Author's Note: First of all, thanks so much to everyone who's left comments and favs on this story! It means a lot to me to have your feedback, and I read each and every single one! This is the first extended fanfic I've written in years, and it's been so much fun seeing everyone react to it. We are now at the halfway point of this story, but don't worry- it's not going to end right away! :))
Sabine turns on the lights in Marinette's room and Tom kindly asks if either of them would like some water, as though he's just come upstairs to make conversation with the kids instead of walking into the most embarrassing moment in the history of the world.
He is met with silence.
"I'll take that as a yes," he says, retreating back down the stairs with his wife so that the kids can have some time to recover. He remembers with amusement the time Uncle Cheng found him and Sabine in a similar position inside a broom closet at her cousin's wedding, though both of them had been nineteen and in university at the time.
Tom makes a mental note to have a certain conversation with Marinette, though it occurs to him that perhaps his daughter already knows a lot more than he did at her age.
As the trap door closes above Sabine and Tom, Alya whips her head to glare at the guilty couple.
"So, how long has this been going on?"
Marinette and Adrien make eye contact and converse silently. It's a tricky line they have to cross right now, and a delicate balance they have to strike. It'll involve telling parts of the truth while leaving out significant details, for the safety of everyone involved.
Marinette nods at Adrien to be the one to speak up. It'll make more sense if he does.
"Um…since the first rehearsal, when we had to kiss. I, uh, I asked her out right after that."
Alya looks at Marinette, eyes narrowed. "I knew it. I knew you were hiding something from me!"
She turns back to Adrien. "And the Chat Noir costume?"
Adrien shrugs. There is no explanation that he can think of that could possibly sound normal to anyone.
Thankfully, Marinette cuts in. "Honestly, that would take way too long to explain."
Alya shakes her head and waves her arms. "That's fine. I don't need to know everything. But I can't believe that you didn't tell me you were dating Adrien! Why would you keep such a big secret from your best friend? Especially when you knew I was dating Nino!"
"I'm so sorry, Alya! I was going to tell you soon, it just wasn't the right time."
Alya is about to continue scolding Marinette when she notices Adrien's eyes, which are wide with concern.
She sighs. "Well, I'm still mad at you for lying to me about tonight, but we can talk about it tomorrow. I'm gonna give the two of you some space. See you at school."
She goes back down the stairs, and finally, Marinette and Adrien are alone again.
They sit beside each other on her bed in stunned silence until Adrien suddenly starts laughing.
"What's so funny?" asks Marinette, completely confused.
"I'm just thinking about the look on everyone's faces. I mean—can you imagine what it must have looked like for everyone? They probably think we're into cosplay or something."
Marinette groans. "I'm so, so sorry. I never thought that tonight would end up like this. This is so embarrassing!"
Adrien sobers up and turns to look at her, squeezing her hand. "Hey. It's okay. There was always a chance that something like this would happen. But there is one thing—"
"What?"
"Your dad, he won't kill me, will he? I can still take the croissants home?"
"Oh, no, never," says Marinette, finally cracking a smile. "Like I told you before, he's probably even more excited than me about us dating. But I wouldn't be surprised if he tries to start telling me about the birds and the bees tomorrow."
The next day, Nino grins knowingly at Adrien as soon as he sits down at the desk. He turns around and looks at Alya, who shrugs. "Nino is my boyfriend and he's your best friend, so of course I told him."
Nino laughs. "Soooo Marinette, huh? It took you long enough! She's had a crush on you for months now."
"Yeah, I, uh, finally figured it out."
"Well, good for you! I've been running out of ways to make it more obvious without pushing the two of you in a janitor's closet or something."
"Wait, you were trying to set us up? Since when? How come I never noticed? You suck at being a wingman, Nino."
"I mean, I guess I haven't been trying too hard. I've been a bit distracted lately," says Nino sheepishly, looking up at Alya and winking.
Adrien rolls his eyes. "I know. I was in the theater yesterday."
"But anyway, that's good for the play, isn't it? Ladybug and Chat Noir in love—and now the two leads playing them are dating! I am a master at casting the right actors for the right parts," responds Nino with pride.
"Nino, it was Mylene's idea to cast Marinette as Ladybug, not yours. And it was my idea to cast Adrien as Chat Noir. Give credit where it's due," scolds Alya.
"You suggested it, but I agreed to it!" retorts Nino as Marinette walks into the classroom and sits down at her desk.
"Oho, what's this, a lover's quarrel?" she says with a grin.
"One more word, Marinette, and I'll tell Nino what Adrien was wearing last night. I'm still mad at you," responds a grumpy Alya.
Adrien and Marinette lock gazes and Adrien hastily motions at her to stop talking.
Later, as the class splits up for lunch, Nino and Alya walk off together, with separate lunch plans of their own. Though judging from the looks on their faces, Marinette suspects that between the two of them, they will be making fun of her and Adrien for a while.
She turns to look at Adrien. "Come have lunch at the bakery with me."
He looks at her, startled, but pleased. Nobody's ever invited him to have lunch before.
Marinette giggles at his expression. "Hey, don't be so surprised! We're dating, aren't we? This is our new normal. It's okay for you to come home with me for lunch. And maybe if you're around, Papa will stop trying to corner me and start awkward conversations. I was right about him trying to have a special talk with me today, and I don't need that to be happening over lunch."
