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Akuma transporting people next to their crush wasn’t viewed as an inconvenience by many. It also couldn’t normally cause too many problems but Marinette couldn’t afford to get hit because she had to transform and go defeat the akuma, she couldn’t waste time being glued to Adrien no matter how much she wanted that in general.
Of course, this was the day her good luck abandoned her. Because before she could transform, there was Chat and she had to pretend she was happy that he was saving her. She hoped she would manage to get away for a minute after that. Except this was when they both got hit.
They both blinked in confusion because absolutely nothing happened. She was still there, he was still there. Something didn’t add up and Marinette felt very nervous all of a sudden.
Of course, he recovered more quickly. His slow smile didn’t bode well for her.
“You're still here. So you’re either Ladybug or I fell in love with you without realising it,” he said casually and her heart almost stopped. ”Come to think of it, either can be true.”
“I don’t know what you mean. Ha-ha.” His smile only got wider. He didn’t just go and drop this as if it was nothing, right? How could he see through her so easily? Also, what was that supposed to mean? Since when was Chat in love with Marinette?
Of course, she had to consider her side of things and this was equally troublesome.
Being there next to him after being hit would mean that he was Adrien or that she was in love with Chat. She was equally unwilling to admit either was possible. She wasn’t sure which was harder to believe, to be honest. Or maybe they could both be true, which would be the biggest joke at her expense.
“Although if you’re Ladybug, then you lied when you said you were in love with me. Except you’re here now, which means you tried to lie but actually told the truth,” he said, a confused expression replacing the confident smile. “Oh, my head hurts, this is too complicated.”
Tell me about it.
She didn’t know why it was so hard to accept the truth. Was she just stubborn or too proud? She had done the one thing she had been fighting so hard not to do. She’d fallen for him. Yes, she’d already been in love with him from the looks of it, but this was beside the point.
He seemed to have already reached his conclusion.
“Well, m’lady, what would it be? Will you admit the truth or are you going to sit here wasting time?”
Well, the point was…
“Ugh. You win.” She pouted. He wasn’t happy with her reply.
“Don’t let pride stand in the way of happiness.” He sounded like a fortune cookie but seemed to be dead serious. “You won’t regret being honest with yourself. And me.”
“I doubt it.”
She was overreacting. There was nothing bad about the situation, exactly the opposite. He was the one she’d been in love with all along but also the one she’d fallen for unexpectedly. And he loved her. He had just admitted he’d also fallen for her twice! She should be celebrating, not being all grumpy. But she couldn’t help it.
“Here. A consolation prize.” And then he kissed her! Just like that. Well, he knew about her crush so he could be more forward.
The truth was, it was surprisingly effective, because it made her practically melt into him. What was the point in being stubborn when she could have this?
He totally felt the way she chased the touch of his lips when he pulled back if his grin was any indication. And now she was blushing. Just great.
“Now, transform so we can beat that akuma and you’ll get more,” he promised. Well, this was good motivation actually so she stopped fighting her smile and just did exactly that.