Their run through the city was almost normal, though Ladybug uncharacteristically lost every race. Sure, he felt her eyes on him frequently. And when he turned, she would quickly look away and sometimes blush. And sure, she slipped and stumbled more than normal (hence the losing). But her competitive streak was back.
"You're only winning because you have long legs like a string bean!" she called from somewhere behind him.
"String beans don't have legs! Try again!" he called over his shoulder as he ran along a rooftop.
Her yoyo zipped, and he felt it wrap around his waist and yank him backward. He landed on his back staring up at her.
"Fine. Like a spider." And she leaped over him only to tangle herself in her yoyo as she tried to throw it again. She hopped twice before losing her balance and falling on her face.
"Ladybug!" He ran over, ready to help her up. "Are you okay?"
She shoved his hand away and kicked herself out of layers of wire. "I'm still winning!"
Their race took them all over the city. Ladybug didn't want to stop, and Chat Noir didn't know if that was a good or bad sign. They looped through a Metro station, took a selfie with their statue, and did flips off the Eiffel Tower.
And throughout it all, Ladybug still stuttered and stumbled.
"How about to the Ront des Parts? Pont des Arts!" She tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.
"Are you sure you don't want to stop and talk–"
"Last one there is a smelly cat!"
And off she went. (Chat Noir overtook her less than a minute later.)
The river lapped quietly against the stone banks. A few tourists strolled down the sidewalks.
When Chat Noir and Ladybug were almost at the bridge, he thought about slowing down to give her the win this time. Before he could decide how to without looking obvious, he heard the ping of her yoyo bouncing off its target, followed by a yelp and a splash. He spun on his baton in the time watch the ripples get swept away by the current.
"Ladybug!" He retracted his baton and leaned hard toward the river, holding his breath as he went under. The water always had a slight green tinge to it (which he tried not to think about too much), but his night vision accentuated it. A dusty cloud of sediment had been kicked up in front of him, and in the middle, Ladybug thrashed, disoriented. He waited until the current carried her to him, then grabbed her around the middle, extended his baton, and pulled them both out of the water.
She coughed against his shoulder as he found a secluded spot. Much of the bank was surrounded by lines of trees, so at least that part was easy. He blinked against the water dripping down his face and hair hanging in his eyes. The chill in the air only made the heat of her against him more noticeable. (Not that he needed any help noticing it.)
As soon as they had touched the ground, she flopped on her back and continued coughing.
"I think you should sit up," he said, kneeling over her. "It'll be easier to move the water out of your lungs or whatever."
There was almost a need for mouth-to-mouth, his brain supplied helpfully. It was a testament to how bad he had it, because the Seine was nasty and dirty, and she was coughing like she was an asthmatic with pneumonia and could have drowned, and all he could think about was if her lips would be cold from the river or as warm as the rest of her had been as he'd held her.
Garbage friend.
Terrible partner.
Ladybug had finally stopped coughing, and her face was growing redder as she stared up at him.
"Are you okay?"
She giggled with a wide, goofy smile. "Fine."
That was doubtful. But she didn't sound hurt so he leaned back and helped her to sit up. "What happened?" he asked.
"Nothing," she said. "I just wasn't looking where I was throwing."
"What were you looking at?"
She sucked in a sudden, huge breath and coughed more violently than before, head almost bouncing off her knees with the force.
"M'Lady!" Should he say something encouraging? Go get help? Some water? He itched to do something, anxiety pulsing through him. Maybe he should just pat her on the back to help get the rest of the water out? Anyone would do that in this situation, right? She wouldn't think he was just being weird and looking for an excuse to touch her?
Ladybug's fit was so severe that her eyes streamed with fresh tears that mixed with the muck from the river.
"Are you okay?" he asked when she'd settled into a rough breathing pattern.
"Yeah," she said. "Fantastic." Guilty smile. Weak thumbs up.
Chat Noir raised an eyebrow.
"Really," she said, and she pushed herself to her feet to prove it to him. She looked steady, which he guessed was a good sign.
Surrounded by trees, it was easy to forget that they were in the middle of a busy city. Even the sounds of traffic sounded distant and muted. He could almost believe they were alone together. And that's the excuse he told himself when he realized he'd stepped forward and let his gaze drift down to her lips again.
He snapped his eyes back up to hers, just in time to see her soft smile mutate into an appalled expression of horror.
"What?"
"It didn't work," she whispered through her fingers.
"The distraction didn't… distract you?"
Ladybug tore away from him to wrap her arms around the nearest tree and press her face against the rough bark. "Oh no, I think I made it worse!"
Author's note: Hey, updates three weeks in a row!
