Marinette
She started to reach for Chloe, when Adrien stood up between them.
"Mari, sit down."
She looked up at him, his expression was like stone. She never understood how he could defend such an awful person.
"Someone needs to teach her a lesson."
"Bold of you to assume that someone gets to be you."
Chloe's voice whined behind him, and she wanted to jump over him to murder her. She was so sick of her crap.
"Move aside prince charming. The damsel isn't in distress. Yet."
He cringed when she referred to Chloe being the damsel, and he put his hands on her shoulders, sending heat rushing through her. Did he do that on purpose?
"Sit down Mari. Please."
"Yeah, sit."
She clenched her jaw, starting to try to back pedal, she could just walk around the desk. That bitch had it coming. Adrien tightened his grip, and she glared at him.
"Why do you always defend her?"
"Aww, she sounds jealous."
"Stop it Chloe."
He snapped over his shoulder, and Marinette imagined she was giving him a pitiful look. He turned his gaze back to Marinette, sighing.
"Please, let's just get through the project."
He ran his hands down her arms, stopping at her elbows. For a moment she thought he was going to hug her, but he didn't. He released her, looking away from her. What was that about? She sat down, and he followed suit, running a hand through his hair. For a model, she was suprised he had gotten in to that habit.
"Good girl."
"God damnit Chloe!"
He snapped, and Marinette shoved the table forward, throwing herself across Adrien. She managed to get a hold on Chloe's shirt, and she felt Adrien grab her waist, trying to yank her away.
"Get off me you hobo!"
Chloe shrieked, trying to pry off Marinette's hand. Adrien tried to stand with her, but Marinette refused to let go. She had put up with Chloe's crap for years. It was finally time to get even.
"Marinette let go!"
He shouted, but his words meant nothing to her. Chloe had to pay. She felt someone else grab her, and with Adrien's help they managed to free Chloe from her grip, but not before Marinette tore the seam on her designer jacket.
"I'm calling Daddy! My outfit costs more than your life! I'll have that horrible little bakery shut down! I'll make sure you're thrown on the streets!"
She screamed, and Marinette struggled to get away from the two people holding her. Alya stepped in front of her, trying to get her to calm down. Fat chance. Chloe deserved this.
"Let go!"
Marinette shouted, and Adrien held her tighter.
"Enough!"
Grant stepped up between the two, looking pissed.
"You're acting like a bunch of children!"
Marinette stopped struggling, glaring up at him. This was literally his fault, he put her in their group on purpose.
"Marinette, come outside with me. Now."
Adrien let go of her, and she fixed her shirt, stomping down the row after Grant. He yanked open the door and she brushed past him, stopping just outside of the door. He closed the door, turning to look at her. He was silent for a moment, before he broke out in laughter. The bastard.
"I hate you."
She hissed, and he wiped tears from his eyes.
"That was hilarious! Tell me you haven't been wanting to do that. Adrien looked like he was going to have a conniption fit."
Marinette rolled her eyes, crossing her arms.
"Why are you even here?"
Grant seemed to sober up some, and he sighed.
"Someone keeps trying to hack into my computers. I'm not sure if they've caught on to my phone or not, yet. I needed to tell you that we need to meet. Somewhere other than the warehouse."
So someone was on to their plan. Hawkmoth? The guy couldn't be a super villain and a hacker in one.
"Okay. Where?"
"My hotel. Room four-fifty seven."
"No way in hell am I meeting you at some sleazy hotel."
He grinned, shaking his head.
"Oh relax doll. I don't want you. I totally ship you and tomcat. The hotel is Le Grand Paris."
Of course it had to be the hotel Chloe lived at.
"Fine. What's with the acuma project?"
"I'm curious to see what you can come up with."
She rolled her eyes, and he opened the door, gesturing for her to go ahead of him. She stepped in, and the room got quiet, everyone turning to look at her. Her gaze went to Chloe, who was pouting. Of course she'd play the victim. Marinette walked back up the steps, holding her head high. She was going to apologize. Sure, Chloe deserved it, but Ladybug wouldn't have done something like that. Ladybug, would, or should have turned the other cheek. She stopped in front of Chloe, who puffed out her chest, as if getting ready for battle.
"I'm sorry."
She seemed startled by that, and she took a small step back.
"What?"
"I shouldn't have grabbed you like that, and I apologize. If you want, I can fix your jacket. I have a sewing kit in my locker, it would be an easy repair."
Her words tasted sour. Ladybug wouldn't have this much trouble apologizing to someone. Chloe looked over at Adrien, and Marinette followed her gaze. He nodded at her, and Chloe sighed, looking back at Marinette.
"Okay. I accept your apology, and I'll let you fix my jacket."
Marinette nodded, holding her hand out. Ladybug would bury the hatchet. She could too, for the time being. Chloe made a face, before giving in and shaking Marinette's hand.
"Excellent. Now everyone can get back to work."
Grant called, and Marinette sat down, staring at the desk. Adrien slid back in next to her, and Chloe followed.
"Adrien, I'm sorry we had you in the middle of that."
Marinette mumbled, and felt him shrug beside her.
"It's over, we can move on. I was thinking about the design. What if we go for an alien enthusiast? Someone who thought they had scientific evidence of aliens or something, and gets debunked, and has a meltdown?"
She nodded, and glanced over at Chloe. Chloe nodded as well, and she started sketching the design.
