Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Marinette hopped off the step at the bakery door and turned the corner on her way to the library, humming along softly to the song that played through her earbuds as she walked in time to the beat down the road. Her eyes stayed on the ground, as she knew the way by heart: two blocks down the street, left a block, right one more time and then she was there. She glanced up as she crossed the road, not willing to test her luck with blindly walking into traffic, as she turned left. The shade that was casted over her from the awnings along the buildings cooled her off, relieving her from the unusually hot sun. Her previous song had just ended and a new one began when she was nearly bowled over by another person who was running down the street. Angry at the interruption, she pulled her earbuds out and turned to yell at the offending person only to come face to face with a flustered Adrien Agreste.
"Oh my gosh Marinette I'm so sorry," he rushed out breathlessly, a small bead of sweat dripping from his forehead and his cheeks flaming red from the horrid mixture of humidity and physical exertion. Marinette, however, thought sweaty, panting Adrien was the best kind of Adrien.
"I-It's fine, A-Adrien," she stuttered, looking around to see what he was running from and finding nothing. "What was running from y- er. I mean, w-what were running you- n-no. What were you r-running from?"
"Uh. Fans," his eyes drifted somewhere behind her and filled with mild horror before he reached out and grabbed her wrist, dragging her along with him as he bolted. "Hide."
Marinette struggled to keep up, despite her alter ego having super speed and strength, Marinette was only helped out a little bit in her civilian form and she was significantly shorter than Adrien, who was running faster than should be humanly possible. "Where exactly do you plan on hiding," she panted, slowing Adrien a little bit with her short legs, "they're right there. They can see wherever you go."
"You live pretty close to here, don't you?" he glanced at her, noting her nod before continuing, "Is there any chance we could hide out at your place?" he received another nod, and a small grin appeared on his face as he rounded the corner and threw himself into the bakery entrance and flung himself to the floor behind the counter, much to Sabine's amusement, as she was manning the register. Marinette fled into the staircase just as the door flung open and almsot twenty people flooded in asking about Adrien. From her hiding spot, Marinette had a straight shot view of Adrien crouched beneath the counter, and from his he could see her pressed flat against the wall in the corner of the stairwell. Upon making eye contact, they both struggled to hold in giggles at the awkward position this was.
Sabine felt Adrien shift subtly against her shin, struggling not to grin as she tried to shoo the fans, "No, I'm fairly certain if a famous supermodel were to have walked into my store I would have noticed, let alone if he barged in as fast as you claim he did," she restated for the umpteenth time, "although you can buy some pastries if you please." This got them to leave. No one likes being hounded about buying stuff they don't want. Although, they're crazy from not wanting pastries from the Dupain-Cheng Patisserie. As the last fan left, the small bell on the door signaling their depature with a small cling, Sabine took a step back and looked at the teenage boy crouched behind her counter. "Hi, Adrien. Would you like a pastry?"
Adrien hesitated, looking up at the short asian woman before quietly responding, "Yes, please."
Marinette burst into laughter, falling to her knees and eventually curling into a ball with tears flowing down her face. "What the heck was that?!" she gasped through the laughter.
"That was the post-release flood of super-fans," Adrien responded with a grin in her direction before selecting a croissant and turning to her. "Now that we're here, do you wanna go play some Ultimate Mecha Strike III?"

Chapter Text

Marinette nods, her stomach still aching from laughing as she turns to head upstairs to the apartment her family lives in. Adrien follows shortly after, skipping steps to reach the girl as she opens her door.
"C-can I get you anything to drink or..." Marinette trails off as she rests her hand on the refrigerator handle.
"Nah I'm good," he responds, shaking his head. "Did you see the new patch for the NAD03?"
"No I haven't, I use the LB-03 all the time so I don't really keep up on patches for other bots. Is it good?"
"Oh yeah," he let out a soft whistle as his eyes widened, "it might be good enough to almost let me win against you." he teased, tapping her shoulder with the back of his hand before he jumped onto the couch and settled in.
Marinette headed over and turned on the gaming console before handing him a remote and situating herself comfortably on the couch, far enough away from Adrien so she could stay focused on the game. She began the match and easily crushed the boy, eliciting a groan of defeat and immediately pressing the rematch button. When he caught her questioning glance out of the corner of his eye he began to defend his loss, "It's the new patch. It's really good, but I'm not very used to it yet so I might be not so good for a while."
Marinette scoffed, her interest in beating him temporarily overcoming her nerves around him as she rolled her eyes. "Sure, Adrien. Whatever you have to tell yourself to make you feel better."
Adrien was mildly shocked by the girl's response, to say the least, as she was usually stuttery and reserved around him. "You'll see," he retorted, "when I beat you next round." He grinned at the television as the next round began, leaning forward with his elbows rested on his knees with intense concentration clearly written on your face.

