A/N: So, you know the hilariously embarrasing voicemail Marinette left on Adrien's phone in Copycat. I got to wonder what if Adrien got to hear it. Also, while the timeline of the show is relatively loose, there are hints in the episode that point towards it taking place in April. Enjoy.

It had been an innocent Tumblr post that brought it all on. Adrien wouldn't even notice it if not for the recommended posts option the site staff somehow thought more important than bringing replies back. But that was digressing from the point. The point was that Adrien had seen the post and thought it a great idea to check out if the process described in it worked.

It did.

As it turned out, it worked really well. Who knew that the stuff people thought they had deleted from their phones had actually still been in the devices, only in a hidden recycle bin that people could only access when plugging the phones into their computers?

Adrien scrolled through a list of long deleted notifications and voicemails and some less than flattering selfies. (He may have been a model but everyone had at least a couple of those and he was no exception.) He was looking for the voicemail from the day before. He was still convinced that Plagg had been the culprit behind the phone's disappearance, if an innocent one.

He finally found the sound file and pushed the play button. There was a short pause and then came a bright voice he recognized immediately.

"Hello, ah, Adrien's voicemail, eh..."

Marinette was the one who had called him? Adrien smiled. Maybe they were finally getting to the point where they could exchange casual calls because surely, if it was anything pressing, she would have said something earlier at school. Right?

"This is Marinette, who, erm, has a message. For you, of course. 'Cause it's your phone, so, urm, heheh, callmeseeyoulater, bye!"

Adrien chuckled because that was just classic Marinette. He still didn't know why she was so awkward around him but she was reaching out so he took it as a good sign.

He was about to close the file - the message was obviously just an ordinary call between friends - when he noticed it was nowhere near the end. He frowned at the recorded silence and was about to skip further ahead when there was a sigh and then came Marinette's voice again, somewhat muted as if she had been further away from the phone while it recorded.

"Well, what did you expect me to say? Hey, hot stuff! This is Marinette. I'd ask you on a date to a movie but I've got such a crazy crush on you that the only way I can talk to you without foaming at the mouth is over this stupid phone. Pretty ridiculous, right?"

The file ended there and so did Adrien's ignorance. Marinette had a crush on him? That was... that was actually quite flattering. To think that all this time he had thought her to be merely tolerating him for some strange reason. But no, she had a crush on him.

"You're smiling a lot," Plagg said from where he had been curled up on top of the central monitor. "Big deal, your girlfriend likes you, that's how it usually works."

"She's not my girlfriend," Adrien said automatically. Plagg scoffed.

"Sure and I hate camembert."

"She's not," Adrien insisted but even to his ears it sounded doubtful. "Besides, you know I love Ladybug."

Plagg rolled over onto his back, somehow keeping his balance on the edge of the thin screen. He yawned and stretched his paws before he turned his head towards Adrien.

"I know. But she doesn't. She's actually convinced you don't love her. Remember what she said yesterday?"

"Yeah, I do."

Adrien spinned his chair away from the desk. Plagg had just reminded him of something he had been trying to forget. Ladybug didn't think his feelings were genuine. He could come up to her and pour his heart out and she would think it a joke. Maybe he should... no, he couldn't... then again, what was the point... but she... and he...

"Listen kid," Plagg spoke up and Adrien stopped spinning in the chair to give the kwami his full attention. Besides, he was getting dizzy from the spinning. "Ladybug's not going anywhere and neither is your relationship with her. As long as Hawkmoth's out there, you two will be needed. In the meantime, you have a girl who's crazy about you. Why not give it a try?"

"I couldn't do that to her, to either of them," Adrien protested. He couldn't lead someone on, he wouldn't. Plagg rolled his eyes.

"You know you can like more than one person in that way, right?" Without waiting for an answer, the kwami continued. "You like Marinette, I know you do. And she likes you back which is more than you can say about Ladybug."

Adrien looked at the kwami speculatively. Plagg seemed far too invested in this. Most of the time, when it came to Adrien's (lack of) love life, Plagg would snark a bit before letting it go.

"What's with the sudden matchmaking?" he asked, trying to steer his thoughts away from the fact that Plagg was probably right.

"Nothing," Plagg denied far too quickly.

"If you don't tell me-" Adrien paused, trying to come up with a suitable threat. He couldn't withhold the cheese as he needed Plagg's energy for transformations but maybe... "I'll only buy you that cheap brand of camembert you said tasted like sawdust and cardboard."

