27. Chapter 27

Disclaimer: I do not own Miraculous Ladybug.

Lucky Us

By: Princess Kitty1

Chapter 27

Adrien had a date with Ladybug.

Not that he'd asked her to dinner with the intention of making it a date, though offering to pay for her meal had pretty much made it a date. The only thing on his mind was an evening of friendly conversation. Nothing else. If Ladybug turned out to be the love of his life, it would be a happy coincidence.

But what did he wear on a not-date with Ladybug? He stood in his closet, staring at rows of perfectly ironed shirts, suit jackets, sweaters, and ties in every color of the rainbow. Sure, he still had a week to think about it, but starting now gave him time to get second opinions and maybe have a panic attack.

Oh God, did he bring her flowers? Chocolates? A corsage? What was the protocol for meeting a pen pal? Was there a protocol for meeting a pen pal? Could he Google it?

Adrien walked out of his closet and face-planted on his bed. He'd managed to come across as calm, cool, and collected in his emails, but the reality was that he was a complete mess, and he somehow had to pretend he wasn't a complete mess when he went to therapy with his father the next day. A family counseling session was no place to have a meltdown over Ladybug.

Or Marinette.

He lifted his chin and glowered at his phone, missing the bakery and the peace he always felt there. They'd be open again the following week, and he'd be back to his Monday-Wednesday-Friday routine of popping in at 8:15 for whatever pastry appealed to him at the time. But would things be the same between him and Marinette after the competition? Could he still sneak over after hours to spend a quiet, relaxing evening with her? Or would she get up the courage to confess to the object of her affections and no longer have time to entertain him?

Everything was changing so fast: his relationship with his father, his career trajectory, his relationship with Ladybug. And if Marinette won the competition, things would change for her as well. Life would step between them, and before Adrien knew it his friendship with her would dwindle down to the occasional text.

He didn't want that.

He rolled onto his back, closed his eyes, and listened to the distant sound of Plagg crunching his cat food across the room.

Sunday couldn't come fast enough.

x.x.x

"I don't know about this, Mari. You should go home and get some rest. Come in early tomorrow."

Marinette stood beside Alya in front of Agreste HQ. The anesthetic the doctor had used before stitching her palm was beginning to fade. A dull ache pulsed in her hand like a heartbeat, and the small cut on her middle finger stung. But she had work to do. An injured hand would slow her down, and she'd already wasted an entire afternoon.

"I'll be fine," Marinette said. She patted her purse. "The painkillers will help. I'll take one as soon as I get upstairs."

Alya rolled her eyes. "I'm not just talking about your hand."

Marinette had spent her time at the clinic filling Alya in about the afternoon's proceedings, from Nino discovering her identity to Chloe's calamitous exit. She left out the part where Chloe had unwittingly caused her injury to avoid throwing more dynamite into an explosive situation. She knew her best friend. Alya would wring Chloe's neck.

"I'm okay. Really," Marinette said, and even managed to smile. "I'll get a couple hours of work in and then I'll head home. I promise if I start feeling sick or panicky or faint, I'll call you right away."

Alya nodded, though Marinette could tell she didn't like the idea one bit. But for once she chose not to pursue the subject, and gave her a quick, careful hug instead. "Don't let it get to your head, girl. This doesn't mean anything. It's bad timing, not bad luck."

Marinette pulled away from her. "You know what? I'm starting to think that the only unlucky people are the ones who give up at the first sign of trouble," she said.

Alya grinned. "Now there's a philosophy I can get behind. Just take care of yourself, okay?"

They exchanged goodbyes, then Marinette headed into the building. She stopped by Ms. Sancoeur's office, told her everything the doctor said and announced her intent to stay in the competition, then took the elevator upstairs. Her blood had been cleaned off the floors, leaving no trace of the harrowing afternoon.

When Marinette entered her office, she found the dress stowed in a safe location, as promised. She carefully removed it from its storage, laid it on the table, checked to make sure no blood had gotten on it, and through her physical and emotional exhaustion, she continued to work.

x.x.x

Marinette Dupain-Cheng: I'd like to talk to you and Chloe today.

Nino Lahiffe: I'll pass her the message. How's your hand doing?

