A.n.-Well hello there! I think you all might want a chapter, so I figured I would deliver. First off I want to thank you all for all the story recommendations, slowly working through them. (Unless you all don't want chapter updates then I could just read.) The two authors I'm recommending this week are TheNovelArtist and Whimstories. Both authors have a way of making me fangirl like no one's business. Although in future chapters I'll be recommending the stories and not necessarily the authors themselves, I've just read multiple works from them. Thank you to my betas as always, they make me better.

"I don't know what I should worry about more," Marinette gasped as familiar green eyes gave away his position perched on her bed. "That my girlfriend is avoiding me or that she's spending nights with supermodels." His smirk grew as the cat who caught the canary. "Care to weigh in on the subject, Princess?"

"Chat? What are you doing here?" She hadn't meant to shun him, it was just an unavoidable consequence of not knowing what to say to him. "It was great seeing you, but Adrien could knock on my door any minute." If he left, that meant she could figure out how to break everything to him without the chance that he would hate her afterward. She didn't know if she could handle it if he did. Just because she had a moment of weakness with Adrien didn't mean that her feelings for her partner had faded. If they had, she wouldn't have been concerned with texting him the previous week. It was hard to know when her feelings were so muddled together, but she didn't intend to figure it out tonight.

Chat Noir, on the other hand, had a different idea.

"I'll take my chances," he said as his grin spread wider. He wouldn't have even come in the first place if she had told him what was wrong. The entire ride back she was silent and kept looking out the window, no matter how much he tried to start up a conversation. He had figured if she was unwilling to tell his civilian self, maybe he could coax it out of her this way. Besides, it was an opportunity to gain some other answers that had been plaguing him. "You're not going to be able to side-step this question. Are you avoiding me?" When Marinette looked away, it not only provided an answer, but also a sharp pang of pain to his person. His smug smile dropped instantly along with any desire to tease her further. He despised that he was right.

"Talk to me Princess, did I do something wrong?..." Adrien racked his brain for anything that Chat Noir could have done but came up empty. But with no answer from his Princess, he toed the line further desperate for answers. "Is it...him?" It was cheating gaining information like this, but at the moment, he didn't care.

"Adrien is just a friend, even if he wants to be more." The words tumbled out of her mouth like a badly kept secret. He presumed to try and shut down the conversation, but it only made him want to dig deeper.

"So something happened between you two then?" he retorted. It wasn't like he needed the confirmation; he was there after all.

"He kissed me; I was weak and kissed him back. Is that what you want to hear?" She snapped and instantly recoiled at the sight of hurt that panged across his face. "It shouldn't have happened; it was a moment of weakness. Believe me, that it's never going to happen again, but I understand if you never want to see me again…" Maybe it was the way that she was looking at him, or the vulnerability wavering in her voice, but he caught it in an instant. She was afraid; afraid that he was going to leave her. Now was not the time to pursue this.

"I'm not going anywhere, Princess." He jumped off the bed and wrapped his arms around her; she melted at his touch. "If anything, I was concerned that you were breaking up with me since you weren't getting back to me. A relationship without a mask or secrets involved is a lot easier, you know. I can imagine how tempting it would be." No matter how he tried to remove Nino's words from his mind, he couldn't. Now he was afraid that one day being Chat wouldn't be enough for her.

"Only if you don't have secrets of your own." Her words fell flat on his chest and his lips dipped into a frown. Secrets, she just admitted to holding something from him like it was second nature. The thought made his stomach queasy. What was she hiding?
"You can tell me anything, Mari." The tenderness in his voice sent a shiver down her spine. It was hard not to break down and tell him everything him right then. This was Chat Noir, after all, her partner for years. She didn't answer him but instead wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her lips firmly to his.

"Can you stay with me for a while?" He silently nodded and as her hand linked with his, she led him to the bed. Marinette positioned herself, so her head rested on his chest while one hand played with the strands of blonde hair. Her hand stopped at the sound being emitted from his body. "Are you…purring?" She questioned in a teasing tone. The blush that was forming underneath his mask only made him more adorable.
"Sorry about that," he said sheepishly. "I can't help it, it only happens when I'm perfectly content and happy." Marinette leaned in and pecked his check.
"I like it, Kitty." Chat's eyes closed again as her finger began scratching his head once more. The sound grew in volume and acted as a lullaby lulling the two to sleep.

"Mari," the sweet voice caused the vivid illusion to start to crumble around her. A moan escaped Marinette's mouth as she shifted her body. Adrien crouched down beside the bed his hand pushing a strand of hair out of her face.

