A/N: Hey guys so I've been talking to other writers that say that readers prefer the chapters to be really short.
When I first started this story, the chapters were at least 5,000 to 10,000 words, but then I cut them down to just 3,000 to 5,000 words because I didnt want to overwhelm my editor with editing nearly 40 pages of work, so I broke up some of the chapters.
However I was told that readers prefer even shorter chapters?
Only roughly 1,000 words but because this is a slow burn story, I worry that I won't get as much detail and I won't be able to move the plot forward in that short of a chapter.
However I'd like to accommodate to my readers more?
So tell me what you think? Should I make these chapters shorter? Or keep them the way they are?
Anyway, this chapter was not shortened to 1,000 words, I want to get a majority opinions before potentially breaking up future chapters so that they are shorter.
We'll see what happens!
Thanks. I love you guys!
Marinette trembled, her heart thumping wildly in her chest as all eyes were on her.
Her arm was wrapped tightly around her father's arms and Marinette tried to keep herself focused on Adrien who waited for her at the altar.
She couldn't help but to feel her father trembling beside her, her blue eyes moved over to him as tears bubbled at the edges of his eyes.
Marinette blinked, her chest feeling heavy as she tried to keep herself composed.
"Papa..." Marinette whimpered, trying to keep her voice low under the soft sounds of the wedding music. "Please don't cry." She glanced up at Adrien, her heart threatening to spill from her lips as she approached Adrien slowly.
A small shy smile appeared across her lips, and Marinette could hear the soft cries of her father beside her.
"You're going to make me cry..."
"I-I'm not crying." Tom whispered, his voice quivering as they both approached closer to the altar.
Marinette sighed softly, almost ready to roll her eyes, before they landed on her mother who watched them both from the front row.
The young woman widened her eyes at the sight of her mother.
Sabine glanced up at both her husband and her daughter.
The sight of Marinette in her wedding dress, gripped at her heart relentlessly.
Her little girl and her only little girl was getting married.
Tom was giving her away, and Sabine thought Marinette looked incredibly beautiful.
As a mother who had raised Marinette for a full twenty three years, it warmed her heart to see this very important moment of her daughters life. She witnessed her grow and learn so fast. Marinette was the light of her life, she loved her more than she loved herself.
The heart warming love she felt for her child was entirely different than the love she felt for her husband.
Marinette had a great head on her shoulders. She had grown to be an incredible and smart woman, and even though she was still clumsy like her father, Sabine couldn't have been more proud.
In that moment, Marinette looked truly happy and that was all Sabine ever wanted since the moment she was born.
Sabine inhaled, tears pooling in her eyes and quickly traveled down her cheeks. Sabine sniffled, a weak smile on her lips as she quickly reached up to wipe away the tears that stained her cheeks with her fingertips.
Marinette widened her eyes at her mother's tears. Her heart squeezed in her chest, and Marinette couldn't keep herself composed anyone.
If was bad that one of her parents were crying, now they both were. It was becoming increasingly difficult.
Marinette bit her lip, her eyes bubbling over with tears as she began to tremble beside her father. She tried to keep her sobs choked into her throat.
She exhaled, pausing as they both reached the end of the aisle. Marinette turned to her father, her cheeks growing red as she withheld soft cries that threatened to spill from her chest.
She closed her eyes, letting go of her father as he leaned forward and pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead. Her lips quivered as she watched her father reluctantly step away so that he could give her away to Adrien.
Adrien carefully reached out to her, to which Marinette delicately placed her hand on his and joined him at the altar.
Marinette pressed her lips together, suddenly feeling aware of all the eyes looking at the both of them.
It was feeling a little awkward if she could say so.
"It looks like we're officially a team..." Marinette whispered, her blue eyes remaining fixated on her parents as they, along with many others, took their seats to witness the ceremony.
Marinette gasped, her heart squeezing in her chest as Adrien gingerly reached over and began to brush Marinette's cold tears from her freckled cheeks with the pads of his thumbs.
"The bug and cat team." Adrien replied, a weak smile etched onto his lips, as the memories from the night before were still evident inside of his mind.
Marinette couldn't say she blamed him, if that were to happen to her moments before her wedding day, she wouldn't have been able to go through with it.
Marinette could see Alya step in behind her and the young woman took a deep inhale. She had slowly turned around to hand her bouquet to Alya, so that she could give her full attention to Adrien in front of her. Her hands trembled in Adrien's palms, as it almost felt like the room was growing more and more crowded.
What made it worse, was that Marinette was well aware of the crowd of people outside of the building waiting to get inside to take photos.
