Chapter Text
Marinette cursed as the sun began to stream through the window the following morning.
“Fugthsoon. Schtooirlin.”
Attempting to roll over (grumpily, and quite gracelessly), she suddenly became aware that something was holding her in place.
Squinting through sleep and old make-up blurred eyes at the arm wrapped around her waist, Marinette realized it wasn’t actually something holding onto her but someone.
Immediately her head shot up, eyes raging against the brightness of the God-forsaken rays of light, hair resembling the nest of some sort of animal. Attached to the arm was a body- a smooth, incredibly toned body, and it was shirtless.
“Whu the fug?”
Marinette frowned in confusion, brain still foggy from sleep and slightly drunk from the night before.
Who I did? her cognitively-impaired brain supplied.
At the sound and movement, the arm tightened around her and pulled her closer, the distinctly male body shifting until a blond mop of hair emerged from its hiding place underneath a pillow, grumbling incoherently as it did so.
The panicking noirette did a quick mental check of the night before, trying to recall exactly what happened and who she met, before she gave herself a once over. Coming to the conclusion that all her clothes were on (if a bit rumpled and askew) and had remained that way the whole night, she exhaled a sigh of relief.
Self-assessment complete, she did a visual sweep of the room, realizing that she was lying in her own bed, in her apartment, which meant she couldn’t exactly slip silently out of the bed and make a quick escape. Whoever this mystery male was would have to be woken up and kicked to the curb.
Turning over carefully, Marinette could see the man’s face was obscured by linens and cascading blond locks. She tried to remember who she had talked to last night, but her memories from later in the evening were rather fuzzy. She did recall, however, that there was a blond man who had been harassing her, and at this recollection, she bolted upright in bed, practically throwing the man’s arm off of her and nearly falling out of the bed.
Startled, the person beside her shot up, lifting his upper body off the mattress with his forearms, a look of surprise and mild confusion plastered across his features.
But it wasn’t a blond stranger’s face that greeted Marinette’s sight. It was, of course, Adrien Agreste, and suddenly, she was very sober.
The astonished girl shrieked in surprise. Adrien flinched from the pitch and volume of her outburst, and the panicking girl’s hand flew up to cover her mouth, her eyes frantically darting around the room as though searching for a means of escape.
And then, just to make matters worse, Adrien realized where he was, and who he was with, but instead of hightailing it out of there, he laid the side of his gorgeous model head down onto the pillow, heartstoppingly sultry smile mercilessly directed straight at her.
“Morning, princess,” he said, voice raspy and deep, setting Marinette’s thighs aflame.
“Holy shit,” she blurted, at a total loss for words. “Adrien- what are you doing here?”
And why wouldn’t he stop smiling like that?
Marinette’s mind raced. For the life of her, she couldn’t remember how the hell Adrien ended up half naked in her bed. When she tried to think back to the previous night, the strongest images she could produce were green eyes and… purring?
Adrien continued to watch her from behind the wisp of hair covering his forehead and eyes, cryptic smirk still marking his features.
It should be illegal to be that sexy.
“Something wrong, princess?” he finally asked, voice and demeanor languid and carefree.
The alarmed girl searched her brain for an answer, but nothing appropriate came to mind.
Uhhhh, well, yes, because I am 0.5 seconds away from either dying of bliss or full-on freaking out on you and ruining our friendship forever.
Well, actually no, because you’re half naked in my bed, and that is completely fucking fine with me .
Well, come to think of it, yes, because you’re half-naked, but not nearly naked enough.
Can I lick your abs?
Uh, what is words again?
The thoughts flying through her head caused a healthy blush to bloom in her cheeks, escalating in intensity until her entire upper body, from the tips of her ears down below the neckline of her top, was flushing crimson.
A deep chuckle emanated from Adrien’s chest, causing it to shake slightly as the muscles tensed, and Marinette’s gaze was drawn to its toned planes.
“See something you like?” he asked, completely unabashed, self-satisfied grin plastered over his face.
If it was possible, Marinette’s skin turned redder.
Adrien raised himself up so that he was sitting completely upright, the full glory of his abs on display as he leaned back on the headboard.
Without hesitation, he reached a hand out to grab her arm, tugging on it lightly in a request for her to sit beside him. Cautiously, Marinette turned and complied, scooting herself back until she was resting against the head of her bed. Her hands flew up to cover her face, lost as she was in her mortification, and she held back a groan with great effort.
