I'm Here

Chapter 8

"Marinette! Thanks for meeting me!"

"Anytime, Allan." Marinette smiled as she walked up to him at the bridge.

"You look gorgeous." Allan smiled as he took Marinette's hand.

"Thank you. You look handsome." Marinette blushed.

"Hmph. That's what I said..." Cat Noir muttered as he watched them from a nearby building.

"So what is it that you wanted to give me?" Marinette asked.

"Right, right." Allan nodded as he led Marinette to the rail of the bridge. He reached into his pocket and opened it, revealing a silver lock, studded with diamonds, "these are real gems, for the gem of my life."

"Oh, Allan..." Marinette smiled as he handed her the lock. She felt the diamonds under her fingertips, "it's beautiful."

Allan reached into his pocket and pulled out another box. He opened it and showed her two matching keys, "will you do the honor?"

"S-sure..." Marinette smiled as she unlatched the padlock and latched it onto one of the empty spots on the bridge.

"This will lock my love for you forever." Allan explained as he leaned down and locked the padlock. He clutched the key in his hand and turned to Marinette, "only if you'll do the same?"

"Of course." Marinette nodded and grinned as they turned their backs to each other and swung their arms. There was a splash in the water as the key plunged in. They turned back to each other, smiling.

"Ugh, this is making me sick the longer I watch..." Cat Noir almost barfed, then he gasped, tears almost filling his eyes. He saw Allan hold Marinette's face and kiss her right there, "what?!" To his dismay, she had closed her eyes and kissed him back. He clenched his fists and stood up.

...No. This is her only chance to be happy... I won't ruin that for her... Cat Noir stopped himself from throwing himself off that roof and tearing Allan to pieces, I'm just a jealous alley-cat... Instead, he turned the opposite direction and left.

"So shall we go to dinner?" Allan finally pulled away, and Marinette nodded dazily. So he entwined his fingers in hers as they walked to the fanciest and most expensive restaurant they could find.

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"Allan just felt like... Like Adrien." Marinette told Alya on the phone the next morning on Saturday.

"Girl, that's awesome! I'm so happy for you! I knew it was about time you had to move on." Alya nodded.

"Yeah." Marinette smiled as she thought about her night with Allan.

"Hey, I need some serious help. My LadyBlog's not doing so well." Alya finally snapped Marinette back to present-day.

"Why?" Marinette asked as she turned to look at Tikki.

"Haven't you noticed? Ladybug's been missing for two weeks already! It's only been Cat Noir! And this is a LadyBlog, not a CatBlog..."

"Oh, I see... Well I'm sorry to hear that... Uh, look. I have to go. I'll call you tonight, okay?"

"Sure thing! See you soon!" Alya said before hanging up.

"Oh no, Tikki, what have I done..." Marinette groaned, "not only did I make Cat Noir depressed, Alya's reputation is going down too... Wait! Cat Noir!! Oh no, I left him here last night, and I wasn't back until one this morning... Oh Tikki, he's going to kill me..."

"It's okay Marinette... Calm down. But you really need to get your priorities straight, and get Ladybug back." Tikki explained.

Marinette sighed, "I know, but won't everyone hate me once I finally reappear out of nowhere?"

"Well, better now than later!"

Marinette sighed again, until she heard knocking on her balcony door. Without warning, Cat Noir jumped in just as Tikki flew off to hide.

"Hey there, Princess." Cat Noir smirked, "you got back late last night. But I see you're feeling better?"

"I am, thanks Cat Noir." Marinette smiled, "look, I'm sorry for just leaving you by yourself here... And then getting back late..."

"It's okay. How was your date?" Cat Noir cocked an eyebrow.

"It went like a dream, Cat." Marinette smiled, "we had a dinner, and we stayed out past midnight, it was definitely romantic all right."

"I'm sure Adrien was just as great..." Cat Noir shrugged.

"That's the thing, Cat. Allan made me feel the same way I felt with Adrien. He made me feel safe. Good about myself. Made me feel like I have a purpose in this world." Marinette smiled as she put her hands on Cat Noir's shoulders. He looked at her sadly, and nodded, forcing a smile.

"A-Adrien... He still loves you, you know..." Cat Noir's voice cracked.

"Adrien's dead..." Marinette looked at the floor, "it's about time I've moved on."

"I see..." Cat Noir looked down at the floor too. They stood in silence for a few seconds, and he finally just turned and left. Marinette looked up and let out a sigh. Sadly, she just didn't know what was wrong with Cat Noir.

______________________

"I'm telling you now. Move on from Marinette. Go find Ladybug." Plagg said as he chewed on some Camembert.

"But no one knows where she is..." Adrien paced back and forth in the sewer, "I can't believe she's completely given up on me..."

"Well, hate to break it to you, Lover-Boy. But it's kinda complicated if your boyfriend's dead... You kinda have no choice." Plagg shrugged.

"But I... I need to tell her. Fix things up." Adrien said. He thought about that night, seeing Marinette kiss Allan. He cringed, his blood boiled, and his fists clenched. He stomped over to his make-shift desk, grabbed the stool, and chucked it across the room and at the wall, where it shattered. He then yelled out in anger as he swept his arms across his desk, scattering all the papers, maps, pencils, pens, and his mug onto the cobblestone floor. He slammed his fists onto the wood and panted as his anger dissipated into frustration and sadness. He cried for himself. He cried for Ladybug. He cried mostly for Marinette, who had once loved him as much as he still loves her.