Chapter 13: But Just as a Friend…
Marinette walks through the trap door, determined to make Adrien happy. He is sitting on her chaise studying the ground when she walks in, "Hi Adrien."
He looks up at her and gives her a small smile, "Hey Mari."
She walks over to Adrien with the biggest grin she can muster and sits down before grabbing his hands and turning to him. "I have a surprise for you."
"A surprise?"
"Yep!" She boops him on the nose, "Now close your eyes." He does what she asks and Marinette grabs something from the trunk beside her desk. "Hold out your hands."
He follows her instructions and she places something soft in his palms. "Okay, now open."
He opens his eyes and his entire demeanor lights up when he sees a Chat Noir onesie. "Oh my god you made it?!" He jumps up and crushes her into a hug.
The smile on her face is so wide it almost pains her lips, but she couldn't narrow it if she tried. "Wait, that's not the whole surprise!" He steps back with a puzzled expression and she pulls a bag from behind her back and hands it to him. His jaw drops when he opens it. She hugs him from the side while he just looks into the bag, "Those are all yours."
"How the hell did you manage to make all of these?" He turns to her in awe.
"I actually already had the patterns cut out so all I had to do was sew them together. You're apparently a really heavy sleeper." She smirks.
"Wha-" He scoffs, "I am not."
Marinette raises her brow, "The eight onesies that I made while you slept, using a loud sewing machine no less, beg to differ."
"I-" He pauses to press his lips together, "Princess: 3, Adrien: 2."
"What?"
"Nothing." His face lights up, "Wait! Can we have a sleepover?!"
She raises her eyebrow, "You've been sleeping over?"
Adrien starts stomping in place, "I mean like an actual sleepover with movies and snacks and stuff and we can wear the onesies."
Marinette decides to ignore the fact that those are also things they have been doing and she laughs, "Okay Adrien, we are about to have the best sleepover of all time!"
"YAY!" He runs off excitedly to change into one of his new sets of pajamas, but she puts a hand on his shoulder to stop him.
"I made you something else, too."
She can swear there are stars in his as he turns back to her. "There's more?!"
She pulls out a lucky charm, identical to the one she gave him before. He drops the bag of sleepwear and takes it from her, inspecting it carefully. "Is this the same one? How did you find it? Did you go to my house?!' He glances at her as anxiety rises in his chest.
"I remade it for you! Now you can wear it all the time and nothing bad will happen to you."
Adrien feels warmer and happier than he ever has time, when he wraps his arms around her, he lifts her off the ground and spins her. She giggles, burying her face in his chest and tightly clutching the fabric of his shirt. That has to be my favorite sound.
When he finally lets her feet settle on the ground, he doesn't let go and places a kiss on her cheek. "Thank you so much, Marinette. I promise I won't lose this one."
Her cheeks are flaming red and she doesn't look him in the eyes. "E-even if you d-do, I'll just make you another o-one."
He flashes her a goofy grin. "I know."
She steps back, causing him to release his hold on her, though he doesn't want to. "L-let's go get changed."
Adrien changes in the bathroom and knocks on the trap door to make sure Marinette's finished before reentering her bedroom. "All good. You can come in." She calls through the door.
"This is the most comfortable thing I've ever…" Adrien swallows, "Uh- worn." His ears heat up and he completely loses his ability to speak when he sees her standing in an oversized Multimouse onesie with her hair down.
"Surprise?" Marinette gives him a lopsided grin, not knowing whether or not his reaction is a good one.
"Oh my god, I love you." Adrien's eyes go wide as blood rushes into his cheeks and he tries to backtrack when he realizes what he said, "I mean, that's not what I meant- Well no I definitely do mean it because you're like always amazing and really beautiful and stuff and you're even more so now I just didn't mean to say that outloud…" He takes a deep breath so he can slow down enough that he might actually be understood clearly, "What I meant to say was you look really freaking adorable."
At this point they're both redder than Ladybug's suit, "Thanks… I love you too." She doesn't catch most of his rambling, but he uses the word 'love' with an innocence that tells her it's nothing more than a word. Just a word. Love is just a word and you are just a friend. "Are you ready to put that movie on?"
"100 percent yes but, first, can we swap?" He grins sheepishly.
She tilts her head. "Swap what?"
"Onesies... I wanna see you in the Chat Noir one." He scratches the back of his head.
"You just want the Multimouse one, don't you?" She laughs and begins unzipping her pajamas. Her laughter increases when Adrien clamps his eyes shut and turns the other way. "I'm wearing clothes underneath it, you can turn around, dork."
