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The villain, some sort of werewolf with the ability to send cars flying with its howl, knocked Ladybug back, sending her flying into a building. She hits the wall and then the pavement. The air gets knocked out of her lungs and for a few seconds she can't breathe. She gasps for air and then sits up slowly. Her head hurts and everything around her seems to spin, making her nauseous. She hunches forward and throws up. After a moment she leans back against the wall, trying to take in her surroundings. She's in some empty alleyway, probably several blocks from the fight. Marinette tries to get up, only for sharp pain to shoot through her left leg. She crumbles back onto the pavement, trying to not whimper, but it hurts. She knew something was wrong from the moment her right arm got injured. The suit couldn't always protect her from all injuries, evident by the time she broke her arm in a fight, but it was supposed to block out most of the pain and stop the injury from getting worse.
"Damn it" she hisses.
Adrien had been thrown by the werewolf far into the opposite direction Marinette was. His suit was probably also malfunctioning, which meant he was somewhere out there, injured and alone. Marinette grit her teeth. She needed to find him and fix this. Grabbing her yo-yo with her left hand, Marinette swings from building to building. Everything felt slowed down, and the swinging only made her dizzier. Her body hurt like crazy and her vision was blurry. She only barely dodged a lamp post before landing on a balcony railing. Except only her left foot landed on it and it instantly buckled under the impact, causing her to fall into the balcony. She crashed into a table, knocking it over, and then landing on the floor.
"Ow, ow, ow" she whimpers.
She tried to get up, but her body is exhausted, her left hand shaking as she tries to push herself up. The lights inside the apartment turned on suddenly, startling her. The curtains are drawn, but there was still light shining from the bottom. Marinette holds her breathe. She prays that whoever she just woke up won't check the balcony. After a few seconds, she relaxes a little. The lights are still on, but no one had pulled open the curtains, so she figured she was in the safe to breathe again. Just then, the curtains are pulled open, the light blinding her, and the balcony door opens.
A crash, followed by several thuds, startles Alya from sleep. She sits up, her hand reaching instinctively to the lamp on her bedside table. The warm glow illuminates the room. Alya squints at her room while her hand finds her glasses. Once she has them on, she gets out of bed. Her room was empty, and everything seemed to be in its place.
The sound had probably come from the balcony. Maybe a cat had knocked something over. Normally, Alya would have just looked out and then gone back to sleep. She prided herself in being brave and confident, purposely running towards akuma attacks to film them for her Ladyblog, and also maybe catch a glimpse of Ladybug up close. But today, something wasn't right. She was home alone, her siblings were at a sleepover at Nino's and her parents would only arrive in the morning, in the middle of the night, with an akuma attack not that far.
Alya slowly creeps towards the curtain, her heart beating unnaturally fast. She peeks out through the crack between the two curtains. The circular table lies on its side, but it couldn't have been knocked over by a cat. Something much heavier must have crashed onto her balcony. Alya shifts a little so that she can see the other side of the balcony, where she finds her lounge chair and behind it...
She throws open the curtains and pulls open the door, rushing towards the figure. Ladybug's antennas twitch and she startles, pressing herself against the railing and staring at Alya in fear.
"Ladybug!" exclaims Alya.
Her volume makes Ladybug flinch, her antennas turning away and Alya winces.
"What are you doing here?" she asks, quieter.
She reaches forward to touch her, but Ladybug presses herself harder into the railing and whimpers. Alya freezes. The light coming from her room is just enough for her to make out Ladybug. She's pressed herself into the railing, one leg up to her chest while the other lies awkwardly on the floor. She's hunched over, her cape, made to look like two ladybug wings, is covering her right arm. Her left hand grips at the fabric of her cape. She looks so frightened. Her gaze is unfocused and confused, her brows furrowed. Alya realizes that Ladybug might not have recognized her yet.
"It's- it's me, Alya," she says.
Ladybug squints at her, before her shoulders relax a little.
