If she hadn't gasped he wouldn't have known she was there.

Adrien paused his strikes towards the punching bag and stiffened. Slowly turning he saw a pink faced Marinette in sports clothes, a shoulder bag slung over her shoulder. Feebly he lifted his hand and waved with a sheepish smile.

"Hi."

She wasn't looking at him though, her head turned to the side trying to avoid looking at his bare chest.

Oh. Okay so he might have forgotten that he was shirtless. But he literally spent his spare time in a skin-tight leather suit; Adrien didn't know the meaning of the word 'shame'.

But that didn't stop him from being sheepish.

"Um… I'll go grab a shirt…"

She interrupted him by slowly walked forward with a little frown replacing the pink of her cheeks. "Adrien… where'd you get these scars from?"

He looked down at his upper body, at the three claw slashes that had cut through his side not long ago. Shit.

Marinette's eyes widened after a moment and she gently turned him around. He held his breath, waiting for her to at least say something. Or even gasp. But there was no intake of breath like he'd expected, just the feel of soft delicate fingers investigating his back. Adrien stiffened at the touch, but after a moment of the gentle caresses, felt his eyes flutter closed for a moment.

"Oh my god," he heard the whisper as her fingers touched the claw marks that covered his back, the touch becoming so light and cautious that he almost couldn't feel it.

Then she started murmuring. But it wasn't to him, it was almost to herself. "Animan…" Marinette's elegant fingers trailed over the claw marks that scarred his lower back, "Dark Cupid…" she traced the pale v shaped scar in the middle of his back and then she paused.

"T-Timebreaker…" her petite hand was pressed on the birthmark-like handprint that marred his left shoulder blade, her voice sounding thick, "you're such a hopeless idiot, Chat," he froze.

She hit her fist against his back. "You're such a freaking idiot!"

As her fist started to get harsher, he turned around and attempted to grab her wrists in vain only for her to push him away harshly. Adrien stumbled back and when his eyes caught sight of the tears trailing down her cheeks, his chest tightened.

"Mari…"

Before he could so much as step forward, she'd thrown a punch at his face. Catching her fist, he stared at her with bewilderment, ducking as the next fist flew at his nose. The distraught look on her face was all that he could see, as she snatched her fist from his grip and spun to try and kick him in the stomach.

"Marinette can you please calm-" a kick barely missed his stomach, "down."

If she heard him, she didn't respond.

"Why did you lie?!" she cried.

He caught her fist with a grunt and pushed her back, before he frowned. "What are you talking about?"

"You said that you didn't get hurt!" Marinette ducked down and swiped her legs at his feet only for him to leap backwards. "You said that you were okay! You said that you never lied to me!"

"I never-"

"YOU DID, KITTY!"

Adrien stared at the beautiful distressed girl in front of him, her chest heaving as she cried silent tears, looking him straight in the eye.

It was her.

Of course it was her. The same raven black hair, the same summer blue eyes, the same sweet smile, the same gorgeous laugh, the same selflessness, the same bravery, the same righteousness, the same wit; it couldn't have been anyone else.

Only she could've made him fall for the same person twice.

Lunging at him again, she aimed to punch him in the jaw. As carefully as he could he grabbed her fist and smiled softly at her.

"My lady…"

A tear trekked down her face and Adrien carefully pulled her closer, using his thumb to brush it away. More tears welling up in her eyes and he released her fist as she buried herself into his chest. Adrien wrapped his arms around her waist, carefully picking her up and sitting down on the ground. She snuggled closer to him, burying her face in his neck, her tears leaving wet trails on his skin. Letting a hand curl into the locks at the nape of her neck, he pressed his nose into her hair. Vanilla and freshly baked bread. He hummed softly and stroked Marinette's hair as she hiccupped into his neck.

Her nose scrapped softly against his collarbone again and he had to bite back a goofy smile at the affectionate nuzzling. Adrien pulled her just the tiniest bit closer, a tiny hiccup of a giggle coming from her. Cute. He twirled and fiddled with her pigtails more little laughs emitting from her lips, electing a little hum after her laughter died down.

Slowly Adrien loosened his grip on her and she pulled herself away from his chest, letting him wipe any remaining tears off her cheeks.

"You've hurt yourself so many times because of me," she murmured to him softly.

"Princess… I'm always going to protect you; you know that right?"

She gently leant forward, pushing his fringe back to press her lips softly against his forehead. Adrien's cheeks heated up and he looked at her as she pulled away and leant back into her sitting position with her legs bent and lying on top of his. "I know."

