Dear Ladybug,

I would love to meet you!

In fact, I was so taken by your recent letter that I nearly tackled, or in his words "assaulted," my friend in my excitement. I think he overexaggerated, personally, but that is neither here nor there.

There's an open mic at The Nook this Saturday. I attached the flier in my letter. I'm planning something special for you. I hope you like it.

Counting down the hours until we meet,

Adrien

P.S. Do you think an all black ensemble would be too much?

Dear Adrien,

Open mic sounds fun! I'm excited to see what your surprise is. I'll be there in red. ️

I'll be seeing you,

Ladybug

P.S. I think black and red go really well together. Don't you?

Adrien grinned from ear to ear as The Nook's yellow window sign came into view.

First impressions were everything, and tonight, he was meeting Ladybug! His lady, his bug, the girl he had been constantly thinking about since they started writing to one another.

After today, he would know her real name—well, if she was comfortable with that, of course. He wouldn't want to make her feel uneasy. He'd take things as slow or as fast as she would want.

But if she happened to run up and kiss him, he wouldn't be opposed to that either. He bit his lip, hiding his grin, at the thought of kissing her. She'd probably be so good at it—it'd be incredible.

And no matter what, by the end of the night, he would have a face to her letters, know the lilt in her voice, see her smile, and that alone had his mind whirring with insatiable thoughts.

He smoothed down the front of his black turtleneck as the car rolled to a stop along the pavement. His leg was bouncing uncontrollably as he mindlessly twisted his silver ring.

The Gorilla opened the side door, and Adrien shot out like a cannon, dashing toward The Nook. Floating into the heated entryway and allowing the warm air to caress him like a blanket over his skin, he brought his hands up to shrug off his coat—only to realize he left it behind.

He chuckled, amused by his own forgetfulness. He hadn't even noticed when he stepped outside into the descending sun's nippy breeze.

He weaved through the bookshop aisles toward the coffee shop, stumbling upon only a few patrons lingering in the café. Weird… usually there were more people here.

He spotted Luka sweeping around the area. "Hey! Is the café still open?" Adrien inquired, stepping over the line separating the two storefronts.

Luka nodded absentmindedly, staring at his handiwork as he pushed aside some chairs and swept crumbs out from under one of the tables. "Oh, yeah. It'll be open la—" he glanced up, doing a double take and asking in surprise, "Adrien?"

Oh, maybe it was closed. He shuffled awkwardly, shoving his hands in his pockets. "That's me," Adrien replied sheepishly, "Sorry, I, uh, I probably shouldn't have—I didn't realize—"

"No, you're fine," Luka dismissed as he finished sweeping up the dirt pile. "I'm sorry, I just wasn't expecting anyone this early."

Adrien brought his hand up to his nape, chuckling awkwardly. "Y-yeah. I guess I'm a bit of an early bird."

"Just a bit." Luka teased. "Are you excited for tonight?"

"You could say that," Adrien squirmed, taking in the greenery and comforting aroma lingering in the air. It should be soothing, but he couldn't stay still as he laced and unlaced his fingers together. He leaned against a table and held onto the edges to stop from fidgeting. "Do you think I'm too early?"

"No, not at all." Luka shook his head as he walked behind the coffee bar, leaning the broom and dustpan against the wall. "I imagine people will start arriving soon."

"Oh, good." Adrien released his tight grip on the table, uncrossing his ankles. "I'd hate to be in the way."

"You won't be," Luka assured as he turned on the espresso machine. "Coffee?"

"Always." Adrien nodded eagerly. Although more caffeine wouldn't exactly help with his jittery nerves, it was something he could sip on as he waited for Ladybug to arrive.

"A vanilla latte with an extra shot of espresso, right?" Luka clicked his tongue as he leaned down to grab the whipped cream from the fridge below.

His smile brightened. "Yeah! How did you—"

"I've been serving you for a very long time. I remember your order, plus Ma—" he cleared his throat as he grabbed the vanilla syrup off of the wooden shelf, "—my skills as a baristo are unmatched."

Adrien walked up to the counter and gazed down at the pastries as the sunset peeked through the window, reflecting a pink and orange hue on the glass. Beautiful.

"Dang, all of the apple palmiers and macarons are gone," he sighed, mentally taking inventory of what was leftover from the day. Was he in the mood for a shortbread cookie or perhaps a vanilla scone? No, with the latte, that was way too much vanilla.