"Alya," she breathes out, sounding so relieved.
Alya wrings her hands together, trying to keep herself from grabbing Ladybug. Something was terribly wrong, otherwise why else was one of Paris's heroes currently on her balcony.
"What's going on, why are you here?" asks Alya.
She has so many more questions, but Ladybug already looks so overwhelmed by Alya's presence that she doesn't want to cause her more stress. Ladybug stares at her for a second, before she seems to realize that Alya was talking to her.
"I'm fine," she says.
"That's not what I asked." says Alya, trying to keep her voice steady, "Are you injured?"
Her gaze instantly falls to Ladybug's right arm, which is covered by her cape.
"I'm fine," repeats Ladybug, a little more forcefully this time.
"Alright, alright, then why are you here?" asks Alya again.
She looks up. Several buildings over, she can see someone jumping from rooftop to rooftop, howling into the night.
"Actually, let's get you inside first," she decides.
Ladybug stays slumped against the railing, not seeming to hear Alya. Gently, Alya places a hand on Ladybug's left shoulder. When the hero's gaze finally lands on her, Alya gives her a reassuring smile, though she's not sure she succeeds, and gently grabs her by the elbow. Ladybug grips Alya's bicep and starts standing up. Alya places her other hand on Ladybug's waist, something that would normally make her flustered and maybe pass out, but she's too panicked to think about it. Alya's frown deepens as Ladybug struggles to stand up, even with Alya helping her. Her grip on Alya's bicep tightens and her body trembles. She lets out a couple whimpers.
"Do you think you can stand on your own?" asks Alya.
Ladybug nods and then tries to lean back so she isn't leaning so much on Alya. Almost instantly, her legs buckle and she cries out in pain. Alya manages to grab her by the waist and support most of her weight at the last second. Ladybug lets out a whine of pain and holds onto Alya's shoulder like her life depends on it, and it hurts a little, but Alya doesn't even register the pain. She doesn't even register the fact that she currently has Ladybug, her celebrity crush, pressed against her body while her hands are on the hero's waist, something she had dreamed of countless of times. The only thing running through her brain is the fact that Ladybug, one of the two permanent heroes of this city, is currently hurt enough that she can't stand on her own.
"S-sorry," stutters Ladybug.
She tries to stand on her own again, but Alya pulls her back into herself.
"Don't, you're clearly injured," says Alya.
Ladybug slumps against Alya, her head resting on Alya's shoulder. Her antennas tickle Alya's cheek and her breathing is quick and shallow, whimpers escaping her mouth every now and again. Alya glances down at Ladybug's legs, only now noticing that the fabric of her suit over her left calf is ripped and covered in blood. Her stomach twists and her head spins a little. Ladybug is injured; she's bleeding. The suits were supposed to protect them, block out the pain, but clearly, neither of those things were happening. Dread pools in Alya's stomach.
"I'll call an ambulance," says Alya.
"No," croaks out Ladybug.
Alya's gaze returns to the buildings, where the akuma villain is still searching for someone.
"You're right, that would attract too much attention and we can't have them knowing you're injured," she nods, "I'll get you to the hospital myself, I can drive my parent's car."
Technically she didn't have a driver's license, but she felt like this was urgent enough that breaking a few laws wasn't such a big deal. Plus, there wasn't going to be anyone on the streets.
"No," repeats Ladybug, "no hospital."
"What? But you're bleeding! Who knows how much blood you lost!" exclaims Alya.
Ladybug winces and tries to push herself off Alya once again, shaking her head. It seems to be causing her pain, or at least discomfort because she stops and winces.
"Identity," she mumbles.
Her body trembles as she tries to stand on her own, but ends up leaning against Alya once again. Alya notices how small the hero looks. She's shorter than Alya, isn't as muscular as she would have expected, and her shoulders are narrower than Alya's. It doesn't sit right with her that Ladybug looks so small and fragile. She was like 99% sure that Ladybug and Chat Noir were both in their late 20's, having started in their mid 20's, but now she wasn't so sure. Pushing all those thoughts down, Alya carefully shuffles backwards towards the balcony door.
