A/N: I have decided to drink the kool-aid and dive in with some MLB fic finally!
This is a fix it fic for Puppeteer 2! Contains major spoilers for that Episode.
My beta is on vacation! (She totally deserves it!) So this is un-beta'ed. Please, forgive typos.
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Confessions to a Statue
Adrien watched the doors close behind Marinette as she literally fled his presence. He wanted to go after her, but he was trapped in place by the mold setting in around his hand. He wasn't entirely certain his company would be welcome anyway.
Nino insisted that Marinette didn't hate him, but watching her freak out and run the second they were alone together suggested otherwise. And it seemed to him the more the topic came up, that Nino wasn't being totally honest about Marinette either. Though he couldn't fathom why his best friend would lie about this either.
Adrien started when the wailing disembodied wax head flew from the work bench towards him.
"Plagg! Cut it out!" Adrien chastised even as he chuckled weakly.
"Just trying to distract you from your complicated girl problems!"
Maybe Plagg was onto something. Marinette had seemed a bit off. Perhaps he just needed to Cheer her up. She didn't seem uncomfortable around Chat Noir. Perhaps he just needed to throw out some comedy a few times until she was just as comfortable around Adrien.
The timer on his hand went off and he released himself gleefully. He now just needed to find Marinette.
He headed into the exhibition of the "must know" people of Paris. This was the room his own model would be added to shortly.
"Just be cool. Just be cool," Marinette's voice echoed from the neighboring display area. Her voice grew louder as she approached.
This was his chance. He stealthily climbed onto the platform, and struck a model pose next to wax Audrey Bourgeois.
Marinette wandered in. And shrieked when she saw him standing before her. If he hadn't had a million hours of practice at holding absolutely still for the camera he would have flinched, but as it was, he was a professional.
She immediately relaxed. "That was the opposite of cool Marinette," she mumbled to herself. And then glanced up at him and approached. "These wax models look so real," she commented, leaning in towards him. She was almost close enough. He was going to make her scream and then laugh so hard.
"I'm sorry Adrien," she said softly. She looked down at her hands for a second before she pierced him with her soulful gaze again.
He held his breath.
"I don't mean to be such a spazz around you. I wish I could talk to you. I wish I could carry on a conversation with you like a normal person. I wish you could see me for me. But it's not your fault that you can't. I don't ever let you see me."
He almost spoke then. He couldn't stand the pain in her voice. And he hated even the idea that he had any part in putting it there. But he also didn't want to intrude on what suddenly felt like a very personal moment.
"I'm just scared. I'm scared you won't look at me the same way if you know."
Her eyes were so blue like the sky just after noon, so sincere.
"I'm just crazy about you."
Wait! What?!
"Since the second day we met and you gave me your umbrella even though you thought I hated you. You were so kind. And you've always been kind. You're so patient with me every time I spazz out. You see the best in everyone - give everyone the benefit of doubt. Even someone like Lila who does not deserve it."
His heart constricted in his chest. He wasn't supposed to be hearing this. It was unfair that she was pouring her heart out and she didn't know he could hear her. But he couldn't help but drink in every word like a a man without water in the desert.
"You also seem to handle so much. And as someone who has a hard time juggling all my responsibilities, I really look up to you. And you're easy on the eyes too," she added with a bit of a smirk.
He almost laughed. He almost did. But he had to keep this pose. They were both in too deep. He would not embarrass her at this point.
"And it makes me nervous and my anxiety gets the better of me. Especially when Alya throws me into spending time alone with you with no warning. And now Nino is in on it too. I'm so doomed!"
Her face fell into her hands and her cheeks flamed with embarrassment. He wanted to reassure her, but what could he say? He couldn't return her feelings.
"But I feel like I'm hurting you with my tendency to run away when I panic. So, I'm going to try to do better! I promise!" She stepped up to the display and her arms wrapped around him.
Dear god, her arms around him felt so good. He wanted to melt into her form. But he couldn't. He had to stay frozen.
"Now, I just have to go find you!" She whirled from him and wandered back the way she came. "Just be cool!"
He watched her go. His heart had long since fallen deep into the pit of his stomach.
"You know, I thought this was a terrible idea, but that was amazing kid!" Plagg said, his voice positively gleeful as he hovered over Adrien's shoulder. "I didn't know you had it in you! To be so deceitful just so you could invade her privacy! Genius!"