He whips his head around just in time for his face to collide with the onesie that she had apparently thrown at him.
He pulls the fabric off his face to glare at her in feigned annoyance, but his gaze softens when he recognizes her spotted cami from that time she helped him sneak into the movies. He's surprised it still fits her. The urge to say the words, 'I love you' hits him yet again, but this time he clears his throat and rushes out of the room before his mouth can follow through.
He returns shortly after and tosses the black onesie to Marinette, who quickly steps into it. It's a bit larger than the one he has on and the sleeves completely cover her hands. She tries to roll them up, but they keep falling down. She lets out a quiet huff and he chuckles.
"I knew the Chat Noir hoodie would look absolutely puuurrrrfect on you, Minicat." He walks over and grabs one of the sleeves, rolling the cuff into it. When it actually stays in place, he moves to do the same with her other arm. We're matching just like a couple.
She rolls her eyes. "Thank you, but that's not my name, Mr. Mouse." She pokes one of the ears on his hood.
He grins from ear to ear. "What a cheesy nickname."
She groans and crosses her arms. "You're the worst. Find something for us to watch; I'm going to go make some popcorn, okay?"
"Of course, kitty." He cringes when the last word leaves his mouth. It doesn't feel right to call her by his own nickname. If the large grimace on her face is any indication, it doesn't feel right to her, either. She leaves without another word and he plops down on the chaise with her laptop.
He's starting to get used to the domesticity of her house, he realizes. In only a few days, it already feels more like home than the mansion he grew up in ever did.
His mind starts to wander, picturing his future and thinking about how he wants his home someday to feel like this. So full of warmth and love. If Marinette is the reason I feel like this, I never want to leave her side.
Even though he isn't cold in the slightest, Adrien is curled up under a blanket; a habit he never cared to change. Growing up in a cold house, both emotionally and physically, the only way he knew how to comfort himself was to bury himself under blankets. Even then, though, he didn't have soft, fuzzy ones, it was always just a comforter and plain white sheets.
Marinette walks back into the room with a bowl of popcorn and she rolls her eyes playfully when she sees that Adrien is now under what he would undoubtedly refer to as 'The softest blanket of all time.' She sets the bowl on the coffee table and plops down beside him before throwing her legs over his lap because, unlike him, she refuses to overheat under that thing just because it's fluffy.
They turn on some random mushy romcom that neither can remember the name of and they spend almost the entire movie bickering about whether various scenes are tacky or romantic. Marinette at one point states that the movie is so cheesy that Plagg could eat it and never be hungry again, and Adrien argues that she'd love it if it happened to her.
"Can you hand me the popcorn?"
"Sure," Instead of handing her the bowl, Adrien grabs a piece and holds it in the air. "Catch." She giggles and catches it with her mouth before sitting up and grabbing the bowl from him.
"Okay Agreste, time to see if you measure up." He laughs at her before trying and failing to catch the popcorn flying at him. She tries a few more times before snatching an entire handful to throw at him in hopes that he can catch one but he somehow still fails.
Now covered in popcorn, he puts his hand on his chest in feigned offence, "My princess has betrayed me!" He jumps forward to grab the bowl and he throws his own handful at her. She attempts to take it back but, during their short battle of throwing whatever they could get ahold of at each other, the remaining popcorn flew and landed all over both of them.
Marinette looks down and shakes the popcorn out of her hair, both of them still laughing, "You missed some." He begins to help remove the remains from her hair.
"This is your fault you know," She giggles
He pokes the top of her head, "How is this my fault? You're the one who threw so much at me."
"You still-" She looks up and realizes that they are much closer than they were before, their faces now mere inches from each other. He seems too focussed on her to notice that her words had cut off.
Her eyes widen when she realizes that the distance that separates them is slowly shrinking, You're imagining it again. Don't lean in. Stop looking at his lips. He doesn't want to kiss you, Marinette. You're just a friend.
Desperate to keep herself from doing something that she might regret, she grabs a handful of the popcorn from the pile beside her and turns away to shove it in her mouth, only to squeak a second later when soft lips collide with her cheek.
She turns back to him with wide eyes and has to remind herself to breathe, Okay, maybe he does want to kiss you, but just as a friend. He could never love you. Don't overthink this, the last thing he needs is another ruined friendship.
His cheeks are tinged pink and he has a slight smile on his lips, "Are you alright?" Still unable to form words, she just nods her head at him, "Ya know, the mouse miraculous really suits you."
