Notes: Marinette works through some feelings and realizes just how special the pick actually is. Canon divergence from "Miracle Queen", because New York and S4 just don't impress me much ("…ok, so you're Jagged Stone.").
(I'm aiming to update this on Sundays, but this Sunday is Independence Day in the States and one of my dogs is…special. We've already been having issues bc our neighbors started setting off fireworks early. So I'm updating a day early bc tomorrow's gonna be a little Hectic. )
I Pick You
Chapter Two: Picking a Doofus
Marinette had forgotten about the pick, too, during those hours between when Luka had given it to her and when she found it again later that night.
She couldn't stop smiling the entire way home. If Alya noticed (and of course she did, because it was Alya), she didn't say anything. Her friend just smiled when they reached the corner that would take them to their separate homes and bid her a good night, keeping her thoughts about supermodels and musicians and compasses to herself.
In fact, Marinette didn't think about the pick at all until she was getting ready for bed that night. She had placed it in her pocket after Luka had left to join the band, and she found it again as she was turning out her pockets before tossing her pants in the hamper. She paused as she looked down at Jagged Stone's grinning face, seeing a different grin in her mind – one that was less cocksure but just as teasing, in a kindhearted way. Her heart fluttered at the reminder of calm blue eyes, and her breath caught in her throat. Her fingers curled around the pick, a soft smile turning her lips at the thought of Luka Couffaine.
…but Adrien's easygoing smile caught her from a photo above her desk, and her grip tightened almost painfully on the pick. Her stomach flipped, but this time there was nothing pleasant about the feeling. It almost felt like guilt. Betrayal. The pick was tucked away in her jewelry box before she could think too hard on it, and she fell asleep to thoughts of black-nailed fingers strumming a haunting melody and blue eyes smiling teasingly at her.
She didn't let herself think too much on that come morning, when she woke to find green eyes staring back almost accusingly at her. Like they knew that, for the first time in two years, they weren't the star of her dreams.
For the most part, it was easy to forget about the pick after that, even as her friendship with Luka grew. Even as other feelings grew. It was safe in her jewelry box, and when the only jewelry she really wore consistently was her Miraculous it was easy enough to not dwell on it. She didn't go into her jewelry box enough to see it, and so she just didn't think about it. Out of sight and out of mind and all that. Still, there were…moments.
Like that time after the ice rink. She hadn't thought anything about the pick when she'd moved it out of the way in the morning to get the bracelet underneath, but when she went to put the bracelet back she had felt like Jagged was glaring at her from the shiny surface. She picked it up, her heart speeding up as she remembered Luka's soft eyes, his encouraging smile, how effortlessly he'd lifted her during their skate…how warm she had felt in his arms, despite the cold temperature of the rink. She had liked being held by Luka more than she had let herself think she would. She sat back in her chair, smiling at Jagged's tiny plastic face, as that warm feeling in her heart started to fill her. Luka was…Luka was…
But Adrien had also been there, staring at her from her monitor when she'd bumped into her desk and jostled the mouse enough to wake her computer up, and that warmth was replaced by guilt again as he smirked at her. Because she was supposed to be in love with Adrien, but here she was thinking about someone who wasn't Adrien, except Adrien clearly was interested in…and it's not like she was even actually with Adrien, so she was free to…but she was in love with Adrien and…the pick went back in her jewelry box, the lid was closed, and she spun away from her desk to run from those accusing eyes.
The pick was still there, though. Luka was still there. She found herself thinking about it more and more the closer they became. She'd be sitting at her desk, working on homework or a design, and her mind would wander to a soft guitar and the gentle rocking of a boat – and her eyes would drift to her jewelry box, her fingers itching to pull it out. And then came the contest, and the two weeks working on Kitty Section's music video submission, and Marinette found herself almost constantly with the band (to the point where Rose started joking…she hoped…about Marinette being their fifth member). She found herself pulling it out more and more as those two weeks passed, unable to resist the reminder of its owner and the way he made her feel. Most nights ended with the pick in her hand, her hand fisted over her heart, as she closed her eyes and remembered Luka's smile shining at her, the comforting squeeze of his hand on her shoulder, or the thrill that raced through her when they made a breakthrough and he scooped her up in a hug. The night he was akumatized, she fell asleep with the pick in her hand as what she was fairly certain had been a love confession played on repeat in her mind. His words followed her into her dreams, which were a swirled jumble of the past two weeks and a blue-skinned Luka speaking through his hands. She awoke with a start, the wrong green eyes smiling at her from her bulletin board, and found she'd been gripping the pick so tightly she'd cut her hand.
