Work Text:
-01
That night, Marinette heard the familiar tapping sound from the rooftop as usual, and opened the trapdoor. Chat's head poked through the window, his cat ears twitching cheerfully.
"Good evening, Marinette." Chat Noir said breezily, sounding quite excited. "I have something for you."
This stray cat seemed to have claimed Marinette's room as his own territory, always looking perfectly at ease during his late-night visits. She didn't mind; in fact, she even looked forward to his visits and thus supported his behavior, whether intentionally or not. At first, Tikki had warned her out of caution, saying that too much contact with Chat in her civilian identity might expose either her or her partner's identity, but eventually Tikki had grown used to it and tacitly approved.
"Come on in." She shifted to make room for Chat. "You don't want to stay out there all night, do you?"
Chat leaped down with practiced ease, landing almost silently on the floor. This detail always surprised Marinette, as he was so much like a real cat. It wasn't until then that she noticed he was holding something in his arms.
Chat handed Marinette a square object simply wrapped in kraft paper. He sometimes brought her simple gifts—usually a flower, a cat keychain, a bookmark, things that didn't take up much space—as thanks for keeping him company at night. This gift was much larger by comparison.
“You didn’t have to bring me so much stuff, Chat,” she couldn’t help but say.
“What kind of gentleman visits a girl all the time without bringing anything?” he retorted, as glib as ever. Worried that Marinette might actually refuse to accept it, he added almost pleadingly, "This gift is important. You have to see it, okay?"
She didn't unwrap it right away, instead secretly observing Chat's reaction. His eyes revealed anticipation, and his tail tip restlessly tapped the ground. The longer she waited, the more anxious he seemed, yet he tried hard to suppress it. As Ladybug, she was intimately familiar with her partner's subtle body language, and she could tell that he was trying to maintain his composure while eagerly awaiting her reaction.
She became increasingly curious about what was inside.
Marinette unwrapped the package and took out a rectangular lamp. It was entirely green with irregular black patterns, a color scheme that easily reminded her of Chat Noir. Aside from that, she couldn't see anything particularly special about the lamp.
“This is a friendship lamp,” Chat explained. “No matter how far apart we are, if one of us turns the lamp on or off, the other one’s lamp will turn on or off accordingly.”
"So you have one too?" Marinette examined the lamp in her hand from side to side.
“Yes, mine is pink,” he said. “That way, seeing it will remind me of you. It will keep you company on those nights when I can’t visit you in person.”
His words sounded almost like an implication that their relationship was more than just friendship. Given his flamboyant personality, he probably said things like this to everyone. "Do you give this kind of gift to all your friends?" she teased.
“No,” Chat replied hesitantly, “only you.”
Chat's honesty caught Marinette off guard.
Oh, she didn't realize how important she was to Chat even in her civilian identity.
"So, anyway," she cleared her throat, deliberately ignoring the slight burning sensation in her ears, "have you tested whether they actually work?"
“I tried them at home, and their states were indeed synchronized. But I don't know if it'll fail over longer distances.” he told her. “I could go home right now and turn it on. Once your lamp lights up, you can turn it off, and then we'll know if it worked.”
“Good idea.” She nodded.
“Well then, princess, I'll light out now.” He gave a two-finger salute and easily slipped out of the window before Marinette had a chance to comment on the clumsy pun. Marinette didn’t know where he lived, but in his superhero suit, it probably wouldn't take him long to get back.
As soon as Chat left, Tikki flew out of her hiding place and circled the lamp. She perched on the lampshade and looked at Marinette with a meaningful gaze. "It seems Chat Noir really likes you, whether you are wearing the mask or not."
“He doesn’t like Marinette at all, he likes Ladybug,” Marinette retorted, understanding Tikki’s implication. Seeing Tikki giggle, she realized the little red Kwami was just teasing her, and pouted.
She climbed the stairs and placed the lamp by her bedside, hoping to see it light up.
Did it really take Chat that long to get home? She couldn't help but wonder. She had to repeatedly tell herself that it was just a lamp, and there was no need to make such a big deal out of it. If it lit up, it lit up; if it didn't, it didn't. Why was she so anxious?
"Do you like his idea?" Tikki asked.
“To be honest, I really like it,” she admitted. “It’s like having a friend always by my side.”
"He must care about you a lot to want you to be with him in this way."
