*Uncovered Mask*

*WARNING THIS CHAPTER GETS SAUCYY*

"I wanna lay here, lost and bitter,

So long, I feel like I could die,

I wanna tell you what my truth is,

But it's buried down inside…"

~Chapter Five~

But everything changed when his lips met hers.

They pulled away, looking in each others eyes almost as if searching for acceptance. Adrien kissed her again, this time harder and with more passion. Marinette gladly accepted it.

Before they knew it, his hands were in her hair, her hands gripped his back and she groaned into his mouth as she was pressed against the wall. His hands went to hold her hips, the only thing actually holding her up was him and his hands that roughly grasped onto her thighs, leaving slight red marks through his joggers. Adrien propelled his leg to hold her up, and took off his, or now its hers, hoodie off her. She only had an undershirt, so at first, she was shy of having her skin revealed, but as Adrien's lips went down to her neck, all caution thought left her mind as her eyelids fluttered closed and her mouth opened in a silent moan. His teeth nicked at her sensitive skin while his lips sucked at it, not caring if he left a mark. If anything, he wanted to leave one… Marinette held his face in her hands and suddenly made him look at her, as if telling him to slow down. To savor the moment...

She leaned in and smiled with genuine joy. She couldn't believe it, Adrien Agreste was kissing her. "I don't deserve this..."

Speechless at her beauty and her comment, he felt his chest tighten at the love in her eyes and barely had the clear mind to process her words. Before he could answer, she kissed him again slowly taking time to explore each other's mouths. Their hearts soared, and he suddenly chuckled. Marinette looked at him confused and he shook his head with a grin, "If anyone is unworthy, it's me."

She scoffed and was about to reply when he suddenly turned around and threw her on her pink, and soft futon. "Ah! Adrien!"

He slowly climbed on her bed playfully on all fours, giving her a smoldering look that made her core chill in anticipation. He smirked at her as she bit her lip, "What? Cat got your tongue?"

She giggled and grabbed him by the collar, flicking his cat bell for a second,then sitting up and pulling him close to her, having him on top of her. She whispered seductively, "Not yet, actually. I don't know what my kitty is waiting for."

Adrien practically purred at Marinette and his hands found their way to her hips once again, pushing her down on her back. He looked at her, practically drinking her in as he undressed her with his intense, greeneyes. "Purrfect..."

She blushed under his stare and then he leaned in, planting a sweet and savoring kiss upon her pink full lips. He groaned into the kiss, and pulled away for a second, "Wait."

She pulled away, panting. "What is it?"

He smiled, "Can't have any of this magic leather standing in the way, can we?" He caressed her cheek as he spoke, "Plagg, claws in."

Marinette frowned, she hadn't thought of Tikki. Hopefully, she went downstairs to the empty house and away from us. Plagg blinked, recognizing them and recognizing the situation. He rolled his eyes, "I'm gonna go find Tikki."

She giggled as Adrien chuckled, and leaned in again to capture her lips with hers. She gasped when his hands wandered under her shirt, only touching and caressing her back as he kissed her deeply and laid on top of her. Yes, his hands were wandering, but he made sure not to go far, he could never live with himself if something bad had happened between them in the future and he had taken 'advantage'. Marinette slowly peeled away his white jacket, and bit his bottom lip as she pulled away from the kiss, and pecked down his jaw, kissing and starting to suckle on his neck.

Adrien groaned, "Oh god..."

She giggled, nibbling on him, and when he finally stopped exclaiming since he got used to the feeling, she playfully bit him on the shoulder and he practically growled her name in a warning tone. "Marinette..."

"Adrien?"

He suddenly pulled away, pinning her arms above her head and he scowled and looked at her in the most lustful yet adoration-filled way, "Don't push it, princess."

"And if I do?" She smirked, loving the somewhat power shift and what she was doing to him. To tease him, she slightly rolled her hips upwards and he slightly shivered.

"Trust me, you won't be able to handle it..." That sentence had left her breathless, but she simply grinned and raised an eyebrow.

