Chapter 5: A New Beginning?

Chat continued pacing back and forth on the top floor of the Eiffel Tower, waiting for Ladybug to arrive. He had been there since 6:00 p.m. getting everything ready for the night. Finishing around 7:15, he proceeded to the top floor to await his lady's arrival. Chat pulled out his baton, it was now 7:55. Just a few more minutes until they're agreed upon meeting time. Chat couldn't help but feel anxious at his plan. What if she's upset by this? What if I completely screw this up? What if she hates me afterwards, it could completely destroy our teamwork and friendship! What if she doesn't even show up?

"Argh!" Chat cried as he knelt down in frustration. No! Now is not the time to be freaking out, not when I'm so close to having the woman of my dreams.

"Something wrong Chat?" Chat Noir whirled around only to find Ladybug standing there staring at him with a look of concern.

"Ladybug!" He exclaimed as he rose with a giant grin on his face. "You came." All it took was one look at his lady and all his fears, anxieties, and worries melted away. If it means being together with my lady, then I can do anything.

"Of course I did, I said I would come." Ladybug slowly walk over the Chat, grabbing her arm in nervousness. "Chat, about what happened yesterday…"

"Wait! Before you continue, come with me for a moment I want to show you something." Chat held out his hand for her to take.

"Chat…"

"Just give me a few minutes of your time, we can talk later. I purr-omise it will be worth your while." Chat said with a smirk.

"Okay, but only if you promise to stop with the puns."

"I make no promises."

Ladybug took Chat's hand and allowed him to guide her towards the apartment in the Eiffel Tower.

"Wait," she said as they paused outside the door. "We're going into the apartment? How did you even get the key?" She inquired.

"Well about that, I may have picked the lock." Chat admitted sheepishly.

"You WHAT!"

"Don't worry, no one will notice. Besides, I wanted tonight to be special." Chat looked so sincere that Ladybug couldn't help but forgive him.

"Alright," she sighed as Chat Noir opened the door for her to enter.

The first thing she noticed were all the Christmas lights. Chat Noir hung several golden lights all across the walls of the room giving it a soft glow. Next she spotted a small circular table in the center, covered with an off white table cloth. A glass vase with a single red rose was placed in the center of the table with two silver serving platter lids on either side. Two wooden chairs resided next to the table. A small serving cart with glasses and drinks sat off to the side with a stereo on the lower surface. The entire setup looked incredibly romantic.

"Chat. What is all this." Ladybug hesitantly looked at Chat.

"I-I-I'm just trying to make up f-f-for earlier." Chat turned away, but Ladybug could still see his cheeks slowly turning read. "I'm sorry that I just kissed you out of the blue, that wasn't how I wanted it to…that's not how I intended…it was going to be perfect."

"Chat Noir." At the sound of his name, Chat Noir summoned up his courage, turned around to face Ladybug, and gently held her hands in his.

"Ladybug, I love you and I want to be with you."

They stood there like that, Ladybug's hands in Chat's for what felt like forever before Ladybug pulled away, turning her back on Chat.

"How could you say that you love me? You don't even know who I am." Ladybug whispered as she began to hug herself. "You see me as this strong, confident, perfect hero who always saves the day, but that's not all I am. Outside of the mask I'm just an ordinary girl, who lives an ordinary life; a life which you know nothing about. You can't truly love someone if you've only seen half of who they are."

Chat placed a hand on Ladybug's shoulders before slowly turning her around to face him. Staring into her eyes he replied.

"While it is true I don't know your hobbies, interests, or even your real name, I know Ladybug is more than just a mask. I know you're smart and creative with how you are able to use the most random of objects to defeat akuma. I know you sometimes doubt yourself, like when you first became Ladybug; however, with a little encouragement you were able to overcome that obstacle." Chat pulled Ladybug ever so slightly closer. "I know you care about helping others. I know you are a strong leader and believe in standing up for what's right." Chat slowly caressed her cheek with his thumb as he gently raised her head. "I know you are beautiful, but most of all I know under the mask you are still Ladybug, the woman I know and love." And with that, Chat Noir began to caress her lips with his own.