oOo

With each match they played the fights became increasingly closer, and as they began their eighth round Adrien had a gut feeling that this was the one. This was going to be the round he beat Marinette at her game. At this point, the two were in drastically spots in the room, Marinette was kneeling on the floor, her face mere inches from the screen and Adrien was bouncing around in the back as he shouted about how she must've been cheating. The round began and the duo began to frusiously press buttons on their controlers. Marinette stood from her position on the floor and started pacing back in forth in front of the screen as she played, and Adrien followed her movements to make sure he could see the whole screen at all times. He began walking forwards, climbing over the back of the couch and coming to a stop just behind the pacing girl, all the while maintaining his position in the game. Marinette paused in her pacing and her glare intensified on the screen as her tongue began to peek out the corner of her mouth. She was slowly losing her lead and Adrien was catching up to her.
She grunted as she slammed her fingers harder against the button, "I will NOT," she inhaled once more as she gritted her teeth together, "let you win this game!"
"We'll see about that, Mari" he grinned his eyes narrowing as he focused harder on the screen. The pair were standing shoulder to shoulder now and both were hunched towards the screen. Marinette's face was red and she was panting as she bounced gently back and forth on the balls of her feet, her shoulder a hair away from brushing Adrien's. Her bot began to lose health and her bouncing became a little more agressive. Her shoulder jolted into his and she quickly became flustered, not only forgetting about the game but also nearly dropping her remote, giving Adrien an easy win. Her face flamed as he cheered leaping into the air and running around with his arms raised. Mildly annoyed, the noirette crossed her arms over her chest and glared at him with her eyebrows furrowed.
"Ooh is someone a sore loser," he taunted, chuckling at her face.
"You cheated." she muttered, her face still flaming.
He scoffed letting his head tilt to the side as he responded, "How on earth did I cheat?"
"You distracted me!"
"I literally did nothing, Mari!"
"You did too!"
"Did not!"
Marinette huffed at him once more before her frown relaxed into a small smile. "Well maybe, since you claim to have been doing nothing, you're just a distracting person,"
Adrien snapped his gaze up to meet her's, "Hmm? What was that?" he asked, grinning at the flustered girl, "Do you find me distracting, Mari?"
"Pfffft no you goof," Marinette laughed uncomfortably before walking past him to look at the clock. "Also, I know we didn't have school but don't you still have fencing?"
Adrien looked past her to the wall and his eyes widened, "Oh crap, yes it starts in ten minutes." He looked around and began to put his shoes on as he walked towards the door, "Hey Mari, do you wanna come to class with me?"
Marinette opened and closed her mouth like a fish a few times before managing to say yes.

Chapter Text

The duo waltzed across the street to the school, they're foreheads glistening a little by the time they arrived. It wasn't that hot, but the midday spring heat PLUS the cloudless sky and breeze-less air PLUS the humidity that was weighing down the city created quite the sticky situation. They climbed the stairs, Marinette acutely aware of the closeness of their hands as they walked into the courtyard. She groaned as the heat increased tenfold, the closed area and body heat from the athletes causing sweat to begin dripping down her back.
Adrien obviously shared her sentiments as he loudly groaned, "I do not want to put on more clothing right now," he sighed, gently fanning his face.
Marinette chuckled dryly, gently pulling her white tee-shirt loose from where it clung to her stomach, "Yeah have fun with that, hot stuff," she muttered, her eyes widening and her heart beginning to race once she realized what she said.
Thankfully, she wasn't left to freak out long, as Adrien chuckled softly before turning to head to the locker room. Marinette settled on one of the benches around the edge, thankfully there was one in the shade, and hid her face in her hands.
"Tikki do you ever just. Want to die," she groaned, her face flaming red in embarrassment.
"Well, no, but I don't suffer from human emotions too often so I don't ever feel stuff such as what you're feeling right now." the small bug-like god shrugged her small shoulders from where she peeked out of Marinette's purse, only to disappear again quickly as she noticed Adrien heading in their direction. He already had sweat beading on his forehead and he seemed hesistant to put his helmet or gloves on.
"Hey Mari, you wanna try?" he questioned, and once he saw her flabbergasted expression he quickly backtracked, "Of course you don't have to, it's really hot in here so you don't even have to stay if you don't want," he tried to correct himself, his polite nature becoming overbearing for a moment.
Marinette felt some of her nerves ease as she let out a soft laugh, "Y-yeah, sure. I w-would try to love- er. L-love to try." she stood, following him to the equipment room and immediately regretting her decision as she picked up the equipment. It felt like it would be HOT.
Adrien noticed her hesitation and scratched the back of his neck before heading over to her, "Since you're new I'll go easy on you and you won't need full gear. Just the helmet will probably be fine."
She let out a dramatic sigh and she heaved the clothing back onto the table and grabbed a light mesh helmet instead, "Oh thank god I don't think I would've been able to do that," she muttered, more to herself than Adrien. She felt herself blush even more when he laughed, obviously hearing her comment.
The two headed out to practice with each other, and Adrien soon discovered that Marinette had quite the knack for fencing and was quite the opponent for her first time fencing. They were just beginning to set up for another match when Marinette felt a big fat drop of rain fall on her arm. She lifted her helmet, and looked to the sky, flinching when another drop landed on her cheek. "It's starting to rain," she commented, holding out her hand to feel it.
Adrien tensed and quickly removed his helmet before heading back to the equipment room. Marinette followed him, putting her helmet back with all the others as the group decided to call the class for the day and she followed him back out into the courtyard. They stood quietly underneath the over hang for a moment, and Marinette once more stuck her hand out into the rain. She grinned when it felt warm against her skin, and took a step out into the downpour. Adrien stood slackjawed as he watched the girl in front of him calmly walk through the rain, her bangs sticking to her forehead and her clothes soaking through almost instantly. "Uh Marinette, what are you doing?" he questioned, mildly confused by her behavior.
"The rain is warm, come on it's fun," she responded without taking her gaze away from the sky. Her posture radiated comfort and happiness as she giggled softly and spun around, and the rainbow arcing across the still clear sky only enhanced the image of peace. Adrien stuck his hand out into the water, grumbling and shaking it off before turning to head further under the hangover when he was soaked from behind.
Marinette stood right behind him, her eyes wide open and her feet in the middle of a deep rippling puddle. She flinched a little when he took a step towards her, her stance only relaxing when he splashed her back and followed her into the downpour despite his better judgement. The two played in the rain until their hair was slicked down and their clothes were soaked through. Marinette became a little bashful when she realized her white shirt was basically transparent, but her self conciousness lessened as a strong blush erupted on her face:

