Disclaimer: Everything belongs to their respectful owners.

A/N: Well, this was something that came out of nowhere. But this is when they're in their twenties, and yes, I do notice I like to write them when they're older and I can't help it sIGH

"Have a nice day!"

Marinette waved at the couple as they left the shop, a wide smile stretched on her lips. Once they were gone, she let out a breath, wiping the flour from her forehead as she started to stack the albums of various designs for cakes on one of the shelves under the counter. She straightened herself up, stretching as she did so when Tikki came out from the pocket of the apron Marinette was wearing.

"Today was a rough day, huh?" The kwami commented as she sat on the counter, beside the plate of cookies both of them were munching on earlier before the couple came in. "Four couples came in here for just today for their wedding cakes," She giggled when she took a bite on one of the cookies. "They were so cute."

"Amazing isn't it? Must be the season," Marinette rested her elbows on the counter, taking one of the cookies as well. "Well, spring just started a few weeks ago so I guess that explained most of it."

Tikki hummed, finishing off the last of her snack before wiping the crumbs off her. "Have you ever thought of getting married?"

Marinette laughed, bopping the kwami's head gently. "I'm only twenty-one, Tikki, I have time to think of that later. It's bad enough that Mama kept pestering me whether or not I have a boyfriend, I don't want you to join her club too," Then, she grimaced playfully. "Imagine the horror both of you would unleash if you two ever meet."

"I'll be a great help to her," Tikki agreed, nodding her head with a wide smile on her face. "We'll find a perfect man just for you, where he'll be caring, loving, and would help you through thick and thin if anything happens to you. Also, he has to learn baking from you or not, there wouldn't be enough cookies for the whole household with me being with you. In fact," She giggled again. "Your mum and I would be so good as a team to find the ideal man that we'll probably tell your dad to join too, I'm sure he wouldn't mind."

Marinette groaned, feigning distress as she buried her head in her arms. "So cruel, the embarrassment I would have to go through would kill me," Then, she peeked past her arm to have a look at the kwami. "If I marry someone, he has to understand our thing as vigilants though."

Tikki seemed to sobered up a bit about that fact, a small frown appearing on her forehead. "Yes, I suppose you're right."

Marinette planted her chin on her hand, twisting her mouth to the side as she was deep in thought. "He has to understand that this is our responsibility, that yes, it's dangerous and all but we've been doing this for as long as we could remember, so we'll be fine. He has to understand that we'll be doing our routine patrol every other night, that we'll most likely get hurt and have cuts and bruises for the next of our lives. Also, we'll probably get bone tired by the time we'll get back to our house," She sighed, thinking about it was already making her tired now. Another reason why she was so reluctant to get a boyfriend in the first place. "I don't know, it seems so hard. It's obvious we can't keep secrets from each other, that would only hurt him, whoever my future husband is."

Tikki flew in front of her face, looking at her in the eye. "That is why we have to keep looking."

Marinette blinked once, before giving Tikki a warm smile as she bopped her head again. "And we keep looking."

Tikki laughed and nuzzled into Marinette's palm. "You'll be twice as loved."

Marinette smirked before straightening herself up. "Well, we have to close up soon, it's obvious mum and dad wouldn't be home from their anniversary anytime now, and it's almost ten," She chuckled. "I heard Papa was going to make it as romantic as possible, probably the same way he did when they started dating."

"Oh, when he took her for a nice dinner in moonlight with jazz playing at the background?" Tikki swooned. "How sweet." Then, something caught her eye. She flew to the strayed album at the corner of the counter, where it looked as if it was going to fall sooner or later. "You missed this big one." And it was, in fact, huge. The width of it was almost the same height as Tikki. If Marinette were to accidentally drop it on her, the poor kwami would probably be squashed right now.

Marinette quickly made a grab for it, dragging the album nearer to her. "Whoops, thanks Tikki," When she hauled it off the counter, she almost dropped it because of its massive weight. "I almost forgot how heavy this is."

"Are you alright?"

Marinette huffed, blowing her bangs away from her eye. "It's okay, I got it."

She kneeled on the ground to shove the album among the other albums of cakes she kept, when she heard the bell tinkled at the door.