Marinette Dupain-Cheng: It's seen worse.

Nino Lahiffe: I'm really sorry.

Marinette Dupain-Cheng: I know. Meet me at Thai After Thai at noon?

x.x.x

Chat NoirRE: SummerJust now

Good morning, buginette! I hope you're doing well. I'm trying not to distract you from your work this week, so don't reply to this if you're busy.

x.x.x

LadybugRE: SummerJust now

Good morning.

Don't worry about distracting me.

I'll just text back during one of my many pacing sessions. :-)

x.x.x

Chat NoirRE: SummerJust now

Designing is hard, huh?

x.x.x

LadybugRE: SummerJust now

I'm so glad I'm doing this for the rest of my life.

x.x.x

Marinette arrived at the Thai restaurant a few minutes before noon, ordered food, and took a seat by the window.

Normally, she'd have waited for Nino and Chloe to arrive so they could all order together. But while her injured hand was not her dominant hand, it still pestered her enough to hamper her progress; she'd need all the time she could get if she wanted to complete her designs before the finale's dress rehearsal on Saturday.

A limo pulled up to the curb outside the restaurant. Marinette watched as Nino climbed out on one side and Chloe emerged from the other. Before they entered the restaurant, he stopped her and said something that she rolled her eyes at. He spoke again. She crossed her arms and tapped her foot impatiently. He crossed his arms right back. Then she had an outburst and Nino smiled, pulled the door open for her, and ushered her inside.

Marinette waved them over and tried not to let herself be intimidated by Chloe, who stared her down in a completely different way than she had the night they'd spoken at the dance club. Back then, Chloe had at least been open to the idea of Marinette dating Adrien. Now she had no pity to spare, and probably would have launched herself across the table and strangled Marinette if Nino hadn't been there, looking embarrassed and wincing like someone with a massive headache.

"Thanks for meeting me here," Marinette said once they were both seated across from her. She nodded at Nino. "I promised you the whole story, and that's exactly what you're getting. I might take a break to eat, though. I don't have a lot of time."

She gathered her thoughts and, with her bandaged hand, laid her cell phone on the table. When she looked up again, she caught a flicker of something like guilt on Chloe's face, but it was quickly smothered by anger.

"I accidentally emailed Adrien last year," Marinette said. "Probably a month or two before he came into the bakery the first time. Of course, I didn't know it was him because his email profile listed his name as Chat Noir, and he didn't know it was me because my profile lists me as Ladybug. I only found out who he was last week when I looked at his phone and his wallpaper was a picture of Plagg that he'd sent me as Chat Noir."

"And you didn't say anything," Chloe snapped.

"Because I wasn't sure." Marinette flexed her aching hand. "I thought, what if Chat Noir was someone pretending to be Adrien? What would have happened if I'd called Adrien Chat Noir right then and there, and he had no idea what I was talking about?" She looked between Chloe and Nino. "I loved Chat Noir," she said. "I loved him so much. If he'd turned out to be nothing more than a liar… I don't know what I would've done." She smoothed down the edges of the bandaid around her middle finger. "So I didn't say anything to Adrien. It wasn't until I talked everything out with Alya later on that I realized Chat Noir couldn't be anyone else.

"But I was still too scared to tell Adrien right away. If it was so easy for me to doubt him, then it would be just as easy for him to doubt me, especially since I'm entered in his father's competition," Marinette said. "When I found out I'd made the top ten, I realized the finale would be the perfect time for everything. We'd be too busy to talk to or even email each other right away. It would give him enough time to think things through and decide if he believes that I never meant to trick him." She looked directly at Chloe. "A few weeks ago, I told you I had no intention of hurting Adrien, and I wasn't lying. I just had no idea how complicated the situation was."

Nino glanced at Chloe. Chloe kept her arms folded over her chest, but she'd started jiggling her foot.

A waiter came by with Marinette's plate. She left it untouched, waiting for Nino and Chloe to say what they would.

Chloe uncrossed her legs. "So you got over your big, stupid crush on Adrien because you fell in love with Adrien?" she asked.

Marinette fought back a smile. "Yes."

