Hello, lovely readers!

This is a gift for Lazycat881from the Adrien Protection Squad Discord Secret Santa Exchange.

Enjoy!

I cross-post on AO3 and on Tumblr.

Tumblr: gryffindorcls
AO3: clslovegood47

I own nothing but the plot.

Adrien tapped the table with his fork while he and Kagami sat in silence. She took a sip of her water, looked up, and sighed.

"Hey, Kagami," he said, clearing his throat, "I was wondering if you were available next Saturday night. My dad's company is having this holiday party at the Grand Paris Hotel, and he told me that I could bring someone. It's not usually like him to say stuff like that, and…"

"Adrien," she interrupted, "I need to talk to you about something."

"Oh? Is it about the party? Because it won't really be all that different from the other events we've had to go to in the past."

"No, it's not about the party. I don't really know how to say this, so I'm just going to be honest with you. I think we should go back to being friends."

Adrien set down the fork and cocked his head to the side. "Wait...are you breaking up with me?"

"That would require us actually being together."

"Are we not...together? We've been going on dates, right? Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure that this is a date. You're my girlfriend."

Kagami crossed her arms. "Technically I am, but you've been hesitant to call me your girlfriend since day one. When we hold hands, it's like touching your wax statue at the museum. It doesn't feel real. All of this feels fake. It's as if you're an actor who's playing the part of a boyfriend instead of actually being one."

"But we're dating. When people go on dates together, it's called dating." The confusion swirling around in his brain was slowly turning into hurt. "I still don't understand what I did to make you want to leave me."

"First of all, I'm not leaving you. I'm just changing the dynamic of our relationship. Second, you did everything right. You were the perfect gentleman. I can tell that you really tried to make this work, but the longer I'm with you, the more I realize that we aren't meant to be. When I told you that I was in love with you, I acted without hesitation. I'm starting to see now, that I was wrong in doing that."

"So, you don't love me?"

"Not like I thought I did. Adrien, you will always be special to me, and I really hope that we can stay friends. I cherish your companionship; however, I now realize that I was romantically in love with the idea of you...not the real you."

He could feel hot tears starting to form in the corners of his eyes. "I'll try harder."

She reached across the table and took his hand. "No, I don't want that. I was the stupid one who fell in love with someone who was in love with somebody else. I can tell that you're not actually happy in this relationship. It would be selfish of me to stand in the way of your happiness. I see that now."

"Kagami…"

"Adrien, do you love me?"

He avoided her gaze. "Love is a complicated thing."

"And yet, you have no trouble loving this other girl."

"But...I…how did you know? I did my best to forget about her. I would never go after someone else while dating you."

"I know that, but that's not fair to either of us. I don't think I could be happy in a relationship where I'm taking you away from somebody else. I need to be with someone who just wants to be with me. It's not your fault. We can't help who we fall in love with."

Adrien hung his head. "It doesn't matter...the girl I love doesn't even love me back."

Kagami threw her head back and laughed. "You're kidding, right? Please tell me you're joking."

"Umm...no, I'm not."

"What on earth gave you the idea that she doesn't like you? She's head over heels for you."

"But...you don't even know her."

"She's one of my closest friends."

A thousand different thoughts slammed against Adrien's mind. "How would Kagami know about my crush on Ladybug? I deleted all those pictures off my phone. And she can't possibly know I'm Chat Noir...and Ladybug would never tell anyone her identity. Unless...that's why she's Ryuko. Maybe it was an accident?"

"Is that why she chose you?"

"To be my friend? Well, the game chose us to be together, but she and I both agreed to keep spending time with each other when it was all over. However, I did let her choose the restaurant when we went to lunch yesterday."

"Wait...you told me that you were going to lunch with Marinette yesterday."

"Yeah, I did. Who did you think I was talking about?"

Adrien suddenly felt very warm. "Oh, I...uhh...I thought you figured out that I was in love with a girl who I work with."

Kagami shook her head. "No, that's not right. That doesn't make any sense."

"Now you're confusing me again. How does that not make sense?"

"Are you telling me that you're not in love with Marinette Dupain-Cheng?"

"Marinette is a very good friend."

"That sounded as fake as the smile on your face during our last interview together."

Adrien scoffed. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Rolling her eyes, Kagami took out her phone, tapped the screen several times, and turned the screen towards Adrien. "Look."

He gently took the phone from her hands and was taken aback by the image on the screen. Adrien looked closely at the picture of him and Marinette asleep on a train. Her face was against his chest while his cheek rested on the crown of her head. He'd never seen himself look so peaceful in a picture before.

Adrien soon found himself lost in thought. "She looks really beautiful in this picture...wait...NO! You're not in love with Marinette! You're allowed to think your friends are cute. She's always cute...and nice and kind and selfless…"

"You have that look on your face again," Kagami said, breaking him out of his reverie.

"What look?"

"You look at her like that all the time. It's your 'soft-eyed look', well...at least that's what Alya calls it."

"Hold on." Adrien put the phone down on the table. "You talked to Alya?"

Kagami nodded. "Yes, she was very helpful. You see, Marinette is my friend, and she's also been kind of miserable lately. You can tell she's doing her best to hide it, but her eyes don't light up as much as they used to. Then I thought, why are all of us trying to make this work if it's not making any of us truly happy?"

"You're really not happy?"

"I thought I was at first, and I believe that you were, too. Then the reality of all of this hit us. Once we had to start figuring out how to be a real couple, that's when the problems started. The 'honeymoon phase' only lasts so long in a new relationship."

"Problems?"

"We're too alike. I thought that was a good thing, but I was wrong. Our lives are too similar. I think you and I are the kind of people who need a partner who will complement us."

"You mean...someone who's our other half?"

"Exactly! I still care about you...a lot, and I think we'd be happier if we went back to being friends. We used to laugh and joke around, but then it got way too serious. I know I'm a blunt person who comes off as cold sometimes, but I miss the way we used to be. It was so carefree. Our dates have been anything but carefree, and I know it's because you still have feelings for someone else."

"I guess I just don't know what I'm doing."

"No, you don't know what you're doing when it comes to dating me because you're not in love with me. We just don't click romantically, and that's okay. You love me as a friend, and I think that's what's making all of this confusing. You and I never really had friends before this year, and we're still learning how to form relationships with others. I know that now."

Adrien took a deep breath. "Okay, I see where you're coming from. I'll admit that things have felt a little off between us, but how do I know it'll be any different with Marinette? She's not the girl I was in love with before."

"I beg to differ. When I talked to Alya a few days ago, I learned that she has a folder of her computer filled with stuff about the two of you. At first, she didn't want to show me any of it, but once I explained all of this to her, she was more than happy to help. If we're being honest, I've been planning this for a while. It hurt a lot when I came to the conclusion that you weren't the one for me, but I really think this is for the best."

"Hold on. Are you telling me that you have more than just this picture on your phone?"

"Yes, I have videos, too."

"There are videos?"

Kagami nodded. "Oh, yes. I now have undeniable proof that the two of you love each other."

Adrien laughed. "I was following you up until now. Sure, I'll admit that I may feel something for Marinette...there's just something about her. I've always felt like she was more than just a friend, but I still can't figure out why I feel that way. However, I know for a fact that she isn't in love with me. She's in love with Luka, and she always has been."

"First of all, you're definitely in love with Marinette. Don't deny it."

"Umm…"

"And Marinette is not in love with Luka. She cares about him, but she's not in love with him. She's had a crush on you since the day after you two met. Alya said there was something about an umbrella. You two are very frustrating to watch."

"Can I see some of the other stuff she gave to you?"

"Of course."

Kagami took back her phone, tapped a few times on the screen, and turned the device towards Adrien. He felt a smile twitch at the corners of his mouth. The paused image of Marinette made his heart thump against his chest.

"She really is beautiful," he thought, "Maybe a relationship with her would be worth exploring."

He looked up at Kagami. "And this is proof that Marinette is in love with me?"

"I hope so. It is a love confession, after all," she said plainly.

"It's a WHAT?"

"Apparently, Marinette tried to confess her love to you hundreds of times, and something always managed to get in the way."

"And this is one of her attempts?"

"Correct. This was one of the videos that we tried to send you when it was the first anniversary of your mother's disappearance. Your cousin deleted the videos before you had the chance to see them."

With a shaky hand, Adrien reached out and pressed play on the video. His heart melted as Marinette's smile softened on the screen.

Her voice was clear and sweet. "Adrien, I love you. I'll always be there if you need me."

A thousand different feelings washed over him at the same time. His vision began to blur as tears once again formed in the corners of his eyes. They were the words he'd longed to hear, but he didn't know that he needed to hear them from Marinette until now...and he wanted to hear her say them again.

"Oh my God," he whispered.

Kagami raised an eyebrow. "Need any more proof?"