Beside her, Adrien chuckled, his voice deep and warm, and she felt an arm come to rest around her shoulders.
“Come on, princess. Is it really that bad waking up next to me?”
Marinette found herself unable this time to stem the long whine that escaped from her throat.
“Adrien- ” she squeaked “How… did you get here? ”
She could feel him rubbing comforting circles on her shoulder, his voice taking on a lower, more concerned tone.
“I just wanted to make sure you were ok. You were pretty out of it last night.” Slowly, the girl lowered her hands, emerging from behind the veil of her fingers and cautiously looking into Adrien’s eyes.
“What. Did. I. Say.”
It was clear by the twitch of his face that Adrien was trying to suppress a laugh, and the effort manifested in an amused smirk.
With quite a bit of smug satisfaction, he declared: “You called me Chat Noir.”
Marinette couldn’t handle that.
“Eep!” Her hands flew up to hide her face again, a string of ohmyGodohmyGodohmyGodohmyGod trailing from her lips as she prayed to any deity in existence that she would either wake up from her horrible nightmare or die on the spot.
Light laughter met her ears, emanating from the space at her side. Adrien’s arm around her shoulders jostled in tandem.
“Kill me now,” she begged, only increasing the volume and force of Adrien’s vocalisations.
“Now, now, we couldn’t exactly have that, princess, now could we?” Marinette froze in her spot. It couldn’t be a coincidence that Adrien was calling her princess, could it?
Mustering the will, she ventured to emerge from her protective screen again, searching Adrien’s face for signs of the black cat hero.
His viridian eyes twinkled, mouth quirked in a familiar smirk, blonde hair falling messily into his eyes in a way that practically screamed pun-loving partner. Marinette was aware of every cell in her body as her entire being went on high alert.
“Oh. My. God.”
Adrien’s smirk softened into a small, fond smile, his head tilting to the side as his eyes traveled over her shocked expression.
“Hi,” he whispered, taking her astonishment in stride.
Marinette couldn’t tell whether or not she was breathing.
After a moment, she gained some measure of composure.
“Any other things I said that I should know about?”
The blond appeared to consider that a moment, lips briefly parting and closing in hesitation.
“You said you’re Ladybug,” he finally offered. There is no word or name for the sound that came out of Marinette upon hearing those words, and Adrien patiently waited for her breathing to return to normal before continuing. “It wouldn’t be fair of me to keep my knowing that from you, my lady. I know you have concerns about knowing each other, but what’s done is done, and honestly…” he lifted his hand to cup her chin with his fingers. “I couldn’t be happier that it’s you.”
Taking deep breaths, the girl attempted to calm her racing heart (and mind). That was two life-changing revelations for one morning, and her hungover brain was practically frying from overload.
“Are… you all right?” At the sound of his concerned voice, she turned to face the man beside her, worry clearly written across his features.
Placing a trembling hand on the one he had resting on the mattress for comfort, she nodded slowly, gaze shifting to focus on the wall ahead.
“It’s ok, Chaton. This was bound to happen eventually. We’re all right- everything is going to be all right.”
Adrien made a sound as though he was about to say something, but stopped. Marinette whipped back around to look at him, suddenly afraid that there was more.
“That’s not all, bug.”
Alarm bells were going off in her head, but she heard herself ask anyway:
“What else is there?”
He paused for a minute, appearing to weight the pros and cons of what he was about to say before speaking.
Then, he finally announced: “You said you were in love with me,” and for a second, everything was white noise. Marinette stared into space, not seeing anything in front of her. Heat rushed back into the skin of her upper body, chasing through her veins as though they were on fire, almost suffocating in the intensity of this blaze burning within her.
Then it was that Marinette really couldn’t breathe.
It was the worst she could have imagined- worse than finding out her partner was the love of her life and she had rejected him- worse than finding out she laid her secret identity bare before him.
Because she had finally told him the one thing she never wanted him to find out.
Eyes widening, Adrien started to panic, reaching out to perform various acts of comfort which she barely processed, words pouring out of his lips going unheard by the absolutely thunderstruck girl.
