Marinette hated it. She really, truly, hated it.

Usually, she could deal with all the stupid articles, the ones that spread rumours and lies about herself and Chat Noir. She could deal with the nosy journalists and the prying camera lenses because at the end of the day, she could always transform back int Marinette, and leave her life as Ladybug far behind.

Except this time, it felt like her superhero persona was sticking to her as tightly as her costume's bodysuit. Completely inescapable, and Marinette had no idea why. Yes, Ladybug would always be a part of her. In reality, they both had similar personalities, almost exactly the same. Ladybug was just a little sassier, and Marinette slightly more reserved, but in Marinette's mind, she still needed to get away from being Ladybug for a while. But she couldn't, and she didn't know why.

The feeling of suffocation had first begun when she had scrolled through Alya's blog that morning, after the press conference with Chat Noir. Reading the caption, short but still full of speculation, and seeing that photo. It may have been grainy, but it had captured all that was necessary to start a whirlwind of rumours.

It had continued after she turned off her phone and gone downstairs for breakfast. Her parents had been perched on the living room couch, the bakery closed for the morning after last night's events. Tom and Sabine had been watching one of the morning talk shows, and the picture from Aya's blog was on the screen, each detail being pulled apart by the excited journalists. Even the heading of the article, running across the bottom of the screen, had made her feeling of suffocation worse. 'IS PARIS' FAVOURITE COUPLE FINALLY A COUPLE?'

A stupid headline. Alya could have come up with a better one. Marinette had snatched her croissant from the kitchen bench and stormed out, across the road and into the school. The courtyard was empty, the students in their classes. There was still a faint hum of traffic from outside, and the mutter of classroom chatter, but otherwise, it was possibly the most peace Marinette had had all morning. Although the dark-haired girl was perfectly content to stand there for another ten minutes, she knew she had to get to class. She didn't want another late mark next to her name, or the school would be questioning her parents, who thought Marinette went to school perfectly on time each morning.

The girl had trudged across the basketball court towards the locker room, hoping with all her will that Adrien was at school today. He was possibly the only person who would truly understand what she was going through. Usually, Marinette would have turned to Alya, but she had a feeling that Alya would still be fizzing with excitement about the photograph. With slightly trembling fingers, Marinette opened her locker and stuffed her bag inside, first retrieving her school supplies. Gripping the books tightly, she walked back across the courtyard, stomach sinking in anticipation.

The second she opened the door, a cellphone was shoved into her face, accompanied by a ladybug charm and a scream of "Marinette!". Only the charm made contact with her face, and it hurt.

Marinette blinked in shock, rubbing her nose. "Ow!"

The flannel blur that was Alya ignored her and continued to bounce and squeal. "It's Ladybug and Chat Noir! A couple!"

Marinette groaned and pushed her hair out of her face. The Ladybug suit continued to tighten around her, just as the rest of her classmates gathered around the two girls, one blinking and irritated, the other jumping and fangirling.

"Isn't it exciting?" squeaked Rose, while Juleka and Nino grinned behind her.

"I knew it would happen," Chloe announced with a smug smile perched on her lips, leaning back in her chair and inspecting her nails. Sabrina nodded eagerly beside her.

Even Ms. Bustier seemed excited. She was sitting at her desk, looking up and smiling to herself every now and then.

Alya showed her the photo again, this time zooming in to focus on the vague details. "Look at Chat Noir's tail! Oh my goodness, I totally ship it. Ladybug and I need another interview about this!"

Marinette frowned. "You shouldn't ship real people together," she chided, her voice faint.

Alya shrugged. "Why not? You gotta admit, they're a pretty cute couple."

The baker's daughter shook her head intently. "But what if they don't feel that way about each other? What if this ruins their relationship because everyone's putting pressure on them? They're real people, Alya. They have feelings too, even if they are superheroes."

Alya's lips twisted for a moment as she considered her friend's words. "Don't tell me this is because you think Chat Noir's a piece of scum for being akumatized," she said, a note of annoyance in her voice.

Marinette was surprised. "Of course not," she snapped. "I never said anything about that. I don't think he's scum at all, I just think you shouldn't try to force relationships onto real peo-"

"Oh, come on, Marinette," said Alya loudly, rolling her eyes. "LadyNoir! LadyNoir! LadyNoir!"

Slowly, the rest of the class began to chant, clapping and stamping their feet as they closed in on Marinette. "LadyNoir! LadyNoir! LadyNoir!"

Marinette's ears started to ring as the chanting grew louder. Her classmates continued to move in, the circle tightening around her, like Ladybug's suit was tightening around her now. It was strangling her, suffocating her, drowning her. She couldn't breathe, her lungs were gasping. She was faint, her head spinning as the ringing grew louder and louder until it was screaming and she couldn't breathe, couldn't think or hear or move and she was collapsing and it was too loud and she was going to drown and-

A strong, warm hand grasped her wrist, pulling her through the wall of chanting, stomping students and out into the courtyard, and through a door and into a room Marinette didn't recognize, couldn't recognize, because tears were swirling in her eyes, hot and cloudy and threatening to spill.