His eyes trailed along the shelf, spotting a couple of pain au chocolats sitting side by side, the last two of the day. He remembered how Ladybug mentioned they were her favorite. "Hey, Luka?"

"Yeah?" Luka asked over his shoulder as he topped the latte with a dollop of whipped cream.

"Would you mind grabbing the last two pain au chocolats?"

"Sure thing."

"How much do I owe you?" Adrien inquired, taking out his wallet as Luka placed the coffee and the pastries down on the counter.

Luka shrugged. "On the house."

"Really?" Adrien lifted his brow. A bit stunned, he questioned, "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I'm sure, Shakespeare." Luka smiled, closing the glass case before putting away the syrup and the whipped cream.

"Thanks." Adrien beamed, quietly taking out a couple euros from his wallet and throwing them in the tip jar before he collected the coffee and pastries.

"Oh, by the way—"

Adrien paused. "What?"

Luka leaned against the counter, throwing his rag over his shoulder. "Remember to keep an open mind. Things aren't always what they seem. And take care of Ladybug… She's a special girl," he said, smiling wistfully with a far-off, tender look in his eyes.

"I will." Adrien promised, nodding before heading toward the second floor, feeling lighter with every step. With his hands full, he knocked on the door with the "Open Mic" sign freshly pasted.

He heard some muffled cursing before the door swung open with a frantic-looking Nino.

"Great! You're here," Nino panicked as he slung his arm over Adrien's shoulder and lugged him inside. Adrien fumbled with his coffee trying not to spill as Nino kicked the door shut, urging, "We have a lot to get done before everyone else gets here. The Nook has never hosted an event like this, so we have to get everything straightened out."

Adrien glanced around the room, observing the snakepit of cords and disarray of equipment laying about the space. Tools, half-assembled gear, and scraps littered with no end in sight. Probably a reflection of Nino's unorganized tactic based on the frantic look behind his eyes.

Nino released his hold, pointing this way and that as his thoughts came to fruition, outpouring in a stream of nonsense. "Okay, so we have to figure out the basics of how to host approximately fifty people in a space that can hold about thirty."

Adrien's eyes blew wide. "Fifty?" His jaw dropped as he sauntered over to the green couch, plopping down into the worn cushions.

"Yeah. That's what Luka said, anyway," Nino groaned, adjusting his cap. "And he gets to hang out downstairs in the café while I get to put everything together up here," he grumbled, "and it's not like anyone asked me what I wanted to do! I'm just supposed to assemble a whole event in less than two hours!"

"Yeah, I don't envy you there," Adrien mused, crinkling the paper bag in his hand. "Let me know if you need any help."

"Thanks, bro," Nino smiled as a small crash could be heard on the other side of the room. His face instantly soured as he loudly whined, "Ah, come on! Guys, what happened now?"

"I don't know! It fell on its own, sir!" A boy with curly red hair and freckles squeaked, picking up the stand and trying to set it back on its legs.

"Newbies," Nino sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I gotta take care of this."

A bull that eyed a matador, he darted over, head first, and waved his arms about. "No, no. You gotta set up the lights like this—"

Adrien felt a bit out of place as he sat on the couch, crossing and uncrossing his legs. He glanced at the "Love is Brewing" mug and chuckled under his breath, taking a small sip.

"Oh my gosh, are—are you Adrien Agreste?"

He peeked over the rim of the coffee mug and gulped his sugary coffee down. "Please don't let this be—"

Instant relief washed over him as he took in a blue dress with no red in sight. The girl held back a giggle as two more girls, equally as giddy and sporting non-red clothing, vibrated with excitement.

"Yes… I am."

"Oh, my. Oh—wow. Okay, that's—we've never met a real celebrity before." The friend on the right piped up, her heels tap, tap, tapping away, every clack against the wooden floor adding to his anxiety.

"You're so amazing! I love you." The other girl piped up, practically drooling from the corner of her mouth as she fawned over him like a tourist seeing la Vénus de Milo for the first time.

"Could you… sign my journal?"

"And my arm!"

"You're single, right? Do you want to go on a date sometime?"

And this is exactly why he preferred hanging out with his friends than the general public.

Plastering on his model smile, he tried not to grimace as the girls shuffled to grab a pen from their purses.

Before he could open his mouth to politely decline, Alya's voice broke through, a trumpet against the walls of Jericho, and he had never been more grateful.

"Okay! That's enough of that." She brought her hands up, waving them away. "Shoo! Shoo! He is not here for you."

The girls pouted, protesting against her, but Alya shot back a fierce glare which seemed to do the trick as they began shuffling away.

