A/N: Now I gotta really apologize for a super late update. College and work take a lot of time. I will be doing my best to stay on the canon side of episodes with a Lukanette twist of course and the appearance of Viperion showing up more often. This story and another Miraculous Ladybug story will be getting two chapters this month. And as I'll be going forward, my schedule for updating is anywhere from 2 weeks to a month. Thank you and enjoy!
Recapping this episode since I'm lost in season 5 has given me nothing, but secondhand embarrassment. And, again, I'm taking this in a totally different direction than I intended to.
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It was the next day. Marinette had something on her mind. She needed to trust her friends. And what better than to tell them that she wanted to get over Adrien? Yes, yes. She knew as much as she had said that a couple of times before, but she actually meant it this time. There was someone in her life that she really valued and cared about.
It was Luka since he knew her secret and he was the reason why she could open her eyes.
So here she was, waiting for her close group of friends to arrive and get their lunch. She had already gotten hers' with Alya who wanted to know what the scoop was.
"We're best friends, girl. You know you can tell me anything, right?"
"I know, Alya, and thank you. It's just... I'd rather tell all the rest of the girls too, alright?"
"Sure, but you'd better spill the details once they get here."
Marinette smiled at Alya. She understood her concerns and accepted them graciously.
Though, it didn't take long for their other friends to come to the table. The line wasn't too long today and Lila wasn't an issue as she was visiting elsewhere. Where? Well, right now, Marinette simply didn't care.
"Hey girls," the bluenette greeted her friends.
Each of them waved or said gentle hellos or hi's. These girls had been her friends for what seemed like forever and she adored them all.
She had a lot on her mind and honestly, while she had a game plan in mind, she didn't know where to begin. So, she took a deep breath in through her nose and out through her mouth. "I think I'm ready to move on from Adrien."
"Move on?" Alya almost practically yelled, but quieted herself soon after. "What do you mean move on? You've had a crush on him for almost two years! What happened?"
She gave Alya a gentle smile. "Well, someone made me open my eyes. What I was doing was obsessing over Adrien by stalking him and getting jealous when other girls hung around him all because he gave me his umbrella after apologizing to me because of Chloe. I told Adrien that I liked him, but I've been kind of avoiding him all day."
"I found it weird that you were avoiding him, but I didn't want to bring it up," Alix commented. "He kept trying to go after you, but Nino held him back, saying maybe you needed space or something. Gotta say, Marinette, you are one bold person. Plus for you to realize you were obsessing too? That's growth."
"You knew I was obsessing and didn't tell me about it?"
Alix laid back in the cafeteria chair. "What can I say? The only way for someone to grow on their own is for someone else to realize it and change them. Say, did you meet someone who I don't know? Touched your heart?"
Marinette blushed.
Mylene, Rose, and Juleka gushed over her reaction.
"Who is it?" they all said at once.
"Uhm... well, Juleka already knows."
It took a moment before the goth girl knew what the bluenette was talking about. She furrowed her eyebrows a bit before a lightbulb went off in her mind. Her eyes lit up with joy. "You're talking about my brother, right?"
Marinette nodded shyly. "I may have a small crush on him, but I'm taking things slow right now. Right now, Luka and I are friends. He helps me."
"Awwwwhhh!" All her friends said in unison.
Alya wrapped an arm around Marinette's shoulder. "It's nice to see you smile instead of pushing us away. We'll support you no matter what decision you make."
"Thanks, girls!" she smiled widely.
"Say," Alya began as she broke the mood. "Think you could go comfort Adrien? I think he's really down about his whole break up with Kagami?"
The bluenette rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly as the smile she once had was wiped from her face. "Uh... I don't know about that, Alya. I don't think I'm ready to talk to him after I confessed to him that I liked him. I know he wants answers and it's wrong of me to leave him with questions, but I don't know. After the whole museum thing with Adrien and being driven home by Gorilla and him, I was hurt. I was hurt because he said he was in love with someone else. Could have Kagami. Could have been someone else. I felt heartbroken. I know that's a normal feeling?"
"I'd feel heartbroken too if my crush said he was in love with someone else too. Your feelings are valid, Marinette. Don't forget that." Alix spun her fork between her fingers. Where was all this wisdom coming from, she wondered.
"Do you have a crush on someone, Alix?" Marinette pressed.
"What? No! What makes you think that? Love is... Love is gross!"
"Then why do you hang out with us?" Rose asked, a little saddened.
"Because you guys are my friends. Duh! Why else?"
"Oh," Rose said simply. "But yeah, Marinette. Your feelings matter. You're our friend. You look out for us, we look out for you."
"Maybe give Adrien some closure before you decide to ignore him altogether. Then maybe that feeling of doubt and other feelings will go away." Mylene added.
"I think you're on to something, Mylene. But how can I?..."
Mylene gently grabbed Marinette's hands along with the rest of the girls. "Remember to be honest with yourself and those you care about. Adrien may fade into an old crush, but I don't think you should let go of that friendship. Take some time, but do remember to give sunshine boy some closure."
The bluenette smiled. She had just finished her food. "I'm gonna go to the bathroom. I'll see you, girls, in class, okay?"
They said their goodbyes and continued to finish their lunch.
As for the bluenette, she didn't know what to feel. She was... confused? Her feelings were mixed up as she didn't know how to describe them. As she headed towards the bathroom, she saw Nino and Adrien sitting on one of the benches.
Nino was showing him something as Adrien seemed to look deep in thought. "See dude? Aren't these skits hilarious?"
The blond faked a laugh and replied with, "Yeah, they sure are funny, Nino."
"Alright, alright! Let me show you another one!"
Adrien looked up to see her.
Marinette dashed out of sight. Why was she acting like she still had a crush on him? She didn't. She told her friends she was going to be over him. She wanted to hate him for liking someone else, but that was natural, wasn't it? To have feelings? To have crushes? Ugh! What was wrong with her? She dreamed about marrying him, having a family, and a hamster named Marinette. Wait. Marinette?
The bluenette peered to the right to see Adrien trying to catch her attention.
"Hey, Marinette. I wanted to talk to you."
"T-talk to me? Nah. You wouldn't want to talk to me. I'm... uh hey! How about we talk about this later and uh talk about how you're holding up? I heard you and Kagami broke up! How are you feeling?"
Adrien laughed softly. "You're a really funny girl, Marinette. I just wanted to talk to you about what you said yesterday. But if you don't want to talk about it right now, that's okay. As for the breakup with Kagami, I'm fine."
"Are you really fine?"
"Yeah."
Marinette could tell he was lying. She didn't want to press him further. It wasn't right of her. So, she quickly told him she needed to go to the bathroom and went into one of the stalls of the girls' bathroom. She shot Nino a text.
Marinette: Hey, Nino? What was that show called that made Adrien laugh?
In Marinette's contacts, Nino was named DJ.
DJ: Harry's Clown comedian sketches. Why? What's up dudette?
Marinette: I just want to cheer him up since he and Kagami broke up. Thanks!
Good. Now she had a game plan to lift Adrien's spirit up. She just needed to catch up with Harry so that she could have Adrien smile and get his mind off of what she said yesterday...
