For some strange reason, reviews are showing up for twenty-eight, despite my email notifications for them…so we'll see what happens, and if they don't show up, I'll go through and try to reply next chapter using the email notifications! Sorry guys!

Chapter Twenty-Nine: One Step Too Far

He couldn't sleep. Between his raging hormones, and the fact he just wanted Marinette beside him to hold, if nothing else, rest eluded him.

"You're keeping me awake," Plagg grumbled as Adrien shifted for what must have been the millionth time. The blonde grunted, staring at the canopy in the dark. "Just go rut her, geez," the kwami muttered.

"I don't want to rut her," he spat, rolling over and crossing his arms.

"Liar," Plagg hissed. "You always want to rut her."

Adrien rolled his eyes. "That's not what I mean. I'm not restless because I want to fuck her, I just…wish she were nearby," he muttered.

"So go do that then," the obsidian being sighed. "Or you could go to the gym…or get on the floor…"

"Fine! Your point is taken," he sighed, rolling off the mattress to his feet, rubbing his hands over his face before pushing them roughly through his messy golden locks. He grabbed a few of his spare water bottles and threw them in his gym bag, slinging it over his bare shoulder and padded to the door.

He locked the barrier behind him and walked straight into Lila, who seemed to be hovering outside his room.

"Oh, hello there Adrien," she purred, smiling up at him. "Headed somewhere?"

"I was going to go down to the gym," he gestured to his bag, endeavoring to move around her, but she shifted, placing a hand on the wall to block his path, pressing closer.

"I heard you were alone tonight, did you want some company?" Her body flattened into him, so his back hit the door, and he growled, feeling the shiver run down her body from the sound. It didn't help that he was perpetually hard, and she noticed, grinding into him.

He gasped, grabbing her shoulders, and spun them, shoving her back into the door now, putting space between their bodies. "I'm over it, Lila! I've tried to be nice, and I've tried to let it slide, but I'm not interested, and you need to get that through your head," he snarled. "I love Marinette, and you don't even come close to comparing, so move on!"

He watched her flinch, and her features started to contort with anger. "It just doesn't make any sense!" She shoved his hands off her shoulders, which was fine by him. "What do you see in her?"

He snorted. "You haven't got enough time for me to cover everything," he sneered, not appreciating her tone.

Her eyes narrowed, but she threw her arms around his shoulders, pressing into him again. "Let me show you what you're missing, you might change your mind," she huffed.

"No," he said firmly, reaching up to peel her arms from around him. She clung tighter, and he was trying not to hurt her as she rubbed up against him more, and instead, his hands shot to her hips, pushing them away from his.

"Am I interrupting?" Luka asked, raising his brows as he neared.

"Yes," Lila growled.

"No," Adrien snapped. "Lila was just leaving."

"Was I?"

"It looks like you were just starting," Luka growled.

"Shut up," Adrien barked back angrily.

"If you're allowed to have a side piece, is Mari?" Luka asked.

"Fuck off Luka," he snarled, finally pissed enough to shove Lila back hard enough that she hit the door, gasping. "I don't like being cornered, and I certainly don't care for what you're suggesting."

"Not my fault you can't keep it in your pants for the best woman in the world."

Adrien watched Lila stiffen, frowning, but his green orbs slid slowly to the musician. "I would never cheat on her, and you've got a death wish, Luka."

"Do I? How do you figure?"

He turned slowly, dropping his gym bag to the floor, and Lila squeaked, scooting further away now. "You're provoking me," he said slowly, letting the dark smirk take over his face as the beast began to rear inside his chest. It was happy that the leash was coming off. It wanted blood. It wanted violence. It had claimed Marinette too…and it didn't like the competition. Competition needed to be mauled.

"You want to fight, Agreste?"

"You want to keep making passes at my girlfriend?"

Luka smirked slowly. "She did taste amazing. Best I've ever had. You should have heard her moaning my name," he whispered.

Adrien punched the blue-haired man right in the jaw, but as he stumbled backwards, the blonde was already lunging. However, to his surprise, the man twisted, agile, flinging his body sideways so he slid by him across the smooth marble floor.

He spun just as quickly, crouching low, baring his teeth as the animal dominated more of his thoughts and instincts. "She's mine, Luka," he growled, low, feral, dangerous.

He smirked, his body moving with an eerie type of grace as he regarded the blonde. "Oh, yes," he hissed prolonging the enunciation, and the sound was a little more animal than human, making Adrien's eyes narrow, his nostrils flaring as the hair on the back of his neck went up. "So you keep saying."

"I'm not saying, Luka, it's a fact. Back off."

"G-Guys?" Lila's voice was unsure, and Adrien's eyes flicked to her. He didn't like her, but he didn't want her to get injured if this got out of control.

"Go to your room, Lila," he barked.

