I stared at him, he stared back. All noise had stopped and I could only hear waves. It was like we were on our own little island surrounded by water, we were reacting to the world around us as if we were. But we weren't on an island far away, we were standing behind my school, me in a blood drenched t shirt still damp and him with the messed up hair of his counterpart. We haven't moved, we haven't spoken, we just stared at each over in silence. I took deep silent breath, trying not to cry. Emotions were smashing down on me in waves, each more painful and harsh then the last. I feared if I moved I would shatter. Hate and surprise and shock all took their turns inflicting hardship onto my heart. And pain, so much pain. I could do nothing but stare at him, and he looked back unflinching.

But suddenly there was a blur of adults surrounding us. I saw their mouths moving as if they were calling to me but I heard only the sound of the sea, but then my teacher knelt down in front of me blocking my view of Adrian and it was like the spell was broken.

'-inette! Say something! Marinette!'

I blinked at her.

'What?' whispered.

She let out a sob and pulled me into her arms. I stiffened from shock, my eyes widened as she hugged me, I saw Adrian look over his shoulder at me while being led away by paramedics. I saw Alya running towards me with Nino at her heals, only for him to branch off and tackle hug Adrien. I saw Nino shake his friends shoulder, looking concerned, Adrien shook his head and smiled. Nino laughed and hugged him again.

'Marinette!' Alya half screamed as she reached us. My teacher released me only for Alya to jump on me.

'I was so worried for you' she sobbed into my ear, hugging me tighter. I slowly raised my hands to hug her back, my shock slowly wearing off.

'Sorry to worry you' I said softly, squeezing her harder. I burred my face into her hair and let one a sob, she must have heard it for she held me tighter still.

'Are you ok? Marinette, tell me!'

I released her and took a step back. I was going to start bawling if I stayed in her arms.

I put on a fake smile.

'I'm fine Alya' I said, rubbing my noise. 'My shoulders healed! Good as new! Look'

I pulled my shirt sleeve (still heavily stained with blood) up to show her my smooth blood coated shoulder, the only difference to it than this morning (apart from the blood) was a small thin red scar right where I had been shot. Magic was a miracle to behold sometimes.

Alya breathed out a sigh in relief and shook her head, rubbing the blood she had somehow gotten on her hands onto her shirt. It had blood stains on it too, but I didn't panic, I knew it was my blood.

'There was just so much blood' she said sadly. Sometimes I think she can read my mind.

I tried to respond, but suddenly I was led away by men in uniforms. They took put me in the back of an ambulance and asked me where I was hurt. I told them I was healed, and pulled my t-shirt away to show them my scar, the last remains of my injury. But then they saw the cuts on my back! They looked closer and saw my broken fingers too, and I lost all opportunity of escaping. They carted a few other students that had been hurt today into the ambulance alongside me, Alya somehow managed to sneak on board, using my blood left on her shirt as a cover. We rode to the hospital sitting next to each other holding hands, we didn't speak, and for once, we didn't need to.

0000000

It was her. The girl of my dreams was Marinette. After months of searching and asking and prodding I finally found out that the person I was looking for was right next to me. The realisation of this caused great pain to radiate from my chest as if someone had pushed a stake into it. And how she just stood there, her amazing blue eyes wide with fear, her shirt coated in her own blood and her hands shaking slightly, she was beautiful, no matter what, and the fact that I didn't realise that until now hurt me even more, but what really hurt me the most, what made me feel like I just had dynamite detonate inside my chest, was the way she stood there, stiff as a statue, except for her eyes, there was so much pain in them it looked like she was about to break. She finally knew who her partner was despite not wanting to know, and the truth horrified her. It took all my strength not to run and fast and far away from this school and its blood stained student who looking at me in a way that shattered my heart, so I locked down my emotions, tying them up and throwing them out to sea, and stared back at her as emotionless as I could.

I heard sirens behind me, people shouting, calling for us, but I ignored them, and so did Marinette. But then they were there, pulling me away from her, and I let them, I let them lead me away like I was a lost lamb. I looked at Marinette over my shoulder, she was being hugged by our teacher, she looked lost, like she had just woken from a dream and confused as to why she was here in the first place. She caught my eye. I heard someone calling for her and turned to see Alya and Nino sprinting towards us. Alya dashed past me, a look of worry mixed with pain on her face, but then I was being hugged by Nino.

'Dude!' he said loudly, releasing me but gripping my shoulders tightly. 'What HAPPENED! You disappeared and I had no idea where you were! I thought you had been hurt by Pointed Princess and I – Just- are you ok!'

I smiled and looked shook my head. 'Man Nino' I said, using the same smile I use when modelling, 'I'm not dead, relax'

Nino laughed and hugged me again.

