Luna was practically buzzing with excitement as she went to school. She opened the envelope in her hand for the umpteenth time and leafed through its contents, grinning wildly. It'd been ages since she'd seen the Phantom of the Opera, and damn it all if she wasn't going to taint every one of her friends with the haunting, infectious melodies of her favorite musical. As she made her way to the lockers, her eyes combed the halls for her besties. Finally, she laid eyes on Alya and Marinette talking in a corner. Her grin widening, she quickly made her way over to them and tapped the blogger's shoulder. Alya turned around and beamed.
"Hey, girl! You look like you're feeling better."
"Hell yes, I am! I just got the best news ever!"
"What's up?" Marinette asked.
"There's a production of Phantom of the Opera going on for the rest of the week. And I just happened to get us all tickets for tonight's showing." The actress waved the envelope in front of her.
Alya quirked a brow. "Phantom of the whatnow?"
"The Opera! Please tell me you've heard of it."
The blogger shook her head. "Sorry, girl. I don't really-"
"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"
Marinette's squeal caught both girls by surprise. The blackette's face lit up like a five-year-old in a candy shop. Her eyes sparkled as she bounced with glee.
"Oh my god, no way! Are you serious right now?!" she said with a little too much enthusiasm.
The actress grinned, again. "I am dead serious!"
Both held hands and squealed. Luna's excitement fed off of Marinette's which, to be honest, was really starting to freak Alya out. The blogger tried to shuffle away from them as they started bouncing.
"Have you seen it?" Luna asked.
"Only on video! Oh my god, I can't believe this is happening!"
"So, you're coming?!"
"Hell yeah, I'm coming!"
"Guys, people are staring at us," Alya said.
Marinette turned to the blogger, still bouncing on the balls of her feet. "Alya, it's Phantom of the Opera! How are you not freaking out right now?!"
"Probably because I'm not a total weirdo like you two."
"She has dissed the work of Andrew Lloyd Webber!" Luna roared.
"This insult shall not be forgiven!" Marinette yelled.
"Ugh, can you freaks be any louder?" Chloé said as she walked by them.
Not one to miss a beat, Luna smirked and folded her arms. "Was that a challenge, Bourgeois?"
Chloé rolled her eyes. "As if I'd stoop to your level, bitch."
"Come on, honey buns! Don't be like that! Is it cause we didn't cuddle last night?"
The heiress didn't bother to turn around or give an answer. Instead, she flipped a bird over her shoulder and kept walking. Luna shook her head.
"So, how bout it, Césaire? You coming or not?" she asked as she turned back to her friends.
"I'll have to check with my mom. I think I'm up for babysitting duty tonight."
Marinette's face fell. "Oh, god no! I completely forgot! I'm watching Manon, tonight. I can't go."
"She can come with! Come on, Mari. Don't make me go alone." Luna jutted out her bottom lip in a puppy dog pout.
"Oh, don't even try the baby doll eyes on me! You know I can't stand that!"
"Please, Marinette!" The actress begged in a childish voice.
"I... It's not even suitable for kids, right? All the hanging and fire..."
"Pleeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaasssssssssseee!"
Marinette sighed in defeat. "I'll ask Mrs. Chamack if it's okay."
Luna pumped her fist in the air. "Yes! Mental manipulation for the win!"
"You totally suck as a friend," the designer huffed.
"Excuse you. I am a totally kickass friend and you love me for getting these tickets."
"Tickets for what?"
Marinette suddenly morphed into a mess of waving limbs. "A-A-Adrien! What's up?!"
The model blinked. "Not much. What are you guys talking about?" Behind him, Nino started to snicker.
"Marinette and I are going to see the Phantom of the Opera tonight," Luna told him.
"Hey, us too!" Nino said. "What a coincidence."
Luna raised a brow at Adrien. "Oh, are you now? Didn't know you were into musicals."
He smirked at her. "Not really. A friend of mine told me about it, so I thought it might be fun to see. What? Something wrong with me going?"
"Well, considering I bought you dorks tickets, too, I'm a little offended."
"Aww, Luna. Were you trying to ask me out?"
Luna gave him a flat look. "In your dreams and over my dead body, pretty boy."
Adrien placed a hand on his chest in mock hurt. "Yeouch! My poor pride."
Marinette's gaze shifted between the two, trying to ignore her churning stomach. Was... was Adrien flirting? With Luna? Did that mean he liked her? Did he want her to ask him out?! What if Luna DID ask him out!? They'd totally fall in love with each other and want to get married and then SHE'D have to be a bridesmaid at the WEDDING! It would be hell!
Alya rested a hand on her bestie's shoulder to calm her down. She then leveled a small glare at the cause of stress.
"Y'know, Agreste, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you were hitting on Luna just now." The reporter kept her tone pleasant and playful, though if you listened hard enough, you could hear the slight bite in her words.
And Adrien must've heard it, because his grin vanished in a snap. Green eyes flicked towards Marinette as the boy paled.
"N-no! Of course not! It was just a joke, right Luna?" he asked, giving the thief a pleading look.
"Oh, so I'm a joke to you," Luna said, folding her arms. Her eyes danced with glee at his look of sheer horror.
"What?! No! I just... Nino, help me out here!"
