Marinette couldn't help but stare up at Chat Noir with big, wide, eyes.
She was dumbstruck.
Of all the things to happen next she hadn't expected Chat Noir to seek her out for a conversation. This was, after all, the boy that waited months between (what she now realises in hindsight) attempting confess to Ladybug on Valentine's Day and his grand attempt to romance her on the rooftops of Paris.
She thought it would be weeks at the very least before Chat Noir would look her in the eye again let alone want to have a conversation with her about something so painfully awkward.
And yet here he was, crouched on the edge of her balcony as his met her gaze unwaveringly.
She couldn't help but feel that those intensely green eyes could see into the very depths of her soul. Her cheeks flushed as she wondered if he could read her uncertainty, and fear, and doubts because she was sure that she wasn't hiding them very well.
Why was he here?!
If she had been in his shoes and woke up to realise she made a fool of herself over a boy that she was only ever on friendly terms with before, then she would curl up under her blanket and not come out for the next hundred years no matter what Tiki and her parents had to say about that. She wouldn't seek the boy out to talk about it the very next day!
But Chat Noir has always been very heads on and brave when it came to his feelings. He wasn't like Marinette, always caught up with the scary bits, he never had doubts about his abilities or felt embarrassed by his romantic feelings.
Then again his romantic feelings never turned him into a complete stammering, incoherent, mess like Marinette's usually did.
So perhaps he impulsively decided it was best to apologise for the Akuma and then let Marinette down very gently like she knew he would.
Or worse, she thought as Rose and Juleka unwittingly popped into her head, it's the complete opposite!
She swallowed audibly at that as her throat suddenly closed up at the mere thought.
This was exactly why she had run away from Adrien!
Only a billion times worse! Because she can't run away from Chat Noir when he has her cornered on her own balcony.
Marinette nervously chewed on her bottom lip as she wondered how she was going to get through this conversation without hurting anyone's feelings or embarrassing herself to death.
"….Marinette?"
Startled, Marinette jumped slightly as she met Chat Noir's eyes again only to see his own anxious expression. It was then she realised that they had been sitting there in silence for the last five minutes and she still hadn't given him an answer.
Doh!
"So…." Chat rubbed the back of his neck self-consciously, "can we talk?"
"Yes!" Marinette squeaked as her cheeks heated up. She sprung out of her seat and immediately tripped over nothing which caused her to humiliatingly stagger and flounder about for a moment as she managed to keep upright for once. "I, erm, would, I mean, you, gah!" she garbled out. "Would you like to come inside?"
She sighed in relieve when she finally got the words out and tried to ignore the big, heart-warming, grin that was plastered on Chat's face as his eyes sparkled with mirth. But it was almost impossible to ignore the sudden speed her heart raced at as she tried to keep her eyes forward on the path back into her bedroom.
They entered into her bedroom in silence as Marinette tried to figure out how exactly to have this conversation. It was on the tip of her tongue to offer him a drink so she could dash off into the kitchen to get some breathing space and gather up some normal, coherent, words that she could actually say to him when she turned round to find Chat holding up one of her framed photos of Adrien.
Oh God!
"Huh," Chat blinked, "I thought I dreamt that bit up."
He then sent her the biggest, most insufferable, smirk that she had ever seen. She bristled with embarrassment and irritation as she felt her face burn from the humiliation of it all. She probably looked like tomato right now and it did nothing but continue to feed Chat's annoyingly sexy smirk.
Gah!
Marinette quickly snatched the photo out of Chat Noir's hands and shoved it, face down, onto her bedside table. "Y-y-y-you," she coughed in an attempt to stop her voice squeaking, "I mean you wanted to talk?"
His smirk softened into a fond, and so very sweet, smile. "Yes," he said gently, "about yesterday-"
"I'm sorry I took advantage of you!"
She couldn't help but blurt that out. The words tumbled out of her mouth before she could stop them. It was the second time today and she was beginning to think she might need to have a t-shirt made with those words printed on in big, bold, letters if Hawk Moth keeps sending out love-themed Akumas like this.
Also, this was an apology Marinette owed to Chat Noir far more than Adrien.
She did sort of throw her arms round him and kissed him back after all.
Chat, however, frowned at this. "You didn't take advantage of me, Marinette," he said quietly but firmly, "if anything I was the one taking advantage of you," his frown lightened up into a wicked grin that turned Marinette's legs into jelly. "I would have ravished you in your bed if you hadn't stopped me so I definitely wouldn't say you were the one taking advantage of me."