"And out of all the girls Adrien could have crushed on besides Ladybug, he ended up crushing on Ladybug herself?" Nino said, more to himself than anyone else.

"Morons," Chloe said. "I should have known the only girl on the planet who'd fall for my idiot best friend would have to be as big of an idiot as he was. And you fell for each other twice? Dear God, it's a match made in heaven. Do they sell alcohol here? I need alcohol."

Marinette, unsure of how to interpret Chloe's reaction, decided to cut to the chase. "So… are you going to tell Adrien?" she asked.

Nino gave her a reassuring smile. "Your secret's safe with me. You sent him your designs so it's obvious you intend for him to find out. And considering that he knows that I know who Ladybug is, and he doesn't want me to tell him, he'd be pretty upset if we blew your cover. Isn't that right, Chloe?"

"I don't owe you anything," Chloe snapped.

"You messed up her hand," Nino reminded her.

She let out a frustrated growl and started pushing Nino out of the booth. "Move it. I'm calling Sabrina and seeing if I can salvage what's left of my day." Nino hurried to his feet. Chloe slid past him, stopped, then turned back to Marinette. "I'm sorry about your hand," she said, "but I still don't trust you. The only reason I'm letting this go is because Adrien should get to deal with you himself."

Marinette watched Chloe walk away, feeling like she'd narrowly avoided getting gored by a raging bull. Nino rubbed the back of his neck and sat across from her again.

"Don't worry," he said, "she'll come around as soon as she sees Adrien happy."

Marinette nodded. "I want him to know so bad," she said. "I almost told him the other day, when Alya tricked me into going to his place instead of yours. It was right on the tip of my tongue." She picked up her silverware and poked at her food to make sure it hadn't gone completely cold. "But sometimes it feels too big for words."

Nino chuckled. "Yeah, I kind of knew when I saw your designs," he said. "'Whoever this Ladybug girl is, she's crazy in love with Adrien.' And I think he knows it, too. He's going to flip when he finds out. In a good way."

Marinette smiled and speared a piece of chicken. "I sure hope so," she said.

Nino pointed at her bandaged hand. "Listen, I didn't tell him anything about what happened yesterday. Do you want me to…?"

Marinette looked at her hand as well. Although she didn't want to worry Adrien more than necessary, he'd gone to the trouble of telling her about his allergic reaction to the feather pillows at Chateau Margaux. It only seemed fair to tell him about her hand. "Sure," she said. "Just be gentle. Adrien can be a little…"

"Dramatic?" Nino suggested. "There's a reason he and Chloe get along so well."

Marinette smiled at him. "I'm really glad you're dating my best friend," she said.

Nino smiled back. "Hey, hopefully in a week or two I'll be able to say the same thing to you."

x.x.x

Nino Lahiffe: BROSEPH. I got news. You're not going to like it though so I need you to promise you won't do anything reckless.

Adrien Agreste: Damn it, Nino! You know I can't make promises like that.

Nino Lahiffe: Worth a shot. Marinette hurt her hand.

Adrien Agreste: WHAT

Adrien Agreste: WHICH HAND

Adrien Agreste: WHAT

Adrien Agreste: IS SHE OK

Adrien Agreste: NINO

Nino Lahiffe: Dude. Can you calm down?

Adrien Agreste: NI-NO

x.x.x

Parisian nightlife had just begun to stir when Adrien rounded the corner into the alley beside Tom and Sabine's bakery. Although there were no signs of paparazzi around his house when he left it, he'd still taken a complicated network of streets and back alleys to get to the bakery, and wore a hoodie for good measure. After a stressful and exhausting counseling session the day before, he had no desire to get caught and destroy the tentative happiness between him and his father with a scandal.

But he couldn't stay away, either. He cared too much about Marinette to not go see her.

Adrien raised his eyes to the second story windows. The lights were on. He took a few steps forward, then somersaulted across the alley, ran the rest of the way to the door, and pressed the intercom button.

"Who is it?" Marinette's voice came from the speaker, and Adrien's heart skipped a beat.

"Definitely not Adrien Agreste," he answered.

A pause. Then a crackle of static followed by a "hold on." Adrien checked both sides of the alley to make sure he really hadn't been tailed. He heard the door open. A hand emerged from within, grabbed the front of his hoodie, and yanked him into the bakery with such force that he had to flail his arms to keep his balance.