"I'm sure we can figure out a way for them to treat you without revealing your identity," says Alya.
"No hospital, please," pleads Ladybug.
Her voice sounds her small, so... young.
"But you're hurt," protests Alya.
"I can't, I have to-" Ladybug stops abruptly, breathing heavily, before continuing, "Chat Noir is still out there, I have to... I have to..."
She trails off and seems to struggle for the correct words. Alya manages to get Ladybug into her room. Ladybug doesn't protest when Alya lies her down on her bed. Alya turns to leave to find someone to help her get Ladybug to the car, but the hero grabs her hand, tugging her weakly.
"Please, I can't go to a hospital, I need to beat- I need-" Ladybug's expression turns pained, but she pushes on, "I just need to... to heal my kwami and then my suit should work... again..."
"Alright, alright, let me patch you up first," says Alya.
She rushes to the bathroom, filling up a bowl with cool water and grabbing a clean rag. It's only when she's rummaging through the cabinets for the first aid kit and anything else that might be useful that she realizes that she doesn't know what she's doing. Sure, she's been patching up the twins' wounds since she was a teen, but those were just scratches and bruises, maximum second-degree burns, nothing like what Ladybug currently had. Alya pauses her movements, staring at her hands, which were shaking. She glances up at the mirror, finding her scared expression staring back at her. She closed her eyes and breathed in deeply, running her hand through her messy hair. Her heart was still racing with adrenaline, but she ignored it. Alya pulled her hair into a ponytail and washed her hands before bringing all the supplies over to her desk.
Ladybug lied on her bed, her eyes closed shut and her nose scrunched, like something was bothering her. Alya turned down the brightness of the lamp. She soaked the clean rag in water and then sat down on the edge of the bed. Ladybug's antennas twitched, her eyes fluttered open and she tried to sit up, but Alya gently pressing her hand into her shoulder and pushed her back down.
"It's just me, still me, I just have to patch you up," she says.
Ladybug's eyes don't focus on her, but she relaxes and closes her eyes again. Alya glances at the hero's leg and then grab her scissors, cutting the fabric so she can have better access. She's pretty sure Ladybug won't mind, especially since after she detransforms and retransforms, the suit will be fixed. Once the extra fabric is gone, Alya gently presses the rag to Ladybug's leg, trying to wash away the blood without hurting her too much. Ladybug lets out a couple whimpers and inhales sharply twice, but stays still. After most of the blood is gone, Alya can finally see the actual wound. It's four claw marks, which aren't actually that deep and shouldn't require stitches. She grabs a cotton ball and some disinfectant.
"This might sting," warns Alya.
Ladybug gives her a small nod and Alya starts disinfecting the wound. Ladybug flinches as soon as the cotton ball touches her leg and lets out a cut off whine.
"Sorry!" whispers Alya.
She continues, whispering more apologies every time Ladybug whimpers or flinches. Once the wounds are disinfected, she wraps them in white bandages.
"Alright, anything else?" she asks.
Ladybug nods, her left hand letting go of her cape. Alya takes this as the hero allowing her to raise the cape, and does just that. Her suit is ripped at her bicep, also coated in too much blood to make out how deep the wound is. Alya goes through the same procedure, exhaling with relief when the wound isn't deep enough to require stitches. Once she's done, she asks again if there are any other wounds. This time Ladybug shakes her head.
Alya takes a step back to really look at Ladybug. Her suit, the same one that she had first started fighting villains in is ripped in two places. Last year Ladybug and Chat Noir had made additions to their outfits. Ladybug now had a white shirt, stained with blood, and black shorts over her suit, as well as a cape that went down to her mid thighs in the shape of two ladybug wings, also stained with blood. She also wore black gloves and red sneakers. Alya took off the sneakers, more to make Ladybug feel more comfortable than to save her bedsheets, which were already stained with blood.
