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Adrien didn't expect to be distracted by Multimouse's presence. After all he'd chosen her himself when Ladybug had given him her Miraculous for a while and told him to pick one of the temporary heroes to train with.
He'd been ready with the argument that it didn't matter that he knew Multimouse's identity if no one else knew it so Ladybug had relented.
Here he was, admiring the confidence that Marinette exuded in this guise. She didn't hesitate at all before calling on her power to demonstrate it to him. He watched fascinated as she split into four identical but much smaller versions of herself.
They jumped around, moving in a blur and making it hard for him to follow them. It was a useful power to have, he agreed. One minimouse landed in his hair, tickling him, while the other tugged on his yo-yo and he laughed out loud.
Then they returned to their original position and merged back into one big Multimouse. He clapped and whistled while Marinette detransformed in order to feed Mullo.
"Great job, little mouse," he said as he approached her. Her cheeks were close to the colour of her superhero suit because of his reaction to her demonstration but when he spoke, her whole demeanour changed - her eyes narrowed and her lips pursed.
"What's with the nickname, bug?" She asked, looking at him pointedly.
"Just being friendly," he replied easily, not thinking much of it.
"Or just being flirty," she suggested, a challenge in her eyes.
"Hey, that's not fair," he shot back, feeling contrite all of a sudden. The nickname had just slipped, coming to him naturally the way it happened usually with Ladybug. He didn't want to make Marinette uncomfortable.
"You've done it with me before, don't forget," she reminded him and it was his turn to feel like blushing. The corner of her lips was lifted though, hinting at a suppressed smile, so he relaxed.
"This doesn't mean I do it with everyone," he explained, hurt by the insinuation that he was a flirt who didn't discriminate.
"So just me and Ladybug then?" She asked, sounding surprised. It was no wonder that she'd seen him flirt with Ladybug, the whole city had witnessed that at one point or another. She also knew how he felt about her.
"Yes," he admitted, realising this for the first time. He joked around and acted overboard when he was Chat, yes, but genuine flirting? Yes, he couldn't think of anyone else. "In fact, you should know that if I were to move on from Ladybug, you'd be next in line for my attention."
The admission was as startling to him as it was to her. He instantly knew it was true ,but the thought didn't make him feel happy.
"But you probably have a ton of admirers and would never consider me in this light again," he added, feeling unexpectedly sad. If only he'd realised his true feelings for her before he rejected her.
"Actually," she said, the thoughtful expression on her face giving him pause. "If I were to move on from the guy I like right now, you'd be my next choice."
Her words hung between them, increasing further the tension in the air. It had been one thing for him to admit this, but the fact that she felt the same way was absolutely unexpected. This is interesting , he thought, although it was an understatement. He wondered what it would take for them to reconsider their first choices.
"Well, enough talking, let's see what else I can do," Marinette said, her voice unnaturally cheerful. He welcomed the change of topic since he didn't know what to make of the previous one.
"Your weapon so to say appears to be the jump rope," he said, trying to think logically. She nodded as she transformed again. "But you can't jump around from rooftop to rooftop."
"What if I try to use it the way you use the yo-yo?" She offered, already looking for a good target to test this.
"Great idea," he beamed at her, feeling proud with his new partner.
He watched her as she threw the jump rope and it wrapped around a chimney. She tugged and it looked stable so she moved to jump. In the last second before her feet left the roof they were on, Adrien realised he'd need to be right next to her in case something went wrong.
Adrien quickly unleashed the yo-yo, throwing it in the air. He didn't even look where it landed when his feet pushed off the rooftop at the same time hers did. She moved gracefully and would have landed without a hitch on the other rooftop if he hadn't turned out to be just a little too close to her. They collided and fell in a heap, hopelessly tangled in her rope and his yo-yo. They rolled around, until coming with a stop with her on top of him.
"Are you ok?" He asked, heart pounding. This hadn't gone well, definitely. She'd probably never want to train with him again.
"Yes," she whispered. He could tell she was trying not to move because he could feel everything from the way she was flush against him. This effectively derailed any thinking about a possible way out. Instead of trying to free them both, he looked at her.
At the adorable buns that framed her face. At the pink and grey mask that made her brilliant blue eyes pop out in an amazing way. At the few freckles that dotted her cheeks where the mask ended. She was so close. His eyes continued down until they landed on her plush lips before darting quickly back to hers, silently asking for permission. It turned out that the little something he needed to act had happened.
She didn't say anything but leaned in and closed her eyes, her hands still on his chest where they were trapped between them. His hand still holding the yo-yo threw it away before gently holding the back of her head and moving it that little extra centimeter left between them so their lips could touch.
Soft, her lips were impossibly soft, he thought. He was kissing Marinette and this was all he could think about before he abandoned all coherent thought when her lips moved against his. She was kissing him too and it felt exquisite. He used his hand to tilt her head and deepen the kiss. The moan he swallowed was echoed by a similar sound from her, spurring him on. She tasted amazing and he couldn't get enough of her. Neither of them moved to pull back, lost in the sensation, until soft pants started interrupting the kisses. They'd been so absorbed in each other, they'd forgotten to breathe, not that breathing with their mouths busy was easy.
He could feel her soft breath on his lips, still bearing her taste, and it was enough to make him shiver. They finally pulled apart, breathing heavily. Their eyes met, still close, because there was nowhere else to go for now. It was done, they couldn't take it back, but after what they'd told each other earlier, it wasn't a surprise.
They didn’t speak as he reached for his yo-yo, retracting it, while she tugged at her rope and untangled it. When they got up and their eyes met, they smiled, a silent agreement, before they fell into each other’s arms again, their lips meeting. The rest would be discussed later.