It went back in her jewelry box, and she didn't pull it out for a long time after that.
If she was honest with herself, she was…confused. Uncertain. Kagami would call her indecisive. Alya would call her insecure. She supposed both were true. She couldn't deny that she had feelings for both boys. She'd had feelings for Adrien – she'd been in love with Adrien – for forever, but she also couldn't deny that, as more time passed…she wasn't so sure anymore. Adrien might value her as a friend, but he didn't seem to think of her beyond that. And then he met Kagami. And…no matter what Alya told her, it honestly felt like the Universe was trying to tell her she wasn't actually meant to be with Adrien. That maybe it was time to let those feelings go.
There are some things you just can't force, and loving someone…she was pretty sure loving someone shouldn't hurt half as much as it did, if she really did love Adrien. Loving someone shouldn't feel like a losing battle, or like you were the butt of the Universe's joke.
Looking at the relationships around her – at her parents, at Alya and Nino, at Ivan and Mylène, at Juleka and Rose – she was pretty sure loving someone was supposed to make you happy. At least most of the time.
And even as her feelings for Adrien were fading, her feelings for Luka were getting stronger. If Adrien was an unattainable dream, Luka was a constant, comforting presence. Luka was there. He was the one who had held her when everything had fallen apart. He was the one who sought her out, who showed up with a hug and a smile (and a song, always a song) whenever she needed him – and usually when she didn't even know she needed him (and somehow always when she wanted him, and she was finding she wanted him a lot). He just seemed to get her like that, to just know. And that…that was nice. She liked that. Where Adrien made her anxious and confused, Luka…still made her confused, but there was safety in that confusion. She was comfortable with him. Adrien's hand on her shoulder would set her jumping away, but when Luka reached out for her (which he did a lot, because he was a very physical person and always seemed to be reaching out for her) it was all too easy to lean into him, or to reach back and press a kiss to his cheek. She couldn't imagine doing that with Adrien.
She was pretty sure, if she really wanted to examine it (if she wasn't so insecure), that would be all the answer she needed right there.
She found herself taking the pick out again the day after Miracle Queen had outed the temporary Miraculous heroes of Paris. She sat at her desk, turning it over in her fingers as she thought of strong arms holding her close and a gentle melody floating along the river. Of ice cream shared while he played, and how for the first time that day she hadn't thought of her (former?) crush crushing on someone else a few paces away. She was still conflicted, but the pick made her think of Luka, and thinking of Luka made her smile. She liked that.
The next day, she took it out and kept it by her monitor as she worked on an essay. Her eyes kept drifting to the pick as she jotted down notes, and by midday – when she'd already been working for a few hours and desperately needed a break – she'd pulled out her jewelry-making kit and started fiddling. It was easy enough to poke a hole through the plastic, right through the top of Jagged's purple bangs, and fasten a loop through the hole to make a charm. It slid easily onto a length of black leather cord she cut, the pick hanging just below the neckline of her shirt. Easy enough to hide from prying eyes, to avoid questions she wasn't ready to answer just yet, but also close enough to her heart to be a comfort.
The next day at school, when she bent over to get something out of her backpack and it slipped out from under her shirt, Alya just raised her eyebrows when she saw it. She couldn't have recognized it – she wasn't below deck when Marinette had met Luka, and Marinette had never shared the pick with her – but it didn't take a genius to realize who she had probably gotten a guitar pick from, especially when the face of that someone's favorite singer decorated the tiny piece of plastic. Still, she said nothing, even when Marinette's hand subconsciously reached up to hold her new charm.
