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“Ok. Listen to this. Do you have a name or can I call you mine?”
The fact that Chat delivered the line with a matching tone and smirk only made Marinette laugh out loud.
“Kitty, please, this is too much even for you” she said, brushing a tear from the corner of her eye. She shouldn’t have encouraged him to show off his new lines while on patrol. It was better than him dropping them in the middle of a fight anyway. But her stomach already hurt from laughing.
“Look, I bet that I can easily guess your name so don’t challenge me,” he said, turning up his nose.
“That’s actually funny.”
“You’re not disagreeing,” he noted.
“I’m not.” In fact, she was sure that she was safe only because he wasn’t trying to find out who she was. “I never could guess who you are, though.”
He was a complete mystery. She was sure that she couldn’t get anywhere.
“Have you tried?”
That was a good point. She’d been tempted but never let her mind go there. Until today.
“No.”
“Well, try. If you look carefully, it should be easy.”
He struck a pose, making her smile. Until she realised that he was trying to tell her something.
“What, you’re famous?” She snorted.
“Why? Is it so hard to believe?”
“Yes.”
She should have made the connection if it was someone she saw enough of in her daily life, right?
“That’s a good way of saying that I don’t have a memorable face,” he pouted.
“Kitty, there is literally quantum masking preventing me from seeing how you look,” she reminded him, giggling.
“See, it will fool you only if you let it. Be logical about it, don’t trust the magic. Ok, give me the basics.”
“It shouldn’t be so easy,” she frowned. If it was, anyone would have figured it out.
“You’re looking, but you don’t see. Humour me.”
She sighed. Well, it couldn't hurt. He was wrong after all.
“Blond hair, green eyes, taller than me, athletic build. That’s it.”
She had always seen all this, but somehow it hadn't been enough.
“It doesn’t ring any bells?” He asked, head cocked to the side.
Her eyes narrowed, a strange feeling at the back of her mind. Why did this feel so familiar?
“Come on. It’s my name on the line,” he groaned.
“What… you must really be famous. How likely am I to have seen you around Paris?”
“Hmm, very likely, if you ever look at billboards.”
Her eyes moved on their own. It was right there. The latest ad for Adrien, the Fragrance. Blond hair, green eyes… a literal model! Alya had told her that they looked alike, more than once. It wasn’t hard to see at all!
Marinette shrieked, before clapping a hand over her mouth.
“Ah, now you see,” Chat grinned, satisfied. It was hard to imagine this expression on Adrien’s face, but it was still there.
“Oh my goodness,” she whispered. “You just told me who you are!”
“You didn’t stop me!”
“I was curious,” she admitted, before clutching her head in horror. “Oh dear. What am I going to do? Maybe if I give up the Miracle Box I’ll forget and will be saved from the humiliation. Or I’ll just move to China and live with my great uncle.”
“M’lady.”
“You don’t understand,” she exclaimed. “I turned you down because I’m in love with you. This is crazy. This can’t be happening.”
A hand on her shoulder helped her return to the present to look into a pair of wide green eyes.
“Marinette, you’re overreacting,” he said, sounding calmer than he looked. This was when the name registered.
“You have got to be kidding me.”
“I see,” he said, smiling. “I always did. Well, at least a part of me saw. Also, remember that I know your great uncle.”
“Gaah.”
She had done it to herself. Everything was her doing.
“Now, please, calm down.”
Well, of course that insistent cat hadn't helped.
“Nope,” she shook her head.
“Will you freak out more if I kissed you?”
Her eyes shot up, finding him looking very smug. All her worries took a step back at this moment.
“This got your attention,” he smirked. Of course it had.
“Don’t offer when you don’t plan to go through with it,” she pouted.
“Oh, you want a kiss now?” He asked, amused.
“Adrien!” It was unbelievable that she got to see him acting like that.
“Last chance. Just say the word.”
“You’re bluffing. You won’t miss a chance to kiss me. Even if it’s not now," she shrugged. She felt awfully sure about this.
“Are you willing to risk it?”
In response, she closed her eyes and pursed her lips.
“Come on,” she mumbled.
“M’lady.”
“Yes?”
“Look at me.”
She did and she saw him lean in, his eyes full of something incredible because it was real. He cupped her cheeks as if she was the most precious thing in the world and she realised that she was melting.
“ Now I’m going to kiss you,” he said, his voice like a caress. He was still waiting for her signal though.
“Please.”
She couldn’t even feel embarrassed about her eagerness. She hadn’t realised how much she needed this to happen until now.
Fortunately, he took pity on her and kissed her. It was so warm, so soft. Goodness, she was really melting. It was a good thing that his arms had somehow materialised around her, holding her securely.
“Are you ok?” He pulled back, brushing a lock of hair behind her ear, and she whimpered.
“I will be if you kiss me again,” she admitted.
“So needy,” he said, affectionately rubbing his nose against hers.
“Kitty.”
“At your service, m’lady.”
The way he kissed her didn’t make it seem like a chore for him, exactly the opposite. So Marinette sighed happily, her freak-out totally forgotten for now.