#itsagrestebug

Hey everyone! I’m so glad that you guys have been enjoying these one shots from my Marichat 2020 collection, so here’s another one! If you like the ones I've posted so far, you can always find the full collection on FFN. I’m still cross-posting other stories to Ao3, so it’s not there just yet. I’m still AgresteBug on FFN so it shouldn’t be too hard to find! And please, don’t repost my stories without permission! Other than that, I hope you enjoy!

Day 27 - Secrets

Marinette let out yet another annoyed sigh, and Chat couldn’t help but ask as he wrapped his arms around her from behind, "All right, that's the third one. What's wrong purrincess?"

A softer sigh escaped her, "It's just," she turned around to face him, "I'm sick of Lila, Kitty. It's been nearly a month since you let everyone know you were dating someone, and Lila has been dropping hints for days that it's her."

He tried to smile, "Ignore her mon coeur."

"I can't!" She said frustratedly, "She is driving me crazy! I swear she is purposely doing it when I'm around, like she KNOWS something."

"Hey," he whispered lovingly, putting his hands on either side of her face, "we have been nothing but careful. There is no way she knows the truth. We went five months without saying anything, and no one was the wiser. Let her spout her lies,"

"But everyone believes her." She said, pulling his hands from her face, "You can see it in everyone's faces that they know what she is implying, and you should hear the things she says about you."

He rubbed the back of his neck, thinking back to all the things he had heard Lila saying. If truth be told, he was getting sick of it too. He wanted to try and be the bigger person, and just leave Lila to her lies, but seeing how upset his purrincess was, maybe it wasn't the right route to take anymore.

"I can only imagine." He relented, pulling her back into his arms and staring down into her beautiful bluebell eyes, "So, what do you want to do? I'm game for a little of this, or a little of that." He wiggled his eyebrows at her and she giggled, "Oh I'm sure if I set my Kitty after the rat, you'd have far too much fun."

"I do quite enjoy a game of chat and mouse." He said with a smirk, "but you're my favorite mouse to catch." He squeezed her closer and a light blush dusted her cheeks much to his delight.

She completely ignored the comment and told him, "Unless we flat out reveal our relationship, I really don't know what to do. She is a master manipulator, and she'll turn anything I say in her favor. I say anything, and by the time she's done, she'll even have ME convinced that you are dating her."

"Hmm," Chat mused, his eyes suddenly sparkling in mischief that instantly made her suspicious. She stared at him hard as a wide grin spread on his face, "I think I have an idea. It might be a bit risky, but we won't have to tell anyone anything."

She knew this probably wasn't a good idea, but asked anyways, "What's your plan?"

…

'They should be on their way to the bakery from Alya's any minute now. Have fun Kitty ;)' Marinette's text read, making him grin.

He stretched out of his comfortable position on the rooftop, getting to his feet and checking to make sure the small package was securely in his pocket. With the bait in hand, he started vaulting quickly across the rooftops.

Most people were going about their day, but he was glad that a few people noticed him. This was the one time he wanted eyes on him. This way, there were a few witnesses at least.

He found Alya's cinnamon scent, along with Nino's musky herb scent. They were close. He smiled wider, spotting them just across the street. He couldn't have asked for a better set up. He vaulted straight across their path, letting the small package drop directly in front of them.

Alya let out a small gasp in shock, instantly looking around. He jumped down instantly, feigning relief, "Oh thank god it didn't fall far." He picked up the small box and saw Alya's eyes widen in joy, "Chat Noir! This is yours?"

"Yeah, sorry about that." He said sheepishly.

Alya was already pulling her phone out of her pocket, Nino shaking his head, "No sweat man. It must be important."

Chat nodded, smiling down at the little box, "It is."

Alya had her phone pointed right at him, "What is it? A gift for your mystery girl?"

He smiles into the camera, "We can't hide anything from the great Ladyblogger, can we? Yes, it's an anniversary gift for my girlfriend. I would have hated to have lost it."

Alya's face lit up with the joy of the scoop, "Anniversary huh? One month? Three, a year?"

Chat smirked, "Now, now Ladyblogger, you know the rules. You don't get any details. I told you the truth about having a girlfriend, but that's all you get."

Nino chuckled at Alya's obvious disappointment, "You did promise you wouldn't pry Als."

"What's the harm in knowing how long they've been together?" Alya tried, but Chat shook a finger at her, "Tisk, tisk, fur shame Ladyblogger. No details means no details," he added it for good measure, "or Ladybug would have my tail."

Alya asked again the same thing she had the first time, "And, Ladybug is NOT your girlfriend?"

He sighed, "No, m'lady is the best, dearest friend I could ever ask for. I do love her, that will never, ever change, but she is NOT my girlfriend."

Alya looked just as disappointed as she had the first time, "Right. Ruin my LadyNoir ship why don't you."

He saw the smirk on her face and knew what was coming, "Since you won't give me details about her, maybe you'll give us a peek of her gift? I'm dying to know what it is."

Jackpot.

He held the small box protectively, "I don't think that's a good idea."

"What are the odds that I know her Chat Noir? There are thousands of people, of girls, in this city. Odds are, I'll never see, whatever it is, ever again." Alya tried, knowing that she would actually see whatever it was on Lila at school soon enough. Lila would be tickled to know that she had run into Chat Noir and knew what the gift was before her.

Chat looked at the box with a frown before looking up at her, "No recording."

Alya beamed, putting her phone away. He told them the second the phone is in her pocket, "You have to swear you won't say anything about this to anyone, at least until Monday morning. I want it to be a surprise."

Nino and Alya instantly agree to keep their silence, and he reluctantly opened the small box.

It's a ring, a white gold band that looks like a tiara. The middle of the tiara is heart shaped, and the small diamonds lining it don't overcrowd it. It was a simple design, but absolutely beautiful.

"Wow, that's legit dude." Nino told him, impressed, seeing the usually suave and confident black cat looking nervous, "You think so? You think she'll like it?"

"Without a doubt man." Nino said without a hint of hesitation.

Alya nodded, thinking that it was a little simple for Lila's usual style, but knew it was true anyways, "It's absolutely adorable. She is going to love it."

Chat gave them a bright smile, "Thanks." He lifted the ring out of the box, showing them the inside, "I even had it engraved for her."

There, etched into the white gold, was an elegant script that read 'My Purrincess'.

"Do you really call her that?" Alya asked, teasing.

Chat put the ring back in the box and nodded not the least bit embarrassed, "Every opurr-tunity I get." He told them again, "And you won't say anything right?"

They nodded again, "Not a word." "We'll keep your secret dude."

Chat gave them a quick, two-fingered salute before vaulting back up to the rooftops and disappearing as he headed for home. He landed in his room and pulled out his baton, texting her happily, 'The secret's been planted purrincess.'

It didn’t take long for her response to come through, 'Good job Kitty, now will you PLEASE tell me what the secret is?'

He laughed to himself, proud of all the secrets he was juggling at the moment, 'Tomorrow mon coeur. I promise.'

…

Monday morning, Adrien walked into school with a pep in his step. Not only had he managed to surprise his purrincess with the ring for their sixth month anniversary, but she had finally relented and asked to know who he was under the mask.

She had cried when she saw that it was him, which he'd panicked about initially before she explained that they were happy tears. They knew it was going to be a dangerous road going forward, but it was working out for the best. Adrien wasn't allowed to have a girlfriend at the moment, but there was nothing stopping Chat Noir from continuing to date her.

Marinette hadn't batted an eye when he told her that as Adrien, his father didn't want him to date anyone right now because of the brand. To his mild surprise, she actually thought their dating in secret would be for the better anyways. This way, they could date out of the spotlight, and not paint a bigger target on their backs for being together.

Lila’s too sweet voice immediately broke through his thoughts, "You sure you are okay Alya?"

He only looked around for a few seconds before seeing Lila walking towards the stairs with Alya who was frowning, "Yeah, everything is fine. You are sure you didn't see anyone special this weekend?"

Lila giggled, making him roll his eyes, "You know I can't tell you if I did or didn't."

He followed behind them at a safe distance, keeping his smirk to himself. He knew what Alya's problem was. There was no ring on Lila's finger.

"H-Hey Adrien. Good morning."

He turned instantly, smiling brightly as she walked up to him slowly, "Good morning Marinette."

They smiled secret smiles at each other before Marinette held out a small box to him, "Oh, I brought these for you."

He took the box as he told her softly, a slight blush on his cheeks, "You didn't have to do that." He opened the box and saw the small array of goodies. There were chocolate covered croissants, a couple of cheese danishes that he was sure weren't going to make it past the first hour if a certain kwami got a hold of them, and his favorite passionfruit macarons.

She said it somewhat teasing, "Well if you don't want them, I'm sure someone else,"

"NO!" He told her, holding the box to his chest, "I want them."

She giggled and leaned up, pressing a gentle kiss to his cheek before whispering it, "I thought so Kitty."

He whispered back with a grin, "Careful purrincess, or someone might see."

She tapped his nose with a wink, "I know how to keep a secret. Trust me."

They laugh before heading upstairs together to class. As they took their seats, with Lila nowhere in sight, Alya told Marinette instantly, "Someone looks extremely happy this morning."

Nino snickered as Adrien pulled out a chocolate croissant, "Here too."

Adrien took a bite and melted against his seat, "Don't judge me Nino." Nino laughed anyways and turned to Marinette, "Where's the treats for everyone else?"

Marinette's response was instant, "You ate them all this weekend when you and Alya came over. Adrien didn't get any since he had that photoshoot."

Adrien nodded instantly, "Exactly! I missed out and deserve these."

The girls giggled, Marinette's right hand going to cover her mouth. The tiara ring twinkled beautifully in the light, and Adrien made his move as he saw Alya eyeing it in shock, "Hey, that's new, isn't it?"

Marinette blushed instantly, looking at the ring on her middle finger, "Oh, uh, yeah."

"Can I see?" He asked innocently. She held her hand out to him, Alya and Nino both leaning closer to get a better look. Adrien thumbed the ring lightly, the shocked exchange of looks between Nino and Alya didn't go unnoticed.

"Wh-Where'd you get that dudette?" Nino asked, trying not to sound nervous.

Lila walked into the room at that exact moment as Marinette answered, "Oh, someone special gave it to me last night as a surprise. It's pretty, don't you think?"

All three of them nodded, and Lila of course, stopped to add her opinion, "Wow, that is such a cute ring Marinette. It's simple, but perfect for you." She said it with a slight flair in her tone, "MY special kitten gave me a ring when we first started dating. I can't wear it out of course, it's so big I'm sure someone would try to steal it."

Adrien saw the slight scowls on Nino and Alya's faces, knowing that they knew now that Lila was lying. He asked them concerned, "Are you guys okay?"

They both instantly smiled, trying to act like nothing was wrong. He smiled at them, before turning back to Marinette, "Do you mind if I take a closer look at the ring?"

Marinette pulled it off and held it out to him. He started commenting on it out loud, making sure to keep Lila's face in his peripheral, "The band is white gold, not silver or a gold-plated overlay either. You can see the Maker's mark for 20 karat gold, which is the highest quality of white gold out there."

He smiled to himself, seeing Lila's face harden, "And the design is simple, sure, but elegant. The tiara is beautifully crafted and the way the heart is integrated into the design is genius."

He held it up to the light, the diamonds catching and sending small prisms everywhere, "The diamonds themselves are flawless and colorless, easily D quality, not one has a bit of cloud or yellow tinge. Based on how many there are, despite them being smaller, there is at least a carat and a half worth of diamonds here."

Lila looked like she was practically seething in jealousy now, and he brought the ring closer, adding it innocently, "Whoever gave this to you must love you immensely. Even the inside engraving of 'My Purrincess' is flawlessly done."

She took the ring back from him, putting it back on her finger quickly as she said it hushed, "You weren't supposed to see that."

He glanced at the others, seeing the surprise on their faces before he faked it himself, lowering his voice, "Purr-incess, that sounds a lot like, are you the one dating Chat Noir Marinette?"

Marinette blushed heavily but didn't say anything to confirm or deny it. Lila stormed off towards her seat without another word, Alya asking her again, "Are you?"

Marinette smiled at her, saying it calmly, "My boyfriend just has a thing for cat puns, that's all."

Adrien grinned at her comment, giving her a small wink as Nino and Alya held knowing stares.

