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Coup de Foudre: An Adrinette Zine, this whole damn city thinks it needs you (but not as much as I do)
Stats:
Published:
2023-03-27
Words:
1,979
Chapters:
1/1
Comments:
67
Kudos:
400
Bookmarks:
52
Hits:
3,346

Blinding Lights

Summary:

Marinette knew that moving together with Adrien would have its own challenges, but she never anticipated that they would be having their first serious argument as a couple in the first week. Over a cardinal question of their living situation, no less.

She has her own reasons, of course, but she just can’t fathom Adrien’s motive for fighting tooth and nail against her on this issue of utmost importance. Nevertheless, she is more than confident in her stance, and willing to defend it until her last breath.

Whatever it takes, the fairy lights. Have. To. Go.

Notes:

had a blast participating in the Adrinette zine, where I got the chance to collaborate with Frostedpuffs. she did such an amazing job with illustrating this fic, the final look still takes my breath away!!

many thanks to Noodles and Khan for beta-reading! <3

title from the song, Blinding Lights, strictly the All Time Low cover :3

(See the end of the work for more notes.)

Work Text:

Marinette never in her life thought that her first argument with Adrien as a couple would go like this. Of course, they have had their fair share of squabbles during the years, as can be expected of longtime friends—turned superhero partners—turned lovers, but those were never serious, never something worth raising their voice over. But now—

Now Adrien is acting ridiculous.

He is standing over their last unpacked cardboard box in the middle of their new apartment, and his whole face pinches up in a frown as he throws his arms open. “I’m just saying that we should keep it. It is perfectly functional; it isn’t like we have a reason to throw it away,” he says, rather reasonably, even if a little forcefully.

He attempts to take the ball of irremediably tangled cords—on better days known as the fairy lights from her room back at the bakery—from her.

Marinette, rather reasonably, draws away to put the ball out of his reach and clutches it tightly to her chest. Maybe if she holds it tight enough, the damned paper triangles will dent—even better, rip—and she can be done with this ridiculous conversation. “And I’m just saying that we should just get a new set. Really, how much can it be? Like 10€?”

Adrien groans, dragging his hand down his face before meeting her eyes once more. “It isn’t about the price. It’s about the—” he bites his lip, but it’s only for a second—probably not enough time for him to come up with what it really is about. “It’s about our carbon footprint.”

“Our carbon footprint,” Marinette deadpans.

“Exactly,” he says, snapping his fingers and shooting her a finger gun. He keeps on nodding solemnly as he rounds the coffee table with the box open on top, and comes up to her. “I’m concerned about the ecological effect of our decisions and if you cared, you wouldn’t advocate for throwing away old things just to replace them immediately. It’s bad for the environment.”

Well, it’s good for you not to hold onto everything old, Marinette wants to say.

She doesn’t say it.

“I do care about the environment, but this is one fairy light. It isn’t a big deal,” she huffs instead. Then—summoning her best kitten eyes as a way of turning his own weapon against him—she bats her eyelashes and leans into his personal space. “Besides, I thought you’re supposed to indulge me by buying me stuff. Isn’t that what Gabriel’s inheritance is for?”

“And to pay for therapy,” Adrien says, a knee-jerk reaction, and she can’t help but bark out a laugh at the way the corners of his mouth quirk up. “Besides, I’ve bought you an apartment.”

Which was so much fun to pick out, together, and we made a bunch of good memories, together, so evidently, we should keep trying out new things. Together, Marinette wants to say.

Instead, she rolls her eyes.

“You’ve bought yourself an apartment and I’m moving in with you. That’s different,” she points out. “And all I need is a new set of fairy lights.”

Adrien seems to consider this, his arms crossed over his chest as a smirk creeps onto his face. “And why do you, pray tell, need a new one? What’s wrong with the old one?”

Marinette’s confident expression falters.

“It’s because—” she starts tentatively, holding out the ball of cord in front of her and pushing it into his face for close inspection—close enough that he surely can’t inspect anything about it. “Uh, you see, these ones have warm light and the shade clashes with the living room's atmosphere, yes. Instead of complementing it, obviously. And when my future classmates from the design program come over they’ll all notice and I’ll never make friends with them and I’ll never have a network of sufficient professional connections to start my future career because the lighting of our apartment is hideous.”

She says it all in one breath, and Adrien can only blink.

Adrien and Marinette holding a bundle of fairy lights

“Oh,” is all he ends up saying, staring down at the lights in her arms with a crestfallen expression. “Is it— Is it really this important to you?”

Marinette hesitates some, before nodding carefully. Adrien shuts his eyes and takes a deep inhale. Her heart throbs in her throat, afraid he’ll call her bluff, but when he opens his eyes, he only leans down to her and breathes a kiss against her forehead.

“Okay. Then let’s get a new one,” he says, voice barely above a whisper.

“Really?” she asks tentatively.

He shrugs a shoulder, the sour half-smile on his face in stark contrast to his words. “Sure.”

“Okay…”

Eyeing him in suspicion over her shoulder, she goes over to the box marked for trash at the foot of the cat tree on the other side of the room. Adrien’s eyes follow her intently as she places the ball of cord on top, to be discarded with the rest.

He lets out a deep, miserable sigh.

Something snaps in her and Marinette rounds on him, her hands on her hips, the blood in her veins racing. “What is your problem? Why are you pouting?”

“I’m not pouting,” he says, pouting.

She stomps her feet and a frustrated whimper escapes her. “Yes, you are. Why did you agree to toss it away if you care so much about this?”