"Mpfl!" Marinette squeaked.
Chat chuckled at that. "You're so adorable," he said in an adoring tone that was reminiscent to the day before last. Back to when he was under the Akuma's spell still. Marinette's breath hitched at that as a solemn expression took over Chat's face. "That's what I wanted to talk to you about actually."
"O-o-oh?" Marinette stammered.
"Yes, you see, erm, well, ah," it was a strange and rare thing to see her Kitty so nervous and Marinette couldn't help but shamelessly gawk at him which she was sure did nothing to help his poor nerves. "Perhaps we should sit down first?" he suggested awkwardly.
"Okay," Marinette nodded.
After some awkward shuffling and accidentally getting into each other's way, they finally settled down on Marinette's chaise side by side so that their knees brushed against one another every so often.
Which did absolutely nothing to help lessen the blush on Marinette's face.
"I – you should know!" Chat burst out loudly, he then flushed and coughed as if to clear his throat, "Sorry," he said much more quietly, "you should know that when the Akuma hit me that spell, it didn't make me fall in love with you."
Marinette nodded, she knew as much from what Rose said. "It was like a compulsion to be near me," she murmured.
"Yes!" Chat said eagerly. "Exactly! I suddenly had to be by your side, I had to touch you, I had to keep you safe, you were the only thing I could think about. I was obsessed."
Marinette nodded understandingly.
This was it.
This was where he was going to tell her that now the spell was gone he just wanted to be friends. And she couldn't help but be both hurt and relieved at the same time. Hurt, because of course he would never see Marinette the same way he saw Ladybug, and relieved because it meant she wouldn't hurt his feelings a second time.
"But Marinette," he said softly, "the spell didn't make me think the things I thought about you."
Marinette blinked, startled. "Huh?!" she squeaked out as she felt her cheeks burn all over again.
"I have always thought," Chat Noir confessed huskily, "that you were adorable with your stammer and flustered, awkward, gestures. I have always thought that you were amazingly kind."
Was it just her or was he actually moving closer towards her?! Their legs were pressed up against one another and there was barely any space between their faces as he gazed into her eyes intently. She felt hopelessly trapped as all she could do was lean back a little as she blushed and stared back.
"I have always thought you were beautiful," he murmured as he reached out and cupped her cheek, "the spell didn't make me think those things and now it's gone I still think those things. I still think you're adorable. I still think you're amazingly kind, I still think you're beautiful, Marinette, my heart still sings for you."
If Chat Noir was still under the Akuma's spell this would have been the exact moment he would have swooped in and kiss Marinette until they were breathless. Instead the disenchanted Chat was a little less impulsive, a little more hesitant, and a great deal more endearing as Marinette's heart squeezed tightly as she glowed under Chat's warm, adoring, gaze.
"The Akuma didn't make me think new things," Chat murmured, "it just opened my eyes to what was already there. Marinette," he paused for a moment as his thumb gently ran down her cheek and sent shivers down her spine, "I'm in love with you."
Marinette's breath hitched in her throat, for a moment she was utterly speechless, and then she swallowed in an attempt to soothe her throat and get some sort of semblance of human speech out of her mouth. "Wh-wh-what about Ladybug?" she manged to choke out.
The words tasted like ash and felt as heavy as lead on her tongue.
She felt absolutely horrid for using his feelings for Ladybug as if they would be a problem or obstacle to a relationship with herself.
As if there was something wrong with his feelings.
Which there wasn't because he wasn't the one in love with two different people.
He wasn't the one with the sudden commitment problems because his heart can't make up its mind.
He has done nothing wrong and deserved nothing but the most devoted and loving of relationships.
Chat Noir looked utterly stricken. As if he was literally being torn apart from the inside out, and Marinette's heart ached at the sight of such turmoil in his eyes. Especially since she was the cause of it.
"I still love My Lady with every fibre of my being," he admitted sadly, "she is my first love and I don't know if I can stop loving her but…"
"But?" Marinette whispered.
"Ladybug has made it abundantly clear that she does not return my feelings," Chat said firmly, "there is someone else she likes more and…well there is someone else I like now too," he gave her a little crooked smile that stole her breath away, "I know there is a dozen reasons why we shouldn't be together, with Hawk Moth lurking around and secret identities, and all, but I have never felt more comfortable or content than I do when I'm with you. I know it's selfish but I don't want to lose what we had together in the last few days. I want to give having a relationship with you it's very best shot."
