Chapter Text
“I am Ladybug.”
Well, he didn’t see this coming.
Chat Noir was looking at her face like he saw it for the first time.
Was this the same girl that told him she loved him? Was it the one who rejected his love for a few years in a row? Was she the girl that could drive him mad with her kisses? Or the one that used to keep him in the dark all the time?
Could they be one and the same?
The fact was — they were one.
Now he could easily see all the obvious similarities in their appearance. Now he could understand how she’d placed all the pieces together to figure his identity out.
Cold fear ran over his back.
“Why are you telling me this?” He didn’t really want to know the answer, as it could only lead to his heart breaking.
“I just want to be honest with you.” She was searching for something in his eyes.
“Why? Why now? Why couldn’t you just tell me you don’t love me, like before.” He felt his chest squeezing, but it was better this way, to clear it all up fast. He wasn’t sure how long he’d stand this conversation anyway.
It wasn’t like it was before though. Ladybug rejecting his feelings without even a small possibility for something between them to happen — wasn’t as painful. He didn’t know the way he could really feel around her before. Being accepted. Being loved. Being alive.
Before he didn’t know how much he could love her. He didn’t know her lips, her taste, her...
“And why would I tell you that?” She narrowed her eyes, trying to read into him.
“You love someone else, aren’t you, Ladybug?” Chat Noir emphasized the last word.
“I do?” She thought for a moment. “It’s you.”
“And what is that supposed to mean?” He couldn’t understand her anymore.
She rejected him as Ladybug, then she told him she loved him as Marinette. Now he is the one she loves? Does it even make any sense?
“I love you, Adrien.” She simply said. “As Adrien and as Chat Noir. I was in love with you for a long time, so I was rejecting my partner. Until... I fell in love with him too.”
His heart was raising now, his breathing intensified.
She loved him. This was the only thing he wanted to know.
He made a few steps towards her ready to grab her in his arms. And froze in indecision a step away from her.
“Why were you avoiding me today?” He asked not to hide the pain in his voice. But the feeling of her being finally so close to him took him over, so he asked again without waiting for the previous answer. “Can I kiss you?” He felt like he was suffocating while waiting for her to respond.
“You’d better do it or I’ll die.” She raised pleading eyes to him.
He dug into her lips like the last bit of air was there for him to breathe. He lifted her body up holding under her hips, letting her wrap her legs around his waist. She grabbed his lips with greedy kisses, burying her fingers in his hair.
They were kissing like their lives depended on it. Breathing each other in, sharing each other’s taste, overwhelmed by the joint heat.
“So...” Marinette asked when they finally broke apart, trying to even out her breathing. “You don’t hate me?” She was sitting on his knees, face to face, still playing with his hair.
“What kind of question is that?” He raised surprised eyes on her, smiling. “Well, I might consider the possibility if you go on avoiding me, like today.” His tone was playful again. But her face fell.
“What is it, Marinette?” He touched her chin, lifting it gently, looking into her eyes with deep care and mild anxiety. “Tell me, what’s wrong?”
“It’s Alix.” She said, “I’m afraid we can’t be seen together as a couple, as civilians.” She sighed. “Not until we defeat...”
“Shadowmoth.” He finished, his face hardened. “So, are we talking about Bunnyx here?”
“Yes. There was this timeline. You knew my identity and... you were akumatized... Everything was destroyed. And I was...” She paused for a few seconds, formulating. “I asked Alix if it was possible for us to... you know... be together... If I could tell you who I was without destroying the world... I couldn’t lie to you... I...” She hid her face on his shoulder, sobbing.
Chat Noir pulled her deeper into his arms. “My little bug, you are holding so much on your shoulders.” He placed a kiss on her head. “Please, let me in, let me share this weight with you.”
“Your love is more than I could ask, Kitty.” She held him back, and they just sat like that for a few minutes, taking in the healing closeness of their embrace.
“Sooo,” Chat Noir said finally, cheerful notes playing in his voice again “I kind of see a little problem here.” He smiled slyly. “If we can only see each other in your room...” He placed a teasing kiss on her lips. “Along...” Another kiss. “In such close contact...” Another kiss. “We might not cope well with our feelings... and uhhh... desires.”
“I might just have an idea how to deal with this problem.” Marinette smiled at him and stood up. “Tikki, spots on!”
Flash of red lights illuminated the room as Ladybug took his hand, pulling gently inviting him to stand up.
“Would you like to be my boyfriend, Chat Noir?” She asked.
His eyes widened. The image of his permanent crush standing in front of him, asking to date her. Of course it was Marinette, his best friend, the girl in whose arms he found his home. But the image impressed him more than he’d expected.
“For real?” He asked childishly, like a boy visited by Santa on a Christmas night.
“Why not?” She smiled. “Looks like it’s a thing nowadays, superheroes dating each other. I might even know another couple for a double date.”
His face darkened a little on her words.
“Adrien,” Ladybug squeezed Chat Noir’s hand in hers. “You must know. I didn’t have time to catch them separately to hand out the miraculous. I wouldn’t let it happen otherwise.”
He was silent.
“It was Nino who told you, right?” The doubt touched her face.
“Uhhh..” Chat Noir looked at her apologetically. “Maybe?”
“I get it,” Ladybug smiled. “You don’t want to betray your friend. But I must know if he revealed his identity to a civilian. I am a guardian.”
“You can’t blame him!” Chat started in a protective tone, probably more talking about himself. “He was depressed. He thought his girlfriend was in love with... Well... Chat Noir.”
“I can imagine.” She smiled, leaning her body to his. “Who could possibly resist this charm?” She smiled and hit his bell gently. “But seriously.” She hid her hands behind his back. “I'm sorry you had to find out this way. I didn’t have a choice then, I’m sorry you took it so... personally.”
“Probably I could even thank Nino one day.” Chat Noir smiled and pulled the girl closer to him. “I may have only benefited from my nervous breakdown after all.” He looked into her loving blue eyes. “I found the way to the girl I love.”