Marinette Dupain Cheng could not get the butterflies to stop swarming deep within her chest. This feeling was irrational and maybe somewhat insane. She was already deeply in love with another boy - yet here she was, heart beating furiously as she stood atop the airport's viewing deck awaiting none other than her long forsaken crush, Adrien Agreste.

It had been Nino's idea, for all three of Adrien's closest childhood friends to meet him as he got off his plane, and it wasn't as if Marinette was out of place. She had spent quite a bit of time hanging around Adrien when he had come back to visit for the holidays, but this time was different. This time Adrien was here to stay.

"There it is!" Alya shrieked, pointing her outstretched arm to something faintly glowing in the distance. "According to the flight tracker, that just has to be his plane. Aren't you excited Marinette?" Alya lifted her eyebrows as she playfully nudged Marinette's shoulder.

Excited? All the times that she had spent with Adrien had certainly been enjoyable; Adrien was one of her closest friends. Of course Marinette was excited to see him, but Alya's intonation suggested an excitement that was meant for more than just friends. Yes, their relationship had changed, but Marinette was still unsure as to what extent.

Every Christmas since college began, Adrien had flown in, and they had inevitably gotten to spend some time together. The first Christmas had been awkward, she still had not gotten over her crush on him. Marinette stammered and stuttered just as she had back in her high school days. A full semester of college had done nothing to suppress her nervousness around Adrien; if anything it had made it even worse, seeing as how she was no longer used to being around him.

The following Christmas, much to her own surprise, she found her stammer was gone, or otherwise misplaced. For one of the first times in her life, Marinette was able to effortlessly enjoy being in Adrien's presence, and the new found freedom opened the doorway for friendship like she could have never expected.

It wasn't as if Adrien and Marinette deliberately kept in touch - group Chats and video calls allowed the four friends to create a strengthened bond. Adrien, unbeknownst to Marinette before, was quite the comedian, and he always kept their conversations alive and full of happiness.

Marinette often had to laugh at herself for the irony of the situation. Adrien and she were separated by an eleven hour plane ride, yet she felt closer to him now than she had ever felt when he had lived practically by her side.

By the third Christmas, Marinette was at complete ease with being around Adrien, and by the fourth they were closer than many other long time friends.

But their relationship had never progressed to anything romantic or even the hint thereof - a detail that didn't bother Marinette the slightest bit.

"Oh!" Nino exclaimed, squinting his eyes at the glimmering figure approaching in the sky. "I can see it now. Have you spotted it yet, Marinette?"

Marinette chuckled, placing her hand on the shoulder of her poor sighted friend, "Of course I have Nino. I saw it as soon as Alya pointed it out. Can you believe that your best friend is inside of that tiny little shining speck in the sky?"

Too dumbfounded to respond, Nino stood, eyes transfixed to the sky, with his mouth hanging wide open.

"Nino," Alya huffed, turning to face her fiance, piercing him with an exasperated stare, "I think you need to get your prescription checked again. I saw that plane several miles back. Your lack of visual perception is pretty sad."

Marinette giggled, enjoying the presence of the couple's playful banter - a reminder that even though they were engaged, their relationship had hardly changed. Nino had proposed to Alya only a few short months before, and Marinette still was not accustomed to seeing the light glint and dance from the beautiful fox shaped ring that had found its home on Alya's left hand.

As Nino and Alya playfully bickered, closing the gap between themselves and effectively leaving Marinette off to the side, Marinette took the chance to take a glance down at her phone.

Nothing had changed.

The last message she had received from Chat had come several hours earlier.

She opened up her messages and read back over their last several texts.

Today 1:15 AM

[PunMaster668]: My Lady, you really should be getting ready for bed. Don't you know that it's not good for a beautiful woman to stay up too late?

[LuckyCharm13]: You're one to talk, Chaton, aren't you the one with the early morning flight?

[PunMaster668]: Already at the airport (;

[PunMaster668]: Did you forget about our time difference?

[LuckyCharm13]: Maybe?

[LuckyCharm13]: Or maybe I'm just too tired to think straight.

[PunMaster668]: Now that I can believe. Please try to get some sleep. I will send you a message when I get on the plane.

[LuckyCharm13]: OK...OK...I'm putting my phone away.

[LuckyCharm13]: But don't expect me to get any actual sleep. You know I am way too anxious for that.

Today 3:05 AM

[PunMaster668]: Well, bugaboo, I want you to know that I am seated quite comfortably on the plane.

[PunMaster668]: Almost

[PunMaster668]: Actually, I'm sitting right next to a large guy who is taking up half of my seat.

[PunMaster668]: This is going to be a long flight.

[PunMaster668]: I hope you're not reading my texts right now.

[PunMaster668]: You better be asleep.

[PunMaster668]: Anyway… I'm looking forward to seeing that beautiful face of yours.

[PunMaster668]: Later tonight...

[PunMaster668]: =^.^=

[PunMaster668]: … and without the mask.

Marinette's heart raced as she continually studied the words on her screen. Had she and Chat Noir seriously gotten to this point? Four years before, when they had first set up those ridiculously named email addresses, she could have never expected her life to go down this path.

Her first message from Chat pinged on her phone seconds after she had dropped her transformation when she had returned home after they had said their goodbyes.

[PunMaster668]: Evening M'Lady. You'll never guess the experience I just had. I forgot to unlock my window this morning and I just set the alarm off.

[LuckyCharm13]: Chat, you've got to be kidding me. Can't you just turn it off?

[PunMaster668]: Sure… if I could get in…

[LuckyCharm13]: Here's an idea… go through the front door.

[PunMaster668]: Oh geez, why didn't I think of that? 0_0

[PunMaster668]: Oh, right. Maybe because the house goes on automatic lock down once the alarm is triggered?