Oh!
She wanted to cry.
It was so bitterly unfair that he comes into her bedroom all gorgeous and charming and delivers this irresistibly sweet speech that makes her want to throw her arms round him and say yes.
But she had to say no.
Because there was still a huge, gigantic, part of her that wished desperately that these words came from Adrien. Just as if it was Adrien who said those words she would be wishing it was from Chat Noir too.
She was going to go to hell one day for this.
She deserved to burn for all eternity for her indecisive heart.
Especially since she was about to crush that innocent, sweet, hopeful glimmer in Chat Noir's eyes before she stamped on his heart for the final time.
How could she reject him a second time?!
How could she be so heartless to make him think there was something wrong with him that two different girls reject him for someone else?
She couldn't do it!
She just couldn't do it!
She could picture him valiantly accepting her rejection and putting on a brave, fake, smile before he left to mope by himself. She could see him being a little less bright, and little less happy, and a little less confident, until it ate away all the things she adored about him.
She just couldn't bear the thought of him thinking there was something wrong with him when she was the problem.
Gah!
She now understood that awful clichéd line it's not you, it's me.
What would this do to them?
If he felt so unloved and so unwanted because two different (from his perspective) girls rejected him so callously, for him only to find out they were one and the same all along?
Their partnership wouldn't just be over, it would be demolished.
There would be nothing left.
And even if he never found out her identity, how could she ever look at him in the eye again? In the end with the sudden lack of trust and the constant guilt, they would fall apart anyway.
The Ladybug Miraculous and the Black Cat Miraculous rely on maintaining a balance, Master Fu's voice echoed in her mind, the slightest imbalance between the two can cause the greatest calamities.
And this was more than the slightest imbalance. It was a total catastrophe, like all natural disasters, a terrorist attack, and the economy crashing all at once type of catastrophe, just waiting to happen.
What if her rejection as Marinette just pushed poor Chat over the edge, and he got Akumatised?
She's beaten Chat Noir before when he's brainwashed by an Akuma but she suspected it wouldn't be the same at all if he was actually Akumatised. He would have more free will and extra dangerous powers, and the capability to apply his knowledge of her fighting skills.
She would be toast if Chat Noir was turned against her like that.
How could she resolve this without hurting her partner?
So have you considered that being open and honest may just be the answer to your situation?
Marinette wanted to shove Master Fu's unhelpful words out of her head but they were now stuck in her head on a never-ending loop.
So have you considered that being open and honest may just be the answer to your situation?
If she's truly honest with Chat Noir and told him everything then maybe they might be able to salvage their professional partnership at the very least.
So have you considered that being open and honest may just be the answer to your situation?
If they were aware of each other's identities then maybe another situation like this on could be avoided. Maybe there wouldn't be another girl stuck as a monster for two solid days while her parents fretted for her. And there wouldn't be so many heartbroken and humiliated people out there in Paris tonight.
So have you considered that being open and honest may just be the answer to your situation?
But was it safe to tell Chat Noir?
Tiki had always stressed that keeping her identity a secret was very important. A rule that shouldn't be broken, no matter what. And if they didn't know each other, then Hawk Moth or one of his Akuma's wouldn't be able to torture it out of them. There wouldn't be any accidental slips for someone else to figure it out. They would keep their family and friends safe.
But if they knew….would they be a better team for it?
So have you considered that being open and honest may just be the answer to your situation?
Without any secrets between them they could meet up without anyone watching them and strategize. They could practice together and be a stronger, quicker, team for it. They could build a better bond and end an Akuma attack before someone even sneezed.
They might be able to find Hawk Moth and stop him once and for all.
So have you considered that being open and honest may just be the answer to your situation?
"Marinette?" Chat Noir pleaded. Marinette snapped out of her thoughts and was mortified to realise that Chat's hand had dropped from her cheek as a dejected expression of despair was etched onto his face. "You've been staring at me for ten minutes without uttering a word. Could you say something, please?!"
Marinette flushed with humiliation at that. She really hadn't meant to leave her poor Kitty hanging like that. "S-s-s-sorry!" she stammered out. "I…I…I…"
So have you considered that being open and honest may just be the answer to your situation?
If they were ever to have any sort of relationship – professional, platonic, or romantic – they would need to be open and honest with one another. They could get past this if she's honest about everything.
She had to tell him.
