"SPOTS ON!"
"CLAWS OUT!"
There was a flash of light.
…
…
The two heroes stared at each other for what felt like at least a year.
It was actually about ten seconds, but still.
Marinette cracked, first.
"Pffffft!" She covered her mouth as she started to laugh.
"Pooohhhohohohoho!" Adrien giggled.
"Chaton?"
"My Lady?"
They lost it.
Both of them collapsed against each other laughing hysterically. They fell to the couch, holding one another and giggling so hard that they were both crying. Adrien went so hard he started coughing.
"You, you thought I was dating Ladybug?" Marinette squeaked out between laughs. She patted her fiancé on the back.
"You thought I was Chat Noir's ex?" Adrien wheezed as he coughed. "Oh man. Oooooh man."
They eventually settled, still tangled together.
Adrien looked to his fiancé, still transformed. His voice went slightly quiet. "Why didn't you tell me?" He asked.
Marinette's smile drifted away. "I wanted to, but," she patted her stomach. "I was afraid."
"What were you afraid of?"
Marinette looked to him. "Disappointing you?"
"Seriously?" Adrien said. "You could never disappoint me. Never ever."
"But I went and got knocked up," Marinette said. "And I was getting married, and… I wanted to tell you so bad, but the more I put it off, the more I imagined what would happen, and the more I did that, the more I worked myself into a panic, and then it just became easier to, well, not do it."
She looked to him. "I'm sorry, Chaton. I never meant to worry you."
Chat reached out and held her hand. "First off, I would never judge you. Ever."
"I hope I didn't worry you too badly," Marinette said.
"I was scared," Adrien replied. "I thought something bad had happened, but then you were going to Ms. Bourgeois for help, and to Chloé, and to…" His eyes went wide. "That was your mom."
Marinette eyed him. "Chat, what's wrong? Did, oh God, did you hit on my mom?"
"No!" Adrien said. "No, but she, um, talked to me. About you. Both of you."
"Hmmm," Marinette said. "Well, you must have said the right thing, because she couldn't stop going on about what a great guy you were afterwards."
"That was sweet of her." He looked to Marinette. "Oh wow. Oh, my God!" He sat up a little, his eyes wide.
"What is it?" Marinette asked.
"…Gina."
Marinette smiled. "Gina."
"This explains so much. Holy crap," Adrien said as he flopped back. "Also, I think she stole one of my credit cards at the beach. The beach... Did she hook us up?"
Marinette nodded. "And saved our lives at the resort. She's also been helping out a lot, or she was. I think she's done coming back after her last visit."
"I'm buying her a car."
"Adrien!" Marinette scolded. "We can't buy her a car right now!"
"Not right now, but when she's old enough? When she asks? Boom. Car. I owe her."
"Slow down, turbo. She won't even be here for a few years." Marinette put her hand to her stomach. "Someone else is due, first."
Adrien looked to her and started rubbing her calf muscle. "Can I tell you something?"
"Sure," Marinette said. "You can tell me your dad is Hawkmoth and I wouldn't care as long as you keep rubbing. That feels amazing."
Adrien smiled. "For the longest time, I was completely in love with you. Like, LB you. For real."
Marinette looked to him. "You did tend to flirt a lot."
"I mean it," Adrien said. "Remember when I took you to… Oh God. I took you to show you the romantic picnic I had setup for you and then complained to you about it."
"And I felt awful about it," Marinette said. "I get it. I really do. I got it then, too. I just wasn't sure how to handle it." She looked to him. "In fact, if that akuma hadn't come along, I, um, I was going to kiss you that night."
Chat's ears perked up. "Really?"
Marinette nodded. "I'd always been a little curious, and I figured, why not be brave as Marinette? But then there was that whole thing with the ice cream monster and the mood just fizzled."
"I didn't deserve your affections back then. I mean, well, I ignored the chance to be with, well, Marinette-you, who is still awesome by the way, because I was hung up on, um, you." He shrunk in his seat a bit. "Sorry."
"Don't be," Marinette said. "I mean, honestly? I probably would've given Chat Noir a shot if I hadn't been crushing so hard on Adrien Agreste."
Adrien stared. "The boy you loved…"
"Who didn't seem to know I existed," she finished.
"I am so sorry," he said.
"Stop it. It was my fault for not saying something sooner."
Adrien caught something Marinette had said. "You would've given Chat Noir a chance?"
Marinette nodded. "I mean, you're funny, reliable, loyal, handsome, strong… The outfit helps."
"I always thought you looked amazing in your outfit."
"Looked?" Marinette raised an eyebrow.
Adrien let out a nervous giggle and put up his hands. "I mean, I kinda got…"
"Uh-uh. Keep rubbing."
Adrien put his hands back on her calf and continued to rub. "I kinda got used to it after a while, but those first few times we fought together, um, it was hard to stay focused."
Marinette stared at him for a moment.
"Can I ask you something?" Marinette said.
"Ask me anything. No secrets. Ever again."
"Okay," Marinette said. "Why did you and Kagami break up? I know the official story, but for real. Why?"
Adrien's smile dimmed, but it was still there. "I kept ditching her to fight akumas and I kept lying about it. The night of our anniversary I had to go help you, and when I got back, I lied and told her my father had wanted me for something. She'd already spoken to Nathalie, though, so she knew I was lying. When she called me out and I couldn't tell her the truth, she ended it."
