[I finally finished! Hope you all like it! Thank you so much for your patience and support! Stay tuned for the last chapter!]
Chapter 6
Marinette's mind was reeling. She was kissing Adrien. Adrien! The love of her life! Or was he kissing her? She didn't really know, but she didn't care either. None of her imaginings had lived up this moment. But now that she was here, she realized they never would. It was greater than she had ever thought it could be. Her dream, her kiss...it was perfect.
Though perfect wasn't the right word for it. Marinette felt that it was something more, something almost magical… And not just the kiss, Adrien himself was magical. The whole room felt like an endless amount of the magical true love, said only to be found in fairytales. And Marinette felt like she was in a fairytale. She had finally met her prince, her one true love. She couldn't be happier. She wanted time to stop, to save that magical moment for all eternity.
But Adrien, being the gentleman he was, ended the kiss all to early. He pulled back slowly, somewhat reluctantly, but respectfully as well. However, that didn't end the moment. Once Mari could feel the air reach her lips, she opened her eyes to see Adrien's staring into her own. Those emerald green spheres were looking at her with something akin to admiration. And all Marinette could do was watch in awe. Adrien's face still so close to her own. So warm and kind and, magical. She could still feel his breath fall lightly on her cheek. And the imprint of their kiss was still left on her lips.
In the distance a pair of snooping teens screamed with joy, but the two lovers were too entranced to notice. Sadly, with every second, the moment slipped. Bit by bit. As their blushes grew, their realization of what had just occurred grew more and more prominent. Adrien nearly dropped Mari once he finally processed their situation. But instead, he briskly brought the girl to her feet and tried his best to avoid eye contact. Yet somehow, that was impossible in their current situation.
"U-uhhh, I-i think we're d-done practicing t-today M-m-mari…"
"Y-yeah… I'm gonna go, uh, get clothes-dressed. Get dressed. Yes…" Mari turned and booked it to the locker room before their awkwardness could get any more awkward. At the same time, Adrien stood with shock, excitement, and who knows what else written on his face. Even so, it took a couple of minutes for his mind to catch up so he could make his way to his own locker to get changed.
Marinette slammed the door and slumped to the floor as she entered. The girl sat with deep breaths coming in and out, in and out. All she could do was focus on breathing. Then, a silent scream escaped her soul as her friendly, red kwami flew into view. The designer attempted to say something along the lines of, 'I just kissed Adrien!', but it came out more like, "A-a-a-adrien. L-lips. Mwuah….."
Tikki giggled at that and flew over to Marinette to land gently on the girl's shoulder.
"Oh Marinette, you finally got your dream! I'm just so proud of you right now. Isn't this great?"
"T-thanks Tikki. And you're right that was my dream… But now what? What do I do now? I mean, I just kissed Adrien. I don't know Tikki I don't - What do you even do after you kiss your crush?"
"Come on Mari, weren't you listening to that movie last night? Find a new dream." Find a new - oh... Marinette hadn't really thought about that. She had slept through most of the movie, but the line was still very familiar.
"A new dream…" She had it. Marinette knew exactly what it was. It had been there all along, just waiting to burst into existence. The most simple yet amazing dream she could think of. To fall in love, to really truly fall in love with the boy of her dreams. One could argue that she was already in love, but deep down, Marinette knew there was so much more. There was still so much she didn't know about him. She wanted to find out his favorite ice cream flavor, where he liked to spend his free time, his favorite pastry (so she could make him dozens, no hundreds), and even what lock of his hair she liked best.
"Okay, thanks Tikki. That really helped. I'll be okay now, you're the greatest." After her talk with Tikki, Mari was finally able to stand up and get dressed without collapsing more than once. She then grabbed the now empty suit and stood by the door to the gym. She stood there, staring at the door like she could make it disappear just by looking at it. Once she walked through that door, she would face Adrien. No going back now.
"AAAAAAAHHHHHH!" Adrien was twirling in the locker room.
"Adrie-"
"AAAAAAAHHHHHhhhhhhh….." Now he was twirling slower.
"Adrien why are you screaming-"
"I-i just kissed a girl Plagg!" The twirling stopped.
"A cute one at that." The kwami mumbled.
"What?"
"Nothing, now why are you freaking out? I thought you humans loved smooching each other." Adrien looked like he was about to pound his kwami into the wall, but he simply didn't have the strength. He settled with a deadly glare that gave Plagg goosebumps.
"Y-yeah I guess you could put it that way... But this was different. I mean, what if she didn't even want to kiss me? What if she's terrified of me now? I just, I don't, I haven't ever kissed a girl before…"
"Adrien, Adrien. She was speechless not scared. Now pull yourself together! She gonna be out there, waiting for you forever if you don't man up and deal with this! You kissed her, so what? I bet she liked it anyway. Now go out there, and talk to her. She's your friend right? You two are probably more in love than you think."