“I care about him a lot too.” Marinette’s gaze softened. “He’s one of my most important friends.”
No sooner had she said that than her lamp lit up—and she was quite sure she hadn't accidentally touched the switch. It had worked.
She reached out and turned off the lamp, exchanging a smile with Tikki.
-02
Marinette hadn't planned to stay up this late. Well, she never intended to stay up late, but she always ended up doing so without realizing it. When she finally tore her attention away from her sketchbook and her new design, she was surprised to realize it was already 1 a.m.
Tikki was already asleep, otherwise she would have reminded Marinette to watch the time and go to bed early. She carefully scooped Tikki up, managing not to wake her. Tikki groggily nuzzled against Marinette's hand with her head.
She stood up, her tense nerves relaxing as sleepiness overwhelmingly took over her body. She yawned, climbed into bed, and prepared to enjoy a wonderful night's sleep. She gently settled Tikki beside her pillow, tucked herself under the covers, and contentedly closed her eyes.
She would have fallen asleep, if not for the sudden glow emanating from something beside her.
The unexpected light startled Marinette; for a moment she thought someone had broken into her bedroom and shone a flashlight on her. She turned around and remembered it was the friendship lamp Chat had given her.
When she received this gift, she didn't expect it would light up in the wee hours.
Marinette frowned, reached over to turn it off, then lay back down. Whatever Chat's reason for staying up so late, she was quite sure that this wasn't the time to play around. She had class tomorrow—or rather, today—and Chat definitely did too. The right thing to do was to get some sleep now to avoid getting caught dozing off in class a few hours later.
She hoped he would understand that. Yet seconds later, the lamp lit up again.
Marinette turned the light off again, clearly irritated. Considering Chat had turned it on right when she was about to sleep, she almost suspected he was doing it on purpose. Next time she saw him, she might have to teach him why 1 a.m. was not the time to disturb your friend with lights.
She closed her eyes. For a long while, the lamp stayed dark, and she assumed Chat must have given up.
She should have known that this cat had nothing to do with the word "give up".
The lamp lit up again.
Marinette sat up in anger. She stared straight at the lamp and turned it off through gritted teeth. That bad cat! She was going to transform into Ladybug, search every single house in Paris, find out who Chat Noir really was, and then hang him upside down from the Eiffel Tower! If he dared to turn it on one more time—
As if responding to her thoughts, the lamp lit up for the fourth time.
Marinette barely managed to suppress a scream. She grabbed the lamp and slammed it down in front of her, her shoulder muscles tense with rage.
He liked turning it on, did he?
She placed her hand on the switch, a cold smile playing on her lips.
She pressed the switch as fast as she could, the lamp flickering on and off repeatedly. Her vigorous movements woke Tikki, who rubbed her eyes and glanced at Marinette's furious profile. When she finally stopped, she was almost breathless from the simple act of pressing the switch.
He'd better not dare turn it on again! Marinette thought angrily. Maybe cats are nocturnal (actually, they're crepuscular, but whatever), but she wasn't; she was a genuine human teenager. If he bothered her again, she swore she'd make sure Chat Noir never slept again in his entire life!
Marinette stared at the lamp for a long time. Perhaps frightened by her reaction, Chat didn't try to turn on the light again. She gave a satisfied huff and finally drifted peacefully into sleep.
Unsurprisingly, she was late for class the next day. Marinette had to admit it had nothing to do with Chat; she should have known she wouldn't make it to class on time when she stayed up until 1 a.m.
She sneaked into the classroom while the teacher was writing on the blackboard, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible. As a student who was often late, she knew the routine by heart. Most of her classmates were used to seeing her after class had started.
She breathed a sigh of relief as she sat down. So far, everything had gone smoothly.
“Good morning, Marinette.” Adrien turned around and greeted her with a smile.
Adrien.
Said good morning.
To her!
She refrained from screaming or raising her voice, as she remembered she was still in class. If she accidentally shouted, she would be taken to the principal's office for disrupting the class, Adrien would be threatened with expulsion by his father for talking in class, and they would be separated forever, never able to raise their three children and a hamster together—
Alya nudged her. She was incredibly grateful to her best friend for always reminding her when to react.
“Mord gooning—good morling—I mean, good morning, Adrien.” She deliberately lowered her voice.
