A/N: I made it! It's not much but it's honest work as they say! I apologize in advance for any weird mistakes - I've slept like four hours and it's showing. But the good news is that I definitely have time to write tomorrow!

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this story! Special thanks to Guest, mayuralover and anonymx who reviewed last chapter - your reviews are a very big reason I stayed motivated and am updating today! Sending you all some love!

10.

„Hey, dudette, what's up?" Nino sounded awfully chipper for someone who had not gotten any shut-eye. Marinette raised an eyebrow, then realizing he couldn't see her asked why he was in such a good mood.

"Met some interesting people," answered Nino, shrugging noncommittally. He didn't know how much Marinette knew already and didn't want to get himself in more trouble than he already was. Alya was already mad at him for bailing on the plan to find out as much as they could about the flatmate.

"My new roomie among others?" she teased, not even a little mad at Nino. He'd done what he thought was right.

"So you know?" Nino let out a huge sigh of relief. Marinette chuckled. "Yeah, he seems like a cool dude. We're gonna hang out on Saturday. Wanna come?"

"I'm working on Saturday. And besides, it would make sharing the bed super awkward." Marinette laughed a little nervously. "Like knowing how he looks like…" she shivered. "It would make it more intimate."

"Are you sure? He's pretty chill. You'd like him." Nino liked Adrien (he had spilled his real name after his second drink), though he found the man to be a bit too naive. He had remained blind to all the flirty women, all the vixens and troublemakers.

"I do like him," Marinette confirmed with a small smile. She leaned into the comfortable sofa. "He's a great roommate."

"Yeah, I bet. Dude got so drunk he…"

Marinette interrupted Nino's story almost immediately: "No! I don't want to hear it! The less I know, the better, ya know? Keep it to yourself."

Nino laughed. "Yeah, alright, dude. Dudette. Anyway, I can hear Alya coming. You wanna talk with her?" He stared at the door with anticipation, already hearing the clinking of the keys.

"Oh, don't think I'm going to get between you and Alya. You're on your own, Nino." Marinette winced at the anxiety in Nino's voice. "Just remember that she loves you. And you love her."

"Yeah…" The man's voice died a little, as Alya's face appeared in the doorway, marred by a frown. He ended the call and gulped. "Hey, babe…"

"Hey, Nino!" Alya hung her jacket on a rack and walked over. She kissed Nino on the cheek. "Sorry I ditched you earlier. Got a tip that Jagged Stone was around and had to go for it before anyone else could."

"Yeah, about…" Nino looked at her, guilt spread all over his face. "About that, um. That was me. Who sent the tip. In my defense, I was like really drunk and definitely not thinking clearly. Long night at Miraculous, ya know?" He gave a shaky laughter. Alya plopped down on the sofa next to him and leaned forward so close that they're noses touched.

"I had a feeling," she admitted, eyes sparkling with barely contained excitement. "Don't worry. I forgive you. Anyway, did you find out something new about Marinette's new roommate? I've been trying to get a decent photo of him, but it's so hard to get one, since I can't get one without getting up and close…" Nino looked even guiltier than before. There was no way Alya could have ignored it. "Nino? What is it?"

"About that… I don't think I can help you with that anymore." Nino decided to be as honest as he could with his soon-to-be wife. "I met the dude yesterday. He came to my gig, we talked, we hit it off pretty well. He's a decent guy, Alya. Wayzz got him super drunk at Miraculous and he kept going on and on about how he can't go back to the apartment to crash there, 'cause that's where Marinette is. And like halfway through the night, he started calling her Princess. I don't know, dude. I feel like he really cares about her."

"Nino, don't you see how creepy that sounds?" Alya ran her fingers through her hair in frustration, nails painfully digging into her scalp. "They've never met! He doesn't know her! It's not cute or romantic or whatever you think it is." She took a deep breath. "It's… It's not safe!"

"No, Alya, I get it." Nino took her hands in his. It was hard for him to find the right words, but he and Alya had years of experience together. She understood, as he struggled to put his thoughts into words. "You love Marinette. You know I do too. And yeah, she can be irrational sometimes, but… I met the dude. I wouldn't say he's safe if I doubted it even a little bit."

Alya was still riding on the wave of her emotions. She trusted Nino, though there were things he just didn't understand. Sometimes it seemed like he lived in a bubble where nothing bad was ever possible until it happened and the bubble popped.

"Nino, I swear on everything that's important and holy, if you're wrong…"

"I'm not. Trust me." It was the way he said it that got under Alya's skin. His eyes bored into hers with so much sincerity and faith that he was right. "Like, I'm not going to stop you from looking into him further, if you want, but I can't help you. The dude needs a friend."

"Well, Marinette needs a friend, too," Alya huffed in annoyance, sounding a little snippy. "A friend who doesn't sell her out for a new party buddy."

"Marinette has you, doesn't she?" Nino grinned victoriously, earning a smack from the woman who looked more amused than upset. Only for a moment though. "Well, this boy… this man," he corrected himself. "He doesn't have anyone like that. And that's just so fricking sad."

Alya's expression softened, recognizing the look on Nino's face. He had the same sad look in his eyes every time they ran into a stray kitten on the street and Alya told him he couldn't keep it. His lips were turned downwards in a frown that he got when he witnessed unfairness he wanted correct, but wasn't sure he could.

"I'm not going to tell you that you can't be his friend," she relented with a sigh. "So stop looking at me like I killed your puppy." Nino broke into a grin. "But I want to hear about everything, okay?"

"Okay!"

"And I'm not going to stop investigating him either."

"I love you, babe. Have I told you that recently?"

Alya kissed him. "Only every day."