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Marinette was looking forward to spending some time with her friends. Especially with one of them. She was trying hard not to stare at Adrien like a love-sick puppy but it was so hard. He was right there and smiling his lovely smile and she thought she was going to burst.
If only he could figure out that she was in love with him without her telling him and ask her out on a date so they could go eat ice cream and then get married and have three children and a hamster called…
“Dude, don’t, not your lecture about dark chocolate.” Nino’s words brought her out of her daydreams with a jolt. What?
“What? What do you mean?” She said out loud, looking curiously between them.
“Adrien insists I haven’t tried real chocolate. Because milk chocolate is not real for him,” Nino responded with a long-suffering sigh.
“Look, Nino, it’s not my fault you don’t appreciate the finer taste of cocoa. It’s not for everyone,” Adrien shrugged.
“I haven’t even tried it, how could I?” Nino asked, sounding exasperated.
“Next time I’ll try to sneak in a bar of my favourite chocolate to share with you,” Adrien promised.
“Your father lets you eat chocolate?” Marinette asked, awed. She'd always had this idea that he could eat sweets only outside of his house.
“It’s very low on sugar, why not?” He replied with a smile.
“How dark are talking about?” Now she was suspicious. This didn’t sound like chocolate at all.
“Like I always say, below 70% is not worth it,” he declared proudly, with Nino echoing the statement in the background, while making a face. Marinette tried hard not to giggle and file away this information for later.
"How nice."
“M’lady, what are you doing?” Chat’s voice somehow broke through her focus and made her look up from her yo-yo which she was using to search the internet.
“Reading about dark chocolate,” she mumbled absentmindedly. Yes, she should be thinking about patrol instead and it was not nice to ignore her partner, but she’d fallen down the rabbit hole already.
“Why?” He didn’t sound appalled, but really curious. Maybe this wasn't such an alien idea.
“Well, I hadn’t even heard of it until today.” Which was a shame, what with her living in a bakery! She had to have some words with her father. “It turns out it’s very healthy. Except it has to be the bitter type,” she was blabbering but she couldn’t stop. She was fascinated with cocoa percentage and how much chocolate was healthy. This was the really important question.
“You sound like a convert,” Chat chuckled. “If you’re a chocolate noir fan, it’s a small step to falling for the other Noir,” he added smugly, pointing to himself.
“Oh, no, really?” she groaned. She should have expected that. “Anyway, I need to try it first before I decide if I like it.”
“But you’re willing to try?”
“For this person, it’s worth it,” she sighed happily. She could try to impress Adrien with her knowledge and sacrifice.
“I can recommend you some brands.” This made her do a double take.
“You like dark chocolate?” For some reason, she found this really strange. Also, what were the chances?
“Why is this surprising?”
“Are you a model? Wait, no, you’re not, of course,” she laughed,
“Should I be offended?” He didn’t sound offended but amused. “Why would I be a model anyway?
“I thought it might be a model thing… Adrien is a model…” She shrugged. Now that she thought about it, it was silly.
“Oh. Oh . Are you doing this for Adrien?” There was something quite frightening in Chat’s smile. It looked very еаger.
“Forget you heard that.” She said quickly, realising her mistake too late.
“I don’t think so.” He practically sang. This really rankled.
“Why do you look so smug?” She asked, narrowing her eyes.
“Mmm, I wonder. Tell me, what was the most important thing you learned today? What makes chocolate real?” That was easy.
“Nothing under 70% counts.” They said it at the same time. She looked at him wide-eyed while he just grinned.
“No way!”
“Yes way. Hey, Marinette. I didn’t know you wanted to impress me that much.” He winked at her. Chat winked at her. Adrien winked at her!
“No, no. I’m not ready for that,” she shook her head, still in denial.
“What?”
“Flirty you,” she mumbled.”
“I flirt with you all the time!”
“Not as Adrien. Not when I know you are Adrien.” She could feel her face grow hotter. It was sinking in. Oh God.
“Does it affect you by any chance?” She was sure she was now in lobster-red mode.
“N-no.” She still tried to deny it, stubborn as usual.
“I can’t believe you haven’t been caught until now. You’re a terrible liar,” he said good-naturedly. “Then again, I didn't notice it earlier. See, you wanted to impress me. I appreciate it. But you’ve already done this. Many times over. Both as my fabulous superhero partner and as my cute school mate.”
For a second she was speechless. He really knew what to say to disarm her and turn her into mush.
“Cute, eh?” She barely whispered.
“What can I say? I’m not blind.” He shrugged. As if it was nothing.
“You never tried anything because you were loyal to Ladybug?” When it hit her, she realised they had been doomed from the start. Only this, them knowing, could have resolved their situation.
“It’s silly, I know. Especially since you turn out to be the same person. Hey, I fell for you twice!” He declared triumphantly. She smiled, finally feeling more comfortable with the new situation. There was nothing bad about Chat being Adrien. In fact, it was exactly the opposite.
“Do you want to know a secret?”
“I already know it.”
“No, another one. I also fell for you twice.” Her cheeks were still too hot and she felt light-headed with excitement, but she also felt in a way that was not so unfamiliar. She was safe with him. He was her partner, he’d never make fun of her, he loved her. So she could tell him everything.
His eyes widened comically, making her giggle. And then the happiest grin split his face.
“This deserves a celebration!”
“We don’t have chocolate, sadly. How else can we celebrate it?”
“How about kisses?” He asked, scooting closer. “Double serving.” He looked a little shy but also very, very eager.
“I approve,” she somehow found it in her to reply before she melted into a puddle.
Their lips met in the most heart-melting way. Finer than the finest chocolate. Richer than the sweetest treats. It was just them and so real.
“This is better than chocolate,” Adrien voiced her thoughts as he looked at her with almost heart-shaped eyes. She knew that she probably looked equally smitten but she didn’t mind.
“You promised double serving,” she reminded him, grabbing his bell and pulling him down for another kiss. Yes, it definitely became easier with every passing minute. They had this.