Hey everyone! Here we go with another prompt! Please don’t repost to another site without my permission!

Day 14- Possessive Marinette

Marinette was about to lose it. She put up with a lot of things where Lila was concerned, but this, this was crossing a line. Everyone was in the park near her house, doing a 'team building' exercise Miss Bustier had suggested to make them all closer. Being that it was a Saturday, Adrien was the only one not allowed to come due to a photoshoot. Their 'team building' had turned into a small party instead now that the sun was starting to set. Marinette was sitting alone on the bench off to the side, trying to drown out the drabble of lies spilling from Lila's mouth.

Lila's sickly sweet voice turned Marinette's stomach as everyone hung on her every word, "It's really okay you guys. I really do understand. It's not easy for my Kitten to hide his feelings, but Ladybug is in charge. What she says goes."

Alya was patting Lila's arm, saying it a little worried, "I never imagined that Ladybug would go that far."

Max added it lightly, "When you think about it though, Ladybug has always been more concerned with keeping their identities a secret."

Mylene said it with a small frown, "Yeah, but I always figured it was to keep her and Chat Noir safe."

Alya instantly nodded, "Exactly, not because she was jealous of Chat falling in love with Lila!"

Marinette rolled her eyes to herself, thinking it hard, 'There's nothing to be jealous about. Chat's not in love with Lila.'

Lila shook her head, "I thought she was my friend, but when she forbade Chat from being with me, I knew that show she put on in front of everyone was just an act. She will never return his feelings, but she doesn't want anyone else to have him either." A crocodile tear fell from Lila's eye, "My poor Kitten, I hate that she has so much influence on him."

Rose hugged Lila tightly, "Don't worry Lila, we know the truth!"

"Yeah girl, Ladybug will come around eventually." Alya said, sounding unsure.

Lila smiled weakly, "Thanks you guys. You are the best." She looked around quickly, lowering her voice, "I know I can trust you guys not to let this get out," she started smiling, "but Chat Noir decided last week that he was tired of listening to Ladybug. He'll work with her to stop the akuma's because he loves Paris and its people, but he's done listening to her where I'm concerned."

Marinette felt the angry heat rush to her face as the words left Lila's mouth, "Unofficially, Chat Noir is MY Kitten. Not Ladybug's."

"You just don't know when to stop do you!?" Marinette said angrily, standing from the bench, "You don't even know him! He's not the kind of person who would be so easily impressed with all of your blatant lies! Suggesting that he's YOUR anything is completely outrageous!"

Lila let the tears fall easily, "What would I have to gain by lying about this? No one outside of our class can know!" Lila took a small step towards her, eyes shining in triumph despite the hurt in her voice, "It's not like you've ever even had a conversation with him. You really shouldn't be trying so hard to act like you know him. Enough people do that as it is."

Marinette huffed, "I've had plenty of conversations with him, more than you have without a doubt. I probably know him better than anyone because..." the comment died in her throat.

It had only been a couple of weeks, and she hadn't told anyone. She wasn't planning on telling anyone. It wasn't for her sake, it was for his. It was the only way to keep him safe, otherwise she would have screamed to the world how happy she was. How happy her Kitty made her the night they really kissed for the first time.

Lila pressed her, "Because?"

Marinette sat down, feeling defeated as she looked away, "It doesn't matter. It's not like anyone will believe me anyways."

Lila however, simply wouldn't let it go, "Lying to make yourself look better isn't going to help you Marinette. You don't have to try and lie just to get attention. We are all your friends, you don't have to try and impress us by making up stories."

Everyone instantly agreed with Lila, trying to tell her that she didn't have to lie or be jealous. Marinette stared between the faces of her classmates, wondering how they could have all changed so easily. She wished she knew what it was that made them so willing to believe everything that Lila said, no matter how ridiculous.

Marinette felt the sting in her eyes as everyone scolded her for acting that way. Telling her that she ought to know better, and that she shouldn't be trying to out-do Lila with made up stories because lying wasn't going to help her. Their words just echoed, sending painful stabs into her heart with each one.

"Purrincess there you are!"

Her neck snapped as she turned to look at the familiar voice. Her eyes widened as she took him in, standing there smiling at her in that loving way. He had a huge bouquet of at least two dozen pink and white roses, the stems tied with beautiful black and green silk ribbons.

Everyone went silent as they watched Chat Noir walk up to her, holding the bouquet out to her, saying it shyly, "I'm sorry I missed our date last night. Akuma."

She blushed, taking the beautiful roses and being overwhelmed by their scent, "No don't worry. I could hear it screeching from my balcony from all the way across the city." She buried her nose into the bouquet before telling him sincerely, "These are beautiful Kitty, thank you."

"My purrincess only deserves the best." He said happily, leaning down to give her a soft kiss that sent chills down her body. She smiled shyly, staring into his beautiful green eyes before they darted behind her, "Oh, uh, whoops. Purrincess," he pointed behind her, and she rolled her eyes with a small smirk before turning around. There was no way Chat Noir had missed that her ENTIRE class was here. He also knew how much she didn't care for big romantic gestures, like this giant bundle of roses that no doubt cost a fortune and she WAS going to get onto him for spending this kind of money on her later, unless it was a special occasion. He himself was a fan of sincere romance, of doing things that would uniquely touch the heart of someone he cared about. In his words, 'It's not the gesture that counts, it's the motive behind it.'

She wondered what his motive was for doing this. They had agreed the day they started dating that they wouldn't tell anyone, and now he was out in the open making a big romantic gesture?

Most of her class was wearing identical expressions of pure shock, but Lila was positively seething.

Alya was the first to break the silence, looking quickly back and forth between them, "How, how could you do that, how could you treat Lila this way Chat Noir?!"

Chat stayed at Marinette's side, asking innocently, "Lila?" He let his head fall to the side slightly, "I don't think I know anyone named Lila."

Lila stepped up instantly, her voice trembling in hate, "I can't believe you Chat Noir. It was a petty fight, I know that I shouldn't have broken up with you like that last night, but I knew we would work it out. I can't believe you are still so angry that you are really going to act like you have no idea who I am!"

Chat's expression didn’t hide his shock, and he knew that everyone could tell that he was uncomfortable, "I'm sorry, but I have no idea what you are talking about." He lifted his wrist, showing the class the black and green beaded bracelet fitted around his wrist so that it wouldn't fall off. There were three beads outside of the contrast of black and green that were his reminder of the girl who had his heart. One of the beads was white, one was pink, and the other was the same beautiful blue of her eyes.

"Ladyblogger, you asked me about this bracelet a few weeks ago. You were actually the first person to notice I was wearing it. Do you remember what I said about these three beads?" Chat asked, locking eyes with Alya whose expression went from angry to understanding, "You said they are there to remind you of, of your most important someone."

Chat nodded, looking over at Lila, "You are a very pretty girl, but you have green eyes, and wear red and black." He tapped the three beads at his wrist, "Pink and white to represent her signature look and favorite colors," he smiled innocently, motioning to the roses in her arms, "and blue for the eyes that say more than words ever could." Chat gave her a subtle wink, and she held the roses closer to her chest as her heart overflowed in joy.

This Chat.

There wasn't a doubt in her mind that he had probably been waiting for her to come back from the park, and happened to overhear Lila spewing her lies. He knew how tired she was of having to deal with Lila, and this was his way of showing them all in one move what kind of person Lila really was.

Nino asked a little shocked, "But dude, what about Ladybug?"

Chat smiled wider, "M'Lady is my best friend, and she's happy that I'm happy."

"She approved of you dating Marinette?" Kim asked, confused.

Chat snickered, "Approved? She was overjoyed. You didn't think she'd try to forbid me from dating anyone but her did you? We are partners, and I value her opinion, but whether she 'approved' or not wasn't going to stop me."

"Marinette doesn't wear a bracelet! How do you explain that?!" Lila asked angrily, stomping her foot in a very childish way.

Chat looked over and saw Marinette's bag leaning against the bench where he had seen her sitting before. He lifted it up with a claw and held it out for them to see, smiling as he lifted the little charm attached to the loop at the top, "May I purrincess?"

Marinette nodded and Chat unhooked the charm from her bag. He lifted her wrist and put her bracelet on where it belonged. He knew she hadn't been wearing it because they were trying not to be too obvious, but given how blind their class was when it came to Lila, it was time for a show of the obvious.

Marinette's bracelet had mostly pink and white beads, but there were five beads different on hers than the three on his. Two were black, two were green, and the one right in the middle of the other four was a little gold bell. Those five beads were her way of having a piece of Chat with her wherever she went.

Marinette reminded Alya gently, "I did tell you it was Chat Noir inspired."

There was only a few more seconds of silence, as one by one, her friends realized that they couldn't deny it anymore. They understood as Chat Noir stood at Marinette's side, that she wasn't the issue. Lila and her lies were.

She adjusted the roses so that she could hold them in one arm, holding Chat's hand firmly now that she had a hand free. Lila looked like she was ready to burst into flames at any moment, "How dare you, who do you think you are! You were cheating on me this entire time,"

"SHUT UP LILA!" All of the girls yelled at once, except Juleka who's soft voice was so stern that it scared everyone witless, "Don't even try it."

Marinette gave Chat's hand a gentle squeeze, and he smiled brightly as he looked over at her. She was staring down the lying girl who had been giving her grief for months with nothing but the confidence he saw in her every time she transformed into Ladybug.

Hey everyone! Sorry it’s been a little while, but here is another one from the collection! I hope you enjoy! And remember, please don’t post to another site without my permission! Cross-posted on FF.net!

Day 19 - Eavesdropping

He stood at the edge of the roof, closing his eyes as he let out a deep breath. It had been such a long day, and that photoshoot had really worn him out. All day photoshoots usually did, but this one seemed worse than usual. The photographer wasn't happy with anything that came out, and kept resetting and adding things before finally going back to how it was during the first round of photos.

He sighed heavily. An all day shoot that could have been done in a few hours. He could have gone to school for the afternoon, and at least spent SOME time with his friends. It seemed like lately he hadn't been able to see almost anyone with how busy he had been.

It usually got this way around this time of year though. Fashion was going full speed ahead with summer coming up.

His ears perked up at the thought. Fashion. Marinette. He beamed and took off towards her balcony. He may not be able to visit all of his friends, but he had visited Marinette a few times as Chat Noir. It was Friday night too, she was sure to still be up working on some new design. Maybe he could even help her somehow.

He landed lightly on her balcony and heard multiple voices coming from inside. He went completely still, seeing her skylight cracked open. He stayed hidden in the deep shadows under her awning, listening closer.

Alix, Rose, Juleka, Mylene, and Alya were all here. Oh, the girls must be having a sleepover. He thought bitterly. He would have known that if he'd been at school today. He was sure he would have overheard them talking about it.

So much for that plan. Maybe I can come see her tomorrow.

He felt his tail droop as he moved to leave, but his foot stopped in its tracks, "You can't let yourself get this down just because Adrien missed school today." Alya said heavily.

He felt his heart jump. Marinette had missed him? It had only been a day! But he understood instantly, he was here because he missed his friends, and it had only been a day. It was silly but it made him smile that Marinette cared enough to notice he was gone, and miss him.

"That's right! You just have to stay positive Marinette!" Rose quipped in that cheerful way she had. "He isn't going to forget you just by missing one day of school."

"Yeah, and knowing Adrien, he is probably just as down about missing today too. Nino said that the photoshoot had run longer than expected because the photographer was being an idiot." Alya was explaining.

She didn't know the half of it.

"Oh! Maybe you can do something for him on Monday, to cheer him up. I'm sure he's had a long day if that's the case, and it's the perfect way for you to show him that you were thinking about him." Mylene suggested.

Marinette's voice sounded tired, "But guys what's the point? Don't you remember the last time?"

There was a collective heavy sigh and he bit his lower lip. He knew he shouldn't, but he couldn't find it in himself to leave. Their voices were keeping him grounded. He was both too afraid to move in case he drew their attention, and too curious about what they were talking about to leave.

He made a promise to himself, that if they started talking about things he shouldn't have been hearing, he'd leave even at the risk of his life. Alya would no doubt strangle him if she found him up here, and Alix would be right there with her. There would be questions he definitely didn't want them to ask, or that he'd be able to answer without giving himself away.

Juleka's soft voice drew his attention back to them, "There have been a lot of failed attempts lately."

