Marinette's trying to keep busy and keep herself from getting distracted by Cat Noir. And another present shows up, too.
But Marinette has Zoé's birthday party coming up and she can't afford to get sidetracked. Leave it to the boys in Adrien's group to get up to some shenanigans, though. Watch out for the easter eggs I have in here!
And I'm serious, more comments means more chapters. I thrive on the positive reinforcement and the more comments I get, the better! It makes me think, "Hey, people actually enjoy this," or something along those lines.
Oh, and I forgot to put this in before, but a bit of trivia regarding chapter one: Cat's line, asking Marinette, "coffee, tea, or moi?" was a reference to a Looney Tunes short, Carrotblanca - the line is repeated by Fifi La Fume in Tiny Toons short Love Stinks.
Two days later, Marinette woke up, ready for a day of fun with the girls. As she climbed down the stairs of her room to the living space, she saw that her mom was working in the kitchen, and there was a bowl of cereal and milk waiting for her daughter.
"Morning, mom!" Marinette said as she went to sit down and eat. As she reached for her spoon, she knocked over the milk, but she caught the carton before a huge spill happened. "Thank goodness."
"Are you excited to have fun with your friends today?" Sabine asked as Marinette ate.
"I am," Marinette responded. "I can't wait to relax with the girls on a hopefully uneventful day."
"But if you don't eat, you'll never be able to do that." Sabine giggled.
"Oh, right! Thanks, mom!" Marinette said as she kept eating her breakfast.
She went downstairs to greet her dad, who was rotating product in the ovens.
"Morning, dad!" Marinette spoke as she walked through the bakery.
"Morning, sweetie," Tom said as he pulled more galettes out of the oven. "Have a great time with the girls today. Maybe Adrien will show up?"
Marinette sighed and said, "You too? Not happening, dad."
He gave a patient smile while Marinette shook her head.
The sound of a truck stopping was heard outside. Marinette turned to the door and saw a delivery man was standing there. He was holding a large, pale pink mailer box from a local boutique sustainable bath and body shop, and it had a pink satin ribbon on it, too.
"Delivery for Marinette Dupain-Cheng." He said as he handed it to Marinette.
"For me?" Marinette asked as she took it into her hands. She opened the box and saw it was a luxury spa set in rose and vanilla bean scent, complete with a yogurt face mask, a few towels, a goat's milk soap, moisturizers, body butters, shampoo and conditioner bars, exfoliating gloves, and so much more.
"Oh, my gosh! This is amazing!" Marinette said as she looked over the box's contents. "I've always wanted to go to this place for some of their product!"
On a hunch, she asked the delivery man, "Was there a card that came with this, by any chance?"
"As a matter of fact, yes." He said as he handed Marinette a white card. Like she suspected, same calligraphy and stationary.
"I knew it!" Marinette squealed. "Thank you! I'll go put it in my room right now!"
She dashed back inside with her present.
"Where did that come from, Marinette?" Sabine asked as she joined Tom in the bakery.
"You know that teddy bear I brought home? Whoever put it there sent me this spa set!" Marinette said. "It was so sweet!"
"Well, bring it to your room and try it out later!" Tom spoke.
"I will!" Marinette giggled while running up to her room.
Later at the pool, the girls were talking about what happened with her latest encounter with Cat Noir. Alya and Marinette were sitting at the side of the pool with their feet in the water, while the rest of the girls were in the water.
"Those same goons tried attacking you, only for Cat Noir to stop them?" Alya asked Marinette.
"Exactly," Marinette responded. "It was strange. I was getting chased on my scooter by those guys, and I ducked into an alley, since they were in a car. But they chased me on foot. I was about to pepper spray them when Cat Noir intervened and stopped them. I think he even turned them into the police."
"See, this just adds more weight to my theory that they're just vigilantes rather than crooks!" Alya insisted with a smile.
"You're probably on to something, Alya." Marinette conceded, her tone not betraying anything.
The look in his green eyes was still sticking in her brain, and she couldn't shake the image out. The sound of him calling her belle and how it rolled off his tongue in a charming purr rang out in her ears. The way the light of the dusk highlighted his golden hair and made it look so attractive. How he praised her courage. The way his suit accentuated his musculature and how buff he looked as a result. Her heart fluttered a little and a smile began to grow on her face.
"Agreed," Kagami spoke as she sat on the other side of the ladder, her feet also in the water. "I had another run-in with Argos myself."
