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1.
Sabine knew her daughter’s creative habits like the back of her own hand. Marinette easily got lost in the planning (taking after Sabine herself) and instantly lost track of time in the actual work (like her father, down to the way they stuck out their tongues in focus).
So one day after school started, she was surprised when Marinette came down to breakfast while unraveling the scarf she had been working on so intently just the previous day.
“I want to get this right, it’s a present for Adrien’s birthday and I want to make sure he’ll love it.” The girl said distractedly, continuing to dismantle the scarf. Her hot drink sat ignored beside her, already growing cold.
“Adrien? The new boy who is Chloé’s friend? I thought you said he's a bully just like her.” Sabine turned from the stove to face her daughter, curious.
Marinette’s eyes widened, completely taken aback. “No, no! Well, at first I thought he was.” She fingered the rows of scarf left intact. “But he apologized, and he’s actually a much better person than I thought. So I want to make him something nice.”
“Good, I hope that means you can make peace with Chloé someday.”
Sabine had already turned back to check the eggs in the pan, but she knew her daughter was rolling her eyes.
This must have been an amazing boy to have quickly fixed such a negative first impression on Marinette.
When Marinette proudly showed off her finished work a couple days later, Sabine couldn’t help but notice that this scarf wasn't the same one from before.
The original white scarf laid finished on the back of Marinette’s desk chair, every knit as perfect and in order as could be. In the trash bin by the desk, there were a couple false starts of scarves that were snipped and discarded. The instruction book still laid open on her desk.
The scarf that Marinette had wrapped up as a present was a bright blue that matched her own eyes.
2.
Tom and Sabine didn't worry too much about the budding romance between their daughter and Adrien. If anything, it reminded themselves a lot about their own courtship, so they couldn't help but try and push it along.
The first time Adrien came over was for the video game competition, and finally then they could meet the real deal instead of the posters in Marinette’s room. (Said posters were immediately hidden away as they were left to distract Adrien of course.) They found he was a sweet, kind hearted boy who was a little too reserved but they could easily see how their girl fell that hard for him.
“Make sure you invite him over again, okay?” Tom winked at his daughter as he put a small box of pastries in her hands and pushed her to the door to walk Adrien out.
The two teens' adorable interactions reminded them of themselves a lot, but after a while things were unexpectedly nipped in the bud.
Suddenly, the friendly relationship that had slowly built between Adrien and Marinette had fallen apart overnight. Not Alya, nor Nino, nor any of their classmates knew what had happened to cause such a rift.
It wasn't like they were avoiding each other - study sessions between the four friends still happened in their home - but they didn't talk much besides when necessary. There were a lot of stolen glances from one when the other was looking away.
“It’s like they're on opposite sides of a bridge,” Nino mentioned one lunch period when he and Alya came to the bakery. “Neither of them want to cross first.”
The posters came down once again from Marinette’s walls and never went up again.
Two weeks later, everyone was thoroughly confused as Adrien and Marinette suddenly picked up their friendship right where they left off.
Whatever that went wrong and went right again was kept only between them like secret conversations in each shared gaze.
3.
“Adrien, my boy, could you pass me the dough scraper? It should be in the-”
“Here, sir!”
By the time Tom had turned to gesture to the drawer, Adrien had already put the utensil in his open hand.
“How did you know where it was? It’s your first time in this kitchen and you’re already a natural!” Tom laughed heartily, noticing with interest how Adrien and Marinette both tensed up.
“I-uh-” Adrien started, rubbing the back of his neck and looking in the still open drawer as if it held his answer. Alas, only clean piping bags and tips stared back.
“I told him!” Marinette said forcefully, catching both their attention. She laughed uneasily, twisting a pigtail with her finger. “Adrien always wanted to...to bake something here so I explained h-how the bakery’s kitchen was set up! In case he ever had the chance like today!”
Well, that would be an impressive feat to memorize the map of the bakery’s kitchen without seeing it in person.
But Tom remembered hearing Adrien’s voice in the kitchen late at night with Marinette at least twice before when both parents had closed shop for the day.
The second time he had let his presence be known without intruding, calling out a “Just clean up when you’re done, okay?”
The resulting shamble of noises was too much for even Marinette to cause on her own without evident damage.
Neither Tom or Sabine were worried about these visits, they understood that Adrien lived a very strict life under his father’s eyes, and a few small secrets never hurt anyone if they knew Adrien was safe with them.
