Chapter Three: Flowers.

Flowers are one of the best ways to show your love, no matter how they're given.

Monday 3rd February 2020. 08.10 a.m. Dupain-Cheng home.

Marinette was in a decidedly grumpy mood this morning.

It matched the dull weather outside, which certainly wasn't improving her mood at all. Being Ladybug had a few disadvantages where cold, wet, and dreary weather was concerned.

It had started last night when Alya had kept her up. Marinette had listened to her rant about Nino's insecurities, her creative vengeance plans for Kim, her new Ladynoir theories (which had Marinette biting her tongue not to comment on), and some updates she was pushing through on her blog while they were on the phone. It was a jumbled mish-mash of topics that had kept Marinette awake longer than she wanted.

She had wanted to go to sleep early because she had planned on waking up early. That was never easy for her, but especially not during winter, and especially not after dealing with Alya the night before.

Marinette had eventually prised herself out of her wonderfully warm bed, washed and dressed for the day, and downed a cup of coffee. She was determined to be ready for the day when Adrien arrived for breakfast.

Only he wasn't.

Marinette had just started to make two more cups of coffee, one for both of them so it would be ready for him when he showed up, when her phone chimed with a text from him.

He apologised but said he had something to do this morning and that he would see her at school.

Well, that would have been nice to know before she made the effort to get up early.

She couldn't stay mad at him. Not when his message was full of sad cat emojis and love hearts and kisses. Not when he was going to get to school early to see her before class. Besides, it was the start of New York fashion week today. His father was probably demanding his attention, or having him do some press work or something. So she had shared a small breakfast with Tikki instead and they had talked about their cats.

A distinct suspicion had formed during that talk, though. Adrien couldn't be busy with fashion week stuff. Not when Gabriel wasn't here to oversee Adrien himself as he was wont to do. Adrien had to be busy with something else, something else that wasn't a lesson, and something that he couldn't tell her about.

That sneaky cat!

Tikki must have seen it on her face because she chose to hide in Marinette's hood as they left early for school. "I thought Adrien was supposed to be the curious one in your relationship, not you?"

Marinette snorted. "You mean you aren't?"

"Nope."

Tikki hid as Marinette slipped through the bakery, hugging and kissing her parents goodbye, gratefully accepting a bag of muffins and cookies and one with a cheese tart in, before walking out past the few customers just entering.

Marinette waited until they were waiting alone at the crossing to start talking again. "Not even a little bit curious?"

She could almost feel Tikki's eye roll. "Well of course I'm a little curious, but I'm not dwelling on it like you are silly."

"Even though Plagg is clearly in on it and planning something too?"

Marinette wasn't convinced of this one. It was just something she had assumed from reading between the lines of his text. Adrien was clearly planning something this morning. It was why he had been so scarce on the details and gone overboard on the cute emojis. She was assuming Plagg was in on in too because the cat kwami loved interfering in things and had been unusually absent from conversation earlier. Normally Adrien was complaining about him or he was stealing Adrien's phone to join the conversation.

Honestly, it was hilarious.

Tikki soft gasp of realisation was drowned out by the chimes of the lights changing and Marinette started crossing the road to school. "Holy Cookies!" Tikki swore. "He is planning something, isn't he? Oh that cat!"

Marinette grinned. "So are you sure you're not curious?"

"I, uh, well… I mean, that is… oh look there's Alya. Bye!"

Tikki flipped the hood over herself, hiding from view, and Marinette stifled her laugh.

Sure enough, Alya was stood on the steps of the school waiting for everyone to show up. She looked awful. She must have only managed to get three hours sleep.

Marinette felt a bit guilty for thinking her own morning hadn't been the best. Compared to Alya hers had been great. But at least Alya's was about to improve.

Nino was walking up to her with a large to-go cup from Alya's favourite coffee shop and a fond smile on his face. He obviously knew how late she had stayed up last night. It was a mark of how tired Alya was that she didn't even notice him until the cup was in front of her face.

Marinette cooed at how cute they were. And Nino thought he wasn't a good boyfriend? Her cooing prompted Tikki to peek out of her hood and she cooed too, before tugging Marinette's collar in the direction of an empty bench. Marinette nodded and took a seat there. She could just as easily wait for her boyfriend here while she let her best friend have some quality time with her boyfriend. They both needed it after Kim's unintentionally harsh teasing yesterday. He hadn't meant it in a nasty way, but he always ended up pushing just a little too far.

Marinette watched as Alya's face lit up, taking the coffee with a large smile and leaning up to give Nino a lingering kiss. She pointed at the cup - or rather at the red design on the cup that Marinette swore wasn't usually on the to-go cups from that coffee shop - and then said something that had both of them giggling. Nino just wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pointed at something else on the cup and Alya elbowed him in the stomach playfully.

