04.16.19

Marinette heard the kwami's voice traveling up to her ears. Her body felt particularly heavy being pinned down to the bed, which was just one of the very few reasons why she didn't want to open her eyelids. 

"Marinette! Wake up!" the kwami awoke her further. 

"Five more minutes..." she whined sleepily, burying her face on her soft, cloud-like pillow. 

"Marinette, you said you wanted me to wake you up early!" Tikki grumbled annoyedly, ruffling the blunette's unkempt hair. 

"Fine," she responded, rubbing her eyes while still being a bit drowsy. 

Marinette did the usual and got ready, then Tikki went inside her bag. She went downstairs and ate breakfast. After, she took some cookies for her kwami, and stuffed them in her bag without her parents noticing. 

"Bye!" she waved goodbye to her mom and dad. They waved back, and she walked to school.

A few seconds later, she immediately remembered when she first saw Master Fu and helped him cross. She smiled at the memory and continued walking. She arrived at school, first seeing the last person she wanted to see.

Chloè...

"Oh, look who it is," Chloè sneered. Marinette frowned in disgust. She just wanted to go to class in peace. She already had problems with Adrien; she didn't want more complications.

"What do you want, Chloè?" she huffed in a provoked manner.

"I heard Adrikins said you were a worthless Admirer, and well, he's not wrong." Chloè laughed mockingly. Sabrina was beside her looking sad. She mouthed a 'sorry,' and Marinette mouthed an 'it's okay.' She was about to cry when she heard a rather angelic voice.

"That's enough, Chloè."

"Adrikins, dear!" Chloè gasped, exclaiming in her very annoying voice as she flung herself on him. Marinette was astonished. Why in the world was Adrien holding a bouquet of roses? Chloè squished Adrien with her tight hug; to be honest, his face was priceless. He seemed disgusted, annoyed, hurt, and irritated.

Marinette giggled. She didn't expect that to come out of her mouth. She was amused by a guy that tore her to shreds. "M-Marinette?" Adrien looked surprised and amazed at the same time; Chloè and Sabrina were surprised as well. She mean, she was surprised herself.

She quickly changed the mood, coughing as she returned to looking stoic. Chloè stopped hugging Adrien then opened her mouth. Marinette shuddered.

Terrifying.

"Why are you holding roses? Are they for moi?" Chloè asked, pointing to herself. 

"No Chloè, these are not for you..." Adrien replied rudely. 

"Ugh, whatever. Anyway, let's get away from this...admirer Adrikins, she's not worth our time." At this point, Adrien looked furious. Pissed, to be precise. 

"Chloè, do you mind leaving me alone with my...admirer? I want to uhm insult her...alone." Adrien gritted his teeth, holding back his fists. He sounded sarcastic. Nevertheless, Marinette was still offended. 

"Of course Adrikins, anything for you. Come on Sabrina!" Chloè said, strutting away as if she were a model on a runway. Marinette felt somewhat relieved, but also still hurt by what he said. She crossed her arms, avoiding his gorgeous eyes.

"W-what do you want?" She mentally slapped herself for stuttering. 

To my surprise, Adrien handed out the bouquet to me. "This is for—"

He was cut off by the bell.

Marinette sighed in relief without Adrien noticing; she didn't want to say another sentence filled with stutters anymore. She ran to class not daring to look back at Adrien, sitting beside Alya. "Girl, about Adrien, I'm really sorry," the brunette sighed dismally.

"It's alright Alya..." she replied, trailing off.

"Oh, and did you read the texts I sent you?" asked Alya. Marinette only responded by rubbing her nape nervously. "It's fine Marinette, I understand. You needed space." Her best friend smiled understandingly. 

"Thanks, Alya," she spoke gratefully, glad she was a sympathetic person. 

She smiled back, and the teacher started discussing. Marinette noticed Adrien staring at her, not that she wasn't staring at him. In all their classes, they would both notice they were staring at each other and then she would just blush. She reminded herself that he hurt her, and she couldn't and shouldn't look at him.

Not now at least.