Marinette briefly caught a hired photographer, snapping photos in the middle of the aisle, and from behind Adrien, she could see another person recording straight in her trajectory.
"There's so many people watching. I feel like I'm about to run." Marinette whispered, gulping as she kept her eyes on the camera behind Adrien's head that recorded them both.
"Just keep your eyes on me." Adrien replied back, his voice soft and pliable. He gently squeezed her hands in an attempt to reassure her.
"We are the only two people in this room right now..."
Marinette steadied her breathing, her blue eyes shifting over to Adrien with a fast beating heart.
She tried to repeat that notion in her head.
She wanted to convince herself that they were the only two people in the room.
She knew that Adrien spent his entire life in front of cameras, if there was anyone who knew how to evade or ignore them, it would be Adrien.
It would only make sense to listen to his advice; she had been looking to Adrien since she started walking down the aisle.
But the thought of her looking at the man she loved, and actually marrying him almost made her want to run as well.
But she wanted to look at him.
His green eyes immediately captured hers, and Marinette felt her body grow warm. Her hands immediately gripped onto his, and as Adrien promised- they were the only two people in the room.
His lips were on her...
It wasn't like he had never kissed her before. He had given her friendly kisses on her forehead, and he had even hugged her times before.
There were times he held her in their bed, and held her hand, but for some reason this kiss had meant the world to her.
Sure, it wasn't a traditional kiss anyone would expect for their wedding, but the gesture was nice.
Her cheeks grew red as Adrien placed a tender kiss to them.
Marinette scrunched her nose, hoping that the cheek kiss would suffice enough when Adrien was told to his kiss bride.
They were pronounced husband and wife in front of dozens after all.
The last thing Marinette wanted to do was make it awkward, and she knew that a chaste kiss on the lips in front of many family members, friends and press would only solidify that outcome.
Marinette stood beside him, a small blush on her cheeks as she respectfully bowed to the ground, silently thanking them for the support.
Adrien kept the support on her hand, gently guiding her away from the alter so that they met with their crowd in the ballroom.
Marinette was growing a little antsy, but the sight of the wedding cake almost made her bounce with joy.
She knew the symbol she designed for her parent's bakery from anywhere.
At least there was still a piece of home to comfort her for the night. She absolutley loved her parent's baked goods and she was entirely grateful that she'd be able to enjoy that for the night.
Marinette bounced on her toes, almost ready to run back to her room and change into the dress she promised her mother she'd wear.
She loved her wedding dress, it was beautifully designed and fit her well, but there was something about her grandmother's dress that meant the entire world to her.
Adrien remained silent, his thumb caressing the back of Marinette's hand as he could sense her uneasiness as they both waited for their guests to take their seats.
Being that the wedding was last minute, Marinette didnt expect their friends to speak a heartfelt speech about how long they've been friends and how happy the moment was for them both.
But this wasn't like most weddings.
Marinette could spot the hired caterers walk through the spaces between the tables to place the drinks on to the tables, it was almost like her engagement party all over again.
Her blue eyes landed on the table by the center and Marinette felt her heart race as she could spot Alya, Nino and her parents all seated at the table.
Marinette smiled, her heart squeezing into her chest as she moved, about ready to seat herself at the table with them, but only gasped when Adrien tugged her back.
She frowned, leaning into Adrien with a grimace.
"W-What is it? Our friends are over there." Marinette whispered, her eyes remaining on her parents who held pink cheeks from crying only moments prior.
Marinette furrowed her brow as she witness the lights dim and she only grew smaller the moment she heard soft music play above them.
Her heart withered away inside of her stomach, and Marinette could feel the uncomfortable tingle in her spine.
"P-Please don't tell me we have to do the boring waltz dance I teased about you when we first met..." Marinette pleaded, her voice quivering as she only squeezed his hand tighter.
Adrien glanced down at her briefly before his eyes moved back towards the center ballroom, where the both of them would be on full display for their family, friends and the press.
"It's the first dance of the bride and groom. It's a given." Adrien explained, giving her an apologetic smile. "Remember, just keep your eyes on me, and if you want we can just talk about all the food we're going to eat when this is over."
A small blush crawled across Marinette's cheeks like a herd of hungry fire ants and there was a tightness in her chest that had become incredible.
"Can we skip out on this? I'm sure no one will know what's going on if we just get right to cutting the cake-" Marinette whimpered, her eyes bouncing around the room as she tried to come up with a reasonable way to escape.