Adrien had pulled his shirt up to his face to try an dry it off, reveal the entirety of his toned torso to the love stricken girl in front of him. If she said she hadn't felt her knees get shaky, she would be lying.

Chapter Text

The two soaked teens splash across the street back to Marinette's house.
"We're going to need towels," Marinette called back to her mother who was in the bakery when they opened the front door.
"I don't even like the rain, how did I end up playing in it for that long," Adrien muttered under his breath as he noted the time. Fencing classes were scheduled to end over an hour ago, and his dad would be furious.
Mme Cheng entered the bakery with a stack of towels, handing one to Adrien and the rest to Marinette before wordlessly pointing upstairs to the house.
"Merci, maman," she said sheepishly as she wrapped one towel around her shoulders and led Adrien upstairs to the house. She pulled her hair out of the pigtails and let the wet mess rest on her shoulders as she gathered clothes for Adrien to wear while his dried.
"Marinette you don't need to dry my clothes, I should get going home anyw-"
"No, you're shivering cold because I got you wet so you're going to get warm. Also, it's dinner and my mom won't let you leave without eating anything," the twin-tailed girl shrugged as she handed him a tee-shirt and a pair of sweatpants from her fathers dresser. He begrudgingly took the clothes and headed up the stairs to her room when she told him to. Marinette headed into the bathroom with her clothes and quickly changed from her shorts and sopping wet tee into black leggings and a Chat Noir sweatshirt. She hung the wet towel on the door and headed out up to her room. Gently knocking on the trapdoor, she lifted it when she heard Adrien respond with an "you're good". She turned away from him and softly set the door down before standing and turning towards the model who was standing in her room. Shirtless. Her eyes traveled down his torso against her will, taking in the toned chest and stomach, stopping at the waistband of the slightly too big sweatpants that low on his hips, revealing his v-line, and giving him the gray-sweatpant effect. Marinette tore her eyes away from his body and looked anywhere else in her room, her eyes eventually falling on her small shrine of Adrien photos. Her already flushed face grew redder as she realized she had left him unattended in her room, where his face was the most present thing, second only to the color pink.
"You okay, Mari?" the now concerned and still shirtless boy stepped closer to her, bringing his hand to rest on her shoulder.
Marinette only blushed harder as she made eye contact with him, trying to keep her eyes from flickering down to his chest and failing.
Adrien noticed her gaze drop and felt a smirk cross his face, before he, against his better judgement, took a step back and giving a twirl, "You like what you see?"
Marinette flushed redder than her super suit and covered her mouth with her hand before squeaking a few times and gesturing towards the door. She turned around and was bent over to lift her trapdoor when Adrien once again grabbed her shoulder, STILL SHIRTLESS.
"Hey sorry Mari, I was just kidding. Didn't mean to upset you."
"Upset not me, I mean you upset not me, I mean you did upset me, I mean. You d-didn't upset m-me." she stuttered, her face flaming and her eyes on his chest still, "Let's just. Get your shirt on and get down to dinner before it gets cold."
"Oh, okay," he muttered, pulling the shirt over his head and following the flustered girl down to her dining room.