It was not as if she had not noticed Adrien was staring at her. Quite frankly, she didn't know what to make of it. He was Chat Noir, and the idea didn't feel like it had sunk in just yet. Marinette had liked Adrien, and rejected Chat Noir's advances for so long that she felt bad. It didn't feel right to suddenly accept it all. To date him without discussion or second thought seemed like she would be casting aside all that had happened.
If it hadn't been Adrien, it would have been Chat Noir. She'd told herself that more times than she could count. But now they were the same person. Of course, she was okay with this. Her mind felt clearer than it had been for a long time. However, it was now muddled with a whole new plethora of concerns and worries.
Setting aside the fact that Adrien was the one who had been flirting with her shamelessly for the past four years, and the fact that she had been nonchalantly pushing Chat Noir away for his civilian identity, Marinette knew that she loved him. At least, that was she hoped the heavy palpitations at the idea of dating him were about. Her fear now, was over whether or not Adrien was okay with the fact that she had been Ladybug. Not once had he, as Adrien Agreste, shown a speck of interest in Marinette Dupain-Cheng; or rather, not that she had been aware of. He was friendly with her enough as it was, and they did almost kiss once (though it was for a film and not particularly a voluntary action), but he was no more friendly with her than any other of their classmates. That was to say, she didn't feel as if she were anything special to him. Not that he at all should have been obligated to make her feel that way. She was simply observing a fact.
To contrast his staring, she avoided him. Because clearly it had been the most obvious choice of action. For no reason should she have approached him and talked to him about the situation, thus dissolving the tension in the air. That action, would have been nonsensical.
Her consciousness and natural instinct were doing a very terrible job of cooperating.
Adrien looked like he had something to say to her. As he should have. As she should have. They had a lot to discuss but for some reason or another, she refused to discuss it. She couldn't decide why it was. Perhaps it was the crushing fear that he wouldn't like her after discovering that she was Ladybug and that he would be so disappointed that he wouldn't want to work with her anymore and return his miraculous just to stay away from her and she'd become so clumsy without him that all of Paris would burn to the ground.
Never had she admitted that her fears were anywhere near realistic.
It was the cherry on top when she found herself in an area too small for two bodies with Adrien. Every second she stayed plastered up against his toned chest was another second she spent beating herself up over being stupid enough to mindlessly be proud of the fact that she had followed him there.
His face was so red, she didn't even need night vision to notice the change in color. Adrien had somehow managed a way to make their cramped space even more so, and her heart was nearly bursting at the fact that she could feel his pulse through his chest. Not to mention the little detail regarding an increasingly warm pressure on her right thigh. She almost wanted to tease him about it, but then she would have had to live with it until someone found them. It was flattering to say the least, but he clearly hadn't intended for it to happen.
As happy as she was that she had caused such a reaction, it still made her shy to have it made so aware to her. Marinette tried to move away, feeling uncomfortable with the circumstances now that she had thought them through, but was unable. The look on Adrien's face when he stopped her nearly drew a scream from her throat. He was beyond reason and his expression communicated that clearly. Every fiber of his being was concentrated on not making a fool of himself, though Marinette didn't see how things could get any better. She wondered how she'd feel if he stopped trying so hard. She glanced up at him briefly to get a better idea of how he was doing. His eyes were shut and jaw clenched.
He was clearly in pain, though she could not discern whether or not it was from the emotional embarrassment, or the bulge in his jeans. Asking about it didn't seem to help, and so she supposed was just meant to wait it out. It was a wonder what they had to do to mend the situation regardless. Even if they did wait for someone to find them, were they expected to be tugged out of the hovel and present Adrien's embarrassment to the ever unwilling subject on the receiving end of it? It wasn't an ideal image.
"I'm… I'm going to try… something," Adrien murmured, shifting once more. A part of her wondered how he could possibly make things worse.
"Okay," Marinette agreed. Adrien tried to shift around again, pushing against the wall behind her in an attempt to create as much space between them as possible. However, seeing as there was none to begin with, the effort was rather futile. He was clearly trying for the sake of trying, with no strategy in mind. "That's enough, Chaton," she chastised, deliberately using the nickname she had often referred to him as in costume. He inhaled sharply at the sound of the sobriquet. "We'll have to wait it out." His lips thinned and she could see the way his shoulders deflated. Marinette had already given in to the situation, realizing early on that there was no getting out of it with their dignities in tact. Although they had not moved much of anywhere at all, it felt as if Adrien was pressing up against her more than ever before. Clearly, he hadn't helped himself.
They stood in silence for a perceptively long time. Silence was probably not a good thing. It drew attention to other things when she didn't have to think about what he was saying or what she would say. There wasn't anywhere else for her mind to go except for her chest and her leg. Her shoulders were painfully tense and a part of her wanted to relax into him. Marinette took deep and heavy breaths to clear her very inappropriate thoughts, and perhaps help to ignore the fact that she could feel him sweating beneath her. Before she got the chance to consider doing anything, he spoke again.
"Marinette… I'm sorry we're stuck here like this…" He was exasperated. She jerked her head upward to look at him, shocked that he may have thought she believed this whole incident was purposeful. He was much too frantic for the case to be true. Adrien still refused to look at her.
"Oh, but it was my faul-!" Marinette quipped, meaning to explain, though apparently, he wasn't finished speaking.
"And I'm sorry about…" he paused, clearly unwilling to speak of the subject, "that." Her eyes widened as she was taken aback by the address. She hadn't at all expected him to allude to the elephant in the room.
"… Yea…" she muttered in reply. If she had had her way, that wouldn't have been much of a problem. But she still didn't know what Adrien was thinking. She didn't know what he was okay with, what he was comfortable with, or what he wanted. And despite what she desperately wanted in that moment, it wouldn't have been fair.
"I am so, so sorry. About… everything." Since they were stuck here, Adrien supposed it was as good a time as any to have a chat with her, though she couldn't understand why. He clearly wasn't in the best of sorts. There must have been other times for him to talk to her. That being said, she didn't exactly make it easy on him. All week, she found every way possible to run from him. She was scared. He was Chat Noir and she didn't want things to change. Or rather, she knew they would change regardless of her consent, and though she was alright with change, she didn't know what Adrien wanted. She knew Chat Noir loved Ladybug, there was no question of it, but for years she was drawn to Adrien. And for those years, she loved him blindly, never even knowing enough to realize or consider that he could have been Chat Noir. And what did that say about her? What did it say about her character and her love for him? How could she want to be with him when she had desired him so blindly?
"… Me too," she responded. "I'm sorry I've been avoiding you. It… it wasn't your fault that we had to reveal our identities, and I shouldn't have treated you like it was."
"No! I understand!" Adrien placed his hands on her shoulders. The warmth and reassurance that swelled in her body from his hands comforted her. "I… you weren't ready." Marinette shook her head.
"You're right, I wasn't. But that still doesn't excuse my behavior."
"Well, then, I accept your apology." The expression on his face was tired and serene. He smiled at her in a way that made her feel like he was her everything, though she still wasn't sure if that was the way he truly felt.
"And I accept yours," she giggled. His hands fell to her arms and he refused to let go. It was a much more intimate touch and rather different to the one now in line with her groin.
Author's Note: Thank you all so much for your words of appreciation! This should be 3 chapters long if everything goes as planned. Never fear! I'm nearly finished writing it.