Hey everyone, I hope everyone is excited for some angst.
Yeah, this is nothing special but when I posted a wip of this on my tumblr people wanted me to continue it.
Also, this was originally going to be a oneshot but I kept on writing until I realized the story needed to be longer. Anyway, I hope all of you enjoy.
Disclaimer: Miraculous Ladybug belongs to Thomas Astruc and ZAGToon. This is just a fanfic written by a fan.
Another day of danger. Ever since Marinette forced herself to break up with Luka to keep him safe, she became resentful toward hero work.
She felt like she was running out of shoulders for people to lean on. But she still couldn't let other people suffer under Hawkmoth. And she was the beacon of hope among the frightened crowd.
But she became breathless when she saw a boy with blue hair in the crowd. The boy she loved and still loved. Marinette couldn't help but make eye contact with Luka, and for a brief moment, her ears blocked out all sound. And to her surprise, Luka caught her gaze.
Then reality hit Marinette again, and the frightened crowd scattered with Luka was still being selfless in this time of danger. He made sure everyone else got out safely, even if some people were so panicked that they nearly knocked him down.
Marinette couldn't stand for this. She avoided Luka out of guilt for hurting him, but she could now keep him safe as Ladybug.
But without thinking things through, she rushed over to him and lifted him up bridal style. Luka looked speechless from being swept away by the heroine of Paris. Ladybug held him close and took him away from the chaos.
Luka was absolutely bewildered, but he was also grateful. He rested his face on her shoulder as the two of them soared. Marinette smiled lightly, knowing her shining star was safe and his song would continue to play for everyone to hear.
"Thank you, Ladybug," he said.
He smiled at her softly like he used to, even if she was Ladybug and not Marinette. She felt her heart heal just a bit. His smile brought back so many memories of how much he loved her. How being with him made everything feel right.
"No problem," Ladybug said. There was a crash from afar, and instinctively Marinette was on her guard, but then she turned back to Luka and placed her hands on his shoulders as she looked him in the eye.
"Please stay here and be safe," Ladybug said.
Honestly, against all logic, Marinette would hold Luka in her arms and not let him go. But she slid her hands from his shoulders and hid her blushing face.
Marinette felt Luka take a step closer to her as she was about to head back into the fray.
"Ok Ladybug."
Even if Marinette was about to rush back into battle, the sound of Luka's voice soothed her. And his voice, his presence, his compassion helped her get through another day of fighting, no matter how bothersome Chat Noir was being.
But Luka would only get hurt because of her double life. The entire Universe would tear them apart. Marinette and Luka were meant to be dragged apart no matter how much they hurt.
But as Ladybug, she couldn't bear to leave him as she saw Luka was still in the place she told him to hide. Even if the miraculous Ladybug purified all the evil around them.
Luka hung his head and leaned against a street lamp as if he needed something to hold him up.
Marinette went over this a thousand times in her head. Being with Luka would only hurt him…But he was hurting right now, and she couldn't leave him to suffer in the dark.
So she revealed herself, but Luka didn't stir.
"Luka," she said softly.
Luka lifted his head up and saw Ladybug standing before him under a small light from a nearby building. Ladybug was stunned to see so much sadness in his aqua blue eyes. Something so unnatural for a boy who usually had so much optimism in him.
"Luka, you can go now," Ladybug said.
Luka lowered his face again, looking hopeless. Ladybug quickly ran up to him and pulled out her yo-yo. "I can take you home," she insisted. "You'll be safe with me."
Ladybug took his hand.
"I can't bring myself," Luka said in a soft whisper.
"Huh?" Ladybug cried. Her heart dropped from hearing Luka's hopeless words.
Luka turned away from her, and Ladybug squeezed his hand.
"Luka, what's wrong?" Ladybug cried.
The tone in Ladybug's voice nearly startled Luka to the point where he lifted his head up.
"Please tell me," Ladybug cried.
Luka turned to her, and she saw the hurt in his blue eyes. Ladybug released his hand, and Luka breathed.
