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“Rain on patrol? Really?” Ladybug sighed, her palm to the sky to catch the droplets pattering down on the roof they were seated on.
Chat Noir let loose a sigh. Everything she did was artful and graceful. If he had any artistic talent, his fingers would itch to paint her in this pose. Grey skies dulled the red that encased her, making her eyes bluer. She was lying on the roof with him, her arm propping her up. Her other arm was catching raindrops that slid past her wrists and disappeared past her elbow. Her pink lips were marred by her dismayed expression. Je t'aime, my lady. He sighed.
“Good thing I brought an umbrella.” Her smile was exceptionally bright, her blue eyes softening with fondness as she picked up her black umbrella.
“Always prepared, my lady.” He winked, scooting over to evade the horrible water. As Adrien he didn’t mind it, thought swimming was still not a strong point, but Plagg hated it with a passion.
“Couldn’t let my kitten get caught in the rain, could I? I know how you feel about water, kitty.” She flicked his nose affectionately as he let his head fall to rest on her shoulder.
“Thoughtful as always.” He grinned.
“Mmm.” she was staring up at the fabric of the umbrella, something wistful in her gaze.
“Is this yours?” He tapped the handle.
“If you’re wondering if I took it from someone else, then no.” She laughed quietly. “But it’s not technically mine. A… friend gave it to me.” Her smile was bright, her cheeks flushed
“Some special friend. Sounds like there’s a story.” He lifted an eyebrow.
“Curiosity killed the cat.” She quipped.
“Satisfaction brought it back. You wouldn’t leave me dead, would you, Bug?” He blinked up at her, a pout on his lips.
She laughed. “Fine, fine. Normal story rules apply.”
Normal story rules. No names, places, or descriptions. The rules they followed when there was a story to be told and an identity to be kept secret.
He nodded, drawing her into his lap and covering her hand with his to help hold the umbrella. Friendly gesture, it’s a friendly gesture, friends do this I would totally do this with Nino. He reassured himself.
“I guess we have to start at the beginning. Second day of school, there’s a new boy at school. He’s friends with the rudest girl in class which automatically puts him in everyone’s bad books. Except he’s so pretty and has the brightest smile that it’s too hard to hate him.” She laughed. “I managed, though. But that’s later. So the day before, Chl- the rude girl took the seat I had been sitting in for the past four years. Four years. She forced me out of it and I moved because well…” She sighed. “I’m not exactly Ladybug-esque behind the mask.”
“That can’t be true.” He dropped his chin so it rested on her shoulder.
“You wouldn’t say that if you knew me.” She smiled.
“I do know you.” He murmured. “You were chosen as Ladybug because you are who you are. Your kwami doesn’t change who you are. They just give you a mask and cool powers.” Practice what you preach. He thought bitterly.
She was quiet for a few minutes until he nudged her. “So anyway, I guess she wanted to get back at me for… whatever. So I assumed she told the boy to put gum on our bench or something, her friends are usually her lackeys, you know? So I walked into class with my friend and I saw him crouching over our bench.”
Gum on a bench? He thought absently. That’s like what Chloe did to Marinette and Alya. Interesting coincidence.
“So I asked him what he was doing and the rude girl started laughing when he was stammering for an explanation.” She laughed fondly. “Then he tried to explain that he was trying to take the gum off the desk but I didn’t believe him, the way Chlo- the girl was laughing.”
Chat shut his eyes. Oh god. Oh no.
“You okay, Chaton?”
“Yes!” His voice cracked over the word. “What happened next?”
“Well, then Ivan got akumatized and that all happened, you remember that.” She giggled.
He nodded, a feeling of unease and guilt churning up the contents in his stomach.
“The day after, Al- my friend and I took our seat back. The boy tried to greet us but I ignored him, visibly.” She blushed. “It was raining when school ended. I was waiting outside the school.” Her voice dropped in volume, suddenly she was all quiet and blushy. It made his heart thump hard against his chest. “He was there too and he tried to talk to me again but I turned my head away.” Her lashes fluttered shut. “He opened his umbrella and started walking away but he stopped and explained that he really was trying to remove the gum.”
“Seems like a nice guy.” He said weakly.
She nodded. “He told me he was new to school and he never really had friends before.” She whispered. “Then he-he swept his umbrella over so it covered both of us and he looked at me. He was smiling and he seemed so genuine. So I reached out to the take the umbrella from him. My-my fingers touched his and I pulled back before taking it from him.”