Ladybug looked pale, sweat building up on her face. Alya put the supplies back and came back with a clean rag and a bowl of clean water. She gently dabbed at Ladybug's face, washing away the sweat. Ladybug continues to breathe shallowly, but otherwise doesn't look in pain. Alya's gaze travels up to the hero's head, where two club like antennas sit, twitching every now and again. She had only ever seen glimpses of them on videos. They were small enough to not get noticed by most. Alya hovers over her awkwardly for a few minutes, before she decides that she should let her rest. She closes the balcony door and pulls the curtains close. She can still hear the werewolf howling. Hopefully Ladybug wakes up soon and can heal her kwami.
Marinette wakes up to a headache. She opens her eyes and tries to sit up, but pain shoots through her right arm and she falls back onto the bed with a wince. Something next to her shifts, making Marinette's heart beat faster. She turns her head just in time to see Alya raise her head. She blinks a couple times and then her eyes widen.
"Ladybug! You're awake!" she exclaims.
Marinette tries to sit up again, this time successfully because Alya helps her. Memories start flooding back, though anything after crashing on what turned out to be Alya's balcony is blurry. Marinette's eyes widen at the realization.
"What time is it!" she yells.
"Uh- uh- it's-" Alya scrambles to get a look at her phone- "uh- 3:27!"
"No, no, no! I was out for an hour!? Why didn't you wake me up!" Marinette scrambles to get out of bed, but her leg hurts and she falls.
Alya manages to catch her and Marinette has a faint memory that this has happened already. Her face burns at the fact that Alya's hands are on her waist and her face is pressed against Alya's shoulder.
"Slow down, you're still injured!" Alya pushes Marinette back onto the bed.
Marinette sits there for a second, trying to make sense of the blurry memories. She looks at her arm and then her leg. The wounds have been bandaged.
"I- I need to go home, Chat Noir is still out there and he's injured," says Marinette.
"You can't even stand on your own," points out Alya, "I'm not letting you walk anywhere alone."
Marinette opened her mouth to protest, but not words came out. She sighed, knowing that Alya was right.
"Earlier, you said you needed to heal your kwami. What do you need for that? Maybe I have it at home?" asks Alya.
Marinette squints at the carpet, stained with a couple droplets of blood, as she tries to remember the ingredients for the healing potion. All of them are pretty basic things most people have at home.
"Alright, I'll need..." she starts.
...
Alya manages to find all the ingredients and makes the potion in no time. She leaves the room and Marinette locks the door before detransforming. Tikki falls to the ground, but Marinette manages to catch her.
"It's alright, it's alright!" she whispers.
She lets Tikki drink a spoonful of the potion.
"Better?" she asks nervously.
Tikki stretches and then flies up.
"Yeah! I think I'm good now!" she says.
Marinette relaxes a little. She pours some of the potion into a bottle that Alya gave her and then transforms again. Her outfit is good as new, with no traces of damage and blood. Now that the suit is working again, the pain is gone and the fog over her mind is lifted. Marinette stretches and then unlocks the door. She bids goodbye to Alya and races off to find Adrien and defeat the werewolf together.
...
She runs through the streets, too afraid that swinging would catch the attention of the werewolf. It takes her half an hour before she finally stumbles upon an alleyway with a familiar figure in the corner. Relief washes over her at the fact that Adrien is alive. She rushes over to him. Adrien's ears twitch and he glares up at her. His hair raises slightly and he hisses, before recognizing her.
"M'lady," he mumbles.
He has blood pouring from his forehead and his leg seems to be broken. His green eyes stare at Marinette with relief and admiration, which makes her guilty. She should have come sooner. The thought of him sitting in the alleyway for an hour and a half, bleeding and hurt, alone, made her sick.
"I'm here, I'm here, sorry it took me so long, kitty," apologizes Marinette.
She rushes over and hands him the bottle.
"A healing potion, let Plagg drink some of it and it should fix your suit," she explains.
