Author's Note: This is my little treat for the Marichat readers who've been sticking with me and this story! It's my own twist on all the favorite tropes. That said, I'm so sorry, I couldn't help but mess with them a little bit :'DDD
Gorilla is late to pick up Adrien, but he doesn't mind. He's thinking about what to do about tonight, when inspiration suddenly strikes him.
"I've got it!" he says, pumping his fist in the air. "She's gonna love this idea."
"What is it?" asks Plagg.
"You'll see," says Adrien with a grin. He puts the kwami back in the bag as his phone beeps. It's Nathalie, who has just sent him a text saying that Gorilla has been stuck in traffic for the past half hour, but will be there in the next five minutes.
"Perfect!" he says out loud to no one in particular before he runs back inside the school to grab something, and comes back out just as Gorilla arrives.
Back at Marinette's, Tikki floats by her side as she watches her take Adrien's pictures down and prep her room.
"Marinette, don't forget to change your laptop screen!" she says.
Marinette laughs. "Don't worry, I remember."
But Tikki still looks slightly agitated. "Marinette?"
"Yes, Tikki, what is it?"
"It's fine for you and Adrien to meet up again tonight, but I think both of you should take a break for a few days at least! You need your rest to do well in school, and to fight against the akumas. I'm worried about how much you're pushing yourself!"
"I'll be fine, Tikki!" she protests. "Don't worry so much about me."
"Okay. So what are your plans for tonight?" asks Tikki. "Do you have a surprise for him?"
Marinette grins. "Well, it kind of depends on him, but I've got a backup plan."
"And what is that?"
"You'll see!" she replies as her phone rings. It's Alya.
"Hey girl," says Marinette. "So, Nino, huh? How long has that been going on?"
Alya sighs. "Girl, don't even. It's a long story. I'm sorry I didn't tell you before, but there just wasn't a good time! What are you doing tonight? Can I come over?"
"Sorry, but tonight's not a good night. I've got other plans. But tell me about it in class tomorrow!"
"What?" screeches Alya. "It's a school night! Where are you going?"
Marinette looks at Tikki with panic.
What should I tell her? she mouths to the kwami, who shrugs and frowns.
"I'm sorry, but I can't tell you!"
"Girl, are you serious? Now I know you're hiding something from me."
"It's nothing, I promise! It's super boring. I'll tell you in class."
"Mmhmm."
"I'll see you tomorrow?"
"Fine. Talk to you then. Later, gator."
Marinette sighs and looks down as she hangs up. She wants to tell Alya the truth, but it's not the right time yet. There are so many things that she still has to figure out before she tells her anything about what's going on.
But knowing Alya, she probably doesn't have much time. Her friend has a nose for when something interesting is going on, and even though Marinette's been able to hide the truth about Ladybug from her, she's not sure she's going to be able to do the same when it comes to her new relationship.
It's one of the problems that come along with wearing her heart on her sleeve—she couldn't hide her fondness for Adrien if she tried, and to be honest, Marinette doesn't really want to hide it. She just doesn't want Alya to know that he's coming over to her house to make out with her. At least not tonight.
Around 7:45pm, Adrien shows up at the bakery, and Sabine opens the door.
"Oh, Adrien! It's so nice to see you again! It's been far too long. Marinette has been talking about you non-stop for the past three days."
Adrien blushes. "Really? I hope she's been saying nice things."
Tom comes out of the kitchen and comes over to pat him on the back.
"Well, she told us that you like croissants and cookies, so we made you a whole basket!"
Adrien's eyes sparkle with anticipation as Sabine goes into the kitchen and brings the basket back out, which is massive and filled with at least six different kinds of pastries and cookies.
"Papa!" calls Marinette from the top of the stairs. "You're so embarrassing! Adrien doesn't need a whole basket of croissants!"
Adrien grabs the basket and hugs it to his chest. "That's what you think! I'm eating all of these."
Sabine and Tom laugh. "So, why are you here tonight?" asks Sabine. "Working on a project?" she says with a knowing wink.
"Mamaaaaan!" says Marinette, groaning.
Adrien smiles. "Actually, we're going to be rehearsing some scenes for the school play."
"Oh yes!" says Sabine. "Marinette said that the two of you are playing the leads. That must be so exciting, the two of you playing Ladybug and Chat Noir! Are you enjoying it?"
Adrien thinks about all the things that have happened since they've been cast in their roles and smiles. "Enjoying" doesn't quite describe the roller coaster they've both been riding over the past few days.
"Yes, I am! It's been a lot of fun so far." He exchanges knowing glances with Marinette.
"Come on, Adrien. Upstairs!" she says, motioning at him.
"It was nice seeing you again, Madame Cheng! Thank you for the pastries," says Adrien before following Marinette up the stairs.
As soon as they get into her room, Marinette puts a book on top of the trap door.
"What are you doing?" asks Adrien.
"Well, you probably didn't notice last time you were here, but my parents were very excited about you visiting me! They kept poking their heads up here. And I definitely don't want that happening tonight."
Adrien laughs. "Does that mean what I think it means?"
Marinette smirks. "Up to you."
