Dearly Despised, (I love you)

Animan

A/N: Work out by running from your feelings

-

"Adrien called me hot."

"He called Ladybug hot—"

"I am Ladybug!"

At a cursory, perhaps naïve glance, the reflection of the previous day's 'argument' appeared to a source of stress for Marinette; her typically styled, wavy ponytail was haloed by dark wisps and her Chat Noir clip was lopsided and it hung off the side; her pacing an irritation to onlookers. And yet, a sort of confused ecstasy had plagued her instead – for she now had the upper hand (supposedly?), albeit a secret one.

"I thought he made a show of kinda liking Ladybug because I liked Chat Noir. I mean, have you seen his locker? How pathetic! He has an actual celebrity crush—"

"Marinette," Tikki's patient voice intruded, "I don't think you're focussing on the more important parts of yesterday."

"Like what? I got my History homework in a little late? So did Kim—"

"No," she rebuked. "You and Adrien's spat."

Mouth dry, Marinette squatted on her chaise.

"Yeah, he said he'd give me his modelling career."

The floating kwami's features drooped. "That's not all that happened."

Hair a shameless disarray, Marinette turned her face. Tikki had implied her true source of franticness.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Really? What about, "You were in my mouth—""

"No! Nope! We're not doing this! I remember!" She did not say that, did she?! "Don't say any more... please."

After a tender beat of silence, Tikki flew to Marinette and landed in her lap, patting her leg with the smallest hand consolingly. Her chosen just wetted her lips as she stared at her desk.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"About what? Nothing happened."

"But it almost did."

Her upright heart racked against her ribs – cheeks, veins, bones reigned by fire and electricity. A certain bolt skated her spine when his eyes dipped.

"Make me," she'd said.

And make her he almost did.

Or at least, at the time he seemed to lurch on that almost; like there was a slight weight added to his lean; a question in the shape of his lips; a new flame in his eyes. But considering the hypervigilant mess her brain was she was probably sensing wrong. Honestly, it all was stupid anyway. Tikki was making a fuss over nothing.

"So? We don't even like each other. It would never happen." She leant back on her palms, forcing a mirthless laugh. "He's just an idiot."

Tikki didn't say anything.

"Seriously, don't worry about it. He was just messing with me. Drop it, Tikki."

Her kwami ascended near her hair and kindly adjusted the Chat Noir clip Marinette hadn't been bothered to fix. "Of course. But if you ever want to talk about it, I'm here."

She smiled, holding the urge to argue there was nothing to talk about. "Thanks, Tikki."

-

"You almost kissed Marinette~"