Monday morning came and watched as Marinette trudged up the stairs to the school. Eyes refusing to focus, she walked right by Alya and Nino and ran headlong into a door, a very soft, yet sturdy door that, mmm...smelled like cedar, spice, and is that a faint note of cheese?
"I'll just nap on this door. Is fine..." Marinette mumbled as her eyes closed completely.
"Uh, girl?" Alya did her best to suppress a chuckle.
"Five more minutes, mom."
"Marinette!"
Nino could only watch the events unfold, doing his utmost to not laugh at the look of sheer confusion on Adrien's face.
"Snuggly kitty," Marinette murmured.
At that, Adrien's eyes widened, confusion turning to concern as he tried to quell his inner panic. He could not be discovered like this!
"MARINETTE!" Alya practically shouted. "Adrien is not your kitty pillow!" The blonde boy let go of the breath he didn't know he'd been holding, remember said pillow as a wave of relief washed over him.
"Adrien..." Marinette muttered dreamily, a smile slipping over her face.
"Marinette?" Adrien broke his silence, speaking softly. "We need to go to class. Time to wake up."
Marinette stirred and opened an eye at the sound of Adrien's voice, spying her hysterical friends. Slowing taking a step back, she looked up and saw the model wearing a sweet smile, but noticed a playful glint in his eyes. A deep blush surged across her cheeks as she scramble to put distance between them. In her haste, she tripped. But a pair of strong hands reached out and prevented her fall. Marinette's eyes widened even more, if possible.
"Are you okay, Marinette?" Adrien inquired as he helped pull her back upright.
"A-A-Adrien, I uh...S-sorry. I d-d-didn't sleep l-l-last night!" Even in her extreme embarrassment, Marinette managed to shoot a death glare to Alya and Nino, who were both doubled over with laughter, clutching their knees and leaning against each other to stay standing.
"It's okay Marinette," Adrien said sweetly, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I know what it's like to be tired." He didn't dare elaborate that on top of Chinese and piano lessons, fencing practice, modeling duties, and school he was also saving Paris almost daily (and nightly as needed).
"Oh my god, I'm so mortified," whimpered Marinette, burying her face in her hands, trying to rub the sleep from her eyes as much as hide her shame.
"Don't be." Adrien thought about putting an arm around the girl, but refrained. "Let me know if you need anything today, Marinette." He smiled at her and the four made their way to class.
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Marinette somehow manage to muddle through the day with coffee and elbows to her ribcage, courtesy of her brunette best friend. But what little steam she had seemed to fully dissipate by the last class of the day, physics - her worst subject. She fell asleep only ten minutes into the class.
"No, Miss Cesaire. Do not wake her up," snapped Mme. Mendeleiev. "If a student is not responsible enough to come to class well-rested, they must face the consequences."
"Ha ha! She's so pathetic, utterly pathetic!" Chloe Bourgeois found joy in Marinette's misfortune and did not try to hide it.
"That's enough Miss Bourgeois." Mme. Mendeleiev scolded. Chloe scoffed.
Adrien shot a covert look at his former friend. Though, Adrien didn't know what had happened before summer, Cat Noir had become acquainted with Miracle Queen only a couple months prior. Thus, Adrien could no longer abide Chloe's antics.
When the bell rang, Marinette started so violently that she fell out of her seat.
"Tsk. Girl, you are hopeless," said Alya helping her up. "You missed the whole class. Mme. Mendeleiev wouldn't let me wake you up," she added with a grimace.
"Oh no! There's no way I don't fail the test tomorrow!" Marinette still looked haggard. "Can I borrow your notes Alya, please?"
"Sorry, girl. No can do. I have to deal with a bunch of family stuff tonight. And you know how awful I am at physics. My notes wouldn't help, anyway." Marinette let out a groan.
"Maybe I can help you, Marinette," said Adrien. " I was just notified that M. D'Argencourt canceled fencing this afternoon. I'd need to call Nathalie, but since it's to help you study, I'm sure she'd let me."
"Oh, that's kind of you to offer, Adrien. But I wouldn't want you to go out of your way."
"Really, it's no trouble. Besides, you probably shouldn't walk home alone, as tired as you are." There was that familiar glint in his eye, again, as he spoke to her.
Alya was not-so-subtly giving Marinette a thumbs up and mouthing Yeah, girl! causing the blunette's face to redden slightly.
After a few seconds of thought, she decided it would be for the best and agreed to Adrien's offer.
Moments later, after an affirmative from Nathalie and speaking to his bodyguard, Adrien joined Marinette in front of the school and both made their way to the bakery. The silence between them hung heavy. In an effort to break the tension, both teens started speaking at the same time.
"Thank you for walk - "
"I'm sorry you're having - "
"Sorry - "
"Sorry - "
"Please, ladies first," Adrien said with a chuckle, motioning to the girl beside him sporting carnation-pink cheeks.
"Oh, just, thank you for walking me home and the notes and everything. I really appreciate it. You're a really great friend." Marinette's voice broke, hopefully unnoticeably, on the last word.
Unfortunately, it wasn't unnoticed and Adrien's heart broke for her again. He fully understood how she felt; he had experienced the same thing for quite some time with respect to Ladybug and it wasn't easy. He wanted to do everything in his power to let her Marinette know that she was important to him and that he would be there for her.
"I'm here for you, Marinette. I'm sorry you're so tired. Hopefully, you can get some sleep tonight. And, if there's anything you need to talk about, I'd be happy to listen."
The chime of the bakery alerted their arrival.
"Good afternoon, pumpkin! Wonderful to see you again, Adrien." Tom Dupain said jovially, a plume of flour surrounding him as he waved to the pair.