Marinette took a long, deep, breath and slowly exhaled as she tried to remain calm and serene for the next few painful moments. "I need to show you something," she said quietly.
Chat blinked, utterly baffled, but relaxed slightly now Marinette had spoken again. "Okay," he said bemused, "what is it?"
Marinette took another deep breath as she closed her eyes so she wouldn't be able to see his immediate reaction. Her knees trembled as a dozen various possibilities ranging from disgust to delight flickered across her mind. She was so scared!
Be brave!
"Tiki!" she called out squeakily. "Transform me!"
She felt the magic of her transformation tingle across her skin as she kept her eyes tightly screwed shut. She could hear Chat's breath hitch in his throat as he let out a ragged gasp but otherwise the room was utterly silent in the aftermath of her transformation. She sat there, transformed as Ladybug, with her eyes firmly shut as she waited and waited and waited for a response.
She was beginning to understand how torturous the last few minutes must have been for Chat Noir.
The silence was killing her!
There was then a sudden squeaky, thump-y, noise as Chat's warmth and weight left her chaise. She opened her eyes to watch Chat Noir pace up and down her room as he ran a hand through his hair in an aggravated manner. He halted to a stop as his eyes locked onto one of her posters of Adrien, and a bittersweet smile flickered across his face.
"You know," he said as lightly as he could, so lightly and cheerful that it sounded fake and heart breaking to her ears, "you could have told me you liked Adrien Agreste on the rooftop. I would have never guessed your identity from that. Who doesn't like a fashion model?"
She flinched at his scornful tone. He sounded hurt, and judgemental, and rather disappointed in her. He obviously thought she had rejected him in the past for a fangirl crush, and the posters that littered her room didn't help disprove that thought.
"Oh don't!" she begged. "It's not like that at all. If you got me started on my feelings for Adrien then you would have figured it out in no time."
His face softened at that. "Really?" he said, more curious than bitter and she couldn't help but relax a little at the change of tone. "And how do you feel about Adrien Agreste, Princess?"
The tight, uneasy, feeling in her chest lightened up at the sound of Chat's pet name for her civilian self. It didn't seem like he had a problem at all with who she was and that put a lot of her ridiculous fears at rest. "Well, you see…." She blushed, "a lot of people will tell you that Adrien Agreste is perfect, and they're right!" she added hastily, "but not in the way they think they are."
"Oh?" Chat leaned down until he was sat cross-legged on the floor. "And how is Adrien Agreste perfect then?"
"Well everyone thinks he's perfect because immaculately good looking and talented," Marinette said quickly, "but the real reason he's so perfect is because he is kind, and patient, and sweet. He is also honest and brave, and always tries to do the right thing. When I first met him I thought he was an arrogant tosser."
Chat chuckled at that. "You did?" he asked as his eyes sparkled in amusement.
"All I knew about him was that he was rich and Chloe's friend, and I thought he was just like her when I caught him putting gum on my seat," Marinette explained, "but it turned out he was actually trying to take the gum off for me. I didn't give him a single chance. He could have let me think the worst of him, could have thought the worst of me for screaming in his face like that, but instead he took the time to tell me the truth. To apologise anyway. He was nice to me when he didn't have to be, and then he was kind. It was raining so hard and he could have just left me there, he owed me nothing, but instead he gave me his umbrella, his only protection against the rain, just to make sure I was dry and didn't catch a cold. And there was just this moment…"
"Was there?" Chat asked breathlessly.
"I can't explain it," Marinette murmured dreamily, "our hands just brushed against one another and it felt like there was fireworks going off beneath my skin. He had the sweetest, loveliest, smile that I had never seen before, and when the umbrella collapsed on me, his laugh was just a lovely. I was just…besotted. There was this kind, sweet, honest boy who had this lovely smile, and lovely, lovely, laugh, and the most beautiful, sad, eyes I have ever seen. I was a goner before I even knew it."
Chat leaned forwards, he rested his elbows on Marinette's lap so they dug in slightly while he paced his chin in his hands. His big, luminous, eyes stared at her unwaveringly as they shined with childish joy. She was so flustered at all the sudden contact, as she could feel his body heat seep through both of their superhero suits, that she couldn't comprehend why he would be so happy about this.
"Don't stop," he grinned goofily at her, "tell me more about how sweet you think Adrien Agreste is."