"Someone I knew," Luka started.
Luka struggled as if it pained him too much to talk about this subject.
"My ex-girlfriend," he said.
Ladybug gasped, knowing that she was why Luka struggled to find the will to keep going. She knew Luka was heartbroken when she suggested breaking up, but the fact that Luka was still hurt over it broke her heart again. But Ladybug kept quiet as she knew Luka needed to talk about the pain he carried.
She hoped he wouldn't have waited for her like he said.
"She could be in danger, but I can't be with her," Luka said.
Ladybug shook her head slightly.
"She said we should break up because everything was working against us," Luka said.
Luka tried to chuckle it off as he turned away from Ladybug.
"But it's ok. Marinette doesn't have to love me back. She doesn't have to spare my feelings," he said.
"No!" Ladybug cried.
It felt as if the world shook from under her as Ladybug said something she shouldn't have.
Luka turned back at her, looking more confused than ever.
Ladybug tried to hold it together because she was a hero, and she couldn't blow everything in front of Luka. But she couldn't leave Luka in the dark.
"I am sure your ex-girlfriend loved you very much! More than anyone!" Ladybug cried painfully.
Luka was stunned. As if an elaborate tale was being spun for him.
"She probably didn't want you to get hurt!" Ladybug insisted.
And then, Luka managed to smile a little, but his blue eyes still gleamed with pain. Ladybug knew he was trying to be strong like she was trying to be strong. He turned from her again.
"Ladybug, you're too kind," Luka said.
Ladybug clenched her fists.
"But I expect nothing less from the heroine of Paris," Luka said.
Ladybug couldn't take it anymore, and she got behind Luka to place her hands on his shoulders. Luka turned around in response, and Ladybug cupped his cheek with her hand and got on her toes. She kissed him on the lips, surprising Luka.
Against all logic, Ladybug tried to kiss away Luka's pain.
Ladybug soon thought that maybe she went too far in her actions, but he placed his hands on her back and pulled her closer. Luka didn't let her stop as he kissed her back harder. They savored the kiss for a good minute.
But then Luka pulled away. When Ladybug opened her eyes, Luka looked absolutely ashamed. He breathed heavily and took steps back.
Ladybug was starting to regret what she did. She realized kissing Luka out of nowhere was uncalled for. Ladybug stepped away as well.
"Ladybug," Luka said.
Ladybug swallowed and couldn't bring herself to respond.
Luka covered his face with his hand, and Ladybug was about to beg for his forgiveness.
"I'm sorry!" Luka cried.
Luka was crying now, becoming completely vulnerable in front of Ladybug.
"I'm sorry!" He repeated. "You were there for me and tried to stop my pain…."
"But I could never stop loving Marinette!"
Ladybug gasped as her eyes started to water.
Luka finally ran away from her. Glittering tears fell behind him as he ran.
But the rain started to pour, and Ladybug watched as he ran away. Raindrops began to soak him.
And Ladybug's transformation faded, and Marinette was alone to cry in the rain. She was also soaked in a mix of heavy tears and raindrops.
"And I can never stop loving you, Luka."
Marinette sobbed and fell to the ground as it was too late to run to Luka and scream to the world that she loved him.
The two lovers were stuck in a world where they couldn't be together and couldn't move on.
Marinette and Luka returned to their homes soaking wet. Both of their families asked them what happened, but neither Marinette nor Luka told their families the truth.
Both of them ran into the bathroom without explaining.
Marinette and Luka tried to wash away everything as they soaked in the bathtubs. But instead, they tried to warm up from the harsh cold they suffered and couldn't move for over an hour until both of them forced themselves to leave.
Marinette held herself as she lay in bed and started crying again. She remembered seeing Luka so miserable and admitting he still loved her. Marinette eventually drifted off to sleep to get away from the pain.
Luka looked up to the moonlight that shined through his window. Thinking about Ladybug and thinking about Marinette. He felt terrible that he enjoyed that kiss from Ladybug. Tears rolled down his eyes as he fell asleep.
