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“You all remember the plan?” Alya stared down the group of people gathered in her living room. “Because if you have any questions, now is the time to ask.”
“Honestly, I don’t think anyone was listening just now.” Alix rolled her eyes and huffed. “We’re exhausted, and we've been at this for weeks. What makes this plan any different?”
Alya knew her friends were tired, but she had to remain resolute. If she wanted her team of helpers to finish what they’d started, she knew that she needed to be the confident and optimistic leader they needed. Besides, this was the night that all their hard work would come to fruition.
It had to be.
Right?
She took a deep breath and plastered a smile on her face. “This time we’re keeping it simple. They’ll kiss for sure!”
“But that’s what you said about the winter carnival, the history project, the Secret Santa, and the mistletoe.” The jovial aura that usually surrounded Kim was noticeably missing, sending a pang of guilt through Alya’s chest. “Nothing has worked.”
Alya did her best not to cringe at the memories of their various mishaps. True, her previous plans had been a little intense, but it was worth the sacrifice. Marinette had done so much for all of them in the past, and Adrien deserved some happiness in his life. It was the least they could do for their friends.
“And let’s not forget the time we tried to lock them in that closet.” Alix’s frustration seemed to grow as she spoke. “Marinette sent Kim to the emergency room after that!”
Kim shuddered. “Don’t remind me. If I hadn’t run away, Marinette would have broken my arm for sure. I still can’t figure out how she busted down the door that fast. We were lucky that I walked away with a mild concussion instead of a cast.”
“Look, I know we’ve been at this for months, but trust me! It’s going to work this time.” Alya clenched a fist in front of her. “I just know it will.”
Removing his glasses, Nino pinched the bridge of his nose. “Babe, don’t get me wrong, it hurts to watch those two, but I don’t think we can handle another disaster. Every time we put those two together, Marinette flips.”
“Yes, but it’s not like we haven’t dealt with a jumpy Marinette in the past.” Panic began to settle in her gut as the energy in the room slowly died. “It’s just a little more than what we’re used to.”
“A little?” Nino closed his eyes and sighed. “Ms. Mendeleiev is still pissed about the fire in her lab last month, and we’re lucky that the museum isn’t making us pay for the broken windows.”
“Not to mention Juleka lost her eyebrows...twice,” Rose piped in from the back of the group. “I highly doubt she wants to lose them a third time.”
“They grew back,” Juleka mumbled, “It’s fine. Marinette and Adrien need us.”
“Yes! Thank you, Juleka! We can’t stop now!” She could hear the desperation in her own voice. “They are perfect for each other, and you know it!”
“Yes, and I want my bro to be happy. I really do.” Slumping in his seat, Nino looked defeated. “But at what cost?”
“You know as well as I do that it was even worse before we started doing all of this. Marinette wouldn’t even look at him, and Adrien walked around like a kicked puppy.” Giving up was not an option...not when they were so close.
“Yeah, I remember.” Nino collapsed onto the couch. “Adrien was so tight-lipped about the whole thing, and I thought he was going to burst into tears at any second. But this is getting dangerous, babe. You gotta admit that.”
“If only we knew what happened between them that made them act so weird around each other.” Alix chuckled. “Well...weirder than they usually are.”
“All we have to do is get them to sit on this couch together all night.” Alya couldn’t back down...not now. “No complicated schemes tonight. We just need to put the snacks in the right place so Adrien sits next to them. That boy is always hungry.”
Kim shook his head. “Okay, that’s great and all, but that only takes care of Adrien. How do you plan on getting Marinette to stay in one spot? What makes you think that she won’t leave the couch?”
“All of us are going to pair off and make it too awkward for her to join any group.” She was proud of this plan, but the hesitant looks on the faces around her planted a seed of doubt in her mind. “She’s getting here before Adrien, and I know she’ll retreat to the couch when she sees the rest of us already engaged in our own conversations.”
“I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I’m with Kim. That is the weakest plan I’ve ever heard.” Alix plopped onto the couch next to Nino, grabbed a pillow, shoved it against her face, and screamed. “This nightmare is never going to end!”
“No, it’s the perfect plan. Marinette is the kind of girl who is too polite to ram her way into a conversation between two people. My girl has class, and she hates being a third wheel.” Ignoring the uncertainty, Alya stood her ground. “Trust me.