Chat Noir could feel his heart pounding as he gazed at Ladybug. She looked so beautiful in the glow of the lights and felt so close to him that despite her previous reaction, still fresh in the back of his mind, he dared to kiss her again. When Chat Noir felt Ladybug kiss him back, he thought he had died and gone to heaven he was filled with such bliss. The two melted into the kiss as Chat Noir slowly wrapped his arms around her waist as she looped her arms around his neck. Chat almost purred when he felt her hands comb through his hair. The two were in a world of their own, swallowed by the passionate intensity of the embrace.

They stayed like that for what felt like forever before finally breaking apart. Chat placed his forehead against Ladybug's while a huge grin slowly formed on his face.

I've done it! I kissed Ladybug and she kissed me back! She kissed me back, my lady kissed me back. After 8 months of trying, my feelings have finally reached her. This is a new beginning for my lady and me. I can have her, I can finally be with the woman of my dreams!

Chat Noir's grin immediately turned into a look of pure shock as he lifted his head to gaze at Ladybug. She stood there, staring at him with eyes glossed over and teardrops slowly dripping down her cheeks. Chat Noir began to inwardly panic as Ladybug's slow stream of tears burst into a full fledge waterfall.

Placing her hand on her yo-yo, Ladybug ran towards the door only to be stopped by Chat Noir.

"Out of my way Chat."

"Ladybug, please."

"I said out of my way."

"I-I'm sorry that I kissed you! It won't happen again, so please, don't leave."

Ladybug paused before slowly turning to face Chat. Her eyes were blurry from all the crying, but Chat Noir could still see the pleading in her eyes. He didn't want her to leave, his heart ached at the knowledge that he didn't know when he would be seeing her again after she left. He did not want this to be the last thing that occurred between them. He wanted to fix things, needed to fix them now, but it was apparent that Ladybug did not and he did not have the right to force her. Feeling his heart breaking into two, Chat slowly removed his arm from the door.

"I'm sorry," she whispered before swinging off into the night.

Chat fought every instinct he had to run after her, instead choosing to simply curl up into a ball as his lady swung away into the night.

I don't understand. Everything was so perfect! That kiss was so intense and passionate, it was simply perfect. Why was she crying? Why did she run away?

"What did I do wrong?" Chat cried into the night. Tears being to pour down his face as he sat there confused, hurt, and angry.

Chat Noir sat there for what felt like hours, crying his heart out. Eventually he got up and pulled out his staff to check the time. 8:35 it read.

Putting away his baton, he slowly made his way over to the table. Everything was still there, the table, plates, rose, stereo, even the lights still shined on the walls. All the things he had gathered and prepared for his first date with Ladybug, a date which ended up blowing up in his face.

Revolted and angry, Chat threw the table on its sides scattering the plates and shattering the vase with the rose.

"Catacly…" he began before stopping in his tracks. This is wrong. I can't just destroy everything because I failed with my lady. So with a heavy sigh, he began to pack everything up. After putting the original furniture back into the apartment, Chat Noir slowly and somberly made his way home.

Thump

After landing on her balcony, Ladybug immediately went inside and curled up on her bed. How could this happen? I was supposed to be turning his down gently, why did I kiss him! Ladybug just sat there on her bed replaying the event with Chat Noir over and over again in her head, causing her angst, regret, confusion, and many more tears. She kept up her transformation for the time being, not wanting to talk to Tikki. She wanted, needed to be a lone for a while to collect her thoughts.

She planned to just simply met Chat Noir at the Eiffel Tower, tell him she wasn't interested, and then leave. It was a simply, straight forward approach and she hoped it would put an end to Chat Noir's romantic notions. She knew he would be heartbroken for a while, but trusted that with time everything would go back to the way it was; a platonic, unstoppable partnership. Why oh why did I follow Chat? Why didn't I just tell him right then and there I wasn't interested and why, why did he have to be so…charming?