Plagg's eyes were already big in comparison to the rest of him but the way they widened at the threat seemed to defy all logic.

"You wouldn't!" he gasped. Adrien nodded solemnly.

"I would. Unless..." he trailed off and Plagg sagged down.

"Marinette brings some cheese-filled croissants every few days for both herself and Alya. The scent alone is heavenly and the taste..." Plagg swooned and only the fact he could float saved him from falling off his perch on the monitor. "I never knew you could improve on the taste of cheese but her Dad did it."

"Okay, but what does that have to do with me dating her?"

Plagg shook his head.

"Well, if you dated her, you could ask her to bring you those croissants every day. We could share," he said in a tone that made it clear how much of a sacrifice that would be. Adrien scoffed at him.

"You are a glutton," he told the kwami who shrugged unrepentantly.

"At least I'm not in denial of my own feelings. Seriously, the last time I saw anyone in so much denial, I was still living in Egypt."

"It just wouldn't be fair to her."

"Which one?" Plagg asked pointedly. "I'm not saying you should confess your undying love and propose marriage on the first date but what's so wrong about getting to know a pretty and kind girl, who likes you and has an access to the best croissants in Paris?"

Adrien didn't reply. He didn't want to because Plagg was right. There was nothing wrong with dating someone else. After all, his feelings for Ladybug were onesided. They weren't together and no matter how much he hoped for it to change, he had no guarantee it would. It just didn't sit well with him to give up. Then again, what if he lost a chance at something just as good if not better by trying to keep the status quo?

"Once I figured out which Chat was really in love with me, it was a no-brainer."

Adrien replayed the voicemail again to drown out his memory of Ladybug's words. Ladybug didn't think his affections were real. He had tried to reach out to her, back on the Valentine's Day, but the circumstances had conspired against him. And maybe it was for the better. He could handle her rejection but he didn't think he would have been able to handle her doubting his sincerity. And based on the previous day's events, that's what would have happened.

Ladybug was his partner. He admired her for her courage and strength, loved her for her kindness and determination. He had her trust. Why couldn't it be enough? Why was he being greedy?

Marinette was kind, too. She was determined and brave and strong. She possessed all the qualities that Ladybug did. Maybe he had a type. If he gave himself a chance with Marinette, if he tried to make things work between them, could he find happiness with her?

He knew one thing for certain. Marinette wouldn't become his replacement for Ladybug, nor a consolation prize. If he asked her out and she agreed, he would commit himself to her completely. He couldn't and wouldn't do any less. She deserved nothing less.

Even though he had spent the better part of the night tossing and turning, Adrien didn't mind the lack of sleep. It took him some time to make a decision but once he did, he felt immediately better.

He was going to ask Marinette out. He was going to snatch a little bit of happiness for himself. He wouldn't pine for the unreachable anymore but instead would strive for what was real and tangible.

He was also going to be completely honest with Marinette. He was serious about giving their relationship a go and for that, there couldn't be any secrets between them. Ladybug would probably be annoyed with him for disclosing his identity to someone but he knew Marinette could be trusted. And besides, it was not like Marinette knowing his identity would put Ladybug's at risk. As for the danger to Marinette, he had witnessed first hand how levelheaded she was in a risky situation and he would be with her often enough to protect her if a need arose. It would be her decision to make in the end.

Plagg was acting unbearably smug, though, ever since Adrien had told him about his decision. Not only had the kwami claimed to have called it months ago, he was also excited for the new and exciting opportunities that the reveal would bring him.

"After all, if she knows about me, she can bring me snacks of my own."

Plagg was totally a glutton but he was on Adrien's side in this so it all evened out.

Marinette was for once already in her seat when Adrien walked into the class and he smiled at the sight of her. With his decision fresh on his mind, he felt like he was seeing her again for the first time. He didn't think himself a shallow person but god, she was so pretty. She was giggling about something with Alya, her eyes sparkling in joy. And then she looked past her friend and noticed him and Adrien watched in fascination as her eyes brightened even more even as her cheeks darkened into a very appealing hue of red.

He took it back. She wasn't pretty, she was beautiful. And she liked him. She liked him so much it reduced her into a stammering wreck in his presence. He would be lying if he said it didn't appeal to his ego at least a little bit. But this wasn't about his ego. It was about this incredible person who had been so close to him for so long and he had a chance to make them both happy. Adrien tightened his grip on his bag for a moment before he put it down and sat in his seat.

