Another day at school, which wasn't all that bad for Adrien. It was a nice break from his life as a model and walking advertisement for his dad's company. He and Nino were eating lunch in the courtyard when an all too familiar shouting match took place.
"Of course I can handle spice! I'm Korean! I eat spicy kimchi for breakfast," yelled Kim.
"I've eaten that stuff, and it's not spicy. Now my mom's spicy chicken curry, that's where the heats at," said Alix.
"If you really want spice, try eating a habanero pepper," stated Max. "My uncle brought some and made a sauce with them and my tongue and mouth was burning."
"Well, I heard that the Carolina Reaper is the hottest pepper in the world," interjected Adrien.
Everyone turned to Adrien. Kim then began to smirk.
"Say Adrien, do you like spice?"
"As much as the next person."
"I propose a pepper eating contest. Me, Alix, Max and you, Adrien."
"Dude, I would advise against it," whispered Nino.
"Sure, I'm in," smiled Adrien.
He'd never been part of a challenge like this so why not. Adrien was sure it wasn't going to be bad; he was wrong. It was going to be very, very bad. The following day Kim, Alix, Max and Adrien sat around a table with the rest of the class and other students gathered around. Alya was preceding over things.
"Alright, the rules are simple. You each eat one whole pepper and the winner is the one who doesn't reach for relief by the end of lunch."
Alya indicated to a cooler with pints of vanilla ice cream as shown by Rose. Alya placed a container with the peppers inside in the middle of the table.
"How did you get these peppers," asked Max.
"My mom's a chef. She can get all kinds of stuff. Alright, put on a glove and everyone grab a pepper." They did. "Eat!"
All four of them bit into the pepper and chewed it. Immediately, they began to gag. Tears began to form in their eyes.
"Ugh, it's hot," cried Kim.
*Hic* "Oh man." *Hic* "I feel my stomach convulsing," whimpered Max.
"Ah, ugh! It's hurts to breathe and not breathe," whined Alix.
Adrien just kept panting and his tongue was out and it looked like he was sweating. Marinette was feeling bad for her friends; watching them suffer through the pain and heat they seemed to be feeling. How could a pepper do this? She saw one that wasn't eaten and was about to take one when Alya grabbed her wrist.
"You seriously want to go through what they're going through?"
Alya indicated towards their friends. Kim was lying face down on the table pounding his fist. Alix turned her gaze to the sky and moaned in pain. Max was wiping his forehead and panting heavily while hiccuping. Adrien was taking off his white over shirt and started to fan his face with his hands. Marinette shook her head no and Alya let go.
"How *pant* much *pant* time *pant* has passed," asked Alix.
"Just five minutes guys," said Nino.
"What?! Only five," screeched Kim.
"It *hic* feels like *hic* been longer," said Max.
"Does anyone want the ice cream," asked Rose.
The four participants looked at each other, silently daring one another to take the frozen treat. Five more minutes go by and most of the crowd has dissipated. All four victims had tears in their eyes and kept gagging or coughing. Adrien darted his gaze toward the cooler. He was willing to give into relief but his pride told him no. Then he got an idea.
"Rules state that those who ask for ice cream lose right?" They nodded. "So, if we all go for relief, it's a draw and no one really has to lose."
The other three looked at each other and nodded and the four of them dove for the cooler. Rose held out spoons, which they grabbed and they couldn't get the pints open quick enough. The moment they scooped some and ate it, the relief was immediate.
"Oh my gawd, yes," cried Alix.
"Sweet relief," sighed Adrien.
"I think this is going to be my new favorite flavor," said Kim.
"It's so good," agreed Max.
The rest of the class laughed at the spectacle. Soon it was time to head back to class and unfortunately for the pepper eaters, they were still feeling the effects of the dare and felt miserable. Adrien practically had to beg Marinette to let him come over for some comfort. She relented and they ended up on her chaise with his head on her chest, one arm wrapped around her waist and the other hand holding a glass of milk with a long straw.
"Does the milk help," she asked stroking his head.
"Yeah, it's helping. But it still burns," he whined.
"Well, I hoped you learned your lesson."
"Yeah, I'm not a fan of spice. I much prefer sweet things."
"Oh, then how about I go get some cookies for us?"
"I got something better," smirked Adrien.
"Like what," she asked curiously.
Adrien set the glass down and readjusted himself to face her. Mischievous green eyes focused on surprised blue ones. Adrien leaned in and pressed his lips to hers. Marinette responded and was surprised by how she could taste a hint of spice from his mouth. Even more surprising was that she liked it. They parted for air; she noticed how smug he looked.
"Yep, definitely sweet," he whispered.
"Well, I happen to like spicy now," she whispered back.
She dove back in for more.
What? You had something else in mind? So, I'm sure you've seen all those eating hot pepper challenges before so here's one in the Miraculous universe