"Did you, uh," he hesitated, "sleep well last night?"
A hint of worry flickered in his eyes. She wasn't sure where his emotions came from, since she was late every day, and today was no different from usual.
Memories of last night flooded back, and she let out an exasperated sigh.
"Other than a stray cat bothering me repeatedly at 1 a.m., I slept fine." Marinette clenched her fist, thinking of the black cat who wasn't currently present. "I'm going to tie him up and shine a light in his face all night so he can't sleep."
Adrien stiffened. He still maintained that perfect model smile on his face, but his body shifted uncomfortably. "Um, I'm sure that cat had a reason..."
“Adrien, Marinette, you can chat after class. Let’s focus on the lesson for now, shall we?” Miss Bustier reminded them.
Both students blushed in unison, apologized, and returned their attention to the class.
-03
That night, Chat Noir knocked on the skylight in Marinette's room again. She opened the trapdoor expressionlessly, and Chat couldn't help but flinch.
"Uh, well, I thought maybe I should explain the situation from last night?" His cat ears drooped as he gave a guilty smile, his neck shrinking into his shoulders. "I don't think it was what you thought it was...?"
To be honest, Marinette had already stopped caring about the whole thing, brushing it off as one of Chat's pranks. It wasn't a big deal, and she wouldn't really be angry about it. But since he brought it up now, and it seemed like there was some hidden reason, she didn't mind hearing his side of the story. Besides, even just teasing him was quite fun.
She deliberately put on a serious expression and stared at him without saying a word. Chat took a step back in fear, hoping to get out of Marinette's sight, but he felt he couldn't just leave.
Marinette finally made way for him, tacitly allowing him to retain the privilege of entering the room. Chat hurriedly jumped into the room, afraid that she might change her mind and close the door later.
“What do you think I was thinking, and what do you actually think?” Marinette said with a forced smile. She watched Chat grow increasingly flustered with satisfaction, finding his behavior quite amusing.
“You seem to think I was deliberately keeping the lights on so you couldn't sleep.” His tail swished behind him. “Actually, I just accidentally pressed the switch the first time.”
"Then?"
“I was just about to turn it off myself when the light suddenly went out, and I realized you were awake too. I thought you were trying to…” he explained awkwardly, “to communicate with me this way? I thought you wanted to know someone was next to you, so I turned the light back on. It wasn’t until you started frantically pressing the switch that I realized you just wanted to turn it off.”
Marinette could picture the scene: Chat, at first smiling, kept turning the light on until it started flashing wildly, and he could even see anger emanating from a lamp. He immediately stopped in terror, too frightened to press the switch again.
She couldn't help but burst out laughing.
"Alright kitty, I believe you," she soothed.
Chat belatedly realized that Marinette wasn't actually angry with him at all, and his cat ears immediately perked up. He resumed his usual playful demeanor and moved a little closer to Marinette.
"You're not secretly plotting revenge against me, are you?" he asked suspiciously, "Like, making sure I can't sleep all night or something?"
Marinette said half-jokingly, "If you keep talking, I might actually consider it."
Chat fell silent. Though not for long.
“Why were you up so late?” Chat raised an eyebrow. “I’m a night owl, busy saving Paris at night, that’s why I stayed up so late. What’s your excuse?”
Marinette was no stranger to her partner's schedule. He often patrolled voluntarily outside of their agreed-upon times. He probably went out for a couple of rounds again last night. She had subtly advised him to go to bed earlier and not to keep himself so busy, but he replied that he simply wanted to and loved doing it.
Conversely, Chat Noir was less familiar with Marinette's routine, just as she knew nothing about Chat's true identity.
“I had some inspiration and wanted to jot it down, and before I knew it, it was late at night,” she told him. “I often get so engrossed in what I’m doing that I lose track of time.”
"If you often sleep this late, it's no wonder you're always late for school," he commented.
“Wait a minute.” Marinette squinted. “How do you know I’m always late?”
Chat's face turned pale. "Well, well," he stammered, trying to stall for time while struggling to come up with a suitable explanation, "I... wanted to know more about you, so I've been gathering information about you everywhere. I just happened to... have a friend's friend who knows you, so I asked him about you."
Perhaps he knew more about Marinette's routine than she imagined.
"You mean you specifically go out of your way to find out information about me? Down to knowing exactly how I'm late?" she asked incredulously.