"No...no...and you said she tried to confess her love lots of times?"

"Yes. Do you remember the time we went to London for the royal wedding and Marinette gave you that prescription? You spent the whole weekend walking around trying to find it. She had been trying to give you a love letter and got the notes in her bag mixed up."

"She was? Oh my, God. That explains so much. She told me that I was the only one who could give her what was inside the note. Only I can give her my love."

"You know, now that I think about it, I should have realized how in love with her you were. All the signs were there, but I was just too blinded by my feelings for you to notice."

"Oh, Kagami...I'm so sorry."

"Adrien, I'm telling you that I'm okay. I wasn't okay last week when I realized all of this, but I'm fine now."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure. Actually, I'm kind of excited because...ummm...I may have met someone. I'm not sure, but we had...what's the word?"

"A connection?"

"Yes, a connection. Just like you and Marinette have a connection."

He reached across the table and grabbed Kagami's hand, causing her to smile. "Thank you."

"There's no need to thank me," Kagami squeezed his hand, "Now we both have the chance to find 'true love'. That's what they call it in those movies we've watched together, right?"

Adrien chuckled. "Yeah, it is."

"However, I must ask you a favor."

"Anything."

"You and Marinette belong together. Please don't hesitate this time."

"She's the target I should have been aiming at all along, isn't she?"

"She really is."

Adrien's felt a swell of gratitude flood his body. "You're an amazing friend, Kagami."

"And I count myself lucky to have a friend like you in my life," she said reverently, "Now, go! Go to her, Adrien. It's time for both of us to find the happiness that we deserve."

"But what about you?"

Kagami picked up her phone. "My car just got here. Don't worry about me. I'm...um...meeting up with someone tonight."

Adrien beamed. "You are?"

"Yes, now go!"

"Goodbye, Kagami! Thank you again for everything."

"I'll see you later, Adrien. Don't mess this up. Marinette is my friend, and I know where to find you if you hurt her," she noted with a grin.

His head was spinning with anticipation. "Oh, I won't! I would never let anything happen to Marinette!"

Adrien grabbed his coat and ran out of the cafe. He eagerly hopped into his car and slid into the backseat. He did his best to contain his excitement until he had walked into his room and closed the door behind him.

"Plagg!" he called out, flopping onto his bed, "Marinette loves me!"

The Kwami zipped into view. "I could have told you that, kid."

He sat up. "What?"

"Didn't you ever wonder why she had trouble talking to you?"

"No, I just thought she was being Marinette...except that one time that I thought she didn't like me."

"She never had trouble talking to her other friends."

He threw his head back and groaned. "Ugh...and I told her that I was in love with another girl after we went to the wax museum! She was probably too scared to talk to me after that. Oh, Marinette...sweet, beautiful Marinette...I was an idiot. Why didn't you say something, Plagg?"

The Kwami landed on Adrien's shoulder. "You were so in love with Ladybug that you didn't take the time to look at what was right in front of you. You wouldn't have listened to me."

He paused and frowned. "You're right."

"I know," Plagg replied, "And then you started going on dates with Kagami. Honestly, it wasn't my place. Your love life is really none of my business.

"But...I can do something about it now. You don't think it's too late, do you? Kagami said that Marinette was feeling down. She's probably heartbroken."

"No, kid. It's never too late for love. Just show her that you care about her, and everything else will fall into place."

"I don't know. I hope she didn't give up on me like I gave up on loving Ladybug."

"Adrien...just listen to me. I know what I'm talking about."

"Fine...let's pretend that Marinette is still in love with me. How would I even show her that I care?"

"First of all, she is still in love with you."

"Debatable, but go on."

Plagg drooped. "She loves you. What happened to the 'you from five minutes ago' who actually believed that Marinette is in love with him?"

"That Adrien momentarily forgot about all of the times he'd told Marinette that she was "just a friend" and how she's watched him date another girl for the past few months. Let's just say I kind of want to hear it from her before I really get my hopes up," he said, crossing his arms.

"Do you want to go on a date with her or not?"

"Yes, I do."

"Then, invite her to that fancy party that your dad is having."

"That would be perfect!"

"Yes, it would be. Go ask her out."

"I...I can't just ask her without knowing if she loves me or not."

"Didn't Kagami give you proof earlier today? Just ask pigtails out. What's the harm?"

Adrien hung his head. "I could get rejected again."

Plagg rubbed his temples. "You'll never know unless you just try."

"I guess you're right again...maybe."

"I am right."

But...I don't have the perfect way to ask her to the party."

"I know you'll think of something. You always do. You're probably one of the most lovesick kittens I've ever had."

"Gee, thanks."

Plagg poked Adrien on the cheek. "It's getting late, and you still haven't fed me any cheese."

Adrien sighed. "How could you be thinking about your stomach at a time like this?"

"Look, I just want to make sure that you're going to feed me before you spend the rest of the night daydreaming about how you're going to ask out bakery girl."

"Actually, could do me a favor?"

"Oh, no...please don't tell me that Chat Noir is going to make an appearance tonight."

"I need to do some research! Please! It'll also help me get the answers that I need. I'll feed you double cheese."

Plagg tapped his chin. "Make it triple, and it's a deal."

"Deal." Adrien hopped off his bed, walked over to the cabinet under his desk, and pulled out three wheels of camembert. "Eat up, Plagg. We leave in ten minutes."

Marinette picked up her phone after feeling it buzz in her lap. She tapped the screen and opened the message that had just come in.

Alya: Girl, I have the best idea! Text me back, NOW!

She giggled as she typed out her response.

Marinette: I'm listening.

Alya: Remember that Secret Santa exchange thing we saw in that American Christmas movie we watched the other night?

Marinette: Yes...

Alya: Well, I thought it would be cool to do something like that with our class, so I looked up some gift-giving traditions on the internet.

Marinette: I wouldn't expect anything less from you.

Alya: You know it, girl

Marinette: LOL...okay...what's this great idea?

Alya: Have you ever heard of something called a cookie exchange?

Marinette: No, but I like cookies.

Alya: I know that's why I need your help. Can I send you the article?

Marinette: Yup!

Tikki flitted over and landed on Marinette's desk. "You're smiling at your phone. What's going on?"

Marinette looked up. "It's Alya. She wants to do something called a cookie exchange."

"Oh, cookies! That sounds like fun!"

"It does! Alya is about to send me some information about it."

Her phone buzzed again and she quickly tapped on the link in her inbox. She felt her smile grow as she skimmed through the article.

"Oh, Tikki!" she exclaimed, "This sounds like so much fun! But...it requires each person to make a dozen cookies for each person at the exchange. That seems like a lot. Maybe we can get Alya to modify the rules."

The Kwami looked up with expectant eyes. "We're still going to get cookies, right?"

Marinette laughed. "Yes, we're still going to get cookies."

"Thank goodness!"

"Hmm...what if we had each student pick a name and make a dozen cookies for that person? And then each of us could make an extra batch so we could have a cookie party in class!"

"Oh, Marinette! You always come up with the best solutions. That's what makes you such an amazing Ladybug!"

"Awww! Thanks, Tikki. But you know I couldn't do it without you, right?"

"I know, but I just give you the suit. Everything else is all you!"

Marinette patted her Kwami's head, picked up her phone, and began to compose her response to Alya. A soft tap sounded at the trap door above her the second her finger pressed "send".

She froze. "Did you hear that?"

Tikki zipped behind Marinette's computer. "Yes, I did."

"Do you think it's an Akuma?"

"Has an Akuma ever been polite enough to knock?"

"The Evilustrator was. Should I go check?"

A louder tap resonated throughout the room.

"Marinette?" a muffled voice said from the other side of the glass, "It's me...it's Chat Noir."

Every muscle in her body relaxed. "What's Chat doing here? He's never come over without a reason before. Oh, no...you don't think he figured out my identity, do you?"

"Maybe you should go find out," Tikki whispered.

Marinette stood up from her desk chair, climbed up her ladder, and opened the windowed hatch above her bed. A cool breeze blew across her face as she climbed onto her balcony. When she looked up, her gaze landed on a sheepish-looking Chat Noir.

"Hello," she said tentatively, "Is everything okay?"

He scratched the back of his head. "Um...I...uh...I just realized that I don't really have a good reason for coming over. At least not one that I can tell you about."

Marinette felt her lips curl into a smile as she put her hands on her hips. "Oh, is that so?"

"Um...yes? I'm sorry. Maybe I should just go. This probably wasn't the best idea, after all." Chat hung his head and began to walk away.

"Wait!" she called out after him.

He turned and looked at her. "Yes?"

"Would you like some hot chocolate?"

"I...what?"

"You came all this way, it's cold outside, and you're one of the heroes of Paris. I just felt like you could use some hot chocolate."

"Really?"

"Yes, really."

"I would love some hot chocolate. Thank you."

