Chapter Text
“Uh, Alya?” Nino squeaked, vaguely pointing towards Adrien. “Do you think we should call a doctor? I think this might be a side effect of a broken leg or something-”
“Seriously, Nino?” Alya retorted, raising her eyebrows.
“What! The dude looks like he’s in a trance or something! You know what, I’m going to get a doctor.” Nino noted, his arms leaving the railings of Adrien’s bed as he began walking towards the door.
“Wait, No!” Adrien yelled, the pitch of his voice startling everyone in the room.
“Oh, so now you hear us-”
“S-Sorry guys…” Adrien spluttered, scratching the back of his neck as he avoided eye contact.
“Sunshine, you seriously had us worried”
Their conversation was swiftly brought to a halt by a knock coming from the door.
“Looks like you’re in luck, Nino.” Alya said, motioning towards the door.
Alya began making her way towards the door, slowly turning the door knob.
The doctor made her way into the room, her eyes scanning the room as a weak smile spread across her lips.
“I’m sorry, but visiting hours are over. You all can return tomorrow. Don’t worry, Mr. Agreste will be discharged in a day or two.”
“O-Oh…” Marinette whispered, the first sound she’d made since entering the room.
Marinette cautiously walked up to Adrien, her hands shaking as they gripped the railings of his bed. She smiled softly, before leaning down to leave a soft kiss on his cheek, her own heating up as she observed how his tan skin had been transformed red, his face flush all the way from his ears to his neck.
Marinette knew that despite how long the two of them had not seen each other, her feelings for him still remained intact, and the knowledge that he was Chat Noir did nothing but multiply them.
She knew that he had had feelings for her as Ladybug when they were younger, but that wouldn’t explain why he was blushing now, when Marinette kissed him.
Did he suddenly, somehow develop feelings for her civilian self? No, that wouldn’t have made sense. Marinette knew that she had earned her spot as Adrien’s “Very Good Friend” in high school, and she hadn’t noticed any changes in the way he treated her since then.
“Mari?” She heard a voice call from behind her, lightly tapping her on the shoulder and breaking her chain of thought.
“Y-Yeah!” Marinette piped up, promptly turning around on her heels to face Alya.
“Girl, we’ve got to get going. Adrien’s doctor said we had to leave, what, ten minutes ago? I don’t know about you but I really don’t want to-”
“Yes, Yes of course…” Marinette sighed, walking away towards the door. As her fingers fell on the door knob, she turned around one last time, waving Adrien goodbye.
Marinette slouched against the wall of the elevator, sighing as her fingers firmly wrapped themselves around the railing behind her.
“Tikki… what do I do? How can I possibly treat him the same now that I know who he is! And, oh my god, all those times he flirted with me-”
“Marinette, it’s all going to be okay, don’t worry!” Tikki chirped.
“How can you say that, Tikki?”
“You and Chat Noir have defeated even the most vengeful of Akumas together, Marinette. Do you really think that a problem as tiny as this one is something you both won’t be able to work out?”
“I know, I just-”
“You just?”
“I… I don’t know…” Marinette murmured, playing with the hem of her jacket.
“Oh Marinette…”
“Well, on the bright side…” Marinette began. “Adrien doesn’t know my identity yet, so-”
“What do you mean?”
Marinette laughed weakly. “Oh, come on, Tikki. I know that Adrien isn’t stupid by any means, but I don’t think our quantum masking would allow him to guess my identity so easily, despite the fact that we’ve been living together-”
“Why would he need to guess…?”
“Well, how else would he know?”
It was only then that Tikki realized that Marinette hadn’t figured out that she’d given her identity away, her eyes widening as she smacked her palm against her forehead.
“Tikki!” Marinette yelped.
“Marinette! Do you not realize what you’re wearing!”
“W-What do you mean?” Marinette stuttered, her fingers absent-mindedly running down her chest. “I’m wearing a sweater, jeans, my jacket-”
“And do you realize which jacket that is?”
“The one that I always wear!”
“I don’t think you walk around wearing luxury brands on a daily basis, Marinette!”
With that, Marinette’s eyes slowly followed Tikki’s, travelling down her chest as she took in just which jacket, she was wearing. Her jaw quivered and fell, her shoulders stiffening and her body going slack, as if she was paralyzed.