"Hey guys," he greeted Nino and Alya with nods before he gave all his attention to Marinette. "Good morning, Marinette."

She squeaked at being singled out by him, jumping in her seat and blushing even more.

"Mood gorning... I-I mean, grood moning... ugh... good morning, Adrien," she finally managed to say. He gave her a soft smile and took a deep breath before taking the plunge.

"What are you doing after school?" he asked. She looked at him with wide eyes.

"N-nothing important, just some h-homework," she said.

"Could we talk? There's something I want to ask but it's going to take a while to explain."

She was quiet for a while, just looking at him and Adrien started to worry that the whole voicemail thing was just an elaborate prank but then Alya elbowed her gently and it seemed to kickstart her into an action.

"S-sure. We c-can talk as much as you want. I'll listen to you forever. I mean not forever forever because we don't have that much time, no one has, but I have nothing more important than you, that is, I have nothing important planned so we can talk."

"Great," he told her and turned around in his seat. He would have preferred to keep looking at her for longer but it was probably for the best to let her recover from his request in peace. He heard a muffled squeal from behind and there was a rapid exchange of whispers between Marinette and Alya and Adrien smiled again. He noticed Nino watching him with a dropped jaw.

"Dude!" his best friend breathed out and Adrien rubbed the back of his head self-consciously.

"What?" he asked.

"Did you just ask her out?" Nino demanded in what he probably thought was a whisper. It carried further than that and Adrien was painfully aware of the sudden expectant silence from behind him. Well, honesty could start right now.

"Yes, that is, if she'll have me," he said simply. Nino blinked and then shook his head.

"How can you just say it like that?" he demanded. "Why aren't you a nervous wreck?"

"I am, I'm just good at hiding it."

"Unbelievable," Nino muttered. Adrien set out his things for the first lesson, grinning at Plagg cautiously peeking out of his usual hiding space and giving him the kwami's thumbless version of thumbs-up. The luck was on his side for once.

Marinette was walking beside Adrien in silence. The nerves he had told Nino he was hiding were finally making an appearance. What if she decided that him being Chat Noir was too much of a problem? How come he hadn't realized it sooner? Just because she was more than able to take care of herself didn't mean Marinette would want to risk her safety for him, crush or no.

Did he even have a right to put her at risk by telling her? It had seemed like a good idea last night, coming clean and telling her everything as a sign of his willingness to make things work between them but was he being even more selfish than usual? Wouldn't it be enough to just date her as Adrien, leaving Chat a secret?

Adrien glanced down at the girl at his side. She was looking at the ground, her blush seemed to have become a permanent fixture on her face - not helped by Alya's enthusiastic "Go get him, girl!" earlier - and her fingers were a tangled mess. If he was nervous about this then Marinette was in a full-blown panic mode.

She liked him, he reminded himself. She had most likely liked him for a long time but her fear and embarrassment kept her from telling him. He only found out by accident and if he hadn't decided to make a move, they would still be in a limbo of the previous months. That wouldn't do.

He wanted to date her. He wanted to take her out for movies and ice-cream and romantic walks around Paris. He wanted to introduce her to his father as his girlfriend, to be introduced to her parents as her boyfriend. He wanted her to smile at him because she was happy to see him, the both sides of him. He wanted her to be proud of him.

Adrien almost froze when it dawned on him just how much Marinette's approval mattered to him. Plagg had been more right than the kwami would ever know. He had liked Marinette for a long time and not because she was his friend. That was it. He would tell her everything and leave the final decision up to her. He wasn't going to be a scaredy-cat, not after he had been oblivious to his own feelings for so long.

They finally reached Adrien's intended destination. The series of benches on the bank of Seine was within a short walking distance from the school and it was usually free of people until later in the evening. It was private enough to let Adrien talk freely but not so private as to make Marinette uncomfortable about being alone with him.

They sat down on a bench and Adrien tried to think of a good opening sentence when Marinette beat him to it. Not looking at him probably helped her nerves somewhat since she kept her eyes glued to her shoes.

"Y-you wanted to talk about something?"

"Yes, Marinette, I did," he said and then there was no turning back. "I thought a lot about this and I want to ask you to be my girlfriend. But before you answer me, there are things about me you should know."

"What things?" she asked, her voice breathy and high-pitched.

"If you say yes, which I hope you will, and we start dating, there might be times when our dates get interrupted or called off."