She continues to stare for a moment before shaking herself out of it, "What? Why?"
"You're so squeaky!"
"Eep!"
He tilts his head at her lovingly, "See? It's adorable."
She had thought her face couldn't get any more red but yet again, she's proven wrong. After she calms down, they settle into a comfortable silence.
For some reason, Adrien finds it hard to focus on the movie. Everything that happens on screen sends his thoughts down several different tracks. When the two best friends, who are obviously going to get together in the end, start baking cookies together, he doesn't notice the way their eyes lock when the brunette brushes flour off of the blonde's cheek. Instead, he thinks about how his mom used to bake, though his father would always remind her that she could ask the chef to do it for her. I don't know how to bake anything. I bet she would've taught me, if she was still here.
When the girls on screen lean in for a kiss, he feels another burst of thoughts tickle the back of his brain. For some reason, he doesn't want to acknowledge them, so he blurts out, "I've never made cookies before."
At this point, his head is resting comfortably on her shoulder and she looks down at him. "Do you want to make some cookies? I can teach you how."
He sits up abruptly "REALLY?"
"Yeah," she giggles, "C'mon you silly cat." She pauses the movie before grabbing
his hand and dragging him into the kitchen. Adrien stands there, practically vibrating with excitement, as Marinette starts gathering supplies.
She sets some utensils on the table and then turns to him. "Are you just going to stand there and watch or are you going to bake with me?"
He quickly rushes to her side. "I absolutely want to do this with you, but I have no idea where to begin."
"Okay, so first we need to measure out the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. We need a little under two cups of cake flour and a little under two cups of bread flour."
He glances between her and the measuring cups. "How does one go about measuring, 'a little under two cups'?"
She presses her lips and tries to think of a way to explain what she means, but words appear to fail her. She steps behind him, grabbing his hands with her own and guiding him to pour out two cups of flower and then remove two teaspoons. "And then you'll do the same with the bread flour."
She doesn't let go and instead continues to gently maneuver his arms, so he can learn how to properly measure the ingredients. She stands on her tip toes and peeks over his shoulder to see, explaining all of the steps in his ear as they go.
His face is extremely red at first, but his skin tone evens out after a few minutes. This somehow feels comfortable; as natural at breathing.
She doesn't let go until after she shows him how to fold the chocolate fèves into the batter. When she steps back to watch his technique, he freezes at the sudden loss of contact.
"What? You didn't think I was going to do all of the work for you, did you?" She laughs.
He blinks. "N-no!" He continues gently mixing the chocolate in, pausing after a few seconds to search Marinette's face for approval. He proceeds when she nods at him with a bright smile.
He's concentrating on the bowl in his hands when he sees what he thinks is Tikki phase through the wall out of the corner of his eye, "Wha-"
In her panic, Marinette grabs the nearest whisk and breaks it over her knee, "Laser pointer!" He whips around at her outburst and she points the broken handle at the wall. She pauses for a moment before hitting it onto her hand like she was trying to make a flashlight work, "Ah, shit. It's broken."
He turns to her, brow furrowed in confusion, "A laser pointer?"
"Yup!" She exclaims brightly, hoping her exaggerated smile will distract from her admittedly horrible cover-up.
"Why?"
"Oh uh…" She bites her lip and interlocks her fingers as she nervously twiddles her thumbs, "I've had this stray cat wandering around my house- well, he's not a stray anymore. We've kinda adopted him."
Adrien blinks for a moment before he breaks into a wide grin, I actually have a home now.
He runs and gives her a hug which causes any flour that didn't get all over her clothes to explode into a cloud around them.
She giggles, stands on her toes to kiss his forehead, and smashes some unfinished cookie dough on his cheek.
Adrien gasps, "The cookies! How dare you hurt them." He grabs a handful of flour and throws it at her.
"Bad move, kitty cat! You forget I know where everything is." She rushes past him and pulls out a carton of eggs which she promptly begins throwing at his head. Several miss and leave their sticky contents on the ground or the wall, but two actually hit him and break open on his hair.
This, of course, backfires quickly when he scoops the yolk out of his hair and flings it at her. "Anything you throw at me, I can throw back at you!"
Plagg interjects, "I know you're both just messes busy leaving your mark on the world but I need dinner." Marinette throws cookie dough at him and he rolls his eyes, "At least you're not throwing my cheese. I would have to destroy you."