“Because your happiness is more important, okay?!” Adrien cries, throwing his hands up in exasperation.

“Than yours?” Marinette screams back.

Nostrils flaring, he takes a deep breath as if he can’t believe they are even having this conversation, and jabs a finger at the offending piece of home-decor in question. “Than these stupid fairy lights!”

“Well, it looks like that’s the same thing,” she huffs. She takes a step towards the box of trash, strategically positioning herself between it and Adrien, before declaring, “We are keeping them.”

“What, absolutely not!” he splutters. “What about your classmates? Don’t think that I didn’t notice it isn’t even just the lighting. The pink of the triangles doesn’t match the walls, either,” he adds, nodding sagely at ‘having discovered a deeper layer to her adamance’.

Marinette can’t stifle the indignant little laugh tumbling out on her mouth at his serious expression. Righting the slip-up, she’s quick to school her expression into one of deadpan. “Adrien, it’s a fashion program. No one knows a damn thing about interior design.”

“But I thought— You said it is important to you,” he says, staring at her with eyes so wide and puzzled, Marinette wants to scream and kiss some sense into that slightly ajar mouth of his, at the earliest convenience.

She does not do just that, in favor of quipping, “I thought our ecological footprint was important to you.”

“I don’t give a damn about our ecological footprint,” he laughs dryly, running his hand through his hair, his fingers mussing the neatly composed locks all up. “I’m just— It’s so stupid.”

He shakes his head and it’s in that moment that some blunt realization dawns on Marinette, making her cross the distance separating the two of them and cradle his face between two palms. Carefully, she tilts his chin until he’s compelled to meet her eyes.

“Hey, listen. Whatever it is, I’m sure it isn’t stupid,” she says softly, eyes boring into his, imploring him to trust her. “Tell me?”

“I just—” He sighs and his Adam’s apple bobs as he swallows. Despite his cheeks heating up under the caress of her thumb, he doesn’t look away. “I have so many memories of us in your room, and these lights are in every one of them. Like when we first started planning and working together in earnest, freshly out of the masks, or when the tape of the fairy lights gave out and they fell on us while attempting to rewatch Witching Hour and it scared you so much you transformed to defend us, or when you were just there and wrapped me up in that blanket after—” He swallows again and shrugs, looking away with a visible blush tinting his cheeks. “I told you. It’s silly.”

Marinette can only stare at him, trying to blink away the moisture in her eyes that snuck up on her during his speech.

“Oh, Adrien,” she breathes, the corners of her mouth pulling in a small smile. “That’s not silly at all.”

His eyebrows furrow. “It is, though. It isn’t something worth fighting ove—”

With a deliberate motion, Marinette pushes herself up on her tiptoes and kisses him right on the mouth before he can say something truly silly. He mumbles a sound of surprise against her lips, but it doesn’t take long for his shoulders to relax as he hugs her to himself, returning the kiss. She holds him firmly and breathes him in, his familiar scent of fresh linen and citrus grounding her in the moment.

When they break away, she pushes her forehead against his and peers up at him from under her lashes, her voice devoid of any of her previous frustration. “Do you know why I wanted to get rid of the lights in the first place?”

He considers her for a while, his gaze trailing her mouth, her nose, her freckles until reaching her eyes. His mouth pulls into a grin. “Let me guess, it had nothing to do with your fashion career dying in its ashes?“

She shakes her head gently. “I had so much fun picking out new things for the apartment, I thought this could be another opportunity to let go of something old and make new memories together.”

“Oh,” Adrien manages, a chuckle spilling out of him in the millisecond of surprise it takes for his grin to turn mischievous. “You want to spend more time with me, my lady? How embarrassing.”

Marinette swats at his chest, but she’s laughing along. “What are you talking about, we’re literally dating.”

“Well, still. Embarrassing,” he drawls, teasing her. “What’s next, admitting you like my jokes?”

“Not in a lifetime,” she says, knowing all too well they are both aware of what an atrocious lie that is.

Still beaming, he lowers his head just enough to kiss her nose. “Well, then it’s a good thing I have nine of them.”

She shakes her head fondly, but doesn’t say anything, just circles his midriff with her arms and hugs him closer in the peaceful silence. He plays with the locks on her back, twirling one around a finger before letting it unravel. It’s a thing he does when deep in thought, and so Marinette looks up at him expectantly when he clears his throat.

“So, in the end, what should we do about the fairy lights?” he asks, eyes flitting over to the tangle of cords.

“We’re keeping them, obviously,” she says. It isn’t even a question.

“But what about—”

“And we’re buying a new set, too. Together,” she continues, giddy at even the prospect of an IKEA-date.

“Brilliant plan as usual, my lady,” Adrien grins, mischief creeping into the crickets by his eyes. “The only downside to it is that this way we are sure to use twice as much electricity than we meant to. Not very environmentally friendly,” he says with a loud, theatrical sigh at the end for good measure.

Marinette can’t hold back a snort of laughter. “But hey, at least, the two different shades of the lights are also guaranteed to clash,” she adds, continuing his train of thought and brushing his fringe out of his eyes tenderly.

His fingers find hers and he leans into the palm on his cheek, eyes shut as he smiles a kiss against her wrist. “Looks like we’re both losing, then. Sounds like a true compromise.”

"You know, as long as we're doing it together, I'm fine with that."

Adrien and Marinette hugging and looking at each other with heart-eyes

Notes:

you can find the illustrations in their full glory here <3