Here it is. Completely and utterly trashy fluff. I'm not even sorry. Enjoy.

~BH

Accepting the Rain

It wasn't long before the whole class worked it out, let alone Alya and Nino. Alya couldn't ignore the texts on Marinette's phone, and Nino couldn't ignore the amount of interest Adrien had in the back of Marinette's head during class. Despite that, Adrien and Marinette still made sure they came clean to them before they got confronted. A few screams from Alya and high fives from Nino later, everyone was on the same page and life could go on.

Until the formal.

Unsurprisingly, Marinette was in a flap for the 17th time that week. She was adding some final alterations to Alya's gown as the formal was that evening. Alya's dress was a deep shade of purple, which had a v shaped neckline and floated around her at a full length. The dress itself was backless, but Marinette had made sure there was support on the front, as Alya wanted to tease Nino but Marinette needed to work out the practicalities of doing so. Marinette was considering adding a split down the side but decided against it. Maybe in the future she could make it detachable and make another skirt for it so Alya could make that decision for herself. Although it was only a formal, as a designer Marinette felt as if it was Paris's Fashion Week.

True to her word, she was planning to let Alya reveal herself to Nino when they arrived. She had given both the boys their suits the previous day and had given them strict instructions to meet them in school, where it was being held. She got changed herself, staying true to form and finishing her dress only two hours previously. She had decided to not add any additional layers and let it cling to her figure. She had spent a long time deciding whether to make it shorter or add a split like she was going to for Alya, and decided on the former. It clung to her thighs and she had decided to make it long sleeved to add some modesty, extending the neckline to expose her shoulders. She included the black and green lace as planned which decorated her body down to her waist. She was proud of both her dresses, and she hoped there would be no wardrobe malfunctions on the night.

"You look gorgeous" Marinette gushed, watching Alya gracefully turn from the mirror having finished with her makeup.

"I know." Alya winked, grinning at her best friend. "You sure know how to make a dress! Thank you, by the way. You know how much I appreciate it. Best Friend perks for sure."

"Is that all my friendship is worth?" Marinette mock-pouted, before going to the mirror herself, adding some finishing touches to her own makeup. Her Dad had agreed to drive them both over and was surprised that they had both refused a ride in Adrien's limo. Sabine tried to explain to her husband the significance of them revealing their dresses to their boyfriends but it went completely over his head, saying it would have been nice if the four friends just went together.

It was nice, calling Adrien her boyfriend. It felt right. Alya wasn't sure what was worse, Marinette rambling about Adrien before they got together, or after they became official. It was nice to go on double dates though because they seemed to have an unspoken agreement to not go overboard on the public displays of affection, but it made the friendship between all of them stronger.

Nino was doing a set tonight after the awards, and both Alya and Marinette were very proud of him. There were some important people visiting the school tonight as Chloe was so influential and he knew that if he did well there could be opportunities for him. Marinette wondered when the school formal had become a networking event, but since Jagged Stone was performing after Nino she assumed that it would mainly be his crew.

Marinette descended down the stairs first. It wasn't long before Sabine and Tom were both silently weeping, and it took a lot of protesting from Marinette for them to stop because then she would start crying too and it would ruin her makeup. They both admired her dress, although her Dad frowned a little at the length, but her Mum insisted that there were shorter dresses out there and said that it suited her so it wasn't a problem. Sabine was still mildly surprised that she managed to stay so slim, and she couldn't help but wonder why.

Then Alya walked downstairs.

The dress floated around her, and it almost seemed uncharacteristic for a girl that was so fiery and passionate, but the dark shade and the way it was cut made it suit her perfectly. Marlena and Otis, her parents, had just arrived moments ago to see their daughter, and a similar scene occurred to when Marinette arrived. Alya rolled her eyes at them, grinning at Marinette and her parents.

"You're so talented, Marinette, that dress is outstanding." Marlena insisted over her shoulder as she hugged her daughter. Pictures were taken, and Marinette insisted that Alya have twice as many as she was starting to put together a fashion portfolio, although it mainly consisted of Alya so far. She had made the boys put on their suits the other day and Adrien couldn't take it seriously, insisting that he already had to do shoots for his Dad and he didn't feel like he had to do them for his girlfriend too.

Realising they were on the verge of being late, Alya rushed Marinette and her father towards the car and they left, their parents waving at the doorstop of the bakery.

Wasting no time at all, they got out of the car at school. Marinette was grateful for the practicalities of her shorter dress as she got out first and went to help Alya, who insisted she could do it by herself and succeeded.

Adrien and Nino were waiting for them. They were lost for words.

In Nino's eyes, Alya looked like a vision. She spun around so he could see the full outfit and he was in awe of how great she looked in it, and he knew Marinette had made it just for her. He wholeheartedly believed no one else could pull it off as well as her.