"I'm sorry, I'm afraid we're closed for the night," She informed whoever was at the door, her voice sounding a bit strangled as she push the giant album roughly between other albums. "You can come again tomorrow at eight in the morning, we'll be open then."

"Oh, but I'm not here for a cake."

She almost choked on air when she heard that voice.

No.

It couldn't be.

Her breathing was starting to come out faster than before as she felt the hyperventilation coming, making her a tad difficult to breathe. She shut her eyes, breathing in and out quietly to calm her frantic heart, where it was pounding against her rib cage like a gorilla trapped in a cell.

When she opened them, she saw that her hands were shaking a bit, and she wanted to groan at herself for the way she acted. It's been years since you last saw him, get a hold of yourself. She clenched them tightly before standing up, shoving her fists into the pocket of her apron as she faced the person before her with an attempt of schooling her expression into a neutral one.

Her heart stuttered the moment she landed eyes on him.

She recognised him of course, with his messy blond hair and bright green eyes. But what caught her attention more was that he seemed taller than before, his shoulders broader, and she couldn't help but notice the way how powerful his arms looked after he rolled the sleeves of his white dress shirt to his elbows, his skin looking slightly tanner than she last saw him.

He had grown into a man, as she had grown into a woman.

She gave him a small smile as a greeting. "Hi, Adrien."

He replied with one of his own with a wave sent at her way, seemingly becoming bashful on front of her. "Hey, Marinette. It's been a while, huh?"

She shrugged idly. "Three years is a long time," She shuffled one foot to another, her skin starting to crawl with some sort of fidgety feeling she couldn't really describe as she tried to meet his eyes. "What brings you back here to Paris? I thought you were suppose to be in New York."

It took a moment for him to answer, because he was staring so intently at her she didn't realised it until he blinked a few times, clearing his throat quietly as he looked away in embarrassment. "Ah, well, I thought I dropped by for a while, life at New York has been," He paused, trying to find a word suitable for what he was feeling. "Uneventful," He gave her a crooked smile. "And also, Plagg's been craving for some cheese bread,homemade."

"Well, it's true."

They knew about each other's identity a while back.

They had to show one another on who they were, it was under their agreement. After three years of working together, three years of helping each other's back, and also three years of taking out bad guys that were lurking all over Paris, they had a talk about it one day when they were on patrol.

Of course, the one who brought it up was Adrien -or rather Chat Noir, since she didn't know who was under that mask until later- where he had explained that it would be easier for the both of them. If they were in dire situations, where they had to somehow play power couple for an undercover -and to their luck, it did eventually happened some time after that- they would have to know who their partner was, for safety reasons of course. Ladybug wasn't convinced at once, she said she would want some time to think about. And after some indepth discussion with Tikki, she finally agreed.

Imagine her surprise when the boy she had a crush on was also her partner in crime all these years.

Too shocking, that she actually stumbled back when he revealed himself.

It was obvious he was surprised that the powerful Ladybug was the same girl as the shy and timid Marinette Dupain-Cheng in his class for the past years since he enrolled into the school. But, they got over it and had made peace with the fact that their alias had very different personalities than their person in public, for hiding reasons she supposed. And if she were to admit it to herself, they actually got closer in the end, learning about each other more to the point they became great friends, and maybe turned into something more.

Until, he had to move to the US.

His father's wishes he said, to continue his career as a successful model by expanding his sights on other countries.

"An heir," She remembered how bitter he actually sounded as he laughed into the night. "He wanted me to take over his place as a designer, to take over his business," He glanced at her, his voice turning soft as he continued. "And that meant travelling."

And also the end of Chat Noir.

The smile on her face turned a bit wider when she saw the cat-like kwami appeared from Adrien's jeans pocket, floating to Adrien's shoulder as he sat there comfortably. "The cheese at New York weren't as good as those over here, they were a bit eh for me."

"What he meant is that they aren't as stinky as the cheese over here." Adrien clarified, rolling his eyes as Plagg scoffed.

"Can't help it that I enjoy the strong ones."

"Yeah, well, beggars can't be choosers," Adrien then looked at her in a questioning way. "Where's Tikki?"

"Right here!" She announced, floating out of jars, giggling as she nuzzled Adrien's cheek. "It's been a while, Adrien. I missed you."