Marinette stood before him with a hand on her hip. "What are you doing here?" she asked.

Adrien stared at her. She wore sweatpants and a tank top and slippers, and had her hair done in a braid that threatened to fall apart at any moment. Even with the day's makeup still on, she looked exhausted: bloodshot eyes engaged in a losing battle with gravity and bags that her concealer couldn't hide. Then her question sank in and he remembered his purpose for being there. His gaze drifted down the arm dangling at her side…

…and Marinette moved it behind her back. "Adrien?"

"Nino said you got hurt," he said. He took a step towards her and gestured to her hidden hand. "May I?"

Marinette fidgeted. "It's not that bad. I mean, it's kind of bad? But it could have been worse. If it had been my right hand instead of my left, then I really might have had to quit the competition. Not that I would have."

Adrien reached for her arm. She turned her head, but she didn't stop him.

"It looks worse than it is," she mumbled as he carefully opened her fingers.

The first cut, a shallow one on her middle finger, had already scabbed over. But the second cut, right in the center of her palm, had been stitched closed, and the skin around it remained an angry red. Adrien let go of her hand, afraid he would cause her more pain. "What happened?" he asked.

Marinette shrugged. "I tripped and hit the table and my hand landed on a pair of scissors. It's my fault for not putting them away, knowing how clumsy I am." She smiled at him. "But don't worry about it! The doctor gave me some strong painkillers to take the edge off the pain. They make me a little lightheaded and I'm working slower than I'd like to be, but it's way better than nothing."

Adrien was too good at faking cheerfulness to fall for Marinette's charade. "I'm sorry," he said, "you must be so frustrated."

Sure enough, she gazed at him for a long moment, then dropped her smile and flexed the fingers of her injured hand. "It is frustrating," she said. "Feels like every time I take a step towards following my dream, life screws me over." Determination filled her face. "But I can handle it. If I quit because of a setback this tiny, then I'm not cut out to be a fashion designer. And I'm tired of giving up on the things I care about. So if life wants to keep throwing lemons at me, fine. It'll just make me look better in the end."

Relief took the tension out of Adrien's body. If she had that much energy, she would definitely be fine.

"How are you doing?" Marinette asked him. "It's been a while."

"Yeah. Sorry about that, by the way." Adrien did his best to look sheepish, since he didn't exactly regret inviting her into his house. "I'm… tired," he said. "My father and I had our first therapy session yesterday and it went so well that I slept until noon this morning."

Marinette grimaced. "Yikes."

"Not that I expected rainbows and sunshine after one day. I know it's a process, but damn, it's a difficult one." Adrien shook his head. "Ten years' worth of emotional baggage is pretty heavy."

"I can imagine," Marinette said. "But think of how much better you'll feel when it's all dealt with."

"I'm looking forward to it." He nodded towards the bakery's sitting area. "Looking forward to this place being open again, too. Though I guess with all the publicity you've gotten, I'll have to be here right at seven o'clock to avoid spending an hour in line."

"I'll make a VIP line for regular customers, like they do at airports."

"Really?"

"No." Marinette patted his shoulder with her good hand. "Tough luck, handsome boy."

Adrien made a face at her, but the words handsome boy zipped directly to his brain and drove him distracted. She thought he was handsome. She thought he was handsome! Sure, he may have made a living off being handsome, but handsome was in the eye of the beholder. Though now that he thought about it, hadn't she called him that when she was tipsy that one time? Was his attractiveness something she was aware of but did her best to ignore?

"But," Marinette said, putting an end to his errant thoughts, "if you decide you want to keep visiting after hours, I won't rat you out."

"You won't, but my gut will."

"What gut?" Marinette smacked his abs with the back of her hand. "If this is what qualifies as a gut nowadays, there's no hope for the rest of us. You models and your impossible beauty standards."

Adrien ran a hand through his hair and tossed his head back. "Yes, well now that I've been forced to retire, perhaps I'll finally start looking like the rest of you mortals."

Marinette curled her lip and pushed him towards the door. "Get out of here! You're going to get us both in trouble."