"Okay. Let me go get that for you." Marinette opened the hatch and hopped onto her bed before turning and popping her head back into the night air. "Actually, would you like to come in?"

He beamed. "Wow! Yes! That would be amazing."

Chat Noir followed her through the hatch, onto her bed, and down the ladder. When they were both standing in the middle of the room, Marinette took his hand and guided him towards her chaise.

"Wait here, and I'll go get that hot chocolate," she commanded.

His eyes brightened. "I'm still getting hot chocolate? But...we're not out in the cold anymore."

"Of course, you silly cat! You can have hot chocolate even when it's not cold."

"Honestly, I wouldn't know. I don't get a lot of hot chocolate at home."

Marinette's heart melted for the forlorn-looking boy sitting in front of her. "Well, let's try and fix that tonight, shall we?"

Chat's eyes seemed to twinkle when he looked at her. "Do you know how amazing you are?"

"I...um...okay." Her face began to burn. "I'm going to get that hot chocolate now."

She quickly padded across the room, opened the hatch on her floor, and climbed into the apartment below. Marinette pressed her hands against her cheeks in an attempt to cool them off while she waited for the water to boil. She was surprised at how much Chat's presence had affected her. It's not like she'd never encountered his flirtations when he was still pursuing Ladybug.

Her mind began to wander. "Why does it feel so different this time?"

The kettle's whistle pulled her out of her reverie. Marinette proceeded to make two steaming cups of hot chocolate topped with a heap of homemade whipped cream. Before returning to her room, she grabbed a plate and filled it with several cookies that had not been good enough to sell in the bakery that day.

Upon reentering her room, Marinette found Chat Noir sitting quietly on her chaise with his eye glued on the floor.

She set the mugs and the plate on her desk. "Are you alright?"

He slowly looked up and smiled. "Yeah, I'm fine. Why do you ask?"

"I don't know. I guess you just seem a little out of it."

"How so?"

"You seem a little...distant? Like your body is here, but your mind is somewhere else."

"I've had an interesting day."

Marinette grabbed one of the mugs, handed it to him, took a seat on the chaise. "Would you like to talk about it?"

He took a small sip and sighed. "I don't want to bother you."

"But listening to the things that are making my friends upset is never bothersome."

"Wait...you think we're...friends?"

"Do you not want to be?"

"No! That's not it. I'm just surprised."

"You've saved me a few times, and there was that one time you cheered me up. I'd like to think we're friends." She reached over and placed a hand on his forearm.

He gasped. "Wow...okay. Um...well, the thing on my mind isn't really bothering me. It's confusing me."

"I'm listening."

"Well, my girlfriend broke up with me."

"And you're not upset about that?"

"Ahh...you see...no. We really weren't happy together. We were trying to make something work that just never will."

"Oh."

"Yeah, it turns out that I'm in love with someone else."

"Ladybug?" Marinette braced herself for her answer.

Chat chuckled and shook his head. "My feelings for Ladybug are...complicated. I will always have a special place in my heart for Ladybug, but my feelings for her have evolved. She doesn't want to be with me, and I respect that."

"Really?"

"Yes, actually...how do I put this? There's this girl in my class, and I think she may have been my other half all along." He looked up at her and met her gaze. "I got a little lost, but I think I may have found my way. She is the light who brightens my darkest days. I just hope I'm not too late."

Hearing his declaration and seeing the sincerity in his eyes caused Marinette's heart to pound against her chest. "It...it sounds like she's one lucky girl."

"No, I'm the lucky one. It turns out that she loves me, too."

"Why do you think it's too late if she feels the same way?"

"I think I may have accidentally broken her heart. When I finally accepted that Ladybug wasn't in love with me, I felt horrible. I did my best to move on. So, when Ka...um...my ex-girlfriend told me that she loved me, I went for it. The girl I've fallen for...I think she gave up on me when she saw me starting to date someone else. Right now, I just hope her love for me didn't completely disappear."

Marinette looked away. "I think I may understand how this girl is feeling. There was this boy...you know what? It's a stupid story. Sorry...you keep going."

She felt Chat's hand take hers. "No, please. I would love to hear your story."

Her head snapped towards him. "Wait...why?"

"Because...uh...hearing about your experience may...um...help. Yeah, help. Please tell me."

"Honestly, it's kind of sad."

"Before you start, can I just ask...is this about the same boy who broke your heart before?"

"Yup."

"And you still went back to loving him?"

"Yes, but I've been doing my best the past few months to forget about my feelings for him."

Chat leaned closer to her. "Why?"

Marinette shrugged. "Because I wanted him to be happy."

"And you didn't think he could be happy with you?"

"A few months ago, I was hanging out with him and one of my other friends. I knew that my other friend had a crush on him, and when I saw how well they got along, I left them alone. I guess it was a good thing that I did because he started dating her."

"It all makes so much sense now."

"What?" Marinette asked, feeling confused.

"I mean...yeah, it makes sense why you did that," he said with what sounded like a nervous laugh, "Um...how did that make you feel?"

"I was devastated. I broke down in front of my friend Luka. A few other things were going on, as well, but that was one of the main things that made me cry that day."

"Oh, no. You cried?"

"Yeah, but it's okay. I'm working on moving on. It's not like anything romantic would have worked out with Adrien anyway."

She heard his breath hitch. "Adrien?"

A dull ache radiated in her gut. "Adrien Agreste. We go to the same school."

"Isn't he a…"

"A model? Yes, but that's not why I fell in love with him."

"C-can I ask why you did?"

"Uhh...I guess so, but it's kind of pathetic. You see, I didn't like him when I first met him. I thought he was mean just like this bully at my school, but it turned out to be a misunderstanding. He...he gave me his umbrella on a rainy day when I didn't have one. I just watched him standing there in the pouring rain, getting soaked while he held out his umbrella for me to take. The sincerity in his eyes...oh."

Marinette's brain began racing. "That's why Chat made my heart race today...that look. I've seen it before. But it couldn't be...no. Lots of boys have eyes like that...right? It couldn't possibly be him."

Chat swallowed "I-is there more? You said that things would never work out between the two of you. Did you always think that, or did that start when he got a girlfriend?"

She nodded, doing her best to refocus. "I...uh...yes. I could barely speak around Adrien. Pushing away my feelings for him has done wonders for our friendship. I can say full sentences when I'm with him now."

"Did you ever try telling him how you felt?"

"I tried literally hundreds of times, and none of my attempts worked. I guess it was just the universe's way of telling me that it wasn't meant to be."

"Wow…all this time."

"Yeah, crazy, right?"

Marinette watched as Chat opened his mouth to speak again but was interrupted by several loud buzzes in rapid succession.

He turned towards the source of the sound. "What was that?"

She got off the chaise, walked over to her desk, and grabbed her cellphone. "It's my friend Alya. You know...the Ladyblogger."

"Uh...yes. I am familiar with Alya."

"Well, she's also in my class, and she wants us to do something called a cookie exchange at school. However, the real rules don't really work, so I'm helping her modify them."

"Oh, um...what's that?"

"It's this thing where people give each other cookies for the holidays."

"And is it something that you'd like to do?"

"Are you kidding?" Marinette exclaimed, "I live in a bakery! Of course, I'd love to bake cookies for my friends."

Chat frowned. "Oh...I've never baked cookies before."

"Really?" She grabbed the plate of cookies off her desk and held them out for him to take. "You do like to eat cookies, don't you?"

His expression brightened as he grabbed a cookie. "Yes! I do. I love cookies."

"Me, too! Chocolate chip is my favorite, but I can't get enough of decorated sugar cookies at Christmastime. They just feel like Christmas to me...you know?"

Marinette's phone began buzzing again. She looked at the screen and opened up the newest batch of messages from Alya.

She sighed. "She wants to video chat with me."

Chat stood up. "I should get going then."

"Oh, no...I can just tell her that I'll call her later. You don't have to go."

"No, no! It's fine. This cookie exchange is important 'cheer spreading business'. There's no doubt that it will make a lot of people happy, and with all these Akumas flying around, Paris can use all the happiness it can get. Besides, you've given me a lot to think about. Thank you for taking the time to talk with me."

Marinette set down her phone and took a step towards him. "You know you are welcome to come by whenever you need to, right?"

"I do now." Chat began walking up the ladder that led to the hatch above her bed. "Thank you...Princess."

She felt her cheeks once again grow warm. "I haven't heard that nickname in a while, Chat Noir."

"But it's a title that fits you."

"What are you doing? Go flirt with your crush, not me!"

"Oh, I fully plan on flirting with the girl I love."

Marinette was once again struck with a sense of familiarity. "The girl he loves...I've heard someone else say those words the same exact way. It was in the car on the way home from the wax museum. Adri...NO. Stop thinking about it. This is just you getting your hopes up. Adrien wasn't even talking about you that day."