He held his breath.
“Then the umbrella closed on me.”
He laughed, a surprised, bursting laughter. The same laugh he felt bubble through him that same day.
“He laughed… like that.” She chuckled. “I opened the umbrella again and looked at him. He doesn’t laugh often. He smiles all the time but he doesn’t laugh, not like that. Then we were laughing together until he started leaving. Then I stammered a goodbye which was weird and confusing but I figured it out. I still can’t speak coherent sentences around him.” She laughed. “He never took his umbrella back. I even brought it to school the next day to give it but I could barely speak to him.” She sighed. “So that’s the story.”
His arms came around her waist and he was crushing her against him, his face buried in her ever-familiar pigtails. “Marinette.” He sighed quietly.
Her spine stiffened and the umbrella closed over them as she jolted. “H-How- I means who’s Marinette uh-”
“You can’t exactly tell a story about me and not expect me to recognize it.” He whispered.
She wilted against him, the umbrella smushing them together. “Adrien.”
They were quiet for a few moments. Then he laughed. Really really loudly.
“Wh-what are you laughing for?!” She exclaimed.
“Ladybug and Chat Noir are embracing inside of an umbrella. Imagine what any onlookers would be thinking.” He choked the words out between his bursts of laughter that he smothered by pressing his face into her shoulder blade.
“You, and-and I, and this, and-” She dissolved into her own round of giggles before opening the umbrella again. “How on earth are you smooth as silk Adrien Agreste?”
“How on earth are you stuttery Marinette Dupain-Cheng?” He countered, still laughing.
“I told you I’m not the same behind the mask.” She said quietly.
His laughter fell away as he turned her so she was sitting in his lap, facing him, her legs on either side of his waist. “You, Princess, are so Ladybug. Everyone is completely blind. Including me. You are class president and you always stand up to Chloe and you yelled at me for sticking gum to your bench even though I didn’t do it. Do you know how many people can’t even look me in the eye, let alone scold me?” He laughed again, touching his forehead to hers.
“I couldn’t look you in the eye after that. But knowing that you’re Chat-” She laughed.
“Also I want my umbrella back.” He teased.
“No.” She gasped. “It’s mine now. Forever. Finders keepers.”
“You didn’t find it.” He pouted.
“Why do you want it back when you didn’t want it all these months, hmm?” She cocked an eyebrow.
“Because! Because… it symbolizes the moment I knew you were Ladybug which is uh special to um me.” He blushed.
“That’s so cute.”
“So you’ll give it back?”
“No.”
“Why?” He whined.
“Because it signifies the time Adrien Agreste became one of my friends.” She mumbled something after that he couldn’t catch.
“What was that last part?”
“Nothing.”
“Something about ‘and… crush…’” He cocked an eyebrow.
“Shut up!” She shoved him back and he let her push him to the wet roof.
He dragged her down with him so they were nose to nose, the umbrella no longer covering them. He could feel the whispers of her breath against his lips and he had to squeeze his eyes shut. Marinette.
Her face was a red that Chat wasn’t familiar with but Adrien had seen too many times. He grinned his token Chat grin.
“Sorry.” She rolled off him but he rolled to trap her beneath him.
“Marinette.” He whispered, his nose against her collarbone.
“Adrien.” He could feel her heart thump wildly beneath her suit.
“I…” He trailed off, not really knowing where he was going with it.
“Hm?” She was looking up at him in the most Ladybug way possible. Her mask blinked off in his mind’s eye and it was Marinette staring up at him like that.
He shut his eyes and dropped a kiss to her cheek. “It’s getting late.”
“Adrien.” She looked at him levelly.
He kissed her, he couldn’t help himself. It was just a ghost of a kiss, a brush on his lips on hers before he pulled away. Her Ladybug expression was wiped off her face, replaced by an expression that was utterly Marinette.
He rolled off her, the cool rain welcome on his burning cheeks. “I’ll see you at school?”
She rolled to her side, pressing a gentle kiss to his cheek. “You should take the umbrella. I know how you don’t like water, kitty.”
“But how are you supposed to remember that you fell head over heels for me?” He smirked.
She laughed. “I have something else to remind me of that.”
“What’s that?”
“I’ll see you at school.” She left, swinging away on her yoyo.
He watched her leave, pigtails flying. Je t'aime.