Adrien
He walked out next to Marinette, heading towards his car. She was carrying the roses again, and he marveled at how the red colors complemented her. He could almost see her as Ladybug. The roll fit her so well. They both stopped at the steps, looking at his car. Alya and Nino were standing beside it, waiting on them.
"Any idea?"
"No."
She responded, and he sighed, following her down the steps. She had been a little cool with him since earlier, and he felt like he had crossed a line.
"About time you two showed up!"
Alya shouted, and they made their way to the car.
"You guys have plans for the next hour?"
He shook his head, and Marinette nodded.
"Uh, yeah. I told my mom I'd help in the bakery."
Alya stared at her, before pulling out her phone. Marinette seemed to tense, and Alya started typing on her phone.
"What are you doing?"
"Texting your mother."
Marinette cringed, grabbing Alya's phone from her.
"Okay, okay. What do you want to do?"
"A double date."
"Now?"
She sounded exasperated, and he felt himself smile. She was adorable.
"Yes, now. It's only for an hour Marinette."
Adrien unlocked the car, setting his dufflebag in the back. They quickly got in, and instead of telling them where they were headed, Alya instead gave them directions. They finally pulled up to a fenced in area, and he looked back at Alya.
"What is this place?"
She grinned, and pointed towards the parking lot. He couldn't even see through the fence, there were sheets of black plastic covering every space. He sighed, pulling through the gate and into a parking space.
"Have you guys ever been paint balling?"
She asked excitedly, and Marinette turned around in her seat.
"Excuse me?"
Alya jumped out, and Marinette gave him a look he didn't quite know what to make of as she got out. They followed Nino to a small building, and inside they were greeted by the smell of paint. People rushed around them, gearing up for battle. It took him a moment to realize it was his classmates. Kim stepped up to them, tossing him a jumpsuit.
"Gear up, game starts in five minutes."
"I told you we'd make it."
Alya grinned, already pulling on a jumpsuit.
"Adrien and Marinette, you're on the red team!"
Max shouted, and someone handed him an armband. When the hell had everyone coordinated this, and how had he not heard? He quickly pulled the jumpsuit on over his clothes, and an older gentleman walked by, handing him a mask. He glanced up, looking around for Marinette. Where was she?
"Don't worry. You're going to love this."
He heard Nino beside him, but he couldn't focus on him. Marinnete was gone, and when he looked he realized just how small the room was. There were too many people in this room. The sounds, the smell, it was suddenly suffocating. He tried to distract himself, but he could feel it. The tightness in his chest. The bubble of panic forming there.
"Put your helmets on."
Someone shouted, and he stared down at his. There was no way in hell. He wouldn't be able to breathe. When had it gotten this bad? He used to be fine around large groups. He felt a hand on his arm, and he looked to his side. He could see her face through the glass on the helmet, and he felt a small rush of relief. At least she was here.
"Take a deep breath. We're about to go outside."
She pushed the helmet up as she spoke to keep from yelling. He nodded, forcing himself to put the helmet on. He could do this. She still had her hand on his arm, and he was grateful for that.
"Everyone outside, line up by the door!"
They shuffled out the door, and he took a deep breath. The area they walked out into looked like an abandoned town, most of the buildings crumbling and covered in paint splotches.
"Since you're all newbies, im going to give you a quick run down of rules. You do not fire your weapon until you hear the whistle that starts the match."
The man who had been handing out helmets before shouted, sounding much like a drill sergeant. Another man walked down the row, handing out the paintball guns.
"If you hear the whistle a second time, everyone stops what they're doing. Do not move and do not fire until the whistle blows again. This is used in case of emergencies, or when the referee needs to step in."
He felt Marinette let go of his arm, and he was thankful his mask hid the grimace he made. She was inspecting the gun she had been given, and he watched her open the back of the gun, checking her ammo.
"If a paintball hits you, and busts, you are out. It doesn't matter where it hits, you're out. If one hits you, but bounces off without breaking, you're not out. When you do get out, you are to immediately stop firing, shout 'hit' and hold your gun above your head as you march off the field. If you say you're out, you're out. There will be no fake outs, and even if you call 'hit', and you were in fact not hit, it doesn't matter, you're out."
Nino nudged him, and Adrien turned.
"You look nervous."
Adrien grinned and shook his head, turning his attention back to the guy at the front.
"The objective of the game is to capture the other team's flag. When you capture it, take it up to the roof of the building and wave it around, this will signal the end of the match. You will have five minutes to figure out placement and plans. When the whistle sounds, you can open fire. Be careful not to hit anyone on your team, because even if it's friendly fire, you're still out. There are rounds of ammo hidden around the field, if you run out during the match. Blue team follow Brad here to where your flag is stationed. Red, follow me."
The group split evenly, and Adrien reached out, grabbing Marinette's hand. She didn't pull away, thankfully. Her hand didn't exactly hold his back though. He glanced behind him for Nino, but he was gone.
"Hey, did you see where Nino and Alya went?"
"They're on the blue team."
Great. He knew Nino would come after him. He felt Marinette's fingers slowly curl around his, and the small gesture sent heat shooting through his arm. He had to be careful. She had a boyfriend, and if Adrien crossed a line she wouldn't forgive him. It would be so much easier just to tell her that he was Chat. That she didn't need to worry about cheating on Chat with him. He shook his head slightly, focusing on the task at hand. His father would kill him if he knew he was here. He grinned at the thought, and squeezed Marinette's hand.