*.·:·.✧ ✦ ✧.·:·.*

Classes were over, and Adrien looked behind him, observing Marinette and Alya putting their stuff in their bags, and preparing to leave. He took his bag as well and discreetly retrieved the bouquet from under his desk, hiding it to prevent Marinette from seeing.

As he was about to head outside, his best friend, Nino, blocked him. "And here I thought you were actually going to apologize," Nino remarked, furrowing his eyebrows.

"I was— am!" Adrien quickly responded, still concealing the bouquet behind his back.

"But?" He scrunched his nose. 

"Actually, I tried to before class started, but the bell interrupted me, and she ran," Adrien answered, "Kind of like she didn't want to talk to me."

"Gee, why wouldn't she? I wonder." Nino pursed his lips. "So when are you gonna do it then?"

"Now," Adrien replied firmly. Adrien shuddered at the thought. It terrified him when she looked at him in that way. It also signaled that she might be about to torture him. Fortunately, he hadn't noticed it. "Did you notice Alya giving me the death glare? This thing's urgent."

"Yup," Nino responded, popping the 'p'. 

"Then I better get going before Alya kills me," said Adrien, adding a little chuckle.

"Oh, so you're going to apologize outside?" He pointed to the door with his thumb. "Good luck dude, I'll be watching." He put on a smile. 

"Creepy ass." Adrien snickered.

"Shut up," Nino chuckled and playfully punched him in the shoulder. He put his headphones over his head, and Adrien waved. Nino gave him a thumbs up, and Adrien ran outside, now holding the bouquet in front of him. He took a few steps down the stairs and waited for Marinette.

I really want her friendship back.

In just a few seconds, he saw Marinette and Alya walking out of the school. Marinette still looked sad, and it seemed like Alya was comforting her. "Hey, guys, uhm, Alya, can I borrow Marinette for a moment?" asked Adrien politely.

Alya nodded and gave him a look that conveyed, 'If you break her heart again, I will not hesitate to slaughter you, even if it means I'll go to jail.' Adrien gulped at that and saw Marinette's face slightly redden, though she was probably just feeling warm. Alya left the two of them alone.

Adrien handed out the roses to Marinette, and her face turned a dark shade of red that could rival Ladybug's suit. He presumed she liked it because she smiled. "F-for me?" she asked. Adrien nodded and blushed.

He was one step closer to gaining her friendship back. Marinette took the roses from him, smiled at them, and put them inside her backpack, luckily they fit.

"Marinette, I wanted to apologize for calling you an admirer. I honestly didn't mean it; I was just in a bad mood at that time. Even so, that's not an excuse. It's wrong to take out your anger on people. You're my friend, Marinette, not an admirer. I hope you know that."

Marinette smiled at him sweetly. "I forgive you, Adrien," she said softly. Adrien immediately hugged her, smelling the scent of lavender shampoo in her hair. Marinette hesitantly hugged him back. They slowly let go and smiled at each other for a little while when her face suddenly looked pale.

"LOOK OUT!"

She turned him around, and a thorny vine grabbed her. She struggled to get out of the vine's grasp while being lifted. Adrien was extremely worried. He traced the vine to figure out where it was coming from.

It was coming from a dress. A dress of an akumatized villain, with a thorn-covered bodice and a flowing skirt of flexible yet full of sharply pointed thorns. Her brown hair was tied in a bun by a real rose tie. From what he saw, the vines coming from her dress were the ones grabbing Marinette. She could also control the other plants with just a wave of her hand.

"I am Gaea, the harbinger of nature's wrath, and you will atone for the sins of tainting the Earth!" The villain proclaimed. Everyone started panicking and running around from the thorny vines. She managed to catch four citizens and lifted them at the same height as Marinette. "Ladybug, Chat Noir! Show yourselves before I drop these polluters!" Gaea commanded, looking around.

That was Adrien's cue; he had to save Marinette. He didn't waste another second thinking and ran inside the school, hiding behind a pillar, and transformed. "Plagg, claws out!"

He jumped into the scene, took a handful of soil, threw it in Gaea's eyes, and cut the vine that was holding Marinette with his baton. Luckily, the vine was thin and easy to cut through. Marinette screamed as she fell down, and Chat Noir caught her.