"See!" Marinette whined. "I'm so useless. Even if the perfect opportunity presented itself, I'd just go and ruin it all with my clumsiness… as usual."

"Oh come on it can't be that bad." Mylene told her.

"The scarf was a failed attempt." Alix said evenly, sounding like she's chewing on something. "He loves that scarf, and dummy thinks it's from his father."

Marinette's voice was stern, "It makes him happier thinking it's from his father. That's all I care about."

His heart twinges in hurt. The scarf hadn't come from his father the way Nathalie had led him to believe. It had come from Marinette, and from the sound of it, she had no intention of telling him the truth… because she thought that HE was happier thinking it came from his father.

Alya said it heavily, "And let's not forget the unsigned Valentine fiasco." Her voice turned teasing, "Your hair shines like the sun. Your eyes are gorgeous green,"

"Alya give it back! Where'd you even find a copy of it!" Marinette yelped in panic as Alya kept reading the lines of the Valentine he himself had memorized, "I look at you and wonder, your innermost thoughts and dreams. Yes, your Valentine I will be. Our love will be so true. Together for eternity. My heart belongs to you."

There was a fit of giggles inside as his face flamed. The valentines day card that had answered his so perfectly… it had come from Marinette too. Could she… could she, like him?

As their giggles died down, Rose added it like she was almost afraid to, "Then there was the beret she knitted, with the hearts for his fifth's names day."

"Operation Secret Garden didn't go so well either." Juleka reminded them, receiving another collective sigh from all the girls.

He frowned at that one, not understanding. Operation Secret Garden? Now he was even more curious.

"You can't keep your feelings for Adrien bottled up Marinette. Yes all of these things haven't gone exactly as planned, but you did them and keep doing them because you care about him. Right?" Mylene asked calmly.

"Of course I care about him, more than anything, but you guys I'm a stuttering mess around him most of the time. Last week he even thought that I DIDN'T like him! He probably thinks I'm a huge nutcase, and he is so sweet and kind and amazing and, he deserves someone better than me." He heard her sniffling and his heart fell to his stomach. He made his way carefully to where her skylight was and peeked in, seeing the girls huddled around Marinette on the floor as she wiped the tears from her eyes.

"Besides, I'm probably too late anyways. He asked me for advice in order to take Kagami to the ice rink, remember? She was right that day. I'll never get him to notice me because all I do is hesitate, and she never hesitates." Marinette was telling them. "My feelings for him are the farthest thing from his mind."

He watched as the girls all exchanged small glances in silence. Alya was rubbing Marinette's back, some sort of silent communication going on between them as Rose shook her head, Juleka frowned suddenly, and Alix and Mylene shared a look before they both shrugged sadly.

Alya asked Marinette softly, "Marinette, you've never been one to give up. Where is all of this coming from? Why would you think that Adrien would think you didn't like him?"

Rose handed Marinette a black cat plush that had green eyes and a silver collar with a gold bell. She hugged the plush to her chest and told them, "Last week, when we all went to the wax museum, he told me. I don't know why he thought that, but he did. Then…" she trailed off, and he leaned back on the wall near the skylight, closing his eyes as the guilt ripped through him.

She was no doubt thinking back to the same moment he was, where he had stupidly posed as a statue to try and prank her.

"Then?" Alix asked in a much softer voice than she usually used. Almost like she was afraid she'd startle Marinette by speaking too loud.

"I thought they had moved his statue since they were working on it, and no one was around so I thought I'd try to tell the statue how I felt. If I could do that, then maybe I could tell him too and it wouldn't be as hard the second time." Her voice broke and she said it nearly sobbing, "I told him everything and it was really him, trying to pull a prank on me. I nearly kissed him before he broke and showed me he wasn't the statue. I was so embarrassed I thought I was going to die!"

He hit his head back against the wall once, hearing how much it had hurt her. He was such an idiot. He had been trying to give up on Ladybug for weeks, knowing the boy in her heart hadn't left room for him. He WAS trying to move on. That's the only reason he had asked Kagami to the ice rink. He did like Kagami, but he had never felt that spark of something more with her.

It hit him like a train.

No wonder Kagami had asked him about his feelings for Marinette.

"You should have seen the relief on his face when I played it off as being a joke too. I lied and told him I didn't mean any of it, that I knew he was trying to trick me and he believed it! He didn't WANT it to be true." She started sniffling again and he peered in the window, seeing her staring down at her hands, "To make things worse, we apologized to each other again in the car and he has to go and tell me that the girl he loves doesn't like his jokes either."

"Did he really say that?" Alya asked, surprised.

Marinetted nodded and the girls are trying their hardest to cheer her up, all the while his heart was breaking. Here was this kind and caring, talented and beautiful girl right in front of him who cared more about him than any other girl he'd ever met, and he had been so stuck on trying to get Ladybug's attention that he never realized Marinette's feelings for what they were.

Hearing all the things she had done for him, including the extra pieces that the girls were adding onto the list now in their efforts to cheer her up, all to make HIM happy even though he'd done nothing but hurt her over and over again…

It was going to stop.

Tonight.

He wasn't going to let her go through this kind of pain because of him, not anymore. He felt a fire inside him, waking him up in a way he'd never felt before. It burned as it raged, screaming loudly as it moved through him.

YOU ALREADY LOVE THIS GIRL YOU IDIOT NOW DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT!

He knew what he had to do.

He ducked behind her chimney, dropping his transformation. Plagg was scowling at him, asking quietly, "What are you doing? What if someone sees you?"

He held out a piece of camembert and explained quickly, "Shush. No one is going to see me, but I need my phone."

Plagg munched on his camembert, a satisfied smirk on his face as his chosen started typing away on his phone.

'Hey Marinette, I'm sorry to bother you, are you still up?'

He hit send and nodded once, listening as his heart raced in anticipation. A piercing scream inside her room caused him to jump a minute later, nearly causing him to slip. Plagg cackled out loud, covering his mouth before he could give them away.

He felt the sweat form on the back of his neck as he put his hand over his rapidly beating heart. Had he done something wrong by texting her?

"Marinette what happened!" Alya yelled. He guessed that shriek had come from Marinette.

Her voice was shaking, "A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A"

"Spit it out Marinette!" Alix barked.

"ADRIEN TEXTING PHONE, MY PHONE! HE'S TEXTING ME! WHY IS HE TEXTING ME?!" Marinette was still in a panic as Rose told her excitedly, "What did he say!?"

"Girl you didn't even open it!" Alya noted, going quiet for a second before telling them, "He just wants to know if you are awake. Text him back!"

"I can't do that Alya!" Marinette tried, but the girls weren't letting her get out of it. It only took a few minutes of convincing her that the world was NOT in fact going to end if she responded to his text.

It made him chuckle slightly, listening to her rant. Her imagined scenarios went from wild to crazy in two seconds flat, and were all extremely unlikely to happen. For one, he wasn't going to have her thrown in jail for making him miss an appointment by keeping him up late texting.

His phone pinged and he smiled brighter seeing her text back, 'I'm still up, and you could never bother me. What's up?'

'Nothing much really. I was thinking about you today at the photoshoot. They brought macarons to the set since it ran long, but they were nowhere near as good as yours. ;) '

There was an eruption of excited squeals inside and his cheeks started to hurt from smiling so much.

"Marinette breathe!" Alya told her suddenly, "You can't go passing out on us, not while you are in the middle of texting Sunshine!"

"He was thinking about me Alya." Marinette said dreamily. "Answer back!" Rose told her excitedly.

"How do I even respond to that!?" Marinette asked, now suddenly worried.

He heard the suggestions and chuckled, seeing Plagg shaking his head, "Girls."

'I'll have to make you some then! Everyone at school missed you today. It wasn't the same without you. I copied extra notes for you too, in case you need them. :) '

His response was instant, 'You are the best Marinette. That's why you are our everyday Ladybug.' He hit send and kicked himself, sending another text straight after. He refused to let the conversation stray from what he was trying to do, 'It wasn't just today. I've actually been thinking about you a lot lately.'

"HOLY CROW!" Alix said laughing, "That boy has major flirting going on! Go Agreste!" The girls are in a full fit of excitement, giggling, laughing, and overlapping jumbled voices of joy flitted out to him. Alya mentioned something about ships finally sailing.

"No Alix it can't be like that. Something has to be wrong." Marinette told her. It only took a few seconds for her response to come through, 'Is everything okay? Did something happen?'

He looked up at Plagg, "Why do you think, she thinks, something is wrong?"

Plagg shrugged, "One thing you learn being alive as long as I have, never try to understand women. The moment you think you understand, you've already lost. That's why I've been trying to tell you to find a good cheese and,"

"Yeah yeah, nevermind." Adrien waved him off before texting back, 'No, everything is fine. I promise. I just…' he hit send, trying to think of the best way to say this, 'Have you ever been nervous about doing something before?'

Alix snorted loud enough that Adrien could hear it. Mylene told her to hush as Alya sighed heavily, "That Sunshine child I swear."

Juleka's voice was so soft he barely caught it, "Does he really not notice your nervousness all the time?"

Marinette didn't say anything, but another text came through in true Marinette fashion, 'More times than I can count. Is there something I can do to help? What could you possibly have to be nervous about? You're Adrien Agreste!'

'Well, there's this girl I've had a crush on for a while. She's a great friend, but I don't know how to ask her out. What should I do?'

He waited, his finger idly tapping the side of his phone, and heard Alix's angry threat, "I'm going to pummel that little model into a pancake!"

"No he did not just ask you that." Alya said hard, "Where's my phone so I can text Nino about what an idiot his best friend is."

"Girls, girls! It's okay. I told you before, I knew I was too late. If he wants my advice, if this will make him happy, then I'll be happy that he is." Marinette declared, and as he stood there leaning against the cool brick of her chimney, he fell in love with her a little more.

'Just be confident Adrien. You are sweet and smart, and handsome too of course. Any girl would be an idiot to not see how wonderful you are.'

'You really think so Marinette?'

'I do.'

"I can't believe you are doing this Marinette." Mylene said sadly.

"I want him to be happy, even if that means helping him ask Kagami out." Marinette told them, a sigh escaping into the air.

Rose pointed it out first, "He never said it was Kagami though."

That's because it's not Kagami, girls. - He thought with a sense of mischief.

"Who else could it be?" Alya asked bitterly.

'Then, would you?' He asked, shooting Plagg a smile which he returned, "Good going Kitten. I might actually be a bit proud of you right now."

"I'll take it." Adrien told him happily, hearing the girls' confusion below him.

"Would you what?" Rose asked.

'Would I what?' Marinette responded with Rose's question.

'Will you help me?'

'Anything for you.'

He pumped his fist into the air in triumph and called it, "Claws out." He let the transformation take hold before jumping from her rooftop into the alley just behind the bakery. He immediately let the transformation drop, Plagg glaring at him, "What a waste of time. You could have just jumped."

"Two stories Plagg? I wasn't trying to break my leg." Adrien told him curtly.

Plagg huffed, "You've been wearing my Miraculous for almost a year. You wouldn't have broken a leg. Maybe just twisted an ankle."

"Plagg!" Adrien hissed before the kwami ducked into his shirt. He pulled his phone back out of his pocket and video called her as he moved onto the sidewalk.

Her face came up, but none of the other girls were in view. He could tell she was straining to hold the smile in place, even as he smiled at her, "Hey, I thought it would be easier to talk face to face. I hope that's okay."

She nodded, "Of course. It's absolutely fine."

He was still smiling as she asked, trying not to sound like she was on the verge of tears, "What do you need me to do?"

"Are you in your room right now?" He asked, already knowing the answer as he made his way to the front of the bakery.

She nodded again, a slight frown on her face, "Yes why?"

"Stand up." He told her.

She raised an eyebrow at him, "Why?"

"Please? A little trust here Marinette." He told her with a smirk. She looked at him questioningly but stood, "Okay, you have me up. Any other directions?"

"Go to your balcony, please."

He watched over the phone as she made her way up the ladder and onto her balcony. He could hear the girls whispering in the background about what was going on, and why he wanted her out there.

They'd figure it out soon enough.

"Okay Agreste you have me out here, now what?" She asked as she looked up at the stars, making him laugh.

"Look down."

She did and her eyes widened as she realized he was really there, "Adrien? What are you doing here!?" She asked as she leaned over the railing.

He hung up the phone and put it in his back pocket, practically beaming as he called out to her, "Marinette Dupain-Cheng, will you go out with me!?"