Adrien was a bit shocked at the intensity of Plagg's lecture, but it worked nonetheless. The model was out of his suit and into his casual clothes before the kwami could say another word.
Though he wouldn't say it, Adrien was extremely grateful for his kwami's 'advice'. He didn't think he would have the guts to go back out there without it. He would probably still be screaming like a maniac if it wasn't for Plagg. Wow, that was a weird thing to say. Plagg and helpful just didn't go together. But right now he needed to talk to Mari. Now that he thought about it, Mari was probably freaking out all on her own. She didn't have a somewhat supportive kwami to help her like he did…
And that was all the model needed to bolt out the door that second. Only to be faced with an adorably tentative Marinette entering from the other side of the gym. It was true the girl looked somewhat scared, but she also looked to be full of hope. Just like him. And as soon as their eyes met, the two smiled and half ran half skipped to the center of the room.
Marinette's face was plastered with the endearing blush she always wore, and it made Adrien all the more happy to be there, with her. Yet that's not to say he wasn't surprised at what the girl said next.
"Would you want to come hang out at my house today?"
"Uhh…" Yes yES YES! But sadly, that moment was the moment that Adrien Agreste forgot how to speak. No, not speaking. Just the language. How did one speak English again?
"B-but not if you don't want to of course! I just thought it might be fun to just hang out and stuff rather than just working all the time…"
"Uhh, shì de, shì de, wǒ yào guàle…." What was he thinking? Chinese? What happened to his English? Aaaaahhhh.
"W-what?"
"S-sorry, my Chinese just slipped out. Yes, I do want to hang out. That'd be great." Adrien was relieved. He could speak again, maybe...
"Okay, great!" Adrien caught the small giggle that escaped Mari's lips, and he couldn't help but laugh along himself.
"So would now be alright? To go to my house I mean."
"Yeah, yeah sure. Let's go." The two smiled at each other while they left the gym. And they were smiling as they walked to the bakery together, side by side. With hands not quite touching, but brushing the other as they walked.
"Yes. Yes! YES! I-I did it! Mari I won! Woohoo!" Marinette laughed to herself as Adrien cheered wildly. They had been playing Ultimate Mega Strike 3 for at least an hour by now, and both had been enjoying every minute. Marinette had of course been teaching Adrien all the tips and tricks she had learned from playing with her dad, and it helped him greatly to say the least. Marinette could see her friend improving with each round they played. It was easiest to see his improvement when she finally lost their last round.
The designer was in no way happy to lose, but she was overjoyed to see Adrien win. His face when he won was full of joy and excitement. It made the girl almost want to lose just so she could see his face. Just so she could smile at his accomplishment.
It took a couple of minutes for Adrien to settle down, and perhaps a small nudge from his kwami, but all in all, the two were happy. They were playing video games, making jokes, and laughing up a storm. It was spectacular. Little did they know that their day was about to get even better.
Downstairs, Sabine and Tom had been plotting. When the boy your daughter almost kissed the night before came back, you had a plan. It all started that morning when Marinette had mentioned that Adrien had made one of the cakes on display. Sabine made sure to save it immediately. Tom then called up some of Adrien's close friends and family to discover the boy's favorite meal. And lastly, Sabine sent Mari a text to see if she would invite the model over for the evening. Mari didn't actually see the text until after asking Adrien, but Sabine wasn't going to complain, seeing as her plan still worked out in the end.
Once they had everything in place, the scheming parents closed the shop early to have time to make their best meal yet. All the while, the two teens played upstairs, oblivious to the plot happening beneath their feet.
"Mari dear! Can you come help me for a second?!"
"Yeah mom, be right there! You should try and beat my score before I get back kay?"
"Will do, 'Mari dear'." Marinette huffed playfully at the nickname Adrien was mocking, but inside she was screaming. All the way downstairs, her thoughts were full of 'Mari dear' and Adrien. However, once she found her parents all those thoughts left her. One word. Food.
"Mom… What's this? What did you do?"
"Well sweetie, Tom and I figured that we would thank you and Adrien for all your hard work by baking this meal for you! Why don't you go get Adrien so we can eat. And don't worry about his father, Tom already spoke with him and he's completely fine with it."
"B-b-but mom-"
"Hush hush child, go get your friend."
"Okay okay just don't make him eat all of it!" Mari swiftly ran up the stairs before her mother started to physically push her along. She was kinda shocked that her parents had planned all of this, but definitely not surprised. This was exactly the kind of thing her parents would do, and now that they had already made the meal, she had no choice but to go through with it.