Marinette covered her mouth. "I'm so sorry!"
"Don't be," he said. "I mean, it more than worked out. We're friends now, and after the day with your mom, she knows now, too. It's okay. Also, if we hadn't broken up, I may never have gotten together with you."
They stared at one another for a bit, each still processing the evening.
"My turn," Adrien said. "What really happened between you and Luka."
"Does it matter?"
"You asked about Kagami."
"Fair." Marinette shrugged. "He was, well, he was the perfect guy, but for a different girl. As much as I liked him and liked being around him, I never felt that, well, spark? I mean, it was great, but… There was always something missing. When he asked me about it, I told him. He was the one who broke it off. He said it would never be fair to either of us if he was the only one completely in love, and that he wanted me to find real happiness."
"He's a pretty great guy," Adrien said. "I'll have to remember to thank him someday."
"I'd take your time there," Marinette said. "He's still a bit weird about things."
"I thought he was dating Kagami?"
"Is he?" Marinette asked. "Wow. That's not a pairing I would have thought of, but they would work together? Huh."
"Your turn," Adrien said.
"Okay. Why did you give up on dating me as Ladybug?" Marinette asked. "Why Marinette? And yes, I know you love me, but it's kind of nagging at me. What was it about Marinette that was so special?"
Chat Noir blushed a bit. "You're my partner, but I knew so little about you. But, I saw so much of you in Marinette. I even called you an everyday Ladybug, because you were just so much like her, um, you every day, but you didn't need powers to be who you were, you just… Were. And on top of that, you're my best friend. And that's what makes a romance last."
"You told me we were best friends for years," Marinette huffed. "It was kind of infuriating, to be honest."
"It was my way of saying I love you," Adrien said. "I was just too scared to come out and say it right. And that wasn't fair to you. I should have said it the day I first started falling for you."
"When was that?" Marinette asked.
Adrien turned red. "It's silly."
"Spill, cat." Marinette teased. "You tell me yours, and I'll tell you mine."
Adrien nodded. "That's fair. So, it was my first day at school, and you were standing outside in the rain? Remember that? You probably don't, but you just had this look about you. You were so fierce, and determined, and, well, when I gave you my umbrella, you looked at me with those eyes of yours and, well… I kinda fell right then and there, but I wasn't good at reading people. I thought you were pretty mad at me, so I left you alone."
Marinette untangled herself from Adrien and stood up. "Excuse me for a moment."
She stepped out of the room.
"Huh," Adrien said to himself. "Did I say something wrong?"
She came back a moment later with an umbrella in hand. She held it out so he could see it.
Adrien stood and stared. "Is that my umbrella?"
Marinette nodded. "I've held on to it all this time."
"But, it's broken."
"That doesn't matter," she said. "You gave it to me the day I fell in love with you."
Adrien stepped forward and gently took the umbrella from her hands.
"We, we fell in love… On the same day? My lady…"
He looked up.
A yoyo flew across the room and wrapped around him.
Chat Noir let out a yelp as he was yanked onto the couch. He was still tied up when Ladybug climbed on top of him.
"You know," she said as she tapped her chin in mock thought. "It's noble that you never made an actual move on me as Ladybug." She looked down on him and traced her fingers over his chest. She paused at his bell to give it a flick.
"Wanna give it a try?"
"Right now?"
Marinette nodded. "Now and forever. I'm your lady, chaton. And you're mine. You and me against the world."
Adrien gave it a try.
What do you know? It worked.
They dropped their transformations about five minutes later. Tikki and Plagg quietly excused themselves to the kitchen and phased into the fridge to find some food.
"They're so gross," Plagg said as he scarfed down the cheese Adrien had remembered for him.
"Thank God they finally did this," Tikki said as she gobbled down a cookie that Marinette had brought for her.
"So, yeah." Plagg said. "I'm not going back in that living room for at least an hour."
Tikki smiled and nudged him. "Come on, you. I snuck a tablet up to the roof earlier today. We can watch some Netflix."
"You're the best, sugarcube."
"Grab some sodas," Tikki said. "They'll probably be a while."
Plagg scoffed. "If by 'a while' you mean two minutes. This is Adrien we're talking about."
"Stop that! He's trying!" Tikki scolded him.
"I've seen birds last longer," Plagg mocked. "Seriously, I get why Kagami dumped him."
Tikki blinked. "I thought they only got to second base?"
Plagg let out a laugh. "You think she knows about any sport outside of fencing? Please."
"What was a home run, then?" Tikki asked.
Plagg whispered in her ear.
"Oh," Tikki said, slightly redder than before. "Well then. She and Luka will get along just fine."
And with that, the two kwamis made their way to the roof as the happy couple below them had a few more firsts in their new home.
Yay!
Notes:
You'd think this fic was done. That felt like it was done.
YOU THOUGHT WRONG!
NEXT TIME!
...We wrap everything up.
Be here tomorrow for the finale! Same Bug Time...
MARINETTE: Lucky Charm!
ADRIEN: Cataclysm!
TIKKI: They know they're not transformed, right?
PLAGG: Just head to the fucking roof and don't look back.
...Same Bug Channel!
