"What is this?" Gabriel Agreste demanded, fuming.
Vincent flinched. Gabriel was not happy with the photographer's work.
Gabriel picked up the photos in which his son, Adrien, was pictured modeling. "I pay you good money to make my son and my clothing designs look top-of-the-line and this is what you give me?"
Gabriel tore the photographs in half and dropped them into Vincent's hands.
"B-but, Mr. Agreste, I was just trying out a new photographic style and…"
"I don't care," Gabriel interrupted. "You didn't give me what I asked for. You're fired."
Vincent flinched again, unable to respond. He finally hung his head and turned to leave. How could Mr. Agreste fire him, just like that? After all the years he had faithfully worked for him, photographing his son, Adrien.
As Vincent sat down on the curb outside the Agreste mansion, a black butterfly fluttered towards him before landing on his gloves.
"Photoframer, I am Hawkmoth. I can help you get revenge on Gabriel Agreste using his son, Adrien," a voice said to Vincent. "From now on, any image that you touch will come to life."
"Yes, Hawkmoth," said Photoframer. He reached out and touched the image of a dog that had posed with Adrien, which was in one of the torn photos he held in his hands. The same dog suddenly appeared next to him out of thin air, barking and growling. Photoframer gave a dark grin and turned to go.
Hawkmoth laughed, evilly. "Excellent. Now, on to find Ladybug."
"Violà!" said Marinette, unveiling her finished dress.
Alya squealed. "Girrrrrrl, it's perfect!" She ran up to look closely at its details.
Marinette stood proudly, watching her friend's amazement. Alya's eyes widened as she admired the pattern on the dress.
"I know why you like it," Marinette said with a wink.
Alya grinned. "Yes, and Adrien is going to love it too," she said, winking back.
Marinette's face flushed. "I hope he does! I was so sure he would like it, but now I'm having doubts," she said, looking worried. "For the past couple weeks, he's been acting kind of strange around me."
"Maybe he's falling in love with you," Alya said, gasping dramatically and pretending to faint as she fell back onto Marinette's chaise.
"Psht no way," Marinette said, crossing her arms. But she smiled and her eyes glazed over as she fantasized about how amazing it would be for Adrien to love her back.
Alya got up and snapped her fingers in front of Marinette's face. "Earth to Marinette," she said, awakening Marinette from her daydream. "Time for school! Let's go."
Adrien got out of his car and started walking anxiously towards the school. Plagg stuck his head out from Adrien's shirt.
"You really need to get a grip, kid," he hissed. "You've been acting weird at school for the past couple of weeks."
"Plagg! Stay hidden," Adrien hissed back.
"I'm just saying," Plagg continued. "You don't even know for sure if Marinette is Ladybug. You're just assuming! Don't ruin your friendship with her by acting all weird."
Adrien pushed Plagg's little head back into his shirt and huffed. But he knew Plagg was right. For the past couple of weeks since he had visited Marinette as Chat Noir, he had barely slept, thinking through all the clues he had missed before. He was so sure about this. Marinette was Ladybug.
Which is why he could hardly concentrate in class. He just sat there all day, frozen, wondering if Marinette was watching him. When she tried to talk to him, it was a mess. She had started stammering again when she noticed he was acting strange and he could hardly get his thoughts together when she was so close to him.
He walked cautiously into the classroom, avoiding a death stare from Chloe. She hadn't been too happy to hear that Adrien had asked Marinette to the dance. Which reminded him, the dance was just a couple days away.
"Hey, it's my boy, Adrien," Nino said, coming up and putting an arm around Adrien.
Adrien relaxed slightly at Nino's embrace. "I got the tie you asked for," Nino said, wiggling his eyebrows.
He pulled out a box and handed it to Adrien, who had almost forgotten about it. "Oh, right! Thanks Nino," he said, grinning.
Just then, Marinette and Alya walked in together, giggling. Adrien gave a small jump, startled.
"Whoah, calm down, bud," Nino said with a laugh, pulling Adrien close and whispering to him. "Dude, you've been acting so weird. Do you have feelings for Marinette?"
