Chapter Three

The soft press of Marinette's lips was allurement embodied. With eyes closed, Luka's world shrank down to just him and his newly minted girlfriend. The wait had been long but it was worth it. His own lips pulled into a smile as he sat back to admire Marinette's striking features which never failed to dazzle him. The starry-eyed gaze he received in return had his pulse racing faster. Marinette was finally seeing him the way he'd yearned for.

There had been past indicators conveying Marinette's attraction to him, from shared heated glances to furtive blushes, yet her head always turned away when Adrien was near. It was awfully frustrating when it was clear that Adrien had no clue to Marinette's feelings, nor did he seem to reciprocate them. Luka was too polite to say anything outright besides it was to his own benefit to leave it alone.

He hadn't been blind to her earlier admiration of the blonde. Marinette's gaze had strayed to Adrien for most of their set. Luka had watched as the burning hope in her expression had dimmed to accepting sadness. Hopelessness had etched its way across her lovely face, but then she'd looked at him.

It was a turning point he couldn't ignore. Luka had understood the gravity of the situation. His chance had finally come. The emotions he'd buried deep down were allowed to surface and he conveyed them in his performance. His own gaze had remained locked on hers as his hands strummed and caressed his guitar like a lover. The blatant flirting had been a complete success. Marinette had been his captive audience of one, so transfixed with a yearning need which hadn't departed when he's crossed the floor to be with her.

Even now after copious amounts of kissing and her agreeance to be his girlfriend Luka was still stunned. The surreal elation of having Marinette's side pressed to his was almost overwhelming. Fantasy had become reality and he couldn't withhold the smirk on his face.

Luka knew he shouldn't be smug but there was something deeply satisfying in witnessing the perturbed look on Adrien's face when he realised he'd lost something he never knew he had. Yet it was obvious that the model still hadn't grasped why the situation bugged him so. In his mind Marinette was only a friend. It was almost like Adrien was unable to fathom Marinette's behaviour towards him as beyond platonic. But it was his loss, Luka's patience had paid off.

From the moment Marinette stepped into his life, Luka had known she was special. Even if he had blundered their initial meeting by inadvertently insulting her. He hadn't meant to, he'd thought her stuttering cute. But as usual he'd made a mockery of the situation. Music was so much easier than conversing with words.

Being on stage had been to his advantage. If there was one thing Luka had learned as a musician, it was the rock star phenomenon of being desirable while performing. Perhaps it was the sense of unobtainability that drove girls wild, but for some reason chicks craved the attention of musicians. It probably came down to the ideal of being serenaded, and Luka had been doing just that with his guitar as he'd admired his dark-haired crush, hoping she'd look his way.

While he would have loved to have sung about his feelings, Luka didn't have the vocal talent. Singing was left up to Rose. Not that she was brilliant, but the tiny blonde was a lot of fun. She'd often bump his hip mid song, beaming at him with a wide grin while staring up at him with those big blue eyes. If he didn't know better he would have sworn the girl was infatuated with him. However, Rose had been in a relationship with his sister Juleka for years. Prior to that they were best friends. He couldn't imagine them ever breaking up, they seemed like two pieces of a puzzle. Although they had been arguing quite a bit lately. He supposed it was the stress of finding work.

Juleka was happy as a barista in a funky café that had a punk edginess to it that suited his sister down to the ground. It wasn't the best paying job but it was constant work where she was frequently behind the large coffee machine, meaning she didn't have to interact with people too much.

Rose believed that Juleka had the potential to do something more remarkable and continued to tell her partner as much. Hence the arguing. While Rose was a free spirit, she was also ambitious and wanted the best that life could offer. Juleka on the other hand was happy going with the flow and living on the downlow.

Even on stage the tension between the two girls had been visible. For most of the performance Juleka's eyes were narrowed, her black lipstick pulled into a tight line as she refused to look at her lover. Rose had lifted her chin high in the air and acted as if nothing was wrong. He seriously hoped they worked out their problems soon.

Curling his arm tighter around Marinette, Luka peered over the back of the booth and flinched as he saw Rose pointing an accusatory finger at Juleka. "Not again."

"What is it?" Marinette asked as she turned to stare.

"Rose and Juleka are bickering."

"Trouble in paradise?" Alya asked as she leaned forward to look.

"Yeah," Luka answered as he turned back to watch the couple. "I'm not sure what's going on with them. Up until now, they've been so happy."

Kagami's severe voice cut in. "High school romances rarely last."

"Are you kidding?" Alya snapped, "I'm still very much in love with Nino."

"Then you are the exception to the rule. Going by their body language, there are secrets they're hiding from one another."

Luka frowned, "How do you figure that?"

"Look at the way they're standing, partly facing each other but with arms crossed. Eye contact is infrequent and hints at guilt."

Marinette shook her head. "I disagree. They're both angry and being defensive. It doesn't mean they're holding out on each other."

"I suspect one of them at least has an interest in someone else. They seem fed up with each other."

Annoyance had Marinette glaring at Kagami. "You're wrong, neither of them would cheat."

"I didn't say they were cheating, just interested in other prospects. It's natural to wonder when you're not happy."

Adrien looked disgusted. "When you commit to someone you stay committed until it's over."

Kagami shrugged. "I suppose."

Alya snorted while eyeing Kagami in disgust. "Pity the poor guy who dates you."

They all glanced at Adrien who leaned away with a look of denial. That had Luka raising an eyebrow. It was obvious Kagami was trying to stake her claim. Her body language alone screamed her possessiveness. No wonder Marinette looked so depressed. Glancing at her, he realised she'd concluded that nothing was ever going to happen with Adrien. While it stung to know he was possibly second choice, Luka decided not to think too hard on it.

But his thoughts were cut short by a frustrated screech from Rose. The tiny woman curled her fists and stomped away from Juleka. "You keep this up and you'll lose me!" she yelled.

"You're the one who keeps treating me like a loser, maybe I'll be the one to walk away from this relationship!" Juleka snapped in return, glaring as Rose huffed, spun on her heel and disappeared into the stunned crowd.

Luka rose from his seat. "Not good," he said shaking his head, "I'll check on Juleka."

Marinette nodded in understanding, "I'll go after Rose."

Kagami crossed her arms and stated drolly, "As I said, it's doubtful they're going to be an exception from the rule."

With a curl of his lip, Luka sneered at Kagami as he slid passed her. It didn't escape him that Adrien had untangled himself from her hold and was looking equally aggravated at his companion's remark.

Sorry this chapter took a while to do, I found writing from Luka's POV rather challenging for some reason.

Next chapter we will see what the superhero duo are up to. Thanks for reading and supporting. Give the review box some love, it likes being talked to - cheers :)