In this chapter, Marinette and Adrien's "fake crushing on each other" plan seems to be working. Maybe a bit too well? Either way, Marinette isn't keen on acting on whatever is going on between them. Question is, why?
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Song(s) Included, With/Without Modifications:
I'll Never Fall in Love Again - Evan Rachel Wood
Once their "date" at the ice rink was over, the rest of the afternoon comprised of Adrien and Marinette playing up their "faking the feelings" act.
When they got back to the dorm, Marinette dashed to her room and brought out a small, paper gift bag which had a few stickers and a red, satin ribbon around the handles.
"Adrien!" Marinette called as she ran over to him. He was sitting at one of the common area tables, close to an oscillating fan.
"Hi, Marinette, what's up?" Adrien asked, schooling his face into a smile, making sure his body language was open and friendly. Some of their peers were watching, after all...
"I made this for you," Marinette said, handing him the bag. "Thought it might help you keep cool."
"R-Really?!" Adrien asked, looking elated.
"Sure did," Marinette responded, a smile on her face. "Hope it helps."
He reached for the bag, his hands all jittery, as if he'd never received a handmade present before. He undid the ribbon, reached inside the bag, and he pulled out a white scarf-like garment that had three sections and longer ends to tie up.
"Wow..." Adrien said, as if looking at the Hope Diamond.
"Like it? It's a cooling neck wrap. It has water-absorbing beads in it," Marinette explained. "You can let it soak in cold water overnight, and once you tie it around your neck, it will help you stay cool for hours."
"You did this for me?" Adrien asked, looking at Marinette.
"Sure did," Marinette said. "And I made these for everyone in the group, too."
Adrien gave Marinette a smile. He put the wrap back in the bag, put it down, and stood up. He put his hands on Marinette's shoulders.
"Merci. Merci beaucoup, Marinette." He said, looking at Marinette with blissful, grateful eyes and a warm grin, paired with pink cheeks.
"Y-You're welcome, Adrien..." Marinette responded, her smile looking awkward. Her eyes were glued to him, but she was also itching to escape. "N-Now, I... I gotta get the rest of the wraps delivered."
She took Adrien's hands off her shoulders before making a run for her room. She shut the door and leaned against it, breathing heavily.
'That speeding of my heart and the fluttering in my stomach...! Shit, not again!' Marinette thought, sweat beading down her temple, and it wasn't from the heat wave.
She kept taking long, slow, deep breaths, trying to calm her beating heart. After about thirty seconds to a minute, she managed to regain her composure.
'Okay... Just don't think about Adrien for a little bit and-' Marinette thought.
Almost on cue, she heard knocking. She moved away and turned around.
"Um, hello?" Marinette asked.
"It's me." Adrien said. Marinette jerkily opened the door.
"What's up?" Marinette questioned, while thinking, 'Alya's not in here right now, so if he needs to talk...'
"Um... Do you have a glue gun?" He asked, rubbing the back of his neck.
"A glue gun?" Marinette asked, tilting her head in confusion, her body more relaxed now.
"Y-Yeah, it's... For a project." Adrien stammered, red-faced.
"A project? I didn't think you took any classes that needed that." Marinette mentioned, a tad suspicious.
"Oh, no, not for class," Adrien said, waving his hands in refusal. "Just for fun."
"O-Okay..." Marinette responded with a nod. "Just give me a second."
She turned and ran to her sewing desk. She opened her drawers and saw the glue gun and sticks in there. Marinette picked the items up before turning on her heel and running for the door.
But being the klutz she was, she tripped on thin air and stumbled. The glue gun and sticks flew up into the air, all while Marinette was about to land face-first. Adrien dove forward and caught her by her forearms.
Their eyes met and locked onto each other. Their faces turned red as they stood there - they didn't even register the sound of the glue gun and glue stick landing on the floor.
"You okay?" Adrien asked after several beats of silence.
"I... I'm good, thanks." Marinette spoke, pulling away, panic on her face, which had gone from beet red to ashen white.
She looked to see where the glue gun and stick had landed, and she ran over to them to gather them up in her hands, all while trying her best to breathe and calm herself down.
"O-Okay, so what's this project you're working on? Maybe I can help?" Marinette asked, changing the subject.
