30: Glaciator

When I called Kathy and invited her to my apartment for lunch, she immediately agreed and said that she'll arrive during her lunch break.

And so here I am, just finishing making the cheesiest grilled cheese sandwich, bread toasted and buttered to golden perfection. And to accompany our meal, homemade tomato soup.

Fresh lemonade was chilling in my fridge, ever since I receive confirmation that Kathy was coming over today.

When I heard the door bell ring, I yelled for them to come in.

Kathy opened the door, and I saw her from the kitchen, sniffing the air.

"Mmm hmm, something smells good," She grins as she places her purse on the couch before arriving at the table.

"Anything I can do to help?" She asks.

"Take out the lemonade from the fridge and two glasses, please?" I smiled at her.

"Got it, chef," She mock-saluted.

Soon we were sitting down and enjoying the meal together.

She dipped her sandwich in the soup and she moaned.

"I swear I can't believe that you don't want to be a chef," She says after swallowing, "I would hire you to be my personal chef if I could afford it."

I blushed at the compliment.

"So, Jolene, what's the real reason you are asking me out for lunch here?" She asks.

"I knew you would catch on that," I started nervously as I took a quick sip from my lemonade. "Well, Kathy, I don't have a lot of adult female friends that I could trust to talk about… female problems."

"Female problems? Like a gynecologist?" She raised an eyebrow.

I could feel my face heating up.

"Not exactly," I said as I tried to keep eye contact with her. "More like having a talk with someone who had already had sex and educating her?"

My voice turned to a higher pitch as I could feel my blush expanding to my ears.

At first, Kathy's jaw dropped and almost dropped her sandwich, but she quickly caught it and put it back on her plate.

"Oh," She clears her throat. "You mean you want to talk about sex and what to expect?"

I nodded, not trusting my voice yet.

"Honey," She says with a wry smile, "I'm… quite honored that you turned to me for that. And I would be glad to talk to you about it.

"Shoot, I wish I could have talked to someone before I had my first time."

I could feel my blush dying down as I finally was able to keep eye contact with her.

"Really?"

She nodded, "My first time was awkward and a bit disappointing. It was later when I talked to an older cousin when she told me things that I wish I could have known before I did it with my then boyfriend."

"Like what?"

"Oh, like the thing about bleeding on your first time is a lie," Kathy starts, "That there are going to be weird sounds. And that's there no age restriction in getting condoms for starters."

I nodded, kind of knowing the last one.

"Where was your first time?"

Kathy grinned, a fond memory on her face. "It was in my bedroom when my parents were out. I snuck him in."

Somehow, it didn't surprise me.

"But did you plan it?"

Kathy made a so-so motion with her hand, "I want to makeout with him at first, but things get heated and one thing leads to another…

"We didn't use protection, which I highly advise that you do on your first time. And all the time after," She pointed her finger at me. "But luckily I didn't get pregnant. That doesn't mean it would not be the same luck as you."

"I've been researching birth control pills and injections, IUDs, and now there's an implant you can put on your arm…?"

Kathy nodded and she took off her blazer and pulled her arm out.

"Come on, feel it," She says as she rolls up her white sleeve.

I got off my chair and poke the area she was pointing at. It was weird and I immediately put my hand away when I felt the rod-like object inside her upper arm.

She chuckles, "I did pills and injections, but you have to be on top of them. Making sure you are taking them on time is very important.

"Of course, pills can affect your hormones in unexpected ways and your gynecologist would have to experiment which ones are your best fit.

"Frankly when it comes to IUDs, after seeing what they do to put it in and out… I would rather have the implant than that anytime."

I nodded slowly as I went back to my chair.

"But whatever it is you choose, make sure you talk to the doctor."

I nodded again.

"So who's the lucky guy?" Kathy grins as she takes a sip of her soup.

"Um… it's a secret," I look away from her.

"It's that Adrien Agreste boy, isn't it?"

I cough while Kathy laughs.

"Oh, I knew it," She cheers before calming down. "I promise I will not tell a soul. I understand you want it private. Especially since his daddy is a high profile celebrity."

When I was able to catch my breath, I smiled gratefully at her, "Thank you."

She nods, "And I'm so proud that you manage to catch such a fine looking stud your age."

I blushed again, "Kathy."

