A/N - this was 100% inspired by "What Do I Have To Do" by R5. This song is LITERALLY THEM like you cannot convince me otherwise!
Please listen to it as you read this. Please. Just, on repeat. You won't regret it.
Enjoy!
Adrien watches from the street as Ladybug zips from building to building. His eyes are wide in awe, but he's not moving.
"Hey, kid?" A gruffly voice says.
"Yeah, Plagg?"
"There's an akuma. I bet one-hundred wheels of Camembert that you didn't even notice," he retorts.
But Adrien barely heard the comment. As the beauty in red darts out of view, he just blinks.
"Yeah."
The little black demigod rolls his eyes from inside his chosen's shirt.
"You're hypnotized. MOVE kid! We need to transform!"
"I love her, Plagg."
Chat Noir expected his lady to be at the sculpture unveiling. Yet she didn't show up. He couldn't show it because he had a reputation to uphold as the cocky super-partner, but he was quite upset.
But apparently not as upset as Théo Barbot.
Things took a turn for the worst when the artist declared his love for the girl because Ladybug was his.
He basically caused Copycat, but he's tried everything to get her notice him. At least now he knew that she knew who the real Chat Noir was.
It still wasn't enough.
The blonde couldn't help but think:
'What do I have to do to be the latest choice?'
"You are purrr-fect, M'lady. So purrr-fect, I was feline that we could go on a paw-some date tonight?"
The girl in red rolls her eyes.
"Oh, kitty. You need to stop with those puns.
"And you know I think you're amazing. I'm sure you would set up an awesome date, but I don't feel the same way. I can't; not with someone I don't know the true identity of."
A look of hope crosses his face, and he's about to speak when—
"No, we're not revealing our identities," Ladybug says, holding a hand up. "We still haven't defeated Hawkmoth. It's too dangerous."
His expression turns somber as he frowns and looks to the ground.
"I'm sorry that I love you, bug, but I do," he mumbles.
And before she can protest, he extends his baton and bolts away.
He tries not to be creepy, when he's admiring her from afar. He also tries not to be too obvious.
But then a yo-yo hits the top of his head and he winces, looking over at his lady.
She raises an eyebrow.
"I wasn't staring at you, I swear!"
"Uh huh. And I definitely wasn't trying to catch your attention so you didn't get hit by that big akuma right behind you."
"What?"
Reporters and journalists surround the superheroes, as they had just finished defeating the akuma.
Chat Noir was more or less… pushed to the side… as the focus was on his lady. He wasn't complaining, considering he was already in the spotlight all the time as his civilian self, but he was kind of jealous.
Of course, he was given his fair share of attention; Ladybug getting that same attention wasn't the problem.
It was the other attention she was given.
From guys that were way less qualified to date her than he was. She was surrounded by guys, not bad-looking ones, and to say he was a little scared would be an understatement.
She just… she has so many options to choose from.
But she's not choosing him.
"Vous avez de très beaux yeux," he says one night.
Ladybug turns to him with a raised eyebrow?
"I do?"
He nods, "So beautiful."
They sit on the Eiffel Tower quietly, looking up at the stars.
The moon shone so bright in front of them, nearly blinding the girl in red.
He can't help but mutter, "I want to touch the moon."
She giggles beside him, "Yeah. All you have to do is go to Astronaut school for about two years and then—"
"I'll bring you up there with me as a guest so you can experience it too. We'll claim the moon as ours, M'lady."
Ladybug sighs, shaking her head. She looks to the moon above.
"I wouldn't hate owning the moon."
It's silent as he ponders his next words.
"The moon would never shine as beautiful as you, Ladybug. You don't need to own the moon; you are the moon."
The bluenette blushes and promptly rolls her eyes.
"You're so cheesy, Chat."
"Plagg is the cheesy one," he laughs. "I always smell like Camembert because he BEGS me to keep a stash in my shirt at all times."
She stops laughing as a weird feeling rushes through her. A smelly shirt sounds… familiar.
Another blonde comes to mind. The one she's had a huge crush on for years. The one who only started going to public school the same year she met him. The model.
Chat Noir snorts, "Sorry, M'lady. I just don't get the chance to make jokes at home. My father's kind of… strict."
She notices how his lighthearted tone drops into something more sullen.
Then his words sink in.
His father…
Adrien's father is pretty strict, too.
Chat continues, "I mean, we don't need to talk about that. I just figured that, you know, it would be best if you knew why I'm always punning."
Ladybug nods, despite her racing heart, and replies.
"No, it's okay, Chat. I like your puns, I do. You just say them at the wrong time, for the most part."
The blonde clad in black leather sighs, his cat ears flopping down.
"I don't do anything at the right time," he mumbles, hanging his head.
There's a pregnant pause before Ladybug speaks again.
"Tell me more about your dad."
Chat Noir raises an eyebrow, looking back at her.