He laughed, petting her head. "I missed you too," He met Marinette's eyes, where they soften just the slightest bit as he gave her a smile. "Both of you."

Marinette felt the blood rushed to her cheeks, taking out her hands from the pocket of her apron and wiped them on it instead, looking at anywhere but him. "I could say the same thing," She mumbled.

There was silence that stretched between them for a while, the cloak ticking behind her seemed a bit louder than before, and she was trying very hard not show that she was tripping on her tongue at this point. It was ridiculous really, she'd thought she'd actually get over this once he left, that she'd be less clumsy than before and would have a firm grip on her words. But of course it didn't work that way, because apparently, a mess of words didn't seem to have anything to block them up from pouring out of her mouth when he appeared right in front of her, and that made her more embarrassed than before.

One day, she would end that once and for all.

"It's been a while since we last flew together haven't we, My Lady?"

She snapped her head up, her eyes widen slightly when she saw the way his glinted with satisfaction when he finally got her full attention. He gave a smirk. "I hope your wings aren't cut."

She blinked, before giving him a twisted version of a smile. Full of mirth, full of youth. "And you, kitty? Claws still sharp?"

He leaned against the counter, and she saw the way their kwamis were getting excited as well, their grins wide on their faces as they watch both their partners. "As a razor."

She couldn't help it, the smile was out full force. "What are we waiting for then?"

On that night, she actually felt free.

As they jumped from one roof to another, feeling the wind blowing onto their faces as the city around them became nothing but a blur, she felt the adrenaline coursing through her veins like the stream. Fast and fierce, it fueled her body with such energy as she felt her muscles sprang to life, Chat Noir at her heels.

He was back.

Or at least, for a while.

They rested at the park, lounging on a tree as they tried to catch their breath, hiding themselves amongst the branches and leaves so to not reveal themselves to the civilians.

"You changed your suit."

She stretched her arms forward. "Yeah, I thought it could use some sort of change."

He nodded. "Looks good," Then, he flashed her his pearly white teeth. "But then, you've always look good."

Her suit was no longer entirely red and black polka-dots. Her shoulders were now bathed with black that it reached up to the end of her fingers tips, running over her shoulder blades and above her chest. Tikki approved of it, and Marinette was satisfied at how it turned out in the end.

She rolled her eyes. "I see that you hadn't change much."

"Ah well, Chat Noir will always be Chat Noir," He took his tail between his hands. "I changed the belt for something else though, it got stuck one time so it'll be better if I did what I did to not risk myself."

She chuckled. "Got stuck in one of the railings, hmm?"

He mockingly put his hand on his heart. "You hurt me, My Lady, laughing at my misery as you sit there looking as pretty as a flower," He sniffed, wiping away an imaginary tear. "How sad can my life get?"

Clasping a hand over her mouth, she tried not to laugh. She missed this, she missed their playful banter, their adventures as they flee through the night. It was one of the things she wouldn't trade in the world when she was with him, she would give anything to be with him just so they could see the world together.

But of course, fate has its own course.

He sobered up a bit, just looking at her with those feline eyes of his. "I really did miss you, Marinette," He said quietly, and she couldn't bare to meet his eyes and instead look down to her hands, where they were wringed together. "I've been meaning to come here for those years I was there, it just happened my pit stop was here, before I have to go to Amsterdam," He paused. "I would have brought you with me if I could."

She shook her head, the corner of her lips tilting. "You know I can't come with you, people still need help here, and I can't stop you from doing what your father wants you to do. Besides," She tapped her thigh with a finger. "I still have college here, and after I'm done with this semester, I'll be moving to London to continue my degree in arts, and then," She stopped herself, meeting his eyes again. "I'll see what the future tells me from there."

He moved nearer to her, so that his could bring her closer to him, brushing his lips to her forehead. "You could always come to me for a job later."

She wrapped her arms around his waist, pursing her mouth against his shoulder as they leaned against the trunk behind him. "You sure? I mean, your father would let me in?"

He chuckled into her ear, his breath warm. "As I recall, he admired your bird hat."

She groaned. "That was years ago, I'm not sure he'll even remember me, or even like my work now."

"Well, he liked them then, I'm sure he'll even love them now," He snorted softly, running his fingers through one of her pigtails. "What I'm not sure is whether he's capable of feeling that kind of an intense of an emotion, but he would still have some sort of approval I guess."