The hero quickly ran inside the school and found a closet. "Stay here, don't move until everything is back to normal," Chat instructed. He was about to close the closet when she stopped him.

"Thank you," Marinette's cheeks rose to a smile.

"You're welcome, princess," he replied, smiling back at her. "I promise I'll come back for you when this is over. I can't fight the villain knowing you're in danger. So stay here okay?"

"Okay then." She sighed. 

He slowly closed the closet and ran outside. "There you are..." The villain smirked. Fiercely, she tried to grab him with the vines. Gaea was unsuccessful as he eluded them. He attempted to save the other civilians she held, but he failed.

Where are you, Ladybug?

...

"Tikki, Spots on!" A bright flash of pink covered the closet. Marinette turned into the superheroine, Ladybug. 

The said heroine went out of the closet and ran outside of the school. The screams of terror, and ruined infrastructure were like a clutch to her heart. She was used to it, but it was so tiring. Lately, the whole superhero thing had been draining her, but with her mind being occupied with Adrien, it hadn't been something she'd stressed about anymore. In fact, her time with Chat Noir...helped take her mind off of a lot of things.

But then she saw the very boy she was thinking about dodging the vines, and he looked really tired. 

She owed that hero an apology. She didn't have time to wish for the ridding of her responsibility.

"Look who decided to drop in." Gaea glared at Ladybug and tried to grab her with one of her vines using her dress. Ladybug went near Chat about to apologize. 

"Chat, about yesterday, I—" She made an effort to show contrite. 

"It's fine Ladybug. We'll talk about this later, but now we have to defeat this villain," Chat said whilst dodging the vines. 

Ladybug simply nodded; he was right. "Where do you think the Akuma is?" she asked him. 

"I was thinking maybe her Rose hair tie," Chat guessed. 

"Good eye Chat!" Ladybug complimented. The black cat nodded, blushing for a short while. This damn bug's effect on him was infuriating.

"Lucky charm!"

*.·:·.✧ ✦ ✧.·:·.*

"Miraculous Ladybug!" Ladybug shouted, throwing her used lucky charm in the air. The thorned vines that trapped cars disappeared, the people that were once held were safely at the ground, and the damage caused by Gaea was fixed. Everything was reverted to normal.

"Ladybug and Chat Noir? Where am I?" The teenage girl asked. 

"It's gonna be alright," Ladybug responded in a soft tone.

Chat Noir helped the girl stand up and she thanked them. "You're welcome," Chat said. 

"I'll be going now, thanks again!" The teenage girl said, waving goodbye. The two heroes looked at each other.

"The rose was beautiful." Ladybug blurted, smiling sadly. 

"Really?" his mouth went agape. 

"Really..." she answered, "I'm sorry for shouting Chat, it was me that lost the Akuma. I was the one who stopped and looked around. I really do regret stepping on the rose— I was just a bit frustrated and tired at the time." She laid her hand on her chest, pointing to herself. "But that's not an excuse."

"I forgive you Ladybug, but I don't blame you. I'm also sorry for not paying attention at times," Chat said smiling nervously. Then he suddenly remembered about Marinette. 

"Well, I'm glad we solved our problem Chat. Pound it?"

"Pound it!" they chorused with jubilation.

"Uh...I have to go Ladybug, I promised a friend something," he fibbed.

The closet incident went scampering back to Ladybug's mind. "Me too," Their miraculous beeped at the same time. "Gotta go Chaton, bug out!" she swung her yoyo at a nearby building and quickly detransformed behind it. "Tikki, spots off..."

Meanwhile, Chat waited for Ladybug to be gone so he could go see Marinette without his partner noticing. He saw the said heroine swing behind a building and he ran towards the school.

Chat Noir excitedly opened the closet door expecting the blunette, but when it fully opened, no one was there. The cat became worried. Why isn't Marinette here? he asked himself, what if she got hurt, what if she got kidnapped, and what if she's killed?! 

His brain filled with what-ifs, he started to panic. "Marinette!" He shouted, walking around the school halls.

"Yeah?"

The anxious cat ran to Marinette, locking her into a bone-crushing hug. "I thought you—" Marinette put her finger on Chat's lips, cutting him off.