I heard a polite cough beside us and turned to see my father's assistant Natalie. She had the same emotionless face as usual but I swear I could see a hint of concern in her eyes. I guess it took a homicidal manic to terrorise your school to finally get some emotion out of her, who knew?

'Adrian, you father instructed me to take you to the hospital for a full check over as soon as I found you' she said blandly. I shot a glance at Nino, he looked as surprised as I did. 'Come along, we got you a private room'

'I'm fine Natalie' I said smiling. 'I wasn't even in the school at the time'

'I had specific orders from your father to take you to hospital Adrian' she said sternly, before taking a deep breath and if possible, looking at me a little more kindly.

'You can't get out of this one Adrien' she said softly. 'So come along'

'Nino has to come with us' I said quickly. 'he was hurt too'

'What' said Nino confused. 'No I'm n- '

I stomped on his foot to shut him up, he yelped and jumped around holding his foot.

'You know Natalie' he said, leaning heavily on my shoulder, 'I just realised I had some serious foot pain, it would be better if I go with you'

'if you must' Natalie said, her lips quirked up.

0000000000

It turns out Nino being here was irrelevant. As soon as I set foot out of the company car at the hospital I was swept away by a tide of doctors who took me to a private room and did a whole lot of stupid tests on me no matter how hard I protested, I sat there and let them do it, let them press and poke every faint bruise on my back from the collapsing building and let them debate whether the scratch on my chin needed stiches, and only protested when they started talking about making me stay the night!

'No' I said loudly, making the doctors look up from their clip boards. 'I am fine! Give this room to someone who needs it! I want to go home!'

No one really protested. They knew I was right, that I was only here because my rich father demanded it, and they also knew someone else would be extremely grateful to have this room. So within 20 minutes I had my shirt back on for the first time in hours and was waiting in the hallway texting Nino while Natalie stood outside the hospital waiting for the company car she had ordered. Two doctors suddenly walked up to me and stood their silently until I lowered my phone, I remembered them from before.

'We would just like to thank you for giving up your room Mr Agreste. The girl you are donating it to will be most grateful'

I smiled and shook my head. 'I don't even need to be here; you don't need to act like I'm doing anything big'

They laughed. 'We don't usually get any rich young boys as nice as you, most want to stay for weeks until they are absolute sure there is nothing wrong with them, despite the fact that we are already short on rooms'

I smiled widened. Those rich prats are the worst, they act like they own the world and everything in it is just an object with a price tag.

'Who am I giving the room too?' I asked, curious.

'A girl from the school incident like you. She had serious cuts on her back that she had been ignoring for some time and didn't realise they needed stiches. When we asked her why, she said she didn't wont to worry her parents, despite having 3 broken fingers!' they said smiling. 'In fact, the only reason we know about them now was because she came in covered in blood and as pale as death, she truly is a little soldier!'

My stomach clenched. I had a feeling I knew who they were talking about. I fake smiled and nodded until they left.

Hay, do you have Alya's number? I texted Nino

Yeah, why?

I just got some news on Marinette, I think you should tell her

How is she dude?

She broke 3 fingers and has to get stiches across her back. She's staying the night.

Ouch. How's she look?

I sighed and looked up, not knowing what to say, but just then they wheeled her past me on a hospital bed. She was curled up on her side with her back to me, she had a heavy blanket covering her lower half, and her hospital gown was split up the back so I got a perfect view of her scares. Her once white skin was red and swollen, three deep red lines marked her back from her left shoulder blade to her right ribs, each one had black stiches lined down them pulling the swollen skin shut. As she turned the corner I saw that she was holding a heavily cased hand to her chest, her face was pale and her eyes screwed shut. I watched her until she was out of sight, and even then I couldn't look away from the doorway she had disappeared threw.

She looks bad

I watched the doctors then walk out of her room and towards a couple that had been sitting nearby all this time. The man was as big as an Ox with flour behind his ears, the woman looked slightly Japanese with her straight black hair and pink silk shirt, but they both wore the same worried look on their faces. Marinette's parents! The Doctors spoke to them for a few minutes before they rushed forward into Marinette's room, when they came back out 10 minutes later they looked relieved, but also exhausted. Before I could look away the woman caught my eye, she looked surprise, as if she recognised me. Before I could do anything she walked over.

'You're one of Marinette's classmates aren't you?'

I nodded. She smiled and stuck out her hand. I shook it.

'I saw you looking at her before when she went past, she must be important to you for you to look so scared'

My eyes widened and my hand went stiff in hers. She chuckled.

'I may be worried about my daughter, but there isn't much I miss. So how do you know her?'

'I- I um' I cleared my throat. 'Marinette sits behind me in class, my friend Nino has a crush on Alya so he's always talking to her and Marinette, I guess I got drawn in that way'

She smiled wider, her eyes never leaving my face. Why did I get the feeling she could see so much more than the rest of us?