'She never asks personal questions.'
"Umm," he starts, "how much can I say? You always want to keep our identities a secret."
It takes a moment, but she shrugs.
"Maybe it's time to let some information slip. After all… we might work better if we know who we are."
His eyes widen.
'She wants to REVEAL our identities?!'
It's hard for him to remain calm now, but somehow he manages.
Clearing his throat, he speaks.
"My father is… uh…"
The blonde sighs at the thought of the man.
"He doesn't let me do a lot of the things I want to do."
Ladybug notices his hesitation and gives him a reassuring nod.
He continues, "He forces me to work for his company and then doesn't join me for dinner.
"I feel like he's disappointed in everything I do. Like I don't try hard enough… So, cracking jokes around him would just give him the impression that I'm not taking anything seriously, I am, though. I just… I need a release. Being Chat Noir is that release for me. It gives me the freedom that he takes away."
The girl in red feels like she's about to suffocate. There is so many similarities between Chat Noir and Adrien that it's hard to ignore now. It would be amazing if it is Adrien under that mask, but there's one thing she wants to know first. And this will either confirm or deny her suspicions.
"Chat," she swallows. "Does your father lock you in the house if you do something wrong, or disappoint him? Does he not allow you to see your friends, and keep you isolated even though you've been isolated and sheltered your entire life?"
Chat Noir stills at the question, eyes widening and heart rate quickening. He gulps.
"Uh… Yeah…" His voice cracks, and he looks up at her. "How did you—how did you know that?"
Ladybug bites her bottom lip, looking into his eyes.
And there's no denying that Adrien Agreste has been by her side this entire time.
"I bet you miss your mother," she whispers, not tearing her eyes away from his'.
The blonde licks his lips and breaks the eye contact, starting to hyperventilate.
"Don't tell me you—" He clears his throat. "Don't tell me you figured me out, LB."
She's silent for a moment.
"I think I did, Adrien."
It's like time stopped when she said his name. He wasn't sure how to react, or what to say, so he just… stayed still, and stayed quiet.
She keeps talking, "And I'm actually very happy that it's you because… I've had a crush on you for years."
The bluenette laughs.
"I kept rejecting you for you. I'm just realizing how funny the situation is."
Chat—Adrien—swallows, finally looking back at her.
"So we know each other?"
She sends him a smile.
"Yeah, kitty. We do. Actually... I thought you were going to figure me out one day, but then I just told you I was in love with you."
His eyebrows furrow as he thinks.
"Then Weredad happened. It was sorta my fault."
The ball drops.
"Weredad was Marinette's father…" he mutters. "Are you… Marinette?"
He looks at her expectantly, to which she smiles.
"Hi," she waves sheepishly.
Then he grins. He grins that Chesire cat smile that she usually finds annoying, but just knowing it's Adrien makes her love it. Adrien's smiles are usually so forced, and she realizes now that he's at his happiest when he's Chat Noir — these smiles are REAL.
He pulls her into a tight hug, which she gladly returns.
"I'm so happy it's you," he says quietly, muffled by her shoulder.
She nods, hiding her face into his chest. "I'm happy it's you, too."
When they pull away, his smile is still big, but it had faltered a little.
Then he gulps, bringing a hand up to rub the back of his neck — Marinette only now realizes that both boys have the same nervous gesture — and looking at her nervously.
"So, M'l—Marinette, considering I'm the boy you kept rejecting me for… would you go out with me?"
He asks with such confidence that she never knew Adrien had, but knowing he was her kitty made so much sense now.
She bites her lip, sending him a teasing glare.
"I need proof first, Mr. Agreste."
Chat only nods, looking around them and then up at the moon.
"I will bring you somewhere private so that we can transform. But first…"
Marinette stares at him, wondering what he's about to say.
"What do I have to do… to call the moon ours? Can't you like… buy a star or something online?"
She laughs.
"One step at a time, Chat. For right now, I think all you have to do is… be yourself. I like you just the way you are."
He grins.
"Purrr-fect."
This song was literally so perfect so I had to make this drabble. I couldn't not. Also, Ross Lynch as Chat/Adrien is *chefs kiss*
Lines in the song that inspired the different scenes:
- 'you've got them all hypnotized, draggin' them round by the eyes'
- 'baby, look around, you got a lotta options'
- 'what do i have to do to be the lady's choice?'
- 'your lips got me wonderin' why, I'm tangled in lame pick-up lines'
- 'somethin' is takin' over, you got my heart set on rollercoaster'
- 'I'm chasin' you around, you got your leash on me too'
- 'see i will fly you to Paris'
- 'vous avez de tres beaux yeaux, oh so beautiful'
- 'climb the Eiffel Tower, touch the moon and call it ours yeah
- 'cause it'd never shine as bright as you'
Alright, thanks so much for reading! Don't forget to favorite, review, and follow!
xx Lis