Marinette was going on a date with Nathanaël? Did she like him or something? "Wow... Never saw Marinette and Nathanaël coming." Nino remarked, shuffling through his bag for something.

"Dude, please. Stop." I said, still stuck on the idea of Marinette going out with Nathanaël.

"Ooh, why, is Adrien jelly?" Nino asked, sitting up, holding a textbook.

"What? Psh, no!" I said coolly, waving Nino off.

"I don't know, bro." Nino said, zipping us his bag.

"I don't.... have a... thing... for Marinette." I said, doubting myself.

"Denial is the first response." Nino shrugged, beginning to walk off.

I followed after him, only to have Alya shoot out across our path. "Alya-" I started.

I turned to watch her flee, grinning idiotically. "Marinette!" Nino exclaimed.

I whipped around to find an extremely flustered Marinette. Her shirt was soaked through, revealing a rather dark undergarment. I was blushing furiously as Marinette winced and tripped backwards into the bathroom. "Oh crap." Alya said, approaching the door and pushing it open.

She disappeared, and a confused look was shared between Nino and I. "Bro, your face is so red. Are you sure you don't-"

"I'm sure! I mean- her clothes-" I said, my voice coming out rather high.

"That's enough, you perv." Nino joked, punching me playfully on the shoulder.

Pervert. Remembering Ladybug made me even more confused. I mean, I would go so far as to say I was in love with her, but with Marinette... I wasn't sure if I wanted to keep her safe or if I actually had a thing for her. "Marinette!" A whine broke my thoughts.

I looked over to see Marinette bump into a smug Nathanaël. "Shall we?" He asked smoothly, holding out an arm.

"Al-alright." Marinette mumbled, slowly taking Nathanaël's arm.

Against my better judgement, I decided I needed to play spy. "Bye Nino, bye Alya." I said hurriedly, waving quickly before stealthily following after Marinette and - shiver - Nathanaël.

I silently watched from across the street as they walked into an ice cream place. Marinette held a hand up to her mouth, politely giggling. Nathanaël held the door open for her, and I couldn't help feeling extremely overprotective. As soon as the door shut behind the two, I jaywalked across the road and entered the creamery. My nose was assaulted by smells of sugar and syrup. Children's dreams were made from this scent.

"Thanks, Nathanaël." Marinette was saying.

"Call me Nath." He smiled, leading Marinette to one of the darker and more secluded booths.

She slid in next to him uneasily, and I watched as a shiver ran through her. Nathanaël leaned his head down to say something to Marinette, who in turn shook her head. Nathanaël smiled before putting an arm around Marinette's shoulders. "You gonna order something or stare at those two lovebirds?" An accented man asked me, swiping a cloth over the counter.

I walked up, sitting on one of the stools. "I'll have... whatever the lady with the blue hair had." I said.

"Not creepy at all. The Marinette kid?" He asked, shuffling among the cabinets lining the back walls.

"Uh, yeah. You know her?" I asked back.

"Oh, yeah. She's a regular." He said fondly.

I nodded in understanding, waiting for my ice cream. "Here you are. Cherry-chocolate-chip." He pushed the little glass bowl my way.

"Cherry-chocolate-chip?" I asked, disbelieving.

"I usually only do custom flavors for people I like, but I can see your concern for little Marinette over there. Means I like you." He said, trying to eradicate my confusion.

"Oh." I finally looked down at the dessert, finding it a vivid red, dotted with little black dots.

Just like a ladybug. I thought, pressing a bill on the counter. "Psst." The man whispered.

"Hmm?" I looked up at him.

"Best place to spy on any booth is over there." He said, pointing to a seat.

I nodded in thanks before moving over to the spot. Marinette appeared uneasy as Nathanaël continued to talk to her. She answered everything he asked, laughed politely and didn't make a scene. It seemed really fake to me. When I had almost finished off my ice cream, I looked up again, only to find Nathanaël leaning extremely close to Marinette, and Marinette leaning away from him. Now was my chance to take action. I stood and approached the booth the two were sitting in. "Oh, hey Marinette! And Nathanaël! Fancy seeing you here." Nathanaël jolted upright in surprise and Marinette blushed, a smile breaking out on her face.