"Thank you," croaks Adrien.
He detransforms and lets Plagg drink some of the healing potion before retransforming.
"Better?" she asks.
"I'm feline great!" answers Adrien.
Marinette can't help but roll her eyes at the pun, but at least it means that he's truly feeling better.
...
Her charm fixes everything, including their injuries. Marinette's body feels so much better now.
"Pound it!" they bump fists.
It's only 4:30, they still have a few hours before the first interview that they are bound to have. Technically, they could always not show up, but they knew everyone would wonder why they had disappeared from the battle for so long. Even though they should both rest, they stay on a rooftop, lying on their backs and watching the stars. Marinette can't get the image of Adrien in the alleyway, blood covering half his face and mask, out of her mind. His black hoodie and pants made it hard to see if there was any blood on it, but Marinette was pretty sure he had more injuries.
"Sorry it took me so long," she apologizes again.
"It's fine M'lady, I was purrfectly fine," he says.
Marinette can't help but roll her eyes at the pun, though it does make her smile.
"Still, you were out there, injured and alone, while I was being taken care of," she grimaces.
"Taken care of? By who?" asks Adrien, rolling onto his side and propping his head up with his hand.
"I crashed onto Alya's balcony accidentally and she patched up my wounds," answers Marinette.
Adrien grins and wiggles his eyebrows.
"No, don't you dare!" she says, a blush already crawling up her cheeks.
"I didn't say anything," grinned Adrien.
"It was purely accidental!" protests Marinette.
"Still, that's so romantic, getting patched up by your crush," teases Adrien, "she totally likes you back."
Marinette groans in frustration.
"She likes Ladybug, not me," sighs Marinette.
"You've got to be kitten me," Adrien rolls his eyes.
...
The interview was at 8:00 am and Marinette had only slept for an hour and a half. This was the first time their suits had gotten injured, the first time their kwamis had gotten injured. The akumas were getting stronger and Marinette was scared. She was also so tired. She and Adrien had both taken a gap year to focus on their superhero work. Both of them had a feeling they might end up not going to university. Marinette had a fashion industry that agreed to take her in as an apprentice and Adrien had been really into baking with Marinette's parents and might even end up taking over the bakery one day. Still, superhero work was hard and they both knew they would need to make some new permanent heroes soon.
"And we are live!"
Marinette flinched, blinking back into reality. Her and Adrien were on the Eiffel tower with a computer to have their online interview. Marinette glanced over at Adrien before sighing and bracing herself for the onslaught of questions. Hopefully it'd be over by 10.
School was cancelled and Alya got to watch the interview live. She could tell right away, from their expressions and body language, that both heroes were exhausted. This, of course, didn't stop the interviewer from asking invasive questions. Alya wanted to strangle them by the end of the interview. Chat Noir and Ladybug had both handled the interview very well, though maybe they were too tired to do anything. With the interview over, Alya opened her Ladyblog, frowning at the lack of updates. She usually had a video of the fight, not always up close, up by now. But she had decided that it was way too late and dangerous to film it this time, and thank god she did, otherwise who knows how this fight would have ended if she wasn't there to patch up Ladybug.
Alya buries her face in her hands and tries not to squeal. She had been so close to Ladybug, even closer than when she was Rena Rouge. Her cheeks heat up and her heart races. She can't wait to tell Marinette about- her face falls. She can't tell anyone this, can she? Otherwise, she'd be putting both Ladybug and Chat Noir in danger. Alya drags her hand over her face, groaning. She can still meet up with Marinette, talk to her about the fight. That brought the smile and blush back to her face. She's had a crush on Marinette for two years now. Thinking about spending time with Marinette is even more exciting than spending time with Ladybug. Alya grabs her phone to text Marinette when she hears a knock on her balcony door. She spins around in her chair, her jaw falling at the sight of Ladybug on her balcony.
"L-Ladybug?" she stutters.
