A miraculous trip

Chapter 36- Gratitude

Adrien's P.O.V: 

Pushing my anxious thoughts to the back of my mind, I hesitantly opened the door and took a step into the dark bedroom. Thanks to the moonlight beaming through the shutters, a faint silhouette of pigtails and a kneeling hero aside of an open suitcase and bed was all to be seen, other than that the room was nothing but darkness. I was hoping her private time with Tikki would have helped, that when I got back she'd be in higher spirits and ready to talk to me, but I was only greeted with silence.

I swallowed my pride as I walked over and kneeled down, slipping my arms around her waist as I did so and hugging her from behind. "Lila will leave you alone from now on, she's sworn not to tell a soul what she knows.. You're secret is safe and you don't need to be afraid anymore."

"Adrien-" Marinette half-whispered, clearly grateful.

"I told you I'd fix this. I'll protect you no matter what, m'la-"

Marinette turned her head, looking at me from over her shoulder in a way I'd never seen her look before and I froze, getting completely lost in the beauty that is the sparkling baby blue eyes of Marinette Dupain-Cheng. A moment of comfortable silence was shared before the small gap between the two of us closed and our lips met. 

The kiss only lasted a few seconds, but it was more than enough for my mind to begin to wander- imagining the possibilities and the future, as she pulled back slightly I smiled at her. Could this be the beginning of something wonderful? 

"Thank you, kitty." Marinette smiled faintly as she softly spoke, sending a shiver down my spine. 

"Of course, my lady..." I responded in the same manner before standing and walking in front of her holding out my hand and lifting her up to her feet. "You should get some sleep, it's late and tonight has been very emotional, you should rest up in preparation for tomorrow." 

3rd Person P.O.V: 

Marinette smiled at Adrien in response and closed her suitcase, it was the first time since Lila had spoke to her that he had seen her smile properly. It was nice to see her feeling normal again, it was nice for him to see the girl he had been such good friends with being able to be herself once more, only this time it was a little different. She wasn't clumsy or stuttering- maybe that was down to the fact that she hadn't yet spoken- either way. This girl was no longer just his good, atractive friend from school Marinette... This was also the brave, quick-witted and heroic ladybug. Now that Adrien thought about it properly, in a way he had always had feelings for both of them, only the feelings for ladybug overshadowed those for Marinette- 

Adrien watched as Marinette pushed her suitcase under the bed and climbed onto it and left the room. 

'I hope she's going to be okay in there alone...' 

Adrien headed back into the livingroom and lay on his couch bed, flicking on the T.V as he did so and couldn't help but wonder how the atmosphere would be back at Nethaniel, Chloe and Lila's place... 

(A/N: I just wanted to say thank you all so much for 10k+ reads! It's genuinely so inspiring to see so many people from around the world having an interest in my work and I adore interacting with you all and reading the things you have to say and your reactions. Thank you so much for everything, I'm genuinely so grateful and love all my readers so much! Stay safe and keep an eye out for more updates!)

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