"Not now Chat, more sleep." He froze at the usage of his other name, but after a few minutes of reassurance that she was incoherent; Adrien's lips pushed up into a soft smile. How was it possible that she was this beautiful while sleeping? He had taken a huge risk last night when he fell asleep with her the previous night. In the early hours, his transformation released, but he couldn't bring himself to move till the sunlight began to stream through the windows. Truth be told, he didn't regret it. There was something to laying there with a girl that he loved within arm's reach. The night had passed along with their dreams and now he had to face the morning along with reality.

"Marinette," he whispered softly once more. It proved effective when her eyes became half-lidded.

"Mmm," her eyes shot open when she realized whose face she was staring into. "M-morning Adrien."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you. It's just...Nathalie called." Their eyes met and her breath hitched waiting for the news. "My father woke up this morning."

"Your father..." Her words faded as the news washed over her. Suddenly she threw her arms around him. "That's amazing Adrien." After a couple seconds, it was impossible to ignore the heat rising to her cheeks, and she forced herself away.

"I was hoping to head over to the hospital and wondering if you still wanted to join me."
"Let me get changed." She blurted out quickly and Adrien's eyes wandered down her body. His eyes snapped away to anywhere else in the room until he heard her stomach growl.

"We can grab breakfast on the way."

Once they reached the hospital, they were directed up to the fourth floor. But Marinette noticed the closer, they got the more Adrien dragged his feet. She reached out, squeezed his shoulder and offered a warm smile.

"Everything will be okay." She desperately wanted him to believe it. After all, waking from a coma this early was good, there was less chance of any brain damage. Marinette knew that Gabriel loved his son even if he had a funny way of showing it sometimes. He would be delighted to see Adrien even if they sat in silence together because that's how parents were supposed to be.

"You're right." He reached for the doorknob when Marinette heard a familiar voice arguing behind them.

"What do you mean he's not allowing any visitors? Do you know who I am?"

Chloe.

"You go on ahead, there's something I need to do." Adrien nodded, and Marinette turned to make a beeline for the blonde. This was the first time she had seen her since the party, but this time She was expecting some answers.

"Chloe." The blonde stopped yelling at the nurse and their blue eyes met.

"What are you doing here?" Her eyes filled with what Marinette could only describe as terror. The underlying question was screaming between them: was anyone hurt? It was a usual reaction from anyone who welded a miraculous she supposed.

"I'm here with Adrien who's visiting his father." Marinette answered in her attempts to calm her.

"That's why I'm here too. Nathalie called my family and told us that he woke up. I was on my way when these nurses informed me that I wasn't allowed to see him."

"Adrien wanted the privacy. No need for the press invading every part of his life." She cleared Chloe with the nurse and the two began walking down the hallway.

"Look, I have some questions." How was she supposed to approach this? It wasn't every day that she asked how she had been found out. She had been so careful up to this point.

"I figured you might." Chloe didn't let her eyes wander from the ground. She took a breath and words came tumbling out. "I wasn't sure at first, but things didn't add up. You were never around the akuma fights and would randomly show up afterward claiming you were there the whole time. It wasn't until you took my miraculous away..." her voice faded out, and Marinette noticed water prickling the edges of her eyes threatening her makeup. "The next day you came into class you couldn't look at me through the entire class until the end. You wore the same expression you did the day before. Your face flashed in and out of the mask for a second, and I thought I was going crazy." The heaviness hung between them, and Marinette found herself hanging on Chloe's every word. "I couldn't stop seeing you slip into ladybug mode in class; so one day, I followed you to confirm my suspicions."

"But you never told anyone...why?" It would have been the perfect revenge after what was taken from her.

"Because it's what you would have done." She explained. "Even though I was angry I knew that it was my fault that Pollen was taken from me. I just wish I came to terms with that sooner."
"You might not have gotten to know Nathaniel as well as you did if you had." Marinette offered.

"He deserves the best that I can offer. Speaking of which." Her soft smile curled into a smirk. "Accompanying Adrien to see his father is a very girlfriend move. Did our mutual friend finally see the light?"

"He kissed me." Chloe watched Marinette's fingers brush quickly over her lips for just a second reliving the memory.

"And..." she prompted eagerly. As much as she was doing this for Adrien, she was receiving more satisfaction with this conversation than she previously thought she would.

"He told me things aren't working out with Amelie." The words stroked her ego. Of course she was right, as much as people change she knew who Adrien was deep down. How it took him this long to figure it out, she had no clue.

