Miraculous Marichat (Reverse Crush AU)

Chapter 3

"So...he just pops in like an awkward cinnamon roll, kisses you on the cheek all cutesy like a smooth criminal, then scurries off like nothing happened?" Alya summarizes my story from the night before as we walked down our school halls to the day's first class.

"Mhmm, yep, that's pretty much how it went," I confirm deadpanned.

"Chat Noir. You're celebrity crush. He just falls into your lap?" I nod. "Hmm. How random."

"Yep," I giggle a bit. When Chat and I first starting working together as the super duo we are, Alya caught onto my little (mega) crush almost instantly. I was, however, grateful she hadn't caught onto my secret double life and credited all my weird behavior to my Chat Noir obsession. This unhealthy fixation proved to be a wonderful blessing at times.

"And...you were cool during this whole thing?" She asks in total disbelief.

"Yeah, kinda," I confirm in a slight awe of myself.

"Well, I gotta say I'm proud of you, girl," she laughs. "I, for sure, thought you'd be a total stuttering mess around the guy." Well, I've had a lot of practice talking to him as Ladybug, so...

"Haha, yeah, I thought so too," I giggle nervously, turning the corner into home room.

"Think he'll stop by again?" She asks taking her seat.

"I don't know, but I hope so." I know it's a long shot but maybe...

"Sup, dudetts, whatcha talking about?" Nino asks from his spot in front of us.

"Oh, just about Marinette's little super Romeo," Alya teases, sending me a sly wink. I feel my face light up in red.

"Oooh~ little Marinette has a little crush?" Nino laughs at me. I had barely noticed Adrien walking in and sitting down in his usual seat. Oh, no, did he hear that? I would rather limit the number of people knowing about this?

"M-Marinette has a crush?" Adrien asks shakily, his voice wavering slightly as if he were nervous about teasing me. I guess he did notice.

"It's really not that big-"

"Yep!" Alya interrupts. "She has a thing for cats."

"Oh, my Lord!" I shriek horrified, physically feeling the color in my cheeks darken. "Alya! You make me sound like some sort of freak!" I whisper-yell at her, completely mortified.

"Dude, like a furry-"

"Don't finish that sentence, Nino," I grumble. "I know where it's going and that's not it at all."

"I don't know, Mari," Alya smirks, a devilish glint in her eyes at her amusement. "Does Chat Noir count as a furry?"

"Ohhh~" Adrien suddenly popped up with a burst of energy, ear perked at the new piece of information. "So you have a crush on Chat Noir!" I snapped my eyes towards him and watch him crumble under my gaze.

"Don't you get too smart about it, Agreste," I sneer his way. He giggles a bit, a tad glint of mischief in his eyes.

"Aww, c'mon, Mari," he teases. "Do tell us about your super cat!"

"There's not much to tell..."

"Yes, there is!" Alya cuts in, her sing song voice on full display with her teasing. "He visited her last night on the balcony! Very romantic. Practically love at first sight!"

"You traitor!" I gasp.

"Oh, c'mon, you've been crushing on the guy for forever!" She giggled back. "Enjoy this moment!"

"Want him to come back?" Adrien asks, laughing along with Alya. He had a dusting of blush across his cheeks as he awaited the answer, for a reason I didn't know.

"I mean, of course, I do."

***

"Hey, Adrien," I call out, running to catch up after class. Damn his long legs!

"What's up, Mari?" Adrien beamed, slowing to a stop to tower above me.

"I'm really sorry about yesterday," I mumble, tilting my head to the ground. "I'm sorry you got in trouble with your dad and I'm sorry if I made it worse for you." A heavy hand claps gently against my shoulder, bringing my gaze back to him.

He simply passed me a warm smile. "Nothing to apologize for, Marinette. I really appreciate you thinking of me but it really was my own fault that I got in trouble, and I appreciate you sticking up for me."

"Of course, Adrien, that's what friends are for," I grin. I watch something in his eyes change, however, as the laugh lines around his eyes disappear. He pulls me into a light hug, and I can feel his smile fall as he buries his head onto the top of mine.

"Yeah, what friends are for."

***

I'm being so stupid. He wasn't going to show up again.

Then why do I still wait in the same lounge chair? With a cup of cooled hot chocolate in my hand and a plate of stale cookies on the small table next to me, I watch the night sky for any sign of him. I had made use of my time, focusing on schoolwork I needed to catch up on, working on a bit of hand stitching, anything just to look busy. Anything to seem less pathetic as I waited hopefully for a hopeless second encounter. But it'd been so long sitting in this lounge chair, the discomfort ever growing, that I had run out of things to do. My parents and Tikki were long past asleep by now, my only company being my thoughts and the city lights. This was pointless.

Looking at my phone, I note the late hour and decide to forget this waste of time and the gut wrenching feeling of disappointment I only brought upon myself. But then I look at the skyline once again, at the clouds rolling by, at my view of the Eiffel Tower from my little rooftop, and I think that one more minute wouldn't hurt.

"It's late, you know," a voice calls behind me. I smile to myself as I recognize it. Turning my head slightly I notice the soft glow of green eyes hooded by a dark figure above me. Like a true feline, Chat lands on his feet in front of me, displaying all the grace he was lacking last night. "Miss me?"

"How did you know?" I ask, hoping that my tone sounded playful but with the stupid grin across my face I knew that it was not as smooth as I thought it would be.

"Just a hunch," he shrugs, a gentle smirk playing on his lips. "Looks like you've been busy. Is that why you're up so late?" He asks, nodding to the pile of busy work I've preoccupied myself with. "Or were you just waiting for me?"

"I-I-well, actually, I-um-was waiting for you," I fumble over my words, my hand subconsciously crawling to scratch the back of my neck, a nervous habit of mine. I stare at the ground, waiting for a reaction through the deafening silence or waiting for the ground to swallow me if this doesn't go as intended. I watch leather cat-like boots pad into my line of vision, and I feel his body heat radiating off his suit. Wow, he's so close. So close that I feel the tremors in my hands, and the sweat gathering on my palms. I haven't felt this nervous around Chat since I first realized my feelings for him as Ladybug. A clawed fingertip pokes at my chin, tilting my head back to meet a smug, smirking cat.

"Oh, were you now?" He chuckled, his Cheshire grin spreading over his perfect peach lips, as he leans his face closer to mine. "So does that make you my number one fan?" Staring into his glowing green irises underneath the black mask was hypnotyzing that the answer spilled from my lips without a second thought.

"Yes, I was." He seemed surprised by the response, though it was the truth. "Would you want to come in?"

***

Word Count: 1368

Yes, I am back. Thank you everyone for your great comments and votes, but I am struggling with this story a bit so updates will be few and far between at times. I hope everyone understands but I'll try to continue this story when I can. I still hope you have enjoyed this chapter though!

Thank you, loves!

~J