"Wanna bet?" She leaned up, inching closer and he simply shook his head, grinning. He leaned in, giving her one more kiss, slow and simple before he lay beside her, large sheepish smiles plastered on both faces.

"Adrien?"

"Yes?"

"I love you..."

Adrien stayed silent, but nonetheless reached for Marinette's hand, and they intertwined fingers. Neither said a word, almost afraid to break the special moment. And so it was, that they had fallen asleep that evening holding each other.

Marinette turned onto her pillow, but it felt harder than usual. She opened her eyes, and slightly lifted her head. Her blue orbs widened, it was Adrien's chest. She had almost forgotten about last night, and she yawned. "That was not expected."

Adrien stretched, waking up at the movement and chuckled, his morning voice hoarse, "Morning, Marinette." He rolled over, smiling at her whilst still half-asleep.

"Morning, kitty." She ruffled his hair, and laughed. She sat up to stretch, and groaned, "Is the fever gone?"

"I guess, yeah, I feel way better." He stood up, getting off the bed and went to his to get his jacket for his phone. He pulled it out, and his eyes widened when he checked the time. "Marinette, we're late for school, we gotta go!"

"Oh, crap!" She jumped up, almost falling but managed not to. They took turns showering and dressing -without looking- and ran out the house, running by Marinette's parents too quickly for them to notice the teenage boy's presence.

They rushed down the street with their hands joined, and when they had barged into the classroom, they had forgotten their hands were held together and almost the whole class gasped. Both of the teenagers blushed, the teacher scolding them for being late as well. They sat in their designated seats, staying silent as their best friends smugly smiled at both of them.

Alya looked to Marinette, "Did you two-"

Nino raised an eyebrow at his best friend, "Did you guys-"

In unison, they disrupted the class with their answers:

"Of course not!"

"No, Nino!"

The teacher looked at them, frowning as a sign of warning.

"Sorry..."

"It won't happen again, miss."

School passed by quickly, the only abnormal thing being Chloe being grumpier and meaner than usual. All day, she complained about the two teenagers, and it nerved them, but they got through it together.

Gabriel Agreste sat in his office, through the book of that held all the secrets and answers to the miraculous. He got a beep on his intercom, indicating his assistant Natalie wanting to speak to him.

"Speak, Natalie."

"Well, it says here you wanted to get Nathaniel to- well-"

"Whatever it says, Natalie, it means that I had put it there."

"But-"

"But what, Natalie?"

"Are you sure you want to do this to Marinette, Mr. Agreste?"

"Yes."

"But what for, may I ask?"

"Don't ask questions, just do what you're told."

He hung up on her, muttering to himself. "Incompetent girl..."

After school, the four best friends had walked out of the building happily and chattering about the developing relationship between Adrien and Marinette.

Nino chuckled and shook his head at the blonde, "I can't believe it took you that long to finally ask her out."

Alya nodded in agreement, and the couple just blushed.

"Well, I'm glad he finally did." Marinette seemed to glow from happiness in the moment, smiling at her two closest friends and possible future boyfriend.

"Me too..." Laughing, Adrien pulled out his ringing phone to see it was his father. "Hey, guys, gotta take this. Be right back... Hello?"

The three nodded in understanding, and Marinette looked to Alya, seeing her blush slightly as Nino laughed at her joke. She elbowed her friend, and signaled her, shifting her eyes between Nino and her whilst making sure he didn't notice. Alya glared at her, but couldn't resist a small smile.

Adrien walked back with a wide grin, "Hey guys, guess what. You aren't gonna believe this..."

"What happened?" Marinette smiled back, looking confused along with her friends.

"Well, to my surprise, my dad is actually hosting a ball tonight."

Nino scoffed, "No way. You're joking, right man?"

Marinette gasped, "A ball? Wow, that's so formal… That means I have to go shopping."

"Nope. Completely telling the truth here." He grinned at the three whom were still in disbelief, but after a few seconds, Alya smiled.

