This is really late, but happy (belated) birthday, Emsy! Hope you enjoy!

A Hairy Situation

Her earrings are beeping, but that's okay. She's on cloud nine, her arms full of Adrien Agreste. And he smells—

Like hairspray. Lots and lots of hairspray. Geez. That stuff is potent, getting right up in her nostrils like a hairspray punch. No more self-indulgent sniffs. She edges her nose back, though she keeps her arms secure around him. This part, at least—the feel of his body close to hers and his arms around her neck—is something she will treasure. (Though she is going to have serious words with Chat Noir the next time she sees him. Why hadn't he turned up for that akuma battle? He's lucky she managed without him.)

"Ladybug, this really isn't necessary," Adrien says.

"But you'll get in trouble if you don't get back to your photoshoot."

"Yes, but …"

Her teeth flash in a brilliant smile. "Don't worry. I'm happy to help."

"But your ear—"

She glances back at him, catching the grimace on his face. (His face, which is so close to hers. She can see the sheen of makeup.)

"What?" she asks.

He bites his lip, looks off to the side. "Your, uh, ears might get cold."

She laughs, bright and easy. "My ears will be fine."

His laugh is more of a restrained Heh. "Right. I guess it's silly of me to worry about your ears."

This time, he pulls an even odder face, like he's just eaten something with an unexpected, crunchy texture. He mouths "What?" to himself and buries his face in her hair so she can't see how red it's turning. (It is redder than the sunsets she sometimes watches with Chat Noir.) She tries very hard not to laugh.

They reach the rooftop of the building where his photoshoot was being held. "There," she says, and tries to place him down, but there's a sharp, wrenching tug on one of her pigtails. A small hiss escapes her. She tries again with the same result.

"Ladybug, you're—you're stuck on my zipper."

"What?" she shrieks.

She tries to twist around to see, but that just creates pain, regret, and much ouch. The zipper on his coat is a chunky thing that isn't the usual Gabriel brand style, and right now it seems determined to eat her hair. Worse, the more Adrien pulls away to try make it "better", the more he seems to get her stuck, drawing her in closer with the relentless tugs at her scalp. The zip won't even budge.

"Don't move!" she exclaims.

He stiffens in her arms, one foot reaching for the rooftop, panic sucking the colour from his face as his eyes go round.

Beep! Beep! Beep!

"Ladybug, your earri—uh, um …" He rubs the base of his neck. "What's that beeping sound? I've been hearing it for a while."

Oh no.

Oh no, no, no.

"I need to get free," she says, trying to hold him with one hand so she can loosen her hair. It seems like the miraculous has strengthened her hair somehow, which is the last thing she needs. Breakages would be better than exposing her identity. She's got barely a minute left before her transformation drops.

This is bad. This is really bad.

She tugs and wriggles, then just makes a frustrated sound as she realises that having an armful of Adrien Agreste is a lot more inconvenient when she's holding him bridal style, is stuck to his zipper, and is trying to free up a hand. There's no way she can make this work.

"You do it," she says.

"W-what?"

"Please!"

He visibly gulps. "Okay, okay," he says, his voice a higher pitch. "I can—"

Beep! Beep! Beep!

"Hurry!" she moans, hopping from one foot to the other in a frantic little dance.

He speeds into motion, but it's terrible motion. First he's too gentle, then he's too rough, and all the while the beeping blares in a countdown and leaves them both sweating with panic.

"It's not coming free!" Adrien squeaks, still fiddling with her hair.

She can't respond, too busy hyperventilating. This can't be happening, this can't be happening, this can't—

"Plagg, transform me!"

Wait, what?

She's holding Chat Noir in her arms. He's got his claws ready to slice through her pigtail, though he snatches his hand back when he sees her hair is already free of the cursed zip. Her mouth open and closes, words lost somewhere on her tongue.

"Hiya," he says, offering a wave and a smile that is too much teeth and like the strain of elastic pulled tight.

Beep!

Her transformation drops in a flare of pink sparkles. Now there is too much weight in her arms and her knees buckle, but none of that matters because she is staring at Chat Noir. Adrien Agreste. And he is her classmate but also her partner, and she rejected him so many times because she is in love with him, and none of this is making sense at all, but also it makes so much sense, and—

"Woah, woah." He leaps out of her arms and catches her by the shoulders before she can collapse in a puddle of racing thoughts. "Lady—Marinette, just breathe."

So she does, taking deep breaths in and out.

He detransforms and bites his lip in a nervous manner. Plagg and Tikki have moved back to give them some space.

"Um, is this better?" he asks.

Her gaze seeks his—warm, summer-green eyes which she has sighed over a hundred times. Except now she can't look at him without also seeing cat ears and a black mask. "It's you," she says.

He nods. "Yeah."

She reaches for his face, touching his cheek and then up to where the mask would cover. Her eyes are round discs of blue. "You."

A laugh shakes his shoulders. "Me."

She crashes into him with a smile. "I'm so glad."

His arms come around her, squeezing in the good way that makes her feel real and him even more so. This isn't a dream. No one is going to shatter this moment. Adrien is Chat Noir. It's not the reveal she'd wanted, not by far, but she doesn't want to lose this knowledge. She doesn't want to lose him.

He smooths his hand along her hair. "Phew. For a moment there, I thought you were going to get mad at me."

"Why would I get mad?"

It's taking everything in her not to squeal with joy and jump up and down.

"Because I transformed in front of you."

"Oh. Right." She hugs him tighter. "You shouldn't have done that."

His chest tremors with laughter, letting her feel the vibration all through her. "You don't care at all, do you?"

"I would be a hypocrite if I did. It's my fault we even got in this mess."

She'd been so caught up in being with him for a bit longer that she'd convinced herself she had more time. Everything had spiralled from there. He'd even warned her countless times, and then he'd—

Her eyes widen and she pulls back to meet his gaze, jabbing him in the stomach. "You were going to cut my hair!"

"I'm sorry!" He raises his hands in surrender. "I panicked!"

She manages to hold her pursed-lips look for a grand total of one second before she caves and snuggles back into him. "Well, I guess I can let you off the hook this time. My hair is still intact. Just make sure you keep your claws away from it."

He slips his fingers through the black strands of the almost chopped pigtail. "What about this? Is this okay?"

Her heart stutters into a tap dance against her ribs. "I-I suppose."

He trails his fingers around to cup her jaw, brushing his thumb over her cheek. "And this?"

She swallows. "Adrien …"

Her voice is soft, more a sigh of breath. The heat spreading over her face is a sunrise of shyness but it's sweet hope as well. Is he doing what she thinks he's trying to do? (The thumping of her heart hopes so.)

"Marinette, I love you," he whispers.

She rises on her tiptoes and kisses him. It's a burst of relief and too many months of pent up longing, and he almost stumbles from the way her passion crashes into him like a wave to shore. His laughter hums against her lips as he wraps his other arm around her waist and kisses her.

After a moment, he pulls back just enough to rest his forehead on hers. "I guess there's something to be said for getting into hairy situations."

She snorts. "You dork."

"Ah, but I'm you're dork."

He says it in his usual over-suave way, but the look in his eyes is hopeful and all plea. Please let me be your dork.

She drags him down by his collar and kisses him again. "Adrien Agreste, I have been in love with you for the longest time. I certainly hope you'll be my dork."