She huffed, shaking her head and crossing her arms. "I don't know how you deal with it, Sunshine."

"Honestly, they weren't that bad. I've definitely had weirder. A lot weirder." He shivered at the thought.

She slumped down next to him, her limbs molding with the cushions.

Adrien glanced back to watch the controlled chaos as Nino ping-ponged to and fro, directing where things go and pacing around the other staff members setting-up the second floor. He took another sip of his drink and licked the corner of his lips, tasting the sweet cream, trying and failing to distract himself. He really wanted to help, maybe if he just offered—

He started to rise from his seat as Alya gently patted his shoulder. "Don't worry about Nino tonight. He's a little nervous, but he has everything under control."

Crash. "Not another one!" Nino cried.

"Or… maybe not," Alya winced as they saw Nino lifting a heavy speaker with two other staff members.

"He's not the only nervous one." Adrien slumped against the back of the couch, drumming his fingers against the mug's handle. "Although I feel useless just sitting here."

"You're doing plenty… Because you are securing a front row seat for us."

"Us?" He questioned, staring down at the pastries in his lap.

"Yeah," she said, counting off on her fingers. "You, me, Marinette—"

"Ladybug?" Adrien perked up, a smile tugging on his lips.

Alya's eyes widened as she stared at him, hooking her hand onto his shoulder. "Yes, Ladybug." She leaned in, staring deeply into his soul. "She will be here."

"I—" Adrien leaned back, furrowing his brow and wondering why Alya was acting strangely all of a sudden. "I know?"

Her eyes narrowed, effectively assessing him before she nodded, returning to her side of the couch. "By the way, nice outfit choice," She complimented as she glanced back at her phone. "It's a classic fit for a meet-cute."

"A meet-cute?"

"It's when two people meet for the first time in a rom com," Alya explained, tapping forcefully on her phone as she scrunched her nose. "Like in Roman Holiday when Gregory Peck finds Audrey Hepburn sleeping on a park bench or in When Harry Met Sally when Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan meet before they take a road trip from Chicago to New York."

"Oh," Adrien remarked, trying to recall if he had seen either of those films before. "Um… Thank you for the compliment?"

He lazily tapped his finger on his cheek as he wondered if his outfit was good enough for a "meet-cute." Glancing down, he took in his all-black attire: a cable knit turtleneck, a pair of slim fit pants and Chelsea boots. He spent half the morning fretting over his clothes, wanting to make a good impression by saying he cared without being too overly-dressed. He didn't want to come off as desperate—nothing like trying too hard on a first date.

Wait a second… Could he consider this a date? His cheeks warmed under his fingertips.

Nino dropped a crate with a loud thud which startled Adrien out of his thoughts. "Hey, babe!" He yelped, "Could you help me out?"

Alya chuckled. "Looks like I'm being summoned." She stood up and stretched. "Could you watch the couch and make sure no one steals it from us?"

"Of course," Adrien nodded, doing a one-shoulder shrug. "I have to be useful somehow."

"Counting on you, Sunshine." She winked. "Alright, babe. What do you need?" She shouted, shoving her phone in her back pocket as Nino fretted over the placement of a crate.

Adrien noticed a couple of books lying on the small side table next to him. He sorted through the titles and found Frank Herbert's classic: DUNE, where he had journeyed through the desert planet of Arrakis before. Settling into a comfortable position back on the green, creaky couch, he read.

The next hour passed on slowly as people trickled in. He could only muster through the first few chapters as his thoughts kept wandering to Ladybug. He glanced at his watch and looked over at his half-full latte and two untouched pastries, sighing.

When would she arrive?

What would she look like?

What would she be wearing?

When she wrote "red," did she mean red as in burgundy or muted crimson or bright cherry?

He gave up on reading, closing the book and placing it back on the side table. He could revisit the spice war, sand dunes, and sizable worms another day. He turned around and scanned the room for a girl in any shade of red, ones in deep reddish purple or ones so light they faded into pink.

But he couldn't find a single girl in any of those colors which made his heart plummet down to his feet.

…this wasn't going as smoothly as he'd hoped.

"Loosen up a bit, would you?" Alya playfully scolded, ruffling his hair from behind as she shook him out of his thoughts.

"Sorry," he winced as he tilted his head back. "Am I that obvious?"

"A bit." She teased, smirking as she draped her elbows over the back of the couch as he frowned from being caugth, twisting his lips to the side.

"It's okay. Don't fret," she assured. "There's plenty of time left before open mic begins."