"That'd be nice! I'd lo- like your help a lot!" Adrien began, his voice sounding bright. "In fact, maybe we could make it a-"
*POOF!*
Marinette whirled around and saw Adrien had turned into a cat, and he was sitting in the usual pile of clothes. And seeing the door was still open, Marinette face-palmed.
"Merde!" Marinette grumbled as she ran for the door and shut it, locking it.
She made a dash for the shared mini fridge, opened it to get some cold water, and created a makeshift cooling mat with some cold packs and wet towels.
Marinette snatched up her table fan, plugged it in, and created a small cooling space in the corner of her side of the room. Adrien, as a cat, ran over to it and sat down on his stomach.
"Thanks," He said as he stretched. "This feels great."
"That's good. Let's hope your temperature comes down, and fast." Marinette said as she gathered up a few more items to help Adrien stay cool.
"Shouldn't this heat wave break in a few days?" Adrien yowled.
"It should," Marinette said while coming over with a small bowl of ice water for him to drink. "Did you put that neck wrap into cold water to soak?"
"Y-Yeah, I did, right before I came by," He responded while Marinette went back to the bed. "It'll be in the water until the beads are at full capacity."
"That's good." Marinette stammered while folding up his clothes and setting them aside.
'This is insane! There's a boy in my room! And not just that, but it's Adrien, and he's in cat form right now!' Marinette thought, her anxiety shooting through the roof while listening to the sound of Adrien drinking the water.
"Your side of the room looks incredible, Marinette," Adrien spoke as he looked around at her furnishings. "It truly reflects who you are."
Marinette felt chills go up and down her spine.
"I, um, thanks..." Marinette said, trying to stay calm.
'You gotta relax, Marinette!' Marinette thought, her face beet red. 'So what if it's the first time I've had a boy in my room?!'
Like before, she went back to deep breathing.
"S-So... Um, are... Are you feeling any better?" Marinette asked aloud.
*POOF!*
"That answers that." She muttered, covering her eyes with one hand as the sounds of rustling clothes rang through the room. She used her free hand to feel around for the glue gun and stick.
The door handle jiggled, and the two of them flinched. Soon, the sound of the lock opening followed.
"Hi, Alya." Marinette said as she walked over to her bestie.
"Hey girl," Alya asked. "Why'd you lock the door?"
"Oh, sorry," Marinette responded. "I just... Um, habit of mine. Locking the door, that is."
Alya gave a shrug before saying, "Understandable."
Adrien came over into Alya's field of view, his pants on, but no shirt.
He spoke, smiling, "Hey, Alya."
"Adrien," Alya greeted, her sly smile coming on her face. "What brings you to Marinette's room?"
"I just came to ask for a glue gun," Adrien said. "I had a hunch she'd have one."
"Yep," Marinette said as she gave Adrien the items, trying to keep her eyes off his chest. "Let me know if you need any more help."
"Then explain why you're not wearing a shirt?" Alya pointed out.
Again, their faces went red.
"I, um... Spilled something on his shirt, so he took it off so I could clean it up." Marinette lied.
"Yeah. And damn, she's good!" Adrien said as he put his shirt back on. "I guess stain removal education is part of your program?"
"That and a lot of research," Marinette said. "Glad it worked."
"I am, too," Adrien spoke. "Thanks again for the glue gun."
He stepped out of the room before turning his head around to look at Marinette. He gave her a tender smile.
Marinette gave a nod in response, and Adrien started to walk back to his room, only to pause.
"Oh, almost forgot," Adrien said as he turned back around. "Do you have any more of that ribbon?"
"Ribbon?" Marinette questioned, feeling her heart pounding.
"The one from the gift bag?" Adrien elaborated.
"Oh, yes, I have plenty! How much do you need?" Marinette said, perking up.
"T-Three or four yards, give or take..." Adrien said, red in the face and fidgeting with his hands.
"Sure, I can do that!" Marinette said as she dashed back into the room, near her sewing station. Adrien followed inside. "What color?"
"I'd like..." Adrien said as he scanned over the selection of ribbons.
Marinette had it so organized, a rack of ribbons with their spools sorted by colors, in the order of the rainbow, with every shade of each color included. It was like looking at a huge color wheel, but in several lines rather than a wheel.
Marinette was breathing deeply, albeit quietly, to avoid panicking. Even with Alya there, they had to keep up the pretense of growing feelings for one another.
