Marinette is startled out of focus at the sudden ringing of her phone. Glaring at the offending item, she glances down at the sketch she'd been working on for class Monday. She answers her phone with a distracted Salut as she continues to gaze critically at the gown in front of her. It's still not right…
"Hey, Ma-Ma-Marinette," an easy, teasing voice comes from the other end of the line, effectively breaking her train of thought as she smiles.
"Luka, I was fourteen, that was nine years ago, when are you going to let that go?" She inquires, leaning back into her chair. He chuckles, and she can imagine him shaking his head at her. Out of the corner of her eye, she sees Tikki trying to hide her own laughter behind her tiny hands and failing miserably. She sticks her tongue out at the kwami before pushing part of a cookie her way.
"Well, since it's already been nine years, I'd say never." She rolls her eyes at him as he continues, "Sorry to interrupt during work hours; I hope I didn't pull you out of anything too important?" Marinette shakes her head, pushing away from her desk to lay on her couch.
"No, nothing terribly pressing. Just this gala design due Monday. What's up?"
"You got any plans tonight?" He asks, voice more than a little hopeful.
"Not that I know of, why?"
"I got a gig tonight, and I wanted to invite you." Marinette's eyes widen in shock.
"Really? That's awesome! I thought Kitty Section was on break until Juleka and Rose got back from school?"
"It is, this is actually a solo gig. It would really mean a lot to me if you could come; I wrote a new song I want you to hear."
She can't help the smile of excitement pulling at her lips. Luka had been playing odd places here and there for years now, for him to be this excited about it must mean something big is going on.
"When and where?" He rattles off the address telling her to come at eight o'clock, the smile in his voice practically audible. "Great, can I invite the others?"
"Already done. You were the last one on my list," he informs her proudly.
"Cool deal, I'll see you there then!"
Excited about seeing her friends, and Luka, she gets back to work with new zeal. Around seven, she decides to call it a night and start heading over to the venue, a nice underground cafe sort of place where all the whos-who of music tend to frequent. That explains why he was so excited on the phone, she thinks. Finally changing out of her pyjamas into blue skinny jeans, a black tank top, and blue velvet and mesh floral kimono, she throws her hair into a messy bun, grabs her black flats and keys, and runs out the door. For once, she is not running late, and the shock shows plainly on her friends' faces when she runs up and hugs Alya from behind.
"Marinette, you made it!" The tan girl squeals upon seeing her best friend. "We weren't sure you would, let alone on time." She winks at the short bluenette. Marinette blushes, waving hello to Nino and Adrien.
"Hey, Marinette's been on time to class for the last three days," Adrien comes to her rescue. "Omitting, of course, all of her morning classes." She looks at him in shock while the others laugh.
"Et tu, Brute?"
Her voice conveys her despair as he winks at her. Such an act nine years ago, even five years ago, would have sent Marinette in a downward spiral, floundering for words and stuttering over every syllable. Having had the opportunity to work one on one with him for extended periods of time, she had outgrown the majority of her more awkward tendencies and, upon realising nothing was ever going to happen between the two of them, had really become his friend. She is now able to converse with him as easily as she did Nino, Alya, or anyone else.
Although, it probably helped when she and Luka started casually seeing each other. Nothing serious, of course, just a few dates over the last year and some serious flirting. It might have progressed further than that if Marinette hadn't been so focused on her studies, but Luka had never minded as he was just as focused on his music. The two obviously cared about each other, just about everyone could see that, but no one knew that they had ever gone out with each other, not even Alya.
"Earth to Mari." Alya's hand snapped its fingers in front of the dazed fashion designer's face. "Welcome back," she teases. "We're going to move to the front of the stage. Luka's about to go on. Come on!" Marinette nods and follows her friend, Adrien close behind her. She catches Jagged Stone's eye from across the room and waves at him, a gesture he returns immediately with an excited smile.
Once at the front, Marinette put her hand in her small clutch where Tikki patted her finger, letting her know she was still in there. Smiling to herself, Marinette takes her hand back out and looks around for Luka's bright blue hair backstage. After several minutes of unsuccessful searching, she sees him walking up the stairs, his acoustic guitar in hand, and immediately a proud smile lights up her face. The lights make his short black and blue hair glow, what peeks out from under his grey beanie, and play against the snake-themed tattoo sleeve on his right arm as he gets settled. She smirks a bit, knowing Sass is somewhere just offstage, waiting in his guitar case. Luka catches her gaze and sends a subtle wink her way, forcing a fierce blush across her cheeks.
