Adrien scampered back down the stairs. All he needed to do was pick up his school bag but as he was passing the workshop that Marinette had been in another thought crossed his mind. He slowed and then back tracked to the door. He hesitated with his hand on the doorknob for a moment and then pushed it open.

She was still there and still fussing with the bit of green whatever it was. She had a little half smile on her face as she looked up. Maybe Chat Noir should take up a slapstick tour, cheering up girls and boys across France by falling off of furniture. Her eyes got a little wider when she saw him.

"Hi," she said.

"Hey, Elijah had mentioned you were up here," he said.

"Did he also mention the imaginary Akuma monster he was running away from?" she asked.

"There's an Akuma?" he asked.

"Nothing," she said waving the topic away.

"Can I ask you for a favour?" He pulled the same chair he had sat on as Chat back over to her table and dropped himself onto it again. She gave him a strange look but didn't say anything about it.

"Sure," she said.

"Do you want to go to the Gala?" he asked.

"Interns aren't invited," she told him.

"I know that but I was thinking that you could go as my guest," he said.

"What? To the Gala. The Gala? That Gala? Are you- Why?" she asked eyes going wider.

He hadn't thought this through. It had been a whim. He was struck by the sudden fear that she thought it was a trick and he was setting her up for some sort of prank. Maybe he shouldn't have said anything. She had no reason to trust him. He had been imagining she was a childhood friend, like Nino and Alya. Someone who had known him back before the first international ad campaign or the first men's wear show. Back when he was Adrien first and model second. But they weren't friends. She didn't owe him anything. He faltered but he'd already made the invitation so he couldn't very well run away now.

"I'm not asking you on a date or anything. I just. Um. I need a date and my father thinks I should take Chloe Bourgeois or some minor movie star and I don't even know where to find a minor movie star on short notice. And. Well, I would rather go with someone I know and I don't hate. That's not fair, I don't hate Chloe but I don't want to spend an entire day with her," he was rambling and paused to take a breath before he rambled on, "It would be a great opportunity for you too. It's an industry event so there'll be designers and reps from all the big houses and the advertising firms. I can introduce you to all kinds of people."

"You want to take me to one of the biggest events of the year because you don't hate me?" she said.

Adrien dropped his head down onto the desk beside her and groaned. He had his face buried in a half finished bit of purple shirt or jacket and underneath it was a pair of scissors and some spools of threads. It was all very uncomfortable but he needed a minute of not looking at her. She had gotten more and more alarmed as he had blabbered and he needed to pretend it hadn't been happening. Why couldn't he talk to her?

"I will have you know I am very charming," he said.

"I know," she said and it sounded earnest and not at all sarcastic.

He tried again, "We weren't really friends in school but we got along well, didn't we?" She nodded at him but it was a little wary. He gave her a smile, trying to be more calming. It didn't work so he just kept talking, "I'd like to be friends. This is my terrible attempt at being friendly. Come to a work party with me. Don't think of it as a big event. Just a party."

"I don't have anything to wear even if it is just a party," she said.

"That's ok, I've already got permission to raid the warehouse," he said standing up and holding out a hand.

She let him pull her to her feet and and he looked her over. Thin but not model thin, too short for anything floor length but that didn't mean they couldn't find her something that would work well.

"You're a size four?" he said.

"Yes?" she looked at him baffled.

"I spend a lot of time with clothes," he admitted before accurately guessing her shoe size as well, "With your skin tone, you'll want something in warm colours. Pinks or reds or even the right orange though a lot of orange gowns are kind of pumpkiny. We can try some blues if they match your eyes but most of the blues over the last few seasons have been icy and if the blue is too pale, you'll end up looking washed out."

"You really do spend a lot of time with clothes," she said.

"I do. I'll tell you a secret?" he leaned a little closer and raised his eyebrows. He did not cross into her personal space. He would not make that mistake again.

She nodded and he said, "I sometimes dream of being a model."

She laughed and it wasn't as unrestrained as when she'd been laughing at Chat Noir but hearing it still made him feel better.

"Will you come to the party with me. Just friends at a work event," he said.

"Yeah, yes. I will go," she said with another laugh

"Great, I will get you a proper invitation so you'll have the times and everything, when are you done work tomorrow? We can go look at gown possibilities," he said. He was giddy with the prospect of the party for the first time in years. His father was not going to be pleased but he had found a way to turn a peacock show of a charity dinner into something that would help a friend. That felt like a victory. And she really would look good in a dark pink gown.

By the time he left the room, he was feeling good. The conversation with his father was a thousand miles away and he went home that afternoon nearly bouncing.


AN: Hi! There weren't any author notes on the other chapters because I just binge posted them because I had them all finished so it was just a cross-post. I've been averaging every 2 days for an update schedule but I make no promises that updates will be even or their frequency. Thank you for reading.