She opened the hatch to her room to be greeted with an enthusiastic Adrien, standing on the swivel chair, and shoving his pointer finger into the controller, repeatedly. She was surprised he hadn't set it on fire by now. The chair was slowly spinning as he played and it looked ridiculous. As the chair turned, Adrien tilted his head upside down to see the screen and Marinette was sure he would fall over soon.
"Oh oh OH! MARI I'M SO CLOSE! LOOK LOOK LOOK! NO. NoNOnoNOnonOOOOO!"
*CRASH*
"Adrien! Oh my gosh are you okay?!" Of course, he had fallen. Though Marinette couldn't help but laugh as Adrien tumbled 'gracefully' from the chair, holding the controller with a death grip the whole way down. Looking at the computer screen, she saw that he was only seven points away from her high score. Better to get him downstairs before he saw that.
"Probably. Yeah, I'm alive."
"Well, are you alive enough for dinner?"
"What?"
"Sorry to just push it on you like this, but my parents kinda made dinner for us. They can be kind of, tricky at times. I hope that's alright though."
"Alright? That's amazing! I-i would love to have dinner with you guys! Thank you! Oh, I'll have to check with my father firs-"
"Taken care of." Adrien was beaming. He had completely forgotten about the game by now, even if he still happened to be clutching the controller. Though he soon dropped it as Marinette offered her hand to help him up. He graciously took it, and was very surprised at how easily she pulled him up. The model had to step back to avoid falling on top of her. They then started walking downstairs together, and Adrien realized he was still holding Mari's hand. She hadn't let go, and neither had he. He stared at their entwined hands as they bounced down the stairway, and only let go once he saw his friend's parents seemingly appear out of nowhere.
And then, he was gaping. Spread across the table were a variety of foods Adrien had eaten and loved as a child. There were several soups, crepes, baguettes, croissants, and even eclairs; each with a wide range of choices. He also recognized several recipies that his mother had used before she disappeared. And the smell of the room was heavenly to say the least.
"T-this is wonderful Mr. and Mrs. Dupain-Cheng, but I can't possibly accept this. You've already done so much-" And suddenly, without any warning, Tom was by his side. Or rather, in his face.
"Nonsense Adrien! We should be thanking you! This is the least we can do!" Adrien settled with a small nod and concluded that yes, he was getting a real meal. Real food, with a real family. He didn't have to be alone tonight.
Adrien felt amazing. He had spent the last hour eating dinner with the wonderful Dupain-Chengs, and he loved every minute of it. Not only was he eating with other people for once, but the room wasn't dead silent. Far from it actually. It was incredible how much noise four people could make when placed at the same dinner table. For example, when Marinette had slurped her soup just a bit too loudly, Tom picked his up and slurped it as loud as he could. And Tom being who he was, it was pretty loud. Sabine then joined in the fun and Adrien couldn't help but follow along as well.
There were a few other situations very similar to what they now referred to as 'The Soup Incident', but other than that, they mostly kept up conversations with puns. Sabine and Marinette mostly groaned quietly and hid their laughing faces, but Tom and Adrien could go on for ages. Though after about 20 minutes of the intense pun-off, Sabine decided she couldn't take it anymore.
"Okay enough puns you two. Now, are you all bready for dessert?"
"Mom!"
"Sorry dear it just slipped out." Unfortunately, no one noticed Tom gasp in delight at the wonderful pun his wife made. Or the manly tear that fell down his cheek to signify his pride for her.
Sabine decided to take the awkward silence as a 'yes' and went to fetch the dessert from the fridge immediately.
But once she held the cake in her hands, Adrien felt himself gasp in shock yet again. It was chocolate cake. But not just any cake. It was his. The cake he had made his first day helping Mari. The one he had made after being covered in flour. He immediately recognized the twirling strands of frosting he had tried to make look elegant, and the small spots of frosting where he had covered up his mistakes. It in no way looked perfect, but it was still made well. He remembered putting it on display and thinking it would never be bought and eventually thrown out. He was a bit crestfallen that no one had bought it, but he was still happy to see it looking just as delicious as the day it was baked.
"Mom is that Adrien's cake?"
"Yup, I made sure to save it for tonight. Now we can taste Adrien's brilliant cooking!" Adrien desperately hoped he had made the cake right. He couldn't even remember what he had put in. Part of him wished he could un-bake the cake and un-mix it right then to make sure he got it right. But it was too late now.
Sabine took a knife to the cake and cut out portions for the four of them. She set them on plates which she then dished out to everyone. Just by looking at the cake, Adrien could tell it was gooey, yet fluffy, and very, very chocolatey. He tried just a small bite in case he had made it poisonous or something, but was stunned to find it tasting, great. It wasn't perfect at all, but it still tasted like cake; like good, chocolate cake.