"I'll save my 'I told you so' for the wedding," she teased.

"You'll be waiting a long time then." Marinette's answer made her do a double take.

"What? Why?" She sputtered.

"Have you forgotten that I'm...Ladybug." Marinette forced her voice down to a whisper when a nurse walked by. "It's not like he's Chat."

"But he"- The words died on her tongue. He would never forgive her if she spilled his secret. Adrien said that he could handle this, she had to believe him.

"I have to tell him who I am." This was not good. The second she did it would shred any trust between them.

"What about Chat?" Chloe hoped that she would as subtle enough with the suggestion. Adrien would owe her for this.

"What about him?"

"Don't you think there will be hard feelings that you willingly told a civilian first instead of the guy that's been waiting years." It was beyond her why the thought hadn't occurred to the girl sitting next to her. If she was in Chat's position she would want to be the first one to know.

"If I tell Adrien then he'll understand why we can't be together. I refuse to put him in that kind of danger. I'm doing this so Adrien realizes that I can't be it for him and move on. I belong with Chat." To this point, Chloe had tried to be nice, she did. The statement was beyond ridiculous that she couldn't control the burst of laughter that escaped her.

"If you think that will make him stay away then you have another thing coming. He was smitten with Ladybug when he was younger. It's not going to push him away, he'll pursue you more." Marinette let out a frustrated sigh. Chloe placed her hand on Marinette's shoulder.

"Look, if you want my advice, take baby steps. Tell Chat first see how he reacts then take it from there."

"Thanks Chloe," She smiled. "Why don't you join us? I'm sure Adrien could use the support in there with his dad. There's no doubt that I'll need you to help me convince him to leave this afternoon to get some lunch." Adrien would probably agree to food outside the hospital in a heartbeat but Chloe didn't need to know that.

"Really?" The blonde grabbed her arm as her eyes fell to the floor. Marinette had never seen Chloe this open and vulnerable before. She couldn't help but think maybe if she was like this back in school they might have actually been friends.

"Of course," she beamed. "You're Adrien's friend." She paused for a second before adding, "and mine too." Words couldn't describe the way the blonde's face lit up at Marinette's words. She realized in that instant that her teacher was right all those years ago. Chloe just needed to learn how to love those around her.

Adrien mentally practiced his greeting three times before opening the door. He shouldn't be nervous, it was unlikely that his father would be up for having long conversations given his condition. But fear crept up within him anyway and he almost wished that he didn't let Marinette wander off, she made him want to be braver. Just the thought of her gave him the courage to open the door and walk in.

The room was littered with get-well cards along with flowers. Somehow, Adrien doubted that any of them personally dropped any of their gifts; his father had fans, not friends. Any of them would slit his throat if it meant they could get ahead of the Agreste name.

"Father, how are you feeling?"

"I am injured, not dead Adrien, no need to sound like you're giving my eulogy." Adrien opened his mouth to apologize, but his father cut him off. "But that being said there are matters to discuss. As I get older, the board keeps pushing that the time is coming for me step down and pass the company into capable hands, your hands. Nathalie tells me they were especially pleased with your behavior at the summer fashion show."

"Really?" Adrien's chest swelled up with pride. In all honesty, he didn't feel like he contributed that much to the event besides his presence; maybe that's all it took sometimes.

"I would use remaining time grooming you for success, you would have everything you need." He glanced at his son for a brief moment before continuing."About the Dupain-Cheng girl..." the sight of his son's chest tightening was very telling indeed. "You can offer her the starting job." Adrien couldn't do enough to prevent his jaw-dropping out of surprise.

"Father?" He asked, maybe he didn't hear correctly.

"She'll work under Sergio only until my health increases. I'm confident that you'll be able to handle integrating her and welcoming her to the Agreste family."

"I won't." He promised. The feelings of pride and accomplishment overwhelmed him. His father was proud of him, a feeling that he wasn't used to over the years. Adrien couldn't understand what caused this shift in his father's attitude but it was a welcomed change.

He let his eyes wander to the window stopped breathing at the sight of Chloe and Marinette talking. Their lips were too hard to read, but by their body language, it looked serious. His green eyes mulled over Marinette. Lazily, his thoughts divided between how beautiful she was and what they could be talking about.