And surprisingly, the cries Marinette and Luka made softened as they drifted off to sleep and started to dream.
Marinette rested in the dream feeling as soft as a cloud. A gentle hand touched her cheek as she opened her eyes. When her vision came into focus, she saw a handsome boy with beautiful blue eyes smiling and lying beside her.
And after what felt like an eternity, happy tears streamed from Marinette's eyes as she threw herself into Luka's arms. Marinette savored every moment with Luka breathing in his scent as he played with her hair.
"Oh Luka! If I'm dreaming, I don't want to wake up!" Marinette cried.
And as Marinette dreamed, she smiled in her sleep as she hugged her pillow close to her.
Luka smiled in his sleep as well as the stars aligned and the moon watched over him.
He found Marinette in his dream, sobbing and crying out his name. Without hesitation, Luka ran to her and wrapped his arms around her.
"It's ok, Marinette! I love you!" Luka held her closer as she continued to cry on his chest.
"I will always be with you. I'm yours forever," Luka cried.
But dreams were fleeting, and Marinette and Luka woke up to warm sunlight on their faces. They blinked and gasped, remembering that they were only dreaming and their beloved was gone. But both of them found the strength to get up and face the morning.
Marinette and Luka smiled as they saw the beautiful morning before them. Even if the future for both of them was uncertain.
But Luka remembered what Ladybug said. Ladybug told him that Marinette was only protecting him. Ladybug didn't know what happened between him and Marinette, but she was kind-hearted when she comforted him. Luka placed his hand on his heart as the warm sunlight in the bedroom warmed his body and dried the rest of his tears.
It felt good to know that a guardian angel was watching over him. But was Marinette doing ok? Luka could only ask that question. Dreams were most likely a person's deepest desire and nothing to think too deeply of.
But Anarka and Juleka walked into his room. Both of them were looking concerned.
And Marinette remembered. She was there for Luka, even if she was with him as Ladybug. Marinette was way too stubborn, but because she still loved him. And she was able to be the best hero she could be because of him.
She pulled out her phone and looked at an old photo of Luka as she watched the golden sunlight shine on all of Paris.
She wondered if she should check up on him. But then she remembered all the pain he went through and pressed the button on her phone to turn it off.
"I can't stand this!" Cried a tiny voice.
Marinette turned and saw Tikki in front of her, desperately trying to convey her feelings.
"Tikki," Marinette cried.
Before Marinette could ask, Tikki made another frustrated growl.
"I can't stand to see you and Luka unhappy Marinette!" Tikki cried.
Marinette frowned and gently took her kwami in her hands and gave Tikki a serious but somber look.
"Tikki," Marinette said softly. "There are more important things to worry about. I am a hero. I don't get to live quietly with the boy I love."
"I don't care!" Tikki cried so stubbornly. Her eyes glowed in frustration. "You're the hero carrying Paris on your back, and because of that," Tikki flailed her tiny arms. "You deserve to be happy!" She cried louder.
Tikki's stubborn persistence only made Marinette sigh. The little red kwami floated off of Marinette's hands.
"Luka still loves you Marinette! And you still love him! You should go to him!" Tikki cried.
Marinette thought about it. The idea of Luka holding her in his arms again and telling her everything would be ok. But then a tear nearly fell down her face again.
Tikki moved in and gave Marinette a pleading look.
"I will do anything to make you and Luka happy again," Tikki cried.
"So please go to him!"
"Son, I think you should go to Marinette," Anarka said.
His mother and sister were clearly putting him on the spot. He couldn't exactly walk away and brush this off, so he turned away and frowned.
"I need to let her go," he said.
Juleka let out a groan and practically glared at Luka. She clearly didn't like that idea, but Anarka tried to calm her down before turning back to Luka.
"No son, I believe you should talk to her," Anarka said hopefully. "At least to give you some closure."
Luka sighed, not wanting to hear this.
"What if she doesn't want to talk to me," Luka said. "I would have to respect that."