"What? You did?" Juleka mumbled - she and Rose were treading water.
"Yes," She confirmed. "Mother and I were sparring in the park when Argos showed up. At first, mother tried to fight him off, thinking he was after something. He stood his ground. It was like he could battle and dodge with grace. His combat skills were enough to go toe-to-toe with my mother without breaking a sweat."
"Seriously? She's an Olympic fencing champion, and he was able to give her a run for her money with that little effort?" Alix questioned.
"He did. But I swear whenever he had an opportunity, he turned his eyes onto me for some reason. The way he was looking at me was strange." Kagami added.
"Maybe he was showing off?" Juleka mumbled in suggestion.
"If so, why?" Marinette asked.
"What happened after that?" Myléne questioned Kagami.
"After his sparring match with mother, all he did was wink at me before taking off." Kagami stated.
"That is weird." Marinette said before thinking to herself, 'Is that what Cat Noir meant when he said Argos had other matters to attend to?'
Marinette tried to rationalize what was going on, only to hear a sigh. She turned to see that Zoé was leaning her upper body against the edge of the pool while gently kicking her legs in the water. She was looking a bit upset, and she hadn't said a word the entire time.
"Hey, Zoé? You've been pretty quiet. Is everything okay?" Marinette asked.
"No, Chloé's in a really bad mood," Zoé reported. "There was a break-in at the hotel last night."
"A break-in?!" Everyone repeated, worried.
"Her room was ransacked - completely trashed. Almost everything she has is ruined," Zoé added. "Torn clothes, shattered jewels, dented gold, shoes with their heels busted off, you name it."
"Whoever did that has more courage than I do." Myléne spoke.
"Was anything stolen?" Marinette asked.
"No, and thank goodness for that," Zoé responded as she began treading water in the pool. "But she blamed it on me in the beginning, threatening me and telling me how ridiculous I was for sneaking in and destroying her stuff."
"She accused you without evidence? She didn't get your mom and the mayor to ship you back to New York, did she?" Alya asked in concern.
"No. When my stepdad inspected the damage, he saw that her full-length mirror was shattered and there was a note on the mirror frame," Zoé explained. "Something about seven years of bad luck as a consequence of her bullying. And that all the diamonds and gold she surrounds herself with becoming worthless at some point. A paw print and a feather were drawn on the note, too."
"What the hell? This has Cat Noir and Argos written all over it!" Alix said.
"Quite literally." Kagami spoke.
"To no one's surprise, Chloé threw a huge fit and demanded my stepdad replace everything in the latest styles and models. She also ordered him to make capturing Cat Noir and Argos top priority for the police." Zoé said.
"Yikes," Alix said, sounding nervous. "How could she do that?"
"You know how she is," Marinette sighed. "But the more pressing issue: what about your birthday party? You're having it in the hotel, aren't you?"
"Right. Let's just hope Chloé doesn't try anything to ruin it. Even when she's in a good mood, she's still an insufferable brat." Zoé spoke.
"We can always change venues if we have to," Alya suggested. "Chloé wouldn't be caught dead at the barge, for one."
"That's a good point. And we all know one thing: Chloé's not gonna get any secret admirer presents any time soon," Marinette laughed. "My anonymous suitor struck again!"
"Really?! What was it this time?" Rose asked, excited.
"It was a luxury spa set from that sustainable bath boutique!" Marinette responded. "Vanilla bean and rose scent! And like with the teddy bear and the flowers, it had a card with the same calligraphy and stationary."
"That's odd," Kagami spoke up, getting the girls' attention. "This morning, I received a spa set from that shop, too - clove and citrus scent. Same card and writing, as well."
"You're kidding!" Marinette said. "This is the second time we got similar presents."
"At the same time, too? Think whoever's putting them there are in cahoots with each other?" Alya suggested.
"Who knows?" Juleka mumbled.
"This can't be a coincidence." Marinette murmured.
"I doubt it is," Kagami agreed. "Though I must admit, the presents have been thoughtful."
"They have been. I can't wait to try out the spa set!" Marinette agreed.
"Same here." Kagami laughed.
The girls laughed together before they all got in the water to play.
When they decided to wrap it up for the day, they left the pool area and went to the crosswalk to cross the street.
"That was fun. I don't think I've been able to truly relax in a while." Marinette confessed.