The phone fell out of her hand, falling straight into the ground near his feet.

Hey everyone! Sorry I haven’t posted in a bit, I have had A LOT going on. So, here’s a one-shot from a prompt on the Miraculous Discord Server. Shout out to @Leo is engaged to Chise! who posted the prompt! Cross posted on FFN and Ao3! Please don’t repost without my permission! Otherwise, enjoy!

Adrien got out of the car with a bright smile of anticipation on his face. He had spoken to Lila at the photoshoot about hurting Marinette and getting her expelled. It had felt good to stand up for his friend. He knew she would never cheat, hurt, or steal from someone else. The fact that it seemed like everyone, including the teachers, believed it, blew his mind. He just couldn’t wrap his head around the idea that they so easily believed Lila’s lies.

He hurried up the steps, but that was all going to change today. Lila was going to fix this mistake, and Marinette would be back. He’d be able to see her bright smile, and everything would go back to normal. School just, wasn’t the same without Marinette.

He could see it in the faces of all his classmates after only a single day. They all missed her.

He saw Ivan’s large figure first, and then noticed the rest of his classmates spread out near the locker-room door. He headed straight towards Nino, who was hugging a highly upset Alya down the hall off to the side.

“Alya, what’s the matter? Is everything okay?” He asked hurriedly, seeing Nino’s frown deepen.

Alya shook her head but fresh tears streamed down her face. His eyes widened and he looked at Nino, not sure of what to do to help.

Nino let Alya bury her face in his chest before finally looking up to catch his confused stare, “It’s, Marinette.”

Alya sobbed harder and he froze, his stomach twisting into uncomfortable knots, “Marinette, is she okay? She’s not hurt is she?”

Nino shook his head, “No, not in the way you think man. She’s… she’s being permanently expelled.”

Alya said it angrily through her tears, “It's not fair! I know she didn’t do it. She would have never stolen test answers, or that necklace. Marinette would never hurt anyone, and she couldn’t have done it, she couldn’t have!”

Adrien frowned, more confused than before at Alya’s outburst. “I don’t understand. I thought they were supposed to be looking into it,”

Nino glared in the direction of the locker room, “Lila came to school today with a busted lip, bruises on her arms, and a cut under one of her eyes. She said that Marinette cornered her after school yesterday and did that to her, for outing her about stealing the necklace.”

A strong burn started in his chest. He turned away from them and ran over to his other classmates, most of whom were crowded around Lila protectively. He caught her cold green stare, a small smile tugging at the corner of her mouth that made everything in sight go red.

His hands clenched into fists at his sides and he pointedly turned away from her in silence, going straight for the locker room doors. He threw them open more forcefully than he knew he should have, but right now he didn’t care, “Marinette!”

His heart thundered in his chest. He couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Marinette was really packing up her locker. She barely glanced in his direction when Principle Damocles told him, “Mister Agreste, you will leave this room at once.”

He ignored Principle Damocles, his voice taking on a pleading tone as he asked her, “Please, you can’t do this, you can’t just leave. Tell them the truth, tell them you didn’t do it.”

Miss Bustier let out a soft sigh, “Adrien, I understand that you are Marinette’s friend, but there is physical proof of an altercation that happened on school grounds. At this point, all of our hands are tied.”

“Marinette,” he whispered, watching with a heavy heart as she closed the now empty locker and put her bag over her shoulder. She stared at the floor, avoiding his eyes. “Marinette, tell them you didn’t do it.” He begged.

She looked up at him, her eyes glossy with unshed tears. She headed towards him, and his stomach did another uncomfortable twist as she stopped just past him, whispering it sounding so defeated. It tore his heart out.

“Goodbye Adrien.”

He stood there stunned as her footsteps moved away from him, tears burning his eyes. He quickly turned, forcing them to stay back. He nearly called out to her again, but he noticed how she stood taller now, not glancing once in the direction of their classmates. Most of them were frowning at her, and she didn’t say a word to anyone.

“Isn’t, Isn’t anyone going to try and stop her?” He asked them.

Kim said it with an edge of harshness, protectively hovering near Lila, “Can’t you see what she did to Lila? Marinette’s not the person we thought she was.”

“You can’t seriously think,”

“It’s true Adrien.” Lila whimpered, “You are such a good person, don’t let someone like her drag you down. She was only pretending to be friends with everyone.”

He walked up to her slowly, taking her hand and seeing the triumph in her eyes. He cupped her cheek, running his thumb gently over where her cut was before telling her again, “I warned you.”

She dropped his hand and he moved back, shaking his head, “I should have known better.”

He moved away from everyone, but hesitated when he saw Marinette making her way down the hall towards Nino and Alya. Alya’s cries were easily heard as the two best friends hugged as though they’d never see each other again. Nino hugged Marinette next, and she gave the two of them a sad smile before waving at them and turning to leave.

Adrien felt sick, watching his friends being torn apart this way. He didn’t bother turning back to the others, knowing that not one of them was going to stand up for Marinette. After everything she had done, for all of them, not one of them was going to stand at her side and defend her. They were going to just let her leave, without so much as a word. It was no wonder she hadn’t said anything to the group when she walked out. He wondered what they had said to her, or if they had said anything at all.

He took a small step towards his friends. Alya cried into her hands, not able to watch her best friend being escorted out of their school, and wishing that it was nothing more than a bad illusion. Nino pulled his cap down over his eyes, feeling helpless that there was nothing he could do to stop this, and that he hadn’t been able to shield Marinette from Lila’s lies the way she deserved.

Adrien felt his head starting to shake in denial. This wasn’t happening. He refused to let it happen. “Marinette,” he whispered, saying it louder as his feet started moving, “Marinette! Don’t go!”

He ran back down the hall, Nino grabbing him before he could cross where they were standing, “Dude, there is nothing we can do.”

“She can’t go!” He fought to get out of Nino’s, somehow weirdly strong, grip, “She can’t leave! She would have never done this, she couldn’t have done this!” He cried out, seeing Miss Bustier put a hand on Marinette’s shoulder to stop her.

Her voice had the slightest bit of hope left, “Adrien, unless you can absolutely prove that Marinette wasn’t the one who hurt Lila,”

“She couldn’t have done it because she was with me!” He blatantly lied as his breath came out in hard pants, knowing how he was going to get her out of this.

“I met up with Marinette right after school, and she spent the afternoon with me.” He said confidently, hearing a few whispers start behind him.

Marinette turned, her bluebell eyes instantly locked with his. He pleaded through his eyes as he said it clearly, “No one knew we were going to meet up, and I lied to my bodyguard about my fencing lesson. It was cancelled yesterday but I used that time to meet up with Marinette.”

Miss Bustier asked her instantly, “Marinette, is this true?”

Marinette’s voice shook, “Adrien,”

“The akuma attack,” he said, interrupting her, “we hid under the bridge where André had been while waiting for the akuma to pass us. Ladybug and Chat Noir told us to get to safety, and Chat Noir made a pun about burning bridges.”

He smiled at her, seeing her eyes widen. Her voice was barely audible, “And, Ladybug, she… scolded Chat Noir, and bopped him on the head with her yoyo.”

He smiled wider, glad that she was playing along before her words really registered with him. For once, he had to work to keep the smile firmly planted on his face. There was no way, there was no way she could have known that Ladybug had done that to him after his amazing burning bridges pun. Not unless…

Marinette was shaking her head as she stared at him. Her hand automatically went to her earrings, and he knew in that move that it was the truth.

He rubbed the back of his neck nervously, just as an excuse to bring his hand up to fiddle with the ring where she’d be able to see it. He saw the realization in her eyes, and he said it firmly, “That was a disaster of a date, but it was ours, the first of what I hope is so many more.”

“You really mean it?” Marinette asked, not able to hold back her tears any longer.

“Of course. I’ve always meant it.” He told her honestly, not a single piece of doubt left in his heart, “You’ve always been there, whenever me, or anyone else needs you. You protect your friends, and you’d never intentionally hurt someone. Even someone who has been threatening you for months.”

Principle Damocles and Miss Bustier both stared at him in shock, “What exactly are you saying Mister Agreste?”

Adrien unwillingly tore his gaze away from Marinette, and the true anger in his voice didn’t stay hidden, “I don’t know how she did it, but I know that Lila is trying to frame Marinette. Marinette told me a few months ago, in tears, that there was a girl here at school who was threatening to take all of her friends from her,” he glanced at her sheepishly, “including me, specifically, because she knew Marinette’s feelings towards me. It wasn’t until more recently when I realized that person was Lila. I didn’t realize how badly it had actually gotten…”

He looked at Marinette apologetically, saying it heavily, “I’m so sorry I didn’t say something before. I should have known, I should have realized,”

“No, no Adrien, don’t apologize.” Marinette told him instantly, “You were always there when I needed you,” she smiled slightly as another tear fell from her eye, “You and me against the world. Right?”

He nodded with a soft smile, filling with overwhelming love for the girl who had his heart, mask or no mask, “You and me against the world princess.”

Miss Bustier asked her quickly, “Marinette, can you prove you were with Adrien?”

When Marinette stayed quiet, he stared down at his hands, trying to think of anything that they could use as proof. He noticed a smudge of something on his thumb, and frowned at it as he looked closer. He rubbed the dark substances between his fingers, and knew it instantly.

“Miss Bustier, she doesn’t have to prove it.” He lifted his hand to show her, “Lila’s wounds aren’t real. It’s make-up.”

Principle Damocles moved over to him quickly, seeing the make-up tinge his fingers before loudly calling out to her, “Miss Rossi, a moment.”

Miss Bustier moved her hand from Marinette’s shoulder with a smile, and as Lila approached them slowly, a small limp in her step, she asked innocently, “Yes sir?”

“Would you mind showing me the bruises on your arms?” He asked, his serious expression leaving no room for her to refuse. Lila made a show of slowly taking off her jacket, showing off the large purplish bruises on her body. Principle Damocles pulled a handkerchief from his front pocket, smearing one of the larger bruises the second the handkerchief made contact. He showed the stain to Lila, and her eyes widened in horror.

“So, she cornered and threatened you before engaging in a physical altercation, did she?” He asked.

Lila stayed silent and Principle Damocles told her, “My office, immediately.”

“But she did threaten me!” Lila tried, “She was the one who told me she would make everyone hate me. I was trying to protect myself!”

“I’ll hear no more of this. You can explain everything when your mother gets here. Miss Bustier, please escort Lila to my office.”

Miss Bustier looked at Lila sadly, but Lila was absolutely furious, “She stole test answers and hurt me once before. She even stole my grandmother’s necklace! You are going to take her side just because Adrien,”

“Mister Agreste has no reason to lie, however given his statement, I can see why you’d try to get Miss Dupain-Cheng expelled.” He frowned, “I’ve seen teenagers do a lot of terrible things when it comes to figuring out love, but I’ve never had a student try to so thoroughly ruin another’s life.”

“She is ruining mine!” Lila yelled, and Miss Bustier told her calmly, “Let’s go Lila.”

“No! This is unacceptable!” Lila pulled away from Miss Bustier’s outstretched hand and glared at Marinette, “I won’t let you get away with this. You aren’t going to threaten me anymore!”

He stood in her way with a hard scowl, blocking Marinette from her sight, “You’ll have to go through me first.”

Lila was shocked long enough for Miss Bustier to start pulling her away, and Principle Damocles turned back to Marinette, “We will get this sorted, and get the matter cleared up at once.”

“Does this mean, I’m not expelled anymore?” Marinette asked unsure.

“We’ll discuss that with you and your parents tomorrow, after we’ve spoken to Miss Rossi and her daughter. Enjoy the rest of your day Miss Dupain-Cheng.” He told her, already sounding apologetic for everything that had happened so far.

Marinette nodded at him, and Principle Damocles disappeared towards his office. Not a second later Alya had her arms around Marinette again, “I knew it, I knew you could have never done something like that!”

Marinette openly started crying, hugging Alya back tightly, “Never, no matter what she threatened to do.”

Nino gave him a soft punch on the arm, “Way to go mister knight in shining armor.”

He smiled slightly, “I couldn’t let Lila do this to her, not anymore.”

“Dude, I can’t believe you lied to your pops and took Marinette on a date without telling me. I would have had your back you know.” Nino told him.