"No Luka!" Juleka cried. She used a very forceful tone that caught both Luka and Anarka off guard. Juleka's brown eyes practically glowed with how serious she was.
"I can't stand to see you unhappy!" Juleka cried.
She almost seemed as if she was about to cry herself.
"This is all so stupid! You and Marinette shouldn't have been torn apart like that! And I would fight any force in the Universe that would get in the way of both of you!" Juleka cried.
Juleka didn't have to remind Luka about that. He was trying to be strong and not think about how he and Marinette felt like star-crossed lovers that were ripped apart for a shock factor narrative. How, in his short life, he met a beautiful melody that was the song of his heart, and she had to leave him with his heart in pieces.
Juleka clenched her fists. "And I know deep down that you and Marinette are made for each other!"
Luka sighed and turned from his sister. Feeling a false hope she just gave him was meaningless.
"So you shouldn't lose faith, Luka," Juleka said.
There she went again, Luka thought. In real life, love wasn't as romanticized.
Anarka placed her hand on her rowdy daughter's shoulder and her other hand on Luka's shoulder.
"I have faith in you too," Anarka said.
Luka turned to his mother, who looked just as heartbroken as he was. Usually, his mother was tough as nails.
"I may be a crazy lady, but I can't help but feel that Marinette is a special girl," Anarka started. "And she truly is your heart's song."
Luka frowned and turned from his mother. He grabbed his jacket and put it on, and took a moment to grab his acoustic guitar. Sometimes music makes it easier to convey overwhelming emotions.
Anarka clapped her hands from behind him. "Yes, yes!"
Luka sighed and rubbed his temple.
"That's my boy!" Anarka cried. "He knows how to win a lady's heart!"
Luka held his guitar close and was about to walk up deck, but he could hear Juleka right behind him. He turned to see his sister carrying his bike helmet.
His sister knew him too well. She handed him his helmet and gave him a pleading look.
"Go to her," Juleka said.
Luka didn't answer her. He just placed on his helmet, and then Juleka gave him a light push.
"I'm the family's witch remember?" Juleka said. "So many forces of the universe are at work, and darkness may be all around us, but you and Marinette belong together." She put her foot down. "Just go to her!"
Luka would've appreciated it if his sister, the self-proclaimed master of the dark arts, wouldn't be so vague. He trusted his sister most of the time, but this was too strange. Either way, Luka was about to head out to get some much-needed radio silence. There was no way he could go to Marinette like a desperate ex-boyfriend. And there was one place he could think of to go to. The bridge that carried melodies from the wind and water. The place he always went to when he needed a sincere melody in his life.
Marinette wished she could just visit Luka as Ladybug again, as cowardly as that sounded. Ladybug would give Luka all the love Marinette couldn't, but either way, the entire Universe would be out of control. So she reluctantly took Tikki's guidance, even if she was deathly afraid of everything.
But she wouldn't hear the end of it from Tikki if she didn't try, so the most obvious course of action was to find The Liberty. But when Marinette found the proud houseboat in her sights, the houseboat was sailing away into the golden sunset.
Usually, the boat came to her like her and Luka's personal love boat that brought them together. But now, she feared the Universe was dragging her handsome blue-haired musician away again.
Marinette searched more frantically, realizing that Luka needed her by his side more than ever. And then she heard a familiar boat horn.
Marinette rushed over to The Liberty as fast as her legs could take her. She reached out as the boat became out of her reach. Marinette clenched her hand and moved it to her chest, convincing herself the Universe was punishing her. That she and Luka were forced to be apart for the good of the world. She turned around, and thankfully, Tikki didn't bother her about it as she walked with her head down.
No more melancholy songs. Marinette just wanted radio silence to drown everything out. And the stars above her to give her some light in her life.
But her foggy mind became clearer when she heard the most beautiful melody by the nearby bridge.
A song that allowed Marinette to breathe again after what felt like a lifetime of drowning. Marinette stayed still and let the beautiful memory fill her ears. And then Marinette felt she could move again. She certainly wanted to know the source of the music.