She rushes over to the door and opens it. It's not like Ladybug hadn't approached her before, it's how she became a part time hero as Rena Rouge, but there was no akuma attack and she had been sure that Ladybug would be resting. Ladybug takes off her shoes, leaving them on the balcony, and enters. The thoughtful gesture makes Alya swoon.
"Hi, I hope I'm not interrupting anything," says Ladybug.
"N-no, no, of course not!" exclaims Alya.
And even if she was, Alya was ready to drop just about anything to spend time with her. Nothing beat spending time with Ladybug, except spending time with Marinette.
"Good, because I have an offer to make." Ladybug looks serious, which makes Alya nervous, "Do you want to become a permanent hero?"
She holds out the fox miraculous. Alya's jaw drops. She looks at Ladybug, then at the fox miraculous, and back at Ladybug.
"Y-you're being serious? You want me on the team permanently?" asks Alya.
"Of course, you're amazing at your job and we need more hands," smiles Ladybug, "Chat is currently recruiting Nino."
Alya covers her mouth with her hand, trying to hold back tears. She was going to be a permanent superhero with her best friend.
"I- wow, I don't- I don't know what to say," whispers Alya.
She takes the miraculous, beaming at Ladybug. Ladybug also smiles, though it looks strained. Alya's suddenly not so confident. Did Ladybug want her to reject the offer? Before she can ask, Ladybug turns around. Alya expects her to leave, but instead, she closes the balcony door and the curtains.
"Is the door locked?" she asks.
Alya rushes over to the door and locks it.
"Y-yeah," she stutters.
Ladybug stays silent. Alya fidgets with her fingers, not sure what she's supposed to do. She really hoped she didn't do anything wrong.
"Alya," starts Ladybug, "now that you're officially on the team, you should know our identities."
Alya's jaw drops. This is everything she had ever dreamed of. She was going to become a hero and she would know the identities of Ladybug and Chat Noir!
"Chat Noir is Adrien," says Ladybug.
Suddenly, every memory on Chat Noir in Alya's head gets clearer, she can actually see his face. And now that she knows it make so much sense. Their masks made it so that no one could recognize them, and you could only recognize them if you any of the heroes told you their identity. Alya could see it now, everything made sense. Adrien always disappearing, showing up tired.
"And I'm-" she destransforms- "Marinette."
Alya stares at her best friend of several year, at her crush of several years. Once again, the fog in her head that she didn't even know was there cleared. It made so much sense. The disappearing, the exhaustion. Adrien and Marinette becoming best friends one day out of nowhere.
"I'm sorry I kept it a secret from you, but it was for your own safety. You know how dangerous it is if anyone knows our identities. If Hawk Moth found out you knew who Ladybug and Chat Noir are then he would target you and your loved ones. But I'm still sorry-" rambled Marinette.
Alya wasn't even listening to her. She was still wrapping her mind around the fact that her best friend and crush was the same person as one of Paris's heroes and her celebrity crush. It made so much sense now, but Alya was still struggling. This whole time, she thought she had two crushes, but it was actually one person. A blush creeps up her cheeks and makes her ears burn. If Ladybug and Marinette were the same person then... Alya's mind filled with all the little things that made her crush on her best friend and the hero. Alya realizes something.
"Oh God! I told you I had a crush on you!" she interrupts.
They both stand there for an awkward moment. Alya wants to fall through the ground. How embarrassing. Marinette had known this whole time. Alya's face burned harder, remembering all the times she had rambled to Marinette about how cool Ladybug was. She had been so open about having a crush on Ladybug, because anyone who liked woman had a crush on her. She sees Marinette's smile fall, her gaze suddenly finding the carpet very interesting. Alya curses herself. Of course she had to ruin the moment, ruin their friendship.
"No, you said you had a crush on Ladybug," corrects Marinette.
"But you're the same person!" exclaims Alya.