She heard a light gasp and she turned to see Adrien was staring at specific ribbon spool. Marinette looked where he was looking and saw that his eyes had landed on a spool of 3.81cm wide satin ribbon. It was rose gold, and it had glitter on it.
"Is that the one you'd like?" Marinette asked, pointing out that spool.
Seeming to come back to reality, Adrien spluttered a bit before coughing into his fist.
"Oui, s'il vous plait." He murmured.
Marinette retrieved the spool from the organizer and she placed it into his hand. Their skin brushed, and Marinette instantly pulled her hand away, giving an anxious laugh.
"Th-Thank you," He said, his cheeks red, as he backed away from Marinette's desk. "I'll... See you again in class?"
"Yes. In class." Marinette said, still pink-faced.
Adrien walked by Alya, who was still spectating, and out of the room. Once the door shut, Marinette heaved a loud, relieved sigh, and she began to make a speedy cleanup of the cooling station.
"Girl, what was that all about?" Alya asked, teasing as she came closer to her bestie. "A boy doesn't just come by a girl's room to ask for a glue gun and some ribbon."
"Don't they?" Marinette questioned, trying to redirect the conversation. "Nino's come by to borrow stuff from you, hasn't he?"
"That's true," Alya admitted with a shrug. "But Nino doesn't need to make excuses to see me. Adrien clearly came up with all of that just to spend some time with you."
"Did he really?" Marinette asked, trying to sound excited.
"Of course!" Alya insisted. "Nino and I both saw how he was acting at the ice rink earlier. He even ditched our race just to skate with you."
"Y-Yeah, he did..." Marinette said, lowering her face.
"Marinette, come on, stop acting like nothing's going on here!" Alya said as she brought Marinette over to the bed. "You're smitten with him!"
"So?" Marinette asked with a shrug.
"Don't give me that - he's not making any secret of him crushing on you, either!" Alya pointed out.
"Y-You think so?" Marinette asked, trying to ignore the fluttering of her heart and the heat coming upon her face.
"Oh, I know so!" Alya said, smiling at Marinette.
The pigtailed designer had a specific thing repeating in her mind. Something she didn't dare voice aloud...
Meanwhile, Adrien was in his dorm room. He had the ribbon spool in his hand. Adrien's elbow was on the desk, his cheek in the palm of his other hand, all whilst gazing at the sparkly ribbon. He moved his hand around to see the ribbon from every possible angle in the light of the room.
Nino, quite amused, was watching from his spot on his bed. He had his arms crossed and a cheeky grin on his face.
Adrien let out a quiet sigh, an embarrassed smile on his face. The door opened.
"Hey, cousin," Félix said as he came in. He saw his cousin's state and approached. "Where'd that ribbon come from?"
"He got it from Marinette." Nino said as he kept watching Adrien stare at the ribbon.
"Really?" Félix asked, quirking a brow.
"Yeah," Adrien responded, still smiling. "And she even gave me a homemade neck wrap that can help me keep cool!"
"That was thoughtful of her." Félix responded, his facial expression flat.
"Not just for you, Adrien," Nino pointed out. "She made them for all of us!"
"I see," Félix said before looking back at Adrien. "How much does she know?"
"Most of it," Adrien stated, coming out of his haze and regaining focus. "And she's been a great help."
"That's good." Félix responded with a smile.
"Dude, you gotta come clean," Nino said as he got off the bed and walked over to his best friend. "This "fake crushing" thing is more than just a cover, isn't it?"
"No, that's all it is," Adrien spoke, unaware of his reddening cheeks. "Everyone's assuming we like each other like that, so we're just running with it."
"And whose idea was this?" Félix questioned.
"Mine," Adrien confirmed, still unaware of his changing body language. "And if I don't give Marinette a present or do something for her in return, people are gonna get suspicious."
"About what?" Nino asked. "Nobody's questioning you have feelings for each other. At least, nobody but you and Marinette, dude."
"What are you talking about?" Adrien questioned, looking at Nino in confusion.
"We saw the way you were staring at that ribbon," Félix commented. "And Nino sent me pictures of your ice rink trip earlier."
"You're unusually comfortable around her. And she's not exactly ill at ease when she's with you, either, dude." Nino added, taking out his phone.
"I'd have to agree," Félix added, his arms crossed. "It's also unlike you to go out of your way for other people unless it's important."