“Well, I still think it’s a longshot, but it doesn’t involve fire or glass this time, so I guess I’m in.” Alix pointed her index finger toward Alya. “But this is the last time. After tonight we have to let them figure it out on their own.”
“Fine.” Once again feeling her confidence grow, Alya smiled. “But it’s going to work this time.”
“Whatever you say!” Alix said with a flippant wave of her hand.
It was going to work.
It had to.
What could possibly go wrong?
CRASH
With an outstretched hand, Adrien watched a punch-covered Marinette spring from the couch, run into Alya’s bedroom, and slam the door behind her. Where had he gone wrong?
It had been exactly three months, seventeen days, two hours, and twenty-eight minutes since Marinette, the love of his life, had accidentally revealed her identity to Chat Noir.
Her words from that day replayed in his head like a broken record. “I fell in love with a boy who apologized by giving me an umbrella after I thought he put gum on my seat.”
When everything clicked into place, he couldn’t not tell her who he was. At least that’s what he had thought at the time.
Perhaps pulling her into an embrace, whispering her name into her ear, and detransforming was not the best way to handle the situation, but how was he supposed to know that she would react so negatively? Not only was he her loyal partner, but he was also her crush. It seemed like a win-win! Right?
Wrong.
If he had known that she was going to avoid him for months on end, he would have done things differently. But the past was in the past, and he could only hope for a better future. Marinette was his lady, his light, his love. How was he supposed to declare his love if she kept running away?
“Follow her,” Alya whispered into his ear, pulling him away from his thoughts.
“What’s the point?” Adrien wanted to cry. “She told me that she loves me, but I’m not so sure that she does anymore.”
“Wait!” Holding up a hand, Alya had silenced the room with one word. “You’re kidding! That’s what happened? That’s why my girls been wigging out for months?”
Careful to avoid talking about the other reveal from that night, Adrien continued. “Yeah. It was a few months ago. I don’t think she meant to tell me.”
“Did you reject her or something?”
“No, not at all! I was overjoyed when I found out, but she ran away before I could respond.”
“That explains so much.”
He buried his face in his hands. “Maybe I’m scaring her off or something? I don’t know. Can you help me?”
Taking a seat next to him, Alya put a hand on his shoulder. “Would you like me to talk to her first? I can try to calm her down enough for you to talk to her.”
Hope fluttered in his chest. “That would be great. Thank you so much!”
He had the best friends.
“Wait here, Sunshine.” She hopped off of the couch and disappeared into her bedroom.
It felt like hours before Alya finally returned with the go-ahead for him to enter the room. He hopped off the couch, approached the door, and gave a tentative knock. His heart did backflips when he heard the soft “come in” from the other side of the door.
He turned the knob, slowly peeked his head in, and scanned the room. His elation was quickly replaced by concern when his eyes landed on a teary and disheveled Marinette sitting on the edge of the bed.
Despite the towel wrapped around her shoulders, she was still soaking wet with red punch. She looked miserable, and Adrien wanted nothing more than to wrap her in his arms and tell her that everything would be alright. But he was just here to talk.
Only talking.
For now.
“Hey,” he called out, closing the door behind him.
She sniffled and wiped her cheeks with the back of her hand. “Hi.”
He was pleasantly surprised when Marinette didn’t react as he crossed the room and took a seat next to her on the bed. So far so good.
Without thinking, his words tumbled out. “Marinette, we really need to talk.”
Her head shot up, and she turned to look at him. Her bottom lip trembled, and fresh tears streamed down her cheeks.
“I’m sorry,” she croaked out, “I messed everything up!”
“What?” Adrien couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “How?”
“Not only did I fail as Ladybug and reveal my identity, but I made everything awkward between us!”
“But you didn’t make anything awkward! I did!”
“No, it's my fault! Not yours. I’ve turned you down for two years because I was in love with you as a civilian. I ruined everything!”
“Oh, Marinette, no. Finding out about your crush was the greatest thing that ever happened to me...well, right after learning that my lady and the coolest girl I know are the same person.”
The corners of her mouth twitched into a smile. “Really?”
“Yeah, really.” He nodded. “I love you, Marinette.”
