15. Chapter 15

The sound was soft. A light twinkling of bells crescendoing into a melody that evoked feelings of peace and rightfulness, she had picked it for that exact reason. The tune lasted only about 10 seconds, the song fading out slightly before swinging back into another repetition.

So sweet, so melodious.

Marinette had the sudden urge to murder.

“Happy first day of school.” Tikki giggled sleepily, her own typical grumpiness forgotten as she took in the hilariously disgruntled expression on her charge’s face. It was 7 am on the dot, a time neither of them had been conscious enough to greet in quite some time.

The alarm had yet to quit.

Marinette’s hand groped angrily around the sheets, head still stuffed under her pillow in last ditch effort to somehow deny the existence of the early-morning brightness that filtered through her skylight. Finally finding her target, the girl blindly tapped at the screen until the infuriatingly happy tune shut off mid-twinkle.

Oh, how she had grown to despise the sound.

Silent fuming morphed into lazy mumbling, until finally settling on loud resignation as Marinette dragged her body out of the warm embrace of her comforter, nearly 20 minutes later.  Her bitter thoughts followed her in a haze as she managed to dismount the loft. ‘Tardiness doesn’t count against you on the first day, right?’

Just weeks ago she had been itching for this day to come, ready to throw off the vestiges of her summer slump and return to a normal schedule. Of course now that she was here, wrenching her trapdoor open before sleep-walking to the bathroom, Marinette couldn’t seem to conjure up a single good reason as to why she should be up this early.

‘Leave it to Lycee to come barreling back in just as soon as my vacation got interesting…’ She thought, a smile ghosting its way across her lips as she continued to brush.

Although “Interesting” wasn’t exactly the best way to describe her life right now.

“Interesting” didn’t even begin to cover the extent of her last two weeks.

Discovering new or perhaps long-buried feelings for your partner of three years wasn’t interesting.

Acting on those feelings despite the fact you aren’t entirely over your steadfast crush/tentative friend wasn’t interesting either.

And without a doubt, the least interesting event of the whole summer had to have been Friday’s concert. The one she snuck out to see. The one where Adrien let her sit on his shoulders. The one where Chat Noir kissed her near breathless.

 The one where Marinette truly felt, for the first time since hitting puberty, like an actual teenager, inhibited by the night and the music and the exhilaration of having secrets to keep.

Nope. Nothing interesting about that.

Insane, perhaps. Or maybe idiotic? Irresponsible. Intense. Idyllic. Irrational. Illuminating. Irresistible. Marinette ran through an entire list of I words before she settled on the right one.

Indescribable.

Perfectly frustrating and utterly indescribable.

Of course that didn’t stop her from allowing a tiny flicker of pride at her own rebellion to flash its way across her face. The sensation simmered deliciously in the center of her body, making Marinette’s steps lighter as she treaded back towards her room. Reaching her vanity, the self-satisfied grin she wore only stretched wider. There on the table was her phone, Chat’s newest message displayed on the screen.

[ Good Morning Beautiful *kissy cat emoji* ]

Marinette clucked her tongue, despite the way her heart warmed at the text. ‘If that flatterer could see me now he’d turn tail and run.’ she thought slyly, glancing up at her bedraggled appearance reflected in the mirror before her. Heaving a sigh, she turned on some mindless pop music before going at her face and hair.

[  morning? yes. ]

[ beautiful? not quiet yet. ]

[ it takes time and effort to achieve my unique brand of mediocrity ]

She didn’t mean to sound so whiney. Nowadays it just felt like there was a tiny Marinette on one shoulder and a Ladybug on the other, each of her personas dictating exactly how she should feel about herself. More often than not, both of the tiny girls had their way, leading to a lot of conflicted emotions regarding her own self-image.

 And her reply hinged on that thin line of self-depreciating humor and confident banter that she had been treading as of late.

‘Aint puberty just a real treat?’

[ slanderous talk! I know for a fact my lady wakes up looking like a literal angel! ]

[ oh yeah? you been peeking in my windows alley cat?? ]

[ I don’t need to spy in order to know with full certainty that you are the MOST divinely radiant being to ever grace this earth ]

[ now that’s a bit overkill I would think. besides, you’ve never seen me fresh out of bed before ]

[ and that’s an injustice I plan to fix one day ]

[ I bet you look great with bedhead ;) ]

Marinette’s fingers paused their braiding, head tilting pleasantly as she re-read his message. After a brief deliberation, she unraveled her progress, letting her wavy blue-black locks fall down freely around her chin.

‘You know, I think I’ll wear my hair down today.’

She wasn’t late. In fact, it was almost impossible to be late when you live just a block from school.