Before Tikki could muster out another word, Marinette smacked her hands over her mouth, her eyebrows almost blending in with her hairline.
“OH MY GOD!”
“Plagg! Can you believe it, my lady is Marinette! We’ve been so close this whole time and now we can finally-”
“Finally, what?” Plagg mumbled, rolling his eyes as he threw another block of camembert into his mouth.
“You know…” Adrien blushed.
“Eww! Sappy human stuff! This is the worst part about identity reveals!” Plagg groaned, shaking his head.
“Oh, come on Plagg! But wait, do you think she’d want me to reveal my identity to her? I mean, I already know hers so it would only make sense…”
“Uh, Kid?”
“Yeah?”
“You do realize that Marinette would’ve figured out by now… right?”
“What?!” Adrien gasped, the colour slowly draining from his face.
“You told Ladybug Chat Noir’s room number. Alya told Marinette, who happens to be Ladybug, Adrien’s room number. What do you think would’ve happened?” Plagg stated, the tone of his voice indifferent to how his holder looked as if he was having the realization of a lifetime.
“Oh no…”
Plagg only rolled his eyes.
“Marinette, you need to calm down….” Tikki sighed, her eyes imbedded with concern as she observed the way her holder paced circles around the apartment.
“I know it’s just; he’ll be back any minute, Tikki! And to think we now know each other’s identities; it’s going to be so complicated!”
Before Marinette could bring an end to her ranting, Tikki wrapped her tiny arms around one of Marinette’s, smiling softly up at her holder.
Just when Marinette had felt that the erratic thumping of her heart against her chest had come to a momentary pause, she was quickly proven wrong when she heard a soft knock coming from the front door.
“Here goes nothing…” Marinette whispered, slowly making her way towards the miniscule noise’s source.
“Hi.” Adrien breathed, leaning against the doorframe as he wobbled on his crutches.
“H-Hi…” Marinette whispered.
“Hi”
“Hi”
“Hi”
“H-”
“Hey lovebirds!” Plagg intervened, the two holders blushing at his words. “Hospital cheese sucks and I’m hungry! So, I’m begging you could you just-”
“Plagg!” Tikki snapped, glaring at him. “They were having a moment!”
“So? I need to have my moment too! With my-”
“Y-Yeah, Sorry…” Marinette laughed weakly, her gaze wavering between Adrien’s eyes and her slippers.
Adrien scratched the back of his neck, almost losing his balance as one of his hands left his crutches.
Marinette quickly jerked forward, grabbing Adrien’s arm to ensure that he wouldn’t fall.
Marinette giggled softly. “You may want to be careful there, mister.”
“Yeah, I guess…” Adrien trailed off. “Um, Marinette, could you, um, move over a bit? I kind of have to get through…” He smiled weakly, motioning towards the left.
“O-Oh, yes, of course, I’m so sorry…” Marinette said, quickly moving away from the door and further into the apartment.
“Thanks, Bugaboo.”
Marinette could feel the way blood rushed up her cheeks on hearing the nickname, and she could only hope that he wouldn’t take notice of it.
“So….” Marinette breathed, fumbling with the ladle in her hands.
“So…”
“So…”
“U-Um, H-Hows… How’s your leg?”
“It’s better.” Adrien sighed, leaning against the cushions of the sofa as his cast-wound leg rested upon the coffee table.
“That’s good…”
“Yeah…”
The two of them fell into an uncomfortable silence after that. She didn’t know why- No, she did know why their relationship had grown extremely awkward since Adrien had returned home. Their conversations were limited to only small-talk, their nights staying up past 3a.m and watching the stars long forgotten.
“It feels weird to be back in the kitchen…” Marinette laughed nervously, determined to not let their conversation die out.
Adrien exhaled. “Yeah, must be. But I’m not complaining, your cooking is by far better than mine.”
Marinette pouted, turning around to face Adrien. “Don’t say that! You cook great too, you know. Especially for someone who’s had personal chefs his whole life.”
“While I don’t agree with you, I’m not going to argue.” Adrien chuckled.
“Hmph.” Marinette crossed her arms as she deepened her pout, before focusing her attention back to the pot simmering on the stove, turning her back towards him defiantly.
“You’re so adorable, you know that?” Adrien teased.