The DJ chuckled and placed an arm around his friend's shoulders. "I think what my man, here, meant to say was that he knows you don't have any interest in him, Luna. I'm sure he meant no harm by his comment."
Luna hummed. "I don't know. A girl's heart can be pretty fragile."
"And suggesting something like that is pretty insensitive," Alya added.
"Not to mention cocky."
"Just not smooth at all."
"Can I get out of this with a little bit of pride, please?" Adrien asked.
His answer came in perfect unison. "Hell, no!"
Adrien pouted, earning a chuckle from Nino. "Cheer up, man. I'm sure Marinette will forgive you, right Mari?"
The girl in question let out a squeak as attention shifted on her. The color of her cheeks deepened into an angry red. She stumbled over her words for a moment before she was suddenly gripped by her two friends.
"Don't drag her into this!" Alya said in a huff.
"Yeah, he doesn't deserve Mari's forgiveness!" Luna said.
"But how will I go on?!" Adrien said in woe.
"You should've thought of that, sir!"
The bell rang, calling the attention of the teens. A moment of silence passed before someone snorted, causing the rest of them to laugh uncontrollably.
"You guys are so weird!" Marinette said.
"Said the pot to the kettle," Alya said with a smirk. "Come on, we're gonna be late again if we don't get a move on."
Luna adjusted the strap of her bag on her shoulder. "I'll catch you guys there. Gotta drop my stuff off at my locker."
"Alright, but make it quick. Ms. Mendeleiev'll have a fit if you come in after roll call."
"She'll probably throw a fit, regardless," Luna said with a smirk. She gave her friends a mock salute before heading off towards her locker. As she worked the dial on her lock, however, someone else approached her.
"A fan of musicals, huh?" Lila asked as she leaned against a nearby locker.
Luna smirked, switching out her books. "You heard that?"
"You weren't exactly quiet about it." Her olive eyes took on a shine. They swept over the actress with a touch of hunger. Luna held back a small shiver, though she wasn't entirely sure if it was all that bad. Biting her lip, she shut her locker and turned to give Lila her full attention.
"You make that sound like a bad thing," Luna asked, propping a hand on her hip.
Lila shrugged. "Not really. It's the quiet ones you gotta watch out for."
"Is that right?"
"Would I lie to you?"
The thief pulled a face. "Well, popular opinion would say yes."
For a split second, Lila looked offended. She quickly saved face and ran her fingers through her hair. "I never really cared for the popular opinion. I am curious about yours, though," she said with a smirk.
Luna thought about it for a moment. "Don't know yet. But I'm willing to keep an open mind."
"Hmm. Well, I guess I can work with that. What are you doing tomorrow night?"
The thief quirked a brow. "Well, you're forward."
"Figured I'd make a move before Adrien Agreste did. Sue me."
At the mention of the model, Luna's smile melted into a frown. "Agreste? What does he have to do with anything?"
"What, you gonna tell me he wasn't totally flirting with you back there? 'Cause that's what it looked like," Lila said.
"Trust me, he wasn't. And even if he was, I'm not into pretty boys."
The late bell rang, making both girls jump in surprise. Luna whispered a soft curse. "Gotta head to class. Catch you later!" She started to jog off when Lila yelled after her.
"Hey, wait! I never got an answer!"
Luna spun around to run backwards for a moment. "Ask me again after class!"
Lila huffed but still found herself smirking despite being blown off. As she watched the other girl run to class (it was a nice view, after all), her fingers started to toy with the gold chain of the foxtail necklace that dangled around her neck. A dangerous glint lit up her gaze. Luna Galemore. She certainly was an interesting one. Lila could tell the actress was warming up to her. Best of all, there was no Ladybug in sight to screw her out of her chances with her. She had a golden opportunity at a decent high school romance. One she was damned sure not going to let slip through her fingers.
Last chapter of the year! Woot woot! Hope you guys had a great holiday season. I was planning on posting this well before Christmas, but rewrites and plot bunnies hate me, so yeah. I'm also seriously trying to pin down the ending, which is still very much up in the air. As I said last chapter, voting for who would win ended on Christmas, and well... yeah, that was a landslide, so look forward to the heist in a couple months (still have at least two chapters before that one). I've also decided to give you guys a psuedo playlist of sorts for each chapter. They're mostly songs that either pertain to characters and parts of the story or ones that I just listen the hell out of when I write this.
Onto reviews!
Typicalbooklover- Anyone ever tell you you have a diabolical mind? I love it!
Awesomeness3013- Yay for ships!
Prazeodymium- Thank you for the glowing review! It means so much to me to have that kind of praise.
Davey- The mask might have more importance than you think.
Alex- Well, if they're annoyed by that, they will definitely hate what's coming next. And I would love to have a review from Sophie, too! Even if she's not the biggest fan. Btw, I have five little sisters.
MadelVer- Going over board? Rating wise or mush wise?
K2: No! But soon!
Springborn- As far as I'm aware, you are the first to suggest it. The thought has crossed my mind though.
insane Jane- Here's your fix!
Until next time guys! Hope you all have a great New Year!
Playlist:
Tongue Twister (nightcore)- Cash Cash
Shudder Before the Beautiful- Nightwish
Dangerous- Before You Exit
Perfect Illusion- Lady Gaga
Blackjack- Caitlyn De Ville
Wanderlust- Nightwish
You Make Me Feel- Cobra Starship