(She refused to call it a lucky charm, which was a loaded phrase and made her think too much of blonde hair and sunshine smiles. Lucky charms made her jittery. Her…Luka Charm (…ok maybe not that either) made her happy.)
If Juleka recognized the pick when she noticed it at lunch, she also said nothing. Her face did pinch and she quickly looked back down at her food, but she didn't say anything. In fact, no one actually said anything about it at all until she arrived at the Liberty that afternoon and Luka had gone to greet her with a hug. He stopped short, his eyes widening when he saw her new necklace. His face had split with a wide, beaming smile, and a deep, boisterous laugh had bubbled out of him as he scooped her up, lifting her off her feet in a hug.
"I love it!" he laughed, clasping her shoulders as he set her down. He lifted the charm in his fingers, grinning stupidly at her. "That is so cool, Marinette. Much better than just sitting on my wall!"
She felt herself blushing and tugged on her hair, feeling suddenly shy as she looked at her feet. Neither paid attention to the annoyed scowl on Juleka's face.
She started wearing it every day after that, glad to always have a little piece of Luka with her. She found it helped, on days where things got to be a bit too much: when the final months of collège proved too stressful, or Hawkmoth sent a particularly trying akuma her way, or being the Guardian of a Miracle Box felt like too big a responsibility, or Adrien smiled at her and her traitorous heart still entertained a what if, or Alya was too pushy, or Lila was too conniving, or Chat was too presumptuous. When life got hard and she needed an anchor. Even if Luka wasn't there, his pick was, and it was a reminder that, no matter how bad things were getting, she had someone in her corner. Someone who always would be. That meant more than she thought he'd ever know.
Eventually, she stopped thinking about it. The pick just became part of her everyday wardrobe. Something she wore habitually without much thought. If it made Luka smile a bit wider every time he saw it, well…that was just a bonus.
So when Jagged Stone himself had called her up to discuss a commission, claiming that he'd only be in town for a few days and was backed up with meetings and was there any chance she could meet that afternoon, pretty please Mari baby you're the BEST, she hadn't even thought about how she was technically wearing a pick with his face on it around her neck. She'd just packed her bag and made her way to his suite at Le Grand Paris like it was any other time he'd called her up. When Penny opened the door to greet her, she'd been a little too frazzled – she was talking to someone on the phone while she typed away at her tablet – to do anything but nod and wave her in. Jagged was giving Fang a belly rub when she walked into the main suite, so he didn't notice it at first, either.
"Marinette Dupain-Cheng! My favorite designer! So glad you could make it, baby girl!" Jagged crowed when she walked over. She bent down to scratch at Fang's scales before returning Jagged's hug. Fang's tail thwumped excitedly against the floor, and Marinette would have pitied whoever was in the room below if she hadn't known they were probably used to it by now. When she turned back to Jagged, his eyes blew wide, his eyebrows soaring. "Oh. My. Stars. Where did you…Pen, take a look at this! That is so rock-n-roll, Marinette!"
"…huh?" she asked, confused, but it clicked when he reached for her necklace and held it up. "Oh, that? It's…uh…it's no big deal, really. A friend gave it to me, and I thought it was cool, so I made it into a necklace. I forgot I was wearing it, really, I…"
"A friend, eh?" Jagged asked, waggling his eyebrows at her. There was something in his look that made her face warm, which only made his grin widen. "Must be a pretty special friend."
"Isn't that the pick from the Rock Giant prerelease?" Penny asked when she finally came over, her phone still in hand but away from her ear. She squinted at the pick before nodding. "Yeah, that's definitely the Rock Giant pick."
"The…what?" Marinette asked, confused. "I thought it was just a Jagged pick?"
"Well, yeah, but that design is special," Jagged said, tapping it. He was sitting on the back of the sofa, and he leaned forward to prop his arms on his knees. He nodded at the pick. "It was in a special prebuy bundle. Only made…what, a hundred of 'em? That's a commodity, that is."
Marinette's eyes got wider, if possible. She felt her stomach settle somewhere around her feet.
"You can have it if you'd like. I've got plenty."
