Chapter Twenty-Eight

Finale

As soon as they entered Marinette's bedroom Tikki and Plagg flew up to each other and immersed themselves in a conversation. Marinette was pretty sure she heard Plagg call Tikki sugar cube which was just adorable. She made a mental note to introduce Tikki to Adrien properly later.

"It feels a little weird to have you sneaking into my room as Adrien instead of Cat." Marinette said with an awkward giggle.

"Yeah. It feels a little strange on my end too. I guess it will take a while for us to really get used to both sides being the same person." Adrien said just as awkward.

"I can't believe all those battles with akumas Adrien Agreste was the one fighting by my side and saving my life." Marinette said sitting down on her chaise.

"And you didn't even take the chance to swoon." Adrien said.

He instantly turned bright red, realizing he was out of the suit. Marinette looked stunned at first but then she smirked.

"In your dreams kitty." She said despite her cheeks turning pink.

"I can't believe all the times I was worried about Marinette while she was fighting right next to me. I understand why you couldn't leave the saving to the heroes now." He said sitting down next to her.

"I have to admit it was sweet to know you were worried about me." Marinette said softly.

"But…you thought it was just Cat that was worried about you those times." Adrien said confused.

"I told you I like both sides of you silly." Marinette said.

"How…how long have you liked both sides of me? I mean, I guess you don't have to answer if you don't want to. Knowing that you like both sides is good enough honestly but I'm just kind of curious." He said sheepishly.

Marinette thought about it for a moment.

"Well, I think I liked both sides for a while but I realized it…oh, um…heh this is embarrassing but you remember when I asked you if you would ever date someone like me?" Marinette asked looking at the floor while her cheeks burned.

"Oh." Adrien's voice was a mixture of hurt and concerned. "About that night, I was just still trying to figure out-"

"Adrien, you don't have to explain yourself. It's just that it was shortly after that night that I realized I like Cat." Marinette explained.

"I want to explain myself though. I've hurt you so many times even if it was unintentional. Any time that I can try to explain and try to fix…well, I want the chance to do so." He said earnestly.

"Oh. Um, okay then." Marinette said.

She felt a little awkward about the situation but if he really wanted a chance to explain his reaction that night it would be wrong for her to not give him that chance.

"I was still trying to figure out if I liked Marinette even if she wasn't Ladybug. I thought there was a chance you were Ladybug and Plagg gave me the advice not to pursue you unless I was sure I liked you whether you were Ladybug or not. I didn't want to answer yes or no while I was still unsure. I felt like that wouldn't be fair. But I've been sure for quite some time now. Marinette even if you weren't Ladybug I would still have feelings for you." He said taking her hands in his.

Marinette felt tears forming in her eyes.

"That's…that's something I've always been afraid of. That if I revealed who I was you would only love me because I was Ladybug but not for who I really am. Thank you. Thank you so much." She said.

She removed her hands from his and threw her arms around him. He was shocked at first but hugged her back.

"I'm just glad you guys finally know. Having to hide knowing that Pigtails was Ladybug was excruciating when he was being all drama queen about who he loves." Plagg said.

"H-hey! That's right, you knew and still lectured me when you could've just told me she was Ladybug. And she doesn't need to hear that I was a drama queen. Wait I mean, I wasn't a drama queen at all! Ever!" Adrien said.

Marinette dissolved into giggles as the conversation turned to how often they just missed seeing each other. All the slip ups they made and how it was odd neither one ever caught on. Being able to talk about their adventures like this was nice for both of them. Being able to talk about their superhero lives without the costumes, without any identities to keep hidden. It felt so freeing and safe and open.

"So, what do we do now?" Marinette asked leaning her head on Adrien's shoulder.

"About what?" He asked leaning his head on hers.

"Well, we can't go back to how things were and I don't want to start over so…how do we deal with our lives as superheroes and civilians?" she asked.

It was a good question. If they suddenly seemed really close as civilian's people, like their best friends, would wonder what had happened. As superheroes the answer was easier because obviously they just had to continue doing what they always did, save Paris while watching each other's backs.

"Well, we already said we were going to need some practice getting back into the groove of things. Since ya know the urge to protect my princess while she's on the battlefield will be hard to fight." He said turning to give her a kiss on the top of her head.

She turned bright red at that and Adrien was glad she couldn't see the red blush on his face too.

"You'll just have to remember your princess is a warrior princess." Marinette said not daring to look at his face.

Hearing her say that she is his princess put a big smile on Adrien's face.

"I don't know if I'm going to be able to act normal when I see you in class though." Adrien admitted.

"I don't know if I'll be able to either. Maybe we could just come up with some story to explain why we seem closer now?" she suggested.

"Well…maybe we won't have to come up with a story because…Marinette, I'd like to ask you on a date." Adrien said.

"What?" Marinette asked shocked.

She sat up and looked at him. She was not expecting that after everything they had been talking about tonight.

"I want to properly date you, Marinette. Even if we both like each other I don't think I've earned the right to ask you to be my girlfriend or anything like that so if you would let me I would like to take you out. Would you like to go on a date with me?" he asked sheepishly.

Marinette nearly tackled him with another hug. He was so sweet. She didn't know it was possible to smile as big as she was now, she couldn't help it. She loved everything about this weird flirty model kitty.

"I would love that more than anything, Adrien." She said.

When they both realized it was extremely late and Adrien should probably head home, Marinette went out to the balcony with him.

"Claws out!" he said.

Marinette glanced away as the bright green light enveloped Adrien and when she looked back, Cat Noir stood in his place. She walked over to give him a hug good-bye.

"I love you Marinette Dupain-Cheng." He said into her hair.

"I love you too Cat." She said stepping back.

"And I plan to do everything in my power to deserve it. Good night, Princess." He said bowing and kissing her hand.

"Good night Cat." She said.

He took off into the night and Marinette watched while she wondered if her heart would ever stop beating so loud and quick ever again.

The End

Authors Notes

Well guys, this was it. I hope you all enjoyed the story. Please leave a comment to let me know what you thought. I hope the end wasn't too much of a letdown to anyone. I rarely finish stories but all your support encouraged me to finish it. I would like to thank everyone who ever commented or even just read my story but there are two people specifically that I want to thank.

Mayuralover, you've been here since the beginning and have constantly shown your support by commenting on nearly every chapter. It's meant a lot to see that every chapter was getting some love even when I thought it wasn't a very good chapter. I always looked forward to seeing a comment from you. I appreciated it so much.

AmericanDemigod, you're a more recent reader but you also have commented on nearly every chapter. It was a pleasant surprise to see comments on older chapters just as a reminder that I was still getting new readers. I really appreciated it.

With that said I really appreciate all my readers and any support you all have given me. I hope I returned the favor by giving you all an enjoyable story with a satisfying ending.