Chapter Text
Adrien slowly crept into the apartment he shared with Marinette. Which might not have been notable were it not for two - soon to be three - important facts. One, he was entering in through the window, which is generally considered to be a strange way to enter your home. Especially since they were three stories off the ground. Two, he was presently the feline hero Chat Noir, returning from a night patrolling the city of Paris.
Through the years they had spent fighting Hawkmoth, he and Ladybug had not let their vigilance wane. Still, the rigors of his university life and whatever Ladybug was doing had meant that solo patrols became more and more common.
Ladybug… he had given up pursuing her years ago. There is only such much rejection someone can take before they have to walk away for their own well being. So he had let himself love another…
Marinette was everything he had hoped she would be. It had taken him a little while (Okay, it had taken me ages) to realize her affections for him. Yet, once he was no longer pining for someone else, he let himself love her.
And they were happy. They shared everything… almost. There was one secret that he couldn't share. No one must know that he is Chat Noir.
Which brings us to the third important fact. Marinette was not at Alya’s tonight, as planned. Rather, she was in the bedroom. Where he had just entered through the window.
Both of them were too surprised to respond at first, with Adrien having one leg in the room and Marinette laying on the bed in lingerie. The two of them were having trouble coming to grips both with the other’s presence and what the other was wearing. Adrien felt the blood rush to his face just as Marinette became slack jawed.
“N-now, Mari! This isn't what you think.”
She recovered enough to give him a disbelieving look. “Oh? Then what is it, exactly?”
He sputtered for a moment, trying to think up a believable excuse. “I, uh, I was, um…” The silence stretched on as Adrien’s overwhelmed brain struggled to come up with a believable excuse while a significant portion of its blood supply was otherwise occupied.
Eventually, he eyes widened. She whispered, quiet enough that he only caught it because of his enhanced hearing, “‘Mari’...?” Louder, she asked, “Did you just call me Mari?”
Rising from the bed she walked over to him, hands on her hips and pouting up at him (The years had only caused their height difference to increase). “There are only two people who call me Mari and one of them is a redhead woman. And the other is…” She stared at him, then for a moment seems to stare though him her eyes widened in realization as he hands snapped to her mouth. “...Adrien?”
He gave a weak smile and jazz hands. “Surprise…?”
To his surprise, she began laughing. He frowned. This was a serious matter! Ladybug was always saying how letting our loved ones know would put them in danger! “Mari, this is no laughing matter! You are in danger now!” He remembered her best friend, who still maintained the most extensive collection of super hero lore on them. “And you must promise never to tell anyone! I'm sorry, but you are now a part of this.”
Her laughing subsided into giggles. “Tell you what, kitty. I'll make it even. Just stay here for a minute.” Too confused to respond, Adrien just stood there and watched her leave the room.
A few minutes later, she returned, her hands behind her back. She smiled at him, full of love and warmth. “Tikki! Spots on!”
And there before him was the lady he had pined after for all his years in lycee, who he still had strong admiration for, and who, as it turns out, he had been living with for several months now.
She was about to say something when he rushed forward and pressed his lips to hers. When they finally had to part for air, he whispered to her. “I told you that you wouldn't be able to resist me without the mask.”
She playfully hit his chest with her fist before pulling him back in. When they parted again, she responded, “Yeah, well, it took you long enough to figure out when someone is desperately in love with you Mr. She's-Just-A-Friend.”
They glared at each other for a moment before breaking into laughter again. Adrien said through the giggles, “I guess we were both kinda dumb, weren't we?”
Ladybug - his Marinette - laid her head against his chest, listening to his heartbeat. “Yeah. We were.”
A companionable silence stretched between them.
“So… was that lingerie for my benefit?”
Her eyes flashed with playfulness. “That depends on if you are a well behaved kitty tonight .”