"Hey, Marinette," Chat called from the other side of the open hatch, effectively pausing Marinette's racing thoughts, "I just have one question before I leave. If Adrien were to ask you out sometime in the near future, would you say yes?"

"What?"

"Well, you said you tried to forget about your feelings for him, but you didn't say that they went away. Would you say 'yes' if he asked you out?"

"He has a girlfriend."

"But what if he suddenly...didn't? And what if his now ex-girlfriend had actually convinced him to pursue the girl he's actually in love with? Would you say 'yes'?"

"Why would she do that?"

"Humor me, please...would you say 'yes'?"

Marinette paused before responding. "Yes...I would."

Chat released a breath and chuckled. "Thank you. That's a relief to hear. Maybe I really do still have a chance with the girl I love. Goodnight, Marinette!"

"Goodbye, Chat!" she called out as she watched him close the hatch and disappear into the night.

Marinette walked over to her chaise and collapsed. "What just happened?"

Her phone buzzed with a video chat request from Alya. She shook her head and tapped the answer button.

"Hello," Marinette said with her brightest smile.

"Hey, girl!" Alya pushed up her glasses before continuing. "Let's talk about this cookie exchange!"

When Adrien got home from Marinette's house, he detransformed, quickly brushed his teeth, put on pajamas, and crawled into bed. He'd learned so much in such a small amount of time that his brain was having trouble processing all of the new information. He thought that his talk with Kagami had been mind-blowing, but his talk with Marinette...that took him by surprise.

"She really does love me," he whispered to himself as he hugged his blanket against his body, "I'm not too late."

"Told you so," Plagg grumbled sleepily on the pillow next to him.

That night Adrien fell asleep with a smile on his face as he dreamed of a future with Marinette filled with love, happiness, and warmth.

He awoke the next morning on a mission. Now that he knew that he wanted to ask out Marinette, he just needed to come up with a plan. He brainstormed while he brushed his teeth, styled his hair, and got dressed. Unfortunately, he still had no idea what to do by the time his car pulled up to the front of the school.

"Hey, dude! Why the long face?" Nino called out, running up to him.

Adrien looked up. "Oh, hey...uh...what do you mean?"

"You seem kind of...I don't know...distant? Like your mind is somewhere else."

"You are the second person to say that to me in the last twenty-four hours."

"Well, is there a reason why it looks like your brain is taking a vacation?"

"I've been thinking about a lot," Adrien sighed, "It all started when Kagami broke up with me yesterday, and…"

Nino cut him off. "Bro, I'm sorry to hear that. What happened?"

"Nothing happened...that's just it."

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing was happening between us. Well, there was something, but it wasn't 'love'. There was no spark in our relationship. Yesterday, Kagami was brave enough to say what needed to be said. We both walked away from that conversation feeling hopeful about the future."

Nino fiddled with the brim of his hat. "Wow...that's awesome, but that still doesn't explain the distant look."

Adrien scratched the back of his head. "When Kagami was done telling me that she wanted to just be friends, she may have helped me realize that I have feelings for someone else."

"Is it Ladybug?"

"What?"

"I saw the pictures you had saved on your phone once. I kind of assumed that you liked her, but I always thought it was a celebrity crush or something. Don't worry...I didn't tell anyone."

"No, um...it's not Ladybug. I mean, I did have a crush on her, but it's not her."

"Oh, who is it then?"

"It's someone who I think I may have been in love with since I started going to Francois Dupont."

Nino leaned towards him and whispered, "Dude, is it someone we go to school with?"

Before Adrien had the chance to respond, Nino's phone buzzed in his hand. His friend looked at the screen on his device.

"Sorry, bro," Nino began, "We're going to have to finish this conversation a little later. Alya is trying to convince Miss Busiter to let the class do something called a cookie exchange. She wants me to meet her in the classroom like right now."

Adrien laughed. "No, I get it. You should not keep Alya waiting. Come on...I'll walk with you."

The two boys walked up the stairs and into the classroom. Upon entering they were met by a gaggle of students crowding around Alya.

"Yes, and all we have to do is convince Miss Bustier to let us exchange cookies in class on Friday," he heard the Ladyblogger say to the group of students surrounding her.

"Hey, babe." Nino walked through the crowd and gave Alya a kiss on the cheek. "How are you today?"

"I am pumped."

"I can see that. You really think Miss Bustier is going to let us do this?"

"Yes! Marinette has been working on typing up the modified rules for everyone. She should be here with printed copies any minute now."

Just hearing someone else say Marinette's name sent Adrien's heart aflutter. "Wow...it's amazing how helpful she is."

Nino chuckled. "Well, yeah...it's Marinette. She always does stuff like this."

"I know. That's what makes her so incredible."

"Dude...what?"

His eyes darted towards the door as a flustered Marinette came crashing through the threshold with an armful of papers that went flying across the room.

"I'm not late!" she yelled, slipping on a paper.

Adrien quickly moved across the room and allowed her to crash into him instead of the floor. His arms reflexively wrapped around her as she fell into his chest.

"Oh, my God, Adrien!" she squeaked, "I am so, so sorry! Did I hurt you? Ugh...I'm so clumsy."

He felt his lips curl into a smile as he gently pulled away from her. "Not at all. I'm fine. The real question is, are you hurt?"

"Well, thanks to you, I'm fine. Not a scratch."

"I'm glad. Just know that I will always be here to catch you if you fall. I'd do anything to keep you safe."

Her cheeks grew bright red, and she looked away. "I...oh...um...t-thanks, Adrien. You can...uh...let me go now. I have to pick up the papers."

He nodded and dropped his arms to his sides, allowing Marinette to scurry away. He turned with the intent to help her clean the papers off the ground; however before he could follow her, a hand grabbed his wrist.

"Dude," Nino whispered, "What on earth was that?"

"I was helping Marinette."

"Adrien, my man, you were about thirty seconds away from reciting poetry and showering her with rose petals. What is...oh my God...no way! It's Marinette! I knew you had a thing for her. Alya is going to freak!"

"I think Alya already knows. She was the one who gave Kagami all that evidence."

"Oh, no...she showed Kagami the secret love file? I thought she deleted that when...uh…"

"When I accidentally broke Marinette's heart?" Adrien stated plainly.

Nino nodded. "Yeah. Marinette struggled for a bit after you started dating Kagami, but wait...how much do you know?"

"I know a lot. I know that Marinette liked me."

"Like is not a strong enough word, bro. Marinette was completely in love with you."

"I know. I may have seen the video confession and heard stories about a few other confession attempts."

"You know she tried to let go of her feelings for you, right?"

"I do. Look, I thought she was dating Luka. I thought Marinette was unavailable. If I had known, then maybe I would have gone after her that day she walked away."

Nino scrunched his face. "The day she walked away?"

"Remember when I told you how Kagami and I got together?" Adrien asked.

"Yeah."

"Well, I didn't tell you everything. Marinette was there at the beginning of the day. She helped Kagami and I escape a mind-numbing party. Marinette mysteriously left at some point, and then that Akuma happened. Once everything went back to normal, Kagami tried to kiss me. I actually pulled away and told her that I wasn't ready. I had just decided to move on from my crush on the...other girl."

"You mean Ladybug?"

"Uhhh...yeah."

"Okay...so are you trying to tell me that if you knew Marinette liked you the day of that party, you would have gone after her?"

"I think so."

"I have one more question then."

"I'm listening."

Nino paused before continuing. "Would you have kissed Marinette if you'd known?"

Adrien looked at his friend and grinned. "Yes."

"Oh, my God, dude," Nino nearly yelled.

"Shhhh," Adrien hushed, "Not so loud. Also, don't say anything. I'm still trying to figure out the perfect way to ask her out."

"You know I'm going to talk to Alya about this, right?"

"Of course, but...no one else. I'm not ready yet."

Miss Bustier walked through the door, and all the students took their seats. As Adrien slid onto the bench next to Nino, he became acutely aware of the fact that Marinette was sitting behind him.

Adrien's mind was reeling. "She's been right there all along. How did I not know that she loved me? How could I ever think that she was just a friend? How could I have been so blind?"

"Good morning, class!" the teacher said with a bright smile.

Before the class could answer, Alya rose to her feet. "Miss Bustier!"

"Yes, Alya?"

"We have a question for you."

"We?"

"Yes, I am speaking on behalf of the class when I ask this. We all talked about it, and since it was my idea, we agreed that I should be the one to ask you."

Miss Bustier leaned against her desk. "Alright, go ahead. I'm listening."

Alya beamed. "Okay, so we were wondering if we could have a cookie exchange in class this Friday before we leave for winter break."

"Oh, and what would this 'cookie exchange' entail?"