She moved to do what she was told, for once, but Luka snatched her arm. "You don't want your second girlfriend to stay and play," he chuckled, nuzzling her cheek with his nose, and the Italian beauty flinched.

Adrien pounced, closing the distance between them easily, and the man released her in time to block the blonde's punch to the face. "Get out of here," he growled to her, sweeping the man's feet from under him, shoving his weight forward.

He moved to pin the man down, but he slithered out of his grip, shoving his knee into Adrien's chest, throwing him backwards so they separated again.

"You're pretty quick for a model," Luka commented, rubbing his face where Adrien had landed his first punch. "You hit pretty hard too, you on something?"

"No, I just train a lot," he spat, launching forward again, using all of his strength this time, and he caught the musician by surprise with the extra burst of speed.

Adrien punched him again, then shoved his knee into the man's stomach, doubling him over. He brought the joint up further, gripping the back of his shirt, and shoved it hard into his face as he leaned down.

He felt Luka's nose give way against his knee, and the man hissed loudly, staggering backwards when he was released, grabbing his face. "You fuckin' broke my nose!"

"You fuckin' pissed me off," he warned. "Want to keep going?"

Luka was quick too, and the next blow actually caught Adrien in the face, right near his temple, the force of the kick threw him sideways, but he used the momentum to flip instead, landing on his feet. He blocked the next downward kick, and he grappled Luka, shoving him so hard into the wall it cracked, and they toppled to the ground, snarling like animals.

"What is going on here!?"

The two men instantly parted, getting to their feet. "Nothing," they both offered brusquely.

"It doesn't look like nothing," Gabriel barked. "Look at you two!"

Adrien smirked, staring at Luka's face. His nose was gushing blood, and he already had a swollen eye and bruise forming down the left side of his face. His shirt was torn, and Adrien might have clawed him, sharp rakes over his abdomen that seemed a little too deep for regular nails.

However, he could taste blood in his own mouth, and his lip felt fat. His cheekbone throbbed too, and he knew there was probably a bruise forming. "Just a friendly spar," he offered, glowering at the musician.

"Yeah, we couldn't wait to get to the gym," Luka complied.

Adrien snorted. "Yeah, just got too amped up."

He heard his father growling from behind him. "That's the story you two are sticking with?"

"Looks like," Luka muttered.

At least the man wasn't a complete moron. "Adrien, back in your room! Luka, go have Nathalie take a look at your nose, and then you return to your room as well!"

The blonde frowned, glowering at the blue-haired man, but he shoved forward, snatching his bag from the floor. "Fine," he spat. "Got enough work-out in anyway," he chuckled, receiving a hiss from the man before he disappeared back into his room.

"I thought you were gone for the night."

"Did you not hear the commotion?"

"Yeah, but I figured you were fine."

"Thanks," he snapped, rolling his eyes, throwing the bag clear across the room. "Luka is asking for a painful demise."

"So I heard. I don't like him talking about our mate that way."

"Our mate?"

"Cheese," he grunted.

Adrien narrowed his eyes. "Plagg…"

"Whaaa? I like her too, okay! There, I said it! Happy?"

He couldn't help but smile. Yeah, he kind of was.

***POV Change***

Marinette's room was a disaster. She hadn't been able to sleep last night, so she'd left through the window and explored the city for awhile as Ladybug, alone. Then, when she'd come back, she still hadn't been able to sleep, so she figured she'd work on her design assignments. She'd been at it for awhile now.

Papers were everywhere. Pencils, erasers, chalk, notebooks, and color pencils littered the carpet where she was lounging, banging her head on the ground repeatedly.

She laid her head on the floor, sighing. "Maybe you should take a break," Tikki suggested.

"I need to keep working. Especially since I have a free day today," she countered. "I can break later, I've only been at this for a little while."

"Ten hours."

The bluenette shot up to her feet. "What!? You're kidding!?" She looked at her phone, and realized, that it was indeed, almost noon. Also, she…hadn't been checking her text messages. She had..hundreds. She cringed.

She skimmed the last few from Alya, her heart sinking more, she swiped the name, putting the phone to her ear, listening to it ring.

"Girl! I thought maybe you'd died!"

Marinette cringed. "N-No, I've just been really busy."

"We heard there was an Akuma in Milan yesterday, are you okay?"

She nodded. "Yup, Ladybug, Rena Rouge, Chat Noir, and Pegasus showed up. I guess they teleported."

"So, how is the life as a super glamorous model? Are you having tons of fun? I love the new nickname. Chain-me-up? It's really got a following! You're almost as famous as Adrien!"

The bluenette coughed, clearing her throat. "I d-doubt that," she muttered.

"You really couldn't find time to message me though? I mean, is your schedule really that hectic? I know you have some shows and shoots, but what about in between?"

"I've been...busy…"

"Too busy for your best friend?" Alya's voice was a little hurt now, and Mari closed her eyes, shaking her head.