She hummed, tilting her head slightly to deliberately brush her lips against his cheek as she raised her head to look at him in the eye, and saw how wide they were after she did her little stunt. "If you say so."

She could feel herself being nervous, but didn't stop herself when she kissed between his brows, before trailing them down to his nose. "I missed you," She continued quietly, her hands raising up to his shoulders from his back as he straightened himself up, one of his hands now cradling her neck.

He didn't say anything as he kissed her cheek, before trailing to the corner of her lips. "You have no idea," He murmured. "No idea at all."

She turned her head, so that her lips was just above his, a breath away, almost touching, almost feeling. "Adrien-"

He didn't let her finish when he was the one who leaned forward, kissing her as if he waited for this all his life.

She sighed in bliss, her legs wrapped around his waist as she untangled her arms from his back, and instead rested them on his shoulders as she angled her head, giving him full access.

Indeed, she loved him so.

His arm was around her, pulling her closer to him that no space existed between them, with nothing but their clothes to separate them. His other hand was on her cheek, the back of his fingers running down her jaw.

She made a strangled noise when he started to tease her with small butterfly kisses on her mouth, soft and moist that it was driving her absolutely drunk with the fact that Adrien Agreste -dear, dear Adrien- was in her arms.

But then, she didn't realise he was saying something under his breath as he kissed her, until she had to pull herself together to hear what he said.

"I'm sorry," He mumbled after each kiss. He then pressed them firmly against hers, his hand now fully spread on the base of her head that her hair was starting to fall from its ribbons. "Forgive me."

Marinette suddenly felt something was wrong.

She clasped one hand on his cheek, leaning back slightly so to look at him in the eye, but he couldn't meet her gaze as he had his head drooped slightly.

"Adrien," She whispered, tilting his chin up with her fingers. There was turmoil whirling in his eyes that made her heart clench with worry. "What's wrong?"

He took a breath, taking her hand in his, his larger fingers wrapped around hers.

"I'm getting married."

Her breath was caught in her throat, her eyes staring into his with utter shock as she could particularly feel her heart sinking to her stomach. "What?"

"Marinette-" There was a flash of panic in his eyes as he tried to held onto her hand, but she was already moving away from him, wrapping her arms around herself as she suddenly felt cold, despite the embrace he had given her just a moment ago. "Marinette please, I wanted to tell you-"

"You could have told me before we actually kissed," She muttered, refusing to meet his eyes. "You could have told me when we were in the shop, not after this, not after," She swallowed, taking a staggering breath. "Not after this," Then, she chuckled bitterly. "Let me guess, your father wanted you to marry someone of high class, to continue his line of work, and to have an heir of your own."

He didn't dare touch her then, but only look at her with pain in his eyes. "Yes," He replied softly, and she felt the stone dropped deeper. "But I tried everything I could to convince him to cancel it off, but he wouldn't listen to me, the damned man insisted I get married fast, and I tried everything I could to stop him," He clenched and unclenched his jaw. "Please, you have to believe me. I love you, god dammit, I love you."

Those were the words she had wanted him to say to her for ages, but now, after so many years, they actually left a hollow feeling in her chest.

She didn't want to look at him anymore, it only hurt more than anything she had felt in her life. But she had to know. "Who's the lucky girl?"

He was silent for a while, before letting out a sigh.

"Chloe."

Hot tears pricked at the back of her eyes, and she quickly stood up, ignoring the look of surprise etched on his face. "I wished you both the best of luck," She managed to breathe out. She was exhausted, and she wanted to be home fast. Then, she smiled wryly at the irony of her words, and she didn't care if there were tears pooling at the edges of her eyes. Let him know, let him know of what she felt for him for years that had passed. "From both Ladybug and I."

He reached out to her. "Marinette-"

She jumped down from the tree, running as fast as she could away from him, taking out her yo-yo to swing among the buildings, the wind blasting onto her face. She knew he couldn't scream her name without revealing her, he cared for her, loved her, too much to do so.

She took that opportunity of getting him off her tail.

Later, when she hid herself on top of the museum, with the moon being her only company, she thought she heard the scream of a broken man echoed through the night.

Only then she cried her heart out.