The thought of a dozen strangers watching her slow dance with Adrien while everyone toasted to their marriage only put her on edge.
"We have to." Adrien explained, his eyes moving towards the opposing center where Nathalie and Gabriel stood beside one another, watching the couple intensely.
"My father is watching us. You're his daughter-in-law now, if you fuck up - I'm sure he'll yell at us both for it."
Marinette whined, her heart racing in her chest as Adrien gently guided her to the middle of the ballroom floor where they presented themselves to everyone.
"He's got the contract fulfilled. The jewels should be handed over to him in a matter of weeks-" Marinette blushed deeply as Adrien gently guided her hands around his neck.
Her hips grew warm as Adrien placed his hands on her and glanced down at her patiently.
Marinette blinked, her lips parted and for a brief moment she almost lost her trail of thought.
"I-I mean, he should be happy with that, right?" Marinette mused, her blue eyes quickly sought out his in a soft gaze. "We shouldn't have to continue this parading."
Adrien pressed his lips together, his eyes briefly glancing up at his father who began to stare holes through their souls.
"Just follow my lead-" Adrien instructed, his hands gently gripped harder on to her waist, guiding her in a smooth turn.
Marinette widened her eyes, her heart pounding in her chest as she followed him
Her hands gripped on to him, and before she knew it, Adrien had drawn her closer to him.
She exhaled, her eyes closing as she rested against him. It almost felt natural to her.
Marinette exhaled, her body moving against his as he guided her through the ballroom floor amongst the soft sounds of the music. It almost reminded her of the times Adrien held her while they slept.
Marinette could recall the time they all played in the pool, and it was almost like Adrien had a different light to him back then.
Kagami could have been doing this for such a long time behind Adrien's back, and Marinette had the feeling that Adrien knew that. It was likely that thought- that started to eat at Adrien from the inside.
"Are you holding out?" Adrien asked, his voice casting a comfortable vibrating sensation against her temple. "I know it's boring, but I certainly hope you're not falling asleep on me."
Marinette pressed her lips together, too lost in her thoughts to fully invest herself in Adrien's light hearted joke. She genuinely worried for him, she knew he wasn't really feeling this ceremony but Marinette was ashamed to admit that she was quite enjoying this.
Granted, his gestures as well as his warmth and soft spokeness was making it hard for Marinette not to fall asleep.
"I'm alright." Marinette assured, gently drawing back slightly so that she could look him in the eye. "But I'm worried about you."
Adrien furrowed his brow, his eyes growing sullen as he began to wallow in the thought of Kagami's infidelity. It was still unbelievable to him. He had only found out about it the night before and though some people would be in denial, Adrien was beginning to accept it.
He was used to dealing with these things on his own.
"I think I'll live." Adrien explained, keeping his arms wrapped tautly around her. "I know it can feel like the end of the world, but whether we like it or not, life continues on."
Marinette frowned, her heart sinking as she had been where he was. She knew he was used to dealing with these sort of turmoils on his own. It was only natural that he'd put his walls up in an attempt to numb himself.
But being in that position herself, she knew that would only hurt him more.
"I know that's how you feel, that you'll get through with this and move on, but it's alright to let yourself feel. It seems like you're going through the emotions instead of thoroughly enjoying your wedding." Marinette murmured, her heart squeezing in her chest.
Adrien shrugged, their bodies moving slower alongside the music.
"I guess it shouldn't matter. I mean, this is a contracted ceremony after all. I know this should only happen once in a life time, but not under these circumstances."
Marinette shrugged, a small blush dusting across her cheeks as she glanced down at the button on his black tux. She knew it was a contracted ceremony, but Marinette was truly enjoying it.
She got to dance with Adrien, her parents got to make their delicious cake, her dress was designer and soon she'd be wearing her grandmother's traditional dress, she got to witness her parents cry tears of joy and most importantly, she got to marry and dance with the kitty she accidentally fell in love with.
"I guess..." Marinette murmured, her voice trailing off as she began to sulk in her own strong thoughts. "I mean, I was really enjoying the ceremony so far."
Adrien furrowed his brow, a soft chuckle emanating from his throat as he guided her to another turn.
"You are?" He asked, feeling genuinely surprised, especially after witnessing how uncomfortable she was the moment she spotted the cameras.
Marinette nodded, her fingers gently playing with the locks on the back of his neck. She looped her fingers into his hair, the silky strands slid between her fingers with ease.
"Yeah, what ladybug wouldn't be happy?" Marinette murmured, the small blush on her cheeks traveled down towards her neck as her finger moved back towards his hair once more. She lightly ran her fingers through his thick locks, finding the soft strands satisfying against her digits.