"Me neither," Zoé responded. "I really needed that."
"Same here." Myléne agreed.
The sound of clanging was heard on the nearby rooftops, and Marinette looked up to see that Cat Noir and Argos were running across them. Sirens could be heard in the distance.
While Argos merely jumped to another roof, Cat Noir used his baton to pole-vault. As he soared through the air, he looked at Marinette out of his vision. Their eyes met. He gave her a smile and a wink. Marinette could feel her heart pound, like that line in "Jolly Holiday" from Mary Poppins regarding a brass band.
"Girl, did he just...?" Alya asked, pointing at the boys and her eyes switching between the vigilantes and her best friend.
'Wait, what am I doing?!' Marinette thought, face pink and eyes wide.
The boys landed on the roof and kept running. The sirens were getting closer and a huge group of police cars were racing through the streets, chasing after the two troublemakers.
"Like my half-sister demanded, the police are after Cat Noir and Argos." Zoé sighed.
"I'm conflicted," Alya admitted. "On the one hand, I respect the fact that they're taking action against the likes of the Bourgeois family."
"But on the other hand, they're going about it in dangerous, if not illegal ways?" Marinette questioned.
"Yeah." Alya confirmed.
"Legal and ethical are two different things. Something can be seen as ethical, but not legal, and vice-versa." Kagami added, her face pink.
"You okay, Kagami?" Alix asked, noticing the tint in the fencer girl's cheeks.
"I could be wrong, but I think Argos just blew me a kiss." Kagami admitted.
"The hell?" Alya asked, confused.
"Let's just leave things alone," Myléne insisted. "We have a birthday party to get ready for!"
"Yeah!" The girls cheered.
When Marinette got home, she went up to her room and took a shower, trying out her new spa set. As she cleaned herself, she took advantage of the exfoliating gloves, the soaps, and the body butter that she'd been gifted, and she reveled in the natural scents of rose and vanilla bean.
'This feels SO good...' Marinette thought. 'I never thought I'd be able to use this place's products. It's incredible. I wonder, who was so generous to gift me this spa set?'
Marinette once again pictured Cat Noir in her mind's eye and her heart fluttered. Replaying the earlier encounter that day and recalling how he spoke to her after stopping the crooks from hurting her, Marinette heaved a sigh.
'Why did I think about him? Even IF he has standards, there's no way that naughty alley cat would do something so sweet!' Marinette told herself. 'Gotta change mental course! Zoé's birthday present!'
Once she finished her shower, she moisturized her whole body, put a towel turban on her head for her hair, a bathrobe, some slippers, and applied the yogurt mask on her face.
"I don't think my skin has ever felt this soft and healthy!" Marinette giggled as she began working on her computer. "I'll take a look at that shop and see if there's a scent that Zoé would like!"
She looked at the promotional materials within the box, including the website URL, and she began looking at the spa sets that the store had available.
"Ooh, honey and jasmine! This will be perfect for Zoé!" Marinette said as she went to add it to the cart, only to see the price tag. "Wait, €52.29? That's a little out of budget for me..."
She turned her chair around and looked at all her sewing materials.
"Well, guess I'll go with my usual love language: making clothes and accessories!" Marinette said as she took out her sketchbook and flipped to another page.
Her brain ran a mile a minute and she soon found herself sketching out the perfect present for Zoé. She smiled.
"Zoé gonna love it!" Marinette squealed. The timer on her phone went off and she went to her vanity to wash the yogurt mask off.
She saw that there was a notification of a live feed on the news app. She opened it and saw that Cat Noir and Argos were fighting off the police.
"Why do you keep serving the mayor?! Don't you understand that the way his daughter treats your daughter is unacceptable?!" Argos asked as he clashed weapons with Roger.
"Our duty is to serve and protect!" Roger responded.
"But your daughter has been slave-driven into being an accomplice to behavior that's breaking the law!" Cat Noir shouted as he did a roundhouse kick to knock some other officers away. "You should know better than to enable that!"
"You're acting like servants to a king! Not okay!" Argos added as he threw the portly man over his shoulder and knocked his weapon to the ground. "His stepdaughter aside, that entire family should've been arrested on charges several times over by now!"
"Yeah! Didn't the mayor's bitch of a daughter abuse the emergency fire number to get out of a Home Ec class once, then force everyone to clean the school since she didn't own up to it?!" Cat Noir questioned as he used his staff to jump over some of the other police officers before hitting them in the back with the end of it and throwing them to the ground.
