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It wasn't the first time she had visited him. Usually she only let herself impose on him like this to check on him after an akuma attack. Something about seeing him almost get killed tended to make her afraid that the last time she had seen him safe and whole was a dream. A flash of a smile from across the room as he assured everyone that he was ok, he had managed to hide right before Chat Noir showed up to help her.
And ok, yes, that was her initial motive this time, too.
That didn't explain why, an hour after she had slipped through his window, Ladybug was still there, leaning almost casually against Adrien's desk. He sat in his desk chair, chin resting in the palm of his hand as he looked up at her. He was smiling, which she took as a win. She would always take it as a win when he was in a good mood and she was supposedly the cause. He kept glancing at the clock on his computer, as if the tick tick ticking of time were bothering him.
"Adrien?" She tipped her head the fifth time he checked the clock, her brow furrowing. "I'm sorry, it's getting late. Should I get out of your hair?"
"No!" He said it so quickly, as if he was afraid she would disappear immediately. "No- you don't have to go. Unless you want to, I mean. I won't keep you here, obviously. Not that I ever could. Cause, you know, you're a super hero and I'm definitely not."
Adrien was rambling and stammering in a way just reminded her of herself -- out of the suit and fumbling through her words, unable to string her thoughts together. Marinette took his hand in her own, her touch quickly silencing him. She desperately wanted to run a soothing thumb over the worried wrinkles in his forehead. She wanted to ease the stress in his face, his shoulders, his clenched fist. The fist, at least, was already in her grasp. She pressed the pads of her gloved thumb to the back of his hand, gently massaging from the wrist to the knuckles.
"I don't have to go yet," she told him, offering a careful smile. "Not unless you want me to."
He sucked in a startled breath. She could feel his eyes boring into her. If she thought about how intent his attention was on her, she would trip and fall back into tying her own tongue.
"Don't go," he finally opened his fist, relaxing it with some clear effort before turning it over to lace their fingers together.
She let out a breath, staring down at their hands for longer then was probably necessary. When she could finally force her eyes up, they found him watching her. Imploring her.
She could feel her face heating up beneath her mask. Exactly what she needed; for Adrien to see Ladybug turn into a tomato just because he held her hand. She had to get it together. She needed a distraction -- any kind of deflection.
"You know, I'd be lying if I didn't say I was a little excited just to hang out in your room. I couldn't resist trying your pinball machine." Ladybug bumped his shoulder with her own, nodding at the machine in the corner. "It's been years since I've tried one."
"Really?" He looked between it and her, before smiling a little wider. "Sure, yeah, no problem."
He used the hand he was already holding to lead her to it, pausing to make sure it was plugged in.
She got in position, but hesitated. "You have to promise not to judge me. I'm not very good."
"That's ok." He moved beside her and put a hand on the small of her back. "I can help."