"But she's going out of her way to help me keep my secret." Adrien insisted.
"We help you, too." Nino added.
"Marinette's just a friend." Adrien again insisted.
"Dude, you gotta stop lying to yourself," Nino said, showing Adrien the pictures of their skating excursion. "A guy doesn't look at a girl who's "just a friend" like that."
"All part of the ruse." Adrien said with a casual shrug.
His roommates groaned as Adrien turned back to his desk to get started on one of his assignments.
The following day, Marinette's textiles class had just finished and she was leaving the room, her sketchbook/binder in hand. She was wearing her own neck wrap, in pink with paler white polka dots, to help her stay cool. She'd even made a few smaller ones to use as bracelets.
Marinette looked up and saw that Adrien had walked out of a classroom, and she saw he was wearing his neck wrap. Their eyes met and they smiled at each other. Adrien pointed at his neck wrap and winked at her, mouthing out "thank you."
Marinette blushed with a smile and waved back. She pointed at the mini wraps on her wrists and tilted her head, silently asking him if he liked them. Adrien's grin grew, and nodding his head, he gave her two thumbs' up.
He mouthed out, "Make a set for me!"
Marinette returned the thumbs' up with one of her own before mouthing back, "Got it!"
They waved at each other before going off to their next classes. Marinette, despite herself, let out a happy sigh and began humming.
When they were back in homeroom, Mlle. Bustier had given them a pair creative writing assignment. Marinette was partnered up with Marc, who happened to be an expert on it.
The story itself was an ecological horror tale. Lumberjacks were going into the woods to cut down trees, more than they truly needed, but they'd cut down a tree that housed a forest spirit. The spirit, outraged at the sight of their home being destroyed senselessly, reanimated the spirits of the trees that had been felled - turning the trees into methane and carbon dioxide-belching zombies that ate human flesh, turned the soil they stepped on into arid desert and was eroding, their tree sap had turned into toxic Manchineel sap, and the water supply wasn't being filtered properly.
They'd been called up to share their story with the class, or rather, act it out to make it more fun.
Marc made a loud roaring noise, including raising himself up with clawed hands. He also made a fake burping noise.
Marinette, who was acting as one of the environmental activists that was trying to replant the forest, made a loud, gasping noise, coughing. She put her hands around her throat, the universal sign of choking. She fell to her knees.
"*GASP* Can't... Breathe... Carbon emissions..." She said, being overdramatic just to drive the point home. She put her hands on the floor, faking her gasping. "Must... Find... Oxygen...!"
"Must... Eat..." Marc groaned before making another belching noise.
Marinette turned to face him, still sitting on the ground and shaking.
"Why... Why must you attack us so?!" Marinette begged, still fake-coughing and trying to hold up an invisible weapon (a shovel for digging new holes for new tree saplings).
Everyone in the classroom was flat-out laughing at Marinette's dramatics during the entire scene (minus Myléne, who was in Ivan's arms and trembling). Adrien in particular couldn't stop from guffawing.
Mlle. Bustier was clapping her hands in response, also laughing. Once she composed herself, she said, "Okay, that's enough, you two."
Marinette stood up and both she and Marc turned to Mlle. Bustier.
"Excellent work," She said to them as she read over their paper. "Marc, your creative writing really shines through with this story. And Marinette, your acting here was a nice touch. I could absolutely feel the fear coming from you."
"I don't care for horror movies, but this I could handle," Marinette commented. "Even though it wasn't supposed to be funny..."
"True, but you fulfilled the assignment, which counts. Now, back to your seats." Mlle. Bustier said with a smile.
Marinette began walking back to her desk, but she could still hear chuckling. She turned and saw Adrien was trying to hold himself together, shaking and covering his mouth.
"Was the story really that funny?" Marinette questioned him.
"Not the story itself," Adrien snickered. "You were funny."
"Me?" Marinette asked, blushing.
"Yeah, absolutely hilarious!" He confirmed as he came down from his laughter high. "I'm not sure I've met anyone who can make me laugh the way you can, Marinette."
Marinette's mouth slowly grew into a smile, and her cheeks went pink. She gave a nod before taking her seat behind Adrien.
"Girl, you were a hoot up there! But still, the story was pretty scary." Alya commented, turning to look at Myléne, who was still trying to breathe and calm down.
"Thanks," Marinette commented. "Glad we got the point across."
