Ch 14

Yo! It's an update! How was you're guys' Fourth of July?

I waited patiently outside the school for Nathanael.

"Hey, Marinette!" My heart skipped a beat. Adrien….Oh my god he was looking at me….say something….anything….!

"H-hey Marinette I-I mean! I mean A-A-Adrien! I'm Marinette you're Adrien hahaha…" I laughed nervously…my palms began to clam up and my throat seemed to swell….I couldn't talk, could barely breath….

"Me and Nino were going to my place to study wanna join?" He was asking me on a study date?!

"Y-yeah sure!" I said with no second thoughts. I'm sure I was wearing the stupidest grin on my face.

"Cool, see you there. Come around three okay, that's when I get off of fencing practice." Adrien said as he began walking off to fencing practice.

"I know! Uh...I mean….Yeah sure I-I I'll see you there!" I replied with giddy embarrassment. He waved goodbye and I returned the gesture….I let out a swoon….

"I'm going to study with Adrien~." I stated out loud to no in particular in a cooing voice.

"But, Marinette, you promised Nathanael you two would study." Tikki chimed as she flew out of my purse….

"Nathanael! Oh man I totally forgot! Stupid! What am I going to do now!?" I said panicking. I had totally forgotten about Nathanael…this always happens when I'm with Adrien, when I'm with him everything else just disappears.

"Calm down Marinette. Just tell Adrien you have to take a raincheck." Tikki suggested politely.

"No I can't do that!"

"Then tell Nathanael you're going to take a raincheck."

"NO! I can't do that either!" I whined as I put my hands on my head to stop the throbbing, I was getting a headache. "Oh! I know I'll just go with Nathanael first and then before three o clock I can tell him I have an important appointment and then go to Adrien's and study there."

"Do you really think that's going to work?" Tikki said with mild disbelief.

"It has to! If worse comes to worse I could just transform into ladybug and easily make it on time to Adrien's study session!" Marinette said confidently, Tikki just shook her head.

Okay Nathanael take a deep breath it's not like you're going to go talk to your old crush who's really your new crush who happens to be a crime stopping hero…with pigtails…Okay really not making this better… Nathanael thought as he tried to steady his beating heart.

"H-Hey Marinette….sorry for keeping you waiting…" he said shyly.

"Oh no I wasn't waiting for long…well come on let's go." She said merrily and they made their way towards Marinette's house as Lila watched enviously….It's just a study session…She kept repeating this in her head yet the single fact that Nathanael used to have a crush on Marinette wasn't helping…

The walk itself was pleasant, much to Nathanael's surprise. He had expected the walk to be filled with nothing but awkward silence; however it was rather easy chit chatting with only the occasional relapse of smooth silence. They talked about random things like Jagged Stone's new album, fashion, art, school, etc. Nathanael was relieved that even with the new acquired information about Marinette she herself was still the same Marinette from school….Unless, she's lying…, maybe this is just a front, a play she puts on…Nathanael thought…

After a polite greeting with Marinette's parents they made their way upstairs to Marinette's room. They had to go through a trap door in order to get into her room and if Nathanael had to choose one word to describe it, it would be pink. Her room contained a few unfinished fashion pieces and light was able to engulf the room through the two bay widows on either side of her room and the large porthole between them. Another word to describe Marinette's room was Adrien. His face was plastered everywhere on the walls alongside a few Jagged Stone posters. Her computer's monitoring screen was even filled with several pictures of Adrien from magazines…Marinette laughed nervously.

"Wow, you really like Adrien…" Nathanael said as he found what seemed to be Adrien's schedule….he didn't know if he should be freaked out or envious that Ladybug loves Adrien so much.

"Hahaha….In any case! We better start studying! I have a VERY important appointment I have to go to at three o clock." Marinette said.

"Oh okay…." Nathanael said slightly nervous…

They opened up their science textbooks and began taking notes in silence….Nathanael took a deep breath…

"M-Marinette…we're friends right…?" He asked nervously…

"Of course we are! What brings this up?" She asked concern filled her eyes….her really pretty bluebell eyes…

"O-oh uhh…no it's just that…."

