The Pairing System. Chat Noir x Reader

Dix

The Blount had been testing you and Chloé for a while now. It felt agonizing having to wait and answer questions you already knew, and you bet that Chloé felt the same.

"Wow...that was really impressive, ladies," the teacher said once her bombardment of questions faltered. Chloé smirked, placing her hand on her hip.

"We know. ____ and I studied together for so many nights. How could we not be impressive?" remarked Chloé. You laughed nervously.

"Let's be a little more modest, yeah?" You replied sweetly. Chloé grew stiff before nodding, glancing at you as though she strives to have your approval. You didn't notice. "Thank you for giving us the opportunity to show our academic honesty. Are we excused now?" You said.

"Actually...a few more things..." began the Blount. You groaned internally. It almost became external.

____

Marinette had been waiting for almost thirty minutes now. Neither you nor Adrien had shown up to gaming club, so she sat alone.

"Do you think they ditched me, Tikki?" She asked quietly, her heart sinking with disappointment. Her cherry colored kwami flew up to her face in a blur of crimson, expression worried.

"No! I think they're just running late," she said. Marinette stared at her, eyebrows furrowed in thought. "...Why don't you play a little on your phone to pass the time?" She suggested. Marinette felt reluctant as she slowly pulled out her phone. Her cheeks dropped into the palm of her hand to rest as the other scrolled through Pinstagram. She scrolled slowly, occasionally looking through Adrien's profile.

"Sometimes I wonder why I like him so much, Tikki," Marinette whispered.

"But you can give a million reasons why you like Adrien!" Tikki said joyously.

"Yes...but-" Marinette trailed off as she saw a new post on AdrienFan101's Pinsta. It was a picture of Adrien sitting in front of a posh restaurant, his arm around the waist of your sister. He was smiling, and so was she, as he held a pink milkshake that had two bright red straws in it. They look...good together... She thought, her bluebell eyes swelling with an ocean of overwhelming emotions. She tried so hard to stay positive.

"Mari..?" Tikki asked, placing her small hand on Marinette's shoulder. Marinette looked away from Tikki, shutting her eyes tight as if trying to unsee the seen. "Mari...are you okay?"

"I'm...I'm fine, Tikki," she said, softly pushing away her kwami. She gave her a small, sweet smile before standing up and walking away. Tikki, of course, followed after her in a frenzy. "I just want to see it for myself and have his point of view of the picture...that's all. I'm okay," she continues. Her smile was sad. Tikki could see through her barricade.

Marinette grabbed her homemade bag and made you a note just in case you arrived after she had left. After that, she made her way to where Adrien was supposedly having lunch.

She didn't notice the tainted butterfly hovering around her, waiting for the moment where she finally succumbs to her negativity. Mr. Agreste hated how hard Marinette tried to stay positive, for it was only prolonging his plans.

But, as Marinette reached the site where Adrien resided, he could sense the sadness inside of her only growing. Hurt spread its wings inside her heart the same way his akumas did, quick and beautifully. The akuma got closer and closer the nearer she became to Adrien's date.

"Marinette...I think you should slow down... You're starting to get really upset..." Tikki suggested.

"Hawkmoth is probably back in France. I have nothing to worry about, Tikki," Marinette replied, ignoring the small trail of tears running down her fleshy cheeks. Her pace quickened, speedily heading towards the restuarant Adrien was at until she eventually began running. She didn't understand why she was running, but she was. Tikki caught a glance of a glowing black butterfly and immediately grew fearful.

"Marinette, there's an akuma!" Yelled Tikki. But Marinette didn't hear her. She couldn't hear over the sheer loudness of her unspoken thoughts. Her footsteps pounded along with her heartbeat, fast and unpredictable. The world seemed to tilt.

"I'm not upset. I just want to know what's really happening between them," Marinette said through hot breaths. She continuously tried to convince herself that in order to stay calm. Tikki whirled around her wildly, but all Marinette saw were flashes of red. The red fueled a sense of angst. The restuarant was just around the corner, close in reach but far in joyous expectation. Dread filled Marinette the closer she got.

She arrived at the scene. Her eyes dashed quickly back and forth, scanning the area. It was then that she saw Adrien and Catherine, leaning in close to each other. Their lips a centimeter apart; Marinette felt her heart shatter.

The akuma dove in, straight for Marinette's earrings.