“It was, kind of, last minute.” He lied with a little more difficulty. In the heat of the moment, the almost-lie had been easy. Directly lying was harder when all he wanted to do was run over to Marinette and beg her to forgive him for being such an idiot all this time.

He closed his eyes heavily, and almost instantly felt another body slam into his. His hands instantly went to the source before wrapping around her when her familiar scent filled him with the warmth he had always felt from her.

“Marinette.” He whispered longingly.

“Adrien,” she whispered back, crying into his chest, “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. It was you, it’s always been you, and everything that makes you who you are.”

He held her tighter, squeezing his eyes shut before he could cry, “I love you, m’lady.” He whispered.

She hugged him tighter, pulling back just far enough to look into his eyes, “I love you, Kitty.”

His voice came out raspy, “I, I really want to,”

Hey everyone! Back to back posts, I know crazy right?! This one is a little shorter, but I love it all the same. I hope you do too! Cross-posted on FF.net and please don’t repost to another site without my permission! Other than that, enjoy!

Day 20 - 3am talks

"This is a life or death situation!"

Marinette rubbed her eyes sleepily, trying not to let the annoyance in her voice show, "Chat, you can't be serious."

"Of course I'm serious!" Chat Noir said from the end of her bed, perched on all fours with a scowl on his face. It had nearly been fifteen minutes already and this mewling Chat wouldn't leave her bed.

"No." She finally said flatly, laying back down and pulling the blankets up to her neck.

Chat pounced on top of her, making her huff, "PURRINCESS!"

"Chat get off!" She said as he gently bounced her over and over again into the bed. "It's three in the morning, I'm not helping you!"

He nuzzled his face into her shoulder with a pout, "But you are the only one who can help me! You are the only one capable of such magnificent feats. I need you!"

"Chat I'm tired. I've pulled three all-nighters in a row, I HAVE to get some sleep." She told him practically begging him to leave her alone, trying to push him off of her with no luck.

"You aren't the only one. I've had three akuma attacks in a row to deal with at all kinds of ungodly hours of the night." He let her push him off of her, only so that he could scoop her up in her blankets. She let out a short yelp, but he kept her cradled carefully in his arms as he stared at the tired annoyance in her bluebell eyes.

"Purrincess, the fate of the world is at stake." He told her seriously.

She gave him a deadpan stare, "It's too early for your dramatics. Figure it out on your own."

"You would risk the lives of everyone in Paris, all because you don't want to help me?" He asked in an extremely fake, shocked voice. "I can't believe you, Marinette. It wounds my heart to know you won't help me when I really need you. You are the only one I can turn to. You are the only one I can trust with a mission as important as this one."

She wiggled her way out of his arms and out of the blankets, sitting on her knees before grabbing his face in her hands. She let the very tip of her nose brush his, staring firmly into his brilliant green eyes. There was not an ounce of remorse in her voice.

"Needing homemade cookies at 3am is not going to cause the downfall of Paris, Chat Noir."

"But you said you were going to make me cookies! I've been dreaming about them for days, I NEED THEM!" Chat mewled, jutting out his lower lip.

"Come back when the sun is up, preferably when it is actually about to go back down." She said as she released him. She started fixing her sheets, as he sat unmoving, crossing his arms like the giant, tantrum throwing child he was.

"Fine, but when I can't show up to fight an akuma because I've been starved of princess Marinette cookies, my body weak and unable to move, YOU'LL have to be the one to answer to Ladybug." He tried, hoping she took the bait.

She snorted, "Oh please," she muttered, hitting him lightly in the face with her pillow, "Go home, Adrien."

"You're so mean, Marinette! I thought you loved me! Where did all of the love go!?" He tackled her back down onto the bed, hearing a small whoosh of air leave her.

She groaned as he wrapped his arms around her, "I do love you, more than anything in the world," she scratched lightly at the back of his wild mane, hearing him instantly starting to purr, "but I'm not making you cookies. End of discussion."

"But,"

"End. Of. Discussion." She enunciated each word carefully.

He told her upset, "I'm not leaving until I get cookies."

She snuggled into him, closing her eyes as the smell of his leather filled her with a sense of happiness, "Fine by me. I'm going back to sleep. You should too. Good night Kitty."

He hummed still sounding pouty, but asked a little softer, "Can I at least get a good night kiss?"

She rolled her eyes and looked up at him. There was a glint in his eye that she didn’t trust, and as she pressed a gentle kiss to his lips, he pulled her closer. He deepened the kiss instantly, turning her peck into a full blown, craving more, couldn't stop, WOULDN'T stop, passionate make-out.

God, she loved the way his lips moved against hers. She found herself moving up to meet him more every time he tried to pull back. She could feel the smile on his face as she pushed him down flat on the bed, her heart racing as she hovered over him. A deep rumble of appreciation moved through his chest into hers, his claws resting lightly on the back of her neck sent shivers down her spine as his fingers twined into her hair.

She finally had to pull away, breathing heavily as she watched the satisfied smirk on his face as he tried to catch his own breath. She sat up and moved away from him, grabbing a hair tie. She pulled it into a low bun and stood, hearing him ask confused, "Princess where are you going?"

She climbed down the ladder, her face still flushed, "To make cookies."

He beamed, asking in a sing-song voice, "Whhhy?"

"I'm never going to fall asleep now. Congratulations. You kissed your way to cookies at 3am. Good talk." She disappeared down the hatch and he rolled around happily on her bed in triumph.

Tikki flew out from her hiding place, stifling her own giggle, "You are terrible Adrien."

He smiled at her, "I know, but at least this way I can make sure she sleeps all day. She needs it. I know she'd still try to get up to go hang out with everyone later, and she needs to rest. I don't like seeing my bugaboo running so hard like this without any breaks."

Tikki smiled proudly at him, "Are you ever going to tell her that you know?"

He looked towards her trapdoor where she had disappeared, "I want her to tell me whenever she's ready. She already knows me on both sides, and I know she wants to tell me too. Ever since we started dating as our civilian selves, I can see how much it weighs on her to keep lying to me. It's just a matter of waiting now, and I'll wait for her for an entire lifetime if I have to. I love her for her, not for her spots."

"She knows that." Tikki tried to assure him, "Master Fu just drilled it into her that her identity was her greatest secret, but she'll come around. I know she will."

Hey everyone! I found the BEST artwork that perfectly fits my story for this day of Marichat May so I HAD to post it! Here’s the fic, but I’ll leave a link to the artwork too!  { https://pg-arttoons.tumblr.com/post/623662454271082496/can-i-interest-anyone-in-some-angst }  @pg-arttoons you are amazingly talented!! 

Enjoy!

Day 7 - Adrien Posters

Marinette hummed happily to herself as she tied the last small knot. She smiled brightly and held up the little pink heart pillow, turning in her chair to show it to her, "It's all done Tikki!"

Tikki flew up to the pillow and smiled brightly, "Oh thank you Marinette, it looks great!"

She headed up her ladder to her bed, Tikki flying up next to her. They found a cozy spot for Tikki's new bed on the small alcove above Marinette's bed, nodding at each other in agreement that it was the perfect spot.

Marinette heard shuffling from above her and went still, looking at Tikki worriedly. They both stayed quiet, listening past the sounds of the heavy rain pounding against the roof.

The shuffling happened again and Marinette moved instantly, going up to her skylight. There is only one person ridiculous enough to be out during a storm like this, and even then, she didn't think he was THIS ridiculous. Glad to see he can still prove me wrong. She thought wryly.

She cracked the skylight and saw him sitting on all fours in the pouring rain. His eyes were closed, his face angled up towards the sky.

"Chat Noir it is nearly midnight, have you lost your mind!?" Marinette told him in exasperated concern.

He barely flinched, looking over at her slowly, "Maybe."

She glared at him before she realized what she was seeing. Something was wrong. She sighed heavily and held her hand out to him, "Come on you."

He hesitated, but then put his hand in hers, letting her pull him down into the room. "Stay put." She ordered with a stern glare. He nodded in silence, barely noticing her leave the room. His eyes were staring unfocused at the ground at his feet; his father's angry yells echoing in his mind.

His father never failed to tell him when he was disappointed in him, but this was the first time his father had ever actually raised his voice in anger at him. For something that he had no control over at that. His harsh words were like a knife through the heart, a fresh stab with every word thrown at him.

A puddle of water was starting to collect on her floor as it dripped from every part of him, his hair sopping wet and sticking to the back of his neck as more cold water trickled down his back. He barely felt it.

"I can't believe you Chat." Marinette's voice cut through his thoughts as she threw a fluffy pink towel over his head. She instantly started rubbing the towel through his hair, "Not only is it cold out, but it is raining to boot. You are completely soaked through." She carefully wiped the water from his face, shaking her head, "You are going to catch a chill, or worse catch a cold." She started wiping the water from his suit, "Are you listening to me kitty?"

He gave the slightest nod, and she huffed slightly, "Of all the ridiculous things you have ever done, this one just may top the cake." She knelt down and cleaned up the water that had collected at his feet, his voice coming out hoarsely, "Sorry."

She barely looked up at him, "It's just water, it's fine." His ears flicked as he heard a ding and Marinette popped up. Heading back out of the room, she told him without looking back, "Stay."

Again he didn't move, but she came back rather quickly, another towel in her hand. She placed the towel over his head, his body beginning to shake as the pleasant warmth seeped into him. "I knew that was going to happen." She muttered, rubbing the warm towel through his hair again as he mumbled it again sheepishly, "Sorry."

She wrapped the still warm towel over his shoulder, shaking her head, "You don't have to apologize."

He held the warm towel in place, feeling his teeth chattering. She stared at him for a minute before her eyes softened, her shoulder's slumping. The frustration in her voice is completely gone, and she asked gently, "What happened?"

He looked away from her in shame, "Nothing."

Her hand went straight to her hip, but she didn't say anything. When he stayed silent, she told him in that same gentle voice, almost like she was trying not to startle him, "Talk to me kitty."

"It's personal." He admitted shivering.

"Tell me anyways." She said concerned, "I know something must have happened. You were sitting out in the middle of a storm, in the middle of the night. Of all the places you could have gone, you came here."

"I, didn't really have anywhere else to go." He admitted quietly, avoiding her gaze. Her face fell, hearing the truth of his words and feeling them twist her heart. She wrapped her arms around him tightly without another word, her natural warmth already making him feel better.

"I'll always be here for you Kitty, whenever you need me." She pulled back just enough to look at him, "If you don't want to talk about it, I won't push you, but if you want to I'm here." She cupped the side of his face softly, "And next time, don't just sit out in the rain okay?"

He nodded, "Promise. I know it's late but, do you mind if I just, hang out here with you for a little while?"

She smiled, "All night if you need to."

He gave her a weak smile. This was why he had come here. He could always count on her to light up the dark.

His gaze traveled to her wall as she moved over to her desk, seeing dozens of clippings from magazines, all of him. Well, Adrien-him.

He tried to not so subtly change the subject, "You must really admire Gabriel Agreste's work." He moved closer to the wall, feeling a smile trying to come out before it fell. Marinette had told him herself that she admired his father's brand. That's all this was.

"Yeah." Marinette said simply, watching Chat Noir staring at the wall of Adrien posters. "I actually know him, Adrien Agreste I mean."

Chat turned to look at her, forcing a smile as his shaking finally started to subside, "Is he as fabulous in person as the magazines make him out to be? Or just a spoiled rich kid who can't do anything right?"

She glared at him, "Neither."

He was a bit taken back by her hard tone, asking truly curious, "Then how do you see him?" Maybe he could figure out why she acted so differently around him than around her other friends.

He saw a slight blush on her cheeks, "He is the sweetest guy you will ever meet. He's unbelievably kind, and incredibly smart." She started to smile, "He works so hard all the time, sometimes I can't believe all the things he does in one day. Piano lessons, learning Chinese, fencing! All of that on top of being an amazing model AND going to school. He makes straight A's!" She started smiling brighter, "He amazes me. He does all of that, and somehow, he stays standing."

She started to frown, "Everyone sees that famous part of him, and our friends see all that he does, but sometimes I feel like I'm the only one who see's how tired he really is. I know it can't be easy for him to be run ragged that way, but day in and day out, he does it with a smile. He has a big heart, and tries to see the best in people, even in the ones who don't deserve it."

He noticed her shoulder's slump and felt his throat tighten even more, feeling the sting in his eyes. He couldn't believe that THIS is how Marinette saw him. All this time, he thought she didn't like him, and she actually...SAW him.

