Seven Seconds

Busting A Gut

There he was again, needing to explain something unpleasant to Marinette.

"Just so you're aware, I'll be going on a date with Ladybug tomorrow night," Adrien told her with a wince.

"Okay," she replied, unphased.

"I'm so sorry. It's not real..."

"I know Adrien, and I've already told you that I understand. You don't have to tell me every single time this is going to happen, you know. I assume that you two will have lots of dates in the near future. So don't stress about warning me every time, okay?"

"Okay," he replied, nodding.

"Okay," Marinette said before making her way over to Alya and Nino, Adrien following behind.

"Hey girl," Alya said as she approached.

"Hey dude," Nino said to Adrien, holding out his hand for a fist bump.

"Alya, can I talk to you for a minute?" Marinette asked. Not waiting for a reply, she dragged her friend away from the group.

"Uh yeah, what's going on?" Alya asked once they were far enough away.

"I need a favor."

"Anything."

"I need you to invite me over to your house for a sleepover tomorrow night."

A big smile. "Will you actually be there, or does Ladybug have other plans?" she asked.

"Other plans," Marinette answered. "At least for the evening. Then I'll be there overnight."

Alya nodded. "Of course, you know I always got you covered."

"You're the best, Alya."

"I know," she replied smugly. "So, what will you be doing?"

Marinette grimaced. "Uh... Ladybug has a date with Adrien," she mumbled, her cheeks flushing.

Alya stared at her. Then she shook her head in frustration. "I don't understand how you get yourself in these situations."

"Me neither," she conceded weakly.

With a sigh, Alya gave her friend a sympathetic smile. "I'll send you a text later today."

"Thank you."

"No problem." She paused to look over at Adrien, who was talking to Nino but kept glancing over at Marinette. "I'm actually starting to feel sorry for him. He's still acting like a love-sick puppy."

"He'll be fine," Marinette insisted. "Just give it some time and he'll be back to normal again."

"You sure about that? I don't know, I'm getting serious 'Marinette' vibes from him. I think he's got it really bad for you."

"He just feels bad. That's all it is. Once he sees that I've moved on, everything will go back to the way it was."

"Whatever you say, girl," Alya murmured, not believing one word.

************************************

Armed with an alibi for the next night, Marinette went home and got things ready for the current evening.

Scissors, thread, threading needles, pins, measuring tape, a ruler, pencils and chalk. Not to mention her sewing machine and mannequin. And last, but not least, a tray of macarons. Everything was there. Now she just needed...

A tap on the hatch.

Perfect timing.

Marinette waved the kwamis off and hurried up the steps to let Chat Noir inside. Then she grabbed his hand and pulled him to her work space. "Are you ready to learn?" she asked with a smirk.