"B-Busy with…" She was going to have to tell her eventually, before the whole world found out. Plus, Alya had been rooting for this very thing for years. "Busy with Adrien."

"Oh! Well, if you're finally trying to talk to him, I guess I can forgive you," she teased.

"We're, uh…doing more than talking."

Silence. "What do you mean?" Now her voice was tentative, but firm…probing.

"Well, stuff," she grimaced, blushing at the thought of all the sinful things her and Adrien had done.

"Does this stuff involve kissing?"

"It might have…"

"OHMYGOD!" Marinette pulled the phone from her ear as the caramel skin screeched her excitement. "So you've finally kissed, what was it like!? Are you going to start dating?"

"Well…"

"Oh, GOD! Are you dating Adrien!?"

"Y-yeah, we made it official a few days ago," she whispered hoarsely.

Another squeal, and she snorted this time. "Is he a great kisser!?"

"Alya!"

"What, it took you so long to kiss him, I might as well get the details!"

She huffed. "He is an amazing kisser, among other things."

"Wait-a-minute! How many things have you done with Adrien!?"

She groaned. "J-Just..the normal things?"

"Did you finally get that card punched?"

Her eyes widened. "What card?"

"Girl, your V card, did you finally go all the way, and with the guy you've loved forever?"

Her face was incredibly hot. "Y-yes."

"HOLYSHIT! Is he amazing in bed too!?"

"Yes," she breathed, feeling sinful with her answer. "It's way better than I imagined."

"Girl, I'm jealous now."

Marinette giggled. "It has been pretty amazing," she admitted. Well, until she messed it up. She sighed. "I have to go though, I'm working on some designs for Gabriel."

"Oh, okay. Try to call more often! Love you girl!"

"Love you too," she said, turning the phone off, tossing it onto the bed before falling backwards against the mattress.

"You alright?" Tikki floated closer, touching her cheek.

"He must be really mad at me if he hasn't even come to check on me," she whispered, covering her face.

"So, go see him," she offered.

Marinette shook her head. "If he's that angry, I'm going to leave him be." She got up, moving back to the floor. "I-I'll just keep working."

***POV Change***

"Your behavior is completely unacceptable," Gabriel snarled.

Adrien frowned, standing side by side with Luka. "We were just messing around," the blue-haired man argued.

"Even if that were true, look what you did to each other's faces!"

Luka's nose was swollen and both his eyes were underscored with black. The left side of his jaw was bruised from chin to ear, and it trailed up to his cheekbone. The marks were green and blue, and Adrien tried not to smile.

His own face was a little better, but his lower lip was swollen and he was bruised around his left eye and temple, with a cut in the center from Luka's kick. He'd like to think he came out on top. He thought his cheek would be bruised too, but it wasn't.

"How am I supposed to finish shoots with you two now?"

Adrien grimaced, shrugging. "Lots of make-up and Photoshop?"

Luka snorted, but then scowled, wincing. "It won't happen again," he whispered hoarsely, cradling his face.

Yeah, right. Adrien didn't believe that for a second, but he nodded.

"Nathalie, get them to the office and see if make-up is going to help. If not, we're going to have a serious problem." His eyes settled on his son. "You better hope that we don't."

"How long are we going to be gone?"

"As long as it takes," he spat. "Do you have somewhere pressing to be?"

The blonde sighed. "No," he breathed. Hopefully they'd be back before Marinette woke up. He didn't want her to go the whole day thinking he was too angry to even speak to her…even though he was still pretty pissed. He missed her.

***POV Change***

She'd dozed off at some point, but somebody was knocking on her door. She sat up, and a pencil was stuck to her cheek. She grimaced, yanking it off, wiping the drool from the corner of her mouth.

"Who's there?" She yawned, blinking. She glanced at the clock. Six in the evening!?

"Chloe," she whispered softly, as if she were trying to avoid being heard.

She was already moving, throwing the door open. Chloe was leaning against the doorframe, clutching her side a little, wincing. "Come in," she hissed, ushering the blonde in. "I'm glad you're back!"

"Y-Yeah," she grimaced, her gait jilted as she made her way to the bed, sitting down. "I survived my one whole night in the hospital," she tried to tease.

"This is serious, Chloe!"

She flinched, staring at the floor. "It looks like you survived Adrien's wrath, whatever that was about?"

Mari frowned, rubbing her bare arms a little. "We had a disagreement about professionalism," she said honestly. There, she didn't have to lie to the blonde. "You going to talk about your problem?"

Another cringe, and the woman rolled over, closing her eyes. "Too tired. I just didn't want to be alone. Can I crash with you tonight? Unless, you and Adrikins had plans?"

The bluenette sighed, snatching up some of her materials and bringing them to the oversized bed. "No, I haven't seen him all day, but you could crash with me even if I'd made plans. I've been designing, care to have a glance?" She would drop it…again. At least Chloe would be safe tonight.