"Chloe's having a good time," Adrien said.
Marinette looked across the room and surrounded by several admirers, including Jagged Stone, was Chloe.
"It looks like she's holding court," Marinette said.
"All she needs is a crown, and she'd be the queen alright," Adrien added.
"Don't say that too loud," Marinette said, motioning for Adrien to keep his voice down, "if she hears you, she'll want one."
Adrien laughed, "Well, it'd look good with the redesign you did to that dress. I can't believe you did all that with some flowers and a lace doily." He glanced at Marinette with admiration, "you did an amazing job. You have some incredible talent."
Marinette blushed, "Thanks," she said, "But if the original design hadn't been so amazing, I wouldn't have been able to repair it so easily."
A waiter stopped next to them, offering a tray of drinks. Adrien plucked two flutes of sparkling water from the tray of the passing waiter, "I think I ended up wearing the last ones before you had a chance to have any."
"Oh, yeah," Marinette said, accepting the glass from Adrien. "I forgot, in all the excitement."
She watched him flip his hair back, taking a sip. Being here with him, sipping drinks, it was surreal.
He glanced at her, "Did you not want sparkling water?" Adrien asked, noticing Marinette's pause before drinking, "can I get you something else?" he asked.
"Oh, no. It isn't that, it's just..." she looked around the lobby, transformed into a different world, "you might think it's silly, but when we entered before, I remember thinking it looked like a different world, and how it was like descending into a fairy mound."
"I never thought of it that way," Adrien looked around the lobby-turned ball room, "Your right. I suppose that's why I love going to school so much," he said, "here, everything is made up. Out there... my friends, my life, it's real."
Marinette raised her glass towards Adrien, "shall we drink to different worlds?" Marinette asked.
"I'd rather drink to being here, in this one, with you," Adrien said, leaning closer to Marinette.
Marinette stood stunned, looking up into Adrien's face. Was he was flirting with her! He had never done that before. He had always been so kind to her in the past, this is the first time she had ever seen this side of him. A memory niggled at the corner of her memory.
Chloe pushed between them, the memory that had been swimming to the surface, popped like one of the bubbles in her glass.
Snatching Marinette's glass out of her hand, Chloe said, "Is that for me? Ughh, being admired is thirsty work," taking a gulp she made a face, "Uggh, you got the wrong thing." Placing the glass on a passing waiters tray. "Where's Sabrina when you need her. That's it, I don't care what Daddy promises me, I'm not doing another one of these events without her."
Chloe glanced at the Adrien, "you ready to get out of here?" she asked.
Adrien stepped back, looking a bit stunned. "Chloe, I thought you were having fun, being admired" Adrien said, "besides, I can't go, I have to represent the brand."
Chloe rolled her eye's so hard, Marinette thought she could hear it, "Well, of course I looked like I was having fun. That's what I do," she glanced at Marinette, "Adrien is such a goody two shoes. If I'm going to allow you to hang around me, you need to help me, to get him, to loosen up a little." She turned back to Adrien, "Look Adrikins, you have to leave them wanting more. That's the trick. Shmooze, be seen, then disappear. You're good at disappearing when you want too. I've never seen anyone work so hard to go to school, only to ditch class as much as you do. Let's put that to good use and get out of here, before we become old news."
"Leave them wanting more?" Adrien glanced at Marinette, "Well, I suppose we could try that, What do you suggest then?" Adrien asked, addressing Chloe with a raised an eyebrow and folding his arms.
"First, we sneak out of here," she nudged Adrien, "you know the drill, right?"
"Secret celebrity door?" Adrien said smiling.
Chloe nodded, "secret celebrity door."
"What's that?" Marinette asked.
"It's code for sneaking out the back door," Adrien said, laughter in his voice.
She looked up into his smiling face, his eye's crinkling slightly in the corners, "Ok" She said, leaning in closer and whispered. "What's the plan for sneaking out of here?"
"Right," Chloe said, "operation 'blow this popsicle stand,' is in effect. Here's what we're going to do…."
THE END.