“Yes,” he affirmed without hesitation.
She wanted to comment on his confession, but considering she would do the same thing—like having Adrien Agreste's entire schedule memorized—she didn't seem to have the right to speak. She decided to ignore their previous conversation.
"So, I can still turn this lamp on, right?" Chat said hopefully.
"Of course. But we need to agree that if you turn it on and the other person turns it off without turning it back on, that means 'don't turn it on.'"
“That's reasonable.” He stood up. “Now that the misunderstanding has been cleared up, I’ll take my leave. You know, superheroes are very busy.” He made an exaggerated muscle-flexing pose, and Marinette rolled her eyes behind his back.
She escorted Chat to the balcony and watched him disappear into the night.
“Tikki, do you think Chat is as often late as I am in real life?” Marinette asked, opening her purse to let Tikki out.
“Since akuma attacks often happen during class, he probably has to be late,” Tikki replied.
“That’s not what I meant. I mean, if he stays up that late too, how does he even wake up in the morning?”
Tikki chose her words carefully. "I don't think everyone turns off their alarm clock in their sleep, or goes back to bed even though they've been woken up, or encounters all sorts of unexpected situations on the way when they could have arrived on time."
Marinette wanted to defend herself but couldn't find any arguments. She lay back in bed and stared at the ceiling, letting her thoughts wander aimlessly.
The lamp beside her suddenly lit up. Marinette pulled the lamp into her arms and turned it off, thus letting Chat know she had received the message. For a long time, the lamp stayed dark. Marinette was very pleased that Chat had learned his lesson and remembered that the other person turning off the lamp meant "don't turn it on." She turned the lamp on again, signaling Chat that she didn't mind the light now.
An image flashed through her mind: Chat tentatively turned on the light, then drooped his cat ears in disappointment after it was turned off. When the lamp lit up again, his ears perked up, his green cat eyes reflecting light, bright and eager.
It was strange, she was pretty sure Chat was a human instead of a cat beneath the transformation, but she could hardly imagine him without ears and a tail.
Marinette didn't turn off the light until late at night. The light flickered again, as if Chat was saying goodnight to her.
-04
The last time Chat visited Marinette, she asked him to bring his own lamp next time, along with a pen and paper. Although he didn't understand what she meant, Chat did as she asked.
"I've sacrificed so much so that you can go on a secret rendezvous with your princess at night," Plagg grumbled before Adrien transformed. "If only I had been like Sugarcube and used that 'don't use your powers for personal purposes' argument to dissuade you."
“You help me transform, and I'll help you get the cheese. I think that's a fair trade.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Plagg scoffed. “If you can’t win that girl over soon, I’m going to go crazy.”
"Plagg, we're just—"
Plagg didn't even give Adrien a chance to finish speaking. "La la la la la I can't hear you I can't hear you, are you still going to see her or not?"
Adrien stared at Plagg, the black Kwami looking completely innocent. He didn't understand why Plagg always tried to match him up with Marinette; he was used to it.
Moments later, Chat landed effortlessly on Marinette's balcony. He'd been there so many times that he could find his way with his eyes closed.
As if sensing his presence, the trapdoor opened just as he bent down to knock. Marinette saw him outside, grabbed him, and pulled him inside before he could react. He gasped and fell face down onto the bed.
“Good evening, princess, but I think you could have brought me in more gently.” He propped himself up on his elbows.
Marinette ignored his complaints. “You’ve come at the perfect time. We can start discussing the code now,” she announced.
Chat sat down on the edge of the bed, completely bewildered. "What code?"
“We can use specific patterns of turning the lamp on and off to send simple messages, like Morse code.” she said, waving her arms animatedly. “We’ve already stipulated that turning off the lights directly means ‘don’t turn them on,’ and if we have more phrases, we can do simple long-distance communication. After all, I don’t have your social media accounts.”
He wanted to tell her that she did have his contact info. Unfortunately, he was now Chat Noir, not Adrien.
“Why don’t we just communicate using Morse code?” he asked, raising his hand.
“That’s too complicated,” Marinette rejected the suggestion. “I’ll get distracted while sending and receiving messages, completely lose track of which letter I’m typing, and end up with a completely wrong sentence.”
“That makes sense. What phrases do we need for quick replies?” Even so, Chat’s attention wasn’t really on the discussion. He noticed Marinette’s lamp nearby and had an idea.
