Blind
"I told you, Chat Noir, I don't need your help."
"And I don't need yours," the masked hero argued back. "But if we're going to take down these gangs, we need to work together for the city's sake."
Ladybug folded her arms, looking away from the man for a long moment. She tapped her foot and then sighed. "Fine. We'll go to the Stoneheart hideout together and see if we can take them down, but if you slow me down or get in my way then we certainly won't be working together to stop the Hawkmoths."
Chat Noir rolled his eyes. "My Lady, I think it slips your mind who just saved you from being shot by one of them."
"Alright, Kitty, no need to keep going on about it. Let's go."
The duo exited the scene and the director called for the cameras to cut.
"Great job once again, guys," Alix praised. "We'll watch the footage back and see if we need another take but I think we've done that scene enough. You can both go grab a drink while we replay it and then I'll come over and let you know the plan, but if it's all good then it's a wrap for the day."
"Sounds purrfect," Chat Noir joked.
"You're a little too in character," Marinette remarked with a giggle as the pair headed towards the refreshments.
"Maybe I'm this charming in real life," the man suggested. "I wish we could know each other's identity."
"No, Chat," Marinette warned. "I don't know how many times we have to go over this."
"I know, I know," he sighed, picking up a water bottle.
Marinette opted for a cup of lemonade, which was slowly becoming her drink of choice.
"I never see you pick anything except water," Marinette realised before consuming half the cup in a few seconds. Relaying her lines over and over was tiring work, and her throat was beginning to feel the strain.
Chat Noir shook the water bottle. "My old drama coach never let me have anything else in class. It keeps you hydrated better than all those chemicals and doesn't clog up my throat and ruin my voice."
Marinette became acutely aware of how much sugar she was probably drinking in the drink and narrowed her eyes at the cup. "I never thought of that. Are you one of those types with a strict diet too?"
He chuckled. "Unfortunately so," his green eyes drifted across the snack table to their left. "I haven't even eaten a cookie since I was a kid."
"I don't think I could cope without my mom's homemade cookies. She gets them perfect every single time we make a batch, everyone compliments them and they always sell out within half an hour."
"She sells them?"
Marinette cursed herself mentally for her mistake. "We… She makes them for every local bake sale!"
Chat Noir didn't seem surprised at the reveal of information and nodded his head. "Maybe I'll have to break my diet and try them sometime."
"Yeah, maybe."
The man threw the empty bottle into the trash can under the table and leaned against a wall. "So, any exciting plans for the weekend off?"
Marinette hesitated, thinking through her response before letting any details out. "Just going to dinner. I'll most likely spend the rest of my time asleep."
"Oh, are you dining anywhere exciting?" he queried, absently picking at the fabric of his clawed glove.
"Wouldn't you like to know," she smirked. "I'm not telling or you might try to find me."
He shrugged, dropping the act and flashing his co-star a cheeky grin. "It was worth a shot."
She punched his arm lightly and shook her head.
Hurried footsteps approached the duo, belonging to a short man sporting the brightest green shirt Marinette had ever seen. He held a clipboard in hand and scrutinized a blue smart-watch on his wrist as he neared them.
"Ladybug and Chat Noir, you're both free to go. The Kubdels are happy with the takes we got today and they pass on their thanks for your effort today. We'll see you back on Monday bright and early so get some good rest over the weekend," he told them.
"Why thank you, Max," Chat Noir replied on their behalf. "Have a great weekend."
The smaller man nodded and rushed away to another task.
"He's always running around this place," Chat Noir observed as he and Marinette walked out of the studio. "Must be tiring work being production manager."
"Well it wouldn't be my choice of career, I'm way too clumsy to organise an entire feature film," Marinette said.
"I wouldn't have thought that about you. The past two weeks I've actually thought you had way more composure than me."
"I think it's the costume, it must be blessed or something and gives me powers to actual act like a normal human being."
Her partner gave a deep laugh. "I'm sure you're not that bad."
They stopped at their usual parting location. Both actors had trailers on opposite sides of the building to prevent them seeing one another out of costume, but it definitely made Marinette feel sorry for Juleka who was responsible for both characters' makeup and therefore had to walk all the way around to go between the two.
"Well, My Lady, here's where I must bid you adieu. Maybe I'll see you in a restaurant over the weekend, since I too am going out to dinner."
"Pfft," Marinette exclaimed. "Paris is huge, what are the chances of us being in the same restaurant at the same time?"
He raised his arms to the sides as he backed away from Marinette. "It's also a city where dreams come true, so maybe mine will! See you around."
"Until then," she saluted, allowing a comfortable smile to remain upon her expression.
Marinette twirled in front of the mirror and frowned.
"I look stupid, Alya."
"Marinette, you couldn't look bad in any outfit," the voice over the phone responded.
She crossed her arms, looking at her reflection. "Is a dress too much? It's definitely too much. Black jeans are definitely a better option."
"That's what I'm going for too. I don't even know whether to wear heels, are you? I don't even like them."
"I guess I was going to, yeah," she eyed up the black sandals that were waiting by her attic door. "They're not too high though, I'm already tall enough."
"Well I need that extra height," Alya complained. "Okay, I'm going to go for-"
"Babe? Where's the shirt you wanted me to wear?"
"Hanging in the closet, Nino."
Marinette held in her laugh as she quickly changed into the jeans, listening to the couple dispute the location of the outfit.
"He definitely needs to get his eyes tested again, those glasses cannot be strong enough if he didn't even see a blue shirt that I'd put in full view. Where was I again?"
"You were saying what you're going to wear."
"Right. Black jeans and my purple button up blouse, do you know which one I mean?"