Gabriel watched as his son's gaze wandered out the window and followed it till he landed on Ms. Dupain-Cheng. The look that Adrien wore he knew very well because he experienced it many years ago when he bumped into his wife. A sudden warmth spread throughout his body, his son was in love. Whether he had realized it was another matter that they could deal with when he was outside of the hospital. Marinette has shown promise since the first time they met; she was talented beyond her years in multiple aspects, but even more than that she cared for his son. Gabriel didn't know if it was now a platonic love that the Dupain-Cheng girl held for Adrien, after all, things could change over the years. It did bring the question of why Adrien was still with Amelie if his heart belonged to another. That was meant for a conversation when he wasn't in a hospital robe. Once you fall at Death's door, it caused a shift in his priorities. It was too late for him to get his beloved back, so maybe he could devote his energy in investing in his son and the legacy that he was to leave.

"The nurse told me it shouldn't be too much longer before they release him." The blonde said fetching the key to the apartment out of his pocket.

"He was lucky it wasn't worse," Marinette replied as they entered through the door. Her eyes were immediately drawn to the clock, 8:30 pm. They had stayed until the nurse had asked them to leave, and despite his father doing better, she could tell he was still worried about something.

"Do you want to order some takeout and watch a movie?" She suggested. She watched his face brighten before eagerly nodding.

"Do you want to choose the food or the movie?" She asked pulling the litter of menus they had off the fridge.

"You can pick both." Adrien shot back casually grabbing a seat on the couch. Marinette bit her lip in hesitation. She had suggested this plan to take his mind off things, but for that to happen he'd have to be involved.

"Are you sure?" She asked pulling a Chinese menu from the stack. Adrien's body shifted so he could partly face her.

"I insist. Hanging out with you is more than enough." It was moments like this where she wishes she was stronger. It would have been easy to write it off as a friendship statement, but she knew there was more depth to his words than the surface.

"Ok, how about..." she thought for a moment not wanting to bore him with a chick flick. "Now You See Me?"

"Sounds great."

Within a couple minutes, the food had been ordered and the two batted silly questions back and forth till the food arrived. Adrien paid despite Marinette's protests and joined the pouting girl back in the living room.

"Marinette," he stopped himself for only a couple seconds, then curiosity got the better of him. "What were you and Chloe talking about earlier?" Marinette body froze, and the remains of laughter died in her throat. She swallowed hard. It was out of the question to tell him that she was talking about Miraculouses. Not unless she wanted to expose herself on the spot. Her mind raced through what else they had in common.

"We talked about you," She replied. It wasn't a full lie, they had touched on the subject of the model briefly. Although by the way his eyes widened he wanted to know more. "She was concerned about you when she heard about your father she didn't know how you would handle it."

"What did you say?" His voice was strained at best.

"That you were doing better, that we were in this together because your father is like a mentor to me." Together. He couldn't deny how good the word sounded even if it wasn't in the context he would like. Marinette's lip curled to be wedged between her teeth and instantly he could tell she was holding back. It was becoming clear that he would never understand why that was her automatic response around him. Why was she pulling back despite his blatant honesty? The only thing he hadn't come completely clean about was his superhero identity.

"You know you can tell me anything right?"

"Yeah," she replied in a soft bittersweet tone. Adrien didn't receive any more reassurance, so he dropped the matter for the moment. He wouldn't get anywhere if he pressed for information too soon. Once he started the movie it gave him time to think, but all his train of thought crashed when he felt a weight on his shoulder. Upon glancing down, he realized she was cuddled up against him. Planning could wait; who knew how many moments like this he would have with her?

She didn't know what made her seek out his warmth in the first place, but she didn't regret it. He hadn't objected to her body resting on his, in fact, his head came to lean on the top of her. She wished she could tell him everything, but Chloe was right. It wouldn't be fair to tell Adrien before her partner that had been waiting years. Until she figured out how she would be stuck.

Sleep slowly snuck into her system claiming her as its own. Who could blame her with the lack of it over the last couple days and Adrien being an effective warm pillow. However, she must have been more tired than she thought because she could have sworn that she heard the sound of a light purring as her eyes fluttered closed.

A.N.-Awww Fluff! So my muses have added yet another chapter and I did the math and this story will be done in October...which feels super far away now, but I'm sure it will get here before I know it. I'm going to try and work ahead to the best of my ability and there might be some weeks where I'll post two chapters in a week, but the best way to do that is to fuel me. The reviews help, I love interacting with you all, favs and follows are awesome, it lets me know that you are reading, All of it helps. Although I will be posting every week till it is done regardless of what you all do, you can help me get the chapter out faster. Let me know what you think!