Adrien let himself be pushed, but before she could shoo him out he lifted her injured hand and kissed the back of it. "Farewell, Flour Girl. May the only stitches that give you trouble be the ones in your clothes."

"Oh yeah," Marinette said, "I guess I can't keep calling you Model Behavior, huh?" She opened the door and stood back as he stepped out into the alley. "We'll have to think of a new codename for you."

Adrien lifted his hood over his head. "I've always been fond of Chat Noir," he said in the most casual tone he could muster. Then he looked back at Marinette to gauge her reaction.

She leaned against the doorframe and a warm, dazzling smile spread across her face. "Chat Noir it is," she said.

Adrien could have sworn he physically felt the thud of Cupid's arrow striking him through the heart. Shit. Shit. He'd messed up. He liked hearing Marinette say Chat Noir way more than he thought he would. "See you Sunday, Marinette!" he squawked before turning and walking out of the alley as fast as possible.

Much to his dismay, his feelings for Marinette were alive and well.

x.x.x

LadybugRE: SummerJust now

Barely managed to have the ladybug suit ready for today's fittings.

But now all that's left is putting the finishing touches on both outfits and I'm good to go!

It's too bad I have work next week.

I could use a five-day nap.

x.x.x

Chat NoirRE: SummerJust now

You'll catch up on all of your beauty rest soon, My Lady (and smite me where I stand with one look, I'm sure).

x.x.x

LadybugRE: SummerJust now

And then you'll be down to four lives. :-)

x.x.x

Chat NoirRE: SummerJust now

Worth it. :3

x.x.x

Saturday found Marinette standing in a backstage dressing room with her nine fellow contestants, twenty models, and a nervous woman named Colette who held onto her clipboard and tablet like her life depended on it—and considering that she worked for Gabriel Agreste, it probably did.

Marinette stifled a yawn. That night would be the first night since the previous week that she'd have time to sleep adequately, but she knew she wouldn't. The events of the next day would decide the rest of her future. Who could sleep with that kind of pressure on their shoulders?

"The order in which your models will be walking is alphabetical by designer's first name," Colette said. She read down the list for their benefit and Marinette forced herself to wake up and pay attention. "Ms. Dupain-Cheng," Colette said, "will be seventh."

Marinette shot Alexa and Henry a huge smile. Lucky number seven for the Luck Collection. Perhaps the night wouldn't be a disaster after all. She ran to join her models as soon as Colette dismissed them to get ready for the practice run.

"Seventh place!" Henry cried. "Not first, not last, and not the boring middle. I knew it was a good idea to bring my rabbit's foot with me."

"He bought it yesterday to go along with the theme," Alexa said.

"And it worked." Henry rolled his eyes. "Don't be such a bore, Lexie. After what happened to poor Marinette's hand, I decided we needed some supernatural intervention. Is that such a crime?"

Marinette unzipped the garment bags containing the black cat dress and ladybug suit. They'd been brought to the venue by an elite security team and would apparently be guarded by that same team overnight. No unauthorized personnel allowed. Not even the contestants themselves.

She helped Alexa into the Chat Noir dress and walked circles around both her and Henry to make sure nothing was out of place. For outfits put together with only one fully functional hand, they looked good. Better than good. Determination and spite towards her terrible luck had caused her to produce her best work in years.

And love, she thought. Love might have had a little to do with it.

Marinette followed the other contestants out into the audience, where they sat in a section marked VIP. They would remain backstage and onstage throughout the actual runway show, but for the time being, they were given a chance to rest. Marinette spotted Nino up in the sound booth; he gave her a thumbs-up before launching into the music.

Though all the lights remained on and busy staffers ran around preparing the venue, Marinette could almost picture the way the room would look the next day. She heard the audience's applause over Nino's compositions—which suited each designer's work perfectly, including her own—and had to keep from applauding herself when Alexa and Henry brought her designs to life on the runway.

She imagined Adrien seeing those designs for the first time. What kind of face would he make when the host said her name?

She slipped her hand into her purse and held onto her phone for reassurance.

She sure as hell hoped he would smile.

To Be Continued

A/N: Next time on Lucky Us… the finale.