"You know, before you came along, I've never seen Adrien laugh as hard as he has lately." Alya commented.
"For real?" Marinette questioned.
"Yeah. The ice rink and just now being two huge examples." Alya pointed out.
Marinette looked at the back of Adrien's head and saw he was paying attention to Rose and Zoé's presentation on their story. She couldn't see his facial expression from behind, though.
'Now that I think about it, Adrien did mention that before his father died, he had a very regimented life with almost no free time,' Marinette thought. 'Has he ever had room to laugh? I guess not until now...'
She gave a light shake of her head, saying to herself, 'Calm down, Marinette. You gotta remember that this whole thing is fake!'
During break period, Marinette was sitting at a table by herself, and she'd almost finished eating her lunch. She heard the sound of video game music from nearby, accompanied by laughter and people making "pewing" noises, as if guns were firing. Marinette turned and saw Alya and Nino were sitting about two tables away, playing on a tablet.
Marinette stood up and walked over to them, asking, "What's going on?"
"Oh! Sorry, Marinette," Alya said, still giggling. "Nino and I were just playing some Super Penguino."
"Super Penguino? That little app game where you have to guide the penguin as it's constantly running, collecting coins and avoiding obstacles?" Marinette questioned.
"Yep," Nino said as he put his free arm around Alya's shoulders. "There was this one time where we snuck off to play the game, but we were caught by some of the others. We got teased for it, saying we were too old for it."
Marinette snickered at this before saying, "But I hear that almost everyone loves the game."
"Yeah, they stopped after I mentioned that I've seen Rose and Juleka play it together, dude," Nino said. "Ivan and Myléne, too."
"And I swear that I've seen Kagami and Félix play it a few times." Alya added with a giggle.
"I've heard it's popular, and a lot of fun!" Marinette said, her smile growing.
"What's a lot of fun?" Adrien questioned as he came over to the group.
"Oh. Hi, Adrien!" Marinette said, smiling a bit. "W-We were just talking about Super Penguino."
"Really?" Adrien asked. "I haven't played it before, but it looks like fun!"
"You haven't played it, either?" Marinette asked, a bit surprised. "If you play video games, what kind do you like?"
"I like Ultimate Mecha Strike and-" Adrien began.
"YOU LIKE Ultimate Mecha Strike?!" Marinette squealed, her eyes lighting up in delight and leaning into Adrien's space, surprising him.
"Y-Yeah... You, too?" Adrien asked, taken with her sparkling, happy eyes. He couldn't keep a smile off his face.
"Sure do! My dad and I play it all the time! I'd like to say I'm one of the best players out there." Marinette responded, puffing out her chest in pride.
Adrien chuckled before saying, "I've been told I'm no slouch, either."
"Oh?" Marinette asked, a coquettish/coy smile growing.
"Absolutely," Adrien spoke, his face turning red. "Though I can say the title of Ultimate Mecha Strike Champion belongs to Max. Maybe you should challenge him for that before saying you're one of the best."
Marinette laughed.
"Anyway..." Alya cut in, giggling with her usual, sly smile. "Super Penguino is a lot more fun when it's played in pairs. Just a matter of finding the right partner."
Both Marinette and Adrien looked at each other before blushing a plain-as-day shade of crimson. Marinette felt her heart buzz, much to her dismay.
"M-Maybe we should play a round or two?" Marinette asked.
"Sure. I'd like to try Super Penguino with you." Adrien responded.
Marinette shook her head and said, "I-I-I meant Ultimate Mecha Strike, not Super Penguino!"
Adrien pretended to deflate, before responding, "O-Oh, y-yeah... Playing a round or two of Ultimate Mecha Strike sounds great. M-Maybe after classes?"
"Y-Yeah..." Marinette agreed. "I'd love to."
Adrien gave a nod before walking away from the scene. Marinette couldn't stop herself from giving a smile.
'I know he said he's good at Ultimate Mecha Strike, but I wonder how good?' Marinette thought, wondering how Adrien's hands would stretch and how taut his finger muscles would be on the controller.
But once she realized what she'd been doing - thinking about Adrien all day - she slapped her cheeks with her hands, and it was loud.
"You okay?" Alya asked, surprise on her face.