"Adrien this is really good!" The model blushed at Mari's compliment and looked down. He honestly didn't expect himself to actually be good at something he enjoyed."
"Thanks Mari, you were the one who taught me though." Marinette giggled softly, and to Adrien's surprise, she threw her arms around him in a comforting hug. He immediately returned the hug, and smiled gratefully at his friend. He was baffled at how Mari had seemed to know how much he needed that hug then, but he accepted it nonetheless. Tom and Sabine watched happily, perhaps taking a few photos here and there for their future wedding. Which of course they already planned out as well.
After the hug, Adrien stayed for another hour before he realized what time it was. He sadly explained that he needed to return home, but not without the family making him promise to join them the next night as well. However, he did ask Sabine if he could take a slice of cake home for a friend of his. Sabine of course replied with a yes and sent the boy home with not one, but two slices of cake to keep. He then made sure to gather his things before the model walked out the door with a joyful Marinette waving goodbye behind him. He cheerfully waved back, keeping the promise of a return to the happy home close to his heart.
Marinette skipped happily up to her room after helping her mother clean up. She was thrilled, elated, and ecstatic that she would get to see Adrien again tomorrow. She didn't feel she could wait a whole day. It was just too long. But wait she would, because every second with Adrien was worth a lifetime. The girl went straight for her bed, but was stopped by a frantic kwami flying in her face.
"Marinette! Cat Noir's been calling you for the past few minutes! I think it's urgent!" The designer nodded as she felt her face change from the elated Marinette to the more serious Ladybug. Her transformation took only seconds, and the heroine made it to her balcony just as it ended. She flipped her compact open, prepared for the worst.
"Cat are you okay? Did something happen?" Her kitty seemed to laugh at the intensity of her voice, for he looked anything but urgent.
"I'm fine my lady, and nothing happened. Well, nothing bad anyway. Sorry if I sounded urgent, I was just hoping we could meet up. I happen to have a gift for you!"
"Oh, you didn't have to get me anything kitty. But, yes I can meet up if you want. Where?"
"Just at the start of our patrol, I'll be waiting for you Bugaboo."
"Okay, but call me Bugaboo again and I won't come."
"Hurry up Buga-" Ladybug snapped her compact shut and smirked at Cat's attempt at flirting. She had no idea what to expect from Cat, maybe he would purrpose or something. But after the great day she had, she figured it could only get better.
Seconds later, the heroine was swinging from building to building. Their patrol route wasn't far from her house, so five minutes later she landed next to a blissful Cat with hands held behind his back.
As Ladybug landed she said nothing and waited patiently for Cat to explain. He shifted from foot to foot with his eyes looking anywhere but her. Ladybug only smiled and quietly encouraged Cat to say whatever he was going to say. He must have heard the silent encouragement, because the next second he was looking up at his lady with determination flashing in his eyes. He also took his hands out from behind his back and presented a small tupperware container for her to see.
"Ladybug, I-i made this cake here and I thought you might like it. My friend liked it so I was sure you would too. W-would you like a piece?" Marinette found it slightly strange that both Cat and Adrien had been baking cakes, but she let the thought pass. She hadn't known Cat to be this nervous around her, so obviously this cake was a big thing.
"I would love a piece you silly kitty. I'm sure you're a wonderful cook." That did it. Cat was elated and his ears popped up with joy. He quickly plopped to the ground, motioning for Ladybug to do the same, and opened the container to find two pieces of chocolate cake awaiting consumption. Ladybug was stunned. The cake looked exactly like the one she had eaten just an hour earlier. But it couldn't possibly be the same cake. They were made by two completely different people. It was probably just the same recipe…
Cat took one piece using a plastic fork and set it on the container's lid for himself. He then gave Ladybug the piece still in the container with another plastic fork to go with it. His face held so many emotions that Ladybug couldn't place what was there. She saw joy, fear, hope, wariness, happiness, and several other emotions she couldn't identify. So the heroine did what she did best. She smiled. Cat immediately relaxed his tense muscles, and Ladybug took the cake that had been handed to her.
While looking down at her cake, she noticed Cat watching her. He was probably waiting for her approval. Ladybug couldn't help but think it to be kinda cute. So she took her fork, and stuck a piece of cake into her smiling mouth. What followed next was confusing to say the least. The taste was amazing, a mixture of fluff and gooey goodness, absolutely full of chocolate. It was mouthwateringly good, but not new. No, not new at all. It had a certain air of familiarity about it that couldn't be ignored. Marinette wanted to believe it had just been a coincidence, but she couldn't deny it anymore. With a small swallow she looked up at the cat sitting before her. He was waiting expectantly with his emerald green eyes. Eyes she had seen up close. Eyes she remembered. It was all there. His eyes, his hair, his lips… It was him.
"A-adrien?"