"Yup. I'm going for my pink one, but I think it'll be cold out so I'm bringing my black blazer too."
"Ugh, Marinette, I wish you could just choose my outfits for- What? I can't hear you…. Yes, it's already ironed. What do you mean there's a mark on it?! Listen, Marinette, I need to go and find an outfit for my idiot boyfriend. I'll see you at the restaurant in half an hour, okay? Love ya!"
"You too," Marinette giggled before the phone beeped to signal the end of the call.
She looked once more in the mirror, now satisfied with her amended outfit. She grabbed her purse and placed her phone inside along with her ID and cash before heading downstairs.
"Well don't you look radiant," her father gasped. "My little Marinette all grown up."
"I'm glad you're going out, sweetie. It'll be a much deserved break from all your work," her mother said, holding her husband's hand while they both looked at their daughter.
Marinette clipped a strand of hair back with a pin. "I think it'll be fun."
A car horn sounded from outside the bakery.
"Oh, that's my cab!" she kissed her parents on the cheek and hurried to the door. "I'll see you later, bye!"
The Seine glistened under the final trickles of light that danced across its stream. Reflections of the sunset's colours shimmered, a piece of art that could not be contained to one of Paris' many galleries.
Marinette sat on a bench that looked over the river, watching the crowds of friends, families and couples as they passed, all stopping to notice the vision of beauty in the water before them.
She checked her phone, noticing the time being five minutes before Marinette was to meet the others in the restaurant. The device chimed in her hand as she looked at the screen.
To: Marinette
From: Alya
Just got in the cab now so we'll be with you in ten. Sorry! X
Marinette locked the phone and returned her gaze to the landscape. A couple had interrupted her line of sight, standing directly in front of her and choosing that moment to share a romantic kiss.
She tried to not roll her eyes. The Seine was a huge river, and this couple decided to stop right in her way. Marinette stood and walked away, not straying too far from the restaurant nearby but enough to get away from couples expressing their love to the world.
When her phone began to ring, Marinette fumbled around her purse to retrieve it, expecting Alya to be on the other end of the line. The evening light cast onto her phone once it was in her hand, blocking her ability to see anything and leaving her with no option other than to frantically tap around the screen to locate the button which would answer the call.
Just as Marinette believed she had pressed it, her body collided with something and knocked the phone to the floor.
"Oh, I'm so sorry!" she panicked, eyes shooting up from where they had previously been squinting at the device.
The 'something' Marinette had walked into turned out to be a person, who spun around to find the source of collision. Blonde hair, tanned skin, dark tinted glasses covering his eyes. For a moment, Marinette could almost feel the blood drain from her face. He could have been Chat Noir.
"Don't be," he said before bending down to pick up the phone. "The screen's cracked," he observed as he passed it back to her, "but I'll pay for you to have it fixed."
"No, I walked into you! I'm sorry. I wasn't looking where I was going."
"Marinette, it's me," the man responded, lowering the glasses to reveal comfortingly memorable green eyes.
"Oh, Adrien! I, uh, I …"
He laughed softly. "I should be the one apologising since I'm the reason your phone's damaged. You wouldn't have walked into me if I hadn't called you."
"Really, I was too distract-" she cut herself off. "You were calling me?"
"Yeah," he nodded. "I was just going to let you know that Aurore agreed to contact you but she was a little uncertain about sharing her phone number because she once had it leaked online and needed to change all her details. She asked if she could call me instead and you could speak through my phone to her on one of the days we're both at the film lot?"
Marinette's eyes widened. "That'd be perfect, I completely understand."
"Awesome, I'll let her know then," he smiled.
Laughter nearby caught the actor's attention and he quickly pushed the glasses back to cover his eyes.
Marinette couldn't help but notice the pale blue button-up shirt and the slim black trousers he wore and wondered why he would dress so smartly to just be hanging around the Seine. From the glasses and how he ducked his head as a small group of drunk people pushed past them, it was obvious he was not out to be recognised.
"Would you mind me asking, what are you doing here?"
He chuckled and slotted his hands into the pockets of his trousers, lifting his shoulders casually. "I'm incognito; people watching to see how regular people act."
Marinette raised an eyebrow.
"I'm kidding, Marinette."
"Oh."
"I'm actually meeting up with a friend," he told her. "But if I don't want reporters snooping around I've got to try to hide away a bit. Arriving somewhere in a fancy car would draw that attention, so what better way to blend in than to simply walk along the Seine."
Marinette's eyes lingered on him as he gazed out across the water. Such a simple thing it was to be able to admire the sight of a sunset, but clearly not one that Adrien could afford when he was so well-known.
"What about you?" he asked, turning to face her again. "I can't help but recognise the Agreste purse. Are you going somewhere nice?"
Marinette's face reddened. Her only designer purse, a gift from her parents for her twenty-first birthday, just happened to be the brand owned by Adrien's father.
"It's, uh, it's my favourite one. I've always loved Agreste," she babbled, and then her hand flew to her mouth. "The design! I mean the Agreste designs. Um. I'm going to a restaurant."
One corner of Adrien's mouth was upturned into a smile. "Meeting anyone special?"
"I don't know yet," she admitted.
"A date?" he wondered.
Marinette's blush deepened. "Sort of."
"Well, they're lucky. You look beau-"
"Mari!"
Marinette and Adrien both turned to see Alya waving across the street, Nino by her side.
As she lifted her arm to wave back, she noticed Adrien doing the same… And Nino, who had a big smile plastered on his face.
A lightbulb switched on in Marinette's brain and her hand drooped to her side.
Adrien Agreste was her blind date.
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