"Okay," says Adrien. "But you should probably tell your parents to be careful, or I'm going to eat them out of bakery and home. I already finished all the croissants they gave me."
"I'll warn them," says Marinette with a laugh. "By the way…do you want to do a do-over of last night? Maybe I should come over to your place again. Something tells me we won't get interrupted, and I want to make it up to you."
Adrien smiles. "Well, if you're coming over to my place, you should probably come as Ladybug. It'll be easier to explain, since you don't need to come in the front door. More practical, too."
Marinette looks at him, eyebrow raised. "Are you trying to be practical, or is this just your way of saying that you just want to make out with Ladybug?"
"No!" stammers Adrien, blushing fiercely. "I just—I really like how you look in red, okay? And you're so strong and intelligent and beautiful—"
Marinette giggles and laces her fingers through his and plants a quick kiss on his cheek.
"Okay, okay! Ladybug it is."
"Wait, Marinette!" peeps a small voice from her purse.
"What is it, Tikki?"
The little red kwami floats out of Marinette's purse and in front of the two young people.
"I know the two of you are excited to be together, but you really should take a few days of rest. I'm worried about both of you if you spend every night together like this."
Adrien looks concerned. "Is Paris in danger?"
"No, but if its heroes aren't well rested, it's always more risky."
Adrien nods. "Okay. We understand."
"I'll promise to be careful!" says Marinette. "I promise, Tikki, after tonight, we'll take a break from the night time visits."
That night, Ladybug shows up to Adrien's room, and she sees that he's turned it into a lush indoor garden, with flowers everywhere and candles throughout. As he steps out of the shadows, she can see that he's even wearing a suit, a classy single breasted dark grey number she recognizes from Gabriel Agreste's latest fashion spread.
"What is this?" she says, laughing with delight.
"I'm sorry about how last night turned out too, so I wanted to do something romantic to make up for it. And I saw earlier that they were setting up a Garden of Eden themed photoshoot in one of the studios downstairs, so I snuck all the set pieces up here after they left. I'll put it back at the end of the night."
Ladybug smiles. "You're such a charmeur. I love it."
"Don't you mean "chatmeur?"
She sticks out her tongue. "I definitely did not. But I'm not dressed for something like this! You're in such a nice suit, and I'm in red spandex."
Adrien shrugs. "Bugaboo, you always look gorgeous to me. No matter what you're wearing."
"How can the son of a world famous stylist say something like that?"
Ladybug looks at her lovestruck boyfriend fondly. "But I guess there's no point in talking to someone with rose-colored glasses."
And then she remembers. She can use Lucky Charm even when she's not fighting an akuma. She's never tried it before, and she has no idea what will happen, but she decides to give it a go anyway.
"Wait. I have an idea. Lucky Charm!"
What happens next is something out of a fairytale. Immediately, Ladybug is surrounded by a cloud of sparkling red dust, and her outfit changes into a beautiful sleeveless A-line floor length crimson gown, with detailed black beading throughout. Even her mask changes to a slightly more ornate design, resembling a masquerade mask with glittering black curlicues at the edges.
Adrien looks at her in awe. "You look like a princess."
She smiles. "I feel like one, too."
"I didn't know that you could use Lucky Charm when we aren't fighting akumas," says Adrien, appreciating the charm's work.
"It's the first time I've done it, actually," says Ladybug. "I just found out that I could recently."
"You should use it more often," responds Adrien appreciatively.
Ladybug laughs. "Maybe I will!"
She looks around at the lush greenery throughout the room, which is beautiful, but makes it feel eerie in the darkness. "We need music. It's too quiet in here."
Adrien turns on the radio, and the pulsing beats of EDM flood the room.
He makes a face. "Sorry! That's not what I was expecting to come on. I thought this was the classical station."
Ladybug laughs. "That's okay, I like this much better anyway." She beckons at Adrien. "Come dance with me!"
She pulls him towards her and they dance around like they're in a club, moving wildly to the beat, their bodies in sync. It's a different kind of physicality than the one they're used to, but a very enjoyable one—and Ladybug finds herself wishing that there could be some excuse for her and Chat Noir to dance together on missions in fancy outfits while fighting akumas.
However, It soon becomes apparent that they're both completely overdressed for this particular activity, but they're having too much fun, and they keep dancing, song after song, until they're out of breath and their feet ache.
Finally, Ladybug plops down on his bed and yawns.
"Tikki was right. This is getting to be too much. I can't dance anymore, at least not in this dress."
Adrien turns to look at her, worried. "Are you okay? You should de-transform if you're feeling tired. I don't want to make you exhausted."
"Are you sure?" says Ladybug, hesitant.
"Of course. Do you wanna play Ultimate Mecha Strike instead? I've been practicing. I bet I can beat you."
"Hell yes! That's a challenge."
Ladybug de-transforms as Adrien pops open and sets up the game. They play five games in a row, Marinette winning four of them, when her phone buzzes. When she picks it up, she sees that it's a text from Alya.
As she reads it, her face blanches.
"What is it?" asks Adrien with concern.
"The school theater—it's on fire."