*Ding*
Marinette: Alya I have to disappear for an hour, can you cover for me please?
Alya: Sure, the lads are glued to that thing!
Marinette: Meet me in the kitchen?
Alya: Bedroom, the window is bigger.
The ladies both got up from their respective sofas, situated behind where the men had taken up residence on two beanbags. They were engrossed in the latest Ultimate Mega Strike game that Nino had purchased only a few days ago.
"We're just going for girl talk," Alya told Nino and Adrien, not looking at at her, Nino acknowledged her with a grunt as Marinette rolled her eyes at them. The pair entered the bedroom, and Alya turned to Marinette, who spoke in hushed tones.
"I need to speak to Chat to break off our agreement."
"Let me guess-" Alya gestured her head to the door they had just come through. "-Agreste Junior is growing on you." She smirked at her friend and quirked her eyebrows.
They sat down on the foot of the bed, it was not surprising how much of Alya's belongings had found residence in the small but tidy space. Photographs hung on the wall, from their school years and years following, next to a notice board with bits of paper attached, in no particular order.
"Not exactly," Alya looked surprised at Marinette's uncertain expression.
"Then what is it?" Alya asked, demanding an answer from her friend.
Marinette put her face in her hands, exasperated with the words which were no doubt about to tumble out. Her words came out muffled, "IkindofhadamomentorseveralwithChatasMEnot...as...Ladybug"
Alya's eyes became wide as she exclaimed "I KNEW IT!" Suddenly putting her hands over her mouth as she had realised how loud she had said her words. "Sorry," she hushed while grimacing at an alarmed Marinette.
"Fuck sake Alya, could you be any louder!"
"I'm sorry girl, but I told you this!" Almost bouncing with excitement, Alya had a gleeful smile. "What has he said to you?"
"That he was going to speak to Ladybug about revealing his identity to me..." Marinette lay back on the bed with a mixture of defeat, uncertainty, embarrassment and being hopelessly mortified that she had found herself in this situation.
"Girl, that's fucked up."
Alya had summed the situation up perfectly, as she lay back joining Marinette.
"I feel bad but I don't think I can bring this all up at patrol tonight...I know I need to speak to him but I can't find the right words..." Marinette trailed off, troubling her bottom lip.
"Why don't you send him a message," Alya started, looking at her ceiling. "And tell him you'll be around if there is an Akuma."
"I could do, but I can't make a habit of shirking my responsibilities." Marinette rolled her eyes. "I'll offer to do tomorrow on my own."
"Or I could do it," Alya offered.
"Yeah maybe," Marinette furrowed her brow, as she debated different possibilities in her head.
"I'll go and keep the boys occupied, while you send him a message." Alya stood up, and approached the door, "don't worry, you won't be disturbed."
Marinette smiled at Alya, what would Marinette do without her? How lucky she had been when Alya had joined their class, and they had become inseparable ever since. "Thank you."
With that, Alya left Marinette alone for her to transform, and send a message to Chat explaining she was not up to patrol tonight. Marinette figured that if Adrien was still in the other room with the others, he could not be Chat Noir anyway, as he would have needed to make his own excuses to disappear. Not sure if this would be a relieving thought, Marinette pondered the recent changes in her situation.
Realistically, her and Chat could have a secret relationship, but the guilt, aside from the danger aspect, she would feel after using him for sex as her alter ego could cause problems for her morally. Until this point, it had not even crossed her mind, that Chat had been the boyfriend she did not want or pursue, but still ended up having. Knowing how he had felt for her as her alter ego for so long, dismissing his advances for years, then asking him to join her in a purely physical capacity, had been a wholly selfish act. An act, that although enjoyable, had given her a headache on many occasions. The way he had so blatantly hoped it would become something more, had weighed heavily for some time, until he had finally seemed to let his hope fade.
They were best friends, in a strange way. Finding out in depth as herself, his limited personal relations growing up, had given her more cause for guilt. It would appear that Ladybug had been Chat's closest friend for many years, possibly giving reason to how determined he had been. Would he think she had purposefully lured him in as both guises, to monopolise him? Had she done it on a subconscious level with out realising it herself?
To make this more complicated, her feelings for him were strong, oh so very strong. Why had Marinette not realised this until now though. Could it be because her focus had been on getting her own personal goals achievable, before being able to consider mushy lovey dovey possibilities? Yes. Had she been too selfish? No, not consciously. Having to remind herself, Marinette, needed to remember, that no matter how this looked, she had not planned on doing this to him. He meant too much to her two sides, Marinette would just have to hope he could understand that, when the truth did finally come out.
