprehension.

Kagami answered quickly, visibly in her own room as the video call picked up. "Hello, Adrien," she beamed. "I was just about to call you, as I am going to sleep soon... but I did not want to interrupt."

"You would not be interrupting me, Kagami," Adrien smiled warmly. "I never get tired of hearing from you... and I want to make time for you whenever I can. Especially now, while we're both homebound."

"No need to remind me of that part. I am going crazy over here," Kagami moaned, flopping down on her own bed. From what Adrien could tell through the video screen, she was wearing a simple pajama set, white with red trim. "All I am doing is going through the motions, day after day. These chores, those lessons, no one to talk to but Mother and the staff. I mean, not that they are unpleasant, of course... but there's even less variety than ever."

"You know that I know how that works," sympathized Adrien. "How is your mother coping?"

"About the usual?" shrugged Kagami. "She won't let much of anything slow her down. We still practice together twice a week, and that still usually ends with me on my butt or with a bokken tapping me. She may be blind, but she's still far past my skill level, and she's never letting up on changing that."

"And that says quite a bit. I know that I can keep up with you for a while... but for me to beat you at fencing, I have to be lucky and you have to have an off day," Adrien noted.

"Or to have a slightly biased referee," chuckled Kagami. "Yes, yes, I know she was new to it that day..." she continued, noting Adrien's automatic apologetic protest about their first encounter.

"And maybe if we'd kept it on the strip that day instead of going Errol Flynn all over the building, we wouldn't have had that problem," Adrien laughed back. "But that might've been the most fun that I've ever had fencing."

"I couldn't agree more," Kagami smiled. "Speaking of our favorite novice referee... how are things going between you two since we talked?"

Adrien measured his response slowly and carefully... which, in and of itself, told Kagami much.

"Things are going well," he said. "I'm still learning in their bakery, of course. I haven't burned it down yet. My bodyguard brought over a care package with more clothes and a bunch of board games; the four of us played Ticket to Ride for a while tonight, and had quite a lot of fun doing it."

"Not... quite the precise question that I had asked," smiled Kagami.

"Acknowledged," admitted Adrien. "I just wished Marinette goodnight before I came down and called you."

"...Wished?"

Kagami's eyes were focused on Adrien, but had some softness to them. "You can say it, Adrien. It won't hurt me," she informed him.

"...Okay. I kissed her goodnight. A few dozen times," mumbled Adrien. "Which you had likely guessed."

"Oh, I had. Now, that didn't hurt to say out loud, did it?" Kagami noted. "Especially since, for all intents and purposes, I had given you permission?"

"I remember everything that we talked about the other night, I promise you. But I don't..." struggled Adrien. "I don't ever want to see like I'm... rubbing this in your face, or rubbing you and I in hers."

"You are far too kind for that. And, thankfully, so is Marinette," said Kagami.

"Now, do you want to hear the part that you will like a bit more?" asked Adrien, cautiously. "I haven't made that decision yet, and even if I had, Marinette wouldn't accept my answer. She's not taking 'we're kissing' as 'we're a couple' or 'we're exclusive' because of the circumstances. When things unlock and I can see you again... she expects us - she expects all three of us to get together and talk things out and reevaluate what's what."

"That is thoughtful of her," mused Kagami. "Of course, it is also easier to say 'we will figure it out then' when you're in her arms now."

"I'm sorry," said Adrien, quietly. "We can make all the arrangements and agreements that we want, but this is still painful for you."

"Being apart from you is painful for me," clarified Kagami. "I like to think that if I could be there with you, things would work out on their own. And, yes, I am including Marinette in that."

She smiled softly at him, trying to ease his uncomfortable expression. "Adrien, you've heard me speak my peace on that. I knew that you had fallen for her before you did," she noted. "And you know why I had hesitated so long. A confident Marinette who actually speaks her mind, cooped up together with you, alone every night? If there were not any fireworks, I might be asking what is wrong with you two."

A silent Adrien heard Kagami continue, "Just as if you were staying here, we would be busy finding places where my mother could not find us or hear us. There simply must be one of those somewhere."