The only strange thing was that the teens had a different dynamic in those late moments, much more wry and playful than any other moment they were seen together like now.
Tom watched the two load a tray of cookies into the oven as they talked about what to decorate them with.
The main difference between their conversation those nights and now was a severe lack of cat and bread puns, he decided.
4.
“Marinette, I have major news!” Alya called loudly as she burst into the bakery one evening, out of breath. She rushed towards the stairs up to the house, but doubled back towards Sabine at the cashier counter, smiling in apology at the startled customers in line. “Hi, Sabine! Sorry to barge in.”
“No problem, dear. Marinette should still be upstairs,” Sabine warmly greeted back. She chose not to comment on the veil of tension over Alya's expression.
Behind her, Sabine could hear the thudding footfalls of Marinette rushing down the steps, hearing a small gasp when she audibly missed a step down the stairs. Looking worse for wear, she was breathing even harder than Alya by the time she popped through the doorway into the bakery.
“Sorry, Alya, I fell asleep.” Marinette wiped at her forehead with the back of her hand. “What’s the scoop?”
Alya pulled Marinette back into the doorway to the stairwell while tapping at her phone. “I think it's best we step out for this.”
It hadn't even taken a second for everyone’s second scare of the day as Marinette screeched from the stairs.
“YOU-!” Sabine heard a thud and a pained groan as Marinette most likely kicked her foot into a step. “Alya you CAN’T post that! When...no, HOW did you get that?”
Their voices drifted away and the sound of her trap door faintly shut above them. The other customers in the shop shifted their eyes away to their phones or the pastries on their trays.
Alya came down the stairs again a couple hours later, passing through the bakery to pick up a couple macarons for her sisters. She munched on one as Sabine boxed the rest of them.
“Everything okay from earlier?” she finally inquired as Alya finished her last bite.
Alya looked puzzled for a second before her eyebrows shot up.
“Oh, right, earlier! Yeah, that was weird…” Alya took the box in her hands and took a peek around the room before leaning in. “I caught Ladybug leaving Adrien’s window earlier today, and it looked like she was holding a gift from him too. I wanted to let Mari know there's something between them before she found out on her own, but she didn't react like I thought at all.”
Alya’s face was filled with worry, and Sabine placed a hand over the reporter’s drumming fingers in comfort.
“You don't think she's not being honest because she doesn't want to badmouth Ladybug in front of me, do you?”
“Of course not,” Sabine insisted. “Just give her time to process the news, maybe she's just a little in shock. I'll let you know how she’s doing later on if you want.”
It was enough to ease the girl’s mind. Sabine walked Alya to the door and made sure to give her a warm hug on the way out.
When Sabine checked on her daughter later that night, she was left just as confused as Alya was.
Marinette quickly stuffed the object in her hands under her pillow - her diary, maybe? - and hopped down from her loft to the floor. The way she practically floated around the room and the pleased grin on her face showed no sign of heartbreak.
Even as they went downstairs to clean up the bakery for the night, Marinette hummed while she worked as if lost in her daydreams.
Sabine finally asked her, “So what was that commotion with Alya earlier when she came in?”
Marinette just shook her head. “It’s nothing big. Alya told me Adrien might be seeing someone.”
She turned back to scrubbing the mixer bowl in the sink, still oozing bliss as she started humming again.
Sabine stared, wondering for a moment who this person was and what have they done with her Adrien-enamored daughter.
5.
“Kids, will you all be staying for dinner?”
Sabine climbed up the stairs to Marinette’s room just in time to catch Alya brandishing her phone to the rest of the group.
On it was a video clip of Ladybug and Chat Noir. It was taken from street level pointed up at a rooftop, so there was no sound besides Alya’s startled gasp as the heroes’ playful conversation ended and Ladybug chastely kissed Chat on the lips before taking off.
“Alya! Er-Adrien is right there, have some tact!”
Marinette had instantly bloomed red in her face. She scrambled over Nino’s lap and knocked his game system out of his hands in the process to try and snatch the phone out of Alya’s hands, but Alya leaned backwards out of her reach.
Adrien had shrugged his shoulders up enough that the collar of his over shirt covered his cheeks. Not that Sabine couldn't tell the boy was embarrassed, since his flush spread quickly to the tips of his ears.