'You can see her if you want' she said suddenly. I looked up startled.

'R-Really?'

She nodded, still smiling. 'She very tired so it can't be for long, but if we are quick I can sneak you in'

'Yes' I said immediately. 'uh, please' I added.

She chuckled and ushered me over to the room Marinette was in. She distracted the nurse and I snuck in while no one was looking.

The room was dark, the only light streaming in threw the open window, the light coming and going with the placement of the clouds. The only sound was the heart monitor, beeping softly in the corner. I my eyes adjusted in the dark and I saw her sitting up in bed, staring at me with her mouth open. The light reflected off the tears on her face.

'Please don't freeze on me again' I said softly, leaning against the door for strength.

'Why are you doing here Adrien' she whispered, but it was still too loud in this small room.

'I- I- ….' I didn't know what to say. 'Start with something small' I thought to myself.

'How did you hurt your back?'

She sniffed and rubbed her eyes with her good hand.

'It looks worse than it feels'

'Marinette!'

'When we slid into the wall after you tackled me' she said clearly.

I flinched, internally cursing myself.

'And your hand?'

'When- 'I saw uncertainty cross her face. 'When I was holding your hand when you were in pain'

Oh god.

I strode across the room and snatched up her good hand, holding it tightly with both of mine.

'Marinette I am so sorry' I told her, my eyes starting to water. 'So, so sorry'

She looked at me startled, her eyes wide. My legs collapsed underneath me and I was kneeling beside her bed, pressing her hand to my face, tears freely falling now no matter how hard I tried to stop them.

'Why' I sobbed out, 'Why do you look at me like I just stabbed someone? Why do I see so much pain in you? Why do you look at me like that now? It is just me Marinette, your partner, your friend! So what if I am your classmate too, why do you hate me so much now?'

'It's just that' she said softly. I looked up to see tears freely flowing from her eyes. 'You were never just my partner, I loved you, but as a friend, you were my best friend! I loved how I was so confidant around you and how I could be ME! Your stupid, stupid jokes made me smile when there wasn't much else to smile about in my life! But now that I know you're A- Adrien, it has all changed'

'Why?' I cried out, 'Why does my real self change everything?'

'Adrien…'

'Why Marinette?'

'Adrien….'

'Tell me!'

'I- '

'Tell me Ladybug!'

'BECAUSE I LOVE YOU!' she cried out. I froze.

'You- you love me!' I said, totally and utterly confused.

'Yes' she said, freeing her hand to rub her face fiercely. 'The first time I saw you Adrien I fell in love with how bright your hair is, it shone in the dull world reflecting the light and making others bright too. The first time you spoke I fell in love with your voice and the beautiful, kind thing you would say with it. The first time I saw you fence I fell in love with how graceful you were, how you were the complete opposite of my clumsy self. The first time I saw you look embarrassed and unsure of yourself despite being a model, I fell in love with how you still thought of yourself as small despite being the biggest thing in my world. Every day I saw you I felt myself love you so much it hurt. Every time you looked my way, even if it was just for a second, I fell even more in love with you despite you never even knowing my name most day. I love you Adrien, because your sweet, and kind and is the type who would never cheat on love because you never got enough of it. I love you Adrien, and that won't ever change'

I was frozen from shock. She knew me. Not just the me I paraded around in for everyone to see, she saw past my mask to see the ignored, unsure little boy who just wanted to be loved. She knew that if I fell in love I would never abuse it, and she loved me for that!

'I love you too' I whispered. 'I love you so much I felt like breaking when you found out the real me and reacted like that, I love more than anyone else in my life! I never want to let you go and seeing you on this bed hurt more then – '

'Stop' she said, crying even harder now.

'Why? I love you Ladybug! Nothing will change that, not now not- '

'You love Ladybug' she sobbed out, pushing me away with a weak hand. 'You love the confident gymnastic girl with the mask and the superpowers, you don't love ME! Not the real me'

'I don't care' I said, gripping her hand again, harder this time.

'Don't say that' she cried out. 'I am a seamstress, I am a baker, I am a clumsy girl who hates physics. The girl you love is only half of me, and you only loving half of me is worse than not loving me at all!'

'I don't care Marinette. I don't care that your father leaves a faint traces of flour on everything or that your always late to class. When I learnt who you were, I fell in love with you even more than before!'

'Don't say that Chat' she sobbed. 'Don't get my hopes up. You love Ladybug, not Me'

'And you love Adrien' I almost shouted. I was losing her! 'Would you still love me if I grew a moustache like that stupid pickpocket we fought last month? Would you still love me if I was poor? Would you Marinette?'