"I got to marry the man of my dreams...even if he's the black cat who couldn't fall in love with the ladybug, or even remotely see what she felt for him."
Adrien paused, his heart feeling confined into his chest as Marinette's words seemed to clash straight into his heart. She had seemed so lost in her thought, Adrien almost had to second guess what she had said.
She was the ladybug, that was for sure. He remembered that she had called him the black cat only moments after he had came up with her nickname.
Adrien had a hunch that Marinette may have had something for him, and it was only now that all the pieces started to fall together.
He recalled the notion Alya mentioned before that one of her friends had feelings for him. He only ever knew Marinette.
He recalled the hypothetical question Marinette had pitched, asking if he thought animals could fall in love with insects.
This whole time Adrien had believed it to be Luka, but as the gears in his head turned, he started to believe that wasn't the case. This was especially after Marinette had confessed to him that it wasn't Luka and that there was someone else in the picture.
"W-What?" Adrien breathed out, his eyes remaining fixated on her face as the words she had confessed to him only swam in his head, only making him more confused.
Marinette blinked, her heart picking up the pace within her chest as she only then realised what she had said.
Surely, Adrien couldn't have picked up those pieces yet.
"Huh?" She mused, almost still in her trance as she barely noticed that they had stopped dancing.
Marinette remained close to him, her eyes moving away from Adrien as she didn't even realise the song drew to a close.
Adrien gently released Marinette, blushing as the noises of their guests applauding their dance as man and wife had finally started to permeate through his thoughts.
Marinette reached up, rubbing her cheeks with a small blush as she hoped she didn't make things awkward.
She trusted how dense Adrien was, she figured he wouldn't catch on, if she did say what she meant to say.
The young woman jumped the moment she felt someone tap her shoulder.
She bit her lip, her hand touching her chest as Chloe stood behind her with an odd smile.
"Ready to change before the reception starts?" Chloe asked, her eyes flickering towards Adrien as the lights began to brighten up again. "Surely you'd love to wear your traditional dress before you cut the cake and make the toasts."
Marinette exhaled, her hand rubbing at her chest plate as she tried to calm her heart. She pressed her lips together, her blush only growing deeper as she nodded.
"Y-Yeah." She breathed, briefly forgetting that Adrien was standing behind her. "I should get changed."
Marinette glanced back at Adrien who looked at Chloe and then back at Marinette with a blank expression.
"Don't worry, I'll probably go out onto the roof patio, I'm feeling a little clammy. I need a bit of fresh air..."
Marinette frowned, her heart aching as her love confession didn't go as well as she planned. In fact, it wasn't what she wanted to do at all.
She stumbled back, a small whimper on her lips as Chloe grabbed at her wrist and began to tug her towards the doors where she knew the elevators were so that they could return to her suite.
Marinette clutched on to her towel, her eyes remained on the ground as her toes pressed on to the cool tiles of the spacious bathroom floor.
The last thing Marinette wanted to do was take a shower in the middle of the reception, but Chloe had caked her hair in so much hairspray, it had been way too stiff to restyle her hair to her traditional dress.
"I...I kinda wanted to do this when I got home." Marinette whimpered, her voice echoing throughout the bathroom.
The warm shower steam had began to cloud the entire area.
"Can't I just put my head under water?" Marinette asked, glancing back at Chloe who shut the bathroom door behind her.
"I really don't want to waste anymore time-"
"Don't be silly!" Chloe exclaimed, her hands hooking onto the hems of the towel and quickly yanking it off of Marinette in one mighty tug.
Marinette gasped, her eyes widening as she stumbled towards the shower.
"Chloe!" She screeched, her hands immediately rushing towards her intimate areas in hopes to cover them. "What are you doing?! I'm naked!"
"Well duh-" Chloe scoffed, pressing her hand into Marinette's back and shoving her into the shower. "You're not going to shower with your clothes on. We have to wash you off completely so that I have new canvas to work with."
Chloe reached up towards the shower head, lightly picking it off the holder.
Marinette stumbled awkwardly into the bathroom, screeching as Chloe began to obnoxiously spray her with the water.
The blunette awkwardly turned over so that Chloe could only see her backside.
"I can do this myself!" Marinette exclaimed. "You're spraying me like a wild animal! Just get my hair!"
Chloe giggled, continuing to spray Marinette obnoxiously despite Marinette's screams of reprimanding.
"What's that?" The blonde teased, spraying the back of Marinette's head. "I can't hear you!"