But as Marinette walked toward the bridge, she saw a familiar young man with blue hair putting his entire heart into playing his acoustic guitar under the bridge. He played as if he forced himself to feel something.
"Luka!" Marinette cried.
Marinette stayed where she was as Luka continued to play. She watched him until he played the final chords and moved his hair from his eyes. He still looked as heartbroken as he did on that rainy night.
Then soon enough, as if the melody of the wind spoke to him, he turned to her. He took a moment to process that he wasn't dreaming this time.
"Marinette," he said breathlessly.
Both of them hesitantly took a step back. And Marinette shook as her bluebell eyes started to water, just like the rain.
"Luka!" She sobbed.
She couldn't take it anymore as she ran to him, and Luka couldn't fight it anymore either. He dropped his acoustic guitar as he ran to her as well. Marinette almost tackled Luka on impact as Luka wrapped his arms around Marinette as tightly as he could.
Marinette cried so much that she couldn't speak coherently, and she could only cry Luka's name a few times. Luka couldn't talk either as he stroked Marinette's back. He only tried his hardest to soothe her cries with soft sweet nothings.
Even if they both had a million things to say, all they could do right now was hold each other until the pain went away. But Marinette knew timing was everything, and there was something she needed to tell Luka right now.
She finally pulled away from him slightly, but they were still in each other's embrace. Luka was confused as Marinette gave him a nervous and determined look.
"Luka…"
Luka blinked. "Yes Marinette, what's wrong?"
"Luka, there is something I need to tell you," Marinette started. She pressed her fingers together as her voice shook a bit. "Something I should've told you from the start."
Luka sniffed in some tears and breathed as he took Marinette's hands in his own. Marinette blinked some tears out, and Luka gave her hands a light squeeze and comforted her until she was ready.
"Luka, I…"
And then a deafening crash boomed. Marinette yelped slightly, and she fell into Luka's arms again. Luka held her tightly as Marinette turned and saw a nearby building breaking from an explosion.
Paris was in peril again, and Marinette wanted nothing more but to take Luka and hide somewhere until everything was quiet. But once again, Marinette's fate of being a hero kept her away from everyone she loved.
"I have to go!" Marinette cried.
Marinette pulled away and gave Luka a sorrowful look.
"Marinette," Luka pleaded. "You can't! It's too dangerous!"
Luka took her hand almost a bit too forcibly, but Marinette shook her head.
"I'm sorry Luka! I have to!"
Marinette managed to slip her hand from Luka's grip, and she ran away with tears in her eyes. Luka tried to run after her, but he fell and landed on his knee.
Marinette turned back briefly to see Luka holding his leg as he lay on the ground and then turned away to run into an alleyway.
Luka cursed fate as this was a daunting reminder that he and Marinette were always hurting. Part of him wanted to stay down in despair.
"No!" He in a raspy voice. "I can't lose her!"
He powered through the pain in his knee and picked himself up to run to Marinette. But as he turned a corner to the alleyway, he caught a glimpse of magical ladybugs transforming Marinette.
Luka thought he was hallucinating, but that one glimpse of half Marinette and half Ladybug and everything started to click.
"Marinette," he cried breathlessly.
Marinette broke up with him because everything was too difficult. And Ladybug kissed him and told him Marinette still loved him dearly. It was all becoming too much.
"Oh my god!" He cried.
Marinette was fully transformed into Ladybug, and she turned around and gave Luka a sorrowful look. Even if she was in her hero form now, she looked like she was about to well into tears.
Ladybug took a few steps forward, and Luka was frozen in place.
"Be safe Luka. Marinette wouldn't know what to do if you got hurt."
Alright now, a nice way to start...And an evil way to end with a cliffhanger.
As for chapter 2...It will come out when it comes out. Life is a bit crazy now.
But I do have a surprise for my readers here tomorrow...Consider it an early Halloween gift.
And before you ask "Emiko, what are you talking about?" it's a surprise!
Anyway, I will see all of you lovely readers later.
This is Emiko Gale signing out!