'Don't sabotage yourself like this, Marinette!' Marinette thought, as if she didn't hear Alya. She took a few deep breaths. 'Remember, it's all pretend. A cover to help Adrien keep his secret.'
So long as she kept telling herself that, everything would be fine... Right?
Apparently not, as she was lying awake in bed that night. She'd taken a few melatonin tablets, but it clearly didn't help. The only thing she could hear were Alya's breathing and her own thoughts.
'It's all pretend to keep Adrien's secret. It's all pretend to keep Adrien's secret! IT'S ALL PRETEND TO KEEP ADRIEN'S SECRET!' Marinette kept repeating in her mind.
But no luck. She turned from her back to her side and slammed her cheek in her pillow, remaining quiet as to not wake Alya.
Her thoughts were running around in circles like dogs chasing their tails. At the epicenter of it all, the one unspoken thing that had been on Marinette's mind.
'No! I can't! I won't! Come on, think about something else...' Marinette thought, begging herself to change the channel in her brain.
Just her luck, it didn't work. She lost about four hours of sleep before her brain finally shut itself off for the night. Her fatigue was obvious the next day, as she was stumbling around the halls like a zombie. Splitting headache, bags under her eyes, the whole bit.
"Marinette, are you alright?" Adrien asked from behind her, but she didn't respond. To her, his voice sounded as if he were far away - hollow and distant.
"Hello?" He asked again, waving his hand in front of her eyes.
This seemed to work, and she startled.
"Oh, Adrien, good morning..." Marinette said before holding back a big yawn. "When did you get here?"
"I've been here for a few minutes. Did you get any sleep?" Adrien asked.
"Oh, yeah, I slept like a..." Marinette began, only to yawn loudly and pitch forward.
"Marinette!" Adrien shouted as he caught her. "Geez, you really didn't sleep, did you?"
Marinette gave a confirming mumble.
"Okay..." Adrien began as he started looking around. He brought Marinette over to a nearby bench and let her sit down. She kept trying to keep her head up and her eyes open.
'So tired...' Marinette thought, nearly falling back asleep. But the scent of tea came under her nose.
She blinked and saw Adrien had come back with a coffee cup from the coffee/tea vending machine nearby.
"Irish Breakfast tea," Adrien explained. "Thought it'd perk you up."
"Merci," Marinette murmured as she took the cup and sipped it. She breathed out. "This is good."
"Glad it's working," Adrien spoke as he sat down next to Marinette. "So, what happened? What kept you up last night?"
Marinette looked at Adrien out of her peripheral vision and thought, 'I can't tell him he was on my mind all night!'
"I... Had a bad dream and I couldn't stop replaying it," Marinette spoke. She looked back at her cup. "And the heat wasn't helping."
"What was the dream about?" Adrien questioned.
Marinette flinched as she looked at Adrien, whose face was rife with worry. His eyes were definitely telling her that he wanted to help.
"I... I'd rather not talk about it," Marinette confessed as she sipped more of the tea. "I kind of forgot what it was about, anyway."
Adrien gave a light snorting laugh, his cheeks puffing up and his smile growing.
"It couldn't have been that important if you forgot about it." Adrien laughed.
Unable to restrain herself, she also started laughing, unworried about spilling her tea.
"Looks like you're more awake now," Adrien commented, still chuckling and giving her a huge smile. "Think you'll be able to make it through classes today?"
"I think so," Marinette spoke. "I do have a break period, so I could easily take a nap during then."
"Not a bad idea." Adrien agreed.
Marinette let out another yawn before taking another gulp of tea.
After classes that day, Marinette had retreated to her room and fell asleep. Several hours later, she felt her shoulder being shaken, and quite hard.
"Wake up, girl! Girl!" Alya shouted.
Marinette jolted up from the bed and turned to face her roommate. She had her hands on her hips and a smile on her face.
With a still tired groan, Marinette rubbed her eyes and asked, "Where's the fire?"
"No fire, but it is time for a bit of girl talk!" Alya said, winking at Marinette.
"What do you mean?" Marinette questioned, all but fully awake.
"You'll see." Alya said, grabbing Marinette and bringing her outside their room.
Apparently "girl talk" translated to an interrogation in the common area of the dorms. The girls were clamoring, talking over each other, all trying to get details out of Marinette.
"Okay, okay, girls, you gotta chill!" Marinette laughed, waving her hands to get her friends to settle down.