Marinette's hand softly touched his left shoulder blade and he sighed softly at her. Although he couldn't remember exactly what had happened in the original timeline with the first Timebreaker, he knew what had happened.

"Adrien… please just be more careful," she said.

He rested his hand on her neck and pulled her into his chest slightly, gently pressing his lips to the top of her head. "Okay."

When he released her and glanced down, her crimson cheeks made him chuckle. She pouted and looked up to glare at him.

Adrien froze. Their noses were practically touching and she seemed to notice too, her neck flushing to match her cheeks.

"Um…"

"Hey Marinette…" he said softly.

Her blue eyes were wide. "Yes?"

"Can I kiss you?"

After a long moment of his anxiety buzzing in the silence, she nodded softly. "Sure…"

With a wide grin he leant just the tiniest bit closer and closed his eyes… only for them to shoot open as she kissed his nose instead and unravelled herself from his arms.

"… but first put a shirt on," and she waltzed off.

He gawked at her as she sashayed over to where her bag was. How did things do a 180 so quickly? With a frustrated sound, Adrien stood up and stomped over to where his shirt lay on top of his bag. Plagg was sitting on it laughing.

"Oh my god!" he was crying from laughter, "GET AGREKT!"

He swatted the kwami off his shirt. "Shut up."

"She's perfect!"

Promptly flicking Plagg in the forehead, he walked over to where Marinette was talking with her kwami, her back facing him. She was throwing her arms about and doing weird gestures, but all he could do was chuckle at her cuteness.

So of course being as distracted as he was when he tried to put his t-shirt on, he sort got… stuck. Struggling around blind for a moment he sighed.

"Marinette?"

"Ye- oh my god!" he heard her laughing her head off and groaned.

"Could you just help me?"

She was still giggling adorably. "Sure."

He felt hands shift the neck hole of the shirt so that it was in the right place and felt her tug it lightly down, so that his face was visible. Marinette grinned cheekily and jumped forward, pressing a quick kiss against his nose like she had before, leaping away in light feet. Cheeks returning to their pink colour, he grumbled and tugged his shirt down so he didn't look like the Hunchback of Notre Dame, only for one arm to be sticking out of the bottom of his shirt, one of his shirt sleeves unoccupied.

"How hard is it to put a shirt on, Minou?"

Adrien stuck his tongue out at her before pouting. "Where's my kiss?"

"Your shirt is barely even on; doesn't count."

A frown settled on his face, so she giggled and continued with a little smirk, "If you want your kiss so badly why don't you come and get it?"

He smirked back. "I plan to, Princess."

And they both bolted.

That's how they ended up running around like idiots, their kwami watching them from Adrien's bag.

The amount of times that she'd literally slipped right through his arms was killing him. All he wanted was a goddamn kiss, was that too much to ask? (When he asked her that same question she just laughed at him). Groaning Adrien found his last burst of speed and darted forward. When his arms wrapped around her waist and he tugged her into his chest, she shrieked and squirmed around trying to get out of his grip.

"Nope; you're not getting away from me, my lady."

Somehow he managed to turn her around in his arms, so that they were chest to chest with him smiling down at here.

"Hi," he murmured.

Marinette's cheeks went pink. "Hi."

"Can I kiss you now?"

"Fair is fair." Her gaze was diverted.

Gently using one hand to lift her chin with the other still wrapped around her waist. Her arms slowly came up to his neck, fingers softly playing with the hair on the nape of his neck as he leant closer, his hand rising to rest on the back of her head. Their eyes were fluttering softly until their noses brushed and their eyes finally closed. And their lips touched.

It was gentle and chaste and everything that he knew it should be, her lips softly moving against his as her hands tangled into his hair, mussing the waves in the process. He couldn't identify the taste, but all he knew was that her lips tasted heavenly and that she right there in his arms, kissing him. And the cute little hums that she was making were only egging him on, Adrien's arms pulling her closer and angling his own head down further to deepen the kiss. She smiled against his lips and tilted her head too, her hands gripping his hair just the slightest bit tighter.

When they broke apart both gasping for air, he grinned down at her goofily, proud of the pink dusting on her cheeks.

"I hope…" he took a deep breath, "that you enjoyed that at least half as much as I did."

She giggled airily. "I think I liked it just as much if not more…"

"Oh really? Prove it."

Marinette gladly pulled him down for another quick greedy kiss, hands tangling into his hair again. He kissed back just as needily.

