The red head rolled her eyes looking back at the large screen. Marinette was going to it.

And she would make sure of that.

Chapter 4- What Had She Done?

The four friends walk out of the screening room completely silent, not a word said. Their eyes as wide as plates. Adrien and Marinette actually shaking.

"Wha-what did we just watch." Nino was the first to speak dropping his popcorn box in a bin next to him. No body answered him, still in shock.

"I am never going near my attic again." Marinette squeaked, her voice shook.

"I'm never going near my f-fire place again." Alya stuttered.

"I'm never eating a peanut again." Everyone turned and looked at Adrien in confusion.

"Dude, you're not even allergic to peanuts-"

"Nino?"

"Yeah?"

"I don't care."

With that, the three burst out laughing, Adrien catching on after a few seconds.

Wiping a tear from her eye, Alya began walk on, "we definitely need that ice cream." She winked and they carried on through the exit.

On the way to ice cream stand by the park, the four friends began to mock the film, almost eliminating the freakiness of it all… Almost…

It wasn't dark yet, but the sky did begin to dim into an orange tinge. A breeze began to pick up through the wisps of hair on the teens. Their ice cream tubs lay stacked beside in the circle between them all, all sat up and joking with one another for hours. An alarm rang from Adrien's phone signalling eight thirty, just as his limo pulled up along the curb on the other side of the park. Everyone's smiles saddened a little as he smiled back apologetically.

"Look, guys, I gotta go…" He bent down, picking up his bag and the empty tubs, "I'm sure I'll see you all soon though!"

Nino and Marinette waved saying goodbye as they did so, Alya however remained quiet, pulling a sly grin on her face, staring at an oblivious Marinette.

"Wait, Adrien…" Alya called behind him as he turned around. Alya stood up in confidence glancing for only a second at the two still on the ground, "before you go, I- Marinette has something she wanted to say…"

"Oh?" Adrien questioned looking down to Marinette, her face ghost-white and her pupils smaller than the size of pinheads.

"I- I- I- I h-have nothing- I don't know- I don't know w-what Alya means! I have nothing to confess- say!"

Adrien looked back at the red head in confusion, still extremely curious, but not wanting to keep the Gorilla waiting any longer than he already had, "okay… I really have to go-"

"NO!" Alya stomped her foot a little annoyed.

"Whoa, Alya! Calm down!" Nino stood up resting a hand on your shoulder but she shrugged it off.

"Mari, are you going to say it, or shall I?" Alya stared down with a tenacious gaze, pulling her up to stand but Marinette just couldn't move once she was up, frozen with fear. Mari thought that what she said in the cinema meant something… She thought that the fear in her eyes, would have changed her mind… She thought that Alya would have trusted and believed her when she said that she knew for certain that Adrien did not like her… She thought she trusted Alya would never force her into something like this… She thought wrong.

Her mind expanded and contracted, and flooded and went bone-dry. Her brain hurt, but not as much as her heart and the lump swelling inhumanly in her throat.

"A-Alya," she croaked weakly, treading around eggshells with her voice, making sure it wasn't too loud to start an avalanche, "p-please don't-"

"I'll take that as a no." Alya shot her gaze towards Adrien, smirking, her hand on her hip. Nino had finally realised what his girlfriend was trying to do, but couldn't say anything before it all went down-

"Marinette likes yo-"

"I HAVE A CRUSH ON YOU!"

Both boys had to look around to who said what and what just happened. Everyone was soon looking intently at Marinette, her face almost beating with the mass of red on her cheeks. Nino took away his gaze and scowled at Alya, shaking his head slowly in disappointment. Alya shot back a questioning look but the other two teens wouldn't stop staring at each other. The silence was deafening. So, so loud. Nobody spoke a word for centuries and it drove Marinette crazy.

"I'M SORRY," Marinette blurted, only little of the word vomit to come, "IT'S JUST THAT WE'VE KNOWN EACH OTHER FOR SO LONG AND HAD SO MANY LUNCHES TOGETHER, I JUST THOUGHT THAT WE ALREADY KNEW EACH OTHER PRETTY WELL BUT I DON'T MIND TAKING SMALL STEPS BECAUSE I REALLY LIKE YOU ADRIEN TO THE POINT THAT I'D TAKE A BULLET FOR YOU AND-" Adrien cut her off with a sorrow in his eyes once the babbling girl finally made eye contact with her crush.

"Look, Marinette…" He began, entwining his fingers and looking to the floor, "I- I really can't return the feelings… See… there's this other girl and my feelings for her are stronger than anything I've ever felt… I want to say yes to you, trust me I do, but I know it'd be really unfair on you to be led into a false sense of security. And you don't deserve that." Marinette looked into his eyes, clearly ripped apart and fed to a hungry pride of lions.

"This doesn't mean we can't still be friends, Mari! I really do care about you, but just not in the same way you do to me... You're amazing Marinette! You're so creative, caring, kind and brave! And I sometimes admire you for that! And sure, I'd take a bullet for you too, but so would I for Nino or Alya or my sister. You do understand where I'm coming from, right?"

Marinette gazed up wiping away what must have been tears from her eyes, and nodded her head. "H-hey I-I get you A-Adrien, I was dumb anyway…" She pulled out a weak smile. Her smile instantly dropped and a breath hitch sharply in her throat.

I wouldn't like me either.

Mari picked up her school bag and looked at her three friends, all wide eyed and pity oozing out every part of their expression. She looked back at Adrien and glanced at Nino, "I'll see you after the holidays!"

Marinette's expression darkened when she looked at the blogger, "I'll see you whenever I guess."

Marinette's tears fell faster than her legs could run out of the park. Adrien could only watch, gaze on absolutely uselessly. He said all he could have done, right? From his limo, the horn beeped loudly and he couldn't stand around any longer. He didn't even say goodbye and just jogged his way to the shiny, black vehicle. He couldn't even bare to look down the street Mari ran down to see if she was still there. He began to feel a numbness stab his heart. And there was nothing, nothing he could do.

Nino didn't know what to do. Alya just stared off into space a stark guilt in her blood.

"Ali-"

"Please don't, Nino. I love you, but I have to apologise to Mari and Adrien." Alya took one step forward but couldn't go any further. Her vision blurred with salty water and she gasped, the whole weight of the situation hitting her like an asteroid. "I- I've just ruined their friendship… She told me not to say anything! She told me- she told-"

Nino threw his arms around her, lowering her to the ground with ease and held his sobbing girlfriend to his chest, "Shh, shh. It's all going to be okay, I promise."

Those words for Alya went through one ear and out the other. His whispers of sweet nothings would have made more sense to a deaf two-year-old than her fuzzing mind in that moment.

She felt guilty. She felt ashamed. She even felt embarrassed. She felt every possible negative emotion on the spectrum. Pain. Numbness. Sorrow. Stress. Anxiety. Everything wound her up on a coil and released at least once every three seconds.

The only words actually making sense in her irrational state of mind, made a question. For once, a question she was too petrified to want to find out.

What have I done?

Authors Note: Do you think everything will be okay?

Oh Alya… WHY DIDN'T YOU LISTEN TO MARINETTE! I can't complain though, I wrote the thing!

Anyways, leave your reviews on what you thought on this chapter! I really wonder what you thought about the rejection and the last scene. Could it have been written better or differently? Did I capture the characters' reactions well or were they a little over the top? And also, would you forgive Alya if you were Mari? Please tell me what you thought!

I'll see you next time!

**P.S: I've never watch Hereditary so I googled what it was about and the creepiest scenes. And let's just say I couldn't sleep that night. You're welcome**

-L.E-Rae _x_