She chuckles again, "You are so cute to tease. But in all seriousness, if you guys are ready to go that far into your relationship, then make sure you both understand the consequences of having sex without proper protection.

"Teen pregnancy is no joke."

I nodded again, her seriousness affecting me too.

"I don't want to be a teen mom. That's… scary," I breathe out. "I'm glad I'm able to talk to you about this."

"Anytime," She nods. She pauses for a bit, "And if you want to, I can go with you to the doctor about getting you a birth control method."

"I would like that," I said.

Kathy smiled softly.

We went back to eating lunch, talking in small bits as I asked her more questions. Eventually she had to return back to work. We made promises of keeping in touch about our schedules so we could have another talk or visit the doctor once I actually made an appointment.

Which is what I'm currently doing.

I want to get it as soon as possible.

I don't want to be caught off guard.

"Yo, Jolene," Nino greets me. "Want to get ice cream?"

"Of course," I answered immediately as I placed my phone down on my desk as I put my clothes back in their closet. "Who else is coming?"

"Alya, of course. Ivan and Mylène. Marinette…"

I made a face at the mention of her name, but I heard the hesitation. "And we of course invited our boy Adrien, but you know how his dad is when letting him out in the late afternoon."

"Tell me about it," I sighed.

I do want ice cream, and maybe I could convince Gabriel to let Adrien out.

"Well, where and when are we meeting up?" I asked.

"I'll text it to you later once we agree," Nino says.

"Cool, see you soon," I said and hung up.

I looked back at my bed to see that I'm halfway done with my laundry.

I made a call.

Adrien picked up.

"How's my girl?" He answered.

I laughed, "Pretty good, what about you, mi rey?"

He chuckled, but I noticed the brief second of pause, the way he dragged it out.

"What happened?" I asked softly. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"I've been waiting for my father to join me for dinner, but Natalie told me he was going to have it in his office."

"I'm sorry that it happened, amore," I whispered. "Do you want to come over and eat dinner with me instead?"

"I would love that." I can just imagine the smile on his face. "Wait, Nino is calling me."

"I know what it's about, call me later," I said as I hung up.

I finished putting away all my laundry and went towards my kitchen.

When my family died, I realized just how lonely it feels to sit on a table and eat a meal alone. Especially when you know you have family nearby.

My grandmother told me that's the reason why she will wait until my grandfather arrives so they could eat together.

I understand that pain and why I treasured when Cat visited me at night and shared a dessert together. And then it continued to dinners with Adrien and Plagg.

This place started to feel like an actual home.

Cheesy Chicken Alfredo soup with a side of garlic bread should be a good comfort dinner today.

Maybe we could even eat on the roof again. When the sun has set and the lights are on…

I miss those nights. And now that it's late spring, it's the perfect weather to eat outside.

My phone rang just as I was in the middle of draining the pasta.

"Adrien?"

I heard him sigh, "I can't make it to ice cream."

I frown, a little disappointed, but somehow it didn't surprise me. "Do you want me to talk to your father?"

"No, he's in a bit of a mood right now," He says.

"If you're not going, then neither am I," I said.

"No, don't do that," He quickly replies, "Go for me. Please?"

"It's not going to be the same," I sighed, "Plus, I started to make dinner for us. And I was thinking of eating on the roof. You know, like the good old times?"

"Those were great times," Adrien agrees. "You know what, we should eat on the roof again.

"Go eat ice cream, and when you come back, everything will be ready for tonight."

I smiled fondly, "Do you want churros or cannolis, mi cielo?"

"I've been craving your churros and your Mexican hot chocolate."

"Your wish is my command," I replied with a wry smile. "I'm going to get started."

Just as I finished making the churro mix, Nino sent me a text about where we were going to meet up.

Pont des Arts.

I texted Adrien where I was going before leaving the apartment and ran towards the meet up.

I might have gotten there a little early because I couldn't see my friends anywhere.

But I did see the infamous André.

Adrien told me about him before. It is rumored that if he makes a special ice cream for a couple, they are going to be in love forever.

Mylène actually confessed to us when we had the study group together that she and Ivan already visited André. And that it is worth the hype.

So I decided to go ahead and get a cone for myself.

"Hello, young lady!" André greets me warmly. He looked around and then put a hand on his hips, "A pretty girl like you must certainly have a special someone. Where is the lucky guy?"