He cleared his throat, trying to sound light, "He must mean a lot to you."

She nodded, looking over at her wall where the posters were, "I would do anything for him, anything. Even if he never returns my feelings."

Chat asked shakily, "You, love him, don't you?"

She looked back at him with a sad smile, "With every fiber of my being."

"Does he know?" He asked already knowing the answer, but Chat wouldn't. She shook her head sadly, "I've tried to tell him, for almost a year, but something always goes wrong." She fiddled with the end of her shirt, "Besides, he'll never notice someone like me. I can't even begin to measure up to him so I don't know why I ever thought he would see me as someone who could be more than a friend."

"How could you think that?" he asked instantly, seeing her eyes widen, "You are Marinette Dupain-Cheng."

She let out a short laugh, "You act like that means something."

"It means everything." He told her without missing a beat, "You are creative and talented, and are always helping people even if it means going out of your way to do it."

She smiled at him, "You're sweet Kitty, but I always knew it was a long shot. I'm lucky that he even considers me a friend, especially considering how totally inept I am around him. Constantly embarrassing myself, falling over my own feet, even getting tongue-tied to the point where I can't even tell him good morning."

So that explains it, he thought. "He can't be that intimidating can he?"

She shook her head, "He doesn't intimidate me in the way you are thinking. It's," she hesitated slightly, "the feelings he gives me. They overwhelm me, in the best way. Those feelings warm me up from the inside out, and put butterflies in my stomach. Seeing him happy, that's what makes me happy, and all I want to do is find a way to make sure that smile never leaves his face."

She smiled shyly, tears in her eyes, "That would be enough for me, just knowing that he is happy. Really, truly happy. To see his genuine smile light up his eyes everyday. I'd stay his friend forever even if it meant watching him find true happiness with someone else."

He didn't know when he had moved across the room towards her. He didn't remember feeling the tears falling from his eyes. He didn't even remember making the conscious choice to hold her tightly to his chest. But he had, they still were, and he was.

His arms tightened further, nuzzling his face into her shoulder, "He's the one who doesn't deserve someone like you princess. You are far, far too good for him."

She wrapped her arms around him, keeping her face buried in his chest without a word. He slowly loosened his grip on her, asking as he stared into her glossy eyes, "Princess, why don't you tell him all of this? Maybe, maybe this is the kind of thing someone like him needs to hear."

"I don't want to tell him." She admitted, his arms dropping from around her as she said it longingly, "I want to show him."

He frowned confused but she explained on her own, "I want to be able to walk up to him and hold his hand so that he knows he isn't alone. I want to hug him so that he knows what it feels like to be comforted when he is sad, or feel safe when he's scared. I want to be able to smile at him so that he see's how happy he makes me just by being himself. I want him to know, just by looking into my eyes, how much I really, truly love him."

He felt his heart swell ten times over. He had always had somewhat of a, refused-to-blatantly-say-it-out-loud-unless-he-was-denying-it, crush on Marinette.

But in a matter of mere minutes, she was proving just how much of those feelings he was actually pushing down.

"Of all the people in the world you could love this way, why him?" He asked, feeling breathless.

Her response came the second their eyes met, saying it like it should explain everything, "Because it's him."

There was a large crash of thunder as a bright strike of lightning illuminated her room, and that was the moment it happened. It was those three simple words from her that broke through his denial to the truth.

I'm in love with her. I'm in love with Marinette.

Hey everyone! On with the show with another one-shot! Cross-posted on Fanfiction, and please, don’t repost on another site without permission! I hope you enjoy!

Day 17 - Paparazzi

"ADRIEEEEEEEEN!"

He groaned, hearing his name being screamed from multiple sources behind him as he ran from the crowd of people trying to catch him.

It was like the 'Adrien the Fragrance' ad all over again. He knew doing that twenty page spread for the Gabriel magazine was going to come back to bite him, and here was the result, fans chasing him throughout all of Paris.

He turned a corner and was startled by multiple brilliant flashes of light, taking a few steps back as he shielded his eyes.

Damn it. - He thought. Paparazzi.

"Adrien!" "Adrien!" "Did you mean what you said in the interview with the spread released last week?"

"Is there really only one girl who has ever caught your eye?"

"Who is she?"

"How long have you known her?"

"What's her name?!"

"Will we be seeing the two of you out together anytime soon?"

"No comment." He answered automatically, backing up away from the paparazzi while trying to avoid backing up into the crowd of girls that had been following him.

"Is that where you are going now? To go see her?" Another of the paparazzi asked.

"No comment!" He said a little firmer, hating how they never took the hint. He was starting to really regret his decision to stay quiet. When his father told him about the spread, he should have never agreed so easily.

He felt something grab his middle and he was suddenly lifted off of his feet straight into the air. His arms instinctually wrapped around the nearest thing, which happened to be a red and black spotted suit.

"L-Ladybug?!" He said bewildered as they dropped onto a rooftop and out of view from both the hoard of fangirls, and the paparazzi.

Ladybug gave him a small smile, "I'm sorry about tackling you like that. I know I shouldn't have interfered but,"

"NO!" He said too loudly in his relief, hugging her tightly without realizing what he was doing, "Thank you. Thank you so much for pulling me out of there."

She hugged him back, glad that she had managed to find him when she did, "You're welcome. I'm sorry you're going through this. It must be tough."

He dropped his arms suddenly and took a step back, blushing profusely as he put a hand to the back of his neck, "It's not the first time something like this has happened. I think the interview really did me in. Fans are one thing, hounding paparazzi are another."

Ladybug frowned, "No, I get that. Believe me, I get it."

They shared knowing smiles before Ladybug asked, "Would you care for a lift home?"

"No, I don't want to trouble you Ladybug. You already saved me from that mob." He told her, embarrassed that she had to save him in the first place. "If you could just, let me down off the roof, preferably somewhere no one will notice, I can make my own way back."

She smirked, "It's no trouble, and I'd hate to have you get chased all over the city all over again." She looked up in thought before asking curiously, "Isn't there somewhere nearby you could maybe go to hide out for a bit? Maybe with a friend or something?"

He glanced around, "Honestly, I don't even know where I am. I've been taking random turns just trying to lose everyone." He peered carefully over the edge of the roof and saw that he was just a few blocks away from the Dupain-Cheng bakery. Marinette. She'd let him hide out at her place for sure, and maybe he'd be able to sneak a few treats in while he was there.

"Actually, I think I have the perfect place and it's not too far from here." He told her happily.

She nodded, but couldn't hide her concern, "And you are sure you can make it on your own?"

He nodded instantly, "Without a doubt. You've already done more than enough by going out of your way to help me." He asked a little curious, "Did I miss an akuma attack or something? I don't think anyone's ever really seen you out unless there was one."

Her cheeks just under her mask turned pink, "O-oh, uh, I wasn't doing anything spectacular or anything, and there wasn't an akuma." She chewed her lower lip, admitting it sounding embarrassed, "I was actually walking home when I saw the paparazzi catch you at the corner. Then the fan-mob came up behind you, and you really looked like you wished you were anywhere but there so,"

He felt his heart flutter happily, "You transformed, just to save me?"

She nodded sheepishly and he hugged her again, simply because he couldn't help himself, "Thank you. I know that could have been risky for you."

"No one was paying attention to me. All eyes were on you." She said it a little softer, "It helps that my civilian self is easily looked over anyways."

"I seriously doubt that." He told her instantly, staring into her eyes. "Your civilian self is probably just as amazing as the way you are now. You may wear a mask, but you are still you. The only difference is a few spots." He touched her mask carefully, and she took a small step back, her voice shaking as she told him, "Y-You're very sweet Adrien, but trust me, you'd never notice me as my civilian self. That I can promise you."

"I've been told I have pretty good eyesight." He teased, smiling brightly when she let out a small laugh that rang through his entire being.

"Let me get you out of here mister twenty-page spread." She teased back, putting her arm around his waist. He hoped she couldn't feel his heart thundering against his ribcage as she lowered them slowly into the nearby alley. She really looked reluctant to leave but he told her with a smile, "I'll be okay, honest. Thank you again Ladybug."

She nodded, "Be safe Adrien. I hope this all dies down soon, for your sake."

She yo-yoed away and he sighed, telling her softly after she disappeared, "You always find a way to make me fall in love with you more, don't you M'lady?"

Plagg floated out from the pocket of his shirt, shaking his head, "You want to get caught by that mob don't you?"

Adrien shivered, "Not a chance. Plagg, Claws Out." He felt the transformation take hold and pulled his baton, vaulting back up to the rooftops. He headed straight towards the bakery, clearing the distance in a few short minutes and glad that he had taken the route with a view. At three of the four corners he would have had to take if he'd gone on foot, there were MORE paparazzi and fans hanging out looking for him.

He dropped onto Marinette's balcony with a relieved sigh, hearing a squeak of surprise coming from below before her head popped up out of the skylight, "C-Chat Noir? What are you doing here?"

He instantly fell to his knees and begged her, "Please purrincess, please let me hang out here for a little while."

She eyed him concerned, "Why? What's going on? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, and I can't explain but I really just need some place to hide out for a little while. Please?" He asked hopefully, giving her the biggest pleading eyes he could.

She didn't look remotely phased, "Why don't you just go home?"

He fidgeted nervously, "Uh, I can't, explain that either, not without revealing my identity."

She started to frown at that, and he told her softly, "You are the only person I can trust. Please Marinette?"

Her frown softened until it turned into a smile, "Fine, come on you pouty kitty."

He smiled brightly and followed her down into her room. He instantly spread out on her floor, stretching out before letting his arms stay splayed out at his sides, "You are a lifesaver purrincess."

She rolled her eyes, watching the tension leave his shoulders. "You owe me one Kitty, and I intend to collect."

He told her quickly, "Whatever the purrincess desires, it is yours!"

She held back her laugh and sat in her desk chair, asking curious, "Really Chat, are you sure you are okay?"

He let out a heavy sigh, staring at her ceiling, "It's just, been a long day." He corrected himself, "It's been a long week actually."

"Guess it's going around." Marinette muttered to herself, but with his sensitive hearing he'd heard her clearly. He sat up and perched on all fours on the floor, tilting his head slightly as he asked curiously, "What do you mean? You've had a long week too?"

"Something like that." She admitted, flipping the page of whatever book she was looking through. He stood and walked over to her, flinching at the sight of the fashion magazine that was causing all this hell. He tried to play off his hatred of the dreadful magazine by asking lightly with a smile planted on his face, "Hey, that's the Gabriel Magazine right? The one with the designer's sons spread?"

Marinette nodded a bit sadly, "Yeah, this is the one that's causing him all kinds of grief."

He asked as though he didn't know exactly what she meant, "Grief? Is the spread no good?"

"The spread is fine. Adrien looks handsome as always," a slight frown crept onto her face as she stared at one of the pictures, "I prefer his real smile, but that's just me."

He peered over her shoulder, honestly confused this time as he commented, "He's smiling in the picture though."

She looked up at him with a shy smile, "Yes, but that," she pointed to the picture on the page, "is his 'model' smile."

"Why does it sound like you have quotes around the word model?" He said with a raised eyebrow.

She giggled slightly, "I guess it did come out that way huh? This smile is the one he shows everyone. It's automatic and to anyone who doesn't know him, they believe it when they see it."

He stared at the seriousness of her face as he said it, knowing it was true, "But you don't."

She shook her head, "No, I don't." She looked back down at the magazine, "I don't know how to explain it, but I can just, tell. His real smile is so much brighter than this one. His eyes shine and he looks so genuinely happy." She said it heavily, "I wish I had a way to make sure he could smile like that all the time."

Chat felt his heart warm and he smiled, "He means a lot to you, doesn't he?"

It left her before she could stop it, "More than a lot, I love him."

He felt his knee's shake, "You, love him?"

She told him quickly, "I know, it's ridiculous right? You probably think it's just some silly crush from a crazy fangirl."

"No!" He said too quickly in his nervousness, seeing her look surprised before he explained, "I, I'd like to think I know you well enough to know that you mean it, when you say you're in l-love with him."

She smiled sadly, "Thanks Kitty, but you don't have to try and make me feel better." She stared down at the magazine longingly, "Someone like Adrien, he'd never notice me as anything more than a friend." She swiveled in her chair, making sure she could still see Chat Noir and the magazine lying on her desk.