Once again, Marinette's eyes were drawn to Cat Noir. The way his body moved with the inherent grace and flexibility of the animal he was themed after. How his muscles bulged, his hair glowing in the light of the sun, how his wit was gleaming in his eyes with each horrendous pun he let out.
He rounded on Roger, who was lying on his back on the ground and looking up at Cat Noir, who was pretty angry.
"Last time I checked, that's a felony! It's claw-ful that you didn't arrest her on it!" Cat Noir snapped at him. "It's paw-thetic."
Roger's face melted with guilt. More officers charged at Cat Noir, but he raised his ring hand and gave them a "stop" gesture. The police skid to a halt in fear of his Cataclysm and started backing away.
Marinette smiled, feeling a bit giddy at the sight of Cat Noir putting the police in their place. Realizing what she was doing, though...
"Hold it! I can't get distracted!" Marinette groaned as she dunked her face in her water-filled sink. She took a few seconds before pulling her face back up and wiping the yogurt off.
With one last look at Cat Noir's face, she exited the app and turned her phone on silent.
She sighed as she went over to her crafting area to get Zoé's present ready.
The day of the party, the boys (minus Luka, who was busy with his food deliveries that day) were standing in front of the hotel with their presents for Zoé in hand. Nino was standing directly in front of the door with his hands on his hips.
"Okay, dudes, everybody remember the plan?" Nino asked. "We just mind our own business for a little while, and once the timing's perfect, we get the ball rolling! Soon, our bros will get their girls!"
The rest of the group nodded with prepared, determined looks on their faces. Nino gave a smile and they all went in for a fist bump.
The cousins' family car came up to the hotel and Adrien and Félix stepped out, each with a present for Zoé.
"Perfect timing," Ivan said. "The girls aren't here yet."
"Really?" Adrien asked, sounding a little deflated.
"Don't worry, buddy," Nino spoke, walking over and clapping a hand to his best friend's shoulder. "Think of this as us laying out the groundwork for your love story without the girls' meddling."
They went inside the hotel and made their way to the banquet area to set up.
A little while later, the girls rendezvoused at the hotel, talking.
"I'm excited for this!" Marinette squealed. She had a large paper bag hanging on her arm while she was carrying the birthday cake her parents made for the party. "For once, we're at the hotel and Chloé won't give us any crap!"
"Glad that her dad's stepping up for a change, sending Chloé and her mom out of town for a day or two, telling them to have a shopping vacation in London to replace what Cat Noir and Argos destroyed." Alya agreed.
"It's the perfect plan!" Rose spoke.
The hotel door opened and Zoé greeted the girls. She spoke, "Hi! Welcome!"
"Happy Birthday, Zoé!" The girls cheered as they came inside to walk to the banquet hall.
"Thank you! The boys arrived earlier to help set up. Though I do wonder why Kim thinks we were having a swimming party on the rooftop pool area. He's there now." Zoé confessed.
"That's Kim for you," Alix sighed, shaking her head. "He's a doofus."
"Hey Zoé, I brought the banner for the party just in case." Marinette said (she'd handed the cake off to butler Armand), as she pulled out a folded bundle of fabric from her present bag. She unfolded it to reveal a yellow banner that had "Happy Birthday Zoé" written in blue and pink.
"That is fire, Marinette!" Alya laughed. "Let's get that hung up and we can party!"
Once in the banquet hall, Marinette got a ladder to climb up and hang the banner.
"And... Perfect!" Marinette said once she made sure it was secure. She began stepping down. When she got to the second-to-last rung, she misstepped and ended up falling backwards.
She screamed and flailed her arms.
"I got you!" Someone called from behind.
She felt someone's arms wrap around her. She looked up and saw Adrien had caught her again. As her eyes locked with his, wave of surprise and disappointment went through her.
"Hey, you okay, Marinette?" Adrien asked her, a smile.
"Y-Yes, I am. Thanks." Marinette said as she got her footing back.
"The banner looks great," Adrien said, examining Marinette's handiwork from where he was standing. "You've got talent and you've got skills. It's incredible."
"Th-Thank you." Marinette said as she tried pulling away, only for Adrien to keep holding her hand. She looked back at him, feeling her heart beat again.
As usual, the danger signals in her head were blaring.