[LuckyCharm13]: WHAT KIND OF HOUSE DO YOU LIVE IN?

[PunMaster668]: You don't even want to know. My dad used to have a serious trust complex.

Don't worry about it. I'll figure something out. Even if I have to spend the night meowtside.

And the rest is history. At least for Marinette and Chat.

Marinette softly giggled to herself as she thought about those first ridiculous texts. At the time, she never could have predicted she would end up falling for that silly cat. It wasn't even as if they got to see each other that often. How had she fallen so hopelessly in love with a boy that she only got to see once a year?

'Ironically,' Chat and Adrien always seemed to be on the same holiday visiting schedule. Every Christmas, after she had spent time with her friends (including Adrien), she inevitably would sneak away to visit Chat. The first time had been the Christmas of their freshman year in college. They had been talking via messenger for six months and had kept up their 'best friend' relationship. Chat's messages had become Marinette's constant companion - he filled her life with constant laughter, making her feel like he was still right by her side.

That year, they got each other silly gifts and simply enjoyed running around the city together. Looking back, Marinette had to admit their behavior may have been flirtatious, but she was too naive to notice, still reeling from the time she had just spent with Adrien.

The summer after their freshman year, Marinette had hoped to spend the entire time with Chat, but he had claimed that he had gotten some sort of out of country internship position, making the trip to France impossible. Oddly enough, Adrien didn't come in that summer either for the same exact reason. Marinette thought it strange that neither of them were able to visit, but merely shrugged it off as pure coincidence.

By the next Christmas, Chat and Marinette's relationship was certainly awkward. They had been messaging each other everyday and had grown much closer - sharing nearly everything, including when they were going to sleep. However, when they saw each other after a year of no face to face communication, they found themselves hardly able to speak. Speaking digitally and in person are two very different things, and for the first time in her life, being around Chat made Marinette stutter.

After that debacle, the two heroes decided to keep in touch periodically through video calls - a sight that anyone watching would have laughed at.

The summer of their sophomore year was just the same as before. Neither Chat nor Adrien came to Paris to visit.

The Christmas of their junior year was the time Marinette considered the official start of their relationship. The awkwardness of speaking was gone, much to both of their pleasure, but another hurdle unexpectedly got in their way.

Touch.

For two and half years, the two had been drawing closer together, creating a bond that was beyond all other. Chat had become Marinette's lifeline: the person whom she mostly depended on. He was her laughter, her encouragement, and her support. And upon seeing him, that kind of intimacy sent her body buzzing for something more.

But neither of them knew what to do.

Most couples bonded emotionally and physically together, in small, natural steps. However, Marinette and Chat had never gotten that chance. She loved him - that much she could no longer deny, but touching him: how was she supposed to even start?

After what seemed like hours of electric anticipation, Chat had embarrassedly asked if he could hold her hand. They sat for an eternity, fingers intertwined, and at some point, Marinette wasn't sure when, she had even gained the courage to lean over her head, resting it on Chat's shoulder. Never once did the butterflies stop fluttering within her stomach, but it was a warm feeling that Marinette didn't even bother to mind. The night had ended with an intimate hug and a kiss on Marinette's cheek - something that Marinette cherished more than anything.

Their senior year Christmas, Marinette shyly remembered, had been the most epic of them all. All of the sudden, every previous barrier seemed to be gone. For a whole year, they had known that this was becoming a romantic relationship, and no amount of awkwardness or trepidation was going to keep them apart.

As soon as Ladybug had laid eyes on him, Chat had been bold - immediately grabbing her by the hand and pulling her into an intimate embrace. The two somehow managed to spend the entire night together - filling their time with hand holding, more hugging, snuggling, and endless chatter. This time, they couldn't seem to get enough of each other, and instead of parting ways for a year (which had been the usual) they ended with a promise to see each other the next night.

Those were the happiest five nights of Marinette's life. Way too quickly she became addicted to Chat's closeness and warmth. Every touch sent shivers down her spine, and she longed to be closer - to feel even more. Inevitably, they came upon their last evening together. That night was undoubtedly their best - ending in a passionate kiss and a promise which she would never forget.

The next time they met, they would take off their masks.

Marinette's heart fluttered as she remembered Chat's promise. Every time she thought about it, she could hardly control her insides. Eight years had passed since she first laid eyes on Chat. Eight years he had faithfully remained by her side (even if it was only over text and video chat). But tonight, she would finally get to see the face that had been hiding beneath that mask - a face which had been desperately trying to reveal itself in her dreams ever since the promise made that night.

"Touch down!" Nino shouted, throwing his hands triumphantly in the air. "Soon I'll get to have some bro time with my boy, Adrien!"

Marinette glanced out to the runway, only just now realizing Adrien's plane had landed. Her pulse quickened and her heart beat furiously in her chest - her body responding to the possibility that Adrien might be Chat.

Ever since they had parted ways that previous Christmas, Marinette had begun to wonder about the boy beneath the mask. At first, she tried to pretend that there was no possibility that she knew him, but as she continued to ponder it, she couldn't deny the facts. Chat Noir and Adrien always visited at the same time, the full week they spent together had been an exact overlap.

But could things really be that easy? Had she finally gotten over Adrien only to fall in love with his masked persona instead? No matter how much she tried to convince herself that this crazy assumption just had to be wrong, she could find nothing to disprove her thoughts.

And now Marinette stood, a mere eleven hours after receiving that last text, waiting for Adrien's plane, which ironically took off eleven hours before, to land.

Marinette's phone buzzed in her hand. Looking down, her breath hitched upon reading the message.

[PunMaster668]: Finally landed!

[PunMaster668]: Can't wait to see you tonight.