"Yeah, but you can't possibly have a crush on me too. I mean, I get Ladybug, she's a hero, she's awesome, everyone has a crush on Ladybug. But me? I'm clumsy and I say stupid stuff all the time, you can't possibly like me like that," Marinette curls into herself, bringing up her hands to hug herself.
"What? No, don't say that!" Alya grabs Marinette's face and forces her to look her in the face, "I had a crush on you and Ladybug! And now it turns out you're the same person! I fell for you twice!"
There are tears in Marinette's eyes and she stares at her in disbelief.
"Are you sure?" she asks, her voice hopeful but also cautious.
“ Yes, I’m so sure,” Alya reassures her.
It's only now that she notices that she’s holding Marinette’s face really close to her own. She can feel Marinette’s breath on her face. If she leans forward, she could kiss her. The thought makes her flustered and she lets go abruptly, straightening up and clearing her throat awkwardly. She suddenly realizes that she just confessed and probably ruined their friendship.
“But it doesn’t have to change anything! I understand you don’t like me back, and it’s okay! I’m really happy with our friendship and it’s enough, really!” rambles Alya, “I mean- I just- I don’t want to lose my best friend because of my stupid feelings, so if we could just stay-”
“I like you too!” blurts out Marinette.
Alya stares at Marinette in shock for a few seconds, not quite sure she heard her correctly.
“R-really?” she asks.
“Yes, really,” answers Marinette.
She steps closer, smiling shyly at Alya. Her gaze flickers down and then back up, making Alya blush. Alya also glances down at Marinette’s lips before meeting her eyes once more. She nervously licks her lips, very aware of their proximity.
“Can I kiss you?” whispers Marinette.
Alya can feel her breathe on her face. Feeling too flustered to use her voice she nods. Marinette steps closer, until they are standing chest to chest. She places her hands on Alya’s shoulders and then stands up on her tippy toes to be closer. Their lips are centimeters away. Alya leans forward ever so slightly. They make eye contact one more time, silently asking for permission. Alya doesn’t know who ended up closing the distance, all she knew was that Marinette’s lips were on hers, sending electricity down her spine. Marinette’s lips are small and soft, moving slowly against Alya’s. She tastes of coffee and strawberry lip gloss. Her hands landed awkwardly on Marinette’s waist, unsure if they were allowed to be there. Marinette’s hands wrap around Alya’s neck, pulling her closer, until their bodies are flush against each other. They pull away slowly, neither wanting the kiss to end.
“Wow,” breathes out Marinette, “can we do that again?”
Alya doesn’t answer, instead she pulls her into another kiss, this one longer and deeper, leaving them breathless afterwards. Marinette rests her head on Alya’s shoulder, her arms still wrapped around Alya’s neck. Alya smiles, her heart beating rapidly and her cheeks flushed, but she doesn’t care. Marinette likes her back and they just kissed and Alya was already planning their first date. She opens her mouth to ask Marinette out, but she feels Marinette fall limp in her arms, making her almost drop her.
“Marinette?” calls out Alya in alarm.
She feels her shift a little before suddenly stumbling backwards, away from Alya.
“Sorry! Sorry, I uh... I’m a little tired, that all,” Marinette rubs her eyes.
“No, no! I’m sorry, I completely forgot about how tired you are,” says Alya, “you should rest.”
She approaches Marinette and gently takes her hand, leading her to her bed.
“I can go home,” points out Marinette.
And it’s true, but Alya doesn’t want her to leave just yet.
“Right, as if you’ll make it there in this state,” Alya gestures at her.
Marinette doesn’t protest and just climbs into Alya’s bed, tugging Alya after her.
“Join me?” she asks.
Alya blushes, but climbs in as well. Marinette snuggles up against her instantly, her head hidden under Alya’s chin and her hands resting on the small of her back. Alya blushes harder and prays that Marinette can’t hear how fast her heart is beating. After a second, she hesitantly wraps her arms around Marinette’s body, burying her face in her hair.
“Sleep tight,” she whispers.
Marinette hums in reply before falling asleep.