"Did Lila threaten you saying you didn't have any real friends?! Because if she did then don't listen to her!" Nathanael blinked at the sudden harshness in Marinette's words...

"Oh no, no, no Lila would never say something like that!" He quickly said trying to defend his friend. "I-I just wanted to know….that's all….because f-friends don't keep secrets from each other…right….?" He asked nervously….hopping she was getting the hint. Marinette was not getting the hint she merely assumed Nathanael found about who Lila truly was.

"Well…friends do keep secrets…." She said slowly…she herself has kept many secrets from Alya mostly retaining to her alternate persona. "But, a real friend wouldn't lie to you!" She stated fiercely…hoping to give Nathanael the courage to break ties with Lila.

"Oh well…yeah I guess your right…but….I-I have…to tell you something…."

"What is it…?" Marinette asked confused…weren't they talking about Lila and how she lied to him. Nathanael took a deep breath….

"I want to tell you I-." he was cut off in midsentence as Marinette's phone started ringing.

"Oh I'm so sorry wait…! It's probably just Alya!" Marinette said reassuringly but when she saw the caller ID her heart threaten to jump out of her chest…It was Adrien. "Sorry I have to take this!" She said as she rushed out to the balcony to answer her phone….Whoever called has the worst sense of timing Nathanael thought glumly.

"Bonjour?" Marinette asked trying to calm her shaking nerves.

"Hey, Marinette! I was calling to let you know that fencing practice was cut short and I'll be going home early. Do you still want to have the study session? I can pick you up." Adrien said.

Marinette's head was spinning and her heart was racing. Her natural instinct was to agree, but what about Nathanael?

"Hello Marinette are you there?"

"Oh Yeah! This is Marinette currently talking to you!"

"So…?" Adrien asked.

"Oh! Yes! I'm still going i-it j-just it uhh…."

"Hey if you're busy don't worry about it."

"NO! I mean…I'll be there just give me a minute…."

She hung up her phone and sighed….things weren't going as planned….should she cut her study session with Nathanael short? No she didn't want to do that…But she didn't want to miss the chance to hang out with Adrien either!

"Hey everything okay?" Nathanael asked curiously.

"Oh uh…Yeah, yeah…I just have to run a quick earn."

"Earn…?"

"Yeah Alya left…left her phone downstairs and she wants me to bring it to her!" Marinette lied…

Nathanael didn't believe her, not for one second. For one when you hang around Lila whose a compulsives liar you tend to learn when someone's lying and when they're not, and another thing Marinette wasn't a nearly as a good liar as Lila…but he should just give her the benefit of the doubt…maybe she has some hero business to take care of.

"O-Okay…" He said and he watched her quickly go downstairs… "I wonder who got evilized today…" He wondered out loud…

And so it started. Marinette made it to Adrien's house and stayed there for a few blissful minutes ten to be exact, before making an excuse to leave early. She got back and told Nathanael she just came back from returning Alya's phone and they started working on science. Then she would repeat the process each time with a different excuse. Nathanael was starting to get agitated, because each time he tried to tell her he knew about her secret she would make an excuse to leave…was she just trying to put off the inevitable?

"Then you take the square root of 25 which is 5…" Marinette said in a monotone voice.

"Marinette….We're studying science." Nathanael said blandly with a slight irritated undertone.

"Huh!? Oh! I yes! B-but I was uhh…" She tried to think up of a lie.

"Marinette stop." Nathanael said sternly which caught Marinette by surprise. Nathanael let out a tired sigh as he rubbed his temples in frustration.

"I-I uhh… you see…" Marinette tried but she fumbled over her own words unable to create a cohesive sentence.

"Marinette, listen I've been trying all day to tell you something really important can you please stop running off…"

"I-I'm sorry Nathanael…" Marinette said shamefully… "Please what is it you were trying to say…" Nathanael took a deep breathe….but he had to get it out now.

"I know you're ladybug." Nathanael confessed….Marinette's world imploded. She was not expecting that.

Ah so the truth comes out! I'll see you guys in the next update! :)