"I don't know about that. From what you've told me, she's just shy of being a shortwave radio receiver," Adrien replied. "If someone drops a glass in Barcelona, she hears it in Paris as it shatters."

"An accurate description. Sometimes I want to whisper 'Hello, Mother' when we're talking like this just to see if she greets me back," giggled Kagami. She paused for effect, and, hearing nothing from Mrs. Tsurugi, both of them laughed quietly.

"Adrien..." Kagami said, "If you had simply said 'I'm sorry, but I'm with Marinette now, and what you and I had together didn't matter...', that would have hurt me deeply. But you would not do that, and Marinette would not do that. It comforts me a little that you can draw comfort from each other right now. But with the entire world topsy-turvy as it is... I am not allowing myself to worry yet about what will happen next. There is nothing for Marinette and I to fight over. There may never be. And I wouldn't want there to be."

"One of many reasons that you cracked my shell, Kagami," breathed Adrien, warmly. "And why I refuse to simply turn the page on you. There was something real there."

"And Marinette understands that," suggested Kagami.

"And Marinette understands that," confirmed Adrien. "She amazes me that she does... but she amazes me daily, period."

"Good. That's what I want to have happen right now," Kagami smiled. "That, and to have you call me and keep in touch like this, of course."

"And that won't end any time soon, I promise." Adrien thought for a moment, then added, "And I don't want our calls to be just about Marinette, either. You're always welcome to talk to her yourself - she told me to remind you of that before I came down, and wished you her best - and I have lots of things to talk with you about that have nothing to do with her."

"Speaking of that," said Kagami, "Let me tell you about the strangest dream I had last night..."

The two of them chatted for close to another hour, small talk flitting here and there, two close friends sharing thoughts and ideas with most of the pressure off around them.

Eventually, Kagami yawned loudly and apologized for it. "I am sorry... but I am exhausted," she begged off. "Can you tuck me in tonight?"

"You know... that would be my pleasure," Adrien declared. He hung on the line while Kagami ran through a quick bedtime routine, then cut the light off and snuggled between her covers.

"There we go," she smiled. "Ready to sleep. And I even have a spot here next to me, reserved for you... someday."

"I can only imagine how inviting that would be," replied Adrien, softly.

"Remain kind and thoughtful and sweet with me... and you just might get that chance," Kagami cooed.

She leaned forward and held the phone near her lips, blowing a light air kiss. "Good night, Adrien. Tell Marinette that I returned her hello," she smiled.

Adrien performed the same gesture. "Good night, Kagami. Pleasant dreams."

After hanging up, Adrien laid there for a minute, eyes open, facing straight up.

A small voice by his head said, "You know... a lot of guys enjoy having choices. A couple of pretty girls, each interested in them."

Adrien glared at Plagg. "This is a lot more complicated than that, Plagg, and you know it," he snapped. "I'm not a prize to win, and neither are either of them. This is serious."

"Oh, I agree. And you're handling it well, I think," noted Plagg. "What are you going to do when the lockdown's over, though?"

Adrien returned his eyes ceiling-ward. "Honestly?" he replied. "I may not know until we all get there."

He glanced at his phone and saw that Marinette was still active on instant messages, so he sent her a quick note:

[Adrien] Still up?

[Marinette] Not for much longer. In bed, lights out, eyes are drooping.

[Marinette] Everything okay?

[Adrien] I think so. Kagami says hello and wishes you well.

[Marinette] Good. Things are going well over there?

[Adrien] Uh-huh. She misses me. We talked for about an hour, not just about us, and I even virtually tucked her in.

[Adrien] So to speak.

[Marinette] Two kissy tuck-ins in one night! He's a celebrity supermodel playboy, folks.

[Adrien] ...

[Adrien] Are you okay with that?

[Marinette] Of course I am. I can hardly say that I didn't get a turn tonight, can I? :x

[Adrien] True. But you don't need another 'real' one?

There was a slight pause.

[Marinette] Do that at your own risk.

[Marinette] I might not let go of you. ;) You could be my teddy bear tonight.

[Adrien] I...

[Adrien] ...will see you in the morning. Sweet dreams. 0:-)

[Marinette] Smart play. ;)

[Marinette] Good night, sweetheart.