Stuck In A Bakery (With You), Chapter 48

The joy running through Ladybug's soul was so overwhelming that she felt like she was about to burst.

These kisses she shared with Adrien weren't quite as intense as shortly earlier... not quite the same kind of demanding need pushing them forward... but felt more like the slow, searching, languid explorations of their nights before this. A simple celebration of her truth revealed and their feelings expressed. And why not? Now that her secret was finally out... now that she no longer felt compelled to hide an entire side of herself from the boy that she loved... time seemed actually on their side for once.

Oh, we will have to have a SERIOUS talk afterwards, Ladybug reasoned, in a moment of lucidity. I know that I can trust him, that I don't even have to tell him what his knowing this means... but those things are worth saying anyway. Just think, though... now I can have someone help me cover my escapes when Akumas are out and I need to get away! Now I have someone human that I can talk about those adventures with!

No offense, Tikki, she giggled to herself, we'll still have plenty of one-on-one time together... but THIS kind of one-on-one time is what I've needed for so long.

I can't believe just how perfect this feels, she beamed, sinking into another long kiss. How everything in my life might finally be lining up in ways that make sense. How we're going to be...

...such a perfect couple...

...hmmm.

Ladybug took a moment to reflect on what her senses were telling her. He's certainly kissing me back, she frowned, but something's... different, just a little bit? It's almost as if... his heart isn't completely in it this time.

She opened her eyes the tiniest bit - everyone knows you're supposed to kiss with your eyes closed, but I need to check on him, she thought - and froze when she saw that Adrien's eyes were WIDE open and staring hard back at her.

"...Adrien? Is something wrong?" Ladybug whispered, pulling back just enough to get a better look at him.

He was silent, looking back at her with obvious nervousness.

"Are you all right?" she asked, with growing concern. "Honey..." she realized, "...you're shaking!"

Quickly, she gasped, "Spots off," and transformed back to Marinette. "It's just me," she soothed him, holding him close. "You know it's just me."

"I... I know," Adrien whispered back. "I'm trying not to... I'm... I don't know what to..."

"Hey," Marinette whispered. "Hey, just hold me for now, okay?" As he snuggled in closer and she felt his tremors ease a bit, she added, "I... wasn't sure how you would react to this, if it ever came out. It's an awful lot to take in."

So much more than you know, Adrien shivered to himself. He managed to reply, "It is. And I'm... sorry... for how I'm reacting."

"Don't be," Marinette insisted. "I'm pretty shaken up, too; I had no idea that you were going to figure out my secret tonight! But... look. We've got some things to talk about," she continued, "but this isn't going to change... us. I'm the same girl that you've known all along, I promise."

"I know that," Adrien half-smiled. And that's what part of the problem is. "Look... can I, um..."

"What do you need?" asked Marinette. "Anything."

"Can I go down and use your bathroom for a minute? I just feel kind of... unsettled," he ventured. "Just a moment to myself to let this sink in, a little cold water on my face, you know? And then I'll come right back up and we can, um, pick up where we left off."

"Of course," Marinette replied, looking worried. "I'll be waiting. You're sure that you're... mostly okay?"

"I am," he assured her. "Pick a lounge chair for us," he smiled as he headed to the hatch, "and I'll be back shortly."

The hatch closed behind Adrien with a quiet thump. The young man slid down the ladder, ran to the bathroom, closed the door, locked it... and collapsed into a heap on the throw rug.

A tiny figure floated into sight next to him. "Well," Plagg declared, "this is why 'careful what you wish for' is such a popular saying."

"I... can't believe it," Adrien whimpered. "I just... I just..."

"You've been falling for Marinette from nearly the moment that you first met," replied Plagg. "You can't tell me that you haven't. She's reminded you of Ladybug in so many ways. Same hair, same eyes, same build, same heart. You can't be THAT stunned."

"...But WHY?!"

Plagg stopped short, caught by surprise at that.

"Plagg... you had to have known all along. I know you did," Adrien groaned, not turning to look at him. "You've watched us together during this whole lockdown. You've seen what was building. WHY didn't you WARN me?"

"Adrien... what do you mean, warn you?" wondered Plagg. "This is what you've always wanted, isn't it? Ladybug loves you with all her heart. You're the one person that she trusts completely."

"I'm the one person that she can't love. That can't know what he knows now!" gasped Adrien. "How many times has she made it clear that she doesn't love Chat Noir that way? That she can't ever share her secret with Chat, or know his identity, or we'd have to give up our Miraculous? How important it is for the two of us to keep our distance and just be friends and partners?"

"That never stopped you from chasing her before," Plagg smirked. "Or offering to tell her who you are. Or-"

"But I did hold back," Adrien argued. "It may not have seemed like it... but I was listening all those times she told me 'no.' I'd hoped that she'd change her mind..." he said, "but I needed it to be on her terms. Sharing only what she wanted to share. And now I just ripped her secret right out of her..."

"Which she seems at ease with, knowing that it's you who knows it," Plagg continued.

"...and she doesn't know that the boy she's kissing is Chat Noir!" Adrien bemoaned. "Someone whom she's... well... 'rejected' isn't the right word, I guess. But someone whom she's always needed to keep at arm's length."