"At least we'll have a chance to party! And on a school night? Even better!"

Nino smirked at the tan-skinned girl and draped an arm around her shoulder, "We're going together, right?"

"Of course, but we should discuss this later on, come with me dress shopping?"

"Sure."

Wrapped in their own little world, the tan couple walked away from the school.Adrien looked to her, and held Marinette's hands in hers and grinned, "You'll come with me to the ball, right?"

"Hmm..." Marinette pretended to ponder, "I don't know, I was honestly hoping to-"

He pulled her closer, raising an eyebrow, "You're kidding, right?"

Marinette giggled, "Nah, not really."

"I'll pick you up at seven?"

"Sure." She tried not to blush, but nevertheless she was ecstatic.

"It's a date." Adrien winked, and walked into his car where Gorilla was waiting for him. Squealing and excitingly ranting to Tikki the whole way, Marinette walked to the mall to search for a dress to blow her date's mind away.

She couldn't blink, she couldn't risk a look around her, or it'd all go to waste. This part was crucial and if gone wrong, would wreck every teenage girl's dream. The putting on of mascara was the most fatal part of increasing the beauty process, otherwise known as administering make-up.

With her tongue on her top lip, Marinette finished applying the last of her mascara on her eyelashes. "All done, what do you think, Tikki?"

She turned around with a bright, yet small smile. She had done her make-up in a natural way, slightly touching up her eyebrows and blush, and only adding the touch of pink lipgloss and, of course, mascara. She hadn't put her dress on yet, and for good measure too because she had made a mess of herself with all the fancy make-up materials.

Tikki beamed, "You look great, Marinette. I'm sure Adrien will love it! But, don't you think the red and black dre-"

"Don't worry, Tikki. No one would ever suspect clumsy, little Marinette." She laughed to herself, reassuring her kwami. The small red creature nodded, but frowned to herself as Marinette went to get herself dressed.

Adrien ruffled his hair as he grinned to himself, waiting for Marinette outside the bakery with a limo at their service. Plagg peaked out of his tux's pocket, "You seem eager."

"Yeah, I mean, for once it seems my dad is lightening up. Plus, all my friends will be there."

"Including Marinette, huh?"

"Well that's… That's complicated, right now. She's not just a great friend, but-"

He stopped in mid-sentence, eyes widening and mouth agape. Plagg smirked, "Looks like someone is drooling~"

Marinette blushed, her rosy cheeks complimenting her dress. It was a two piece, her top a black sleeveless and lacy crop-top-like covering, and the bottom was tight but long, showing her curve and long legs with a split down the side. The color of red along with black polka dots absorbed in the fabric that was her dress. Her hair was done in a braided crown while the rest of her hair flowed down in a wild river of curls. Her bluebell eyes were enhanced with mascara, her lips shiny and appearing delectable with the gloss, and looking gorgeous overall.

He stuttered, "M-Marinette… You look, you look-"

Her hand went up to her hair, playing with one of the loose strands in self-consciousness as she looked at the ground. "I know, it looks like Ladybug, huh? I didn't mean to-"

His hand went to hers, taking it in his and gently grabbing her chin, making her eyes meet his. "No… All you remind me of is how much of a fool I've been with not realizing how you really are…"

"Well, you obviously dress to impress."

She bit her lip. The moment she had stepped out of the bakery, she had started internally screaming. Her eyes had raked over his black form, his tux making him look even more ravishing. His hair, even though normally neat, was only a little messier than usual yet looking formal at the same time. His shoes were converse and showing his childish, rebellious side. His green eyes sparkled in the sunlight, and as it set, it made them brighter as the two green orbs raked over her eyes.

"Oh please, m'lady. You flatter me."

She blushed at the comment, her eyes widening but her smile as well. They stood there, sharing a wondrous moment beneath the setting sun, a moment of lust, love, and amazement. Plagg scoffed, "Can you guys hurry up? I'm missing out on Camembert right now!"