"I'm glad to be his friend, I really am," she laid her head on one of her arms without turning her back to Chat, "I just wish he wouldn't look me over so easily, so that he could see how much he really means to me."

She reached out and fidgeted with the framed picture on her desk of her and Alya, with him and Nino standing on either side of them, tipping it back and forth lightly with a finger.

He tried to pull himself together, her words echoing inside him. Marinette, loved him. But she, she had always denied that she felt something more for him. He had always felt amazingly lucky that he could even call her his friend, and she actually, cared about him so much more than that.

"When did you, fall in love with him?" He asked, trying not to let his nerves show.

She kept fiddling with the picture frame, sighing heavily, "It wasn't one moment really. He surprises me with his kindness, and in the same second can surprise me with his fierceness when it comes to protecting his friends. I get all tongue-tied and can barely stay on my feet when I see him, and he's so sweet. He doesn't ever mention how awkward I am around him. He probably thinks I'm a lunatic."

"I'm sure he doesn't." He told her kindly, her words touching his heart. Usually the first thing people talked about were his looks, and then all the 'great' talents he'd been forced to learn. She didn't mention either, and he had a feeling she wasn't going to bring them up. It sent his heart into a pounding flurry, beating against his chest. How could this incredible girl have so much love in her heart for him? How could he have never realized her feelings when they were as clear as a crystal sky now? He must have really been blind.

"And he's brave," she said with a small smile as she stared at the picture, "he pushed me out of the way of an akuma more than once, when he could have gotten hurt himself. Sometimes when he looks at me, I feel like maybe he sees me, just a little bit. My heart flutters like a hummingbird, and I start to feel all warm inside." She sat up and looked over to the corner of her room where a black umbrella sat leaning up against the wall.

"I guess, it really all started with that." She pointed to the umbrella and Chat looked at it in surprise, recognizing it instantly. "After I treated him so terribly when we first met, he offered me his umbrella even though he'd be without one. He had this look in his eyes, this, something, that just drew me to him instantly. He wasn't anything like what I expected or originally thought, and now that I've had the chance to really get to know him, I know that he's so much more than the face that everyone sees."

She frowned slightly, glancing towards her window, "I hope he's doing okay. All week his bodyguard has been practically escorting him into school because of how bad the paparazzi have gotten. He doesn't deserve to be treated that way. I hate that everyone forgets that he's not just a model or a face on a magazine, he's a person who just wants to be able to hang out with his friends without causing a riot."

"Well, you probably aren't wrong." He managed to get out normally, his eyes glued to the beautiful girl who saw past the glamor and name to who he was underneath. She was probably the only girl in all of Paris who really did.

"He's lucky." He said simply, drawing her attention instantly, "That someone as beautiful inside as she is outside, cares about someone like him at all."

She smiled at him, "He needs people to care about him, not just fawn over him or want to be his friend because he's famous." She let out a soft sigh, "Maybe one day he'll start to see me the way I see him, but even if he never notices me, my feelings will never change. That I can promise you."

'Y-You're very sweet Adrien, but trust me, you'd never notice me as my civilian self. That I can promise you.'

"Ladybug." He whispered, feeling like everything in the world was falling into place.

"Ladybug?" Marinette repeated confused.

He stared into her eyes, the same beautiful bluebell eyes that had captured his heart without her even knowing it. He had to correct her, just like he had before.

"You're wrong you know." He said, wanting nothing more than to close the gap between them.

"Kitty I have no idea what you are talking about." She deadpanned seriously.

He grinned. He wasn't going to keep it from her that he knew, and at the same time, he was going to make sure she knew the truth too. "You're not someone who is easily overlooked. You are beautiful and kind, and caring." He motioned to her wall of designs, "You are crazy talented," he smiled softly, "and you are amazing exactly the way you are now."

He reached up and cupped her cheek, his fingertips resting along the space where her mask would be, not knowing when his feet had carried him over to her. Her eyes widened as she instinctively moved back, her voice shaking, "Y-You're very sweet Kitty but..." she stopped, her voice catching as a lump formed. This... this was just like the conversation she had just had with...

He saw the realization fill her eyes, and told her again, "You may wear a mask, but you are still you. The only difference is a few spots."

It came out as nothing more than a whisper, "Adrien."

He held her face in his hands, making sure she understood, "I told you I had pretty good eyesight."

Her shock turned to pure joy, her eyes tearing up as she said it excitedly, "ADRIEN!" She threw her arms around his neck and he held her instantly, reveling in the way they fit perfectly against each other.

"That went better than I thought." He happily mused out loud.

She pulled back and her face turned white right in front of him, "Oh my god. OH MY GOD! I JUST TOLD ADRIEN HOW I FELT!"

He stood unmoving, watching as she started pacing around her room, rambling so quickly about... the end of the world? She pulled on her pigtails, groaning before adding it nearly in tears, "Oh my god my life is over."

He chuckled softly, watching as she crouched into herself. He went over and crouched in front of her, "I don't think this is going to cause the end of the world, and your life is nowhere near over purrincess."

She shot him a glare at the pun, but he merely grinned, "What? It's true. I think this was a miraculous way to find each other, don't you?"

He told her a little softer, feeling his cheeks warm, "And, I love you too, with or without your spots."

She blushed nearly scarlet, asking with a small frown, "But, you never,"

"Fought with myself, about the most courageous, most daring, girl I've ever met and the beautifully kind, most amazing friend I've ever had?" He told her the truth, "More than once, and for a lot longer than you'd probably believe."

"Try me." She said instantly.

"Adrien the Fragrance." He said sheepishly, watching her eyes widen in shock. "You helped me then too. For hours we ran around Paris, and the whole time I kept thinking, this girl is amazing. I can't believe she's doing this for me. I'm literally dragging her into the chaos and she's not the least bit affected." He started to smirk, "And in her pajamas no less!"

Her face burned and she pushed him hard on the shoulder, watching with immense satisfaction as he fell straight on his behind, "Serves you right for teasing!"

He smiled at her lovingly, acting as though nothing had happened, "That was the first time I realized that being around you made me feel different than I did with anyone else. I was, incredibly happy, despite everything that was going on, and ever since then, I noticed it happening more and more. As long as you were around, nothing could ruin my day."

He moved to his knees leaning towards her so he could rest his forehead against hers, "You've always been the direction my compass has pointed me to, if... if I'm not too late."

He felt her soft lips press against his with a passion that sparked every nerve ending to life. His hands found her waist and she moved closer, practically sitting in his lap as she kissed him senseless.

Her hands moved through his hair, causing a deep rumble through his chest as he felt his way up her back. She arched into him, rising up slightly so that she was in control of the kiss, and he wasn't complaining. The tips of his claws cut into the ties holding her hair, and some small part of his brain that was still registering information warned him to be careful or he'd end up hurting her by accident. That was the last thing he wanted.

He whispered it quickly against her lips, "Plagg claws in." His transformation dropped but his lips were back on hers before it fell completely. He put his now clawless hand to the back of her neck, feeling her loose tresses skim like silk across the back of his hand. She hummed appreciatively, adding fuel to the wild fire already raging inside him.

Tikki had her hand over Plagg's mouth, practically holding him in a headlock to keep him quiet as he squirmed to get away from her. The second he was free of the ring, she had pounced. She knew he'd ruin this moment for her and she would NOT let him ruin what she had been waiting over a year for!

She shushed him again as he mumbled unintelligibly, probably something along the lines about gross emotions and needing camembert. She was overjoyed watching their chosen get lost in each other, oblivious to the world around them.

...Bonus...

Neither of them are sure of when they moved to the chaise from the floor, but it sure was more comfortable.

"IT'S COMPLETELY UNACCEPTABLE!" Plagg yelled at Adrien, who merely rolled his eyes and tightened his hold on his new girlfriend lying in his arms, both of them trying to catch their breath. Marinette giggled, making his smile turn loving as he looked at where she had her head resting on his chest. The second their eyes made contact, she gave him another small kiss that made his heart flutter all over again.

Hey everyone! Here is another one-shot from my Marichat May collection on Fanfiction! Please do not repost to another site without permission! I hope you enjoy!

Day 11 - "I almost lost you."

Her breath escaped in heavy pants, her heart racing in anticipation. She knew she had to hurry. She had to get away before it was too late. Ugh! Why did she have to pick today to make a trip all the way across town? She was still too far from the bakery, the endless streets in her path laid out like a constantly changing maze. She knew these streets of course, but from a more, aerial view. Now that she was on the ground, she had to keep her head on straight as she pushed herself forward.

She felt like she was practically flying down the streets of Paris, taking every other turn and changing directions any chance she could. Her eyes darted around wildly, scanning for the dark shadow that had been chasing her. She had to find a way to throw him off.

The quickly setting sun quickened her pace.

She was running out of time.

She turned another sudden corner, glancing behind her with a triumphant smirk. There was no shadow. She had finally managed to throw him off. She turned back and found herself facing a dead end alley. She stopped cold, fear overtaking everything else.

Piercing green eyes were staring straight at her, the wide predatory grin making her take a small step back at his unusually calm voice, "I almost lost you."

She forced herself to stand firm, he didn't look half as out of breath as she felt, "You did lose me."

She turned from the alley and bolted, hearing his deep chuckle behind her before she heard the familiar sound of his baton extending.

That damn Chat. She knew he was no doubt enjoying this. This was one of the most ridiculous things she had ever agreed to. Playing a city-wide game of Chat and Mouse with a super-powered Chat... that was smart.

Of course she could have transformed and really thrown him off, but right now he was tracking her scent. If he caught her scent change, and then happened to find Ladybug with the same scent, things were going to get out of hand really fast.

No, she would beat him as his own game. All she had to do was get to the bakery before he caught her. That dead end alley had almost been her undoing.

Something tight wrapped around her neck from behind, instantly choking her as she was roughly pulled back. She slammed into a firm body, her arms pinned to her side by someone easily four times her size.

"There she is, the little goody-goody." A familiar hateful voice said in triumph, moving into her line of sight.

She recognized her instantly, "Lila?"

"The name is Exposé." Lila said heatedly, "You think you've won, that someone like you could really beat me at my own game?!"

Marinette saw the purple energy whip in Lila's hand start to glow, and the tail end that was wrapped around her neck tightened. She struggled to get it out, "Your lies are what did you in. You just can't, hide behind them anymore."

"Because of you! I had everyone eating out of the palm of my hand and you had to go and ruin everything!" Lila screeched before asking her flatly, the whip beginning to glow black, "Now, let's expose all your lies. Let's start by,"

A loud whistle echoed around them, drawing their attention. Lila turned away from her to see Chat Noir dropping a safe distance behind her. There was a smile on his face, his voice light, but his eyes couldn't hide his anger, "Now, now, let's not get too hasty. Let the girl go."

Lila huffed, her grip on the whip tightening. "Stay out of the way Chat Noir."

"I can't do that." Chat said sternly, his eyes darting to her briefly in worry.

"Why not? What does this little nobody mean to you? All she does is ruin people's lives and takes their friends from them. She doesn't deserve your help, she deserves to have all of her secrets exposed and that's exactly what i'm going to do!" Lila turned back to her, yelling quickly, "Scream your biggest secret to all of Paris!"

Marinette felt Lila's power forcing the truth out of her, even as Chat Noir raced towards her.

But it was too late, the words came out of her loudly as she squeezed her eyes shut, "I'M IN LOVE WITH CHAT NOIR BUT CAN'T TELL HIM BECAUSE I'M STILL IN LOVE WITH ADRIEN AGRESTE TOO!"

Chat's baton made contact with the weird, camera-looking sentimonster and it let Marinette go. The sentimonster turned with a low growl, acting like a shield to keep Chat Noir away from Marinette. Lila was smirking in triumph, "Interesting. Tell me more."

Marinette covered her mouth with one hand while trying to pull the whip away, but Lila only smiled more, "It's useless to fight my power. Tell me something else, something you've never told anyone about you."

Marinette shook her head, and the whip connecting her to Lila began to glow again, "I said tell me!"

She couldn't keep it in, "I'VE WORN A MIRA-"

Chat's body slammed into hers, his hand covering her mouth as he called it loudly, "Cataclysm!"