She was vaguely aware that she was suddenly sitting in his lap, his arms wrapped around her waist and hands rubbing up and down her back soothingly. Warmth blossomed in her chest at his attentions, increasingly so as the distinct vibration of his purr rumbled against her body. She leaned against his chest, his face hidden in her neck as he nuzzled her affectionately. Instinctively, she reached out to run her fingers through his hair, deriving comfort from the silk-like sensation of his tresses in her hands. Soft, sweet kisses tickled her nose, her forehead, her cheeks, the top of her head, the corners of her mouth as he continued to soothe the panicked girl.
Gradually, she came back to Earth, mind becoming more and more receptive of the sounds and sights around her, her heartbeat still fast but not dizzying, her breathing still labored but not suffocating. She felt the pressure of Adrien’s hand on her back more acutely, the soothing tones of his utterances actually registering in her mind.
“... breathe, Mari. You’re ok. Everything’s ok. Tell me what you need, and I’lll… ”
Her vision came back into focus, the intensity of the worry in his meadow green eyes as he drew back to look at her almost startling.
“I’m so sorry.”
Before even realizing she was about to speak, the words were out of her mouth.
“What? Mari, no-”
Without even meaning to, Marinette shook her head, ready to argue with whatever consoling statement Adrien was about to make, but his hands came up on either side of her face, effectively holding her still.
“Mari, don’t even voice that thought. This is the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”
Her brow furrowed in confusion, then softened into disappointed realization.
“Oh. You mean you realized Ladybug liked you all along.”
A restrained grunt of disagreement partially emitted from his throat, and he leaned his forehead against hers.
“No. Marinette. I’m happy because I’ve been in love with Ladybug and Marinette for years, and I never knew how to deal with it. I couldn’t stand the thought of not being able to give my whole heart to either one of you. And it makes so much sense now, because I wasn’t in love with two girls, just two sides of the same one. Please, I’m ready to give you my whole heart, if you’ll let me.”
Her thoughts were flying at a million miles an hour, no rational logic to them, none of them stopping long enough to be heard.
Almost as though her heart had a will (and a voice) of its own, she whispered:
“Okay.”
The beaming smile that broke out on his face was absolutely blinding, and without any hesitation, he surged forward, pressing their lips together. Marinette let out a little surprised eep! but quickly adjusted, half sure that she was dreaming, but 100 percent sure that she couldn’t care less. Adrien pulled away before long, cheeks flush with excitement, grin nearly splitting his face in two.
Suddenly self conscious of what she must look like, Marinette let out a murmur of embarrassment and disappeared toward the restroom. Once inside, one glance in the mirror nearly had her shrieking in horror. Not only was her hair a mess, but her face looked like something out of a Picasso painting, with her makeup heavily smeared and lines from the linens imprinted on her cheeks. Quickly, she washed her face clean and brushed her teeth, then heard a knock at the door.
Taking a deep breath, she opened the door, and the sight of Adrien on the other side had her wondering how anyone could wake up looking so flawless, from the sexy, perfectly mussed look of his hair, down to his devastatingly gorgeous crooked smile.
She didn’t dare look lower than his chin in his state of undress. Shyly, she stepped to the side, blushing at the thoughts that were entering her mind, and let him pass as she walked back into the bedroom.
She turned around as an afterthought, saying, “There’s a new toothbrush in one of those drawers there if you want it,” and leaving him to freshen up in peace.
There was no way for her to tell whether she sat on her bed, lost in thought, for minutes or days- so absorbed was she in trying to fill in the blanks of the night before. A shift in the mattress startled it, and she was suddenly aware of the body that was weighing down the space beside her. Her pulse quickened, heart fluttering at his proximity. He watched her with a tender expression.
“I can practically hear that brain of yours thinking, Mari. What’s going on in that head of yours?”
The noirette looked at him sheepishly, surprised at how well he could read her.
“I’m just trying to figure out what the hell exactly happened. My memories from last night are pretty hazy.”
Adrien gave her a sympathetic smile, reaching up to run his thumb lightly along her jaw.