Off to the side, Ivan, Nino, and Nathaniel were setting up the snack table, watching the whole scene.
"That wasn't even part of the plan! A perfect case of what the late Bob Ross would call a happy accident!" Nathaniel whispered.
"I'm sure those two will be making out in no time at this rate, dude," Nino responded before looking near the dance floor. "Félix and Kagami, on the other hand..."
Kagami was trying her best to avoid talking to the aristocratic blonde, who was still acting a bit stiff trying to voice his thoughts and feelings.
"Those two really need coaching on social cues." Ivan stated.
The party was soon under way, and everyone was mingling, getting soft drinks, talking, dancing, and snacking. There were a few games, including Pin the Stinger on the Bee.
"Okay, Marinette's turn!" Alya said as she blindfolded her BFF and gave her a stinger. She started spinning Marinette around, as per the rules of the game.
"Pin the stinger on the bee! Pin the stinger on the bee!" Everyone chanted before shouting, "GO!"
Marinette, a little dizzy, began walking towards what she thought was the board with the bee for the game. Marinette reached her hand out to see if she had reached the bee. She felt something hard with a covering on it.
"This must be it!" Marinette said as she put the sticker on.
She heard laughter from the boys. Confused, Marinette took off her blindfold to see that she'd somehow put the bee stinger on Adrien's shirt. And he was looking at her with that same smile.
"Didn't think you were that stuck on me, Marinette." He joked with a wink. Marinette groaned and face-palmed.
He put a hand on her shoulder and gave her a lovesick look. Marinette looked back at him, and once again, her internal alarm bells were ringing.
"Nice job, putting Adrien in front of Marinette." Nino praised Ivan with a whisper.
"Who's next for this game?" Marinette asked as she brushed Adrien's hand off, turned her back and walked away. The blonde sighed in dismay as he watched her leave.
The rest of the boys watched in frustration, disappointment, whatever.
Later, the entire group was watching, cheering, and clapping as they watched their friends play with the beehive piñata they'd gotten for the party. Zoé had finished her turn and only gotten one smack on the thing. Didn't make much of a dent. It was Kim's turn, next.
"Dale, dale, dale, no pierdas el tino! Porque si lo pierdas, pierdas al camino!" Adrien sang in fluent Spanish as a blindfolded Kim, holding a baseball bat, was trying to hit piñata.
Max was teasing the blindfolded jock by moving the piñata up and down on the rope/pulley contraption they'd set up for it.
"You speak Spanish?" Marinette asked, a little thrown off.
"Yep! Mandarin Chinese, as well." Adrien added.
"I see." Marinette stated, a bit annoyed.
Kim swung at the piñata and missed for a third time.
"Three strikes, Kim! Time for someone else to take a turn!" Max declared as he raised the piñata up too high for Kim to reach. Kim took off the blindfold and put the bat down.
"How about you give it a shot, Kagami?" Félix suggested.
Kagami blinked in surprise before looking at it.
"Hm... This would be good target practice. Maybe the blindfold will help me best my mother in future sparring events." Kagami conceded. She stepped up, took the baseball bat, and put the blindfold on.
"And... GO!" Max began.
"Dale, dale, dale, no pierdas el tino! Porque si lo pierdas, pierdas al camino!" This time, everyone sang it.
Kagami tried to focus and figure out where the piñata was. Using her fencing skills and her other senses, she honed in on it and all but decimated the thing in one hit, smacking it so hard and fast that Max couldn't react fast enough.
Everyone cheered as all the contents fell out - candies and small toys. Kagami took her blindfold off and said, "That was fun, albeit not as challenging as I wanted."
"Nice work." Félix said as he clapped while the guests gathered up some of the candies.
"It was merely a piñata, Félix. Anyone could have broken that open." Kagami stated, her tone of voice cool as always, and still giving him a nondescript expression.
Once the piñata was cleaned up, everyone went back to mingling and partying.
Up on the DJ stand, Nino was scratching the records and watching the partygoers have fun. Or more accurately, tracking Adrien and Marinette's positions with his eyes while playing the music.
Marinette had just eaten a macaron and finished off a paper cup of water before throwing it into the waste bin.
Nino gave an ambiguous hand signal over to Marc and Nathaniel, who were at the snack table.
Marinette began leaving the table to find Alya to get her to the ball pit. But, she felt someone bump into her from behind. She ended up slamming into someone else's chest.