Adrien felt the temperature of his cheeks rise and he stammered. "I-I-I…"
"Hi, Adrien," Marinette said, walking up to the two boys. "Um, can I please get by?"
"W-what?" Adrien asked, confused. It was then that he realized he was standing in the aisle, blocking Marinette from getting to her desk. "Oh, sorry!" His face got even hotter.
Marinette smiled faintly, her cheeks turning as pink as the rose he had given her. Adrien stumbled to sit down at his desk so Marinette could get through. Nino sat down at his desk and caught Adrien throwing back a quick glance at Marinette. Nino raised an eyebrow.
Adrien noticed Nino's look and whispered, "Chill out, Nino, she's just a friend."
"A friend that you are taking to the dance as your date?" Nino asked, smirking.
Adrien sighed. He couldn't handle this. He pretended to tune in to what the teacher was saying as class began. But really, he wasn't listening to a single word. All he could do was think about the dance and how it was possible that he might be going with Ladybug after all.
Tears came to Mrs. Dupain-Cheng's eyes. "You look so beautiful, Marinette," she said.
Mr. Dupain-Cheng came up and put his arm around his wife. "She's right, you look amazing," he said, smiling.
Marinette beamed, a huge smile covering the majority of her face. She couldn't wipe it off, she was so excited. And nervous. She felt sick and had barely eaten all day, afraid it would come right back up.
The doorbell rang and Marinette skipped over to open it, walking as if she were floating through the air.
"Omg Mari, that dress!" Alya cried, throwing her arms around Marinette.
"That is one wicked dress," Nino added, standing in the doorway next to Alya.
"Thank you," Marinette said. "And you two look so great! Especially together…" She winked at them and they both blushed.
"Come on in for a photo!" Mrs. Dupain-Cheng hollered from the living room.
"Wait, mom, we are still waiting on Adrien!" Marinette answered, her stomach knotting up even tighter.
Just then, she realized she had left her purse, and Tikki, upstairs in her room. She ran up to get it, focusing hard to not trip on the stairs in her strappy black heels. When she came up to her room, she found her purse on the desk, but Tikki wasn't in it waiting for her.
"Tikki?" she called out.
"Out here," Tikki called back.
Marinette followed Tikki's voice out onto the balcony. "Tikki? What are you doing out here?"
"I like to come out here and watch the sunset," Tikki replied. "It's so beautiful, it never gets old. But you are an even more stunning view tonight, Marinette!"
Tikki nuzzled up into Marinette's neck, laughing. Tikki then zipped out of sight and back into Marinette's room. But Marinette stood at the railing a few moments longer, looking out at the sunset Tikki had been admiring. "It is beautiful," she sighed. She rarely took time to look out at the view.
She looked down and caught the last rays of sunlight bouncing off of a boy's blonde hair, his green eyes looking up at her.
Adrien walked nervously down the sidewalk in his black tuxedo and green tie. He finally came to a stop when he stood across the street from Marinette's house. He needed a moment to steady his breathing and slow his heart rate. Tonight, he would ask Marinette if she was really Ladybug. And honestly, he hoped she was.
Just then, something on the balcony caught his attention. He looked up, and that's when he saw her.
Marinette's dark hair flowed freely around her shoulders, looking as blue as ever in contrast to the sky, which was streaked with orange and pink. Her blue belle eyes were looking off into the sunset. Even from this distance, he could see her eyes dancing with joy.
His heart stopped when he glanced down at her dress. It was strapless, revealing her defined shoulders and collarbone. The bright red dress hugged her down to her waist, where it suddenly flared out, the skirt of the dress ending right above her knees. The part that Adrien couldn't take his eyes off was the sash tied tightly around her waist. The fabric of the sash was also red, but it was dotted with black spots.
Just then, Marinette looked down at him, meeting his dazed eyes.
Marinette rushed down the stairs, her heart pounding. She almost tripped on the last step.
"Careful, Marinette," said Alya, holding back a laugh.
"Adrien is here!" Marinette breathed out. As if on cue, the doorbell rang.