Alya greeted her with a tired but excited smile, the two falling back into their regular rhythm after the lull of summer break. As per usual, they loitered outside, catching up with friends and swapping stories before the bell drew them deeper into the building. Homeroom classes didn’t change from year to year, being the shortest period of all, so the girls where welcomed by a familiar sight as they slid into their seats behind Adrien and Nino.

Marinette noticed with no small amount of pride that she did not stutter as she returned Adrien’s greeting, instead managing to join her trio of friends in idle small talk before receiving copies of their new schedules. This year’s course load was packed, as to be expected in her second to last year of Lycee, but thankfully she wouldn’t be facing it alone.

Alya shared three afternoon classes with her, as well as one in the morning block. Meanwhile Nino was in almost all of her periods, giving her a huge thumbs up each time they stumbled into the same classroom. “Looks like I know who I’m walking to class with this year.” He said playfully, making a show of holding her books as the grinning pair went to their next shared period.

Marinette also noted with a mild surprise that she had significantly more classes with Adrien, seeing him a total of 4 times throughout the day (not that she was counting.) She had expected their schedules to be just as conflicting as they’d been last year, seeing as though he was enrolled in a majority of higher level courses, whereas she…

Well let’s just say she was no whiz kid.

Each time she walked through the door, only to spot his blonde head give a friendly nod at her appearance, Marinette felt herself wind up just a bit tighter.

‘You’re over him remember’ she reminded herself resolutely, somehow managing not to completely boil over when he took the empty seat next to her in Advanced French (the only subject she really seemed to excel at.) It was the single class she had without either Alya or Nino to temper out Adrien’s presence, just the two of them sat smack in the middle of a room full of older, unfamiliar students.

“Where you’re sitting will remain your assigned spots for the remainder of the year.” The teacher announced, handing around the syllabus. “So I suggest you and you’re neighbor make friends quickly.”

Marinette wanted to self-destruct.

‘This will be fine’ she thought dimly, digging her nails sharply into the palm of her hand. ‘I’ll get through this year as long as I don’t think about his laugh, or his smile, or how broad and strong his shoulder felt under me as he lifted me up and ran his calloused hands along my…’

“W-what?” she choked out, noticing for the first time the boy beside her had been trying to say something to her for the past minute.

 Adrien smiled, then laughed.

‘Well, there goes that plan.’

“I was just saying it’s good to have a friend in here.” He repeated, glancing around the room before his green eyes settled back on her with a twinkle.

“Oh definitely!” She managed, flashing him a tight smile. Alya’s voice echoed in her head, repeating the phrase “you’ve got a type’” over and over for the remainder of the class.

One period down, 200 or so more to go!

She was fucked.

Despite her tiny breakdown on day one, Marinette’s first week of school was predictably easy. In all honesty, the most difficult part of her day was probably getting up each morning, and even the grumpiness she felt at her early wake-up would be all but forgotten by the time she was settled in for first period. It was nice to see those of her classmates she hadn’t been close enough with to hang out over summer, and despite the fact she still mourned the loss of her free time, Marinette had to concede that getting back into a regular routine did do wonders for her mental health.

It was a tradition in her household to go shopping on the first weekend after school began, just a nice bout of mother-daughter bonding time as the Cheng ladies “painted the town red” (an expression Marinette’s mother was fond of using.) So early-ish Saturday morning the pair set out, making the drive to the massive mega-mall near downtown with Marinette practically bouncing in her seat.

It wasn’t often that her family shopped there. Most of the stores where what you might call high-end. AKA expensive. AKA not really plausible on a baker’s salary. And while the Dupain-Cheng’s were by no means poor, Marinette had been instilled with a sense of thriftiness since a young age, a skill that came in handy when it came to her hobby as a seamstress. Never one to turn her nose up at a bargain, she had grown used to scouring second-hand stores, letting her hands run along the racks until she encountered a fabric that drew her in. It was a habit she took great pride in.

That being said, Marinette was obviously a bit confused when about half-way through their spree, her mother ushered her through the entrance of a store she recognized as a designer label. Mrs. Cheng just quieted her daughter’s objections with the wave of a hand.

“You worked hard this summer, besides everyone needs a little indulgence sometimes.” The woman explained, a twinkle in her eye as she led them towards the back wall. Marinette felt a warm excitement flood her veins at the thought of owning something designer, the emotion immediately turning icy as she noticed just what department her mother was steering her towards.

“Mama, no!” She hissed in embarrassment, trying to plant her heels against the shorter woman’s strength. It was no use. Mrs. Cheng just gave a knowing chuckle, prodding her daughter until they stood smack in middle of the lingerie section. “You cannot be serious.”