"Oops! Sorry about that!" She said, only for someone's hands to take her arms to steady her.
"It's no problem." Adrien spoke. Marinette looked up at him and saw that it was, in fact, Adrien that she slammed into.
"Um..." Marinette began.
Nino was watching the scene, and saw that Marc was giving him a thumb's up. Taking his cue, the red-capped DJ turned on a slow song.
Marinette gasped at the music. She turned around and saw that Marc was just acting suspiciously casual, whistling while drinking some ginger ale.
'Marc, are you kidding me?!' Marinette thought, groaning on the inside.
"So... I guess we should dance?" Adrien asked, his face red.
Resigned, Marinette sighed and said, "Okay."
Adrien took her wrist and brought her to the dance floor.
With his right hand, he put her left hand on his shoulder, then he lifted her right hand up with his left hand before putting his right hand on her waist. They started dancing to the music, their movements in time with the tempo of the song. Marinette looked to her right and saw that Kagami had somehow ended up with Félix as her dance partner, and she looked quite ticked.
Marinette heaved a quiet huff of frustration before looking up at Adrien. She looked at his eyes and noticed, like truly noticed, that they were green like Cat Noir's.
'Maybe if I stare at them long enough...' She thought, wondering if his pupils would turn into vertical slits. Seeing Cat Noir's face in front of Adrien's, Marinette's expression went from disinterest to a small smile.
Adrien's heart started going a mile a minute. Taking a chance, he gave her a smile, let go of her hand to put her arms around his neck, and moved both of his hands to her waist. He pulled her close, he rested his chin on her shoulder, closed his eyes, and they continued swaying to the music.
Félix was watching the scene in approval before trying to make a similar move on Kagami. All she did was force him to stay in his current stance with a strong look in her eyes. He backed down and they kept dancing.
The boys were giving "squee" expressions while the reactions from the girls were mixed. On a scale to happiest to unhappiest: Rose, Juleka, Myléne, Alya, Alix, Zoé, Kagami.
Marinette was ignoring the whole thing, still looking at Adrien and thinking, 'Cat Noir... I wanna see you again...'
But she had to chide herself. What was she thinking, wishing to see that scoundrel again?! And what about her anonymous gift-giver?! Three presents and still no indication of their sender's identity?! Why couldn't she imagine what the person looked like?
"Marinette, your hair feels so soft and silky. What type of shampoo do you use?" Adrien asked, bringing Marinette back down to earth.
"Oh, I just started using this new bar shampoo from a local sustainable bath boutique." Marinette began, surprised she was telling Adrien this.
"Really? I should check it out," Adrien responded. "I'll bet their product will work wonders for my own hair and skin!"
"Y-You think so?" Marinette asked, still wondering why she was being so open about this with Adrien.
"No, I know so." He spoke in a low whisper as he changed his dance position so now he could look Marinette in the eyes.
Marinette started getting her guard up again as her heart began ricochetting around her body - her warning bells were ringing at top volume.
The sound of a record being scratched rang out - Nino had finished the track and had moved on to another song. This one was a more upbeat with a faster tempo. Everyone was dancing freestyle now.
Marinette sighed in relief before saying, "That was a nice dance."
"It was," Adrien said as Marinette pulled away from him. "So, that sustainable bath and body shop? I'd like the info for it."
"S-Sure..." Marinette murmured before stepping back and going off to the snack table.
"Save me a dance for the next slow song, Marinette!" Adrien called after her.
"Whatever!" Marinette called back, not looking back over her shoulder.
Once she got to the snack table, she snatched up a slice of the birthday cake (vanilla almond sponge with a honey Italian buttercream) before taking a fork and beginning to chow down to distract herself.
She was thinking, 'I don't believe this! Here I am, dancing with one of the Clone Cousins, imagining one of Paris's crooks in his place?! WHAT is happening to me?!'
Marinette felt someone come up next to her and she saw Kagami had come by to take a piece of the cake.
"You didn't look too happy, dancing with Félix back there. You okay?" Marinette asked.
"I will be," Kagami commented as she took a bite of the cake. "Truth be told..."
"Yes?" Marinette asked, prompting Kagami to go on.
"It was weird - as I danced with Félix, I couldn't stop imagining Argos in his place." Kagami confessed, sounding ashamed.
"Same here," Marinette sighed, relieved at the shared struggle. "I wasn't able to get Cat Noir out of my mind, either. And I wish I had some idea of who my secret admirer is, then maybe I could've forced myself to see him instead of Adrien."
