24 October 2020

Prompt: Teeth

Character/Pairing: Dingo King (OC), Luka Couffaine, Marinette Dupain-Cheng; Lukanette

Rating: T / PG-13 / Teen

Notes: I made a mistake & made it sound like Marinette knew for certain what kissing Dingo was like, and Mal asked, and it maybe ran away from me. Took a couple sprints for this one because Makeouts. xD (I'm trying to catch up on these, y'all, but I've been incredibly sick all week and writing has just…not happened.)

Marinette grits her teeth together. She's trying to keep a pleasant smile on her face, but by the way the two girls immediately scoot over to the left and hand their money to Brielle, she's pretty sure she hasn't succeeded.

It's not her fault, though.

It's Ginger's.

Ginger, who was the lead president/chair/whatever of the student government. Ginger, who had recommended all students most participate in the Fall Festival (even going so far as to suggest they be graded on their performance!), to encourage student morale. Ginger, who had seen a trashy American teenage romcom that featured a couple getting together over a kissing booth and had suggested that (the kissing booth) as the terminale contribution to the school's upcoming student fundraising festival. Ginger, who had spent the past ten minutes slipping cash into the jar in front of Luka Couffaine to monopolize his required time at the booth.

…fucking Ginger, who was currently pressing her tongue against Luka's tightly-sealed lips in an attempt to coax him into a deeper kiss.

"You need to calm down," Brielle tells her, placing what she knows is supposed to be a comforting hand on her arm. "I can hear your teeth grinding."

"I am calm," Marinette snaps. Brielle's eyebrows lift, but she says nothing as she looks back across the aisle. Because Ginger is vindictive like that: she set the seconde snack stand up directly across from the kissing booth, knowing Marinette would be manning it. And no one can convince Marinette it wasn't intentional, because ever since the little hussy had shown up she's been shooting smug little smirks her way. Because Marinette had been forced to sit directly across from her b…friend and watch people smooch him all morning.

And she had thought she was done with the Chloé Bourgeoises of the world when she left Françoise Dupont behind…

And it's not like she should even care! It's just Luka. Just her friend. She has no claim to his lips. She has no reason to be upset if he kisses anyone else. It's not like she's in love with him. Not like she has been for a long time now.

…it's not like she's been too afraid she missed her chance with him to act on it.

So why should she care if Luka's jar is almost overflowing with money? If anything, she should just be upset that people are taking advantage of the opportunity to accost one of the most popular guys in school! Yeah, exactly! And she doesn't feel bad for Luka: she feels bad for Dingo! Because Luka had forced Dingo to join him at the booth when Ginger had assigned him to it, so he wouldn't be suffering alone all morning, but…

…well. No one seems to want to pay to kiss Dingo King, and that's just sad. It has to be a blow to his (admittedly over-inflated) ego. Or maybe it's because the snack stand is directly across from them, Brielle had volunteered to help Marinette run things, and she's been sitting there glaring at every poor soul that has tried to pay for a Dingo kiss.

Her attention is snapped back to the booth as Ginger leans back on the table and reaches into her purse. She's pouting at Luka, who just looks…annoyed. Like he's going to use the rest of the weekend to sleep off this horrible experience. (If they were older, she would say like he could use a stiff drink – or a dozen – to forget the feel of the little hussy's lips.)

"Lulu, I can keep this up all day," Ginger purrs, brushing some of her carrot-orange hair out of her face. Luka's lips press together, and she simpers as she drops some more money into his jar. Marinette wonders if she's choosing to ignore the obvious way Dingo rolls his eyes and gags from where he's slumped over the table beside them. "I'm not giving up until I know what you taste like, mon coeur."

Marinette's not sure if it's what she's just said or the nauseated look on Luka's face, but she snaps.

Brielle jumps back as Marinette's hands slap onto the table.