She pulled away and his head eagerly followed after her trying to catch her lips again. Barely more than a few kisses and all he wanted was more.

"Quite excited for kisses aren't we?"

"Like you aren't," Adrien muttered, heart still beating hard against his ribcage.

"You're still more eager, Minou."

He stuck his tongue out at her. "I've been waiting longer."

"No you've been waiting longer for Ladybug."

"Marinette followed quickly after that," he mumbled, "didn't take long to make me fall for you twice."

"Wait what?"

A soft grin came to Adrien's face. "I said that it didn't take long for me to fall for you twice."

"H-how long? Did it take I-I mean."

Adrien grinned softly at her, his hands reaching to cup her face softly. "A couple of months after I met Ladybug; you made me feel very conflicted you know."

She was blushing cutely and he nuzzled their noses together, smiling sweetly at her as she leant closer to press another kiss to his mouth...

"He thinks you have a cute butt!"

Adrien's cheeks burned. "PLAGG!"

The girl in his arms blinked for a moment before giggling softly at him and brushing a light kiss against his jaw. "Nice to know."

"This is going to come back and bite me in the butt later, isn't it?"

She nodded and he groaned, resting his head on her shoulder.

All of a sudden Marinette pulled away from him completely, cheeks flaming and her hands holding her face.

"Hey what's-"

"Shirt."

He sighed softly. "And we're back to this again?"

"J-just fix your shirt for god's sake."

After a moment of contemplation Adrien grinned devilishly. "No."

"N-no?"

"No," he confirmed, his smile almost demonic, "because right now I have the upper hand."

And he took the rest of his shirt off.

"PUT YOUR SHIRT BACK ON!"

"NOOOO!"

Which is how Marinette ended up spending the next fifteen minutes trying to get his shirt back on.

If her smile wasn't so cute, he would've been mad at her as she tugged down his t-shirt and smoothed it out carefully with a little cheeky grin. She was humming a little tune as she made sure that it was sitting right before stepping around him so that she could check the back.

"Why do I have to wear a shirt?" he whined.

"Because if someone walks in, they'll either wonder why the famous model Adrien Agreste has so many scars or they'll… they'll think that something was happening…"

"Something…?"

Her frantic gesturing between the two of them and her glowing pink cheeks said it all. Intensely vivid images sprang through his mind, his cheeks turning bright scarlet.

"Oh…"

"Oh," Marinette confirmed.

A long moment of silence drawled out and he turned to smirk at her as a thought struck him. "Too bad… now I can't enjoy you stuttering over my shirtlessness."

She gave him a look. "Seriously?"

"I know you were enjoying the view, Princess," he teased.

Adrien was puzzled when she chuckled. Why was she laughing?

"Well…" she hummed, hands dancing over his back for a moment, "even though your looks are a lovely bonus, I didn't fall for your looks."

"Oh?"

"I fell for the sweet, kind guy who gave me his umbrella and the dorky black cat who reassured me when I was at my lowest point. I fell for him. Not a pretty boy model, but him."

The words were soft, but he heard every one of them and felt his heart swell. How did he get such an amazing girl? (Well she wasn't his girl yet, but after all this turmoil and kisses he is not letting her go; ever).

"I love you, you know that right?"

"Well I sort of fig- mmph!"

She sighed against his lips and sadly pushed him away. "Come on, I actually came here to exercise."

"No!"

"Adrien-"

He wrapped himself around her and hissed angrily. "More kisses!"

"You're such a needy kitty," she mumbled turning around and pressing little kisses all over his face fondly.

"Not needy… just affectionate."

She'd laughed at him and kissed him again.

He purred softly into her mouth. This was definitely not going to be the last of many kisses.

She hummed against his lips sweetly and her fingers raked through his hair.

Definitely not the last.

A/N Before anyone asks: I know that this isn't as good as "To Keep You Warm". I rewrote this fic at least eight times over the two weeks that it had taken me to get to this stage and I'm still not completely happy with it. But I want to be able to say that this is finally done and it is now, so 'YAY'! And now I can say that I didn't pester Dreamwips (an amazing Tumblr fanartist/art/writer) for nothing. So if you want to check out the inspiration for this check out Dreamwips 'Scar' concepts on her blog! Hopefully I'll be back soon with a new fic soonish!

-Blue

P.S This might end up having a second chapter depending on the response from you lovely readers! (The chapter would most likely be about their class going to the beach and Marinette being self-conscious about her scars with Adrien -being the sweetheart that he is- trying to make her more comfortable).