Scene 13 - *Alya at Collège Françoise Dupont

This was getting ridiculous. Alya tried to be a good friend and support Marinette in her romantic pursuits. She hadn't been thrilled that Marinette had given up on Luka so soon, but now that Alya knew she was Ladybug, she understood the kind of pressure that had put on her friend.

Marinette had gone back and forth on whether she was trying to pursue Adrien or get over him, but the way she was acting this week… she was avoiding Adrien like he had murdered her hamster. What was going on? It was time for an intervention.

"Hey girl," Alya started, pulling Marinette to the side as they exited the classroom. "How are we doing today? Feeling alright?"

Marinette avoided eye contact with Alya, looking to the side in a way that Alya had now come to recognize as her tell for lying.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm great!" she insisted. "No problems here… just peachy!"

"So no problems with… Adrien?" Alya replied, giving her friend a knowing look.

Marinette's eyes widened guiltily.

"Adrien!? What about Adrien? I have nothing to do with Adrien."

"Girl, I know you're still working out your feelings for him, but this week you've been extra-weird." Alya wrapped her arm around her friend's shoulder, pulling her closer to her side. "You're going to scare him off," she said in a hushed voice.

Marinette looked away again.

"Maybe that's what I want…" Marinette trailed off.

Alya dropped her arm.

"What?" She asked. "Are you for-real?"

"yeah well…" Marinette started. "I think maybe I romanticized this crush too much in my head. I'm beginning to think that maybe… maybe I wasn't in love with the real Adrien after all."

That's surprisingly mature of you Marinette, she thought.

"So does this mean you're going to get back together with Luka?" she asked. Alya had really liked them as a couple. They fit well together, and Luka was exactly the kind of stability Marinette needed with her crazy life.

"No," Marinette said, looking guilty. "I've played with his feelings too much. I can't hurt Luka again"

"I'm not sure Luka would see it that way," Alya assured her. "But I can respect that."

They continued walking in silence for a moment.

"This isn't about being Guardian again, is it?" Alya asked.

Marinette looked confused.

"I mean," Alya clarified. "I don't want to hear any of this 'oh woe-is-me, I can never be in love because I have to save the world' stuff again, because we've talked about this and you know it's not true."

Marinette always wanted to put the weight of the world on her shoulders. Alya respected that, but she was also a 14-year-old girl, and her friend deserved happiness as well.

"No, no, nothing like that," Marinette assured her. "I'm not calling off love, I've just… re-evaluated my love for Adrien. It was a bit one-sided and maybe not healthy."

That's really mature of your Marinette.

"You look like you don't agree," Marinette said miserably.

"No, no, I just…" Alya was at a loss for words. "I'm just surprised."

"I'm happy for you though," Alya continued. "And I support your decision to move on."

"Thanks, Alya"

They stopped walking, waiting outside of their next class.

"So," Alya interjected. "Got your eyes on anyone new?"

Marinette rolled her eyes.

"I'm just saying, if you're really over Adrien, and you won't date Luka, I have an idea with who you could rebound with?" she said slyly.

"I'm not going out with Nathanial," Marinette said, clearly annoyed.

"No, no, not Nathanial," Alya said, shaking her head. "Besides, I think he's moved on from you as well. No I was thinking of someone who is already interested in you and would be head-over-heals to take you on a date"

Marinette gave her a quizzical look. Was she serious? Surely she knew where Alya was going with this.

"Chat Noir," Alya said under her breath, so only Marinette could hear.

Marinette quickly pulled away, looking angry.

"What?" Alya defended herself. "Why won't you give him a chance? You two are clearly perfect for each other!"

All of Paris could see how perfect Ladybug and Chat noir were together, and Alya had seen it first-hand in her time as Rena Rouge, fighting alongside them. She had always thought Marinette had ignored her feelings for Chat Noir because of Adrien, but if Adrien was out of the picture now…

"Excuse me?" Marinette said, a little too loud. She was clearly upset by the suggestion.

"I'm just saying girl, you two would look cute together!"

"You mean look cute on the Ladyblog together," Marinette spat back.

"That's not what this is about!" Alya insisted.

Their argument was cut short by the door to the class opening and the students filing in.

"We'll talk about it later," Alya said.

Marinette gave her a look she usually reserved for Chloe and Lila.

"No, we won't," Marinette said with finality.