“Well, after I told that asshole to go fuck himself, you called me Chat Noir.” His gaze descended to her lips, tongue darting out to lick his own before he looked up at her eyes again. Marinette swallowed, heat pooling in her gut. “Then you pulled me down on the couch with you,” and here he leaned in, closer to her ear as he lowered his voice, “and asked me to purr for you.” The girl’s face flamed bright red, goosebumps rising up on her skin at the sensation of his breath on her neck. “You stroked my hair,” his placed a light kiss on the juncture between her jaw and her neck, causing her to shiver, “and you called me your Kitty,” another one, closer to the hollow of her throat, prompting her to raise her chin slightly, eyes fluttering closed. “You told me you were Ladybug,” now he placed a sensuous kiss to her jaw, centimeters from her lips, “and you were in love with Adrien Agreste,” another in the same place on the opposite side of her face. Then he hovered over his lips over hers, close enough to tickle them, practically breathing out, “ and it took everything I had not to kiss you until you couldn’t breath right then and there. ”
Unable to resist any longer, Marinette closed the final millimeters separating them, crashing their mouths together in a frenzied battle of tongues, lips, and teeth. Her arms wound around Adrien’s neck as he rose up on his knees, his hand coming to grip her by the small of her back. She scooted back as much as she could until she reached the headboard, Adrien following her relentlessly until they could go no further. Then he pulled roughly at her waist, laying her out underneath him as he chased her lips with his own.
His body felt like heaven, resting on her like a comforting blanket, the fullness of his weight tempered as he leaned on his elbows on either side of her. She could feel the rumble of his purr in his chest.
Their kisses became briefer, more frantic, and Adrien frequently drew back, breathlessly uttering sweet nothings that Marinette lacked the mental focus to comprehend. Nonetheless, she did her best to respond in kind.
“I love you-” A kiss. “Marinette-” Another. “My princess-” Another. “My lady-” Another. “My everything-”
“Chaton-”, “Adrien-”, “My Kitty-”, “I love you-”, “Always-”
Marinette felt overwhelmed by need, by want, by desire, and judging from the distinct firmness pressing against her abdomen, Adrien was as well. Slowly she reached down, pulling her shirt over her head and leaving her in only her underclothes.
The man above her pulled back, gazing down and greedily taking in the sight of her, fire burning in his eyes, before descending to kiss her again fervently. His hands ran up and down her sides, restless and unwilling to part from her skin. Her own palmed the planes of his chest, his shoulders, his back, then slowly migrated downward toward his waistband. Immediately, he drew away, looking down into her eyes with smoldering, barely concealed lust.
“Wait, Marinette-” One of his hand reached down to grasp her wrist, and she stopped, concerned she went too far.
“Adrien, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to-”
“No, princess, no.” The half-naked blond leaned down and gave her two quick, successive kisses. “Don’t even feel sorry. It’s silly, it’s just-” Then he trailed off, a look of insecurity flashing briefly across his features. She watched him expectantly.
“If you don’t want to, Adrien, it’s ok, I didn’t mean to pressure you.”
He chuckled breathlessly, reaching up with one hand to caress the side of her cheek.
“Marinette, believe me when I say there’s nothing I want more right now than to be with you in every way I ever imagined.” Despite her best efforts, Marinette was not able to suppress the flush of pleasure at the thought of Adrien fantasizing about her. He smirked down at her in a very Chat Noir way, taking in the color in her cheeks with great satisfaction. Leaning closer, he kissed the side of her neck, leaving behind a trail of raised bumps on her skin. “But I want to savor this.” Another on her temple. “To savor you.” Her forehead. “I want to take you on dates first.” Her other temple. “And buy you presents.” Her nose. “And someday….” Her chin. “...I’m going to give you a ring.” And then he kissed her softly on the lips, slowly, making it last before pulling back and looking in her eyes. “And make you mine for the rest of my life.”
Marinette watched him, mesmerized.
“So what do you say, Bugaboo, will you marry me?”
She let out a shuddering breath.
“I’ve always been yours. I’d marry you today if you asked me to.”
Then he smiled the most breathtaking smile she had ever seen, leaning down to kiss her again before pulling away and sighing contentedly. A twinkle entered Marinette’s eye, and she canted her hips upward against his, causing him to half choke at the sensation.
“Surely we don’t have to wait until then, though, do we?”
His laughter sounded like tinkling wind chimes, and it warmed her to the depths of her soul.
“You don’t seriously think I could resist you for long, do you Bugaboo?”
Marinette let out a breathy chuckle, undulating against him again and taking satisfaction in the way his eyes burned.
“Well, then, Kitty. We’ll just have to remember to make up for lost time.”