Adrien was going to kill Chloe.

He hadn't visited Marinette after his photoshoot yesterday because of his lack of time, but he planned on taking at least three hours after school that day to make sure she was in perfect emotional health and that she wasn't beating herself up over it.

Yes, yes, that sounded like a good plan.

But it seemed that he would have to make it through several hours of agonizingly long torture until then.

As soon as he walked in that day, he realized immediately that Marinette looked happy. Tired, perhaps, but still happy. The concern in his heart ebbed slightly and he grinned as she met his eyes.

She chuckled, shaking her head as he sat down. "I know; I look like a wreck."

"Nah," He said. "You look fine."

"You mean awesome." Alya scoffed. "This girl's freaking boss. Never before have I seen anyone work so hard in my life, and I live with me."

The girl's exchanged a fist bump.

Adrien smiled. "What was the hard work for, Marinette?"

"Oh, I was salvaging what was left of this." She pulled out a book from her bag and set it on her desk. Adrien's eyes widened as he realized what it was. It was her sketchbook, but it didn't look anything like it had the day before. Sure, he could see that some of the papers were crusted at the ends and floppy, and yeah, the covers were a bit wobbly, but otherwise it looked fine.

"Wow, Marinette. You've got some mad skills." Nino smirked with adoration. "Is it ready for your interview this afternoon?"

She shrugged. "I hope so."

"Oh, stop. Everything in there is as good as anything Gabriel Agreste has designed." Alya slapped her shoulder playfully. "You'll be fine."

"Ha ha. Very funny, Alya." The other girl said, rolling her eyes. "Nothing I've made comes close to Mr. Agreste's stuff. I mean, have you seen the last issue of Fashion of Paris? Phew."

Adrien was very confused. His eyebrows furrowed and he tilted his head. "Sorry, but what are you guys talking about?"

Marinette had suddenly gone very red and Alya was grinning, exchanging a knowing glance with Nino before turning to Adrien. "Miss Fashionista over here has a job interview with your Paps."

His eyes got very wide and he turned to the dark haired girl. "Really?!"

She nodded, cheeks burning. "Yeah."

"Mari, that's amazing!" Adrien grin was so large it was hurting his cheeks. "You'll do great! I've seen your stuff and Père will absolutely love it!"

Marinette's blush died down an inch and her eyes grew hopeful. "You think?"

"Correction," Adrien held up a finger. "I know."

She bit her lip with excitement and something inside his chest purred. She really was the cutest thing he had ever seen. And the gleam in her eyes and the way she bit her lips was really familiar.

Too familiar.

Adrien narrowed his eyes and stared at her face for another good minute before Nino cleared his throat. "Dude, you've gone into stalker mode again."

He blinked, embarrassed smile slipping onto his lips. "Oh! Sorry."

Alya smirked. "Dude, you have no reason to apologize. I mean, the number of times that Marinette did that to-."

"ACK!" Marinette clamped her hands over her friend's mouth, her eyes wider than UFO's. Her cheeks had officially reached flaming mode and she was staring at Alya with a look that Adrien hoped he never had to face from her. It was almost as if she was trying to bore a hole through Alya's skull. The look wasn't even aimed at him and he had shivers going down his spine.

That look, Marinette's eyes… they were so similar to Ladybug's. Too similar.

The teacher entered the classroom and Adrien turned back around to face the front of the room, his head spinning with the clues he had. And they all pointed to Marinette.

It was an understatement to say that Marinette was nervous.

It was an understatement to say that Marinette was scared.

It might have even been an understatement to say that Marinette was terrified.

And as the black limo rolled up to the school, she had to make the decision not to make a break for the bakery. After all, she had come this far. There was no turning back now.

Right?

Not true. She could still run. There was still that option.

"Hey," a voice said from behind her. "Calm down. You'll do fine."

Marinette turned her head slightly to meet Adrien's smile. "Tell that to the thing in my chest. I think I'm gonna go into cardiac arrest."

"Mari," something in the way he said her name… it was so familiar. "You're going to do great. Pere will love you."

She grinned timidly. "You sure?"

"Positive."

Marinette's growing confidence stabilized as Adrien stepped into the limo and extended his hand. Taking her shaking fingers into his own, he pulled her into the seat next to him. She yelped but didn't disagree when he kept her hand in his grasp. Something about his warm touch calmed her nerves and she breathed out a sigh.

You know who else could calm her with a single touch?

Her Kitty Cat.

Marinette shook her head. She could think about Chat later. She had to focus.

"This is Natalie. She's my father's assistant." Adrien said, gesturing to the dark haired woman sitting in the front seat. "And that's Gorilla. He's my chauffer. Natalie, Gorilla, this is Marinette."

"Hello, Mrs. Dupen-Cheng." Natalie said, her mouth in a firm line, but there was a warm glint in her eyes that Marinette tried to hold on to.

"Hello, Miss Natalie. Thank you for setting this up. It really is an honor."

The woman's lips twitched at the edges. Score! "Oh, my dear, it was all Mr. Agreste. Adrien speaks very highly of you and your artistic ability. It is them that you should be thanking."

Marinette's eyes widened and she turned to her friend. "You talked to your dad about me?"

"Of course." Adrien shrugged. "You like fashion and you've got talent. My dad's one of the most famous fashion designers in Paris. I started to mention you and he grew more and more interested. He's very keen to meet you."

She grinned. "Thank you. For everything."

He smiled back, his grin crooked. That wasn't a look he usually wore, but it was very familiar to her, but also foreign. Like being seen through a fog. She could see it, but it was misty and she couldn't fit it perfectly.

They pulled up at the Agreste Mansion and Adrien helped her out like the gentleman he was and the fear returned with full force. As soon as they entered the gigantic house, goosebumps were dotting her skin and she was sweating. Her heart started beating like it was in a rock band and her knees went weak.

"Hey," Adrien put a hand to her shoulder and that calm feeling washed over her again. "Just be yourself. He'll love you."

It looked like was going to say something else but thought better of it and instead squeezed her shoulder reassuringly.

"Right this way, Miss Dupen-Cheng." Natalie steered her away from Adrien and down the hall to their right. Right before they entered a room, she glanced over her shoulder to see Adrien giving her a big thumbs up.

Marinette blushed and smiled, mouthing a quick thank you.

She turned back around, so she didn't see Adrien's large grin, the pride in his eyes. The way he shook his head fondly and placed his hand on his hip as she disappeared into his father's studio. She didn't hear his heart beating as fast as a train or see the gears moving quickly in his brain.

He had wanted to say something earlier.

Just be yourself. He'll love you.

Just like I do.