"Marinette, what the hell -?!" she starts, but Marinette is already stomping across the aisle, her hand rooting through her purse. She barely hears Tikki's squeak or feels her kwami dive out of the way, and honestly they're both lucky she doesn't accidentally grab her instead when she drops the fistful of money into Dingo's jar. Dingo jerks up, his sunglasses of the day (a heart-shaped pair Rose had found him to match the booth) slipping down his nose as he blinks wide brown eyes at her. Luka's mouth twists a bit tighter, his face turning an interesting color as his eyes narrow at Dingo's jar.

"M-Mari, what…what'cha doing, baby girl?" Dingo chokes, and Marinette grabs his face in her hands.

"You've been sitting in this hot sun for almost three hours now, Dingo," she tuts. "You deserve something for all your hard work."

So she hauls him out of his seat, halfway across the table, and slams her mouth against his own. And it's…it's honestly not the best kiss she's ever had, but it's pretty much par for the course. (All of her kisses so far have been in the heat of battle, usually trying to snap Chat Noir out of some sort of brainwashing, and none of them have been enjoyable or what she thinks kissing someone should actually be like.) His lips maybe have a bit too much chapstick on them, and he maybe yelps at the surprise kiss so her lips maybe catch on his teeth, but she holds on and wills him to go with it, but he just stands there frozen until she groans and pulls away. If she's glaring at him when she does, she doesn't really think that's her fault.

"Marinette, what the fuck –" Luka starts, but Ginger's high-pitched laughter and Dingo's Deer in the Headlights look and the feel of Brielle's glare on her back make her realize she's just been very Stupid, and her face is burning as she shoves Dingo back into his seat and runs away.

What the hell had she just done?

– V –

She finds an empty classroom on the far side of the school and wedges herself between the wall and a supply cabinet in the back. She tells herself she just needs a minute, or twenty, before she can go back to the booth and face the others. She tells herself she should just go home, because there's only a few more hours left in the festival, and Brielle can manage the snack stand on her own, and does she really want to face any of them so soon?

She's not expecting any of them to come looking for her, though it shouldn't surprise her when she hears Luka's voice coming from the hall. She wedges herself in tighter and prays he won't find her.

He's always been so in tune with her, though. It also shouldn't surprise her when he opens the door to the classroom, her name dying on his lips when he spots her in the back.

"Go away," she mumbles, but he's already on his knees beside her and tugging her against his chest. She fights him only a little, but his arms have always been her safest place and it's too easy to relax against him. "Luka."

"I don't know if I just fell more in love with you or I want to strangle you," he chuckles, and she freezes as his hand slips into her hair. He holds her closer, and her heart stutters a little when his lips press against the top of her head. "Seeing the look on Ginger's face was totally worth it, but it's really not fair that Dingo got to kiss you first."

"…he kissed you first," she replies almost robotically, and he gives her a little squeeze as he laughs.

"I keep telling myself I have no right to get upset over you kissing him," he says after a long moment, his laughter dying off in a sigh. He hasn't let her go. She doesn't think she wants him to. "You…you know how I feel, Mari. You know where I stand. And I've left it up to you, and if I'm not what you want…I'm ok with that. I have to be. But –"

"You are what I want, you dummy," she says, pressing closer to him as her hand fists in his hoodie. He seems to still – not freeze, not like Dingo had, but just…stop. As if he's waiting. "I was jealous, ok? She kept kissing you, and you had to let her, and…I don't know what I was thinking. Nobody was kissing Dingo. I didn't want to kiss Dingo. But I couldn't just kiss you, and –"

"You can kiss me any time you want," he says quickly, and she groans a little as she hides her face against his neck. His hand cups against the back of her head, and his arm wraps a bit more securely around her waist. "Please kiss me. I won't even charge you for it. I need to enjoy at least one of them today."

"L-Luka…" she laughs, and he makes a whining little noise as he curls around her.

"If you're not going to kiss me, can I kiss you?" he mumbles into her ear, and her heart does that little stutter-flip-jump again. She leans back a little, and he's smiling the stupidest smile at her. His hand moves from her hair to cup her cheek, his thumb brushing beneath her eye. "Please?"

She kisses him instead of answering, but maybe that's answer enough.