I smiled sadly, "Unfortunately he isn't coming, but my friends are coming soon. They invited me to join them."

André smiled, "I can just tell that you are deeply in love with your partner. Oh, I just know what kind of ice cream to give you."

He went to his cart and started to scoop, "Pistachio for his eyes. And golden vanilla for his pure heart. Topped with dark chocolate chips, for that even bitter moments can be sweet too as long you are together."

I smiled fondly as I accepted the ice cream, "Thank you, André. I promise one day we will eat your ice cream together."

André grinned, "I can't wait for that day to happen. You look so in love!"

I paid him and waited for my friends, already eating my ice cream.

It was delicious. Though I did wish I could share it with Adrien.

"Jolene!" I heard my name in the distance.

I saw the couples, plus Marinette coming my way.

I smiled and waved at them, trying my best to not make it obvious that I really didn't want to talk to Marinette.

"Hi, everyone," I greeted them as we kissed cheeks. "Sorry if I got ice cream ahead of time. My aunt and uncle want me to return home before dark for dinner."

"No problem, dudette," Nino grins as he has his arm wrapped around Alya. "At least one of my best buds was able to come."

"Yeah, but let's not lose hope," I said to them wryly. "Summer is close by, and I'm sure we'll get another opportunity to eat André's together."

"You got that right," Alya smirks. "But who are you going to bring to eat sweetheart's ice cream? A certain cat you want to bring?"

Marinette was paying a little too much attention to me. It took a lot of will power not to look at her.

"No," I brushed her off. "No one in particular. I mean, does it have to be a sweetheart? I was thinking that Adrien and I could just get our own ice cream. Just like how I did," I smiled wryly as I showed her my ice cream.

Alya raised an eyebrow, "If you say so girl."

"You were hoping for Adrien to come too?" Marinette asks. If I felt a little satisfaction for feeling her disappointment, I wasn't going to gloat. I'm not like that. I don't want to be like that.

I nodded, "He's one of my best friends too. Eating with friends makes it more enjoyable in my opinion."

She smiled softly, and internally I was scowling. But I took deep breaths to get those bad thoughts away.

She's still crushing over my boyfriend. And I have done nothing to stop giving her hopes.

As much as I don't like her at this moment, she's still a good person who does want to do the right thing. Even though she doesn't think things through.

Somehow, it was just Marinette and me sitting on the nearby bench together as the couples went ahead of us to get their ice cream.

"You should get your own ice cream," I said without looking at her.

"I don't feel like getting ice cream," She sighs.

Mentally I rolled my eyes, but I thought better.

"Still, you went through all this trouble to come here with Alya and the rest of us. You should still get the chance to enjoy ice cream. It might get you in a better mood," I offered as I licked at the vanilla. "It's really good, I can tell you that."

"You know, it's been a while since we talked," Marinette starts, "It's nice talking to you."

I didn't offer an immediate reply as I busied myself with my ice cream.

"It has been a while," I replied calmly. "Sorry Marinette if it feels like I've been avoiding you."

"Oh, no problem, really!" She waves her hands in front of her. "…Unless there is one?" She whispers.

"I don't know if I should even make it a problem," I answered. "But I don't want it to become a problem."

"Huh? What do you mean?" She asks.

For the first time I looked at her and stared directly into her eyes.

At first she looked away, but then she held onto my steady gaze.

"You've been a good friend Marinette," I started. "When I'm ready to tell you, I'll let you know."

She frowned softly, but she nodded slowly. I looked down at my ice cream and saw that it was already down to the pistachio scoop.

I looked towards Nino and Alya who were talking with a happy André.

"I have to go now, my relatives are waiting for me to return." I stood up and waved. "Enjoy the ice cream, Marinette. I'm sure you'll enjoy it if you give it a chance."

Quietly I left and texted Nino. I didn't want to interrupt the happy couples.

When I returned home, I started to reheat the soup and heat up the oil.

"How was the ice cream?" Cat asks as he places his hands on my hips, his chin resting on my shoulder.

"Delicious," I smiled as I started deep frying the first couple of churros. The sizzling of the oil barely drowned out the background Mexican regional music. A small amount of oil jumped and landed on my hand, I barely twitched at the slight pain, already used to it.

"Are you okay?" Cat whispers.

"I can handle this," I told him. "It's worse when it's bigger drops. When that happens, you will know."

