Marinette

She sat down on her chair, leaning back, a sudden memory coming to mind. Alya had a crazy picture of Adrien dressed as Chat Noir. It was infuriating. Her friend didn't know the feline like she did. Chat Noir was a person with terrible puns and rather talkative, whereas Adrien wasn't.

But, the more she'd think about it, the more she'd realize they were indeed similar. The blonde hair and green eyes were one thing. If she could try to recall properly, they would be about the same height. Although it could be coincidental, she thought.

Adrien was calm and collective. Chat was wild and bold. They were nearly opposites.

There was no point in sitting around, she thought. Now was a good time to leave for school. Marinette stood up, grabbing her bag. Tikki perked up, following her.

It had been a rather quiet walk to school that day. Late at night, there had been an akuma attack. And, since then, the two hadn't really gotten a good rest.

After all, it was the first attack where things had gotten out of hand. Chat's left arm had a rather nasty gash after he had tried to dodge an attack. And after cleansing the little akuma, and everything was to revert to its original state, it didn't heal.

It freaked her out to no extent. Miraculous Ladybug didn't work. It didn't work. It reversed everything but his injury.

"I'll be fine. It's not like I broke it. You seem pretty worried, my lady."

She still didn't believe those words. It had kept her awake for quite some time. Here she was, wide awake, making her way to school. Both her and Tikki were quiet, deep in thought. The kwami was working out as to why the injury of Chat hadn't healed. One theory was that wounds wouldn't heal. But that was a loose thread. If buildings and structures could be repaired, why not an injury? Marinette had a pang of guilt inside, knowing all too well it was partially her fault her partner had gotten injured.

Her mind was racing back and forth through that akuma attack, that she had finally snapped into reality after realizing she collided into someone.

And unfortunately, it had to be Adrien. Immediately, she turned red, stuttering an apology as she quickly got up and offered her hand.

The blonde smiled in return. It was then, she noticed the white bandage around his left arm. The same area Chat had that gash. Her blue eyes were immediately fixed on it, concerned. Adrien caught on, letting put a nervous laugh.

"It's no big deal. I ran into something sharp last night and I didn't see it," he said.

What a stupid lie, she thought. He had been extremely vague as well. Nevertheless, she let out an 'oh' and naturally, a 'get well soon,' while pathetically stuttering.

Adrien was really Chat. She had been a fool to never realize properly. Perhaps, she had a feeling it could've been him at some point. But she simply couldn't believe it. Maybe it was considered a 'dream come true' but it was a nightmare. She had been the reason Adrien got hurt.

And... they acted like different people. It couldn't be him.

All in all, she simply refused to believe it, as though it never happened. She shut out the possibility, knowing that was too good to be true.

Adrien

He had always wanted to know the person behind that red mask. But, what would he do then? What was the point, if it was someone he never took notice of? What if it was someone that didn't like him, or he didn't necessarily like?

Adrien's eyes casted downward as he sighed deeply. It had been a week since he had injured his arm. There weren't any akuma attacks the past few days. Ladybug seemed pretty worried. It was almost reassuring, knowing she cared.

He then remembered the Volpina incident. She would've taken her earrings off for him. That meant, she knew him. It meant he and Ladybug's identity know each other. And, his social world was currently his class. She had to be someone he knew.

Adrien's face heated up at the thought. Ladybug liked him. Perhaps that was why she never said anything to Chat.

But he knew his classmates all too well. And every single one of them had been akumatized at least once. Except for Marinette. It was possibly coincidental, though. She was a rather patient person, never really getting mad or upset easily. And, he couldn't exactly see her as Ladybug. She was a rather shy girl. Ladybug was a brave girl.

Still, the possibility hang.

He heard an explosion, and the conclusion already popped. There was another akuma attack. "Plagg, transforme moi!"

_._._._._._._._._._._._._._

"Miraculous Ladybug!"

Chat noticed how she flinched when Chloe furiously shook her hand. Concerned, he pulled her to the side, asking, "What happened to your hand?"

"I burnt myself earlier," she said as a matter of factly.

"I burnt my hand this morning when I took bread out of the oven."

It struck him all too quickly. His green eyes were wide with realization.

"Marinette?" he whispered stupidly, realizing his error a moment too late. Ladybug's eyes widened as she then grabbed her yo-yo and left, not saying a word.

He was an idiot.

Marinette

Adrien had come over for another round at the game her class played. She accepted, feeling it was good practice. The next challenge with her classmates was tomorrow after school.

Besides... it was a good way to forget that Chat Noir knows her identity.

That one fact had her drowning in despair. Chat found out. Chat found out.

"Marinette?" Adrien suddenly asked, snapping her back to her room.

"S-Sorry," she stuttered, lowering her game console.

"I... I have something to tell you," he then said, scratching the back of his head nervously.

Curious, she looked at him.

"Plagg," he said, tugging on his white jacket. A little black figure popped out. It was similar to Tikki, she automatically noticed.

And then she noticed it was a tiny black cat.