"Well, Cinderella, your Prince Charming is here," he says, kissing her hand.
"You're lucky you're so cute, or I'd throw you off my balcony right now for being so cheesy," says Marinette, giggling as she shakes her head.
"So violent! No wonder you're so good at Ultimate Mecha Strike."
"Well it's lucky I am, or Max might have pulverized us that day!"
"True. You do have a way with machines."
"That's right, I'm the best."
"If I recall correctly, I told you that day that you and I were made for one another."
"Stop," groans Marinette, lightly punching him on the shoulder.
"So, changing the subject—you look really nice tonight," says Adrien. "I really like your dress."
"Thank you," replies Marinette, tucking a lock of carefully curled hair behind her ear. "I made it myself."
Adrien looks at again with new appreciation. It's a diaphanous wonder, the silvery skirt shimmering like starlight as it falls to her knees. The bodice is a deep crimson red, with delicate cap sleeves. It doesn't look manmade; if anything, it looks like it was made by a fairy—and she looks like one too.
"That's incredible! Do you know how talented you are?"
Marinette smiles at his earnest praise, which make the hours she spent designing and sewing it all worth the effort.
"Merci, chaton. That means a lot to me."
They face each other and lapse into a mildly awkward silence. In the absence of the adrenaline rush that surrounded them last night, they're beginning to realize that the space between them is a new one, with a different kind of energy that they're only beginning to understand. What does it mean to be teenagers in love? And what does it mean to be teenagers in love, who are also superheroes, and partners?
"So."
"So."
"Now what?" asks Marinette.
"Well, a certain someone told me to get creative, so I did."
"Okay?"
"So I need you to turn around and close your eyes."
Marinette laughs. "Are you going to transform? I've already seen you do that! Why do I need to close my eyes for that?"
"Shhh. Just do it," he says, placing his hands on her shoulders and spinning her around.
"Okay, if you say so."
She closes her eyes, but to her surprise, she doesn't hear Adrien yell for his kwami, nor does she feel a rush of magic sweeping across the room. Instead, all she hears is the sound of Adrien unzipping his bag…and then what sounds like taking off his shirt. She blushes at the thought of seeing him shirtless, but keeps her eyes closed, like she promised, though the temptation to open them is almost unbearable.
After several minutes, Adrien finally says, "Okay, now open your eyes."
What Marinette sees in front of her when she does is a fascinating sight: Adrien, dressed in his Chat Noir costume for the play, but only some of it: just the mask, the ears, and the tail. Along with his long sleeved black shirt and jeans, he's half Adrien, half Chat Noir, and Marinette finds it, well, very attractive.
He cocks his head sideways and grins at her. "What do you think, my lady?"
She smiles. "Okay, I'm into this." She kicks off her heels and saunters up to him barefoot, playing with one of the cat ears before grabbing his collar and pulling him close, lightly brushing her lips against his.
As she pulls back, Adrien breaks into a very Chat-like grin, and she whispers, "Oh, I am definitely into this."
As she pushes him onto the bed and starts kissing his neck, he wraps his arms around her waist and pulls her closer, his hands brushing against her skin as the back of her bodice crinkles up. His fingers are warm against her cold skin, and she murmurs with pleasure as he slides them up her spine.
Her headband falls on the floor and his leather tail gets tangled somewhere between the folds of her skirt and her legs, but they are so wrapped up in one another that neither of them even notices.
In fact, Marinette and Adrien are so absorbed in each other that they don't even hear Sabine calling to Marinette that Alya has come over to return a library book that she borrowed from her.
And they don't hear Alya climbing up the stairs, calling Marinette's name.
And they don't hear her opening the trap door and Marinette's history book thudding against the wooden floor.
But they do hear Alya shriek "WHAT THE HELL, MARINETTE?" as she sees them wrapped around each other on her bed, legs tangled, hair messy, completely oblivious to the outside world, and they both fall off the bed in complete shock.
Adrien's tail unhooks from his belt and his cat ears slide sideways, the mask lopsided, while Marinette's carefully done half ponytail has come undone entirely, with loose strands hanging limply from the hair tie, tangled up in knots.
Both sport bright red cheeks, but it's hard to tell whose cheeks are redder.
Alya turns to Marinette and waves her arms around wildly. "Is this what you meant when you said you had something "boring"to do tonight?"
"Alya! We—we can explain!" says Adrien, trying to defuse the situation, but failing.
Sabine and Tom run upstairs at all the ruckus and take in the scene.
"Oh, my," says Sabine, trying to cover her giggles with her hand as she turns to her husband. "Honey, it would appear that Adrien is quite the tomcat, isn't he?"
"It certainly does, Sabine."
Marinette wails with embarrassment as Tom's eyes crinkle merrily and he bursts into laughter.
Alya turns to look at Adrien's getup and stares as she takes it all in. "Is that your costume from the play?!" she asks with astonishment. "What is going on here?"
She shakes her head as Adrien takes off the mask and sheepishly nods while Marinette buries her face in a pillow.
"Actually, don't tell me. For once, I'm not sure I even want to know what's happening."