The Missing Purrincess

Chapter 41: The Truth About Her

The amount of "who is Ladybug" posts on her blog were ridiculous and finally knowing must've been a shock to her brain, but it came out too fast. Too easily.

---Nino's POV---

"ALYA WHAT THE HECK!"

Alya froze up in horror, recognizing the extent of what she had just told me. Her eyes going wide at the fountain of water that had flown from my lips.

"I-You... You didn't know?"

I wiped my mouth and put my (now empty) water bottle down on the counter.

"Okay. Alya, baby. Girl, love, whatever cute pet name will calm you down right now... NO I DIDN'T FREAKING KNOW!"

She flinched, tears dawning own her stunning eyes. 

I sighed. She thought I knew. I knew full well she wouldn't intentionally share secret identities. She was good with both herself as Rena Rouge and me as Carapace. As far as I was aware nobody knew about us. Still, she had messed up big time there and if she would tell me that fast, who else would she tell?

Ladybug was her idol for like, forever. The girl had dolls of them for crying out loud! I mean, pretty awesome dolls, but freaking dolls. The amount of "who is Ladybug" posts on her blog were ridiculous and finally knowing must've been a shock to her brain, but it came out too fast. Too easily.

"Alya, you didn't think anyone else knew already did you?"

Alya shook her head somberly, what she just revealed to me crashing down on her in waves. Even if I wasn't that perceptive with others, me and Als could read each other like books by now.

"Okay." I released a breath I didn't know I was holding. "First thing, we're going to tell her we know. Don't ask how, I'll figure it out."

Alya only nodded in response, probably not fully listening to everything I was saying. 

"Alya please look at me." I cupped her face in my hand and brought it towards mine. The tears on her face threatening to fall at any moment. "You can't say anything to ANYONE else. Not Nora, not Ella or Etta, not Ms. Bustier, you ESPECIALLY can't put this on your blog. From here we need to let Marinette take the lead on what to do."

A single tear marked it's way down her beautiful face.

"She- She was right next to me. The whole time she was right there and I screamed in her face about how it was her fault! I-I'm no friend to her!"

"Alya what's done is done. Nobody can change the past. Look, I'm not gonna sit here and pretend to be some wise guru dude. I'm just Nino Lahiffe, and Nino Lahiffe is going to do his best to move forward. We all messed up big time, and we've stated that clearly. All we can do now is try to be better for her. Let her decide if she wants to forgive us or not, and respect her decision when the time comes okay?"

"I- I have no right to be her friend anymore Nino."

"Babe, let her decide that. I've never seen any two chicks as close as you and Marinette before. You two were insanely close. Let her decide where to draw the line from here. You're right, you may not be best buds again, but friends is better than nothing and from the looks of things? Right now she needs a few good friends."

I wiped the tears from her face and she backed up, getting a good look at my face.

"People are entitled to their secrets. I'll find a way to tell her we know, you stay here and calm down okay?  The most important thing from here on out is to keep this between us. Nobody else can know. Not unless she chooses to share it."

---Alya's POV---

"I got to go now okay Alya? I told someone I'd do something for them and I can't leave her hanging. Just... Promise me that you can keep this a secret? For Marinette's sake."

I nodded and Nino grabbed his stuff to leave. When did Nino get so wise? So gentle and so right? Because the truth was he was right, for the most part at least. She was my best friend, emphasis on was. I messed up. No amount of torturing Lila would make up for it at this point, as much as I would like it to. 

I told Nino who she was without a second thought. What happened? I was never so careless with my identity as Rena...

She trusted me. It was like a punch to the gut as I realized the implications of that. The Sapotes. Weren't we talking before that about how I would tell her in a heartbeat if I were Ladybug? Why, in the same day would she give me a miraculous? Why would she give me that right and responsibility?

Marinette gave me the fox pendant despite me being the "Ladyblogger". She had witnessed Nino get thrown around by Nora, even helping him to cheat to win, and trusted him with the turtle. She gave CHLOE back the bee despite everything she  put that girl through! She didn't just forgive Chloe, she put trust and responsibility on her. She gave Kagami the dragon despite her clear love for Adrien, and then sat there and listened to us berate her for being jealous over Lila?

And who said I wasn't careless? After all, Adrien found out my identity the day Marinette went missing because me and my big mouth went off when I saw the boxes she gave the miraculous out in. At lest that made sense now. Of course she had them, she was the only one who used them.

I went back to my room and looked at my computer. The crazed realizations of everything that had come crashing down on me at once and I messed up. I told Nino. In one day, I had spilled her secret and then I expected her to take me back as her bestie? No.

Whatever she needs, I'll do it. I'll make it up to her. I messed up badly and I knew I was going to pay for it. I just hoped our friendship was still somewhat repairable and not completely destroyed.