Adrien stood there, trying to process what had just happened. He hadn't meant to break her privacy. But man, a lot of things suddenly made sense. Even Nino being weird suddenly made sense if he and Alya were trying to hook them up.
"You do remember that you're not a statue, right?"
"Not now, Plagg," Adrien body wilted in resignation.
"I'm just saying, you might want to not be caught in this particular location. Pigtails is looking for you like right now."
Right. He had to find her. He might still be able to cheer her up somehow.
And he would have, if not for the Akuma.
...
He didn't really have time to think about it until Alya, Nino, and Manon had been dropped off, and it was just him and Marinette in the car together. She looked so defeated, and he stared into his hands unsure of how to fix it. He wished with every fiber of his being that he could return her feelings. Because she was so amazing. She was brave, creative, and someone who fought for the benefit of others.
Ladybug had rejected him so many times, he almost wanted to try and see how things could go with Marinette. But that seemed so unfair because she deserved someone who could love her with all of themselves. She didn't need someone who was caught up obsessing over someone else. She deserved so much better than that. She deserved the world.
"Marinette."
"I'm sorry," she said at the same time.
"You can go first," she invited.
"No, no, you should go first," he insisted.
"I'm sorry that I left you in the room alone," she said, staring out the window. "The whole reason we all came to the museum was so you didn't have to be there by yourself, and then we all abandoned you."
"No, it's okay. I'm the one who should be sorry."
"What for?" Her eyebrows furrowed in genuine confusion.
Shoot! She had no idea he had been eavesdropping for her whole confession. "For... uh... making you uncomfortable."
"You didn't make me uncomfortable," she reassured with a small smile. "I did that all myself."
"W-what do you mean?"
She sighed. "I... uh..."
He held his breath, suddenly realizing he didn't want Marinette to confess to him. He didn't want to have to break her heart. Is this how Ladybug felt when he confessed to her?
"I... uh... get anxiety sometimes. And when I panic, I f-feel like I can't breathe. I just have to run."
"It must be hard to cope with something like that. You're very brave to face it everyday."
Pink dusted both of her cheeks and he couldn't hold back a smile.
"T-thank y-you," she stammered.
"You remind me of the girl I love," the words were out of his mouth before he thought them through.
"I... oh. I didn't realize that you loved someone," she turned away to gaze out the window, her shoulders slumping forward.
God, he wanted to smack himself. What was wrong with him? Why would he say that?
"Y-yeah," he agreed, searching for some way to fix this. "But she doesn't see me the same way."
"T-that must be hard," she said, her voice cracked.
Was she crying? He really was making a mess of this.
"Marinette?"
"Y-yeah?"
"Thank you for being my friend. It doesn't seem enough to say, but I feel really lucky that you're in my life." And he really wished with every fiber of his being that he could give her more.
"Yeah, I'm g-glad you're in my life t-too, Adrien," she was smiling again. Her eyes were a bit glassy, but she was smiling. And it looked genuine. Perhaps, that was all he could hope for today.
The car pulled up alongside the bakery and Marinette opened her door.
"See you at school tomorrow?" he called after her.
"Yeah, s-see you at school."
He waved good-bye, and hoped he could make it up to her somehow. Maybe he could help Alya hook her up with Luka or something. He definitely had a crush on Marinette.
...
A/N: I watched this episode today and complained to my husband that I while I love this show (and generally, feel that it's held to high of standards by the fandom), I get so frustrated with their compulsive need to reset everything by the end of an episode. And this little fix-it fic was just spiraling around my head so I had to put in on paper!
Marinette should TOTALLY have confessed to "statue" Adrien. (What was that boy thinking?! Creepy much?!) And I think that the episode could have proceeded almost exactly as it did after that point. Instead, she's WEIRD! And the poor boy is getting mixed signals like crazy whenever he asks ANYONE for clarification.
I have really enjoyed how Ladybug has started to ask Chat Noir for advice. The bit a few episodes ago about how he balances his civilian and heroic lives, and now, asking for advice on how to confess. Goodness knows, he's had a bit of practice! And his response to that question was ADORABLE!
Anyway, I have two more MLB fics in the work, but I want them to actually benefit from a beta's eyes before I post them. Keep an eye out for me! You can also find me on Tumblr - kasienda dot tumblr dot com.
Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed!
Reviews are love!