"A regular cookie exchange requires every person to bring in a dozen cookies for everyone in attendance, but it's unrealistic to expect each person to make one-hundred and eighty cookies by the end of the week. So, Marinette came up with an alternate set of rules."

Marinette walked to the front of the room and handed Miss Bustier one of the papers she'd brought to class. "I was thinking that each person could pick a name, bake a dozen cookies for that person, and then bake another dozen cookies to share with the rest of the class on Friday. That way we could have a cookie party, and each person would get to take a batch of cookies home."

Miss Bustier scanned the paper while Marinette waited next to her. Adrien felt his lips curl into a smile when he saw her body shift back and forth with excitement.

"She's so cute."

"Okay," the teacher finally said, "It sounds like fun. And you're sure that everyone in the class wants to do this?"

"The only people who I didn't talk to about this were Chloe and Sabrina," Alya replied.

Miss Bustier turned to the two girls in question. "Would you two like to participate in something like this?"

"Oh, ye...I mean," Sabrina shrunk in her seat before continuing, "whatever Chloe wants to do."

Chloe rolled her eyes. "Adrikins, are you doing this...thing?"

"Yes," Adrien answered without hesitation.

"Ugh, fine. Yes, I'll do it."

The class cheered. It took Miss Bustier a full minute to regain the class's attention.

"Alya, how do you plan on giving each person their secret giftee?" she asked once the students had quieted themselves.

"I already have a hat filled with slips of paper that have everyone's names written on them," the Ladyblogger announced, "We can pick names whenever you would like us to."

"How about right now?"

"Yes, Miss Bustier!"

Alya ran to the front of the room and stood next to Marinette. The teacher called each student down to pick a name from Alya and take a set of instructions from Marinette.

When it was his turn to come forward, Adrien felt his cheeks grow warm when he looked up and saw that Marinette had been looking at him. He watched as she quickly looked away.

Once he had his giftee and his instruction sheet, he hurried back to his seat and put his head down on the table. He felt a firm hand pat his back.

"It's okay, bro," he heard Nino's voice say, "She's probably just wigged out because she thinks that you're still dating Kagami."

Adrien lifted his head and looked at his best friend. "Oh, no! That's even worse! Everyone here thinks that I'm still dating Kagami. I'm already messing all of this up! How am I supposed to ask out Marinette now?"

Miss Bustier clapped her hands, and the class grew silent. "Okay, everyone. Let's begin our lesson for the day. We have a lot to cover before the break starts.

Several students in the class let out an audible groan. As he bent over to get his tablet from his bag, Adrien heard Nino sigh next to him.

"Oh, come on. Learning isn't that bad. Miss Bustier always seems to find a way to make it fun. Besides, we have winter break soon enough," Adrien comforted.

"Ugh, that's not what I'm upset about." Nino slid the paper containing his giftee's name towards him.

Adrien opened the paper. "You have Chloe."

"Dude, Chloe hates me."

"She doesn't hate you."

"Well, she's going to hate whatever I give her."

"Don't worry. I'll help you brainstorm, and I'm sure Alya will help you bake."

Nino nodded. "Yeah, you're right. So, who did you get?"

Adrien looked at the still folded slip on the table. "I haven't checked yet."

He grabbed the paper and froze when he saw the name that was written on it.

Marinette.

"Here, let me see." Nino leaned over. "Dude."

Adrien didn't know whether to cry or scream. "It's her, and I don't know how to bake."

Nino chuckled. "Well, I guess it's time to learn because the universe has just given you the perfect opportunity to ask her out."

When Marinette woke up on Monday morning, she was in an amazing mood. While her conversation with Chat the night before had been a little confusing, the time she spent working out the details for the cookie exchange with Alya had been exciting. She couldn't wait to see how all her friends would react to Alya's idea.

However, her lighthearted mood disappeared when all her suppressed romantic feelings for Adrien came crashing back into her brain in a sudden wave of emotion. She'd worked so hard to walk away from her crush and let Adrien find happiness with Kagami. For months, she'd hidden her feelings safely behind a wall, but that barrier had been destroyed in a matter of seconds.

The moment class ended, Marinette grabbed Alya's wrist and dragged her into a secluded corner of the locker room.

Alya pulled her hand away and placed it on her hip. "Girl, what is going on with you?"

Marinette scanned her surroundings before proceeding. "Please tell me I'm not going crazy."

"I'm going to need more details because I am not following you at all."

"Adrien."

"Oh, right," Alya averted her gaze, "that."

"So, you did see the way he looked at me? And you heard what he said to me? Why would he do that?" Marinette grabbed her pigtails and tugged on them. "He's dating Kagami."

"Um…"

"What?"

"Kagami may or may not have broken up with him this past weekend."

"WHAT?" Marinette exclaimed, "How could you possibly know that? Did Nino tell you something?"

Alya sighed. "Well, no, but I'm sure that Adrien told Nino about it this morning. You see, Kagami kind of...came over to my house Saturday morning. She wanted to know some...uh...things."

"What kind of things?"

"She wanted to know what had really happened between you and Adrien before she started dating him. I didn't want to talk to her at first, but then she told me that she realized that he wasn't 'the one'. She also said that she felt like you and Adrien were meant for each other and that she wanted the two of you to find happiness."

"What was she planning on doing with the information that you gave her?"

"Uhhh...I think she was planning on showing it to Adrien."

"Alya?"

"Yes?"

"What did you show Kagami?"

Alya sucked in through her teeth. "I...uh...may have given her a copy of your love confession from the day we all made those videos on the anniversary of his mom's disappearance."

"YOU DID WHAT?" Marinette fell to the floor and sat curled up with her arms around her legs. "This is a disaster! Why would you do something like that?"

The Ladyblogger stomped her foot on the ground. "BECAUSE I WANT MY BEST FRIEND TO BE HAPPY FOR A CHANGE!"

Shocked, Marinette looked up. "What did you say?"

"You heard me!" Tears were shining in Alya's eyes. "Girl, you have been miserable these past few months. I know you've been covering up how you really feel, but it hurts to see you like this. You used to smile differently. Your eyes look so tired, and I'm worried about you. So, sue me! If you're mad at me, fine. However, I will not be apologizing. The whole 'not telling Adrien' thing didn't work the first time, so when I saw an opportunity to make you happy, I took it!"

"Oh, Alya…what did I ever do to deserve a friend like you?"

"You're not mad at me?"

"I would be lying if I said that I wasn't feeling super embarrassed right now, but that's probably one of the kindest things that anyone has ever done for me."

"I love you, girl. You're one of the best things that's ever happened to me."

Marinette stood up and pulled her friend into a tight squeeze. "I love you, too. Thank you."

"Anything for my besite," Alya said, returning her embrace.

"Well, I guess that means that Adrien has seen my confession. He knows that I love him now."

"I guess so."

"OHMYGOD."

"What?"

"Adrien has seen my confession."

Alya grinned. "Yeah, he most likely has."

Marinette felt a familiar flutter in her stomach. "And he flirted with me."

"Yes, he did. I was there. He was blushing pretty hard, too."

"Does that mean he maybe...likes me?"

"I'd say that there's a possibility."

"Oh, no! How am I supposed to function now?"

"Girl, you are a mess!" Alya laughed, "Don't overthink it! Just go with the flow."

Marinette nodded. "Yeah, I can be cool. I'll just pretend like I don't know anything."

"No, you won't."

"Yeah, you're right, I won't. But I can try!"

Marinette spent the next two days doing her best not to return to her blushing and stuttering self whenever she was around Adrien. Every time she saw him smile, she wanted to combust. Every time they spoke, her heart pounded against her chest. At one point, their fingers accidentally touched when he handed her a pencil she'd dropped on the floor. She almost passed out when that happened.

When it came time for patrol on Thursday night, Marinette was ready to run across the rooftops and clear her head. Ten minutes before nine o'clock, she transformed, climbed onto her balcony, pulled out her yo-yo, and swung across Paris. When she arrived at her and Chat's designated meeting place, she saw her partner sitting on the edge of the roof with his legs swinging over the side of the building.

"Hey, kitty!" she said, making her presence known. "I hope you're ready to go because I am itching to get started tonight."

Without getting up, Chat turned towards her. "Ladybug, I need your help."

"Okay," she replied hesitantly, "May I ask what kind of help you need?"

He got on his feet and approached her. "This is going to sound kind of strange."

Ladybug chuckled. "I wouldn't expect anything less than 'completely bizarre' when it's coming from you."

"You wound me!"

"Always so dramatic."

Chat sighed. "No, but in all seriousness. I really need your help. I have no idea what I'm doing, and I have to get this done by tomorrow."

She placed a hand on his shoulder. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, but I have to give someone cookies tomorrow."

"Oh? That's funny. I have to give someone cookies tomorrow, as well. My class is having something called a cookie exchange. My best friend found the idea on the internet and convinced our teacher to let us do it in class."