"I relate." Kagami admitted.
"Present time, present time, open a present and see what's inside!" Some of the guests chanted while clapping, as Zoé went over to the present table. Nino had stopped the music.
"Looks like the girl of the hour is ready for her presents," Marinette said as she finished eating the cake and put the plate in the waste bin. "Let's go!"
Zoé opened a hat box and she gasped in delight. She pulled out a yellow fascinator a la Kate Middleton, that had a fabric flower in the same shades of blue and pink as the flower on her shirt. There was a bedazzled bee pin on the flower that was also yellow, blue, and pink.
She squealed before looking at the card. She smiled, put the fascinator on her head, and she said, "Thank you so much, Marinette!"
"You're welcome, Zoé! Happy Birthday!" Marinette called back.
"That's an amazing hat, Marinette," Adrien said as he approached Marinette. "It really suits Zoé."
"Um, thanks." Marinette said as she watched Zoé open her presents and react to each one with gratitude.
"Listen, when we were dancing before," Adrien began, trying to will away the blush in his cheeks. "You're really good at it."
"Are you joking?" Marinette questioned, giving him a confused look and a quirked brow.
"Not on your life," Adrien laughed. "You must get that dancing grace from your mom or dad."
"Who knows?" Marinette said as she kept watching Zoé.
"And... How about another dance?" Adrien asked her. Marinette looked at him, and once again, she saw Cat Noir's face in his place.
"I..." Marinette began, forcing her eyes away.
"Is something wrong?" Adrien asked.
"Oh, nothing's wrong, I just, uh-" Marinette began, stepping away. "I... Gotta use the bathroom."
She dashed out of the banquet hall to find the restroom. Adrien stood there, disappointment on his face, meanwhile the girls were expressing varying levels of relief.
In the bathroom stall, Marinette sat on the closed toilet and had locked the stall. Her face was in her hands and she was groaning in frustration.
"I don't get it!" Marinette all but cried. "I'm trying to focus on this party, but I keep thinking about Cat Noir every time I'm near Adrien! Why can't I get that stupid cat out of my mind?! More to the point, why can't I imagine my secret admirer's face?! It'd be so much easier."
She took a few moments to meditate, something that she'd learned from Luka, trying to center herself before going back out to the party.
Once she'd taken about five minutes to relax, she went back to the banquet area to reunite with the girls. The rest of the presents had been opened and they were brought to Zoé's room, so the partygoers were back to mingling.
"Hey Marinette, you good?" Alya asked.
"I am now," Marinette said. "Thanks for checking in, Alya."
"You're welcome, girl," Alya spoke. "You look like your battery's running out, though."
"Maybe it is," Marinette admitted in defeat. "I guess dancing with Adrien while trying to avoid thinking about... certain things... was draining me."
Alya looked her over before saying, "What were you trying to stop thinking about?"
"More like who, to be honest." Marinette admitted.
"Oh, I get it," Alya said, rolling her eyes in realization. "You wanted to stop thinking about Adrien, right?"
"Yes and no. Alya, truth is..." Marinette began. "I've been trying not to think about Ca-"
"Marinette!" Adrien called as he ran up towards her. "There you are! You took a while in there. Is your stomach giving you trouble?"
"N-No, I'm fine, just needed to decompress." Marinette insisted as she tried to avoid looking at him.
"That's good," He said, sighing in relief. "Listen, it's getting late and Félix and I were gonna head home soon. I... I was thinking we could give you and Kagami rides home?"
"Thanks, but knowing Kagami, her family's car is going to come and get her on her mother's insistence," Marinette said as she watched her fencer friend put a hand up to stop Félix in his tracks. "As for me, I was going to walk home."
"I'm not sure that's a good idea," Adrien said. "It's after dark."
"He's not wrong." Alya conceded.
Marinette hung her head in frustration before saying, "Okay, you have a point. I'll take you up on that offer."
"That's great!" Adrien said as he smiled with pink cheeks.
Okay, that's that for this chapter. Hope you enjoyed it! If you didn't catch them, here are the easter eggs I put in.
A big chunk of this chapter was an easter egg for the Season 2 episode "Despair Bear" and there were a few lines from the original Blue's Clues episode "Blue's Birthday," too!
Coming up, another encounter with Cat Noir and another mystery present!