The crowd around them grew as people followed in one after the other, grouping together in circles, standing about the space and talking amongst themselves. It was getting harder for him to navigate through the sea of colors.

"Besides, you're not the one I'm worried about tonight," she muttered under her breath.

"What do you mean?" A weight dropped in his stomach. He whipped his head toward her, nerves turning to static as he pressed, "Wait—did something happen?"

She blanched, bringing her hand up to her lips. "I—well…" She fumbled over her words "what I mean is—"

Nino cursed loudly as something else clattered onto the floor. The crowd looked over at the interruption, some offering to help as others stared at the explosion of books and paper.

Alya's shoulders visibly relaxed as she exhaled, gesturing over to her boyfriend."Nino is who I am worried about. Yes. Him. He's been so stressed out today."

"But I thought you said not to worry about him earlier," Adrien pointed out.

"Oh, did I?" She huffed a breathy laugh, tugging at her collar as she fixated on a corner of the room.

Adrien didn't have time to mull over her odd mannerisms before she piped up again. "You know what?" She snapped her fingers as her eyes lit up. "How about we switch? I'll take over couch duty, and you can go and help Nino."

Her smile was too tight, stretching across her face like a rubber band about to snap. He was wary as he got up and stretched his arms behind his back, feeling the nerves pouring from her like a faucet.

"Sure…" He drawled as an off-put feeling tickled in the back of his mind. "I'll go and see if he needs help." And if Nino didn't need him, at least he could scout the crowd and see if anyone seemed Ladybug-ish.

"I appreciate you, Sunshine," Alya praised as she swooped around and fell back onto the couch with a plop.

Adrien quickly scanned the area in hopes of seeing red, but it seemed like the entirety of the room was consumed in every shade but. At least she would be easier to spot later on. He chuckled to himself before his mind made a turn for the worse as he imagined her confusing him for another Adrien—what a terrible thought!

Nino was standing on top of a ladder, fiddling with a speaker as he cautiously approached, sticking his hands in his pockets and rocking back and forth on his heels as he suggested, "Alya said you might need help."

Nino wiped his brow, straining, "Yeah, actually—" He pointed at the floor. "Could you hand me a Phillips-head screwdriver from the toolbox?"

"Um." Adrien's eyes followed Nino's trail where an open black toolbox was splayed with an assortment of silver and bronze tools. He gulped as he recognized how utterly unqualified he was in hardware. "Which one is the screwdriver again?"

Nino paused, throwing him a disbelieving look. "Seriously?"

"I, uh, was never taught?" Adrien winced, throwing up his hands in surrender.

Nino closed his eyes and sighed. "Bro, one of these days, I'm going full big brother on you and teaching you all about basic tools and how to use them." He clapped his hands. "Okay, hand me the tool with a long, silver rod and a handle. At the end, it will come to a point shaped like an x."

Adrien knelt down, searching through the neatly organized tools. He grabbed a tool, inspecting the four points at the end and held it up. "This one?"

Nino shook his head. "No, that's a Robertson with a square shaped head. I need a Phillips with an x-shaped head."

Adrien twisted his lips as he contemplated which one had the x. After picking up three more, he found one with a black tip and held it up. "This one?"

"That's it!" Nino grabbed the tool, tightening the last screw into place. "Last speaker done. Now we can test them out and see if we can start." He jumped down from the three-step ladder, folding it up and propping it against the wall before bending down and playing with the plugs.

"I think that's everything," Nino cheered as he stood, running to the red rug, grabbing a mic and turning it on.

"Testing, testing. One, two, three." The crowd shuffled and quieted as they turned to the front. "Hey, dudes and dudettes. It's—" He checked his phone. "—seven forty-five. If you're here to participate in our open mic, please see Juleka and Rose in the back to sign up. And… if you haven't yet, please check out the café downstairs for any and all food and drink needs. We have the iconic Tom & Sabine's Boulangerie pastries and the best coffee in all of Paris if I do say so myself." He put a hand on his chest and smiled cheekily. "Open mic will start in about fifteen minutes, and we'll see you then."

He saluted two fingers at the crowd as Adrien watched the crowd, searching the wall-to-wall attendees.

Still no sign of red.

He sighed and stepped over to the side table, grabbing his latte and taking a sip. His mouth turned downward. Blegh, room temperature coffee. Well, this certainly couldn't distract him.

At least he knew one thing for sure: Ladybug wouldn't let him down.

She would be here soon …hopefully.