"I…I…I…" she stammered a little incoherently, "well, I just fell for him. He's so sweet and eager and enthusiastic about our classes in school, even when they're so boring! He enjoys it all, and he's ever so nice to everyone in our class, and he's so patient, patient with Chloe who is so exhaustingly clingy and possessive and selfish, patient with me even though I'm so ridiculously tongue tied and silly around him, and even though he has it really hard, with an impossible schedule that stops him from doing what he wants, and a cold, controlling, father that never spends time with him, and crazy fans chasing him through the street, he still stays positive, and kind, and savours every moment he gets with such joy. How can I not love him? How can I not feel my heart race, and my palms sweat, and my words get all muddled? He's so wonderful! I can't take my eyes off of him which is so incredibly distracting since I sit right behind him in class!"
"How can you not?" Chat agreed in a dreamy, happy, voice. "So," he said his voice filled with hope, "if Adrien Agreste was to walk right up to an ask you out right this second, you would say yes?"
"No," Marinette said miserably, "I wouldn't."
"No?!" Chat repeated indignantly. "Why not?!"
"Because!" Marinette said despairingly. "As much as I love Adrien I also love you. You're an annoying, big, goofball, but there is no one else that I trust to have my back in a fight, and you make me feel so safe, and no one else makes me smile the way you do, and I think you're one of the bravest, sweetest, nicest guys I have ever met. I may have fallen head over heels for Adrien without a single thought but you snuck into my heart and let my feelings grow slowly until they're just as strong and breath-taking and overwhelming. I love you both the same."
Chat simply looked overjoyed at that. The sweetest, most serene, smile that achingly reminded her of Adrien was present on his face and his eyes shimmering with what Marinette suspected were tears. "You do?" he said quietly.
"I do," she nodded, "you and Adrien are both wonderful, kind, sweet, unfairly gorgeous boys, how could I choose between you? How could I commit myself to just one of you when half of my heart wishes for the other? You said the Akuma opened your eyes to your feelings for me, well, it opened mine to how wonderful it would be with both you and Adrien. I can't choose! I just can't!"
"You don't have to choose," Chat said soothingly, "you could have both of us."
"That's hardly fair on either of you!" Marinette cried out.
"Oh," Chat smirked, "I think you'll find it is." He picked up both of her hands and blew light kisses on her knuckles before he gave her the sweetest, heart-gripping, grin of a lifetime. "Let your transformation go," he whispered, "I want to see your pretty face again."
She flushed at that but did what he asked nonetheless.
Tiki had the sensitivity to swiftly fly over to Marinette's desk and not say a word though Marinette had no doubt that as soon as Chat Noir left she would get a lecture of a lifetime for revealing her identity without consulting Tiki.
And then suddenly Chat Noir released his own transformation and Marinette was almost blinded by the pale green white-ish light before a tiny black cat shot up in the air and Adrien Agreste was suddenly kneeling at Marinette's feet like some sort of roguish Prince Charming with his biggest Chat Noir grin plastered on his face.
Marinette's face rapidly turned scarlet red as her brain blanked out from sheer mortification.
Oh my God she had just confessed her feelings to BOTH Adrien and Chat Noir!
"Meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep!" Marinette squeaked for a humiliatingly long time before she slapped her hand over her mouth. "I, you, me, I – gah!"
"Huh," the little black cat blinked, "I think you broke her, Kid."
"Plagg!" Tiki hissed from over the desk. "Leave those two alone so they can talk things out properly."
"Can your girl talk, Tik?" Plagg asked disbelievingly as he obeyed her. "I think she might have forgotten how the human language works."
"Words are not Marinette's forte," Tiki agreed sadly.
Marinette spluttered indignantly at that but she was duly ignored as Plagg and Tiki put their heads together and whispered amongst themselves. She would have said something to them but Marinette had the misfortune to glance down and see Adrien still kneeling by her feet with her hands still clasped in his soft, warm, hands. She squeaked humiliatingly once more as she wrenched her hands away from his. Marinette then tugged nervously at her collar as she suddenly felt hot and suffocated.
Adrien didn't seem disheartened by it though as his eyes glimmered mischievously like the sneaky Cheshire cat he was! "So I think you'll find," he grinned, "that you can have your cake and eat it!"
Marinette moaned at the pun. "You….you…." she spluttered crossly, "You….you….you jerk!"
He threw his head back and laughed with utter delight. Her heart did a little somersault at the sound but she remained determined to stay cross for now. He just forced her to spill all of her innermost secrets while pretending he was only one of the guys in her heart. She could simply die of embarrassment right now and it was totally his fault!
