During the final few weeks of school, a week was allocated for a student workplace experience. With graduation just around the corner, it was a chance for the students to get a small taste of the industries that they were interested in before final exams began. Alya got her dream placement with Nadja Chamack at TVi and she couldn't have been more stoked. Nino was also excited to be working in the technical booth at the local theatre, learning new sound and lighting techniques. Marinette had held her breath that she would get the placement at the Gabriel Fashion House, but could scarcely believe it when Miss. Bustier made the announcement. She remembered the excited look on Adrien's face. He had no choice but to do his placement there, but he said he would look forward to having a friend there too.

Marinette figured her and Adrien would most likely be in different areas, so she may not see him that often, but she promised Alya she would make an effort in her appearance just in case. Alya even risked being late herself to ring Marinette up early Monday morning on FaceTime to make sure she had just the right amount of cute and stylish.

"Seriously Alya, it's a waste of time, Adrien doesn't see me that way." Marinette moaned as her best friend made her change her shoes yet again.

"Rubbish." Alya scowled down the phone. "The boy has eyes doesn't he? And he is single as per Nadja Chamack so I'm not letting you pass up this opportunity. Now you get in there, you give Sunshine those bedroom eyes I know you have been hiding and you win that boy over. You're not fourteen anymore Marinette, you are on the brink of womanhood and you let him know it." Marinette was sure her face was as scarlet as her skirt.

"Alya, seriously this is work experience, not a date." Marinette rebutted but Alya just waved her off.

"Take what you can get. Believe me, when he starts to really see you in all your designer glory, he's gonna want to date you. I would almost bet money on it - but I'm a broke student so don't even bother. Now go out there and make it happen girl!"

It was still early when Marinette arrived at the Gabriel flagship building. The clouds hung low and threatening, but the rain had luckily held off. The bluenette pulled out a small mirror to check her hair. She had decided to wear it up in a stylish bun, hoping to look more professional. By Alya's suggestion, she wore clothes she had made herself. She was concerned that the scarlet skirt with the black tights might have looked a little Ladybugish, but Alya insisted that Adrien was a huge Ladybug fan and would get a kick out of it. Either way, the budding reporter wouldn't let her out of wearing it. She managed to break up the look though with a cream blouse and black jacket. Matched with black boots, Marinette had to admit she did look good.

Entering into the building, the place was already a hive of activity. As she approached the front counter she was quickly met by Nathalie.

"Miss Dupain-Cheng, welcome to Gabriel." She extended her hand out which Marinette made sure to take confidently. Although she had met Nathalie a few times over the years, she wanted to make a professional first impression on Gabriel Agreste's personal assistant. "If you follow me, I will show you to the employee lounge where you can store your belongings."

Following Nathalie, Marinette was suddenly feeling overwhelmed. The place was a lot bigger than she thought with doors and corridors everywhere. How does anyone remember where anything is without a map? Reaching their destination on the 4th floor, Marinette was directed to a locker where she placed her coat and backpack. Nathalie then directed her to take a seat as they were waiting on another student and she would return shortly.

Marinette sat on a small two seat settee and picked up a copy of Model magazine that was sitting on the table. Adrien was on the cover of course. It looked like last year's summer spread. Flicking through the pages, she didn't see said blonde enter the room. He froze in place at the doorway. Adrien had rarely seen Marinette with her hair in anything other than pigtails and as she sat with her legs crossed, her back slightly to him his eyes couldn't look away. Shaking his head back into focus he approached her.

"Marinette." He called, causing her to startle and drop the magazine. "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you." He apologised, picking the book up and handing it back to her. He always seemed to manage to startle her, no matter how careful he tried. Marinette gaped for a moment. Adrien was dressed in a dark blue business suit with a white shirt. He had foregone a tie, leaving the top three buttons undone. He'd also let his hair grow out a bit lately, much to his father's disapproval, and the slightly wilder look on him made her heart skip.

"Frighten? No you didn't frighten me." She hurried to correct herself. Putting the book down she rubbed her hands over her knees. "Sorry, I'm just nervous I guess." Adrien sat down next to her, his face lit up in a warm smile.