And then there was the cool floor, tiles maybe, hard and soothing. The ringing slowly faded away as Marinette's tears dripped down her face. The girl tilted her head to the ceiling, gasping in the air as she felt the tight bonds of her suit melt away. Someone warm slid down beside her, no longer gripping her wrist but holding her hand, warm and comforting and soft. They sat there for a minute, as Marinette inhaled and exhaled, trying to breathe away the panic and terror she had felt in that classroom.

Marinette opened her eyes properly, the tears that had filled them now lying cold on her cheeks. She turned her head to the person next to her and smiled when she recognized the mop of blonde hair and the emerald green eyes, gazing at her with love and concern. Adrien had rescued her from that room, had taken her here, had held her hand as she calmed down.

She couldn't have asked for a better partner.

"Are you okay now, Marinette?" he asked softly, still caressing her hand.

She nodded, because she was okay now. Adrien was beside her, and she was free of that horrible suffocating feeling. She could breathe again, and that was what mattered. "Thank you for getting me out of there."

He nodded, looking serious. "Anything for you. Let me know when you're ready to go back, okay?" Adrien hesitated, then reached out with his other hand and brushed Marinette's hair away from her face gently.

Marinette smiled and leaned into him, her head resting on his shoulder. She was perfectly content to just stay there, but she knew it wasn't an option. If they stayed away for too long, people would start to wonder. Ms. Bustier would probably send someone to find them, and Marinette didn't want to be found like this. She and Adrien had agreed to keep their relationship under wraps for a while, and they planned to keep it that way. If someone walked in and found Marinette with her head on Adrien's shoulder and Adrien holding her hand, they would definitely be suspicious.

Adrien must have been thinking the same thing, because he let go of her hand. "Marinette," he whispered, "I think I should go. We don't want someone coming in here and seeing us together."

The dark-haired girl nodded. "If it's alright with you, I think I'll stay a little longer. I need to wash my face, get cleaned up. Let them know I'm okay, will you?"

"Of course," replied the model. He began to get to his feet, but hesitated. Marinette watched him, wondering what he was doing. He smiled at her, green eyes twinkling, then leaned towards her. Marinette froze, her mouth falling open. Was he going to…..

His lips brushed against her cheek, warm and soft, like a sun-bathed petal. Marinette closed her mouth and felt her lips curve into a smile as Adrien pulled away. He stood up, towering above her, and gave her a nervous smile. "Was that okay?"

Marinette nodded at him. "More than okay." She supposed he should have asked first (consent was key, after all), but was grateful that he had checked. Nobody was perfect, and she could always have a discussion with him later about it. This relationship was a work in progress, after all.

MLBMLBMLB

Marinette fiddled with her pen as Ms. Bustier explained the criteria for their final assessment of the term. The aspiring designer probably should have been listening, as Literacy wasn't exactly her strength, but her brain felt like an overstuffed pillow, and Marinette was sure that even if she had been listening to her teacher, none of the information would stick. She glanced up at the clock. Four minutes to go. What were her plans for tonight? She had some homework due soon, and maybe work on a project or two…..

Her eyes fell to Adrien, or rather the back of his head. His hair was slightly messier today, reminding her of Chat Noir's signature mop. Chat Noir….. Her stomach dropped. She had a patrol tonight, from five until six. An hour of running around the city alone, searching for any disturbance in the peaceful Paris evening. Marinette knew that as a superhero, it was her duty to do everything in her power to keep her city safe, but some days it was just too much. She propped her chin up with her hands and glanced to her left. Alya was scribbling down some notes, looking vaguely upset. Marinette had returned to class a few minutes after Adrien, and had then had to rush off to her design class, which Alya didn't take. They'd had several classes together throughout the day, but hadn't been seated near each other. Marinette had gone home for both recess and lunch.

In short, Alya hadn't yet apologized to Marinette for causing her to panic. She had since calmed down about 'LadyNoir' becoming 'official', for which Marinette was grateful. She wasn't desperate for an apology, but had a feeling that an apology might heal the rift between her and Alya.

The bell sounded, causing Marinette to jump as the rest of her class, who had obviously been aware that the bell was on the verge of going off, barrelled out the door, books clutched to their chests. With a sigh, Marinette stood and began to pick up her stuff. She turned to go and was almost out the door when she heard her name.

She smiled. It was exactly what she had been expected, and she knew what would happen next, but she turned around anyway. "Yeah?"

Alya stood at her desk, holding her books and looking vaguely upset. "Listen, I'm sorry for this morning. I guess I overreacted, and you were right about not shipping two actual people together. I'm really sorry, Marinette."

Marinette smiled. "It's okay, Alya. Apology accepted." She walked up to the bespectacled girl and gave her a one-armed hug, because of her books. Alya did the same, and they both looked at each other and laughed.

MLBMLBMLB

Back again! Sorry for the delay, I went away over the weekend to my aunt's for a few nights. Thank you for all your reviews, they make my day so much better. This isn't the last chapter, I think there will be at least another two or three. Bye!