Adrien was simply overwhelmed. Not only did she look gorgeous, but he was drawn to the colours that she had so cunningly chosen. Her hair was not pinned back for once, and her curls hid her ears, presumably because she would insist that the earrings clashed with her outfit, but would never dream of going without them.

Adrien and Nino both looked incredibly attractive too, at least to their girlfriends, anyway. Their ties complimented the girls' dresses and Marinette had carefully added her signature inside the jacket on one of her many pockets she had provided them with.

Adrien took her hand and they walked in to music blasting and people already dancing. Chloe was in the centre of the room, and you couldn't deny that she looked stunning in the white and gold dress she was wearing. Sabrina nervously danced near her, also looking admirable in a dress that Chloe must have given her, because Marinette was pretty sure she had seen it before. Looking around the room, she had noticed that Rose had managed to bring the Prince that visited a while ago, and the two of them danced with Juleka, who had managed to take some successful photos. Nathaniel was drawing from a corner of the room, people-watching, before Rose managed to convince him to join the three of them.

Marinette wasted no time in taking the opportunity to dance with Adrien. He spun her around and she ungracefully tottered around in her high heels, before settling to just swaying in his arms. He kissed her forehead and smiled at her.

"You do look out of this world my lady, in fact, it's bugging me that you're this beautiful." He felt her sigh in his embrace and tried not to smirk.

"That was your worst pun yet." Marinette told him, kissing his cheek in return.

"Oi, what did we say about PDA" Alya took no prisoners, extracting Marinette from her boyfriend to face the stage. "The awards are starting."

Marinette held Adrien's hand anyway as they watched their Principal, accompanied by Chloe's father, take the small stage. Nino was at the decks setting up, looking a little nervous until he looked up, searching for Alya, a tradition that seemed to have been created the night he did his first set.

The Principal cleared his throat. "Welcome to our annual formal dance! I would now like to announce the awards. Although these awards should have been based on last year's students due to an untimely… attack, and the lack of time we've had to rearrange this special event, we'd like to take some things into consideration."

Mayor Bourgeois stepped forward. "I would like to announce the nominations." The quiet chatter diminished into full silence.

"First and foremost, my own daughter, Chloe Bourgeois!" There was applause, but no surprise, as Chloe was nominated and usually won every year. She gracefully walked onto the stage and stood by her father.

"Secondly, Lila Rossi!"

Lila quickly ascended the stage. She was wearing a dress that was a deep shade of crimson. Marinette had made it for her as a peace offering and it was too beautiful to not accept. Although they weren't necessarily on the best of terms, Marinette was eager to make things right and Lila had reluctantly accepted that Adrien was wholeheartedly in love with his girlfriend.

"And last but not least, Rose Lavillant!"

This was a name greeted with surprise, as although Rose was pretty, this was the first time she had been chosen. Prince Ali squeezed her hand before she gleefully joined Lila and Chloe on the stage, looking like a princess in her signature pale pink.

"The Prom King, however, was uncontested. I would like to ask Prince Ali if he would like to join us on the stage, as our King!"

There was applause as Prince Ali walked onto the stage as if he had been attending events for years (which unsurprisingly, he had). Grinning at Rose, he accepted his crown and went to stand beside her.

"What is just as interesting is our Prom King" Mayor Bourgeois continued, "Is the results for the Prom Queen. It appears that this year we have a tie."

Lila and Chloe shifted uncomfortably while Rose rested her head on Ali's shoulder.

"Our queens are…. Chloe and Rose!"

Chloe's father held out the crown uncomfortably as his daughter took it from him, ignoring Rose as she placed it on her own head. She didn't notice Prince Ali split his in half and gently place one half on Rose's head. The crowd applauded, relieved that everyone was satisfied.

"Now that's over, are people ready to DANCE?" Nino seemed to have gained some confidence in his abilities since the beginning, and the crowd responded with an equal amount of enthusiasm, if not more. Everyone was excited, having heard his sets in various discos, and it didn't even take one song for everyone to be back on the dance floor.

"Now I'd like to play a slower song, and I would like to dedicate this, not only to my girlfriend Alya, whom I love very much, but to two of my closest friends who have finally got their butts in gear and have fallen in love. To Adrien and Marinette!"

The crowd applauded once more. Alya boldly strode up to the decks and positioned Nino so he could dance with her. The spotlight fell on Paris' superheroes.

Adrien led Marinette in a tentative waltz, leading the way. Marinette was less confident but felt safe in his arms. He guided her slowly, and then sped up a little as she felt more secure. The crowd stood back to form a circle around them as Adrien continued to guide Marinette into the centre. If she could trust him as Chat Noir, she could trust him as Adrien.

She let him spin her, as the music hit its climax, and he dipped her, kissing her nose gently. Slowly he raised her so she could stand back on her feet, and pulled her into an embrace.

They were once two people that ignored the rain. Now they accepted the rain, and whatever came with it.