Tikki suddenly squeaked then. "Look, look, look!"

Marinette looked to where she was pointing. "Oh, how sweet!"

Mylène was walking up to school, arm in arm with Ivan, with a big bouquet of mixed flowers in her arms and an even bigger smile on her face. She was leaning happily into her boyfriend as she giggled away with Sabrina who had a small bunch of tulips in her hands and a grin that was almost as bright as Mylène's.

"Ivan got Sabrina some flowers too."

Marinette thought that was utterly sweet of him. Mylène and Sabrina lived in the same block of flats on the other side of the arrondissement and they had been walking to school together every day since Christmas. Ivan must have given her a small bunch of flowers when he presented Mylène with hers.

A set of quiet, cat-like footsteps was all the warning she got for her boyfriend's arrival. She'd know that sound anywhere after two years of hearing it follow her on the rooftops of Paris. Marinette turned and smiled at him as he slipped onto the bench next to her, pressing a kiss to her temple in greeting. She could hear two tiny squeals from behind her and knew that Plagg had jumped into her hood to surprise Tikki.

One of his hands slipped around her waist while the other held out a single beautiful red rose and a foil-wrapped chocolate rose. Her breath caught in her throat at the sweet and very familiar gesture and she blushed at the tender kiss he placed on her cheek.

Adrien loved how pink she turned when he did things like this. It was probably his second favourite colour after her beautiful blue bell eyes. "It looks like Ivan and Nino had the same idea as me today. I hope you don't mind an unoriginal gift, my Marinette."

It took everything in him not to purr when Marinette smiled up at him and kissed him sweetly. She pulled away just enough to nuzzle his nose and a tiny purr did escape him then, not that he really cared. "It's from you, my sweet kitten, you know I love it. Besides-" another quick kiss and he swore he could feel her smiling "-this is just like our night at the gala. Of course I love it."

"Not exactly!" Tikki piped up from Marinette's hood.

Plagg cackled. "Wait for it sweets."

Adrien saw the wheels spinning in Marinette's mind and she soon caught on to what their kwami were implying. There had been two roses and two chocolate roses on the night of the gala. She looked him up and down, obviously wondering where the others were, but he allowed himself to preen under her gaze anyway. She obviously came to the right conclusion about where they were hidden because she gave him a surprised look.

"You didn't?" she breathed.

"Didn't what?" Adrien smirked. "Didn't do something to show you how much I love you?"

He brushed some of her hair out of her face, trailing a finger down her pink cheek to trace along her jaw. He tilted her chin up and pulled her in for another kiss, lingering longer than before but keeping it just as sweet and meaningful. Marinette gave a happy hum and snuggled into his side.

Adrien broke the kiss and rested his forehead against hers. "I can't tell you I didn't. Guilty as charged."

A gagging noise announced Alya and Nino's arrival and Adrien fought a sigh. He had been hoping that Nino would keep Alya occupied long enough to give Marinette her surprise. He'd been on the phone with Adrien until late, planning his apology for his moment of panic, and Adrien had been encouraging him when he needed it. Alya was smiling happily even as she teased them so he assumed the apology was as well received as he thought it would.

"Okay, okay, enough mushy stuff you two," she teased. Her eyes fell on the roses and she laughed and held out her coffee cup. "Look, we match girl!"

The cardboard exterior of her cup was covered in all manner of colourful doodles. Adrien recognised Nino's unique artistry anywhere. It was the perfect extra touch on a sweet gesture. Bright red flowers, which he assumed were roses, made up the bulk of the doodles, but there were also several musical notes, a wifi symbol, a crude set of headphones, a camera, and some Ladybug and Chat Noir symbols.

Adrien grinned at that while Marinette cooed. "It's lovely Nino," Marinette smiled up at them, having also recognised the artistry. "How romantic of you."

Nino gave a sheepish chuckle. "Yeah, yeah, get your laughs in now. I feel no shame in the fact that I was worried I wasn't showing my girl enough love. She is just that important to me."

"Smooth lines you dork." Alya teased him but still leaned up and kissed his cheek. Her smile was joyous and adrien swore he could see her eyes sparkling. It was the little things that worked for those two. Alya turned back to Adrien and Marinette then and jerked her thumb towards the main doors. "We'd better get inside before we're late."

There were only five minutes left until the bell rang. Adrien nodded eagerly and stood up, offering Marinette a hand. "Yes, let's. We should put our stuff away."

"I knew it!" Marinette let him pull her up and booped his nose. "You did do something to my locker!"

"Who me?" Adrien gave her his most innocent expression but she just snorted disbelievingly.

Nino looked surprised at that, while Alya looked intrigued. As one they reached for Adrien and Marinette and pulled them towards the school steps. This was exactly why he hadn't wanted an audience while he gave Marinette her gift.