Marinette immediately picked up the conversation, clearly having considered this beforehand. "Considering that turning on the light itself can serve as a 'hello,' the only greeting we need to set up is 'goodbye' or 'good night'—"
Suddenly, pink and green lights flashed simultaneously in the room. Chat Noir casually flipped the switch on his lamp, as if it were some kind of amusing cat toy. He knew perfectly well that Marinette was looking at him with suppressed anger and helplessness, but that only made him play more enthusiastically.
“Are you even listening to me?” Marinette asked, frowning.
"I'm listening very carefully," he said with mock seriousness, poking the switch again.
She seemed about to reprimand him, but for some reason gave up at the last minute and instead went back to the previous topic. "Two short lights mean goodbye or goodnight, and I don't think it's necessary to set up separate codes for them. Now, you can take out your paper and write it down."
Chat reluctantly let go of the lamp and wrote down the first phrase they had agreed upon, as instructed by her.
"The other two phrases I can think of are 'are you there?' and 'I'm here.' Since your original purpose in giving me the lamp was companionship, you'd probably like that."
"Only I would like it?" Chat straightened up, a sly smile spreading across his face as he leaned closer to Marinette. "Don't you like this adorable kitty keeping you company in the dead of night?"
Marinette remained unmoved. "You mean like turning the lamp on repeatedly at 1 a.m. when I'm about to fall asleep?"
Chat shrank back awkwardly. "That was an accident."
“One long flash and one short flash means 'are you there?' One short flash and one long flash means 'I'm here.' Any other phrases you want to add?” Marinette pointed at him with her pen.
How about "I miss you"?
“That sounds quite sentimental,” she commented.
“There’s nothing wrong with being a little sentimental!” he protested. “We can use two long flashes for that.”
Marinette thoughtfully touched her lips with her pen. "I agree with your suggestion, and you reminded me. We also need a code for 'I love you'."
At that moment, Chat Noir forgot how to breathe. It was no exaggeration to say that he almost suffocated from Marinette's words.
"Wh...what?" he stammered.
He knew Marinette used to like Chat Noir, but that was a long time ago; they were just friends now. She liked someone else, right? There was no way this meant anything else. Or... could it? No no no no no that was terrible, but why did he feel a little happy? What should he do?
His mind raced, then went completely blank.
Marinette added, “I’m referring, of course, to the kind of love between friends.” She raised one eyebrow, as if silently asking what Chat had been thinking.
"Yes...yes...of course," he said dumbly, feeling a little disappointed.
Marinette concluded, "Then three short flashes means 'I love you'."
They discussed some more useful quick phrases, during which Chat couldn't resist pressing the switch a few more times. Marinette finally lost her patience with his deliberate mischief and threatened that if he touched it one more time while she was talking, she'd lock him in and make him press it ten thousand times before letting him leave. Chat raised his hands in surrender; he wasn't brave enough to withstand Marinette's wrath.
He knew very well that his princess could be just as terrifying as his lady when she got serious.
-05
This day shouldn't have been any different from any other day.
After Adrien tossed and turned in bed and landed on Plagg for the third time, the god of destruction finally couldn't take it anymore. He flew up to get away from the restless teenager, but Adrien suddenly sat up and bumped into him again.
Plagg grimaced and rubbed his head, even though he didn't actually feel any pain. "Relax, kid. You've seen that girl at attack scenes plenty of times before, and she's always been fine. The same goes for this time," Plagg said irritably.
These words were of no help whatsoever. Adrien did not answer him, but lay down and closed his eyes, the scene that had occurred during the day still vivid in his mind.
He remembered how the akumatized villain had blasted Marinette's house to rubble with a single blow. Tom and Sabine were out, but Adrien witnessed Marinette go upstairs not long before—which meant she was inside.
All he could do was watch in horror as the place where she was standing collapsed and shattered, while he was too far away to reach her in time.
At that moment, he was gripped by utter panic. The girl who always helped others without hesitation, the girl who kindly kept him company at night and brought him pastries, was in danger, and he was powerless to help her.
Action preceded thought. Chat rushed toward the pile of broken walls and ruins.