Placing Chat to one side for just a moment, her consideration turned to Agreste, to Adrien. Could he be her Chat? The idea was not absurd.
He already had this familiar feel to him, and had been able to spend time with her, without really having to put much effort in. Adrien was able to talk to her easily, he had encroached on her personal space, surprisingly yes, but admittedly not uncomfortably. Was she connecting dots that were not there, were the similarities just coincidences? Marinette could not deny that his company was welcome, that he had stirred feelings in her. Was she hoping he was her Chat? Yes, because that would make everything so much easier.
Oh Mari, what have you gotten yourself into?
Transforming back into her civilian self, Tikki popped up and sat on her holders lap.
"Here you go Tikki," Marinette brought a cookie out of her bag for the Kwami.
"Thank you," Tikki looked troubled, "Marinette, I know you'll find the words to say when you see Chat Noir."
"Thank you Tikki."
"And I'm sure it will all work out as it should." A confident smile rested on the little Kwami's face, as she gazed at the door leading to the living area.
"I hope so Tikki," Marinette followed the gaze of her Kwami. "Do you think it would even be possible to have a relationship with a civilian?" Debating her feelings towards Adrien, Marinette wondered if it would even be sensible to contemplate the emotions he had stirred within her.
"I think you should see what happens Marinette." Tikki munched on her cookie thoughtfully, "anything is possible, if you want it to be." Tikki floated up to Marinette's eye level, with a more stern look about her, "but you do need to speak to Chat soon, you need to be honest with him."
"So it's decided!" Alya was determined, much to Marinette's dismay, that they were having an impromptu sleepover. On a work night.
"Alya I don't even have any clothes with me!" Marinette grumbled, as Alya through her an oversized Jagged Stone t-shirt. "And Adrien's got a photo shoot-"
"Hey!" Adrien playfully chastised Marinette. "I am more than capable of getting my beauty sleep," he laughed as he helped Nino bring bedding into the living area.
"Dude!" Nino chimed in, "My man has never had a sleepover! Don't spoil his fun!"
"Your man?" Alya smirked at her excited boyfriend. "Ive got clothes here you can use."
"As long as I'm not seen as a bad influence, I would quite like to keep my internship thank you!"
"I've text Nathalie," Adrien checked his phone, "I've pointed out that I'm an adult-" Alya snorted, "-and that makeup works wonders." He threw a pillow at Alya who feigned annoyance with his actions.
Marinette had emerged from the bedroom, to find Adrien had popped to the shop to get sleepover snacks and some other provisions. Alya had informed her that the men had decided they wanted to have a sleepover, to give Adrien an experience he had never had before. To play video games late into the night, and have some 'male bonding' time, so Alya had insisted on Marinette staying too. Alya had argued that she did not want to be the third wheel to the fast paced budding bromance.
Finding her self now, wearing make shift pyjamas, positioned on the smaller of the two sofas, Marinette had been reluctantly beenroped into participating in this sleepover.
"What else normally happens at sleepovers?" Adrien asked with a boyish excitement in his voice. He picked up the bags he had brought back from the shop, and started to empty the contents on the coffee table, which had been pushed to the side of the room to accommodate the two beanbags that had been placed in front of the television. "I've got, chocolate, chips, dips, wine-"
"I'll get glasses," Alya stated as she exited to the kitchen.
"-sweets...and toothbrushes!" Looking very proud, Adrien passed a bright pink toothbrush to Marinette.
"Thanks," she smiled coyly. "You really did think of everything." Turning to Alya, who had brought in four wine glasses and bowls from the kitchen, Marinette looked slightly uncomfortable. "Do you have any spare...erm...underwear?" Marinette's eyes wide, trying in vain, to hint at something of a slightly more delicate nature.
"Ooo, yes," obviously Alya had got the hint. "Come with me."
The girls left the room, as the boys finished setting up.
"Dude, you're gonna be fucked in the morning!" Nino laughed as he sunk into a beanbag, "I think Alya is going to make this as authentic as possible!"
"What do you mean?" Adrien sat on the arm of the sofa, as he poured wine into the glasses.
"She'll be suggesting games, left, right and centre before you know it," Nino chuckled at the excited look on Adrien's face. "No doubt it'll end up with truth or dare!"
"Sounds like fun! Count me in." His green eyes sparkled with anticipation, as the ladies rejoined them.