Adrien grabs a hunk of camembert and throws it at Plagg who catches it midair and mumbles about how they've disrespected his godliness before eating it in one bite and leaving to go 'talk to the laser pointer.'
"He's going to talk to what?"
"This is Plagg, are you really questioning it?" Adrien shrugs it off and he walks over and takes out Marinette's hair ties so she can shake the food from her hair for the second time that day. They both laugh at the flour cloud that forms and she reaches up to wipe the cookie dough off of his face as their giggles slowly fade out. It would be so easy to just kiss him… Honestly, I think if I did, he would kiss me back but I don't want him to regret it when he finds out. She opts to kiss his cheek instead.
"Marinette?"
She pulls back and marvels at the pink that dusts his cheeks, blinking a few times before responding, "Yes?"
"I think we need to clean up our mess." He reaches into his hair and grabs one of the sticky pieces of eggshell that adorn his new hair mask.
"I think you're right. But let's put the cookies in the oven first."
After they place the cookies in the oven, Adrien reaches for the broom to begin cleaning, but Marinette places a hand on his wrist to stop him. "Actually, before we get to that, I was wondering if you'd want to bake a cake for my parents?"
Adrien drops the broom and pumps his fist in the air, "Um, heck yes!"
"Do you know what a two tier cake is?" She raises an eyebrow and shakes her head in amusement.
"Cake," he holds up a finger, "but it's extra."
Marinette laughs, "I mean basically, yeah. So we're gonna make two cakes and stack them. Usually I'd do it all in one batch but I'm going to teach you so I'll do one, and you can copy me with the second layer."
"You're trusting me to make one?"
"Of course. Plus you're learning from the best." She winks at him before turning to her makeshift baking station. "I want you to watch what I do carefully so that when it's your turn, you'll have a good idea of what you're doing."
"Wait but what if-"
"I'll still be right here if you need help." She smiles at him.
She shows him the basics, writing down every measurement for him to follow and answering all of his questions.
Once it's his turn, Marinette stays completely silent unless he asks for help. Although it takes him twice as long, he finally has all of the ingredients in the mixer and Marinette tells him what setting to use before excusing herself to go to the bathroom.
Adrien stares at the mixer intently.
"Kid, what are you doing?"
Without taking his eyes from the batter he replies, "Making a cake."
Plagg rolls his eyes, "No shit, I mean why are you staring at the mixer like that?"
"Because I want this cake to be amazing." He says like he's stating the obvious.
The kwami pauses and presses his lips, "And staring at cake batter is going to do that?"
"Yes."
Plagg sighs, "Okay, look kid, this is kind of a lot. She's going to be happy regardless."
"No it isn't." Adrien pouts, "She's worth all the effort I can give."
"Oh my god," He claws at his face, dragging his eyelids down, "You're aware that you're doing all of this because you're in love with her right?"
"I'm not in love with her, we're just really good friends."
"She's a really good friend that you almost kissed." Plagg deadpans.
He grimaces, "You saw that?" Plagg just stares at him blankly. "I don't know why I did that, she's just special and I want to make her proud."
"A special friend? Is that really the best you can come up with?"
"You don't understand, Plagg! It has to be perfect." Adrien begins gesturing wildly for emphasis, "She's so excited to teach me how to do this and she's been taking care of me without complaint. She's the nicest person I've ever met and I just really want her to be proud of me."
"You want to impress her." He repeats.
"N-no! I don't. I just want to do a good job so she'll… be impressed–" His eyes widen, "Oh my god, I'm in love with Marinette!"
"Better keep your voice down, Blondie, or she'll hear you."
"Ohmygodohmygodohmygod. I'm such an idiot!" Adrien drops his head into his hands, cradling it as he tries to process the sheer idiocy that he has now become aware of.
"I could've told you that a long time ago."
Adrien ignores Plagg as he goes through everything he can remember about his time with Marinette. He had always known she was special, But that could've just been because she was my first friend… He lets himself soak in his delusion for a moment before shaking it away, Ugh who am I kidding?
Throughout their entire friendship, his feelings for her hadn't really changed. Although it has certainly grown over the years, his love for her has always been there. There must be a reason he didn't notice before now. Maybe they grew so slowly that he didn't notice.
Adrien groans, Or maybe I was just distracted by Ladybug… He shoots up straight, "Oh my god, I've been gushing to her about how much I love Ladybug! Even if I tell her how I feel, she'll never believe me."
