"I'm telling you, you gotta show me the design. You're only supposed to hide your dress from your prom date."
"My dress is right here," said Marinette, lifting her shopping bag.
Alya glanced at the bag of glitter and pink fabric and sighed. "That's not what I meant."
Marinette giggled. The akuma rate had dropped off a little – which of course meant it was getting too late for promposals, aka it was getting too late for her promposal… But it was nice, having a sort-of-break. She had time to plan and make her dress now.
As they passed a confectionary, Marinette caught a glimpse of someone they knew inside the shop. "Alya, it's Alix."
Alix Kubdel was wandering around the confectionary, looking glum. The cashier was keeping an eye on her, evidently suspicious of the teenager wandering aimlessly around the shop.
"Alix, hi," said Marinette, entering the store.
Alix looked up from the shelf. "Hey," she said, smiling briefly.
"How's it going?"
"It's good. I'm just… I'm trying to figure out how to ask a guy to prom."
"Nice! Way to bend expectations," said Alya, patting her shoulder.
Alix smiled halfheartedly. "Yeah."
"Is something wrong?" Marinette wondered.
Alix shrugged. "I dunno. This whole promposal thing… It all feels too forced. I don't want to put that kind of pressure on him."
"Hm…" Marinette glanced around the confectionary. "What if… What if you let him know it's okay if he says no?"
"Oh. Like if I just say, 'Hey, you can totally say no and I won't be…' well, I would be bummed. But he can say no." Alix considered this. "Worth a shot."
"Good luck," said Marinette as she and Alya exited the shop.
"Thanks."
Alix turned back to the shelves and picked up a teddy bear attached to a box of chocolates. "Worth a shot," she murmured.
There was an akuma that night, but it wasn't related to prom. When all was said and done – town restored, akuma released, civilian attended to – there was a sense of revitalization between them. It was an easy akuma to defeat. Chat Noir hadn't used even cataclysm. A cool night breeze stirred their hair.
"Bien joué," they said.
"That was almost nice," Ladybug said, stretching. "I feel refreshed."
"Mm…" Chat Noir said in agreement.
"What? No pun?" Ladybug joked.
Her earring beeped. He looked up at her, a flurry of unreadable emotions running across his face.
"Can we go on a walk?" he asked her. "Just until you have to go."
They strolled along the River Seine, just appreciating the air off the water.
What's up with him? Ladybug wondered. She couldn't read his face still, which was fluctuating between expressions just slowly enough for her to see (but not determine) each one before it went away.
Her earring beeped. Two spots remaining.
You can do it, he thought. You're Chat Noir, the brave, real side of Adrien Agreste, and you can do it.
His heart was pounding at an unreasonable tempo. He kept shifting from determination to anxiety to ah-man-I-love-her to ah-man-why-is-this-so-difficult.
Did her earring just beep? That was fast… Does it usually change that fast? Am I just taking too long? I mean obviously I'm taking too long but I don't remember it changing that fast in the past. Hahaha that rhymes, fast in the… focus, darn it. You need to focus.
Her earring beeped, leaving one spot. Chat Noir felt his stomach twist in despair. He stopped walking.
"Chat Noir? Are you all right?"
No, I'm not, but…
He breathed shakily. He took her by the hands and looked into her beautiful bluebell eyes.
"Ladybug," he said, "I've been meaning to say this for a while. Will you…"
Say it say it say it come on say it you can do it
"Would you do me the honor of going to la bal with me?"
Silence. They stared into each other's eyes, each trying to read the other through their mask.
"Oh, Chaton," Ladybug sighed.
His heart sank. He let go of her hands quickly. "It's okay, I knew you might, don't think anything of it–"
"No, I…" She gestured aimlessly. "I'm sorry. I really am. But you know we can't reveal our identities to each other."
"Oh." It was a technicalities issue. "Maybe if we went as our superhero forms… Well, no, my friends would notice if I didn't go."
"Mine too. And we'd get too much attention."
"Yeah."
They stood there by the Seine, everything making too much sense. Chat Noir took a deep breath. "You should probably get going," he said. "Before you detransform."
"Yeah." She pulled him into a hug, taking him by surprise. "Thanks for understanding."
"Mais oui," he said softly.
Ladybug let go of him – a little too soon, and they both felt it – and swung away. Chat Noir didn't mind that it was cut off; she had to hurry to get home.
He took a deep breath. "So, that happened."
Adrien walked into class a little slower than usual the next day. Marinette hoped he was all right.
She wasn't feeling great either, after turning down Chat Noir – it was too easy, the technicalities answering for her. Maybe he'd have been her second choice, all technicalities removed. But even that was hard to say, because the technicalities were so thoroughly ingrained in who they were.
"Ready for today?" Alya asked her.
"Ready for– ah, yeah," she said.
It was promposal day.
"You all right, man?" Nino whispered to Adrien.
Adrien dropped his bag on the floor and slid into his seat. "I asked her to the prom yesterday," he whispered.
"Aw, man," Nino said, already knowing her answer.
"It's all right," Adrien said. "It's like you said. It was all because of complications."
"Hm… well, I guess in the long run, you got a chance with her then," Nino said.
Adrien smiled a little. "Maybe. Hey, thanks for not asking who it is."
