As they walked into the gym Marinette looked at the signs and groaned. "Basketball, why does it have to be basketball?"

Her friend smirked. "Look on the bright side Mari, we are in teams of two. And you're with Adrien."

"Thats even worse." She was borderline hysterical, squeaking and frantically waving her arms. "I can barely walk without falling over. In a clutz. And you know what that boy does to me. I can't even speak. Basketball is very dangerous."

"Youll be fine Mari. Ill purrtect you," a new voice spoke up from behind her. It was Adrien. Marinette blushed and inwardly screamed. How much of that had he heard? He was so beautiful.

"Was that a cat pun?" She was used to hearing them from Chat, but Adrien? He was supposed to be perfect. It was nice to see he had a sense of humor. But really?

"I saw your shirt. It's pawsome... but I'd expect you to be more of a ladybug person"

She looked down. Of course, she was wearing a Chat Noir tshirt. She blushed. "Thanks. I like ladybug and chat. Umm. Should we practice?" Marinette gestured towards a pile of basketballs.

"Sure. I'm actually pretty good at basketball, should we work on passing or shooting?"

"Both. If you haven't noticed, I'm a bit clumsy." Marinette giggled and grabbel the basketball. She threw it in Adrien's general direction. It wasn't great, but "you caught it?"

"I got skills partner." Why did he sound so familiar?

...

Thats how it started. Marinette was actually able to speak with Adrien. She forgot about her crush and focused on the competition. They could win. They were going to win. They were-

"Mari, watch out!" He had such a beautiful voice. He sounded panicked. Worried. She loved him so much. What were they even doing now? Time froze. She glanced up, only to see Adrien rushing towards her, tense and afraid. Why was he afraid? He was so smart. Talented. Brave. Kind. Good at basketball. Wait, she was playing basketball. Where was the ball? She looked up.

It was headed straight for her.

Shit.

Everything went dark.

...