He'd lied to her. He couldn't have plenty, if it was a limited release. It had to be his only one, rare even by fan standards, and yet…he'd given it to her anyway. Like it was something he'd just picked up at a local shop.
The confusion was back, and she wasn't sure if the swirling in her stomach was pleasant or not. Luka always gave her butterflies, but these didn't feel like the happy kind – or maybe they did? Luka wasn't the kind to intentionally lie like that, but if he'd thought she'd liked it that much and didn't want her to feel bad about taking it…but he hadn't even known her back then…but he…
"Like I said," Jagged wheedled, grinning at her. Marinette realized her hands were shaking, and she clenched them into fists to stop it. "Must be a pretty special friend."
"Jagged, stop teasing her," Penny admonished, frowning when she saw how pale Marinette had gotten.
"I'm not!" Jagged whined. "I think it's awesome! Mari, that's a great idea – we should do that with the next prebuy, Pen! Pick charms! Necklaces, wrist straps, keychains – it'll be great! Totally rock-n-roll!"
"They only made a hundred?" Marinette finally asked, her fingers brushing against the point of the pick. Jagged's smile slipped, but only by a fraction, and he nodded. Marinette's frown deepened. "But…he said it wasn't a big deal. He had plenty of them."
"Not unless he found it online somewhere," Penny said. Marinette could tell she was trying to sound nonchalant about it, but it wasn't really working. "Prebuys were limited to one per customer to help meet demand. It's possible your friend bought a few online, but that particular design is pretty rare and hard to come by. I imagine anyone trying to sell one would ask a pretty steep price."
…and he just let her take it, and he'd said nothing when she ruined it to make her stupid necklace…what the heck was wrong with him? How could he be so…
"You ok, baby girl?" Jagged asked. "I'm sorry. I thought you knew…I didn't mean to…"
"N-no," she said, shaking her head quickly. She tried to smile, but it didn't feel genuine. From the looks Jagged and Penny were giving her, she didn't think she had them all too convinced, either. She let go of the pick and waved them off, laughing a little. "It's fine. I just…I wish my friend had told me. I feel bad for ruining it now, is all."
"You didn't ruin it," Jagged laughed, winking at her. "You made it more rock-n-roll. I bet your friend loved it. Probably jealous he didn't think of it himself."
She was blushing again. She highly doubted that was the case. Luka had definitely loved it, but…
Jagged let the matter drop after that, when Penny gently prodded him about their schedule and how they only had an hour to talk to Marinette about the coat he wanted for his next music video. It was easy enough to distract him after that – Jagged was like Manon or any child in that respect, very easily distracted by anything – and they spent the rest of the hour discussing what he wanted and when he needed it by. Still, Marinette couldn't help but be distracted herself, though if either of them noticed they said nothing. Jagged gave her a final hug before she left, telling her he'd see her soon. Penny smiled at her as she walked her to the door, finally broaching the subject again (once they were far enough away from Jagged) and telling her not to worry too much about the pick.
"Jagged's right, Marinette," she said softly, reaching out to lay a hand on her shoulder. "Your friend must care a lot about you. I wouldn't worry too much about it. It's a good thing."
Marinette wasn't too sure of that, though.
Her fingers worried the pick the entire walk home, except her feet didn't exactly take her home. She had kept her head down, worrying over what Luka had been thinking and what he could have meant by letting her keep something so precious, and worrying about why he hadn't been upset with her when she'd ruined it. She hadn't really paid attention to where she was going beyond making sure she crossed the streets safely and didn't run into anyone, but she had meant to go home. When she finally looked up, though, it wasn't her parents' bakery that greeted her.
It was the Liberty.
And she could hear the familiar strumming of Luka's acoustic guitar from the upper deck.
"Luka!" she called as she walked up to the gangway. She stopped outside the gate, hesitating for the first time in months. The Liberty had become almost like a second home to her by now. She usually went aboard without a second thought these days. The music cut off abruptly, and a moment later Luka appeared at the entrance to the greenhouse. He looked surprised to see her, but he was smiling. It wasn't fair how that smile made her heart skip.