"Hi, Papa," said Marinette, stifling a yawn.
Sabine rounded the counter to greet her daughter and expressed concern over Marinette's apparent fatigue. After fussing over Marinette and reluctantly accepting her protests, Sabine greeted Adrien warmly and wrapped him in a motherly hug.
Adrien felt the heat rise in his face. As much as was there to help Marinette with her notes, he couldn't stop himself from silently admitting that he heartily enjoyed the kind of parental affection he received from the Dupain-Chengs. He felt a pang of guilt engulf him as he wondered if Marinette had told them of the conversation he had with her only a month prior.
The teens trekked upstairs, laden with a variety sweet and savory snacks to settle in for the promised study session.
"Really, Adrien, thank you again. I know how hard it is for you to get out," said Marinette turning to put her bag on her desk and slyly slip a cookie in her purse for Tikki.
Adrien took advantage of her momentary preoccupation and shoved a cheese pastry into his pocket for Plagg.
"And I know how much you need to pass this test tomorrow!" Adrien chuckled and Marinette found herself relax a bit at the light ribbing.
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Adrien lay in his bed, his body tired, but his mind ardently refusing to succumb to sleep as Marinette had done earlier while he was going over the finer points of a rather in-depth theory. He was mid-sentence when he'd heard a light snore next to him. Adrien could only smile softly at her as she gave in to the weight of her fatigue. He wouldn't have been able to lay her in her loft bed without transforming, so he'd carried her over to her chaise and covered her in a soft, lightweight, pink blanket.
That hadn't been the first time he'd tucked her in, but the few times prior had been as Cat Noir - and this somehow felt different. Adrien felt a knot twist in his stomach as he suddenly thought about Ladybug. Guilt crawled up his spine, like so many unwelcome spiders. But I didn't do anything wrong! His fingertips tingled as he thought of how he brushed her hair from her eyes, closing his eyes as he remembered the pig-tailed girl's light smattering of freckles and dreamy smile. His lips tingled as he recalled a chaste kiss pressed to her forehead, fingers lingering along the line of her jaw.
With that thought, he fell from the edge of a cliff into a rocky, raging tide of realization. He'd passed the point of no return. The truth would not leave his sight, no matter how he turned his head.
"Plagg?"
"Yeah, kid?" There was a touch of annoyance in the sleepy reply.
"I think I might like Marinette."
"Congrats. I knew you'd get there someday."
"Wait...What? How did you know if I didn't know?"
"I'm old. Not blind. Why do you sound disappointed?"
"Well, I wouldn't be, I guess, if Ladybug was still pushing me away. But, I don't know, for the first time, it feels like I might have a chance with her."
"You worry too much. This is why cheese is better than girls."
"Everything is so confusing," Adrien whined into his pillow. "I wish I knew why LB changed all of a sudden!"
"Who knows, kid?" But of course, Plagg knew. "Like I said, you worry too much. I'm sure everything will be fine. Now, if you don't mind, I'm going to sleep."
Reluctantly, Adrien settled into a fretful, restless sleep and felt that only five minutes had elapsed when his hand reached out to silence his alarm to alert the arrival of Tuesday morning.
Normally, Adrien was very excited to go to school. But after tossing and turning all night and enduring dreams, or nightmares, to be precise, of Ladybug declaring unequivocal betrayal as he kissed Marinette, he was positively terrified of seeing either girl. It wasn't real! I haven't kissed anyone! And LB knows that I would never betray her! Adrien shook his head in an attempt to empty his mind, knowing in that moment that concentration would not come easy that day.
"Adrien?"
The blonde boy had opted to sit alone during lunch and was so on edge that he nearly choked on his sandwich when he heard his name. He turned to see those immense, hypnotic, bluebell eyes that suddenly threatened to short circuit his brain and turn his legs to jelly.
"Adrien?" Marinette repeated when he didn't answer as she sat next to him. "Are you okay? You've seemed really preoccupied all morning."
"Uh yeah...yeah. I'm good. How...How are you Marinette? Did you sleep well?" If she noticed his newfound nervousness in talking to her, she opted to not mention it, offering Adrien the same patience he'd always offered her when she could barely speak.
"Yes! I'm so sorry I fell asleep while we were studying. And, um, thank you for tucking me in. That was a really sweet thing to do." Marinette offered a charming smile.
Adrien started to return to himself a little and saw how she wrinkled her nose as she smiled. He grinned at her, saying, "It was no problem at all. I know how tired you were and I always feel awful if I fall asleep at my desk."
Marinette's grin widened. He must really care about me! Even if I am just a friend. You don't tuck in people you don't care about. "I wanted to give you back your notebook. I truly appreciate it. I feel confident enough to just pass!" The pair chuckled at her declaration.
As Marinette made her way across the courtyard to join Alya, he couldn't help but smirk. She's so adorable.
The akuma alert on his phone brought Ladybug to the forefront of his thoughts, however, and a mild panic that had nothing to do with the coming battle settled in his midsection.
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A/N: Thank you all for the reviews. To answer - I'm a middle school English teacher. And let me tell you, it's not easy. But it's not nearly as stressful as bartending. I'm working diligently on the final chapters. Still trying to figure out the best way to capture chapter 16. I know basically what will happen from there to the end - except for the final battle. But that will come in due time. I know my posting is more irregular, so you can't really plot when new chapters will be up. It's more of a 'when I have time' situation. But I also want to get the chapters out quickly while I finish writing because I've never actually finished a story or a fanfic before. But if I can commit to building the Eiffel Tower and Arc du Triomphe in Minecraft, I can finish a fanfic. Anyway, thank you for sticking with me. Thank you for the reviews. Thank you for reading.