Those words instantly caught Marinette off guard. She’d been used to hearing Chat throw in tiny compliments and teases here and there, but hearing them from Adrien somehow completely rendered her speechless.
However, if Marinette had been careful, she would’ve noticed her finger falling on the rim of the pot. She’d only realized what had happened when she quickly pulled her index finger back towards herself, the searing pain making her hiss.
“Marinette!” Adrien yelled, gathering his crutches.
“No! No, it’s okay Adrien, it’s just a tiny burn.” Marinette squinted. “Happens all the time when you’re cooking.”
“I know…” He groaned. “But, do you need anything? Ointment? A Bandage?”
“Adrien, seriously, it’s fine…” Marinette smiled weakly, running her finger under cold water.
Immediately after, she began walking towards their medical kit, which they’d conveniently placed near the sofa so that Adrien wouldn’t have to go a long way in case he needed any pain-killers.
As Marinette walked past Adrien’s position on the couch, she felt herself being yanked backwards by the hand, causing her to fall backwards onto the couch, conveniently right beside where Adrien was.
“Adrien!” Marinette screeched, glaring at him as she furrowed her brows.
“What?!” Adrien retorted, his lips forming a crooked smile. “Can’t I just take care of my roommate?”
Marinette rolled her eyes, biting back a smile. “I could’ve fallen on your leg, you know?”
Adrien only chuckled.
“I’m being serious!”
“Of course you are, m’lady.” Adrien began reaching over for the Medical Kit, opening the box and pulling out a bandage.
“Oh Adrien…” Marinette sighed as he began unpeeling the bandage’s wrapper, slowly taking Marinette’s finger and wrapping it around the swelled area, his fingers so gentle she swore he thought she was made out of glass.
“Adrien, it’s just a bandage! You don’t have to be so careful.” Marinette giggled at he stared intently at her finger.
“So? A princess like yourself deserves to be treated like one.”
“You’re an idiot.”
“Your idiot.” He whispered to himself.
Marinette shifted in her bed, rolling around as she tried to find a comfortable position to fall asleep in. She sighed as she wrapped her arms around one of her pillows, burying her face into it as she groaned.
After about half an hour of wrestling with her sheets, Marinette had decided that she’d had enough, sitting up straight as she looked for her phone.
Thanks to her phone, she’d found out that it was almost half past three in the morning, and she’d thanked her lucky stars that it was a Saturday.
“Marinette…” Tikki groaned, rubbing her eyes as she observed her holder.
“Oh, sorry Tikki, I didn’t mean to wake you.” Marinette smiled weakly, before putting on her fluffy slippers and exiting the room.
She’d been mindful of trying to make the least amount of noise as possible, knowing that Adrien was probably fast asleep.
However, as soon as she groggily made her way down the stairs, her eyes widened as she’d noticed a familiar head of blonde hair sprawled out against their couch cushions.
“Kitty?” Marinette called out, concern imbedded in her features.
“Oh, hey Mari.” Adrien smiled, draping an arm over one of the back pillows.
“What are you doing up?”
Adrien chuckled. “I could ask you the same question.”
“Fine. I couldn’t sleep…”
“Oh, same here, actually.” Adrien let out a dry laugh. “Well, would you like to join me then?”
“I don’t see why not. But wait, do you want some hot chocolate? I was just about to make some.” Marinette offered, motioning towards the kitchen.
“I’d love a cup, Bugaboo.”
Only a few minutes later, the two of them were curled up on the couch, their fingers growing warm due to the drink they held close to their chests.
“Do you want to go outside?” Adrien asked.
“Chaton, it’s 4, I don’t think that that’d be the best idea-”
“No, No.” Adrien interrupted. “I meant there.”
Adrien was pointing towards the door that led to their terrace, his features breaking out into a soft smile.
“Oh, there.” Marinette giggled. “Okay, let’s go.”
Marinette leaned against the railing of the terrace, her face flush due to the cold morning wind and her bed-hair even more tousled then when she’d gotten up.
“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” Adrien asked, staring out at the deep night sky, the stars seeming to captivate him.
“Yup…” Marinette sighed, before suddenly gasping as she noticed two familiar figures out on a rooftop not too far away.
“What’s wrong?” Adrien questioned, quickly whipping his head around to see what had caught Marinette’s attention.
“Oh, it’s nothing wrong.” Marinette smirked “But… I think our friends are a bit busy over on that rooftop over there.”
