The Algorithm

Chapter twenty-three - Belt Loops

Once training had run its course and the guys were drenched in sweat, Plagg said the words that had been resting on his tongue for a while.

"You love her don't you?"

"Excuse me?" The blonde asked.

"Marinette You love her."

"Yeah, I guess. She's a good friend."

"Ah denial. When will people just admit when they have feelings for someone." At that, a certain redhead popped into Plaggs' mind, but he quickly shook the thought off.

Adrien let out a nervous laugh. Plagg was right of course, but he didn't need to know that. So he shook his head and walked off but not before the grim figure called after him "Marinette has loved before and they all left. If you plan on pursuing her I'm expecting you to stick around. Understand?"

Adrien nodded. He had no intention of leaving. But then again, neither did Luka.

A few days later, Nooroo and Tikki were prepared to send a squad out to interfere with the Akuma meeting Nooroo had been following for weeks now. Only Marinette wasn't on that squad.

"Tikki please," Marinette begged. "I'm going to grief counseling, I'm getting better. I'm ready to go back into the field. You need me there."

"You know," Tikki stated. "Plagg and I used to battle Akuma without superpowers and we did just fine. We don't need you there."

"I'll stay away from the front lines. I'll be the backup!" Marinette offered, sounding more cheerful than she felt.

"No."

The bluenette's temper was seconds from boiling over, so she left, resisting the urge to slam the door behind her. Acting out wouldn't convince Tikki she was fit to work again.

As she walked to her dorm in a huff, Nooroo stopped her by the lifts.

"Marinette."

"Nooroo."

"Could we talk?"

"Sure." The elevator doors opened.

"Ladies first." He said, his purple eyes sparkling in the fluorescent light.

Once inside, Nooroo pressed the button for her level, and they stood in silence for a moment before he spoke.

"I want you on that mission." He shook his head, his slim build tense and rigid as if he was nervous. "There isn't anyone better suited than you. The truth is we have become rather reliant on your abilities. Tikki is acting foolish and out of spite. She is putting our men on the line to prove a point." He wasn't nervous. He was angry. "I won't even try to mask how insulting it is that she didn't even tell me she benched you until after the fact. I know I'm not as hands-on with missions as she is but I am a founder and should have been consulted about the decision. Not to mention that Plagg and Tikki's relationship is bordering on unprofessionalism and they play favorites." He sighed, letting out a pent-up breath he was holding for who knows how long.

"Marinette, I think we can both admit we aren't the closest." She nodded. "But keeping you at arm's length is better for everyone. It may seem like indifference but I'm just trying to do my job."

"What is your job Nooroo?" She cooked her head to the side. He didn't do much to her knowledge. He stood to the side, in the background, acting as a shadow.

"Keeping everyone alive. I calculate the survival odds of missions, I try to come up with the best strategies to bring everyone home safely. And I can't do that if I'm only concerned with a few people instead of focusing on the big picture. It sounds cold, but having you there and risking another slip up has better odds than you staying behind."

"Have you told Tikki that?"

"Of course but she's stubborn and Plagg is too distracted by her wit to do anything but agree with her."

Unfortunately, nothing came of Nooroo or Marinette's attempts to convince Tikki. Nooroo shook with anger as he spoke in a voice barely above a whisper. "You are putting all of us at risk because of your own melodrama."

"I said no and I'm not changing my answer." The red-head replied.

"Just know that the lives lost on this mission are because of your idiotic

decision."

And with that Tikki sent the troops out, leaving Marinette to do nothing but train on her own.

Until Adrien happened to walk past and join her on her run around the track. Marinette protested, saying she wasn't allowed to train him anymore which we replied with "Plagg and Tikki are both up in the white room overseeing the mission. No one will know." She smiled. She liked that he was trying to sneak in time together. It reminded her of the bread pudding and graham crackers she would smuggle into her hospital bed.

Until her smile started to fade. Sass said that grief had a way of making people feel guilty for being happy. And that was exactly how Marinette felt. As if she was betraying them in some way. She took a few steps to the left, trying to keep some distance between herself and Adrien. Like standing too close was some form of infidelity towards Luka. Which was stupid because Adrien was just a friend... Right?

Of course he was just a friend. Why would he want her anyway? She was scared, a lab rat, a broken piece of machinery, a monster.

Then tears started to fall and her legs slowed until it took all she had not to crumble to the floor like a discarded piece of paper that missed the trash can.

Adrien stopped running, a bit of sweat and concern laced on his forehead. He saw her hiccup a few times as she tried to swallow a sob.

Why did the idea of him not wanting her hurt so much?

"Are you okay?" he asked, grabbing her shoulders to keep her upright. She looked as fragile and brittle as glass.

Her red-rimmed eyes met his perfect green and she couldn't hold in the tears any longer. His eyes were the grass in the meadow, warm and soft and so full of love, she wanted to scream that she didn't deserve it. But all she could muster was "How are you able to do that?".

"Able to do what?" Adrien asked, confused by her question.

"How are you able to look at me like there is something worth looking at?" Her voice broke mid-sentence as she choked on tears. She hung her head low, trying to hide droplets sliding down her cheeks, but Adrien could still see her face through her messy bangs.

He tilted her chin up and their eyes locked. He had never seen her cry before. He knew her shoulders shook with sobs in the graveyard but he never saw a tear fall. He remembers hearing her begging him to stay alive when he was shot but the memory was blurry and he wasn't sure if there were tears in her eyes then. But there were tears in her eyes now.

Everything about her looked as hollow as her eyes. She was shaking and biting her lip to keep sobs inside.

How was he able to look at her like there was something worth looking at? The answer was simple. There was something in her worth looking at.

He hooked his fingers around the belt loops of her jeans and pulled her to him until they were close enough to feel each other's heartbeat. He wiped at her tears with his thumb and she met his steady gaze, the hollow stare that made Adrien's heartache in her eyes.

He was shaking too. He was terrified. But he had to say it. She needed to know.

"Because," He said, bringing his lips centimeters from hers. "I'm in-" He was about to say 'in love with you' but was cut off by a blaring alarm and flashing red light overhead, which could only mean one thing.

They were under attack.

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Word count- 1324 (not counting this)

Sooooooooo... I'm back. I'm sorry about the long wait on this chapter, hopefully, the next one won't be the same.

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