"This is gonna be fun."
They stopped at a building on the edge of the lot, and they shuffled around.
"I reccomend deciding on a team to defend your flag, and a team to retrieve theirs. The roof is off limits, until you steal the other team's flag. Your flag is on the second floor, good luck."
He walked back the way they had come, and Max stood front and center.
"Does anyone have any preference to which team they'd be on?"
"I'll stay and defend."
Lila piped up, and he quickly wiped the disdain from his face. He hadn't even noticed she was here.
"Me and Marinette will be on the retrieving team."
Adrien announced, and Max quickly divided up the rest of the group. He was staying, along with six other people. The retrieving team had ten, and Max sent them on their way as he told the other's where their positions needed to be.
"Why are we on the retrieving team?"
Marinette asked as they made their way down the path, deviating from the others.
"You're more on attack than defense."
He responded, and she whirled her head to look at him. Had he said something wrong?
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing bad Mari. You're pretty good with the tactical thinking, it would be stupid to keep you back at the base."
She seemed to ease at that, and the whistle sounded loudly. He felt his adrenaline start, and he aimed his gun at the ground, firing one shot to make sure he actually knew how to use it. Melee was more his style, he hadn't used a gun before. Marinette copied him, and they both nodded at each other. They moved to the first building on the right, stepping into the doorway and looking out. All was quiet.
"I can almost guarantee Alya and Nino are on the retrieving team as well. We need to try to avoid them."
He grinned at the way her tone changed, and he nodded.
"I agree. Which way do you think they would come from?"
She moved further into the small shack, looking out of a hole.
"Alya's take charge. Normally she would go down the center path, even if it's the most dangerous. But, since she is most likely trying to find us, she's probably on one of the side roads."
She pointed, and he followed her finger. Further on down the road, he caught a glimpse of someone darting behind a building.
"Did they see us?"
"No. So here's the plan. You go back to the front door, draw their fire. I'll go around the side and try an ambush."
He grinned again, she sounded just like Ladybug. He saluted her, like he had seen Alya do hundreds of times, and he went back to the front door. He peeked around the door frame, his gaze locking on the guy's location.
"This is pretty cool."
He heard Plagg murmer inside his helmet, and he nodded in agreement. The person he was watching looked like it could be Chloe, but he was too far away to tell. Whoever it was ran up to the next building, and he fired a shot. It missed, but now he knew they saw his location. He waited a moment, before leaning back out the door. Paint splattered on to him as it hit the doorframe, and he quickly pulled back inside.
"They only fired one shot. The next one won't miss if you stay here."
Plagg commented, and Adrien looked across the street. There were two barrels there, as long as he made it he could hide behind them. He took a deep breath and leapt out of the door, running the second his feet touched the ground. He could hear their gun being fired, and he slid down onto the barrel. It echoed with every hit, and he dusted himself off. How long was Marinette going to take? There was a pause in firing, and he heard it again. But it wasn't in his direction. He peeked over the barrel, aiming his gun. They were in plain sight, out in the open firing back at Marinette. He shot them square in the back, and they held up their gun, walking away. He saw Marinette get to the end of the alley, and she waved him over. He jogged to her, and she did a small spin.
"Do I have any on me?"
He shook his head, and she grinned.
"That was thrilling."
He chuckled, and they moved farther down the street.
"I think Alya and Nino are on the other side street, since that was Chloe."
He nodded, and they moved into one of the buildings next to them. After a quick sweep it was clear, and Marinette checked her ammo.
"I'm going to be running low soon. We should try to find some ammo."
"Checking the buildings?"
She nodded, and they jogged across the street to another. The ground was covered in a thick layer of drywall dust, and he could see footprints in it. The first room was empty, the second one was not. Fire immediately started, and they both dove back into the safe room. The shots had come from one corner, and they both scrambled on either side of the doorway.
"There's only one right?"
"Yeah, far left corner."
He called back, and she knelt down, drawing something in the dust on the floor. 'Trust me'. He nodded, and she raised her voice.
"I'm going to advance ahead! Get them out and meet me on the road!"
She shouted, before jogging back out of the room. He peered around the corner, firing a shot before pulling back behind the wall. The person was hiding behind an open locker door, so the chances of actually hitting him were low. He scanned the part of the room he could see, and he narrowed his gaze to a spot in the corner closest to him. If he could make it there without being hit he could possibly draw the guy out. He fired several shots as he ducked into the small space, his gun jamming on the last shot.
"Shit."
Adrien hissed, hitting the side of his gun and trying to squeeze the trigger. He heard the guy move into the room, his steps quick and deliberate. He was so screwed. The guy stepped into view, and just as he raised the gun, he heard it go off. But nothing hit him. It was Nathaniel. He groaned, and turned, looking at Marinette through the open window across the room. A large orange spot was in the center of his back.
"Hit!"
He snapped, starting to walk out.
"Hey, can I use your gun? Mine jammed."
Nathaniel handed it over, and Adrien checked the ammo. Not much left. Marinette climbed in through the window as Nathaniel left, and he grinned at her.
"You saved my ass."
They started going through the lockers, and they each found one round of ammunition.
"Ready to storm the capital?"
She asked, and he held his fist out for a fist bump. He wanted to know if it felt the same.
"For good luck."
He grinned, and they fist bumped. He knew for sure. It was definitely her. His lady was his princess, there was no doubt.
"Let's go."