"Really? I'm doing it in class, as well."

"You...are?"

"Yeah."

"That's too many coincidences. It's just like the other night. Could Chat and I be in the same class? The only person who has blond hair other than Chloe and Rose is Adri...NO! You're not supposed to know." Ladybug shook her head in an attempt to halt her train of thought.

She took a deep breath. "Maybe you should just tell me what you need help with."

Chat nodded. "Yeah, of course. Umm...you see, the problem is that I can't bake."

"Why don't you just buy the cookies? I could give you the name of a really good bakery."

"But that's just it...I have more than enough money to buy her the best cookies in Paris. Heck, I have enough money to have the best cookies in Italy imported overnight; however, I don't want to be that rich kid who buys his way out of a problem. I want to make this girl something to show her how special she is. Ladybug, I think I might be in love with her, and she doesn't just deserve the best. She deserves something that I poured my heart and soul into."

"What if it is him? Would it really be that bad? That would mean that he fell in love with both sides of the mask."

Ladybug did her best to keep a level head. "Wow. Honestly, it doesn't sound like you might be in love with her. I think you're head over heels for this girl."

Chat buried his face in his hands. "If you knew who I was talking about, you'd completely understand. She's probably the most amazing person I've ever met, and I don't know what to do! She sits behind me in class, and all this week, I've done everything in my power to not turn around and sweep her off her feet. I want to do this right."

"Please let it be him."

"She means that much to you?" Ladybug whispered.

"Yes, she does." Chat stared wistfully into the distance. "I've never felt this way before."

"Please...please let it be him."

She took a deep breath and tried to compose herself. "Okay, I'll help, but I'm not sure that I know how I can."

He turned towards her and fiddled with the end of his tail. "Well, I remembered all the times you brought cookies to our patrols, and they were amazing. I was hoping that you might show me how to make them...if you want to, that is."

"Chat, I would love to show you how to bake cookies, but we don't exactly have access to a kitchen."

"You see, we actually do. My father...he's the CEO a pretty big company, and he owns a few buildings. They're meant for employee housing, but there's one that's completely empty right now. I kind of swiped the keys to one of the units this morning."

"Alright, but we're going to need supplies."

"They're already waiting for us at the apartment."

"It looks like you thought of everything."

He shot her a toothy grin. "Yes, I did."

Ladybug giggled. "Well then, lead the way, kitty! I'm ready whenever you are."

Chat unsheathed his baton and vaulted into the air. Shaking her head in amusement, Ladybug followed him across the darkened rooftops. Upon reaching their destination, Chat slipped through an open window on a well-lit building.

"I thought you said that you had a key to this place," Ladybug said as she climbed into the spacious apartment.

He scratched the back of his head. "Uhh...yeah. I do, but I came here earlier and opened the window so we could get in without being seen by security."

"You really do have everything all planned out."

"Yes, because I need this to be perfect."

"You must really be serious about this girl if you're passing up the op-purr-tunity to make the purr-fect pun."

Chat looked at her with a panicked expression. "What?"

"Nevermind," she replied, shaking her head, "How about you just tell me what kind of cookies we're making."

"Okay, so this is where it gets complicated. When I went over to her house the other day, she told me that chocolate chip cookies are her favorite, but at Christmastime, she really likes sugar cookies that are decorated with icing. I do not know how to make either of those things."

Ladybug's brain came to a screeching halt. "Chat's talking about me."

She struggled to find the words to say when she noticed that Chat was still looking at her. "I...I..."

He walked up to her and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Ladybug, are you okay?"

"It has to be him. Who else could he be?"

"Mmmhmm." She felt her cheeks grow warm. "Uh...yeah, I'm okay. L-let's just make these cookies. You said you already had supplies?"

Chat's face brightened. "Yes! Yes, I do. Everything is right over here. I can't thank you enough for this."

Ladybug did her best to stay composed while she showed Chat Noir how to make both kinds of cookie batters. She made her own cookies while her partner desperately tried to emulate her every move. Despite his best efforts, Chat's cookies wound up looking like amorphous blobs.

Chat picked up one of his sugar cookies and groaned as it fell apart in his hands. "No! Why is this happening to me?"

Even though she was still feeling nervous, Ladybug did her best to make light of the situation (for both their sakes). "That's the way the sugar cookie crumbles!"

"Hey! That's not funny. This is serious, She's going to hate these cookies."

"No, she's not."

"And how could you possibly know that?"

"Because you're giving them to me."

Ladybug cleared her throat. "Call it intuition. She's going to love them."

He sighed. "Let's hope that I can get these to her in one piece. They keep falling apart whenever I touch them."

"That's because they just came out of the oven. You need to give them a few minutes to cool and firm up."

"Oh."

"Come on. Let's go make some icing while we're waiting."

"And then we'll be able to draw pictures on them and stuff, right?"

"We'd have to make royal icing if we wanted to draw detailed pictures. Um...I was going to show you how to make buttercream icing. It'll be easier to decorate the cookies with that, and I was thinking that we'd better keep it simple. It's already midnight, and I'm pretty sure that it's a school night for both of us."

"Yeah, you're right."

She showed him how to make buttercream icing, and by the time they were finished, the cookies were cool and ready to decorate. Together, they carefully spread icing on all of the sugar cookies. Ladybug then watched as Chat put globs of icing on the chocolate chip cookies, as well.

"What are you doing?" Ladybug pointed to the cookie tray.

"I'm decorating just like you showed me how to," he said with pride lacing his voice.

"Usually, we just put the icing on the sugar cookies."

"Oh…"

"But hey...go for it! It'll be extra sweet. I'm sure it'll make her smile."

"You think?"

"I know it will."

Ladybug helped Chat but icing on the rest of the chocolate chip cookies, and then she helped him put red and green sprinkles on everything. When they were done, they cleaned up their mess and put away all the supplies. Then, Chat carefully packed six chocolate chip cookies and six sugar cookies into a box decorated with gold and silver Christmas trees. He put the rest of the cookies on a plate and wrapped it with tin foil. He put the box and the plate into a cooler that he zipped closed and slung over his shoulder.

"I can't thank you enough for helping me make these tonight," he said with a bright smile.

She placed a hand on his shoulder. "Anytime, kitty. That girl is going to love those cookies."

"I hope so."

"She will."

Chat unsheathed his baton and looked at the screen. "School starts in like six hours."

"Then the two of us should really be getting home." Ladybug walked over to the window and opened it. "I'll see you later."

"Bye, Ladybug! Thank you again."

"Tell me what she thinks of them the next time you see me."

He smiled. "I promise."

She took out her yo-yo, waved goodbye, and swung into the night. By the time she got home, detransformed, and climbed into bed, her body was wide awake. She tossed and turned as thoughts bounced around her brain.

"Marinette," Tikki said worriedly, "You've been in bed for an hour. What's wrong?"

She paused before answering. "I think I know who Chat Noir is."

"Oh...and who do you think he is?"

"I don't want to say it out loud just yet."

"Why not?"

"Because it feels too good to be true. Honestly, this whole week feels too good to be true."

"Do you want to know who Chat is?"

Marinette took a deep breath. "I think I do. Now that I'm the guardian, it's not like anyone is going to take our Miraculouses. I think I'm actually feeling excited about it."

Tikki flew onto Marinette's pillow and nuzzled her cheek. "If you're happy, then I'm happy."

"Really?"

"Yes, really."

"You don't think it's too dangerous for us to know? I don't want another Chat Blanc situation."

"Who knows what the events were that led to Chat becoming Akumatized? We'll just have to be extra careful going forward. However, I think that honesty between the two of you is going to be the key to making this work."

"I agree, and I also think I should try to sleep now. Tomorrow is going to be a big day."

"A very big day indeed."

Adrien clutched the cookie-filled cooler in his arms as he walked into the classroom. The room seemed to be buzzing with excitement when he walked through the doorway.

"Good morning, Adrikins!" Chloe grabbed onto his arm, "Where did you wind up getting your cookies from? No doubt they're the best money can buy. I got mine from Milan. Let's just say my giftee better appreciate them."

Adrien pulled away from her. "Uhh...cool. It was awfully nice of you to do that for your giftee. I...umm...actually wound up making my cookies."

"Ugh...really?"

"My giftee is kind of special, and I got help from a friend."

"Yeah, okay, whatever," Chloe said as she sauntered away.

Adrien breathed a sigh of relief and approached Miss Bustier's desk. He unzipped the cooler and placed the plate of cookies on the flat surface. He then walked to his seat, took out the gold and silver box, and waited quietly for class to start.

When the teacher walked into the room, the students took their seats.

"Good morning, everyone! I know all of you are excited to exchange your cookies, so let's get started right away. We'll pick a name to have someone go first, and then whoever that person had as their giftee will go next. We'll pick another name if we need to at any point." Miss Bustier took out a hat filled with slips of paper and picked a name. "The first person to present their gift is Nino!"