“It’s fine, Mari, really!” He gently pulled on the back of Marinette’s jacket to get her to sit back down.
He wasn't lying either - Adrien’s face when uncovered was practically beaming, his flush now settled in his cheeks as he laughed at the girl’s antics.
Not the reaction one would expect from seeing a loved one dating someone else.
Sabine cleared her throat, finally catching the attention of the group of teenagers.
“So I'll take that as a yes for dinner?”
All of them nodded with a chorus of thank yous. Adrien managed to pull Marinette back down next to him, Marinette furiously whispering something into his ear that he just shrugged off.
Sabine descended the stairs back to the bakery front, nodding to her husband. “They’ll all be staying.”
“Even Adrien? Good, that boy needs as much home cooked food as we can give him. Marinette should have him over more often.” Tom opened the register and deposited euros in the drawer. “Could you pass me one of the baguettes?”
Sabine leaned in as she handed the loaf to him. “Alya was saying she proof that Ladybug and Chat Noir are dating now.”
“Is that so?”
“Adrien was head over heels for Ladybug, remember how he was so embarrassed he kept talking about her that one time?” Sabine chuckled, pressing her fingers over her mouth. “But he didn’t seem bothered by the news, if anything he seemed positive about it.”
“Maybe he’s that kind of romantic type, the kind that if his love is truly happy, then he will be selflessly happy for her.” Tom wilted dramatically with a hand over his heart.
“It's like when Marinette did the same thing when Alya caught Ladybug leaving Adrien's room.” Sabine scanned the shop displays, taking stock of what needed refilling. “Honestly, this is like one of your mother’s favorite soap operas.”
Tom handed the customer their bread and change, laughing to himself. “That would take two more big plot twists and a long-lost relative, but I wouldn't mind if they got that eventual happy ending.”
Tom had gone upstairs to see if he could even his score with Adrien over Ultra Mecha Strike (they had been consistently even, but last time Adrien came over he had gotten two extra wins in), but once he knocked and opened Marinette’s trap door, he was met with an empty room.
“Sabine? Did you hear the side door at all?” He called down, still looking around the room before spotting the open skylight window.
His wife quickly climbed up the stairs, eyes scanning the room for clues. “They didn't tell me they were going out and they didn't leave through the back door or the bakery door. How on earth-?”
They weren't answering their phones. Alya didn't answer hers either. Nino finally did, but not to their comfort. A giant bird akuma was kidnapping people and bringing them to the school.
Ladybug and Chat Noir were already on the scene, Nino reassured them. They’ll all be safe, the heroes always save the day in the end.
But a parent will always worry.
Of course, everything made sense in retrospect once the truth came tumbling down from the skylight and onto the bed in the form of their daughter and her crime fighting partner as they changed back to their normal selves. The teen’s shocked expressions lasted only for a moment before they collided into a tangled mess of limbs upon their landing.
“So we were right that it seemed too quiet up here,” Tom started once he recovered from his own surprise. “We just weren’t expecting...this.”
“Well dear, there’s your two plot twists.” Sabine muttered from behind her hand.
Marinette quickly tried to pull herself apart from Adrien, muttering a quick “sorry” when she pulled one of his arms the wrong way in the process. She flattened her pajamas with one brush and her eyes flickered between her parents and Adrien, voice making noises but not forming any words. She stuttered for a moment before she cleared her throat.
“I can explain…?”
She couldn't explain.
Sabine reached for Tom’s hand, lacing their fingers together. They shared a glance before she looked back to the anxious duo. “How about we all go downstairs for dinner and then we sort this all out? Adrien, you’re still welcome to stay over if you’d like.”
“Is...is that really okay?” Adrien had practically curled up into a ball on Marinette’s bed, eyes fearfully peaking out from under his bangs.
“It’s okay, dear. We’re surprised, but we understand.” Sabine couldn't help but laugh a little at the whole situation.
They weren't halfway down the stairs when Tom added, “You know, technically she didn't break the dating rule either, she did bring him over to meet us first and we just didn't know it.”
“Please tell us when you get engaged at least, Marinette?”
Sabine stole a glance behind her. Adrien was completely red in the face, barely dodging as Marinette flailed in embarrassment. “Mom!”
She glanced back at Tom and shared a smile. Secrets never hurt anyone if everyone was safe, so they'll ask the more serious questions another time. After all, they had a lot of teasing and catching up to do tonight.