* * * * *
Their acuma had been turned into an alien, flew a spacecraft and had the ability to beam humans up to the craft, keeping them prisoner. Adrien had added Rena Rouge to it, as well as Queen Bee, at Chloe's request. Rena and Chloe distracted the victim, dubbed as 'the grey', while Ladybug and Chat Noir snuck onto the ship, finding the tape that had the acuma, and destroying it. Chloe's jacket had been fixed, and thankfully she didn't have an attitude when Marinette returned it. It was towards the end of the day, and Marinette was hunting for Adrien. He didn't have practice today, surprisingly. He wasn't in the locker room, and he wasn't by his car. So where was he?
"Where are you at?"
She texted, before shifting her focus back to the locker rooms, which were still empty. Heading back out, she heard his voice. He was on the stairs, arguing with someone. She started heading for them, when she heard someone else's voice. Lila. God, that girl had nothing better to do did she?
"I told you, I don't care."
"But she's obviously playing you."
"Look, I appreciate your concern, I do. But nothing could change how I feel about her. I don't care if you think she's cheating. I'm working it out with her."
Marinette tried to see him through the stairs, but couldn't catch a glimpse at his face. What he said sounded so genuine. Was he being serious?
"I think she's dating Chat Noir too."
What?
"What?"
He sounded just as shocked as she felt. How could Lila know about that?
"A pictures worth a thousand words right? Well I have one."
Oh god. What if she posts it?
"Show me."
No please don't. No one is supposed to know. The two on the stairs were quiet for a moment, before Adrien laughed.
"This is obviously photoshopped."
"No it isn't! This was last night, in front of the bakery!"
Lila snapped, and he chuckled, moving down the steps.
"Look Lila, I understand that you're trying to protect me, but photoshop isn't going to convince me. Show me some real evidence, and I'll believe you."
"This is real. They were hugging and kissing. I saw it, and this time I took a picture."
He got down from the steps, and Marinette forced herself to move forward, not looking at his face.
"Hey Mari, you ready?"
"Yeah."
"Adrien please listen to me."
Lila whined, and he shook his head, grabbing Marinette's hand.
"Maybe later Lila. I gotta get home."
Marinette let him pull her away, looking down at the ground. She had screwed up. Lila was going to post it, and everyone would know about Chat.
"Deep breath Mari. You look like you're going to start crying."
Adrien whispered, squeezing her hand. She sucked in a breath, keeping her gaze on his car. It would be a long walk in the rain. He pulled an umbrella out of his bag, opening it above them.
"So, it's true then. Chat Noir?"
She sighed, and he squeezed her hand again.
"I'm guessing it didn't look photoshopped?"
"No, but it was a dark picture. You can always say it was photoshopped."
She nodded, stepping over a puddle. Alya and Nino raced past them, giggling loudly. Alya turned to the side, skidding on the slick pavement.
"Wow, they look like they're having fun."
He commented, and she nodded again. He grinned, closing his umbrella. Water immediately assaulted them, and she covered her bag.
"What the hell?"
"Come on. Live a little."
He pulled her into a run, and despite getting soaked, she found herself laughing.
"On three we slide. One, two, three!"
They both turned simultaneously, kicking up water as they slid. They dissolved into a fit of giggles, and Alya walked over to them, kicking up water onto their pantlegs.
"Hey!"
Marinette giggled, splashing back. Nino turned up Alya's radio, blasting music for the whole parking lot to hear. This was what it was supposed to feel like. Being normal, stupid and silly teenagers. No worrying about acumas, no hiding, no lying. Just being teenagers.
"Alya!"
Nino shouted, jogging over to her. She turned, and he grabbed her by the hips, spinning her around. Marinette and Adrien both backed up, as Alya leaned back, spreading her arms out. Marinette felt her face fall, watching the two. She and Chat would never be able to be open like that. Not when people like Lila were around with cameras. Adrien turned to face her, holding his hand out.
"May I?"
She grinned, shaking her head.
"Oh, I don't think so."
He took her hand, pulling her closer.
"One dance, and I'll take you home. Pinkie promise."
She looked from one of his eyes to the other, almost hating how vibrant they were. He was so handsome. But she had someone. Someone she loved, more than anything or anyone.
"Friends can dance Marinette. I'm not crossing any lines."
She felt her cheeks warm, and she looked away, hating how transparent she felt around him. Like he knew what she was thinking, all the time. It was incredibly annoying. He grabbed her hips and picked her up, and she grabbed on to his shoulders.
"Put me down."
He started spinning, and so did her head. She closed her eyes, focusing on the feel of the rain, instead of his hands holding her. It would have felt free. If she hadn't have been so worried about Chat. Adrien seemed to notice how tense she was, because he stopped, placing her back onto her feet. She opened her eyes, and he forced a smile.
"Come on. Let's get you home so you can dry off."
He turned and headed back to the car, and guilt rippled through her skin. Maybe it felt like something friends could do for him, but for her the lines were blurred. She didn't know what they could and couldn't do anymore.
"Adrien?"
He glanced back at her, and she flinched at the longing in his eyes.
"Yeah Mari?"
She took a deep breath, holding her hand out. He raised an eyebrow and took it, looking confused. She grabbed his other hand, and started spinning, holding his hands tightly. It seemed to cheer him up a little, because he smiled. His hair clung to his forehead, and water seemed to fly off of him in all directions. Even drenched, he still looked perfect. His eyes stayed on hers, and the butterflies made her want to cry. She loved Chat. More than anything. But she loved Adrien too. And nothing was going to change that.