"What do I do if that happens?"

"Ideally, cut off a piece of my aloe plant and give it to me. The gel-juice that comes out of it helps with the burns better than water. But the clear part of the egg works too." That second part was told by my grandma when I got burnt in the kitchen while helping out in the family restaurant.

It's not as good as aloe, but it did help with dulling the pain better than water.

"Stir the soup please," I asked him as I took out the churros and placed them on the sugar-filled plate.

"Plagg would love to eat this," Cat says as he (unfortunately) took his hands off of me to do what I asked.

"Don't worry, I'll give you a tupper to take home so he can enjoy it too," I smiled.

"We are so lucky to have you," He kisses my cheek.

"I'm lucky to have you both," I kissed him back.

We were careful carrying the food up to the roof.

And when I got on top, it took everything in me to not drop the churros.

The star-shaped string lights were on, but around the ledge, candles were lit. Surrounding us with a warm glow.

The metal table had candles in the center. And on the chairs, there were finally chair pads.

Red rose petals were sprinkled around the floor.

My speakers were hidden somewhere, but already there was soft jazz playing in the background.

"It's almost perfect," I smiled at him.

"Almost," He whines.

"Alexa, play Italian Dinner playlist," I ordered.

Soon the accordion and the mandolin started to softly play.

"Now, it matches the meal," I smiled as we set down our food.

Cat grins as he quickly sets down the soup pot. Then he pulled out the chair for me.

"My little lady."

"Thank you, amore," I smiled.

We started to eat, Cat of course, complimenting my food.

It was just like before we started dating. Of course, now with a main course and not just desserts.

We were half way done when a giant ice cream-man came stomping just in front of my building.

"Marinette!" He yells. "I have a special ice cream just for you!"

"Marinette?" Cat and I both speak at the same time.

It caught the ice cream man's attention and faced us.

Immediately, Cat swept me off my feet and jumped away to a higher building.

Cat stood in front of me, his staff in front of him, facing the ice cream giant.

The giant had his arm/hand pointed at us.

"I- I can't!" The giant says. "They are in love!"

"It's André, the ice cream man," I whispered as I placed a hand over my mouth.

"How did Marinette make André akumatized?" He asks, confused.

That's a good question, but I have a feeling it had to do with rejecting his ice cream.

André was frighteningly accurate when he was describing the boy that I love.

I wonder how accurate he was when he was describing Marinette's crush, right in front of Mylène, Ivan and Nino. Knowing her, she would be flustered and deny that she's in love.

And unknowingly offend André.

The storyteller in me can really run wild scenarios.

"Cat Noir, give me your Miraculous!"

"Fat chance, snow ball!" Cat yells.

"Give it to me or else Glaciator is going to have sweet revenge on Marinette!"

"Not on my watch!" Cat says as he leaps towards him.

A scream got stuck on my throat as Glaciator shot ice cream balls towards him, but Cat twirled his staff in front of him. Blocking all ice cream from hitting him.

But I was on top of a roof, with nowhere to go without risking falling.

"JOLENE!"

I tried to dodge it, but something hit my leg. In a second, everything felt numb. It was as if I fell asleep.

Ladybugs appeared in my vision and I was on the same roof. My legs felt numb and I almost fell off.

Carefully I sat down and waited.

"Jolene!" I heard my name from behind.

I turned my body towards the noise and I saw Cat jumping towards me the fastest I've ever seen him.

I smiled at him and waved.

When he landed, he kneeled down and hugged me.

"I'm sorry," He whispers into my ear. "I should have protected you better."

I wrapped my arms around him, "You have nothing to be sorry about. You did your best. And you did save me by working with Ladybug."

He tensed up and slowly pulled me away.

"Um, about that-"

His ring started to beep, a warning for all of us.

"Let's go home first," I said.

He nodded and scooped me up.

He was strangely silent. When we landed, he still didn't want to talk, so I grabbed his hand and we sat down on the chairs.

The food was cold by now, but I don't think we could continue anyways.

"Cat?"

"Claws in," He says. Plagg gently landed on the table.

"My poor stomach," He whines. But then he started to sniff and he flew towards the soup. "This smells absolutely amazing! May I?" He turns his head towards me.

"It's cold by now, do you want me to reheat it?" I asked him.

"No need, angel," He waves me off before he starts to eat.