Plagg, who's frankly just thankful that the boy is speaking again, snorts, "Oh, you poor cat, I don't foresee that being an issue."
"What do you mean?"
He gapes at the blond, completely baffled by his obliviousness, "Pigtails is obviously head over heels for you."
"What?" He squeaks, "She is?! No. No, there's no way. I mean, I know she had a bit of a celebrity crush on Chat Noir when we were kids, but that was never serious. She has to be over that by now. Especially now that she knows that Chat is just me."
Plagg's eye twitches. "You're making this really hard for me, you know that?"
"What do you mea-"
"Adrien! The mixer!" Marinette calls as she walks back into the room and rushes to the mixer where batter is being flung around the room. She and Adrien reach for it at the same time and he jumps back as if he's been burned. She turns it off and then looks at him questioningly. "Are you okay?"
"Wh-who me? I'm rain- er- right as rain! Absolutely nothing happened while you were gone." He laughs nervously.
"Okay…" She says slowly, raising an eyebrow at him. His entire face is beet red.
"I'm sorry about the batter. I got distracted, but I'll clean it up!" He reaches to grab the towel off the counter, which does not require taking a step, and somehow manages to slip and fall into Marinette's arms.
"Woah, falling for no reason is supposed to be my job." She teases.
He straightens, causing her to release him. "Sorry Marinette! I don't know why I fell for you- I mean! Um! Fell all of a sudden? I-I think I'm just nervous because I want the date- CAKE- I want the cake to be perfect."
She smiles brightly at him, appearing to not notice his slip ups, "It's alright. Are you sure you don't want my help?"
"No! I mean, yes! I'm so sure. I've never been more sure of anything in my life. Please help me. I mean don't! P-please don't help me." He rushes out, his mouth moving almost as fast as his pounding heartbeat.
"...Right." She says slowly, "How about I stand here and watch in case you do need help, but if you don't, then I'll leave you be?"
"Yes!" Adrien claps his hands loudly, making her jump, "Great! Sure. Nothing bad will happen as long as you stay over there."
"Oh."
"Th-that's not what I meant! I'm sorry." He takes a deep breath and quietly continues, "I just really want to do this myself."
"Okay," she smiles, "I'll be right here if you need me."
Adrien looks between the measuring cup and spoons, unable to remember which he needs to use for flour. He hangs his head in defeat and holds up the utensils. "Which one do I need?"
She walks over and grabs the wrist of the hand holding the cups. "Don't worry, you'll get batter with practice. You're a legend in the baking, Noir." She guides him to set the cups down before pressing her lips to his fingertips. This is how he would try to cheer me up, so it has to work, right?
"Th-hank y-you." He gives her a smile that's a little too wide but she just laughs.
By the time the cakes go in the oven, the cookies are ready to come out. Marinette sets a timer on her phone and brings a bowl of cookies up onto her balcony. Adrien follows after.
Marinette walks over to the railing, setting the cookies down in the spot where her plant used to rest before Chat broke the pot, on her way there. She rests her chin on her hand and looks out at the full moon in the sky with a small smile on her face.
Adrien sucks in a breath as he watches her. She's so beautiful in the moonlight. She looks beautiful all the time and I've always thought that. So why am I just now noticing my heart doing cartwheels in my chest?
Slowly, he makes his way over to stand beside her. Marinette doesn't seem to realize that he's still looking at her instead of the sky. He feels pulled to her in a way he can't explain. Does she even realize she can have this kind of an effect on a person? Does she realize she's the physical embodiment of pure goodness? She needs to know how amazing she is. She's just as selfless as Ladybug. I've told her how alike they are before, but have I told her how special she is to me?"
"The view from up here is so pretty." She muses.
Adrien practically jumps on her, wrapping her in a tight hug from the side. She squeaks in surprise, but turns into him to return the hug. He rests his chin on her head. "I know I've said this before, but, thank you, for everything, Marinette. I don't know what I ever did to deserve you, but even with everything that's happening I feel so lucky because I have you. Today has been so awesome and I need you to know that you mean the world to me."
"Y-you m-mean a lot to me t-t-oo." She stammers into his chest.
He leans back, but doesn't let go of her, to try and get a view of her face. She looks up at him and his mouth opens in surprise when he notices the color of her face. He places a hand on her forehead, but she doesn't feel warm. "Are you okay? Your face is really red."
"Y-yeah! I'm fine. Totally nervous- NOT nervous about anything. Haha. We're outside so it must just be a rapid onset sunburn!" She rushes out.