Once they did, Alix spoke up and said, "Marinette, it's obvious that you like Adrien. A lot."
"A lot, a lot!" Rose agreed. "I think you two did more than just make up during initiation!"
Marinette flinched before saying, "Y-Yeah, we did..."
Trying to play up the act, she was smiling, and her balled hands were on her knees.
'And Adrien WAS attractive without his shirt...' Marinette thought, her heart beating. But she had to scold herself. 'Marinette, remember that you're faking it. FAKING IT!'
"Aw, and he stayed by your side during the entire ice rink trip?!" Myléne cooed.
"He did." Marinette confirmed, still smiling.
"SO CUTE!" Rose squealed.
Juleka mumbled, "Are you going to tell him how you feel?"
Without missing a beat, Marinette stated with a shrug, "No."
Everyone had to do a mental double-take at this.
"NO?!" They all shouted.
"So what if I'm sweet on Adrien?" Marinette asked. "I'm not planning on leaving the friend-zone with him."
Alya blinked and shook her head in disbelief.
"I must have wax in my ears. You're crushing on Adrien, but you're not gonna do anything about it?!" Alya asked, her eyes wide with shock.
"Right." Marinette said, in a matter-of-fact tone.
'I know I'm just overcomplicating things,' Marinette thought. 'But Adrien and I agreed that our closeness is because we're faking feelings for each other.'
"I can't comprehend the rationale behind such a choice." Kagami commented, face-palming in disbelief.
"Neither can I." Alya grumbled. She had her hand in her hair, her eyes were closed in annoyance, and she heaved an aggravated breath. Some of the others had similar expressions.
"I don't get it either." Alix agreed, crossing her arms.
"Why?!" Rose bawled. "You two have it going on! Why keep your feelings to yourself?!"
"It's not worth it." Marinette spoke, a cynical edge to her tone.
"How can you say that?!" Myléne asked, sounding all but horrified.
A brief period of silence from the designer. There was a blatant cloud of sorrow in her eyes, and murky, blurry memories coming up. Her face fell forward a little, too.
She stated, "I know I can't speak for all of us, but I've been in this movie before. And the ending... It hurts."
The girls' expressions were a mix of shock and disbelief, with varying degrees in between. Zoé's expression was that of understanding, though. Marinette walked away from the girls, her manner sad. Quiet, slow music began playing.
"What do you get when you fall in love? A guy with a pin to burst your bubble," Marinette sang to herself while holding onto her forearms, a nervous tick of hers. "That's what you get for all your trouble."
She looked up to the ceiling and sang aloud, "I'll never fall in love again."
The girls seemed to settle down, continuing to listen.
"What do you get when you kiss a boy? You get enough germs to catch a fever. Then, straight away, he'll love ya and leave ya..." Marinette sang, as the music started to pick up from a soft, quiet ballad to a pop song with a faster tempo.
A determined expression came upon her face as she looked at her friends and sang, "I'll never fall in love again. No, I'll never fall in love again!"
The flashback was beginning to run through her head.
She walked back to the girls, singing, "Don't tell me what it's all about. 'Cause I've been there and I'm glad I'm out. Out of those chains, those chains that bind you. That is why I'm here to remind you!"
"What do you get when you give your heart? You get it all broken up and battered! Ya, that's what you get, a heart that's shattered. I'll never fall in love again!" Marinette crooned while tears began streaming down her face.
The empathy on the girls' faces became palpable as they listened to Marinette sing. The pain she was feeling was coming out in her voice, and it was fervent.
She made a great effort to tamp her trauma down, but no luck - the wound was reopened and the pain was bursting forth. The jeering laughter, the cruel taunts, everything was flooding back in her mind, and she was powerless to stop it.
'I am not going back down that rabbit hole!' Marinette thought, trying to calm herself down.
"What do you get when you give your heart? You get it all broken up and battered! Ya that's what you get, a heart that's shattered. I'll never all in love again! No, I'll never fall in love again!" Marinette kept singing as the girls surrounded her.
She looked up and scanned their faces, all ranging from sympathy to remorseful and everything in between.
"No, I'll never fall in love again!" Marinette sang at the last note before beginning to cry quietly. The girls folded her into a group hug, letting her let it out, bawling.
And plot twist! That's it for this chapter!
Coming up, the end of the heat wave isn't stopping Adrien's transformations.