"I think you mean," Adrien smiled, "you kind, sweet, honest boy, was it?"
"ARGH!"
He laughed again as Marinette reached behind her and snatched up a cushion. He barely had time to think when she smacked him over the head with it. This only served to make him laugh even more as he scrambled to his feet and started to dodge her every attempt to hit him with the cushion.
"Oh come on, Princess," he teased, "you don't want to hurt me, do you? I'm the sweetest and bravest guy you know, remember?"
She managed to get him on the shoulder for that. "You're a dastardly and conniving cat!" she retorted as she tried to hit him again.
He dodged her again. "Am not!" Adrien said childishly. "According to you, I'm a patient saint!"
"More like a sneaky stray!" Marinette snarled.
"That you love," Adrien grinned as he ducked her next blow, "that you're so madly in love with you fell for me twice."
"I was wrong!" Marinette growled as she tried to take a swipe at his arm. The cheeky sod just took a few steps aside so she only hit thin air. "You are an arrogant tosser!"
He just laughed again which only served to infuriate her even more. Marinette tried to give him one more, big, smack with the cushion only to trip over her own floor and she suddenly flailed about comically as she dropped the cushion and tried to keep her balance. She failed abysmally as she fell onto Adrien, he caught her without hesitation with his hands on her waist just as they both fell onto her bed with a slight bounce.
Once the bouncing stopped, Marinette felt her cheeks burn as she realised her nose was touching Adrien's nose. Blue eyes were locked with green, and she was unable to tear her gaze away as it felt like she was drowning within those stunning emerald pools.
"Hey," Adrien said softly.
"Hi," she replied breathlessly.
She moved back slightly so she could see his whole face. His hair was dishevelled and his eyes were sparkling joyfully while he had the biggest, sweetest, smile on his face. Her heart squeezed, fluttered, and did back flips all at once at the sight.
"Forgive me?" he murmured.
"There's nothing forgive," she said softly, because as miffed as she was with him for having her on, she would have totally done the same thing if their positions were reversed and expected a pillow attack in return. "You have no idea how happy I actually am right now."
She didn't think his smile could get any bigger than it was right now. It looked as if his face was about to split into two he was grinning so manically. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.
"Marinette," he whispered in awe, "Princess, My Lady….I love you."
Marinette tried her very best not to squeak or cry out of joy at that. She had to bite her lip very hard before a smile took over. "I love you too," she said, her voice so tight with emotion she was barely able to get the words out, "Kitty."
She actually did squeak when he pulled her closer. Their legs were entwined with one another, his hands were still firmly on her waist though his fingers were beginning to crawl upwards, while every inch of their bodies were pressed against one another apart from their faces which were mere centimetres apart. His warm breath tickled her lips as she found herself drowning in his eyes once more.
God, she was so doomed!
"You have bewitched me, body and soul!" Adrien declared. "I am completely under your spell, there is no cure for this enchantment that you have cast over me."
"God!" Marinette sniggered and cringed at the same time. "You're such a cheesy goofball!"
"Yes," Adrien grinned soppily, "but I'm your cheesy goofball."
"Yes," Marinette agreed solemnly as she reached out and cupped Adrien's face, his cheeks were just as soft to touch as the rest of him. There was no doubt that Adrien kept a very good skin care regime. "You are."
And for the very first time since all of this mad chaos had started, Marinette initiated the kiss between them. She swooped down and lightly pressed her lips against his. She was too nervous and anxious to linger and the kiss ended far too soon for her liking, and for Adrien's too, as he quickly pulled her back in for another, longer, deeper kiss. His magical, intoxicating, lips coaxed her own into following his lead which caused Marinette to melt into his embrace as he rolled her over on the bed.
Thank God they were laying down! Because as soon as his tongue slipped into her mouth and started to explore, Marinette was certain her legs had lost all ability to function whatsoever.
Or any other part of her body for that matter!
He pulled away when the need to breathe forced them to part and grinned delightedly down at her. "I love you," he said again before he ducked down and pressed another kiss on her lips.
And then another, and another, and another, and another until they were completely and utterly lost in each other's arms.
"I love you!" she murmured frantically between kisses. "I love you! I love you! I love you! I love you! I love you! I love you! I love you! I love you! I love you! I love you! I love you! Oh God, I love you so much!"
The smile on his lips tasted like sunshine against hers.