"Adrien," Plagg glared, "listen to me. You didn't trick her into any of this. You didn't fool her into falling in love with you; you understand that? You two have been moving closer in all of your combinations. You can't tell me that Marinette doesn't think the world of Chat Noir, and that you haven't felt a real connection there, even if she asked to keep things all business as Ladybug. You can't tell me that Ladybug didn't get nervous and tongue-tied around Adrien... like you'd never seen her around anyone else."

"That's... that is true," Adrien answered, meekly.

"So what matters now is what you do next. And I would do it soon, because there's a pretty girl upstairs who's scared out of her mind that she just made it weird between you two," insisted Plagg. "And she loves you. So what's your next move?"

Adrien finally turned his head up to face Plagg.

"...I have no idea," he said.

Marinette sat quietly, anxiety consuming her, until similar company arrived by her side.

"Are you all right, Marinette?" asked Tikki. "This couldn't have been easy on you."

"I'm okay if he's okay," she replied. "Are... are you mad at me, Tikki?"

"Of course not," Tikki soothed. "It can't be helped. It was going to happen sooner or later. I'm a little amazed that it stayed a secret this long, to be honest, and what caused it to come out was your going out and doing something to help doctors and hospital workers. How could I possibly be angry about that?"

"I know," smiled Marinette, sadly. "I just couldn't think of a better story than I did... and I think my parents did believe it. Most of it was true, after all."

She paused, thinking hard. "Should I tell them the whole truth now, that I'm actually Ladybug?" she asked.

"That... has always been up to you," Tikki noted. "I know what Master Fu had said... and I know what I have said... and as few people as possible knowing is still a good idea. But you are the Guardian now, and you know your parents better than anyone else on Earth does. It's a risk, one with good and bad sides to it. I don't feel like you should tell them unless you're sure that you want to. Or, if like Adrien just did, they figure it out on their own."

"Okay, that's good advice. One existential crisis at a time."

Marinette shuddered for a moment. "Tikki... I thought I was going to make Adrien's entire life when I kissed him just now! But when I opened my eyes, he was... well, he looked terrified!" she worried. "We've come so far together. Between my jumping on him when he confessed his crush on Ladybug, and then his figuring it out... do you think that I just screwed up our relationship?"

"Nnnnnoooo... I wouldn't go that far," said Tikki, cautiously. "He has every right to be shocked, don't you think? That's a very big 'oh, by the way' to process all at once."

"...Yeah," a glum Marinette agreed.

"Look," Tikki suggested. "Don't worry too much yet, okay? He'll be right back. It's not like he's going anywhere else, you know?" she smiled. "And maybe I can help a little with that. Wait here."

"Wait... where are you going?" asked Marinette, watching Tikki fly in the direction of the hatch. "To find Adrien?"

"It's not like I need to hide from him now, right?" Tikki called back. "And we've met. I won't be long; sit tight!"

"O-okay," Marinette replied. As Tikki vanished through the door, a thought occurred to her...

What does Tikki mean, 'we've met?'

Plagg scratched his head. "Well, if you have no idea, I don't know what to tell you," he declared. "You love Ladybug. You love Marinette. Now they both come in one convenient package; that sounds pretty good to me."

"M-me too," Adrien agreed. "It's not like I've changed my mind about her! I'm just... kind of..."

"...Freaked out?" suggested Plagg, to which Adrien nodded. "Not a shocker there," Plagg continued. "Just imagine what her face will be like when she finds out the other half!"

Adrien turned pale, picturing that.

"...But don't think too hard on that just yet!" warned Plagg, seeing that he wasn't Adrien helping much with that idea. "I'm telling you, it's up to you whether you want to drop that on her now, or not. She just watched you figure out her biggest secret; she's probably freaking out up there, too."

"More than 'probably,' I can assure you," said a tiny voice.

Adrien's jaw dropped as he watched Tikki float down from the bathroom ceiling. "I... guess this confirms that I'm not dreaming," he managed.

"Indeed. Hello again, Adrien! It's been a little while," said Tikki, pleasantly. "You made a fine Mister Bug that day."

"Hello, T-Tikki," stammered Adrien. "So we've been under the same roof all this time?"

"Oh, yeah. It's been pretty cool, actually!" Plagg grinned. "Tikki and I could go hang out while the two of you were sleeping, or down in the bakery, or busy making kissy-faces."

"And sometimes that was even pleasant," Tikki deadpanned.

"...Hey!" yelped Plagg, as that sank in.

"...How is she doing?" asked Adrien, with a worried expression.

"She's okay," Tikki replied. "A bit startled that you figured out what you did, of course. More startled by your reaction... but understanding. And she'll probably feel good that your first thought when you saw me was to ask about her."

"Well... of course!" Adrien said. "What else?"

"One of many reasons that you two match so well," smiled Tikki. "But before you go up there and fireworks start, good or bad, I was wondering... do you think that the two of us could have a little talk first?"

Adrien pulled himself up to a more reasonable sitting position, cross-legged on the bathroom rug.

"I really, really think that we need to," he replied.