He raises an eyebrow at her. "It's night."
"Moonburn!" She blurts out.
He lets out a breathy laugh and smirks down at her. "Marinette, are you blushing?"
With another squeak, she hides her face in his shirt and balls the fabric up in her hands. His eyelids close halfway as he smiles down at her before pulling her closer to him and resting his chin back on her head.
Are butterflies supposed to fly rapidly through your chest? He's almost certain there's a strong connotation between them and the stomach, but that isn't where he feels like the fluttering creatures are hiding inside of him. Regardless, he knows he wants to hold her and never let go. It's different from how he feels about Ladybug. That's why, he realizes, he had been so oblivious to his love for Marinette. He hadn't known that you could love more than one person at a time or that it felt differently depending on how you came to love them. He had always felt different about her, he just didn't know what to call those feelings until now. Now he feels like an idiot. Anybody else would have recognized this as love. Something's wrong with me. "Marinette… Would you say you have a decent understanding of love?"
"Wh-what?" She pulls back and they separate.
He searches her face with serious eyes. "You've been in love before, right?"
"Y-yes." She begins awkwardly rubbing her hand with her thumb, needing to focus on something outside of the conversation.
He nods. "How did you know you were in love?"
"Are you having doubts about your feelings for Ladybug?" He's not sure why, but her tone sounds almost hopeful while her eyes look like they're about to start leaking.
"Something like that? Not really. I'm just.. Confused. I was hoping you could help." He sighs and looks out at the rooftops surrounding them.
Without his eyes on her, it's much easier for her to speak. "I can't think straight. I get flustered and forget how to speak. I'm more clumsy than normal. My heartbeat quickens and I want to run away."
"Are you sure that's love?" He rests his chin on his hand, still looking out at the city. Adrien tries to picture Marinette being more clumsy than normal, but all he can think about is what it feels like to catch her when she falls. Now that he thinks about it, she falls quite often around him. His eyes snap to hers and he's surprised to find her already watching him, closer than he had expected her to be.
She looks at him like her eyes are hiding some message he's meant to decode, but he can't for the life of him understand what it is. "I'm sure. It's more than that. When I love someone, I think about them constantly. I make them gifts and go out of my way to help them, and I know you're probably thinking I do that for everyone, and you're right, because I love everyone, well, almost everyone, but romantic love is different. It's like… I don't just want to do these things. I need to. And even though it's so hard for me to be around them sometimes, that's all I want. I look at pictures of them when we're apart. I'm a little obsessive if I'm being honest. I wish I could help it, but I can't."
Man, whoever makes her feel that way is so lucky. It's probably Luka. His stomach knots up as he imagines her staring longingly at a photograph of him and his guitar. With a frown, he looks back at her. "Have you loved more than one person?"
"Yeah." She closes her eyes and furrows her brows when an image of Chloe flashes in her mind. Adrien's voice pulls her back to their conversation on the balcony.
"Did it… feel the same every time?" He asks tentatively.
"Not exactly… There was this boy who somehow made his way into my heart without me even noticing. It was… I guess, quieter than I was used to? I denied my feelings for him for a long time, even though he was constantly confessing to me. I really did have myself convinced at first. But then I realized, I felt the same way around him. I just didn't get flustered because he makes me feel so safe and comfortable and I don't lose my confidence… I'm more secure with him than anyone else." And he turned out to be the same boy who made me stutter and trip over my own feet.
Adrien lets out a huge sigh of relief. "Thank you for telling me that. That makes me feel so much better."
"Does Paris's most eligible bachelor have feelings for someone other than his lady?"
This time it's Adrien trying to convey an inaudible message when he looks at her. "Yeah, I realized I have for a long time, but I didn't know it. It was just like you described… She makes me feel secure and my love for her was a lot quieter. Although, now, it feels like it's screaming at me."
"Adrien," she sucks in a sharp breath, "there's something I need to tell you."
His heart stops. He forgets how to breathe. What could she be trying to tell me right now? Does she know I'm talking about her? Wait… Could she be talking about me? "Wh-what is it?"
"This is kind of a really big deal so I want to apologize in advance for not telling you sooner, but, I'm actually La–" The ringing of the cake timer cuts her off and she lets out a huge sigh of relief. Her entire body relaxes and suddenly she's running away, mumbling something about how taking cake out of the oven is a one person job so he should definitely stay put. However, the blond doesn't listen and opts to follow her like a lost kitten instead.