Sighing, Adrien tucked Plagg away, triggering muffled screams. He then opened the limo door, and smiled. "Your chariot awaits, princess."

She giggled. "Off to the ball we go."

Adrien and Marinette had seemed to show up early. Going through the registration, they walked up the steps gracefully. Their ascend up seemed slower as she felt him place his hand on hers, and she blushed. The doors opened revealing an impassive Gabriel Agreste, still in his signature outfit. He seemed surprised for a moment to see the girl on the arm of his own son, but regained his posture immediately. "Marinette Dupain-Cheng, in the arms of my very own son, Adrien Agreste. Why, I never thought I'd see the day."

She smiled politely, "Neither did I, sir. I-"

"Is she your girlfriend, Adrien?" Marinette refused to scoff at his disregard and only decided to remain smiling. Which was very hard to do on her part.

The words hit Adrien fast and sharp, angering him from the disregard at Marinette, and almost as if wanting to test his answer, both Gabriel and her awaited his response. They weren't officially dating personally, but as far as everyone else knew, yes. That was their cover, right? Adrien himself didn't even know anymore... He swallowed the lump in his throat, still calculating his answer. He didn't want to test his father, but instead decided to be honest. Honesty is the best policy, correct?

"Yes, father. She is. That's okay, right?" Adrien stared up at his father, almost challenging him to be rude to his 'girlfriend'. As other guests walked by them, they seemed to share a silent argument before Gabriel Agreste sighed, then held out his hand to Marinette.

"Pleasure to meet you once again, Miss Dupain-Cheng. Enjoy your evening at the Agreste Mansion." Again, she smiled and shook his hand.

"Thank you, Mr. Agreste. I certainly will." As the two teenagers walked away, he turned briefly and powered on his bluetooth to speak to his assistant,

"Nathalie, there's been a change of plans."

"What is it you want to do, sir?"

"Get me Chloe Bourgeois."

Her arm was in his when it came to both couples, their hearts conjoined in mind and spirit as they laughed at each other's silly jokes and puns. The four friends stood by the buffet tables, joking and laughing as the rest of the party guests danced and enjoyed themselves. It was a lively event and everyone had dressed up just for the occasion. Next to the dining room in the Agreste mansion, lied a huge ballroom with tables along the wall and only the best DJ, with his setup, on one side of the room money could buy. Alya had chosen an elegant yet casual dress, the slightly darker than orange shade complementing her features well. The dress itself plunged at the neck with a narrow V-like shape and tied at the waist, which she accessorized with a long necklace in the center of her chest and a brace around her upper arm. She had also pinned up her ombre hair in a bun, styled messily with a few strands framing her face. Her date, Nino had actually only dressed in a formal waistcoat, his vest silver and sleeves white, and an orange tie to match Alya, though not forgetting his signature headphones around his neck. He had his cap taken off and had actually styled and cut his hair, making his hair fade into a medium length and textured do. They complimented each other's looks upon first greeting, and then excitedly buzzed about all the things they wanted to accomplish at the party.

Conversation had strayed quickly, the group suddenly switching to the topic of what to eat on the friends' minds. The four went to grab plates and utensils, and as they wandered down the meals available to them, Alya's eyes widened at the sight of a purple bruise-like area just on the curve of where her neck and shoulder met. At first, she wanted to be discreet, but she smirked to herself as a small idea devised in her head. Suddenly, Marinette's best friend gasped, "Marinette! How could you, you heathen?"

The slight yell had caught a couple people's attention for a moment, but they turned back disinterested in the little scene. Alya rolled her eyes, being cautious to make sure nobody else saw. Adrien and Nino walked over, having been separated since letting the girls have first pick at the available food because of 'their chivalry'. Adrien furrowed his eyebrows and Nino placed a hand on the tan girl's shoulder, silently questioning her small outburst.

"Alya? What's wrong?" The raven-haired girl's furrowed in genuine concern. To her knowledge, she hadn't done anything wrong. At least, she didn't remember doing anything wrong.