“You do?”
“I love you so much, and I’ve been trying to tell you for months. I didn’t think I could love a person more than I loved Ladybug, and then she turned out to be you, and I’ve never been so happy to have been proven wrong.”
“And all this time, I thought you were going to get mad at me.”
“Mad at you? No! Not at all!” He couldn’t help but laugh. “I’m overjoyed, but you kept running away from me, and you split up our patrol routes. I thought you were mad at me for telling you that I figured out your identity.”
“You thought I was mad at you?” She sobbed into her hands. “This really is a disaster.”
Screw it.
He was in love with her.
He couldn’t let her sit there and cry.
In one swift motion, Adrien leaned over, wrapped his arms around her, and pulled her into an embrace. She momentarily stiffened before collapsing against his chest and continuing to cry.
Hoping to calm her down before any purple butterflies paid them a visit, Adrien rubbed her back with his palm. “I’m not mad. I promise. I love you so much.”
“I love you, too.” Her voice was small and thick with tears, but they were the sweetest words he’d ever heard.
They sat in silence, allowing him to revel in the embrace. When Marinette eventually calmed down, she snuggled into his chest. It was a good thing that he wasn’t standing because if he had been, he would have definitely fallen over. She was so close and so beautiful. He could hardly contain his joy.
It was a beautiful moment that he wished could last forever...until she shivered.
Oh, right. She was covered in punch.
Here he was, enjoying the moment, letting his (hopefully) soon-to-be girlfriend freeze in wet clothes.
Refusing to let go, he rested his forehead against hers. “Hey, what do you say we get out of here?”
She shook her head. “But...it’s almost midnight, and I think Alya is expecting us to rejoin the party.”
“I think she’ll let it slide.” He placed a gentle kiss on her cheek. “After all, we wouldn’t want one of Paris’ heroes to get sick, right?”
Marinette giggled. “Yeah, okay.”
She was too cute.
The sound of her laughter was more beautiful than a symphony, and he would do anything to hear it again. He pulled her to her feet and laced his fingers between hers. They managed to leave the party without any qualms from their friends, and soon they found themselves standing on the sidewalk in the cold winter air.
When her teeth started chattering, his grip tightened around her hand before he quickly dragged her into an alley.
“Adrien!” she squeaked, “What are you doing?”
“Plagg, CLAWS OUT!” His transformation illuminated the space around them. “My lady, would you allow me the honor of escorting you home?”
She giggled again. “What’s gotten into you, you silly cat?”
He almost melted on the spot. She was going to kill him. Adrien was but a mere mortal. How was he supposed to survive if she kept being so freaking adorable?
“I’m taking you home the express route.” He held out his hand. “If you’ll let me, that is.”
She nodded and took a step toward him. Adrien swept her into his arms, knees nearly giving out when she wrapped her arms around the back of his neck.
All too soon, they touched down on her balcony; however, even after he lowered her feet to the ground, she didn’t let go.
Goodness, he was so in love.
“We should really get you inside,” he whispered, resting his hands on her waist. “You should put on some dry clothes.”
“Not yet.” She bit her lip as she looked up and met his gaze. “It was soaking wet when I fell in love with you, so it’s only fitting that I’m covered with punch when I do this.
He swallowed. “D-do what?”
Her hands cupped his face as she drew closer. “This.”
The world came to a screeching halt as her lips met his. Her fingers moved to the back of his head, deepening the kiss. It was everything he’d ever dreamed of and more. Her breath became his lifeline, his soul dreading the moment they had to part.
They smiled under the kiss, causing their teeth to clack and their noses to bump, but it was perfect nonetheless. This was his lady, the girl under the mask he swore he’d love no matter what.
When they pulled apart, they fell into a laughing heap on the ground. Cheers erupted around them as fireworks lit up the sky. It was as if the universe itself was celebrating with them.
“I guess that’s one way to ring in the New Year.” She turned her head towards the sky. “This year, we should definitely kiss like that every day.”
“I think that’s one resolution I can definitely keep.” He kissed her forehead. “And maybe we could even kiss more than once a day?”
“I’d like that.” She grabbed his bell and pulled him down to her level. “Let’s start now.”
Adrien was more than happy to oblige.