Adrien was certain that Plagg was laughing at him. Adrien was the one who insisted that they had to buy the roses this morning, so they would be fresh and bright for their ladies, but Plagg had countered that they could have bought them on Sunday and they would have been fine. He was going to get such an 'I told you so' off his smug little kwami later.

Marinette's locker looked normal when they got there. Adrien had hoped that Alya would leave them to it and assume they'd been joking. But those hopes were dashed when Alya shot him a suspicious look and reached out to open Marinette's locker because of course she knew the combination.

Three gasps sounded when it opened to reveal a thin but stunningly beautiful crystal vase, holding the second rose and chocolate rose. Adrien only had eyes for Marinette though and the soft smile and tender, loving look she gave him would forever be etched in his mind.

He just prayed that Alya didn't see the small slip of paper underneath it with a doodle of a cookie and a chunk of camembert (and how come Plagg had such good drawing skills?).

Alya whistled lowly. "Damn, sunshine, I'm impressed. Who knew you could break and enter in the name of love?"

"Where did you learn those skills, bro?"

"A gentleman never kisses and tells, Nino."

Nino snorted. "You're saying either you kissed the combo out of Marinette or you're about to kiss her and you want me gone. Which is it?"

Adrien suddenly found himself grabbed by the collar and yanked towards a blushing and smirking Marinette. He gulped. Damn but she was gorgeous like this! "Take a wild guess," she said to Nino.

Alya snorted and took one step backwards. "We're gone, we're gone. Nobody wants to see that."

Marinette smirked. "You sure did before Christmas."

"Sure. Keep bringing my mistakes up." Alya rolled her eyes but couldn't quite hide her smile. "If I'd known you two were going to be like this I wouldn't have tried so hard to get you together."

Adrien scoffed. He had to right that wrong. "One, we got ourselves together thank you very much, and two, yes you would because we're your best friends and you want us to be happy and in love. Which we are."

Nino chuckled at Alya's sour expression. "Okay, you've got a point there dude. But still!"

"We're not sticking around to watch. See you two saps in class."

They had barely gone three steps before Marinette pulled him down to her and Adrien forgot all about their friends. He forgot all about the rest of the world. Everything around them faded away until all that existed for him in that wonderful moment was Marinette. His arms wound around her and pulled her closer, making her sigh happily. Best. Sound. Ever!

Adrien reluctantly pulled away from her, gasping for air, and wondering just how the heck he could convince her to do a repeat performance. Wow! He was very pleased to see her looking dazed and breathless too, with her bluebell eyes shining and his favourite pink flush across her cheeks. She was beautiful. He definitely needed to convince her for a repeat.

"You're purr-fect, kitten."

Adrien still sounded breathless when he answered her. "That title is yours, ma Princesse." He leaned in and kissed her nose before straightening her hair and coat. He was regretting spending this morning chasing down the roses. Yes, she loved them, but he didn't have a lot of time to spend with her today. Unless… "I've got fencing after school, and I know you have that meeting too, so could I come to yours for lunch today and then walk you home later?"

"Of course! Breakfast tomorrow?"

Adrien beamed. "Yes. Please."

"You two are going to make me lose my cheese."

They turned to Marinette's locker, startled, and found two amused kwamis watching them. They must have slipped out of Marinette's hood sometime when they were distracted just then. Hopefully no one saw them. He chuckled when he noticed the chocolate rose was missing from the vase and Tikki gave them both a sheepish grin.

"Here, Tikki." Marinette handed her the second chocolate rose and slipped the real one into the vase next to its twin. "I'll trade you for the flower."

"Deal!" Tikki squealed, grabbed Plagg and the chocolate rose, and disappeared into Marinette's bag.

"Shall we, sweetheart?" Adrien offered Marinette his arm.

She grinned. "We shall, mon coeur."

Author's notes: Slightly shorter chapter today, and possibly shorter tomorrow too. The sproglet is off school with a tummy bug. He's his normal cheeky self but that's an automatic two-day absence from school. Thank goodness I've got an understanding driving instructor. She swapped my Monday lesson for Wednesday this week. Only two weeks to go!

Adrien gives her a real and a chocolate rose right before the gala in chapter 31 of All I Want For Christmas.

As always, I have not yet seen all of s2 and none of s3 so if canon disagrees with my fic then please consider this an AU.

Replies to reviews:

Rose Tiger - thank you, I'm glad you like it.

bunnywabbit29 - don't die yet, there are fourteen chapters in total! I'm glad you liked it though.

yellow 14 - I had to include Markov. He'd be my favourite character if it weren't for Plagg. Such a cutie! Glad you liked it.

siren8484 - thank you. I figured it would be easier to do that, than have people try and search all 100k+ words of AIWFC for one particular scene.