Chapter 3: Operation Double Date

Alya had never given up hope that one day Adrien and Marinette would get together. She shared all of her evidence with Nino and constantly complained about their lack of communication and Adrien's blindness. One day, while Alya was ranting about Adrien's latest indicators that he was developing some sort of crush on Marinette, Nino came up with an idea.

'I mean, you don't look at a friend like that, right? I mean his eyes went all soft and mushy and he totally tuned everything else out-' Alya was ranting.

'How about we set them upon a double date with us?' Nino asked, mainly to get Alya to stop talking.

'A…double…' Alya paused, thinking about the idea, 'date!' She exclaimed, suddenly excited as the plan started to formulate in her mind. 'Nino that is a brilliant idea!' she said enthusiastically, eyes wide and sparkling.

'Ah… thanks,' Nino said sheepishly, as Alya pecked him on the cheek.

'Ok, so here's what we'll do,' Alya started to map out the plan for Nino, oblivious to the rising blush on his cheeks.

MEANWHILE

Marinette was taking a moment to write in her diary. She found it helped clarify her thoughts, and with her heart torn between two boys, she needed that clarity.

'It seemed to come out of nowhere,' she wrote, regarding Cat Noir.

'One moment I'm daydreaming about Adrien and the next Cat Noir has taken his place. And now I CANNOT stop thinking about him. It's making being Ladybug extra difficult because now I get all nervous around him as well. I hate that they both affect me in this way. Maybe it is time for something to change,' she wrote decisively, snapping her diary shut.

Transforming in her room, Marinette leapt out of her house and headed towards the Eiffel Tower for her patrol with Cat Noir. After sitting on the edge with her legs dangly precariously for some time, Cat Noir eventually showed up. Striding over to her confidently, he lowered himself down slowly so as to let her take him all in. Ever the flirt.

'Evening, Ladybug,' he purred.

'Hello, kitty,' she responded, staring at her shoes.

'Is something wrong?' Cat noir asked, sensing how nervous Ladybug was sitting next to him.

'No, no. Nothing is wrong. Everything is great! I mean I woke up and I did stuff and now I'm sitting next to you and life is great…' she exhaled in one breath.

'Umm… ok?' He said looking at her curiously.

'He he he, heh,' Ladybug chuckled awkwardly. Silence fell between the pair for an extended period. Both staring out at the beautiful Parisian landscape as the sky turned pink with the sunset. Then, suddenly, Cat Noir shuffled closer to Ladybug.

'What're you doing?' she squeaked at him.

'Testing a theory,' he answered with a lopsided smile, stretching his arms above his head, and swinging them behind himself so as to rest an arm around Ladybug's shoulders. She simply rolled her eyes but didn't make any move to push him away. Pressed against each other watching the sunset made Marinette relax in his arms, surprising herself with the ease she had around him considering her new feelings. Meanwhile, Adrien was cursing himself silently for finally succeeding with Ladybug just as he was considering moving on from her unrequited love. Her demeanor had seemed to suddenly change, making her more open for more than just friendship between them.

The couple were brought back to reality at the sound of a message coming into one of their phones, wait, both of their phones? That's a crazy coincidence, they both thought. Marinette checked the notification; seeing it was from Alya.

'Hey girl. Up for hanging with Nino and Adrien tonight?' Alya had sent. Marinette glanced at Cat Noir, before typing a quick response.

'Sure. What're you thinking?'

'Wanna try that new pizza place? Be nice to get dinner together' Alya responded

'I'll be there 😊,' Marinette replied with.

'Sorry, kitty. I've gotta go,' Marinette told Cat Noir regrettably, untangling herself from his arm, which was still draped across her shoulders.

'Ah… yeah, me too actually,' he said in reply, standing up hastily.

'Ok. See you round,' Ladybug waved goodbye, swinging towards home.

'Bye, M'lady,' he said quietly. Cat Noir analysed Ladybug's abnormal behaviour the whole way home, before finally checking his phone.

'Hey Dude, wanna come for a slice of pizza with the girls?' the text from Nino read.

'I'm in!' Adrien typed eagerly, wanting to spend more time with Marinette.

LATER

Upon arriving home, Marinette video chatted with Alya to discuss the pizza outing. She told Alya how she wanted to appear more confident around Adrien, because it was time she did something about their relationship. Alya was over the moon of course, coaching Marinette through her wardrobe and makeup choices for the double date, which Adrien was still blissfully unaware of as per usual.

When Marinette was finally ready, she was proud to look in the mirror. Her outfit clung tighter to her body, and gave Marinette a new found confidence. Her makeup made her skin glow and accentuated her eyes. Most of all, however, it was the skirt that showed off her legs. Marinette reminded herself it was for her own confidence and not necessarily to draw attention to herself but also acknowledged the fact that she wouldn't mind a little extra attention from a certain blonde-haired boy (and not the superhero of course!).