He walks into the kitchen while she's putting the cakes in the refrigerator. She turns around and jumps back, banging her elbow into the fridge door when she sees him. "Marinette, you keep trying to tell me something and then stopping. I'm really not trying to pressure you into telling me whatever it is, but I just want you to know that whatever you're trying to tell me, it'll be okay. Although at this point you have made me really curious."
"I need to go take a shower!" Marinette darts past him once again and races up to her room to grab a towel before locking herself in the bathroom and turning on the water.
Tikki flies up to Marinette's face. "Marinette, are you okay?"
"Yeah, Tikki," she frowns, " I'm just so scared of telling Adrien the truth."
"Well, I don't think you have anything to be scared of. He's been acting like you." The kwami shrugs.
Marinette blinks. "What? What do you mean?"
"Y'know… He's all stuttery and clumsy." Tikki leans her head towards her holder, urging her to piece her words together.
"Oh yeah, you're right. Do you think he's okay?" She digs her hands into her hair in distress.
Tikki shakes her head. "I think he's just fine, Marinette. But don't you think it kind of seems like he's falling for your civilian self?"
"Wh-what? No! Of course not. I'm just a friend to him, he'll never love the real me. Besides, he's in love with Ladybug and he's always so confident and charming with her. Maybe I did something to make him uncomfortable. Oh no! Tikki, do you think he figured out that I'm in love with him?" At this point, she's pacing around the bathroom, which is a feat in and of itself, considering the size of the room.
Tikki sighs. "No, Marinette, somehow I don't think that's it. He just said that he had feelings for someone that isn't her."
Marinette's eyes widen as realization dawns on her, "... I'm the only one he's really been around."
Tikki nods, urging her to continue.
"Who have I- Kagami!" She hits her forehead, "Duh, I brought her up the other day, he must've been thinking about her."
The kwami groans, "What about the clumsiness though?"
"I'm the only one he's been around recently and I am the queen of clumsy. I'm sure I've just rubbed off on him." Before Tikki can protest, Marinette is throwing her clothes off and jumping in the shower.
Meanwhile, Adrien is pacing around Marinette's bedroom and venting to Plagg who is 100% not helping. "I can't share a bed with her!" He shouts.
Plagg groans. "You've been sharing a bed with her."
"But what if Marinette is uncomfortable?" Adrien throws his head back.
"Again, you've already been sharing a bed with her." He repeats in a monotone.
"But if she finds out I like her she might be upset that she's been sharing a bed with me without knowing." He pouts his lip and looks like he's about to cry.
Plagg barks out a laugh, "Kid, I hate to break this to you but she's probably known for a long time."
"What?! You think she KNOWS? AND YOU DIDN'T TELL ME? Wait… If she knows and she's really okay with all of this… Could she? No. No, I shouldn't get my hopes up. I'm like this with Ladybug, too and all it does is lead me to break my own heart." Adrien sits down in her desk chair.
Plagg flies into a wall but instead of phasing through it he just thumps into it and falls to the ground with an exaggerated wail of agony.
"Plagg? Are you okay? You kind of look how I feel right now." Adrien watches his kwami with genuine concern.
"Worse. I feel worse."
He shoots up straight in his seat. "Are you sick? Do I need to take you to Ladybug?"
Plagg flies up into Adrien's face. "And make my headache worse? No, thank you."
He crosses his arms. "You're completely fine, aren't you?"
"Physically? Yes. Mentally? When I'm with you? Never." Plagg crosses his nubby arms, mimicking Adrien.
"Plagg, can you just, like, pretend to care for a few minutes? You're the only friend I can talk to right now. Well, I mean, y'know, I guess to Marinette, I'm still just a friend, but I don't know what to call her anymore and I can't talk to her about this!"
"I would like to care a lot less." Plagg groans, "Please just talk to her and end my eternal suffering."
"T-T-TALK to h-her? About… about this?! What if she doesn't want to see me anymore and kicks me out? I don't even know where I'd go… I- I can't just talk to her!" Adrien's eyes are bulging out of his head.
Plagg's hands shoot to his hips. "You're starting to act a lot like she used to around you… Don't you think that might mean something?"
That drives him into full panic mode. He grabs two fistfuls of his hair and looks at Plagg like he's aiming a gun at him. "Oh my god, I was right, wasn't I? Marinette hated me."
"OR maybe she liked you!" Plagg's frustration is quickly turning into anger.