"Marinette?" he called, crossing over to the gangway to open the gate. He pulled her into a hug before her feet could hit the deck, and if he held her a little tighter than he would have a few months back she pretended she didn't notice. She was used to his hugs by now, and the way her arms came up to return the hug was almost automatic. He stepped back, and her heart skipped again when he hit her with the full force of his smile. He hadn't actually let her go, though, and was still standing close. "I wasn't expecting to see you today. This is a nice surprise."
"I…ah…I had a meeting," she said, her arm slipping between them so she could fiddle with the pick again. His eyes dropped down to her necklace, but he didn't say anything. "I thought I'd stop in for a visit on the way home."
"You know you're always welcome here," he said, giving her a final squeeze before he stepped back. She missed his warmth the second he let her go. "I was just working on a song. Nothing that can't wait for you."
"Luka…" she sighed, rolling her eyes fondly. Her cheeks warmed when he took her hand in his own, squeezing before he headed back towards the greenhouse. She followed after him, their hands still linked. "Actually, I was…ah…I was meeting with Jagged. Stone. Jagged Stone."
As if there was anyone else they both knew – that anyone in the world knew – named Jagged.
His eyebrows quirked as he sat back on the red plush sofa Marinette had always felt was too ornate for the greenhouse (but still fit in with the décor perfectly, in classic Couffaine chaotic fashion). He patted the seat next to him, as if she needed an invitation anymore. He pulled his acoustic (George, she had learned he called it) back onto his lap and started playing, waiting for her to continue.
"He wanted to talk about a commission," she said, looking at her feet and kicking a toe against the decking.
"It's really cool how much he loves your work," Luka hummed, grinning at his guitar. "As if you aren't already amazing enough, you can add Jagged Stone's personal stylist to your résumé."
She rolled her eyes and bumped her shoulder against his, making him chuckle.
"Shut up," she said. "I'm not…it's just a couple commissions here and there. I'm not old enough to be anyone's personal stylist. I'm still in collège."
"You'll be in lycée soon enough," he pointed out. "University after that. Running your own fashion empire after that. You're gonna conquer the world, Mari."
"You, too," she said. One eyebrow lifted higher than the other, and she rolled her eyes. "You're gonna be a big rock star someday, Luka Couffaine."
"Nah," he said, shaking his head. He paused, then shrugged. "Maybe. I don't know. It's really hard to make it big. Being famous would be great, but I don't know if that's really the goal? As long as I get to play I'm good. Whatever I end up doing, I want to be in the music. I want to be able to share the music with people. Being a rock star might be the easiest way to reach the most people, but it's not the only way."
She smiled as she thought of Luka in the future, playing to sold-out stadiums with his name in lights. Or sitting at the mic in a smoky bar, playing an acoustic set to a crowd only half-listening as they nursed their drinks. Maybe even teaching kids how to play guitar. Whatever Luka ended up doing in the quickly-approaching future, he was right. Music had to be involved somehow. She just couldn't picture Luka without it.
She leaned against his shoulder, smiling as her eyes closed and she let the soft tune he was playing surround them. Her hand unconsciously rose to her necklace again, her fingers brushing over the pick. Her eyes opened when Luka leaned his head on hers, remembering why she had been so upset to begin with.
"Hey, Luka?" she asked. He hummed in response, and her fingers stilled on the pick. "Jagged…he…why did you let me take this pick?"
"…huh?" Luka asked, sitting up to look at her properly. He stopped playing, and while she knew she always had his full attention she also knew she had surprised him with her question. He was really focusing on her now. She sat up, her fingers still on the pick, and looked back at her feet.
"This pick," she said, tugging on it. She glanced up at him. He looked confused. "Why…why did you give it to me?"
"I don't know, Marinette," he said, shrugging. The way his eyes glanced off of her, how he couldn't exactly look her in the eye, let her know there was more to it than that. More he wasn't telling her, and that didn't really sit right with her. "You seemed to like it, and I…had plenty. I didn't mind you taking it."
"Jagged recognized it," she said. She was only a little relieved to see him wince. He knew she'd caught him in the lie. "Said it was a limited release. Only a hundred like it in the world."
