Chapter 5:
Marinette brushed her hair out again. No matter how she twisted, braided, pinned, or curled, the result always looked strange. Not bad, exactly, but not… right. She sighed into the mirror.
"Seriously Mari, if you don't chill your hair is gonna fall out! I mean, bald is a LOOK, sure, but are you really ready for the commitment?" Alya teased, adding more hairspray to her own intricate updo.
Marinette frowned. "Honestly Alya, how? You make it look so effortless! Like, oh hey, I'll just put a little curl and a pin and then POOF everything is perfect! And then, there's… THIS." The blackette hung her head in defeat. Akumatized monsters, no problem. Formal wear? No can do.
Alya put a hand to her chin, her head cocked slightly to the side, as she evaluated her friend. Like anyone's even gonna be looking at her hair! she thought with a grin. The dress was a Marinette original, soft pink with a fitted silk bodice and full skirt of layered tulle. Up until today, it had reminded Alya of a fairytale princess's dress, straight out of her childhood fantasies. However, sometime after school let out and before her arrival at the Dupain-Cheng residence at 5:00, the budding designer had added a gradient dye to the skirt. Now, as the tulle cascaded toward the floor, it gradually darkened until the bottom was a deep black. Swarovski crystals had also been added, no larger than flecks of dust as pink transitioned into dusky rose, with larger crystals lying against the black toward the bottom. The overall impression made it look like Marinette was standing among the stars.
"I've got it!" Alya exclaimed suddenly, making Marinette jump. With a few turns of the curling iron and several puffs of hairspray, Alya had fashioned Marinette's hair into a side-part with a gentle wave, one side tucked behind her ear and the other draping across her forehead such that it almost fell over one eye, the ends of it just reaching her bare shoulders. Marinette blinked in disbelief at her reflection. The classic style was such a sharp contrast to her go-to twin pigtails, but she had to admit, she felt pretty.
"Now we'll just switch out those black studs for some diamonds and—" Alya began, reaching for her friend's exposed ear.
"NO!"
Alya recoiled as if her outstretched hand at just touched a hot stove.
Marinette looked at her friend sheepishly. "Ah, I mean… I had to get them re-pierced recently after they had grown in. I'm not supposed to take them out, y'know?"
Alya laughed. "Makes sense, I should have guessed since you're always wearing the same ones! How about this then?" Fastening the earrings she had brought for Marinette into her own ears, Alya removed the necklace she had been wearing and clasped it around her friend's neck. The string of tiny diamonds sat lightly on Marinette's collar bones.
"Wow…" Marinette gazed at her reflection again, amazed at the transformation she had undergone. The irony of her surprise did not escape her.
"Oh girl don't worry, they're fake!" Alyla winked at her. "Now if you're done being mesmerized by your own beauty, we gotta go! Don't want to be late for AAAA-drien! Gonna cut in on all that makeout time!"
The result of Alya's efforts was only slightly marred by the tomato-red complexion of her friend's face.
Adrien resisted the urge to loosen his tie as the silver sedan glided toward the dance. He always dreaded formal wear. It was so confining, tight in all the wrong places, making him feel stiff and unnatural. Speaking of confining…
"You will return home immediately after the conclusion of the dance. Nathalie will be outside waiting for you. You may contact her by phone if you wish to return earlier." The image of Gabriel Agreste continued to dictate the terms of Adrien's evening from the screen nestled in the back of the passenger seat. "Is that understood?"
"Yes, sir," Adrien replied. With a curt nod, the screen clicked off.
Adrien smiled despite the unpleasant exchange as his thoughts returned to Marinette. Ever since the first day they had met, he had wanted to get to know her better. She had a spirit, a passion to her that fascinated him. From defiantly reclaiming her classroom seat from Chloe, to fighting for Myrene to keep her part in the movie, to taking charge and evacuating the students when Darkblade attacked, she wasn't afraid to stand up for what she believed in: honesty, friendship, and justice. She was also quick to laugh, always friendly and kind, and of course, beautiful.
But he was the one person she could never seem to warm up to. She could joke and laugh with Nino and Alya, but when he tried to talk to her, she would just clam up, or worse yet make some excuse to leave. At first, he figured she assumed he was a spoiled brat like Chloe, as the blonde was so insistent that they were "besties," but he had hoped that she would see past that as they got to know each other. Over time, they were able to spend some time together (like playing Ultimate Mecha Strike III), but it seemed like she could only be herself when she was distracted from the fact that she was in his company. He was thrilled when she invited Chat into her life, and the two became fast friends.
When she opened up to Chat about her unobtainable crush, he accepted that they would never be more than friends. Still, he was grateful for the relationship they shared. She had filled an empty place in his heart, and he treasured her friendship more than any other. Besides, he had already met the love of his life—Ladybug.