Adrien falls to his knees dramatically, clutching his chest as if Plagg had actually shot him with that invisible gun. "NOOOO! I'M TOO LATE! I missed my chance and now I'll be alone forever! Marinette will never want to be with me. God, it fits too! She's JUST like Ladybug!"
"Oop- Was that the faucet turning off? The door?" Plagg flies over to the wall to place his ear against it.
"What? I didn't hear-" Adrien's head snaps to watch his kwami.
"It must be Marinette! I'm gonna go eat cheese so that you can chat." And suddenly, Plagg is gone.
Although he doesn't think she's actually coming, Adrien waits…
And waits…
And fucking panics.
During her absence, his mind wanders to a territory filled with all of the ways he could possibly mess this up. What if he says something he doesn't mean to say and then he takes it back and it just makes her think he doesn't like her? What if he falls off the bed and breaks his neck?
It is promptly after that thought that he climbs down from the bed and takes a seat back at the desk. What if I start rambling on about my feelings and I just, like, propose? Ugh, I practically already did. Oh my god, why am I such an idiot? What if I try to kiss her again?
Marinette walks in, still wearing the onesie, but her hair is down and dripping. She's also carrying a laundry basket. She walks over to the chaise and begins folding her clothes. Marinette smiles at Adrien but the only response he manages is to make an expression that could only be mistaken as a smile… if someone was really far away. His mind is too busy worrying that if he moves, he'll step on Plagg and trigger the destruction of the entire world.
He stands there for a moment watching her but the second Adrien regains the ability to speak, he blurts out, "I've never kissed anyone!" His eyes widen and he resists the urge to put his hands over his mouth.
She whips around to face him, "Okay… That's a little bit random… didn't you already kiss Ladybug?"
He scratches the back of his neck awkwardly in an attempt to mask his surprise, "Y-yeah, but I d-don't remember it."
"So is this your way of asking me to be your first kiss?" Why did you ask him that? You're such an idiot! You can't kiss him. He doesn't know you like him!
Say no. You can't use her like that. SAY NO. "Y-yes." God fucking damnit, Adrien.
"Okay." Her words come out as a whisper.
He looks up, "Okay?"
Marinette doesn't know why she's agreeing to this since it will only ever end in complete and utter heartbreak when she never gets to do it again. But maybe that's exactly why she does. After lying to him for this long, she might not get another chance. "Yes. I'll kiss you."
They both stand there for a moment, both trying to decipher what reality is and whether or not they are currently in it before Marinette shakes herself out of it. I've kissed him a million times in my head. I can do this.
She walks towards him, slowly, allowing him time to take it back and herself time to prepare for what will happen if he doesn't. This is completely fine. He asked me to. And it's just a one time deal. It doesn't change anything.
"You're shaking, are you okay?"
Their eyes meet and Marinette nods at him, gesturing to her hair which is still wet from the shower, "I'm just cold." She explains.
She is not, in fact, 'just cold.'
She reaches up and gently caresses his cheek, I can do this. It's not like it actually means something to him.
"If you don't want to, you don..." Adrien trails off as Marinette pulls him down into a soft kiss. He melts into her immediately.
The kiss goes on for much longer than would've been needed for a 'friend kiss' but neither of them seem to care.
They pull apart, staring at each other with wide, nervous eyes. They sit there in silence for several moments before Marinette's anxiety gets the best of her and blurts out, "How's that for a first kiss?" She covers her mouth afterwards, her face somehow flushing an even deeper shade of red than it already was.
Adrien, completely stunned, just nods.
Why is he making that face? Why isn't he saying anything? Oh my god, he hated it! Why did I do that? This is going to make everything so awkward,
When Adrien regains the ability to move, he clears his throat and throws up finger guns. "Good job."
Just like that she can breathe again and she bursts out laughing. Poor Adrien awkwardly scratches the back of his head, still blushing profusely. His mind is reeling from the fact that Marinette actually kissed him, but also cringing at his dumb idiotboy reaction.
After Marinette sobers, she smiles at his grimacing face. "I think it's time to get ready for bed."
Adrien panics when she grabs his hand and starts leading him up to her bed. "Wait!"
She stops and casts him a questioning look. He swallows. "W-we've been sleeping in the bed every night and this night is supposed to be special…"
She squeezes his hand. "You want to build a fort, don't you?"
"Yes! Haha, a fort. That's totally what I was getting at. Um, can we? Please?" He smiles at her awkwardly.
Marinette smirks and bumps his shoulder, "What kind of 'best sleepover ever' wouldn't include building a fort?"