Nino grabbed a bag decorated with tiny snowmen and headed to the front of the classroom. "I had Chloe. Adrien told me that the two of you used to eat gingerbread cookies, and Alya showed me how to make the icing gold."

Chloe got up, walked up to Nino, grabbed the bag, and took a peek inside. "I guess these aren't completely horrible."

Nino shook his head and headed back to his seat. "You know what? I'll take it."

"I had Kim," Chloe said, flipping her hair over her shoulder, "Come get your cookies. They're expensive, so you should be grateful."

One by one, his classmates were called to the front of the room. With each gift presentation, Adrien grew more and more nervous.

Kim had Max.

Max had Mylene.

Mylene had Alya.

Alya had Juleka.

And Juleka had Adrien.

As he walked towards the front of the room, his palms began to sweat. He could hear his heartbeat pounding against his eardrums, and it caused him to miss what Juleka had said to him.

"I'm so sorry," he apologized, "Could you please repeat that?"

"Oh, um...Kagami and Luka helped me make these," Juleka mumbled quietly, "She told me that you really liked cats for some reason. She also wanted me to tell you that she hopes you found your happiness."

He took the small red box from her hands. "Thank you so much. Merry Christmas!"

"Merry Christmas," she said before rushing back to her seat.

Adrien slowly turned to face the rest of the class. The room was unnaturally silent while everyone waited for him to speak.

"I...um...I had...um," he took a deep breath, "I had Marinette. I made them myself. They're a little lumpy, but they taste good."

Marinette slowly made her way to the front of the room until she was standing in front of Adrien. "Thank you."

"You're welcome, Marinette." He handed her the box and leaned over to whisper something into her ear. "Make sure you read the note I taped to the top of the box when you get back to your seat."

She nodded as he walked away. Marinette wound up having Nino as a giftee. After giving him a tray of sugar cookies decorated like tiny records, she returned to her seat. Once again, Adrien was painfully aware of her presence behind him.

He then heard a small gasp. "Adrien...I…I can't believe it's you. Actually, I can, but at the same time, I can't. I was hoping it would be. Oh my...we have a lot to talk about."

"It's okay," he said, turning around, "Give me your answer after everyone has presented."

Fifteen agonizingly long minutes later, every person in the class had finally received their cookies. Miss Bustier told the students that they were welcome to walk around the room and talk for the rest of the class period.

Adrien felt a hand lightly tap his shoulder. He turned around and was met with a red-cheeked Marinette.

"C-could I come and sit next to you? Maybe Nino could sit with Alya?" She kept her eyes glued to the table.

He reached out and gently lifted her chin with his finger. "I would love it if you came and joined me up here."

She smiled, got up, and slid onto his bench. "I...um...have an answer for you."

"Oh?"

"Uh...you know...the note?"

Even though his stomach was filled with butterflies, Adrien did his best to curl his smile into a teasing grin. "And what note might that be?"

"Of course you'd joke around at a time like this." She released a small, breathy laugh. "The one where you asked if I would like to go on a date with you."

"Ah...that note."

"I would really like to go out with you."

"Oh, thank goodness."

"You thought I'd say no?"

"Honestly, I had a feeling you would say yes, but there was this niggling doubt in the back of my mind. When I found out that you liked me...I was thrilled. And then I realized that you must have been heartbroken when I started dating someone else. I'm sorry it took me so long, Marinette. I've been rejected before, and I think I was afraid of being turned down by you. You're special, and I really care about you."

"Oh...I'm...um...let's not worry about the past! We're together now, right?"

"Yes, we are!" He reached out and grabbed her hand, causing her to gasp. "Oh, wait...is this okay? Am I allowed to hold your hand?"

She beamed, and his heart melted. "You can hold my hand anytime."

"I'm looking forward to it."

"Um...uh...speaking of looking forward to things...um...what did you want to do for our first date?"

Adrien's other hand scratched the back of his neck. "Oh, yeah...so it's a little short notice, but there is a Gabriel Christmas party at the Grand Paris Hotel tomorrow, and I was wondering if you wanted to go with me."

"A party?"

"Y-yes?"

"With...fashion designers?"

"And models, investors, and executives."

"Adrien…wow. I'm speechless."

"You don't have to go if you don't want to! It's just, my dad told me I could bring someone, and…"

She cut him off. "I would love to go!"

Every muscle in his body relaxed. "That's amazing. You're amazing."

"But what should I wear?"

"It's pretty formal, but I can have Nathalie send over some holiday dresses from the new winter line."

"Oh, that won't be necessary," she noted with a matter-of-factly tone.

Adrien chuckled. "Is that so?"

"I made a dress a while ago that I never thought I'd have the opportunity to wear. It's really fancy."

"We could match if you want. What color is the dress?"

"Red. I'll be wearing red."

Adrien was suddenly struck with a sense of familiarity. "Hmmm...I feel like red would look really good on you for some reason."

Her hand reached for the box of cookies he'd given her. "Is that so?"

"Yeah, but I can't quite figure out why. I don't think I've ever seen you wear red."

"Are you sure about that?"

"Most of the outfits you wear are pink."

"I actually wear red all the time."

"You do?"

"Yup."

"Well, then I guess I'll just have to pay more attention in the future."

"Personally, I think you'd look good in black...with maybe a touch of green. It would bring out your eyes."

"Is that your way of telling me that you want us to dress in complementing Christmas colors tomorrow?" he asked, cocking his head to the side.

"Yeah...something like that," she giggled, "Or maybe I'm just hoping it'll help you see things in a new light.

Adrien's mind spun as he tried to figure out the meaning behind Marinette's last statement. He felt kind of like an explorer who was on the verge of making the discovery of a lifetime.

He then watched as Marinette looked inside the box of cookies. She pulled out one of the sugar cookies and cradled it in her hands as if it were as fragile as glass.

She looked up at him with tears in her eyes. "I still can't believe it's you...I MEAN...I can't believe you made these yourself."

He hung his head. "I can't really take all the credit. I asked a friend to help me out because I had no idea what I was doing. I know they turned out a little weird looking, but I tried my best."

"They're perfect. I love the added touch of icing on the chocolate chip cookies. If I could, I'd keep them forever...but cookies are meant to be eaten and enjoyed."

"Then I guess you'll just have to settle with having me around forever instead."

Adrien heard her breath hitch. "F-forever? With you? Ohmygod."

"Oh, God." Panic flooded his gut. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to freak you out. It was a joke, and I'm just really excited that you said yes to going out with me. I didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable."

"NO! No, I'm sorry...I'm not freaked out at all. Well, I am, but not for the reasons you think. It's just...hearing you say that is a dream come true. I thought I'd lost my chance to be with you, and I can't believe this is happening. Actually, I can't believe that any of this is happening. My God, we have so much to talk about, and I don't even know where to start. I know that I just have to be honest with you, but I don't want you to hate me. Also, this isn't really the time or place to talk about this because there are people everywhere, and..."

"Woah...that's a lot of words! You may have to repeat some of that for me."

"I'm sorry. There's just so much that I need to say, and I don't know how to do it."

He reached over, put his arm around her, and pulled her close. "Then how about we take it one step at a time. We'll go at our own pace."

"That sounds nice." She leaned her head against his shoulder. "This is nice."

"How about we just do our best to enjoy this moment."

"That sounds a-mew-zing."

"Was that a cat pun?"

"Purr-haps."

His heart swelled with joy. "I can't believe you like puns."

She nuzzled her head against his shoulder. "I think you'll find that I'm full of surprises."

Marinette spent the entire school day doing her best to keep her composure. She vacillated between pure joy and sheer panic. Her heart had nearly stopped when Adrien handed her the gift box she'd seen as Ladybug the night before. She almost began weeping when she read the note he'd taped to the top of the box.

At the end of the day, Adrien insisted on walking her home. As they made their way across the courtyard, Marinette's heart soared. Not only had Adrien asked her out, but he'd turned out to be her Chat Noir-her partner, her best friend, and her other half.

When they reached the bakery door, Adrien took her hand and placed a feathery kiss against her knuckles.

"Until we meet again," he said reverently, "I will be here tomorrow at seven o'clock to pick you up."

"Okay." She giggled and bit her lip. "Goodbye, Adrien."

"Goodbye, Marinette." Adrien waved, looked both ways, crossed the street, and got into the backseat of his car.

She watched as the vehicle drove down the street before opening the door and walking into the bakery. Luckily, neither of her parents had been paying attention to her exchange with Adrien, so she was able to call out a quick 'hello' and run into the apartment upstairs.

As soon as she climbed into her room and closed the hatch behind her, Marinette ran to her chaise and screamed into a pillow.

"Oh, no!" she heard her Kwami say, "I thought you were happy! What's wrong?"

