Camembert?!
Marinette skidded to a stop in front of her classroom door and caught her breath. Hesitantly, she pulled the door open a crack to see if the teacher had started class and she would need to sneak in again. The chattering of her classmates told her the teacher wasn't there yet, so she flung the door the rest of the way open and scampered quickly inside. As she made her way to her seat in the second row, she stole a furtive glance at the boy seated just in front of hers.
Adrien Agreste looked stunning as always, but that was to be expected of the blonde, emerald eyed model. He chatted casually with his table mate, Nino, as they prepared for class. Marinette's heart fluttered. She had been crushing on Adrien since the first day of school. Unfortunately, her mouth refused to form proper words whenever she was around him, so it was better for everyone if she just kept it closed. One of these days, she knew she would have the courage (and articulation) to actually say hi to him without making a fool of herself. Today was not that day, however, so she averted her gaze and continued to her seat.
"Hey, girl," her bff Alya greeted cheerfully. "You actually made it on time! Color me impressed."
Marinette grinned sheepishly and slid into her seat beside Alya at the table they shared. "Yeah, me too."
An akuma had attacked the night before, and Marinette didn't make it to bed until quite late. If Tikki hadn't woken her, she certainly would not have been on time! Marinette patted her purse absently, silently thanking the little, red bug kwami hiding inside. Tikki was so much more than just the source of her Ladybug powers, and Marinette knew she'd be lost without her kwami friend.
"What do you have there?" Alya's question startled Marinette out of her thoughts. She checked her purse frantically to make sure it hadn't popped open, revealing her secret identity to the young reporter. Alya chuckled, unfazed by her friend's confusion and pointed to the cloth-wrapped parcel in Marinette's other hand.
"Oh!" Marinette exclaimed and set the bundle on the table between them. "My dad is experimenting with bread and cheese pairings. He wants to be able to make suggestions to our bakery's customers. He asked if some of my friends might like to offer feedback." She untied the cloth wrapping to reveal a box with a clear plastic window in the top. Nestled within was a small cup of warm, gooey cheese surrounded by small slices of a crusty bread. Marinette explained, "It's some of my dad's rosemary and olive oil ciabatta with a cranberry and walnut baked Camembert."
In front of her, Adrien had been half paying attention to the girls' conversation, but the last word made him perk up and groan internally.
"Camembert?!" a small voice erupted from within his book bag. Just as he'd feared, the word had gotten the attention of Adrien's secret companion, who was absolutely obsessed with the stinky cheese, much to Adrien's chagrin. Plagg! Adrien mentally chided his black cat kwami. If anyone found out about him, they would know Adrien was really Cat Noir. Not even his Ladybug knew his identity!
Thinking fast, Adrien coughed softly and, in one fluid motion, kicked his book bag lightly, reminding Plagg to keep quiet, and whirled in his seat to face the girls at the table behind him. "Did you say Camembert?" he asked excitedly. Nino raised an eyebrow, and he and both girls turned to look at Adrien curiously. Maybe he'd been a little too enthusiastic...
Marinette's eyes widened. She had gone complete deer in the headlights. Somewhere, she registered Alya snicker quietly and say, "That's right. What did you say it was again, Marinette?" Alya nudged her elbow, hoping to break the dark haired girl out of her nearly drooling stupor.
"Oh, right, Camembert, baked, cranberries, walnuts... Um, ciabatta?" she stammered inelegantly.
"What she means is 'Would you like some?' Right, Marinette?" Alya translated.
Marinette just nodded woodenly, wondering absently if the rest of them could hear her heart pounding out of her chest. She lifted the lid off the box with shaking fingers and offered the contents to her secret crush.
"Thanks, Marinette! I just love Camembert," Adrien said, hoping to cover some of his over exuberance from earlier. He picked up a slice of the bread and dipped it in the melted cheese.
"Dude, that looks excellent!" Nino commented.
Marinette passed the box around to her friends and smiled to herself. Adrien loved Camembert. She'd have to remember that detail for later.
Meanwhile, Adrien held the cheese coated bread up skeptically. He actually didn't care much for the cheese but couldn't back down now. Mustering up his best smile, he brought it to his lips and took a small bite. Flavor burst on his tongue, and to his surprise, the flavors of the bread and cheese melded quite well. The sweet cranberries masked the usual sourness of the strong cheese, and the aromatic rosemary in the bread tied all of the flavors together. The walnuts added a nice texture. Overall, it tasted like something his chef would prepare for him. "Wow, this is great, Marinette! I'll have to come by your family's bakery more often!" He beamed at the girl, completely oblivious to the effect he had on her.
Marinette's mouth opened and closed a couple of times, unsure how to respond. A sharp elbow from Alya finally loosened her tongue. Unfortunately, it didn't do much for her muddled brain. "You're awesome. I mean, that's awesome! Er, not that you're not awesome. I mean, of course you are; you're Adrien Agreste," she babbled incoherently. "I'll tell my dad I like y- I mean, that you liked it!" She flashed him a shaky smile.
Adrien just chuckled quietly at his awkward classmate and thanked her. While Nino and Alya offered their own positive feedback, Adrien pretended to look for something in his bag and scowled at the kwami hidden away within.
"What?" Plagg asked innocently, quiet enough that only Adrien could hear him. "She said Camembert!" He shrugged, closed his eyes, and lounged back against one of Adrien's textbooks. One eye popped back open and he said cheekily, "You did save me some, riiiight?"
Adrien sighed and rolled his eyes but snuck the remaining cheese into the bag anyhow. Plagg's eyes rounded, and he snatched the cheese up so swiftly that he shuffled several of Adrien's papers in the process. Adrien let out another heavy sigh, but Plagg didn't notice. "My gooeyness!" His tiny black paws were coated. Adrien just hoped it wouldn't be all over the inside of his bag by the end of the day. He was about to leave Plagg to his precious when one of the papers caught his eye.
"What's this?" he mused to himself as he snatched it up and pulled it out of his bag for a better look. It was an envelope. He turned it over, and eyed the careful handwriting on the front.
"Yo, Adrien, my man, who's the letter from?" Nino scooted his chair closer and peered at the letter.
"It's from... my brother," Adrien realized in astonishment.
"You have a brother?!"
A/N: And the story begins. I've been (and will probably continue) writing this on my phone, so please let me know if my autocorrect has gone haywire anywhere! Thank you for reading!