Chapter Text
Pinky promised I was quitting, pinky promised that I wouldn't love somebody if they didn’t. I'm a girl with big ambitions, but did I listen? No, no, no, no. They're tortured and I wouldn't understand it. Plus they got a lot of unexamined father-son baggage. They don't wanna talk about it, is that a challenge?
“Girl, why do you always fall for guys who are way out of your league?” Alina raised an eyebrow as they walked to school.
“I don’t know , it’s not my fault Nathan exists, and he’s gorgeous, and there’s nothing I can do about it.” Marinette groaned.
“Come on, you pinky promised you were quitting.” Alina raised an eyebrow.
“Emotions are freaking hard to control, Lina.” Marinette grumbled. “And actually, I pinky promised I wouldn’t love somebody if they didn’t . Technically, this is just a crush. He doesn’t love me back anyway.”
“Go ahead and tell yourself whatever makes you feel better, but girl, he’s so out of your league.”
“I know .” Marinette grinned. “This sucks.”
“Good morning, ladies.” Nathan came up from right behind them and Marinette had to keep from jumping out of her skin. How much had he heard? “How are the loveliest ladies on this side of the street doing?” It was a nice compliment, they were the only students on that side of the street so it was a safe one, but Marinette couldn’t help the blush that rose to her cheeks at that second.
“Uh… I’m g-good, Nathan! T-Thanks!” Marinette smiled helplessly before noticing the fact that his gorgeous jaw that could cut paper was abnormally tense. “Are you o-okay?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?” He looked back at her with a smile on his face, classic model style.
“Oh, uh… I-I thought you looked s-stressed, so I thought I’d ask…”
“I’m just stressed. Y’know the deal, good old father-son baggage I lug around everywhere, you wouldn’t understand.”
“W-well, I’d be glad to listen if y-you wanted to vent to a s-stranger.” Marinette offered, still trying to get the blood to drain from her face.
“I don’t wanna talk about it, but thanks. See you lovely ladies in class, ‘kay?” He smiled and passed them, running off to say hi to some of the other guys he hung around with a lot.
“Girl, what was that?” Alina smirked, eyebrows raised.
“I don’t know , he just came out of nowhere and he looked stressed and I just messed things up again!” She screeched, burying her face in her hands as they got to the edge of the curb.
“Mari, that sounded like a flirt. He’s totally into you.” Alina smiled satisfactorily.
“Wait… what ?”
Oh, oh, oh, oh, funny I could pick 'em in a line up, line up. Pretty certain I could do it with my eyes shut, eyes shut. A little self-obsessive and I sign up, sign up.
“Marinette!” Alina whisper-shouted. “Stop staring at Nathan and finish your test.” Mari turned and looked at Alina, and the corner of her eye caught Felix rolling his eyes as he turned the page in his book.
“Sorry, sorry.” She muttered back, turning back to her test. In fairness, Nathan was distracting. He had already finished his test, and now he was whispering quite animatedly to his desk partner, Claude, about the latest in sports news or something, Mari wasn’t really paying attention to the conversation. “How do you do this?”
“You want me to answer your questions for you? Not a chance.” Alina raised an eyebrow.
“No! Survive in a room where he is right there and actually finish your test?”
“Oh, easy. He’s not my type.” Alina shrugged with a smile, turning back to the magazine she’d brought with for quiet time.
Marinette groaned and answered the next two questions before letting her eyes go right back to Nathan’s perfect haircut, perfect biceps, perfect… shut up, bad brain . She was pretty sure her brain would short-circuit if she were in Claude’s spot.
Thinking about it, Claude was pretty tall, taller than Felix at least, and sitting next to Nathan, he looked small enough for Nathan to bench press. Probably because he could. Nathan was impressive like that– Focus on your test, bad brain .
Thankfully, Marinette survived the test. Which was good, because then she could doodle in her sketchbook without having to feel bad about ignoring the test. Every time Nathan laughed at something Claude said, every time he turned and flexed a muscle, Marinette found herself staring again. How could a person be so amazing?
“Mari. Mari. Marinette Cheng .” Alina giggled. “Girl, class ended, stop staring at him.”
“I was not!” Marinette protested. “I was just staring into space!”
“Uh-huh, sure.” She smiled conspiratorially. “Come on, girl, let’s go to lunch.”
Marinette’s eyes had traveled back to the boys in the row in front of her. “Uh, yeah, I’ll catch up.”
“Suit yourself, simp.” Alina giggled again, hugging her friend goodbye. “I’ll save you a seat!”
“–But I just don’t understand it, because like, I still had the right answer, I just took a different approach. I don’t know why Mendeliev’s so picky about it, I still got it.” Nathan stood and grabbed his books as he grinned down at Claude, who was still seated.
“Right, it’s weird. I’d say to just ‘fuck it, we ball’, but that’s not gonna help since you need to keep your grades up to stay on the gym club.” Claude responded, standing and leaning on the seat as he shoved his papers into his bag. “We’re almost done with this unit, but I swear, the whole course sucks so bad.”
“Right, man.” Nathan agreed, coming around the seat to join Claude as they started out of the room. “You good?” He raised an obnoxiously gorgeous eyebrow as he noticed Claude hesitating.
“Rolled my ankle on the way in, I’m fine.” Claude shrugged it off, making his way towards Nathan. “Come on, lunch is already, like, five minutes over.”
“Yeah, I’ll catch up, bud, there’s something I want to take care of first.”
“Have it your way.” And with that, Nathan was left alone in the room with Marinette.
“Hey, Marinette! What’s going on?” Nathan beamed.
“Uh, not much! Just cleaning up!” She didn’t bother to say that she had hung back to just listen to him talk longer.
“Need help? I think I’m pretty qualified to help the pretty lady if I do say so myself, Prince Charming and all.” He flexed for effect and she had to keep herself from swooning.
“A little self-obsessed, too.” She joked with a grin as their hands touched above one of her pens. “Oh, s-sorry…”
“Don’t be.” Nathan smiled, his silvery eyes looking so warm and inviting. “I don’t mind the chance to get closer.”
What did that even mean? Marinette couldn’t really dwell on the thought with the issues at hand, namely my pens are all over my desk and there’s a very pretty boy in front of her and she doesn’t know what to do about it .
“Well, I wouldn’t want you to b-be mistaking me for s-someone cool and s-smart and, y’know, better.” She fumbled, honestly just trying to find a way out. Something about the beautiful person in front of her made her uncomfortable. But maybe her gut was wrong.
“I could pick you out with my eyes closed, Mari, even if you were lined up next to every model in Paris. You’re special like that.”
“You… You really think so?” She looked up at him with wide eyes.
“I know so. You’re amazing, Marinette.” His smile looked so genuine. “Pinky promise.”