"I understand, but you don't have to be and you can ask me anything you know. I've been around here for a while so I know the place pretty well." He gave her a gentle shoulder nudge with a wink and was pretty sure that was a blush running over her cheeks. Maybe she was just feeling a bit shy. Yes, that would be it. "I'm glad you're here Marinette." He said softly. He was sure her blush deepened at that.

"I'm glad to be here too." She smiled.

"Adrien, fancy seeing you here." Adrien visibly cringed at the sound of Lila's voice. Neither he nor Marinette knew Lila was going to be there since thankfully this year she wasn't in their class, but she had been modelling on and off for Gabriel so it shouldn't have been a surprise.

"Well, it's kind of my father's business, so naturally I would be here." He replied dryly, trying not to be too sarcastic. He could feel Plagg shifting around. The cat Kwami had made no secret of his dislike for the Italian girl, having threatened to cataclysm her on several occasions. Come to think of it, Plagg had always been quite defensive of Marinette where Lila was concerned.

"Oh Adrien I know that." She giggled. "I mean here in the employee lounge, did you come down to see me? I'm sorry I was running late." She came over and put her hand on his arm, but he shrugged it off. Lila just continued to smile before turning to Marinette.

"Nice to see you again Marinette. Obviously you're not here for the modeling experience." Marinette schooled her features to remain neutral knowing that was a blatant dig at her height or lack thereof. Adrien gave Lila the stink eye, but the Italian girl ignored it as Nathalie walked back into the room with a middle aged woman.

"Miss Rossi I see you finally made it." Nathalie eyed the Italian girl with some suspicion before continuing. "You have been assigned to the modeling placement since you have had some experience there before. I believe you already know Madame Brodeur. She will be looking after you." Lila nodded and gave her sweetest smile to the woman. Madame Brodeur nodded a return greeting. She seemed a stern no nonsense type. Marinette and Adrien shared a look before focusing their attention back to Nathalie.

"Miss Dupain-Cheng, Monsieur Agreste understands that you wish to be a designer?" Marinette couldn't find her voice, so just nodded. "He remembers you well and has been impressed with your work. He wishes for you to have an experience here suitable for a future designer and has requested that you work with Adrien over the placement as he is experienced in the business and can give you better insider access." Marinette was speechless. She thought she would just be a fetch and carry for one of the designers, this would be so much better, and she would also get to spend time with Adrien!

Adrien's face lit up when Nathalie said Marinette would spend some of her placement with him. Maybe this would be a chance to finally get to know her better. While they did spend a lot of time together at school, it was always with their other friends, never alone. "Is that alright with you Marinette?" She heard his soft voice asking her. She turned her head and could see the look of delight in his face.

"Yes." She blurted out a bit too loud before she cleared her throat and tried again. "I mean yes, that would be amazing, awesome." She didn't dare say anymore in case she started running off at the mouth, but the smile on his face made her feel all warm inside.

As they followed Nathalie out of the room, Marinette could hear Lila gasping. She didn't need to turn around, she knew exactly the face Lila would have had and she couldn't help that flash of satisfaction she felt.

Taking the elevator to the top floor, Nathalie led the way down a long corridor to a corner office. Entering the room Marinette noted there was a large desk with Adrien's name on it. The office was huge and included a small lounge and coffee table and it even had its own bathroom, not to mention breathtaking views of the city. She figured though she really shouldn't have been that surprised, after all his father did own the company.

"You will be based mostly with the designers, but if you need access to a phone or desktop computer, you may use it here." Marinette just nodded, trying to take everything in. "The designers are currently working on the Autumn collection so you will get a chance to be involved in the process. Here is a tablet with both yours and Adrien's schedule on it. If anything changes I'll let you know. There will be a photoshoot on Friday so we need to be prepared for that. I also believe that you will be given a challenge to complete for the placement, correct?" Marinette affirmed that was correct, taking the tablet Nathalie handed her and looking it over. "Come with me now and I will introduce you to our head designer Sasha and his team. Adrien, you have a call coming in soon from our London office." Adrien sighed, he'd forgotten about that.