"…shit," Luka muttered, and Marinette's eyebrows soared. She didn't think she'd ever heard him cuss before. He reached up and rubbed the back of his head, making his hair stick up a bit worse than it usually did. Marinette bit her lip and fought the urge to smooth it out. "I was hoping you'd never find that out."
"Why'd you give it to me, Luka?" she pressed. "If it's that rare…and you love Jagged. It must be your favorite, and you just let me take it. And then I poked a hole in it and ruined it! You –"
"Mari," he said, reaching out and putting a hand on her knee. She stopped mid-rant, her mouth shutting with a click of her teeth. He still looked guilty, but he was smiling again. "You didn't ruin it. I love what you did with it."
"Jagged loved it, too," she muttered, and he chuckled.
"So what's the big deal?" he asked. "I don't know why I let you keep it, but I'm not sorry that I did. I like knowing you have it. I like that you wear it all the time. I like…"
He stopped suddenly, the words dying in his throat, and she frowned at him as he looked away. His cheeks were pink, like he was…no, he was definitely blushing. Her heart skipped straight into her throat that time. Before she could overthink it, she reached up and undid the clasp on her necklace. Luka's eyes widened as she took his hand and dropped it in his palm, closing his fingers over it and pushing it towards his chest.
"I can't keep this, Luka," she sighed. "It's…it's special. You shouldn't have let me…you need to take it back."
"I don't want it back, Marinette," he said, tightening his fist around the necklace. He tried to flip their hands, to slip it back into her palm, but she wouldn't take it, either. "Marinette. It's yours now. I gave it to you."
"But you shouldn't have, you doofus! It's super rare, and it has to be your favorite, and –" she started, but he rolled his eyes and cut her off.
"And I can't think of anywhere better to keep it safe," he said, batting her hand away and holding the necklace out to her. "Ok, yeah, it was my favorite. Still is. And I know you'll keep it safe for me. I like knowing you have it, Marinette."
"But…but it's special, Luka," she huffed. His frown deepened at that, an almost angry expression that reminded her of blue skin and green eyes twisting his features at her words. Like saying the pick was special and that she shouldn't keep it somehow implied that she thought she wasn't special.
"It is," he said after a long moment. He sighed and leaned towards her, unhooking the clasp and putting the necklace back around her neck. She didn't fight him that time, even though she still wanted to. "Doofus. I want you to keep it, Marinette. I'm not taking it back. I like knowing you have it. I like seeing you wear it."
His hands came up to cup her face once the necklace was secure, and her breath hitched as he tipped her head down and pressed a lingering kiss to her forehead. It wasn't the first time they'd kissed – she kissed his cheek all the time, and there had been a few occasions where he'd returned the gesture – but it felt…heavier, somehow. More weighted.
"Please keep it, Marinette," he whispered, his breath ghosting across her skin. He almost sounded like he was begging her. "Please."
"I…" she started, her throat threatening to close on her. Her fingers had curled around the pick again, and she was holding it tight enough that the plastic cut into her skin. She swallowed thickly. "You're such a…you're…"
"A doofus?" he asked, grinning at her. She couldn't stop the giggle at that, and he chuckled in reply. "I mean it, Marinette. It means more to me that you keep wearing it than it does just hanging on my wall. I like…it's like I'm with you all the time. Or at least a piece of me is. I like that."
And wasn't that why she had liked the pick so much anyway? Why she had made the necklace and kept wearing it in the first place? Because she felt like it kept him close?
"…fine," she said with a sigh. She wondered when he had put his guitar down, but she wasn't complaining as she lunged at him. Her arms wrapped around him in a fierce hug, and she smiled when he immediately returned it. "But I'm still not happy you lied to me, Luka. You have plenty. Penny said you could only get one."
"It's one of a kind," he said, chuckling. His head bent over her, and she felt her face warm when he pressed a kiss to the crown of her head. "Just like its owner."
She pressed her face closer to his chest, wondering if he could feel her blush through his thin t-shirt. She still wasn't entirely happy that he wouldn't take the pick back (it was special and his favorite and he shouldn't have just given it to her like it wasn't, darn it!), but she supposed she would keep it. For now.