“Oh come on, it’s been years since I helped you pick out a bra. Probably since you first started wearing one.” Marinette’s mother grabbed a lime green pushup, draping it over her blushing daughter’s chest before replacing it with a shake of her head. “Not your color.” Marinette’s eyes scanned the area for an escape route. Perhaps an open window or a storage closet…

“But you certainly aren’t the same size as back when you were 12.” Mrs. Cheng continued in a chipper tone, oblivious (or possibly just ignoring) her daughters discomfort. “I’m not sure where you inherited those but it certainly wasn’t from my side of the family!” She laughed, gesturing to her own chest as Marinette gave another loud groan.

“I don’t even need another bra.” The teen whined half-heartedly, eyes roaming the rows extravagant silks and expensive lace trims that stretched before her. “And I definitely don’t have a need for one this fancy.” Despite her objections, Marinette couldn’t help but admire the selection, both with the practiced eye of a seamstress and the longing gaze of a teenage girl.

 Maybe she didn’t need a sexy bra, but damn if she didn’t want one.

“Marinette, you’d be surprised at how far a nice set of matched underclothes will go in terms of confidence.” Oh great, her mom had found the panties. “It can really make you feel so much better about yourself, even if you’re the only one who knows you’ve got it on.” Here her mother turned, quirking an eyebrow up. “Unless there’s someone else who might get the chance to see it…?”

“WHAT THE-OF COURSE NOT!” Marinette sputtered, flushing at the insinuation.

“Because you know if you are having sex-“

“NO. NOPE. I’m not! Noooo, we are NOT having this conversation right now!”

Her mother just laughed her off with a gentle smile. “Well ok then, but you know you can talk to me about anything right?” An embarrassed nod. “Good! Now get to picking!”

Once she got over the initial mortification of the situation, Marinette felt her excitement come creeping back in. Together they scoured the racks, seeking out the perfect set among the throngs of unmentionables.

The first one she picked out was a predictable choice. Simple but girly, Marinette was instantly drawn to the lilac ensemble, the bra and panties lightly flower patterned with tiny pink bows adorning certain points.

Her next choice was at her mother’s urging, though she had to admit it was also quite stunning. As opposed to her first choice, this one had no padding whatsoever, instead embracing a triangle cup-less design set in a soft, deep navy fabric. It looked incredibly comfy, especially with the matching boy shorts.

It was her last pick that surprised Marinette to most, it being completely out of her usual realm of taste.  It wasn’t often she wore black, what with her hair the color it was, yet she was inexplicably drawn to the midnight bra. The front plunged low, the cups wrapping up the sides in order to meet with the sophisticated 3 strand strap. The construction was gorgeous, but what really caught her eye was the lacy trim feathering its way across. The swooping design was unlike anything Marinette had encountered in all her time spent skulking through fabric stores, prompting her to scoop up the bra and matching thong without a second thought.

“Do you think your father-“

“Whoops sorry can’t hear you I’m heading to the fitting room now bye!” Marinette ducked behind a heavy velvet curtain, thankful she managed to dodge that particularly cringe-worthy line of questioning.

The lighting in the stall was low and warm. A large framed mirror dominated the wall and the all-around richness of the space reminded Marinette she wasn’t at Target anymore. Letting herself enjoy the sumptuous environment, she stacked her choices on the tufted ottoman, quickly shedding her clothes before donning the first ensemble.

Minutes later, after she had tried on and fallen in love which each choice, Marinette found herself at an impasse. Obviously she couldn’t get them all, it was a stretch to afford even one set, never mind three, but it all came down to cute vs. comfortable vs. sexy.

The age old question.

Her mother wasn’t much help, maintaining she liked all of them equally as Marinette ducked back in with a frustrated huff. She needed someone more optioned to help guide the decision.

 ‘Someone like my loud-mouthed best friend perhaps.’ Marinette thought suddenly, hanging all three bras up on the rack before snapping a pic.

[ I can only afford one, so choose carefully.  ]

She sent the text off quickly, changing back into her clothes as she awaited the verdict. Alya’s phone never left her hand, meaning Marinette didn’t have to wait long for her response. Within 30 seconds her phone gave a chime, the girl leaning down to unlock it.

[ Perhaps my choice would be easier if I were to see them on my lady… ]

‘Oh.’

Marinette read and re-read the text, eyes popping up to scan the little “C.N” at the top of the message thread, before dropping back down to the picture resting in the conversation window.

‘Oh’

She stilled, hands gripping the device as she stared absently at a speck on the carpet. After a few seconds, Marinette raised the screen to her forehead, blood rushing in her ears as a hiss escaped her clenched teeth.

‘Did I just accidentally just sext Chat Noir?’

Still moving in a haze, she brought her phone back down, examining it one more time before panic began to poke holes in her outwardly calm demeanor. Marinette’s eyes widened, body slumping down onto the ottoman. The fact she was in a crowded store was the only thing keeping her from screaming.

‘I most definitely did accidentally sext Chat Noir.’