"Okay Nathalie, I'll be here." He shrugged before turning to Marinette. "I hope we can catch up again later." Marinette smiled and nodded before following Nathalie out the door. Adrien felt a warmth rush over him at her smile and was still transfixed to the spot when Plagg floated up beside him.

"Can you ask her to bring some cheese puffs tomorrow?" Adrien snapped out of his trance and turned to look at his Kwami.

"No Plagg, I'm not asking her to bring cheese puffs." Adrien retorted. Plagg huffed.

"That's not fair, you get to look at a pretty girl in your office, and I don't even get so much as a treat." Adrien rolled his eyes hoping to suppress the blush that threatened his cheeks.

"Sure Plagg, I'll ask Marinette for cheese puffs because my kwami is a demanding little sod. That will go down well." Plagg held his paws up in the air.

"You never know until you try." Adrien knitted his eyebrows at Plagg but didn't get a chance to say anything further as the incoming call from London rang.

It was a flurry of activity in the designer hub. There was fabric in a rainbow of colours, people scurrying around, desks with patterns pinned to walls and the endless chatter of the designers collaborating and creating new ideas. It was both exhilarating and terrifying. Marinette followed Nathalie as she took her over to a table where a tall man in his early fifties was talking with a seamstress. He turned to a mannequin behind them, picking up the fabric and bunching it.

"It needs to be more like this, there is too much fabric here, it needs to cling more to the body here and... Nathalie, what brings you here?" He turned and held a hand out to shake Nathalie's hand before turning his attention to the bluenette beside her.

"Sasha, this is Marinette. She is on a school work experience with us for this week." Sasha shook Marinette's hand, a look of realisation dawned on him.

"Ah, yes Marinette. Young Adrien told me all about you. You wish to be a designer, yes?" There was a hint of a Russian accent as the man spoke, but his manner was kind and welcoming.

"He did?...yes I do." She recovered as she answered. Adrien really did seem to talk about her a lot.

"Excellent, is this outfit one of yours?" He asked, indicating to her ensemble. Marinette nodded happily, "Wonderful, wonderful. You must show me some more of your designs later but for now, we have work to do. Come."

Sasha showed Marinette every step in the process from initial sketches right through to the final product. Everyone one was kind and welcoming, willing to spend time with her to show Marinette all the processes involved. She had to admit, seeing a real live fashion house at work was more than a little intimidating and she wondered just how cut out she was for this. Marinette reminded herself as they continued the tour that it takes years and lots of training to get to this level, but she couldn't help the little pangs of anxiety that arose within her.

"Now Marinette, as part of your experience, your school requires you to do a challenge. I wish to give you a design challenge." He pulled out a design for a formal suit that was incomplete. "This has been designed for Adrien to wear in the summer collection. You will notice the lack of colour. This is because this suit is to be matched with a dress. I wish you to design a summer dress, suitable for a formal occasion to go with this suit. Don't worry, I will not be judging it against the collection, you are a student after all and the collection is already completed, this is just part of the experience. Think you could do so by Friday?" Marinette smiled and nodded. This was something she could do and it was her chance to show what she was capable of. Her mind was already ticking over ideas.

"I'm sure I could." She answered confidently. Sasha was pleased at her enthusiasm.

"That's what I like to see. Well it is already after one o'clock, so you should have a break for lunch. I think Nathalie has you for this afternoon, so when you come back tomorrow, bring your designs for me to see." Marinette took the suit design and a few fabric samples from the current summer line and found her way back to her locker in the employee lounge.

Making herself a cup of instant coffee from what was available, she settled herself in for her sandwich and to read her numerous text messages from Alya. Mostly full of innuendo, Marinette kept her own responses simple and avoided saying too much about Adrien or the size of his office for that matter - seriously, Alya did not need any more ammunition. After sending her replies, Marinette picked out her sketchbook and began some preliminary doodles for the dress she needed to design. "There you are." Marinette tried to calm the flutter that arose at the sound of his voice. "I was looking for you."

"Oh, well we were running a bit overtime, so I'm only getting to have lunch now. Have you already eaten?" She was very proud of herself for getting that out in one sentence without stuttering. Adrien nodded.