Everyone in the room hushed as Marinette went to the door and opened it. And there he stood, the boy she had just seen outside from her balcony. His eyes captivated her, looking bold and so green. Perhaps it was the green tie he was wearing that matched his eyes perfectly and made them look like they were glowing.
"Marinette," he said through his smile. The sound of him saying her name made her head spin.
He bowed, taking one of her hands and kissing it. She barely had a moment to wonder why that felt so familiar before he brought his other hand around from behind his back. He held up an entire bouquet of pink roses.
"Awww," she heard collective voices cooing behind her. That's when she remembered that her parents, Alya, and Nino were all in the living room watching them.
She blushed, taking the roses, and thanked Adrien, gesturing for him to come inside.
"You look so handsome, Adrien," said Mrs. Dupain-Cheng with a warm smile. "Now, before you all go, I need a picture!"
Marinette moaned, feeling embarrassed. She felt Adrien place a hand on her shoulder. "Shall we?" he asked, motioning towards Mrs. Dupain-Cheng.
The four posed for a few pictures together before taking pictures in pairs. First, the boys posing together and then the girls before Alya and Nino posed for a photo. When it was their turn, Adrien put his arm around Marinette's waist, smiling down at her before looking up at the camera. Marinette could feel her heart pounding so loudly, she was afraid everyone else could hear it too.
"You guys are too cute," Alya said. "With Marinette's dress and Adrien's black suit and green tie, you guys kind of look like Ladybug and Chat Noir!" She laughed.
Adrien and Marinette both tensed, then laughed nervously. "Hey, look at the time," Marinette said, changing the subject. "We should really get going!"
After the photo shoot ended, they finally managed to escape from Marinette's parents and head out the door. The four friends walked the short distance from Marinette's house to the school across the street.
They walked into the school and looked up at the lights hanging across the open space above the main courtyard at the center of the building. They were greeted by their classmates, who were all dressed up and beaming with excitement.
"Let's take photos!" Alya exclaimed, leading them towards a photo booth.
"More photos?" Marinette groaned.
"You look so beautiful Marinette," Adrien spoke up. "I want as many pictures as I can get to remember this for a long time."
Marinette blinked up at Adrien in awe. He thought she looked beautiful?
They goofed off in the photo booth, taking more pictures than they even ended up keeping.
After greeting everyone, Marinette looked up at Adrien. He noticed her stare and looked down at her, smiling warmly. She felt like it was all a dream. Just when she thought things couldn't get any better, the music started playing and students rushed to the dance floor.
Adrien reached out his hand, bowing slightly. "May I have this dance?" he asked.
Marinette hesitated nervously. Dance? She had almost forgotten that a dance consisted of, well, dancing.
"W-what if I trip?" she accidentally said out loud.
Adrien looked up at her, laughing. "I will catch you," he replied.
Her cheeks warmed up and she finally placed her hand in his, letting him lead her out onto the dance floor. He took her hands and placed them on his shoulders. He then placed his hands lightly on her waist, causing her to blush madly.
"I love your dress," he said, looking down into her eyes. "It suits you perfectly."
Her heart beat rapidly. For a moment, she was worried by the immense pounding she felt in her chest, but then she realized she was feeling a combination of her rapid heartbeat and Adrien's.
After a few minutes of dancing slowly with Adrien, Marinette relaxed and leaned her head on Adrien's neck, breathing in his scent and sighing. She felt Adrien rest his chin on the top of her head and she closed her eyes.
I hope this never ends, she thought.
She felt Adrien sigh and his whole body trembled softly.
"This is purr-fect, my lady," he murmured into her hair.
Marinette's eyes flew open and her body stiffened in Adrien's arms. What did he just -
Just then, they heard a loud bang. Marinette and Adrien's heads snapped up and they looked over to see a strange man slamming the doors to the school shut.
"WHERE IS ADRIEN AGRESTE?" the man shouted.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: This is my first fanfic and I'm very much obsessed with finishing this story... The next chapter (or possibly two) will be wrapping up the story and I will likely have it up by tomorrow. Thanks so much for reading! P.S. Photoframer? I know, I'm sorry. I thought long and hard about it and it was honestly the best I could come up with!