Then I finally focused on Adrien.

"What happened?" I asked softly.

"Ladybug figured out that Glaciator didn't attack couples, so we pretended to be one," He finally confesses.

"Who's idea was it?" I asked, trying to calm down the jealousy that wanted to come out.

"…Does it matter?" He asks.

I gave him a blank stare, "It was her, wasn't it?"

"Please, don't hate her," Adrien says. "We only did it so we could defeat him."

I stood up and paced in front of him, while taking deep breaths.

They are only partners.

They are only partners…

I calmed down with my mantra and stood in place, taking one last deep breath.

"I trust you," I said after a while. I face him completely and place a hand on my hips. "And it does bother me that Ladybug and you had to pretend, but I know it didn't mean anything to you, right?"

Adrien quickly stood up and grabbed my hands, "You know that my heart belongs to you. Ladybug is my partner and my friend.

"She has her flaws, but in the end she means… well."

I smiled sadly as I squeezed his hands, "I know. I know…."

Adrien kissed my forehead and hugged me.

"I wished we could have finished dinner," He sighs.

I laughed, "We can reheat what is left downstairs. If you want to?"

Adrien laughed, "I would like that."

And so, we cleaned up and brought the empty dishes downstairs.

We were going to restart where we left off.

"Girl, you need to see this!" Alya says once she sees me in the lockers.

Before I could even talk, she pulled me close and took out her phone.

It was a video and she pressed play.

It was about the events of last night.

Glaciator fought against Cat Noir and Ladybug.

But then suddenly Ladybug grabbed Cat's hand.

Glaciator hesitated.

Then Ladybug got comfortable as she pressed her body closer to Cat.

My hands turned to fists when she kissed his cheek, her lips lingering a little longer than necessary.

It was pretend.

It was pretend…

"Do you think Ladybug and Cat are a couple now?" Alya asks excitedly.

"What's going on?" Marinette suddenly appears.

"Check out this video I managed to capture!"

Alya replayed the video. I watched Marinette closely.

I saw her blushing, but I also saw guilt in her eyes as she took a second peak towards me when the video finished.

"I don't think they are a couple," Marinette says nervously. "I mean, it clearly shows that they acted like professional superheroes once they realized Glaciator's weakness."

She laughed weakly as she looked between Alya and me.

"What do you think, Jolene?" Alya smiles. "I know you and Cat are friends."

I had to be careful what I say next.

I know what Marinette knows and I had to make sure she doesn't suspect.

"I don't think they are pretending," I stated without emotion. "And Alya, I want to ask a favor."

Both were stunned at my tone, that much I could tell.

"What is it?" Alya asks softly.

"I don't want to know anything about them," I told her seriously. She was about to talk when I interrupted her. "And don't ask me why. Because I'm not going to say anything else about the matter."

"Jolene," Marinette said softly.

I closed my eyes and turned my back towards them, "I had a wonderful friendship with him. You know that Alya."

"Had?" Alya asks softly.

"I'm not like you, Alya. I can't risk my life just so I could be friends with a superhero. No matter how much I care for them."

Before she could say anything else, I went towards my locker, grabbed my things and slammed the locker door a little more harshly than necessary.

She can't know.

She can't know…

Omake 19

Curious.

Jolene seems to be on more than just friendly terms with Cat Noir.

Targeting her could result in getting the Black Cat Miraculous, but she's evaded all my attempts.

She changes her mood too quickly, not enough time for an akuma to get attached to her.

I've sensed her anger that could surpass the heat of lava.

Her wave of sadness crashes stronger than any tsunami.

There will be a day where she will no longer be able to reel it in.

And when she can't, it will be the downfall of Cat Noir and Ladybug. I will get their Miraculouses!

And finally I will be able to bring back my beloved wife.

AN: Happy Holidays!

I want to say that I'm grateful to everyone that has been reading this story, even as I changed the rating.

So thank you Ms-Mad-Hatter-Hightopp, lobalunallena, DeathPoet0-0, SliverKitsuneGrlAngel, twizzlers24, and anasha for following/favorited this story. You guys made me so happy to know that you guys still enjoy this story or at least want to know what happens next. For that thank you again.

And a special shout out to Lady Luci Lorde. I don't know why I'm still getting notification delays, but I'm sorry for not mentioning you in my last chapter and thank you for following this story.