"I usually eat in my office, but it gets a bit lonely in there sometimes." He sat down next to her, looking over at her sketchbook and pointed. "Is that your placement challenge?" Marinette passed the book to him. "Is this to go with that suit?"

"Yes, but it's only for the experience, they won't actually use my design." Adrien started flicking through some of the other pages.

"But your designs are amazing Marinette, I bet Sasha will be impressed enough to want to use it." He could see a light dusting of pink blooming across her cheeks as she looked down at her book. Adrien found himself wanting to lift her chin up so he could see her eyes, but instead continued to turn the pages of her book, tearing his eyes away from her face. "Whoa, is that Chat Noir pajamas?" Marinette tried to grab the book away, but Adrien turned so it was just out of her reach.

"Oh, ah...that's just a..a..doodle I did in m-math class the other week." She stammered out. Damn it Marinette, you were doing so well, she thought.

"Hey, it's cute, don't be embarrassed. I could totally picture you in this." Marinette's eyes widened and it was then Adrien's turn to go red faced. "I mean, not like that but...as...ah...as in it's clearly a girls design and you're a girl who could wear it and it's really cute and..ah..and I'll shut up now." He turned his head and sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck. He was about ready to apologise again when he heard the sound of Marinette giggling. He looked back at her to see her eyes playfully shining above her hands that were covering her mouth and nose and he started to laugh with her. "Soooo, what do you think of Chat Noir?" He asked amid his giggles. He was surprised to see Marinette's face change and become more serious, yet there was a softness in her eyes.

"I think he is very brave and selfless, but he isn't as expendable as he thinks he is. I don't think he realises how much Ladybug needs him." She looked down at her sketchbook at the Chat Noir design. "He's not just a sidekick or a shield. He's part of a team, and I think sometimes he forgets just how important he is." Adrien looked at her with amazement. He had never heard anyone say things like that about Chat, aside from his Lady, and it filled his heart with joy that someone like Marinette would think so well of his hero self.

Marinette suddenly realised she'd been talking out loud, her thoughts having been caught up in her partner, and not the person she was actually speaking to. "I..ah..I guess I'm just so used to Alya banging on about Ladybug all the time, it's only fair someone should stick up for Paris' feline hero too, don't you think?" She bit her bottom lip as she glanced back at him. He looked back at her transfixed. Had her eyes always been that blue?

"Yeah." Came his quiet reply, his mind racing a mile a minute as they became lost in each other's gaze.

"Miss Dupain-Cheng, it's time for your computer orientation." The two teens were snapped out of their trance by Nathalie's voice.

"Yes Miss Sancour." Marinette quickly began to gather her things and Adrien offered a hand out to her. She took it and stood up, Adrien holding it just a fraction longer than was strictly necessary before she turned and ducked out the door.

"Adrien, they are waiting for you down in fittings." Nathalie reminded him as she left behind Marinette. Adrien sighed at the long tedious afternoon ahead of him. He just really hoped that apprentice seamstress wasn't there today, she pricked him four times last week. He really wished he could have gotten Marinette to do it. Only because he was sure she could do a better job and had nothing to do with wanting to keep her around him.

Once Nathalie finished showing Marinette how they make orders and scheduling on the computer systems the day was almost over, so Nathalie gave her an early out. Adrien hadn't returned from fittings, so Marinette sent him a text message saying she had been let out early and would see him in the morning. She was almost home when his reply came.

Adrien: What coffee do you like?

Marinette: Extra hot Latte, full cream. Why?

Adrien: So I can have it ready for you in the morning. It's better than that instant stuff you were drinking earlier. See you then. (cat smiley emoji)

Marinette laughed, she wouldn't have pegged Adrien for a cat lover, although he did seem interested in Chat Noir. That reminded her though that she had patrol later with Chat. Unless there is an akuma, they had switched patrols to only one night a week during the winter months and it had just continued on since then, changing the day each week so as not to be too predictable. With school and their other civilian commitments, it seemed a good idea. Besides, it was better for her not to see her partner too often. Adrien seemed to finally have been noticing her, and she didn't need her mind and heart being clouded by her flirty feline companion.