Ladybug could feel her heart pounding all throughout Chat's declaration of love, the beautifully crafted romantic atmosphere he created adding to her state of mind. His touch sent shivers down her spine, his smell was intoxicating, and his words were like music to her ears. He saw her, all of her and loved every part. The mask didn't prevent him from seeing the girl beneath, the girl overshadowed by her heroic deeds by so many. She was trapped, completely caught under Chat's spell and loving every minute of it. So when Chat leaned in for a kiss, Ladybug couldn't help but kiss him back. All her plans of turning him down completely went out the window when his lips met hers. She savored his taste, the feeling of her hands through his hair, his strong arms wrapped around her, the warmth of his embrace.

She didn't know where these new feelings were coming from, all she knew was that she wanted him. Him, that dorky, pun spewing cat who was way too reckless and always trying to show off. Him, the obnoxious flirt who took every chance he could to crack a joke. Him, the stupid cat who always protected her no matter what. Him, her trusted partner who always had her back in a fight. Him, the boy who saw all of her and loved all of her. Him, the admittedly handsome kitty with well-defined muscles and lips so luscious she could just…

Ladybug squeaked and shot up. The last thing she expected, the last thing she needed was for her thoughts to travel in that direction. Laying back down face-first, Marinette proceeded to scream into her pillow. What is wrong with me? Marinette sighed as she raised her head from her pillow. Slowly, she descended down the steps from her bed and gazed around her room. She walked over to one of her Adrien pictures. It was a clipping from Gabriel Agreste's fall fashion magazine and the first picture she put on her wall of Adrien. The magazine was two years old, over a year before she had even met Adrien. She kept it along with many of her other Gabriel Agreste fashion magazines, tokens from her favorite fashion idol Gabriel Agreste. She had a habit of collecting many of his works, using them for inspiration or just simply marveling at the amount of talent Mr. Agreste possessed. After she met Adrien at school however, she developed a whole new purpose for his photo.

Ladybug slowly ran her hand across the photo before pulling it back. Normally her Adrien posters would always fill her with joy and happiness, but after everything that happened with Chat all she felt was guilt. Guilt from feeling as though she betrayed him by kissing Chat Noir. Guilt for beginning to develop feelings for the feline. Guilt for leaving Chat Noir like she did, without any explanation at all.

Ladybug laid down on her chaise as she thought about the way she left things with Chat. What was I supposed to say? Hey Chat that kiss was amazing and I think I maybe falling for you, even though I'm already in love with this other guy. We're not in a relationship or anything, but I have loved him for 8 months now. I couldn't handle the guilt that I felt for wanting you while I was still in love with him, so I just started to cry; hope that's ok.

"Argh, this isn't getting me anywhere!" Ladybug cried as fresh tears began to spill down her cheeks. What is wrong with me? How could I just leave Chat in that state?

Ladybug continued laying there crying until she felt herself begin to drift off to sleep.

"Transforme moi…" she managed to whisper right before she lost consciousness. Tikki sighed as she emerged from the earrings.

"Oh Marinette," she said as she nuzzled against her cheek. "Don't worry, everything will be fine." Tikki flew off to her tiny bed that Marinette had made her. It was made from a small white pillow sewed into a square basket and sat on the small bookshelf behind the bed. Tikki rarely used it though, preferring to sleep a top Marinette; however, tonight Tikki decided that it would be best to leave Marinette be. As she curled up on the pillow she thought about many of her previous Ladybug's and all the trials they went through, including love. If history had taught her anything, there would be a joyous outcome, mostly likely.

Author's Note: I would like to point out that although the Eiffel Tower's hours of operations change slightly from summer to winter, it would still have been open at this time making it impossible for Chat Noir to conduct this evening in secrecy. But for the sake of my story, I'm just going to overlook this little detail