He could almost see the floor beneath her feet crumble, her plummeting downwards, buried under the rubble. Shards of glass would cut her skin, steel bars would pierce her body. She would be injured, even die. She—
Someone grabbed Chat's tail, pulling him back. He instinctively glared at the person behind him and blurted out, "Let go of me!"
"We need a plan! Don't rush in so recklessly!" Ladybug said sharply.
“Marinette is still in there!” Chat reluctantly complied with her command after recognizing the person, but his anxiety remained unabated.
Ladybug's eyes shifted from confusion to sudden understanding, realizing that Chat hadn't intended to immediately rush in to fight the akumatized villain. "Marinette is fine," she assured him. "I've taken her to safety."
Ladybug hadn't lied. After the battle, he did see Marinette unharmed. But this did little to ease the churning in his stomach: she could have met with misfortune. He realized that he absolutely could not bear to see anything happen to her.
And Plagg was right, he often saw Marinette near akuma attack sites. This made him even more uneasy. What if her luck ran out one day and she got hurt? She really should be more aware of her own safety.
"If you really care about her that much, why not go see her directly?" Plagg suggested, seeing his worried expression.
"I thought you hated transforming."
“I do,” Plagg tilted his head, “but I hate seeing you all groaning and sighing even more. And it’s annoying how you’re always talking about other girls, first Ladybug, and now Marinette…”
“Thank you for the thought, Plagg.” Adrien was used to Plagg’s usual sharp tone and knew the true meaning behind his harsh words. “But I don’t plan to visit her tonight. She'd probably think it's an overreaction… After all, she wasn’t hurt at all, and I don’t even know why I’m still bothered by it.”
Adrien picked up his phone. Maybe he could text Marinette to ask how she was doing. He could say he'd seen on TV that her house had been attacked and was worried about her. The thought was dismissed as soon as he unlocked the screen and went to Marinette's private messages. He knew she would, of course, reply that she was safe and sound, and that Ladybug had saved her.
He realized he didn't really want to know if she was alright, because he knew perfectly well she was; he'd seen it with his own eyes. He just wanted to know that she was there. He wanted to send her lots of emotional messages, to tell her he was worried about her, missed her, and cared about her.
He couldn't. Adrien and Marinette weren't close enough for that. It would be weird.
His gaze fell on their friendship lamp.
He grabbed the lamp and, almost petulantly—maybe angry at the akumatized villain, maybe angry at Hawk Moth, maybe angry at Marinette, maybe angry at himself— pressed the switch a few times at random. He waited quietly, but no response came from the other side. His shoulders slumped. What had he been expecting?
He didn't want to leave just like that. He still had so much he wanted to say.
Two long flashes. I miss you, he said.
I miss you. I miss you. I miss you I miss you I miss you I miss you I miss you I miss you I miss you...
If only they'd agreed on more codes. There was no code for "I was really scared today. I thought I was going to lose you. I was afraid I'd never see you again. I was so worried about you." All he could do was stubbornly and persistently tell her he missed her, hoping she would understand what he was truly trying to say. Maybe she hadn't even seen his messages, but he couldn't control the impulse.
His light flickered. Adrien immediately perked up, leaning over the lamp and holding his breath. Marinette was right there, receiving his signal perfectly. He wondered what she would say.
The light remained silent for a long time, as if Marinette was considering how to respond.
I'm sorry, she said finally. I'm here.
I miss you, he insisted.
I'm here.
I miss you.
I'm here, she told him, patiently and tirelessly.
The repetitive conversation continued for a long time until Adrien finally felt assured that Marinette wouldn't suddenly disappear. He set down the lamp with a smile, eventually relieved.
He stared at the ceiling, thinking that perhaps Adrien should get closer to Marinette so that he wouldn't have to use his Chat Noir identity to show her concern next time. Although he still didn't know why Marinette always stuttered in front of Adrien, he would find a solution.
+01
There were no patrols planned for tonight, but Chat Noir still appeared on the streets of Paris.
Adrien had a fight with his father today. It wasn't so much a fight as it was more like one-sided anger. Why was his father always so busy with work, never even having time to have dinner with his own son? Why did he always break his promises? As Adrien glared at his father and fired questions at him, Gabriel's face remained indifferent. He didn't even bother to show displeasure or anger, as if Adrien's words were just childish, trivial nonsense.
“I expected more maturity from you, Adrien,” Gabriel said calmly. “Now, go back to your room. I have work to do.”