He instantly touched the whip and it disintegrated to ash. Marinette coughed roughly, Chat lifting her up and vaulting away as Lila screeched in anger. Marinette clung to Chat tightly, still coughing as he ran, trying to get some distance. She knew that this was a worst case scenario happening right now.

Chat's time was running out before his transformation fell. She couldn't transform into Ladybug in front of him. Lila and her sentimonster would no doubt be right behind them. And to make matters worse, she had just screamed to all of Paris that she was in love with two boys, one of which was currently avoiding her gaze.

Chat took them up to the top of Montparnasse Tower, finally setting her down after making sure they weren't still being followed and asking worried, "You okay Marinette?"

She nearly flinched. Chat rarely called her by her actual name anymore, and certainly never with that kind of uncertainty. For weeks he had been calling her purrincess, at any given chance he had.

She nodded in silence, and he lifted her chin carefully, frowning at what he saw, "You're burned. I'm sorry I used Cataclysm so close to you. Ladybug's cure should heal you right up though." His ring chirped its first warning but Chat didn't move to leave.

She put her hand on his wrist, lowering his hand from her face, "You need to go."

"Honestly, I don't want to." He said quietly.

She lifted his hand, showing him the flashing ring, "You are going to transform back."

"I don't care." He told her honestly.

They stared at each other sadly without a word. Chat could see the struggle on her face at the forced confession, and honestly, his heart was still trying to figure out why it was hurting so much. He had been shocked to hear her say it, but then was instantly happy, until the second half of the sentence came out.

She was in love with both halves of him, and didn't know it. That was her biggest secret, that she was in love with what she thought was two people. Chat finally could take her silence and asked worried that she hadn't said anything yet.

"Do you really, love me?"

She looked away from him, her voice shaking, "I don't know."

"You sounded pretty sure earlier." He reminded her lightly.

She turned to look at him sternly, "I was under the influence of an akuma!"

"Who only forced you to tell the truth." He said quickly before asking sadly, "Is Adrien, he's the boy you were telling me about before, isn't he?"

Her face flushed but she nodded, embarrassed tears in her eyes, "You probably think it's stupid, just some unrealistic celebrity crush."

"I don't." He said quickly, his tail snapping behind him, "I, I just don't understand how, why someone as amazing as you could, be in love with someone like him."

His ring beeped again and she told him, "Chat you need to go, no one can know your identity."

"Only if you tell me why you've never told him how you really felt,"

"Because he'll never notice someone like me! I'm just a friend! That's all I'll ever be!" Tears streamed down her face as Chat stood there, staring at her as the pain in her eyes tore at his heart. "He's never looked at me that way. He's never seen how much he really means to me."

She wiped her eyes frustrated that she was even in this situation, "And then you come along, and you aren't anything like what everyone thinks. Yes you are a flirt, but you are also sincere and kind, and even though you put on this show as though you have all this confidence, I've seen the human underneath who is vulnerable and afraid."

His ring beeped out louder and she turned him around, pushing him away forcefully, "Go, we can talk about this later. I can't see you de-transform."

He easily turned back around and hugged her tightly, saying it stubbornly, "Then close your eyes, because I'm not going anywhere."

"Chat," she said sternly, trying to pull away, but he wouldn't let her, "No. I'm tired of hiding from you. I love you Marinette. I need you to know that. I should have told you weeks ago but I didn't because I didn't think that you saw ME as anything more than a friend."

He felt her stiffen in his arms, her voice shook as she asked shocked, "You, love me?"

"With all my heart." He said without a second's hesitation.

She knew it couldn't be true, "What about Ladybug?"

He only managed a half smile, "She made it very clear that there was someone she already loved, and I've accepted that he must be incredible for her to love him the way she does. I'm her partner and her best friend, but I'll never compare to him. When I accepted that," he lifted her eyes back to him, smiling a little more, "I realized that there was this beautifully kind and caring girl right in front of me, who I couldn't stop thinking about."

His ring flashed it's last warning and he smiled wider, "Well, not in front of me but, behind me, would be more accurate."

A flash of green washed over him, making Marinette close her eyes. She felt a gentle, ungloved hand on her face, "Please open your eyes."

She couldn't believe this. She wanted to know. It was killing her to have her eyes closed, and like the weakling she was, she caved.

Her eyes fluttered open, immediately catching familiar piercing green eyes. He smiled shyly, "Hi princess."

"A-Adrien?" She barely managed to get out as her eyes widened.

"Not, going to, make it," Plagg muttered dramatically as he floated down into Adrien's hand, "Need, cheese."

Adrien rolled his eyes, pulling out a piece of camembert from his pocket, "Hurry and eat Plagg, we still have an akuma to go after."

Plagg looked at her and winked subtly, "I think we still have time. Besides I'm sure Ladybug is already on the way."

Marinette nodded, "I'm sure she is. I'm glad Lila hasn't managed to find us yet."

He nodded, his face falling as she finally looked back at him, "Are you, disappointed that it's me?"

She threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly, "Of course not. I love you exactly the same as I've always loved you, no," she pulled back to see his reaction, "I love you even more."

He smiled that beautiful, genuine smile she loved and pulled her close, "I don't know how I got this lucky."

She giggled, telling him, "I have a feeling I know how."

He looked at her confused and she took his hand, pulling him to hide with Plagg right behind them. She squeezed his hand and told him shakily, "Don't, don't be too mad at me okay? Just know that, you were the boy. It's always been you."

Plagg was smirking as he slowly munched on his cheese, knowing his kitten's reaction was going to be priceless.

Adrien asked with his head tilted slightly to the side, still confused, "What are you talking about Marinette?"

Marinette took a few steps back, calling her softly, "Tikki?"

Tikki flew out of her purse into view, Adrien's eyes widening to the size of saucers, his mouth dropping to the ground as the words left her, "Spots on!"

A flash of pink magic flew around her, and Adrien stepped back, tripping over himself and ending up on the ground. Plagg cackled loudly, grabbing his stomach, "Oh man, that was totally worth the wait."

Adrien stared at Ladybug, twisting her foot nervously into the ground. "Y-You, you're, m'lady." He meant it as a question, but realized he wasn't half as surprised as he thought. Shocked, amazingly relieved, but not surprised.

"I'm sorry Adrien. I'm sorry I kept hurting you as Chat. I never meant to,"

He was up in a second and had her in his arms the way he always dreamed, "Bugaboo, you were pushing me away, for me. I can hardly be upset about that, so don't apologize."

"WHERE DID THEY GO!" Lila's nearby screech forcing them to drop slightly to avoid being seen. Lila sounded thoroughly irritated, "What use are you, you stupid sentimonster, find them now!"

Ladybug moved to stand but Adrien grabbed her hand to stop her, "Wait, give me a second and we'll go together."

She shook her head, caressing his face, "Take your time. The last thing we need is for her to find you up here. She's a liar, but she's not stupid. She'll put it together." She kissed his cheek, gaining immense satisfaction at the scarlet blush making its way onto his face, "I can purr-tect my Kitty until then."

The scarlet of his face turned crimson but he was grinning widely, "Did you just pun m'lady?"

Ladybug stood, saying it easily with a teasing twinkle in her eye, "No idea what you mean." She jumped over the side where they were hiding and saw Exposé staring out into the city, the sentimonster nowhere in sight. That was a plus.

She whistled the same way Chat had earlier, and Lila turned angrily, "Oh great. Now I have a bug problem."

Ladybug knew it was pointless, but tried anyways, "We don't have to keep doing this Lila."

A whip of energy formed in Lila's hand as she cracked it at her side, "Save your breath hero."

Lila threw the whip towards her but she jumped out of the way. There was no way she wanted that whip to hit her a second time. She tried Chat Noir's tactic, telling Lila as though she didn't have a care in the world, "Aren't you trying to hit me? That wasn't even close. Can't you imagine the secrets I have that you could expose? I thought you'd be trying a little harder to 'whip' me into submission."

Lila growled and formed a second whip in her other hand.

Maybe goading her on wasn't the best idea.

She managed to get her yo-yo tangled with one of the whips, and Lila smirked. The second whip came cracking towards her, but a familiar silver baton caught it easily.

"Now, now Lila, paws off the Ladybug." Chat chided with a smirk. They pulled their weapons back, standing together as they put some distance between them and Lila, "Great timing Kitty."

"I aim to please m'lady." Chat said with a dramatic bow.

Lila's whip cracked between them, causing them to separate. "Where did you take Marinette alley cat?" Chat moved closer to Lila, "She's out of your reach." He lunged, keeping her back long enough for Ladybug to call her lucky charm. As the lucky charm formed in the air, Ladybug was lifted off the ground and pulled back, her yo-yo dropping from her hand.

"Ladybug!" Chat cried, seeing the sentimonster holding her in his iron grip.

He moved to free her, but Lila wrapped the whip around his ankle, sending him slamming into the ground.

The sentimonster held her out over the edge of Montparnasse, Lila telling him in triumph, "You want the Ladybug free alley cat? Hand over your miraculous like a good pet."

Chat saw the lucky charm just a few feet away. It was a yo-yo, with his Chat Noir paw on it. The Lucky Charm was meant for him. He knew what he had to do, "You'll never get my Miraculous."

He felt the whip tighten around his ankle and called it, "Cataclysm!" He snagged the whip, feeling it disintegrate and taking off towards the lucky charm.

"DROP HER!" Lila ordered.

Ladybug let out a short scream as he picked up the yo-yo with his paw print on it. He threw himself over the edge after her, his heart racing as his body collided with hers. He turned in the air, throwing the yo-yo up. He felt it catch and pulled as hard as he could, trying to slow their descent. Ladybug grabbed his baton and extended it, slamming it into the side of the building and further slowing their fall.

Their feet softly touched the ground, and Chat fell to his knees, pulling Ladybug with him, "You're okay. You're okay." He buried himself in her shoulder, breathing heavily in his panic.

She hugged him tightly, not caring that the crowd of people that had formed were watching them intently. "I'm okay Kitty."

"I, I almost lost you. I thought, I thought I wasn't going to make it." He said shakily, holding her tighter.

She kissed the top of his head, "I knew you'd catch me Kitty. You always do."

Her earrings began to beep, and it brought him out of his panic, "We have to finish this."

She nodded, handing him his baton. He handed her the lucky charm and they made their way back up Montparnasse. An irate Lila and her sentimonster were waiting for them. They didn't say anything to her this time, rushing her to try and end this as quickly as they could. Ladybug realized that the akuma was in Lila's necklace, and after a few minutes, finally managed to snag it.

"NO!"

She slammed the necklace into the ground, releasing the akuma. She caught it quickly, glad that she had managed to get her actual yo-yo back during the fight. She heard the sound of glass breaking as Chat shattered one of the lenses on the sentimonster. The dark blue feather rose into the air and she caught it with a relieved sigh.

"Bye bye little butterfly. Bye bye little feather." Ladybug said smiling. "Miraculous Ladybug!" The sentimonster disappeared and Lila returned to normal, glaring at them as they shared their usual fist bump.

Chat's ring began to beep in time with another beep from her earrings. They took off together, making a b-line straight for the mansion because it was closer than the bakery. Chat jumped into his room, hearing Ladybug land softly behind him, just as her transformation fell. He let his own transformation drop before pulling her into his arms, "I swear you scared one of my lives out of me m'lady."

She smiled to herself, hugging him back, "I'm okay Adrien."

"Can we pleeeeease be sappy AFTER cheese? I need Camembert!" Plagg whined.

"You can't even give them one minute Plagg?" Tikki scolded him with a stern look.

Plagg held his stomach protectively, "So empty, it's not fair."

They quickly fed their kwami's, Adrien asking her with a sly smile, "So, since I caught you earlier, does that mean I win the game?"

She corrected him, "You were supposed to catch Marinette, not Ladybug. It doesn't count."

"You're the same person!" He said pouting.

"Doesn't count." She said again.

He said it slyly, "I would have won."

"Oh please, you weren't even close." She said easily.

"Let's go again." He tried, hearing Plagg groan, "Ugh, not another transformation already. I won't do it!"

Tikki patted the top of Plagg's head, giving him a subtle wink as she said it sounding light, "Maybe you guys should rest for a little while, and maybe talk about what you are going to do now that you know you are in love with each other."

Plagg grinned at his counterpart lovingly. She was evil and Kwami's did he love her for it. Marinette and Adrien both started stuttering, their faces turning red as they jumped back away from each other in embarrassment at how close they had gotten.