'Always' she sobbed. Putting her head in her hands. 'Even if you are allergic to feathers, like who does that?'

Despite her tears she was trying to make a joke, and despite his he smiled slightly.

'Then you understand that I will always love you, I always knew that once I knew the real you I would love that too, no matter how weird you were'

'Then why does it hurt so much' she whispered, curling in on herself. 'Why is there so much pain?'

I got up from the side of her bed and sat down beside her, wrapping my arm carefully around her shoulders.

'Because when learning something new one is entitled to feel pain. And I guess it wasn't the best way to introduce ourselves, was it?'

She laughed weakly, leaning her head on my chest and looking up at me with those beautiful blue eyes I adored. She reached up and wiped away my tears gently with her hurt hand.

'Oh my silly Cat' she whispered. 'How are we going to get over this?'

'Simple, we are going to fall deeply in love each other, and with all their flaws and personality's, we will continue to fight crime but only once you are healed, and we never keep secrets from each over again and we will annoy our friends each and every day by showing them just how much we love each other in every way possible!'

'We will fight and scream' Marinette added. 'We will scare each other with how much hate we can possess for someone we love so much and then we will remember why we love them in the first place and forgive then, only to do the same thing the next day. We will not be perfect, no one is, but we will make the other one feel like their life is perfect'

'We will never let the other forget how much we love them, and we will never feel this pain again. We will grow old and fat and enjoy every moment of it. Does that sound like a plan Marinette?'

'The best kind' she whispered, pulling me down into a kiss that I had been waiting far too long for, but would wait for eternity to do again.

0000000000000

It had been 10 years since I confessed my love to Adrien, the best 10 years of my life. When the nurse came in on us in that hospital bed holding each other that night, I thought I would die of embarrassment, but she sighed and clutched her chest, saying 'This is so adorable I could burst!' Adrien had laughed, kissed me again and then snuck out of the room before the nurse could compose herself, but not before promising to see me again the next day. And he did, this time with flowers and my best friend Alya, who had Nino standing behind her very possessively. He apparently had bribed the hospital into letting them visit me despite the no visiting rule unless your family in place. Alya and Nino had watched in shock as Adrien had strode over and kissed me on the lips, but then she raised an eye brow and said some very mean jokes that I won't mention here.

They weren't that mean!

Shhh. Anyway, I won't bore you on how he then met my parents and my mother smirked harder than I had ever seen before, or how Chloe made the biggest fix when she found out we were dating, or how fighting got harder and harder as the akuma's got stronger, or how we got stronger in return. I won't go on and on about how hard our lives were because we fought crime in secret, but together we could take down any threat that got in our way.

I won't even mention how many times we fought over petty things throughout our relationship, but I will say, I never regretted trusting that blond haired boy with my heart, he treated it with respect and care, and I made sure his was full in return. I never stopped loving him, and if possible, when I saw him standing in his black and white tux at the end of the isle, with the trimming the same shad of grey as his eyes, his white hair, for the first time in his life, combed back off his handsome face, my heart loved him even more, because in my little black and white world, we was my sun.

And of course, my heart always belonged to Marinette! She nearly broke it when she took so long to say yes on that roof top when I proposed, her long black hair floating in the wind and her vivid blue eyes so wide it absorbed the light around them. I had called to her softly, worried that I had made a fool of myself as I knelt in front of her in my tight leather suite, we were only 23 you know, it was a bit early to be getting married! But I didn't want to wait, I loved her that much! But then she had flung herself at me sobbing yes over and over between kisses and I felt like my heart was going to explode with love. She looked simply stunning in her wedding dress, black hair against white skin, red roses radiating against her slim white dress, she was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen.

I guess you could say we were meant for each other, and we prove that every day!

Marinette!

Mmmm

Do you think he can even hear us?

Marinette laughed and looked up from their gorgeous son, Hugo to her husband. He had changed so much in the 11 years she had known him. His hair, still vibrantly blond was longer now, and incredibly sexy when he messed it up. He had grown and his shoulders widened, mussels replaced lanky frame and charm replaced flirt, not that he flirted with anyone besides Marinette of course. Marinette had changed too of course, her hair was almost to her waist now but her eyes still as vibrant as ever, she was 25 now, no longer a skinny teenager. She was also a wife and a mother now. The mother to their completely spoiled first born son, with his eyes the same colour of his father and his hair black as night to match his mothers.

'We must always tell him the wonders of love' she told her husband as they gazed down at their fidgeting child in his cot, his arms around her shoulders and she leant into his chest.

'Absolutely' he agreed, kissing her forehead. 'For love softens the blandness of the world and makes everything softer'

'Absolutely' she agreed, pulling him into a kiss like she had done a thousand times before, and will do a thousand times again.