"Bonsoir, tout le monde! Is everyone having a good evening?" The crowd erupts in a series of cheers in answer as he smiles and begins playing.
Marinette can't help but beam at how talented he is, even without his usual electric. All of his songs are soft and incredibly moving, their messages all clear. They are all songs Marinette knows by heart, some he'd written when she was hanging out with him outside of class. Seven songs in, he smirks a little and shifts on the stool a bit.
"If it's all right with you, I'd like to try something a little different to finish up."
The crowd cheers once again, excited to see what he has planned. Even Marinette has no idea what's going on and figures this must be the new song he had mentioned on the phone earlier. It isn't until someone brings a mic stand out that Marinette looks up at him, eyes wide. He never sings onstage!
Her thoughts race as she tries to figure out why he would start now, why not earlier? She had always told him he had a great voice, but he always said he felt the mic was better suited in Rose's hands. He grins sheepishly at her, a gesture that doesn't go unnoticed by Alya, who nudges her best friend with her elbow while recording. Luka clears his throat, adjusting the height of the stand before looking her dead in the eyes.
"This song is for someone very special to me." Marinette feels her breath catch in her throat as her cheeks flush and, like almost every other girl in the room, is completely mesmerised.
"You are the song in me that I can't ignore, you are the simple things that I adore. You are the only thing that gets me like you do, you know it's you." He strums each chord of the verse once and plays a small riff at the end perfectly. Marinette watches as everyone around her practically swoons. Even Alya, Nino, and Adrien seem taken aback by Luka's hidden talent. "You are the storyline, the hidden theme, you are the mastermind when it comes to loving me, and you are the meaning of I do. You know it's you, oh, it's you who has stolen my heart,"Luka goes into full performance mode, eyes closed most of the time, glancing around the room occasionally as he flawlessly plays each chord and note, not missing a beat changing between strumming and finger-picked riffs. "And my weakness is your strongest part," he sneaks a glance at Marinette from just under his bangs and sings the chorus only to her.
"I could write a million songs to say how I feel, 'cause I felt it from you, and you know that it's so real. I'll dress it up to emphasise, I'll tell the whole world that…." He winks quickly before glancing around the room again. Marinette's heart beats faster as his words sink in, He wrote this for me… just me…
"You are everything I could ever dream; you are the part of me I could never see. You are the force behind a kiss that makes me move, you know it's you. You are the sparkle in a star-filled sky; you are the how's and when's, you're my perfect alibi! And nobody gets me like you do, you know it's you."
Marinette feels her lips pull into a smile as he sings, thinking of each moment he means in the verses, each moment they've spent together, both as themselves and as Viperion and Ladybug. A smirk tugs at his own lips as he sings the song he's heard in his head since he first laid eyes on her in his bedroom all those years ago but couldn't put into words yet.
"Oh, it's you who has stolen my heart, and my weakness is your strongest part. I could write a million songs to say how I feel, 'cause I felt it from you, and you know that it's so real. I'll dress it up to emphasise, I'll tell the whole world that you're mine."
He slows his strumming and again looks directly into her eyes from the stage, subtly enough that only Alya notices. She looks back and forth between Marinette and Luka, aware that something is going on between her two friends but unsure of just how deep it is.
"Oh, that you're mine. And I hope you feel it, too, when I say that I need you…"
Hesitantly, Marinette bites her lip in an attempt to keep from smiling too widely as her eyes tear up, and she nods subtly at him. At her silent confession, Luka beams as he now, boldly and clearly, sings only to her.
"I could write a million songs to say how I feel, 'cause I felt it from you, you know that it's so real. I'll dress it up to emphasise, I'll tell the whole world that it's you who has stolen my heart, that only you know how to fill every part. I'll let the whole world know, I'll let the whole world know, that you're mine."
The second the last word is out, Luka puts his guitar down, jumps down from the stage, walks right up to Marinette, and, in front of their friends, out in the open, wraps his arms around her and kisses her. Her own arms are thrown around his neck as she smiles against his lips while everyone around them cheers for the happy couple. Unbeknownst to them, Jagged is off to the side, watching two of his favourite twenty-somethings finally get together. Alya, still filming the whole thing, screams at the two being recorded for not having told her before. At the same time, the two boys look on in shock, Nino exceptionally happy for them, Adrien feeling strangely mixed about it but putting on a happy face for them. Finally, they break apart, grinning from ear to ear and breathing heavily.
"I love you, Ma-Ma-Marinette." He grins down at her. She hides her face against his chest, giggling at his teasing tone. After a moment, she looks him in the eyes, cheeks sore from smiling so much.
"I love you too, Luka."