Marinette flopped onto her back and stared at the ceiling. "Oh, Tikki...I'm overjoyed. Today, was just a lot. Adrien is Chat Noir."

"Yes, I know."

"And Adrien is in love with me."

"Yes, he is."

"And Chat Noir was in love with Ladybug."

"That is also true."

She hopped to her feet and spun around. "Don't you know what this means?"

Tikki giggled. "I do, but I think it would make you feel good to say it out loud."

"Adrien fell in love with me twice!"

"Yes, he did!"

"How did I get this lucky?"

"He's your Chat Noir. It makes sense. You two complete each other."

A worrying thought struck her, causing her excitement to fade. "Do you think he'll be upset when he finds out that I'm Ladybug? I think all those rejections really hurt him."

Tikki landed on her shoulder. "It's difficult to say, but I still think that honesty is the best way to go here."

"When should I tell him?"

"As soon as you can."

Marinette walked over to her closet and opened the door. When her eyes landed on a red satin dress she'd made over the summer, she took it out and put it on her dress form. It was a simple but elegant design. The dress sported a knee-length, a-line skirt and a fitted bodice with a sweetheart neckline and cap sleeves.

She ran her hand across the smooth fabric and looked up at Tikki. "I'm going to tell him tomorrow."

For the second night in a row, Marinette found sleeping nearly impossible. However, the excitement of all that was to come kept her from feeling the effects of her exhaustion the next day. She spent the morning and part of the afternoon trying to distract herself with various activities, but nothing seemed to work.

By four o'clock, she gave up and started to get ready for the party that night. Marinette curled her hair into soft ringlets, applied a modest amount of make-up, and carefully put on her dress. Her completed look included a pair of plain black heels and a silver necklace with a cat-shaped pendant encrusted with black rhinestones.

She did her best to take her time getting ready, but it was no use. She finished with an hour to spare. As a result, she wound up passing the time by sitting quietly on her chaise and checking the clock on her phone every five minutes. She breathed a sigh of relief when she heard her father calling her to come downstairs.

Marinette took one last look in the mirror before grabbing a black clutch, putting on a silver-toned wrap, and bounding down the stairs. She stopped in her tracks when her eyes landed on an Adrien who was wearing a crisp black suit and a muted green tie.

When he turned to look at her, everything seemed to melt away. Adrien walked towards her and held out his hand for her to take. She gladly accepted, and he helped her down the final stair. He smiled, and her heart thumped against her chest. It was as if they were the only two people left on the planet; however, all too soon, their perfect bubble was shattered.

"I hope you two kids have fun tonight!" her father said with a booming voice.

"We will, sir," Adrien replied, still holding her hand, "And I promise to take good care of your daughter."

"I can see that."

Marinette walked up to her father and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "I'll see you later, papa."

Adrien pulled out his phone and looked at the screen. "We should get going. My dad is expecting me to be there no later than seven-thirty. Shall we?"

He guided Marinette out of the apartment and into the car. Once she was situated inside the vehicle, Adrien ran to the other side and hopped in.

"You look really beautiful tonight," he remarked, "I'm sorry that I didn't say that to you earlier."

Marinette felt her cheeks grow warm. "Thank you."

"Red really suits you."

"Well then, you should see me in a red suit."

"What?"

"Never mind."

He threw his head back and laughed. "You're so funny, Marinette! I hope you know how amazing you are."

"You're purr-ty paw-some yourself, Adrien Agreste," she replied.

"More cat puns!" He laughed even harder. "That's incredible. I love you so much."

Marinette gasped. "Wait...what?"

Adrien clapped his hands over his mouth and looked at her with worry in his eyes. "I'm so sorry! I keep messing this up! I didn't mean to say that...I mean, I did mean it, but I didn't mean to say it now. It's just been on my mind, and it slipped, and…"

She cut him off by leaning over and planting a kiss on his cheek. "Please don't be sorry. I feel the same way."

"You do?"

"I have since the day you gave me that umbrella."

"That's right. How could I forget? You said that the other...I mean...I don't know what I mean...um...KAGAMI! Yes, Kagami told me that, and it's really nice to hear you say that to me. I'm happy you feel the same way!"

"He really is my Chaton," Marinette thought to herself.

She bit her lip. "Hey, Adrien?"

He met her gaze. "Yes?"

"I love you, too."

"You've just made me the happiest person on the planet. This is the greatest Christmas gift I could have asked for."

"All I've ever wanted was to see you happy."

She watched as Adrien blinked back tears before he once again took her hands. "Christmas has been so hard without my mom, and you make my heart feel full again. So, yes...you make me happy in ways I never thought were possible. Thank you for agreeing to go out with me tonight, Marinette."

His words stole all the air away from her lungs. "Oh, Adrien…"

Before she could continue, the car stopped in front of the Grand Paris Hotel. Several photographers stood by the entrance.

Marinette sunk into her seat. "I didn't realize there would be reporters here. What if I trip and fall? I'll make a fool out of myself, and then I'll never get a career in fashion and..."

He gave her hand a gentle squeeze. "Hey, it's okay. I meant it when I told you that I would always be there to catch you if you fall. You will always be safe with me."

"I know, kitty...I know. You're always there to protect me."

"Thank you," she whispered.

"I'll be right by your side the whole time. I promise."

"Okay. I trust you."

Adrien hopped out of the car and ran to the other side. He opened her door, extended his arm, and walked her into the building.

Staying true to his word, he stayed next to her the entire night. He introduced her to designers and helped her navigate questions from reporters. He held her hand while they got punch and snacks from the buffet table, and he pulled her close when they made their way to the dance floor.

"Are you having a good time?" he asked after their fifth slow song.

"I'm having an amazing time," she exclaimed, "Thank you so much for inviting me."

"So, does that mean we can go on a second date?"

"Yes, kitty. We can go on as many dates as you would like."

"What did you just call me?"

Marinette opened her mouth, but no words came out.

Adrien let go of her and ran his fingers through his hair. "How did you figure it out?"

"It's now or never...just be honest with him."

She swallowed and looked up at him. "Is there somewhere we can go to talk?"

"Yeah, follow me." He looked around before taking her hand and leading her across the room.

He took her up several flights of stairs until they reached the roof. The space had been decorated with thousands of twinkling lights. It would have been very romantic under different circumstances.

A brisk wind howled, and Marinette shivered.

"Oh, God, I'm sorry. It's December and you're not wearing long sleeves. Here...take this." He removed his suit jacket and draped it over her shoulders. "Is that any better?"

"Yes." She slipped her arms into the sleeves and fastened one of the buttons. "Thank you."

"Marinette…I have to ask. Why did you call me...you know...that?"

She looked down at the ground and composed her thoughts. "You didn't keep your promise."

He placed his hands on her shoulders. "What do you mean? I stayed next to you the entire night."

"Not that one. The other promise."

"Other promise?"

She looked up. "Yes! The one where you promised to tell me how the girl liked the cookies you made. You said that you would tell me the next time you saw me, and you saw me yesterday, chaton."

Marinette could almost see the wheels turning in his head as his eyes searched her face for answers. After a minute of tense silence, his expression softened and his arms dropped to his sides.

"I really do see you in red all the time, don't I?" he whispered.

She nodded. "Yes."

"You usually have a mask, too." Adrien reached up and traced his finger along her cheek.

"And you have cat ears."

"My lady?"

Tears threatened to fall from her eyes. "It's been so long since you've called me that."

"I didn't think it was possible to love you any more than I did before, but here we are." He choked back a sob. "How could I possibly be this lucky?"

"I asked myself the same question last night."

"So, wait...that means that you said no to Chat Noir because…"

"Because I'm hopelessly in love with Adrien Agreste."

"Ladybug was in love with me the whole time?"

Marinette laughed and brushed away a tear with the back of her hand. "Yes, and she's still in love with you."

Adrien beamed. "I take back what I said before. This is the greatest Christmas gift I've ever received. The two most amazing people in my life are the same person, and she loves me just as much as I love her."

"Forever and ever, kitty. I'm just happy you're not upset."

"Never. This is the most incredible thing that's ever happened to me." He pulled her into a tight squeeze. "And I'm never letting you go."

She returned the embrace. "But if you never let go, how are you going to kiss me?"

He backed away. "You're going to let me kiss you?"

"You are allowed to kiss me whenever you want."

Seconds later, his lips crashed onto hers. At first, it was filled with heated desperation, but then the kiss morphed into a gentle, unspoken "I love you". Marinette's hands made their way to his hair while his arms wrapped themselves around her waist. When they finally broke the kiss, they stood breathless in each other's embrace.

Without letting go, Adrien leaned his forehead against hers. "I'm so happy that I actually get to remember that one."

Marinette giggled. "May it be the first of many."

"Merry Christmas, my lady."

"Merry Christmas, chaton."