The girl shook her head in mock disapproval, and crossed her arms as she smirked, then spoke quietly, "So, when exactly were you gonna tell me that Prince Charming over here likes to leave little love marks all over your neck?"

Both Adrien and Marinette immediately blushed, their red embarrassment creeping up their necks. They hadn't told them any of their… encounters, but as a best friend, Alya would at least want to know they've kissed. Nino only grinned at his girlfriend's remark, seeing through her little facade. He really did love her.

Marinette squealed, "A-Alya! How can you be so blunt?"

Nino chuckled, "Oh, come on, dude, relax." His hand patted his blonde friend's, and smirked as well. "We're all friends here." He wasn't wrong, they were all friends. And friends loved to share little details like these with each other, not to brag, but to reminisce. Adrien hadn't informed Nino either, seeming to want to keep those things between themselves. He still didn't see the point or reason people shared those things with one another, it seemed ignominious.

"Besides, I'm your best friend. I live for your embarrassment, as long as it's the good, funny kind." Alya patted her friend on the back, the two smiling at each other and continuing to pick their food. "We'll cover it up a little later, no one will notice for now."

When they had finished, as well as the boys, they stood around for an awkward moment, not sure where to sit and eat. Seeing four empty seats on a single table near the dance floor, Adrien led his friends there and sat with them. They started eating, making conversation every now and then, but solely focused on eating.

After finishing her food, she wiped her mouth and hands clean with a napkin, but still feeling a little dirty, she excused herself to the restroom. "I'll be right back, you guys."

About to enter the dinner area, Chloe Bourgeois stood in her way and she scoffed, crossing her arms. "What do you want, Chloe?"

She frowned, Sabrina by her side and looked Mari up and down, acting disgusted, "I don't want you sitting next to Adrikins, that's for sure."

Rolling her eyes, Marinette sighed, "If he really liked you, you shouldn't worry about that right now. Besides, I need to use the restroom, so…" She walked past, but Sabrina caught her arm, and frowned at her.

"You'll get what's coming to you, Dupain-Cheng." She shoved her off, and made her way outside the ballroom.

Marinette walked through the dining room, finding herself lost within the large house of the Agreste family. She finally found one small bathroom beneath the stairwell and proceeded to enter. Opening the door to the restroom, she went in, closing it behind her. She turned on the faucet, washing her hands and drying them. Turning off the sink, she smiled at her reflection and decided to fix her hair a little, but suddenly the restroom door burst open, scaring her. She turned, and looked at the intruder in confusion. "Nathaniel? What are you doing here?"

Over the years, Nathaniel had always kept his look, and only seemed to buff out a little bit. He was taller, leaner, and more tortured as a comic artist. He seemed to have it rough, but he was always a swell guy. Though, tonight was a different story.

Time went by slowly as he abruptly leaned in, pressing her against the wall next to the bathroom door, and anyone who walked in would definitely see. She squealed in surprise as his hands went to her hips, keeping her in place. His eyes seemed regretful, but that didn't seem to stop him from doing his placed her hands on top of his, trying to take them off her to no avail. "Nathaniel, please, stop. This isn't right. I don't want thi-"

His lips smashed against hers, cutting off her sentence and her screams, flailing and hitting his chest, struggling to be free of him. He only tried to kiss her deeper, his tongue pressing against her closed lips to explore her mouth, but she only squirmed more. Digging his nails into her side, she gasped in pain which caused his tongue to finally enter her mouth. She cringed, her eyes tearing up as she felt her arms be held by his, unable to move and unable to defend herself. His lips tasted like bitter wine, the cheap kind too. Marinette moved her arms, wriggling, doing anything to stop this.

From a bit away, Chloe smirked and zoomed in, taking a picture. "Adrikins won't be happy about this, but funny enough…" She typed in the famous fashion designer's number, and sent the image, as instructed. "Gabriel will."

*Well, well, now we're gonna keep some secrets for now… Sorry to do this, but for now we'll keep you guys in suspense!*

*Asylum 3*