"There there, I'm alright..." Marinette hugged the black-suited hero and felt him smile. They hugged each other for minutes — not daring to let go. But Chat broke the silence. "You're overreacting, geez."

"You want me to take you home?" he croaked out.

"Yes please," the girl in pigtails responded gladly. Both of them finally let go and Chat Noir carried Marinette bridal style. She held onto him. Chat Noir ran outside, and extended his stick to get on a building. 

He jumped, being extra careful to not drop the girl who was latching her arms around his neck. Marinette was used to being on the air as Ladybug, but it felt completely different being in Chat's arms. She had to put full trust in her partner that he wouldn't drop her.

Chat Noir landed behind the bakery of Marinette's parents and put her down. "Thanks, Chat," Marinette said. 

"I'll be back for the treats Mari!" Chat saluted. 

Marinette smiled broadly, whilst Tikki flew out of her purse. "Marinette, you have to go inside, your parents will be worried," she reminded her. 

Marinette went inside the bakery, being greeted by relieved parents. "Marinette! You're safe, did you hide again?" Tom asked hugging his daughter.

"Yes papa, you guessed it, I hid," she lied, accompanying it with a guilty smile. Luckily enough, Nadja and the camera crew didn't record anything of her being held by Gaea. 

"Alright, dinner will be ready later, we'll call you," Sabine said. 

Marinette let go of her father and went up to her room. She opened her bag and in a split second, Tikki began nibbling on her cookie. The designer giggled, letting the hungry kwami energize herself. 

She went to her desk and did her homework. At the same time, she was prepping herself; so at eight-thirty, Ladybug will be later ready for patrol.

*.·:·.✧ ✦ ✧.·:·.*

"I'll be back for the treats, Mari!" The hero declared, waving goodbye. He later arrived behind a tree close to the mansion and cautiously detransformed. He went to the gate. "Nathalie, it's me." It slowly opened, and he scampered inside. "Will father be joining me for dinner?" he asked hopefully.

"Your father is far too busy Adrien, so I suggest you eat now," she replied dryly. 

The blonde went to the dining room and ate gloomily. He also requested the chefs for some camembert on the side for Plagg. "Hey, Adrien, Marinette will be giving you treats and all later, right?"

"Yeah, why?" asked Adrien, swallowing his food. 

"Since you'll be going there as Chat Noir, I won't complain if you save me some pastries for me to pair with my camembert," the creature stated, finishing his cheese.

The green-eyed boy eyed him. Having a kwami with a big appetite could be quite irritating at times. He finished eating, and Plagg went into his vest. He scurried to his room and locked the door as the kwami of destruction flew out.

"Just say the words kid." He rolled his eyes, tempted to complain.

"Plagg, claws out!"

The hero landed on Marinette's balcony and knocked on her trapdoor. Chat Noir heard a chair move, and he backed up so she could open the door with ease. Also so he wouldn't end up with a scar from the latch's sharp edge.

Slowly, she opened the pink loft hatch and he saw a smile spread across her face. "Hey, Chat... I just wanted to thank you again for saving me earlier."

"Oh, it's cool, Mari. After all, that's what heroes do," replied Chat Noir, "but to be honest, I think you could've gotten out of that situation yourself. The vines were thin. And you definitely have the capability to save yourself."

She scoffed, and it seemed as though his words had drawn a smile on her face. "Maybe you're right, thank you." Marinette gave room for him to go down. They went scuttling down her bed, and he sat on a chair near her desk. He glanced at the clock, 7:57pm. Still early, he thought.

"Now let me go get those treats I promised you." Marinette then added, "Don't touch anything..." She looked at him, and he put his hand on the back of his head.

"Yeah, sure." The response was accompanied by a nervous chuckle. Marinette went down the hatch and Chat Noir looked around, seeing pictures of himself in his civilian form.

I'm glad Marinette's one of my fans...

How odd that there were hearts around them.

Chat Noir saw that under Marinette's bed, there was a pull-down chart, and his curiosity got the best of him. He got off the chair and pulled the chart down. He had no idea what he was about to see. What he saw completely surprised him.

Why does Marinette have a chart of my schedule?!

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~2957 words~