Adrien's spirit deflated instantly, the little courage he had mustered to resist vanishing in an instant. He lowered his head and whispered, "Yes, Father," before catching a glimpse of Gabriel disappearing behind his door.
Plagg peeked out from his shirt pocket, looking at him with worried eyes, hesitant to speak. He knew what Plagg wanted to say—probably that his father shouldn't have treated him that way. Adrien didn't want to hear that kind of talk right now, and Plagg considerately kept quiet.
When it was time to sleep, he suddenly felt inexplicably afraid. Why was his room so big, and why was it so empty? Plagg was right beside him, but it did nothing to alleviate his loneliness. They were like two prisoners confined here, isolated from the world.
The only decision he could think of was to transform and jump out of the window.
The cold night air kept filling his lungs. Chat Noir ran and jumped aimlessly, hoping to forget how lonely and pathetic he was, even if only for a moment. The last thing he wanted to do was face the empty room, letting the oppressive atmosphere silently and suffocatingly envelop him. He just wanted to run as far away as possible.
He kept running until he got tired of it and then stopped. He casually found a rooftop to sit on, hugged his knees, buried his head deep in, and wrapped his tail around himself.
Perhaps he could simply sleep here for the night. That idea sounded much more appealing.
"Chat Noir? What are you doing here?"
It was Ladybug's voice. Chat didn't want her to see his mournful expression, so he slowly stretched out, tilted his head, and gave her a flirtatious smile. "Isn't it normal to have stray cats on the roof? And I could also ask you, what are you doing here, Bugaboo?"
“I saw you when you passed by my house, so I followed to see what was wrong,” she said, unconvinced by his act. “You don’t look well.”
He pondered whether it was still necessary to continue pretending everything was fine, considering Ladybug had completely seen through him. At least he could act as if he didn't care so much. "I just don't really want to go home," he said casually. "Isn't a walk at night a nice pastime?"
Ladybug sat down next to him and put her hand on his shoulder. “It’s late. Why don’t you go home and sleep? Unless you’d rather be constantly sleepy the next day than wide awake.”
“Maybe it’s because,” he tried to sound nonchalant, unaware that his defenses were being gradually breached by her concern, “that when I go back I’ll be facing an empty room and a family that won't even make time for me.
“Chat…” She reached out and scratched the base of his cat ears, gradually putting him at ease. “Do you feel lonely?”
“If you live in a house that’s like an isolated island, you’ll feel lonely too,” he said softly.
Ladybug didn't say anything more, quietly staying with him for a long time until they both started to feel sleepy. Reason told Chat he should go back to sleep, and that Ladybug couldn't possibly stay with him all night. But he didn't want to leave, nor did he want her to leave; he couldn't bear the feeling of being alone.
“Let’s go home, Chat,” Ladybug said. She gently stroked his cheek, drawing his head to meet her gaze. “Trust me, you won’t be alone.”
A certain determination gleamed in her eyes, and Chat was almost mesmerized. Lost in thought, Ladybug had already stood up, waved at him, said "Bug out," and swung away on her yo-yo.
He didn't know why she was so sure. He still felt reluctant to go home, but it was his lady's promise, and he was willing to believe her. He took one last, reluctant look in the direction she had left, closed his eyes to clear his thoughts, and then turned and left.
The moment he jumped through the window, a sense of oppression washed over him again, making it hard to breathe. He pulled out a piece of cheese and handed it to Plagg, then looked up into the dark room.
He was alone again.
Adrien sighed. Just then, he saw a light flash by his bedside. It was Marinette, texting him using the lamp. His eyes widened, and he rushed over.
I'm here, she said. Perhaps to emphasize, she repeated, I'm here.
The oppressive feeling suddenly disappeared. He stared intently at the lamp, knowing that behind it was his classmate with pigtails, who was telling him again and again that he was not alone, letting him know that someone outside this cage cared about him.
Then she said, I love you.
Adrien hugged the lamp as if he were holding Marinette. He felt like crying and laughing at the same time. He remembered Ladybug's promise and knew that Marinette's choice to message him today was probably related to this. What had he done to deserve the concern of these two kind girls?
I love you too, he told her.
He hugged the lamp tightly, closed his eyes, and drifted off to sleep without realizing it. As he fell asleep, a smile still lingered on his lips.
He slept exceptionally well that night.
——END