She doesn't jump him like she jumped Dingo. Luka deserves better than that – but it is fast. A quick, almost hesitant press of lips, like she has to do it before she can talk herself out of it, or maybe before he can change his mind. She's already pulling away when his hands are coming up to cradle her face, and then the kiss is becoming something…softer. More precise and determined. A slow exploration, a desire to know with the hope that once known it will become familiar. Luka seems to go boneless, falling back onto his butt and pulling her with him, and then she's giggling against his mouth as he overbalances and they fall backwards onto the floor. She lands with her face pressed against his chest, and she spares one moment to press a kiss above his pounding heart before she crawls up to his face. She settles over him, smiling as he pulls his knees up to lock her in. His fingers tuck her hair behind her ear, and he's smiling at her like…like she should be kissing him again.

"No good," he says, and it's just enough to make her pause with her lips halfway to his own.

"…no?" she asks, uncertain, but he's still smiling. His fingers curl around the back of her neck, but he doesn't go to pull her back down.

"No," he says, shaking his head. "I enjoyed that entirely too much. I don't know how I'm going to sit through another hour at that booth when I could be kissing you instead."

She feels her face warm, but he's pulling her back to him, and her breath hitches as he brushes his lips against her own.

"I…I don't know," she says, trying to keep her tone light. He hums, and it's all she can do not to kiss him stupid. "I think…I think Dingo might be a better kisser than you. I hate to te-mmf!"

There's a flurry and a scramble, and suddenly she's on her back and he's kissing her much more aggressively than before and…and she has to admit she kind of likes it. Ok she likes it a lot. There's an embarrassing little noise that escapes her, and then his tongue's passing along her lip and she's making it again and…ok, so that's what someone else's tongue in your mouth feels like. She thinks she might like it, if it's Luka. He kisses her until they're both breathless, and even then he only moves his face to nuzzle against her neck, and she giggles as his panting breaths tickle against her skin.

"Still…still prefer Dingus?" he asks, and she laughs at the slight. She tries to push him off of her, but he makes another protesting noise before he kisses her again – a little slower this time, but with less of the uncertainty of their first go. His arms are braced on either side of her head, and she giggles when his stretching fingers catch the strands of her pigtails and begin twirling them. The giggle is an invitation, and she sighs when his tongue flicks against her own. Her arms have found their way around his back, and her hands slip up to grip his shoulders and hold him closer. Honestly, this is worlds better than whatever kissing Dingo had been. Kissing Dingo had only made her want to flee. Kissing Luka…she wouldn't mind staying here forever, given half the chance.

"…don't make me go back out there," he whines when they finally break apart. His nose nudges her ear, and she sighs as he plops down beside her. He's barely settled when she crawls onto him, snuggling against his side as his arms wrap around her and hold her close. "I can't kiss Ginger again after kissing you."

"I don't want you kissing anyone after kissing me," she says, and if she sounds like she's pouting it's only because he had, too. He dips his head to drop a kiss against her hair, and before he can pull away she's leaning up to catch his lips with her own.

"No fair," he murmurs when she tries to kiss him again. "I'm not…"

"Bri can handle the snack stand," Marinette says, dropping her head back onto his chest. "And if Ginger wants that damn kissing booth so bad, she can man it. You're mine."

"I'm yours?" he asks, sounding a little dazed. She glances up at him, and he's giving her the stupidest smile.

"I…if you want to be, I mean?" she says, unconsciously picking at one of the rips in his shirt. His lips twitch when her fingers accidently poke at his stomach instead. "I was kinda hoping this means I'm yours, and it only seems fair that –"

He kisses her again, one more time, before dropping back against the tile with a happy sigh.

"Totally fair," he says, bringing his other arm around her and holding her tight. "More than fair. Yes, I am one hundred percent yours. God, I love the sound of that. I –"

"Luka?" she asks, cutting him off with a laugh. He pops open an eye and glances down at her, humming in response. "Shut up."

"…you might have to make me," he wheedles, and she's laughing again as he pulls her in for another kiss.

Needless to say, neither make it back to their respective booths any time soon.