Just as Marinette had pointed out, Alya and Nino, or Rena Rouge and Carapace were out and about. They’d been able to see that Rena had her arms wrapped around Carapace’s neck, while the latter nuzzled his nose into her neck.
“So much for patrolling…” They heard Plagg sneer, who had just joined them out on the Terrace, a block of Camembert secured safely in his arms.
“Oh, shut up, Plagg.” Adrien groaned, rolling his eyes at his kwami.
“They’re so cute…” Marinette whispered. “Honestly, I’d give anything to have what they have. To be loved like they love each other. To be someone’s, you know, everything.”
“Really?” Adrien murmured; his voice so quiet that he wasn’t even sure she’d heard him.
“Yup…” She sighed, before she began walking back towards the inside of their apartment.
“Going so soon?” Adrien asked, disappointment thick in his tone.
“No, I’m just going to go put my mug back in the kitchen.”
“Oh okay,” Adrien said. “Uh, Mari?”
“Yes?”
“Could you take mine back with you?”
Marinette smiled. “Of course.”
As he watched Marinette slide open the terrace’s glass doors, the words that she’d just said were on replay in Adrien’s mind. He thought about how she said that she actually wanted what Nino and Alya had, how she wanted to be someone’s everything.
And if Adrien had any say in it, she’d get exactly that.
Without thinking, Adrien ran towards the rose plant they’d began growing in their garden, quickly plucking a single, ruby red rose and hiding it behind his back. He quickly ran his fingers through his hair, and then down his shirt, straightening any wrinkles that may have been present. When he’d imagined the various ways that he’d confess to Marinette after the reveal, doing it in his pyjamas, at 4 am in the morning definitely wasn’t one of his options.
“Here goes nothing…” He whispered, watching Marinette return.
“Adrien? Why are you smiling like that?” Marinette asked, each word louder than the one before as she walked towards him.
Once Marinette was in front of him, Adrien pulled out the rose from behind him, presenting it in front of her.
“Adrien…” Marinette gasped, taking steps backwards as her hands flew to cover her mouth.
“I wish I could get down on one knee for this.” Adrien began, grinning from ear to ear as he stared at the woman in front of him.
“You know, M’lady, some people call me the luckiest man in the world. A few people say it’s because of how I grew up, others say it’s because of how I look.” Adrien grinned sheepishly. “And honestly, I agree with them. But not because of the reasons that they think. No, it’s because I have you.”
“Kitty…”
“No wait, I’m not done. Marinette-Dupain Cheng, I love you. I love you so much that it physically hurts, but it’s the best pain I’ve ever felt, one I want to feel for the rest of my life. The day we fought Stone Heart; it wasn’t only an akuma you captured for the first time. It was my heart as well. I say for the first time because ever since then, you only make me fall for you more and more. I wish there were words to describe how much you mean to me, but I don’t think even the biggest of dictionaries hold the words which are worthy of describing my love for you.”
By now, Adrien could see the soft tears that ran down Marinette’s cheeks, glistening in the moonlight.
“I know that there’s that other boy¸ and if you still love him, I completely respect that and will definitely help you- mph!” Adrien yelped; the speech he had just prepared being cut short.
Before he could comprehend what was going on, Marinette’s lips were on his, slowly and tentatively moving against his own, while rapidly pouring out all the words she’d decided to leave unsaid. Once he’d registered what was happening, he wrapped one arm around her waist, the other only refraining from doing the same to ensure that he wouldn’t fall.
However, Adrien knew what he had to do. He cautiously pulled away, trying his best to supress the sigh he let out when their lips parted, his own left tingling and yearning for more as they ghosted over hers.
“M’lady, the other boy-”
“Oh, Adrien…” Marinette sighed. “You’re the other boy.”
Adrien’s eyebrows shot up. “I-I’m the… what?”
Marinette giggled softly. “You’re the other boy. Adrien Agreste was always the other boy. I was rejecting you, for well, you.”
“W-What?”
“It all started when you gave me your umbrella. When you gave me that, I gave you my heart in exchange.”
“W-Wait… Does that mean that you…you…”
Marinette nodded, smiling shyly. “It means I love you, Adrien.”
With that, Adrien planted another kiss on Marinette’s lips, however this time, he had no intention of pulling back.