Stitches • Marichat

Chapter Twenty Three

Adrien leaned back against the pink chaise, eyes drawn to the glittering Christmas lights Marinette had recently hung under her loft. He couldn't help but think about how they sparkled like Marinette's eyes whenever a new idea sparked in her head. The breathy chuckle that followed after the thought, he couldn't help. Marinette -aka Ladybug-, who was lying against his chest and mindlessly playing with the silver ring he always wore, looked up at him curiosity. It had been a few weeks since the night they had officially revealed themselves to each other, and it was an amazing night indeed.

They had so many things that they needed to talk through, so many issues that needed to be addressed. He still remembered the sadness that Marinette had held in her pretty blue eyes when he had finally opened up about Jace or Sandman- whatever. It was especially hard to tell her about The Nightmare™ he had suffered through, and all the decisions he had made within The Nightmare™ (Yeah, it's trademarked now. At least in his head.) But God, did it feel great to finally have that all off his chest. At least now he can look Alya and Nino in the eyes.

No, he wasn't all good. Maybe he wouldn't be for a while, but he was doing better. And thinking about Marinette was definitely making him feel better. He let out another chuckle as he saw the glittering happiness instead of sadness clouding her eyes. That was all that he needed.

"What's so funny?"

"Mm, I was just thinking about how similar your room is to you. I love it." Adrien murmured, laughing as he said the word love. He buried his face in her dark hair, no longer held up in its usual pigtails. "It's so pinkalicious, Mari. So you, so-"

"Just shut up already!" Marinette said in a fit of laughter, pushing herself away from Adrien. Adrien groaned in annoyance as he stretched his arms out to pull her back to him, but she easily evaded his advances. She got off of the chaise and moved over to her desk where Plagg and Tikki were sitting and eating their own variety of snacks, (All sorts of sweets for Tikki, and camembert for Plagg.) Digging through her drawers, Marinette's eyes lit up as she finally found what she was searching for. Pulling out a wooden oak box with a golden lock on it, Marinette pulled off a bracelet that she had been wearing. On the bracelet was a key, which she fitted into the keyhole.

Adrien watched in confusion the entire time. He sat up on the chaise, crossing his legs as he watched Marinette intently. After she unlocked the box, she opened the oak lid, grabbing something that he couldn't see.

"Marinette, what are you doing?"

Marinette turned around, a cheeky smile on her face. In her hands she now held a leather notebook, bound by a thick strap of the same material wrapped around the book twice. At the front, the strap tucked under the two previous loops to keep the contents inside a secret from any peering eyes.

"Now, I know that your birthday is still a week away," Marinette drawled slowly as she sauntered over to him. She lifted one of her legs over his crossed ones, settling herself down on the cushion in front of him, legs wrapped loosely around his slender hips. "But I've been too excited to keep this. I want to give this to you."

She placed the worn leather notebook in his hands, biting her lower lip in excitement as she studied his reaction. She watched as one of his long, lithe fingers traced the words that were written across the front of the casing. "Chaton" was written in solid black in a very familiar cursive handwriting, the one that Marinette often used to sign her name on her designs. The dye pen that she had no doubt used for it blended in seamlessly with the letter, creating sharp angles and delicate curves to spell out the special endearment.

"Open it, open it!" Marinette exclaimed as calmly as she could. Adrien looked up at her in amusement before hooking his finger under the leather strap, pulling the straps until it was undone around the notebook. Opening to the first page, Adrien's smile dropped as he took it in. His jaw fell as he saw the sketching on the yellow page. Bright green swirls covered the outfit, a shimmery green pen traced over the penciled twirls.

"Is... Is this-" Adrien stumbled over his words as he looked at the recognizable dress that covered the page.

"The dress that I wore for my birthday? Where you gave me one of my most important belongings?" Marinette teased, picking up the delicate paw-shaped pendant in between her forefinger and her thumb. She wore a sassy smile on her face as she continued on to her next sentence. "Subsequently, also the dress that was from my Chat Noir inspired fashion line? It is indeed, chaton."

Adrien couldn't suppress the shudder that came after Marinette purred the nickname that was written on the cover of the notebook- er sketchbook actually. He flipped through the pages, spending time studying every design that colored the pages. Black and green were the prominent colors that dominated each drawing. The first half of the line were all female, which he really hopes Marinette has already made for herself because he is so excited to see her in them, but the second half were all men's clothes. There was a variety; from formal to casual to straight up PJ's that he was sure he would be wearing if the clothes were ever made. Marinette had really gone above and beyond when she said that she would make a Chat Noir line.

"Marinette... This- This means so much to me, I- thank you."

Marinette shrugged in response. "It was honestly the least that I could do for you, Adrien. Ever since, well, I don't even know when, you've helped me in so many different ways. You've- You've really helped me become a better person, a better Ladybug, a better Marinette." Adrien smiled, taking Marinette's calloused hand into his softer one.

"I didn't do that, you-"

"No, you did. And I want to do the same thing for you. I want to help you, like you've helped me." Adrien furrowed his brows, watching her curiously as she continued, flipping through the rest of the designs until she stopped close to the center of of the thick sketchbook. "I know you don't want to talk to a professional about... Sandman. I also know that you really can't talk to a professional about life as Chat Noir, and I won't always be available. Or there is going to be a time when you just can't tell me something, I don't know. I just know that you need something to express yourself. So, I've left half of the book blank for you to write down anything you want or think you need to."

"Marinette..." Adrien looked up at her through his thick lashes, giving her by far the most beautiful smile she had ever seen. This wasn't one of those superficial smiles he wore for his photoshoots. This was kind and genuine, and the most vulnerable look he had ever worn. And as cheesy as it sounds (Adrien would probably love that actually, he absolutely loves cheesy romance, no matter what he says.) she could practically feel the love and adoration in that rolled off of him in waves. And she felt warm inside.

He set his present to the side, sliding his hands over the back of hers, thumbs pressing gentle circles into her skin as he studied her face. His hands moved up her arms slowly as he spoke. "I love you, you know that?"

"Mhm."

"Good. Now, come here." Adrien pulled Marinette back to his chest, squeezing her tightly to him. She laughed, and instead of struggling like she usually would have, Marinette went limp in his
arms, placing her cheek against his collarbone as she relaxed. It was Sunday, and she still had a bunch of homework that she needed to finish before school tomorrow. But all of that could wait right now.

Then, something she had forgotten (Not really, it was always nagging the back of her mind.) and she felt the need to tell him.

"So, I think Alya knows that we're Ladybug and Chat Noir."

"Mm, that's good. One more person to not worry about." Adrien nodded along thoughtlessly, lightly running his fingers up and down her back in a soothing manner. It was quiet for a few moments, and Marinette was honestly surprised that he was taking it so well. She had really freaked out after she learned that from Alya. Maybe she should be grateful that he-

"Wait, what?"

Nevermind.

New chapter! What do you guys think? Sadly, I have to admit that Stitches will be ending the next chapter, with maybe an epilogue.

For and Epilogue please place a comment here!

Until next time, peace!