Ladybug was a dream, the very image of perfection clad in skin-tight spotted spandex. She was courageous, determined, strong, and resourceful, and the face she made in response to a particularly corny pun was heartwarmingly adorable. He had been head-over-heels for her since the day she had stood on the Eiffel Tower and promised all of Paris her unfailing devotion to their safety. He would give his life for Ladybug in an instant, no regrets. As they spent time together over the years, he believed (maybe just hoped) that she had developed feelings for him too.
But Ladybug was stubbornly protective of her identity. He had asked many times to be fully honest with each other, even offering to reveal himself at least, but she resisted every time. Could they ever really be together if their entire relationship consisted of akuma battles and the 5 minutes immediately following?
In a surprising turn of fate, it was Marinette, not Ladybug, who had discovered his secret. In a way, a big way, his relationship with the shy, closed-off girl was the most open and honest that he had. Still, he wondered if she would accept the Adrien side of him, socially naive, repressed, and horribly lonely (although outwardly showered with empty affection from fans), as she had welcomed the free-spirited, light-hearted, heroic Chat Noir. He hoped, more than he had ever hoped for anything before in his life, that she would.
As Marinette waited outside the Carrousel with Alya for the boys, her thoughts were tumbling over themselves. On one hand, she was still giddy over the fact that she had kissed Adrien, for real, on purpose, and he had kissed her back. But then again… if Adrien had been interested in her, why had he never approached her as himself? She could convince herself that he might have had feelings for her and just been shy (Is it really that unbelievable, Mademoiselle Hypocrite?), but then there was Chat. Chat was incessantly flirtatious with everyone, confident to the point of being cocky at times, which seemed to contradict the "shy Adrien" theory. And of course, there was that other glaring fact—Chat flirted with everyone, but was quite clearly in love with Ladybug. He would never miss an opportunity to make a suggestive remark, often risked his life for her, and repeatedly expressed his interest in being romantically involved with her. Besides, Chat never seemed to take anything seriously, not even literal life and death situations. Isn't it more likely that Chat was just… having a little fun?
Why did you have to kiss him… twice! You're getting your hopes up for nothing! Marinette tried to force the negative thoughts from her head.
"Damn girl, you look like you're about to throw up," Alya looked at her glassy-eyed friend with worry. "Look, I'm sorry about all that stuff I said before, let's just have fun tonight, OK? Just the four of us, like always… just looking a lot more fabulous!"
Marinette smiled. Alya was right. No matter what happened with Chat Noir, Adrien was her friend. Her drop-dead gorgeous, incredibly sexy, and apparently Paris-saving friend, but still. As the unmistakable silver luxury car glided up to the Carrousel, she steeled herself. Friends. No kissing. FRIENDS. Let it work itself out.
As Adrien got out of the car and stood, a gentle breeze tossed his hair lightly, the only indication that Marinette wasn't looking at a life-sized glamour shot. Dressed in a perfectly fitted ink-black tuxedo that shone slightly under the streetlamps, he adjusted his black silk tie as if it wasn't already perfect, glancing in the direction of the girls with his chin angled downward slightly as if he had been caught unaware.
"Whoa." Alya couldn't help but stare. "I mean..." she glanced at Marinette, who was frozen in place, her eyes like saucers. "Yeah sorry, but I meant 'Whoa.'" Alya laughed lightly.
"Yeeaaahh…." Marinette felt like someone had pushed the pause button in her brain. "Whoa."
"Oh hey, yo, Adrien! Perfect timing man!" Nino called, waving to Adrien as he jogged past the girls, having apparently finished helping with the sound check inside. Marinette was startled out of her reverie by his voice. She waved too, trying her best to look relaxed.
Nino greeted Adrien with their traditional hand slap-shake and led him over to the girls. He was talking excitedly about the music set-up inside, something about a 1,200-watt Crown-something, but Adrien's attention was elsewhere. He summoned all of his modeling skills to keep his composure as he approached Marinette. She looked incredible. Her raven hair was loose and flowing on soft waves, resting gently on her smooth, bare shoulders. The diamonds accenting her collarbones mimicked the twinkle of her eyes, which appeared darker than usual due to the subdued lighting. Her pink dress flattered her figure beautifully, accenting her slender waist before fanning out toward the ground, where the skirt seemed to disappear into the night sky.
Taking Marinette's hand into his, Adrien bowed slightly to place a soft kiss on the back of her hand, his lips lingering just a little longer than they should have. Stealthily retrieving a pale pink orchid from his inside jacket pocket and silently thanking Alya for the heads-up on the dress color (although she failed to mention the stunning star effect), he stood again.
"Marinette, you look… amazing," Adrien said with a warm smile, tucking the flower behind her exposed ear, his fingers gently tracing the outline of her ear, the angle of her jaw, her chin…
She had never wanted anything as badly as she wanted to kiss him in that moment.
Author's note: In case you're wondering, the answer is yes: Plagg is pissed that he now smells like flowers.