"Course man. I mean, I wouldn't mind knowing, but if you wanted to tell me, you'd tell me. I got you."
They fist-bumped.
Lila lounged against the wall at the bottom of the stairs. A passerby might have assumed she was asleep – leaning against the wall, eyes closed, legs stretched out on the grass. Not so. She was just listening.
"Backup plan?"
"Yeah, like someone else."
"Uh…"
"Let me put it this way. Is there anyone else you would ask?"
"Well… not really."
"Okay. Now let's say someone asked you. Would you say yes?"
"Depends, but… Are we expected to kiss?"
"Wh– nah, man. Where'd you get that idea? You usually just do a slowdance with them. You don't even have to hang out with them much, depending on how close you are."
"Oh, okay. I'd be down for that."
"Awesome."
"My ride's here. See you after lunch."
"See you, man."
Footsteps faded away as the two went home. Beneath the wall at the bottom of the stairs, Lila smiled.
"Lunch break, they said," Marinette grumbled, running upstairs. "Break time. Relaxation. Enough time to eat lunch and ask someone to prom, even if an akuma appears."
"No one ever said that," Tikki pointed out.
"Well, we're going to find out if it's true. Tikki, transformer moi!"
"Hi, Chloé. How's it going?"
Chloé looked at Lila disdainfully. "What do you want?"
Lila sat next to her and Sabrina on the bench. "I hear you're interested in taking Adrien Agreste to prom."
"That's none of your business."
"Well, anyways." Lila leaned in and put a hand on Chloé's shoulder. The latter stiffened but didn't pull back. "I overheard him talking to Nino. Turns out, he already asked someone to prom."
"That's ridiculous. He'd have asked me first."
Lila put her hands in the air. "I'm just saying what I heard. He also said he's definitely not asking anyone else."
"You're making this up," Chloé snapped.
"He did seem kinda down this morning," Sabrina contributed. "Maybe he got rejected."
"No one asked you," Chloe muttered. Sabrina shrank.
Lila's eyes were filled with sympathy. "I know it's a lot to take in. But… well, maybe you should think about finding another prom date."
"Moi, settle for less?"
"It won't be hard for you. You've probably got guys all lined up to ask you. Just take your pick." Lila shrugged. "Unless you want to ask Adrien to prom."
"Ask him myself? I'm not that desperate."
"Your call," said Lila, standing up. "Hope that helped," she said, waving as she walked off.
Kim and Max were on their way to their seats when Chloé sighed loudly. "Kim, very well," she said.
"What?" Kim said.
"I suppose I'll go with you to the prom."
Kim's face lit up like a firecracker. "You mean it?"
"Don't make me change my mind," she snapped. "Also, my dress is going to be a very specific shade of blue…"
Max watched Kim's eyes shine brighter and brighter, and felt his heart sink lower and lower. Now who was he going to spend prom with?
"I'll be right back," he mumbled, running out.
Did Kim even hear him? Did he even care anymore, now that he had a prom date and could afford to forget about his best friend?
The poor souls left behind. When their friends partner off, where are they supposed to go? What is left for them? Can their night be what they hoped? Fly away, my evil akuma, and darken his heart.
Max found a bench in the courtyard. He leaned his head back against the wall and closed his eyes.
He just needed to think. He'd lined up their priorities, but he hadn't expected Kim's first to come true. What were his options?
1) Leave Kim with Chloé, letting him be happy
2) …thirdwheel? That wasn't really an option
3) …uhhh… find un garçon to go with? This close to prom?
4) …was there even a fourth option? Was there really even a second or third?
5) ...?
"Max?"
Max opened his eyes.
"Hey." Alix put down her bag and sat next to him. "How are you?"
"I'm doing all right," Max lied.
"Cool." Alix took a deep breath. It was just Max. Just a friend. No reason to be so nervous. "So, um…"
What she was supposed to say: "Hey, I'm like, not a fan of promposals because they seem like way too much pressure to say yes, but I'd also like to ask you to prom. If you want to answer no, please just answer no, because I'd rather get rejected than make you miserable. Max, would you go to prom with me?"
What was running through her head: "Okay what the hell I had this all worked out what was I going to say?"
What she said: "What I'm about to say… if you don't want to go with me… that's okay. Um… I don't want you to be like… obligated to say yes. But um…"
Alix pulled the teddy bear and the chocolates out of her backpack. She couldn't read Max's face. "Will you go to prom with me?"
He paused for a long time. In that pause, Alix learned that regardless of the style and the disclaimers – even if she'd said everything exactly right, even if she'd gone all out with fireworks, even if she'd asked without the bear – you cannot remove the pressure from a prom ask.
"Yeah, sure. Yes," said Max.
They hugged. Alix was rolling with it and trying to squash the regret with the thought that hey, she was going to prom with him.
She didn't fully know what she'd done.
Hmmm… Could it be? It has not been done before, but… Do I see a villain twice as evil in my future?
Fly away, my little akuma. We shall soon find out.
A/N: Akuma #1 = I'M SO SORRY EMILY
Akuma #2 = I'M SO SORRY OMAR
(obviously things aren't the same on your ends or mine but this is my apology to you)
Wow lots happened this chapter. How will things play out? Drop a review if you've enjoyed the story, and follow if you're interested in the rest. See you soon~