"Your modelling," she said knowingly but Adrien shook his head.

"No. I would make sure that wouldn't cut into our time. It's about the Akuma."

Marinette raised her eyes from her shoes and looked at him properly for the first time since they left school.

"Of course, we would have to get to safety," she said in a tone of realization.

"Not me," Adrien said. "I would be running straight towards the danger because..." He took a deep breath and reminded himself he was going to be honest with her. "Because I'm Chat Noir and it's my duty to fight the Akuma."

There was a long silence after that. Marinette stared at him before she shook her head.

"No, you can't be him."

"I am. I called you Princess the first time we met. When Nathan el was Akumatized, remember? You got us out of his trap on the boat."

He could see the moment when she believed him. She gasped and pressed her hand against her mouth, her eyes widening in shock while looking all over him, probably comparing her memory of Chat to his current self. She wasn't running away yet, so Adrien took it as a good sign. He grinned at her the way Chat would, wide and toothy and he heard her whimper.

"You're Chat Noir," she said. Adrien nodded. "Why would you tell me?" she spoke suddenly. "What about your secret identity? Isn't it important to you?"

"Not as much as you," he replied and the blood that had receded from her face earlier made a triumphant return. "I am serious about dating you, Marinette. If you say yes, I want this to work out but for that, there can't be any secrets between us." She flinched guiltily at that but Adrien carried on without pausing. "I thought and thought about this for hours, whether to ask you out, whether to tell you about being Chat, what to do if you reject me..." He shrugged helplessly. "I decided you deserved to know everything before answering me. Dating me could be dangerous and although I'd do my best to protect you, accidents still happen. If you think I'm not worth the risk, well, I'll respect that."

She bit at her lip, looking down but not at her shoes but rather her purse.

"Why do you want to date me?" she asked.

"Because I like you a lot," Adrien said simply. Total honesty, he reminded himself. "I won't lie and say you are the only girl on my mind. I like Ladybug, too but as I said, I thought about this a lot and if you say yes, I'm going to be with you one hundred percent. This cat may have many flaws but fickleness is not one of them."

"You-" Marinette started to say but had to clear her throat before she could finish. "You're picking me over Ladybug?"

"Yes," he said and hurried to reassure her. "You're both amazing and strong and kind and I guess I do have a type but if I had to pick one then I'm picking you."

She fell quiet at that and Adrien realized with a mounting panic that her eyes were getting wet. What had he said wrong? Why would she cry? It was an instinct that had him reaching out to catch the first tear that leaked out and he didn't expect her to cover his hand with her own and keeping it at her face.

"Before I answer you," she said in a much stronger voice than he expected of her. "Can I meet your kwami?"

"Sure, I have him right here..." Adrien trailed off. How did she even know about kwami? She gave him a trembling smile.

"I believe it goes: I'll show you mine if you show me yours."

She let go of his hand and snapped open her purse and there was a red kwami peering up at them from inside. Adrien didn't know whether to laugh or cry at this. Plagg made that decision for him when he launched himself out of his pocket and dove towards the other kwami.

"Tikki!" he cried out in glee. "Can you believe the irony?"

"Yes, I can," the Ladybug's kwami, Tikki, replied. "This is the fifth time this happened."

"It's still funny," Plagg said with a snicker before he waved at Marinette. "Hi, Ladybug. I'm Plagg. You wouldn't happen to have a cheese croissant at you, would you?"

"Sorry, Plagg, I don't," she said and then she turned to Adrien. "Surprise?" she said weakly. Adrien couldn't help the wide smile that spread over his face.

"A pleasant one, My Lady, that's for sure." He raised her hand towards his lips. "If I could have an answer to my question?"

"Of course, Kitty," she said and took a deep breath, her eyes meeting his and holding. "Yes, I'll be your girlfriend."

Recovering that deleted voicemail was the best thing to have happened to Adrien since he got his Miraculous.

"You called me hot stuff!"

"I'll take it back if you don't stop bringing it up."

"But, Mari. I chose you over Ladybug."

"You're starting to wear that excuse thin, Adrien."

"You know you love me."

"As much as you love me."

"Guilty as charged."

A significant pause.

"You called me hot stuff!"

"Aaargh!"

Additional A/N: I hope to update my two WIPs in this fandom within three days. Akuma battles are hard to write. Also, feel free to track me down at Tumblr: mirime-kisarrastine dot tumblr dot com.