"Adrien." Nathanaël responded blankly.

"Hi, Adrien! C-care to ice cr-cream s-some h-have - I mean, h-have some ice c-cream with me- I mean u-us?" Marinette stuttered out.

"Sure, Marinette. If your... date... doesn't mind." I said.

"No. Please, sit." Nathanaël said bitterly.

"Why thank you, Nathanaël." I said smugly.

I slid into the booth, next to Marinette. "Anytime. Any friend of Marinette is a friend of mine." He said, emphasizing the friendship.

"Wait, wait, wait, wait." Marinette said, looking between Nathanaël and I.

We were glaring at each other. His face was angry while I was sure mine was relaxed, a smirk playing on my mouth. "Do you guys have some... beef...? Or something between slash against each other?" Marinette asked, pointing at me, then Nathanaël.

"No, no, we're fine, babe." Nathanaël assured Marinette, his arm sliding from her shoulders to her waist, pulling her closer.

"Wh-what? Uh, Nathanaël, what? Slow down, there." Marinette laughed nervously, pulling Nathanaël's arm from around her waist.

She then proceeded to scoot away from him, into me. "S-sorry." Marinette said, scooting back over, in the center of our group.

"Don't worry about it." I said, putting an elbow on the table and resting my head on my fist.

Then, as though the message wasn't clear, Nathanaël slid over closer to Marinette, and she squeaked, moving over to collide into me. "I'm not even going to apologize." She said, squishing into me.

"I don't blame you." I said, standing up.

I held out a hand to Marinette, which she took, a grateful smile on her face. "Where are you going?"Nathanaël asked, grabbing Marinette's free hand.

"Let me go,Nathanaël." Marinette said, not bothering to turn around.

"No, no. Adrien, are you trying to steal my date?" He asked, tugging Marinette back into the seat.

"Nathanaël!" Marinette said, trying to pull her hand away.

"No. Let her go,Nathanaël. She's uncomfortable." I warned.

"Answer the question."Nathanaël responded.

"No. I'm trying to rescue her." I said.

Marinette tugged her hand free ofNathanaël's, and she stood suddenly, bumping into me. "Marinette, get back here."Nathanaël reached for Marinette's back as I tugged her away.

"Step back,Nathanaël." I said, pushing Marinette behind me.

We backed away before I turned around, gently leading Marinette from behind. "Th-thanks." Marinette said.

"Hey, anytime. Are you alright? You seemed uncomfortable." I said, putting an arm around Marinette's shoulders.

I glanced at her face to find it flushed a deep pink. "He was being so weird. That's not theNathanaël the I thought I knew." She said, shivering.

Or rather, shuddering, to be accurate. "People can surprise us sometimes." I said.

"Where are we going?" Marinette asked, allowing me to lead her away.

"To your house." I said, smiling.

"No, no. That's fine. I'll get there myself." Marinette said, suddenly ducking out from under my arm.

"It's no trouble re-" I began.

"Please, thank you, but it's a-alright." Marinette said, backing away, two hands out in front of herself, as though telling me to stay.

"Are you sure?" I asked.

"Y-yes. One percent hundred - One hundred percent." She said, coming towards me and patting my shoulder.

"Okay." I said, patting her hand, which was still resting on my shoulder.

We parted ways then, but I was only a few steps away when something rammed into my foot. "Plagg!" I exclaimed, reaching down to scoop up the little kitten.

How had he gotten free? "Huh?" Marinette asked, turning around.

"Oh, not you, my cat. He's gotten loose somehow." I said, showcasing the cat.

"Ooh! A kitten!" Marinette said, launching quickly towards me.

She marveled at Plagg before raising a hand above his head in a silent question. I nodded before Marinette held her hand out in front of Plagg, which he sniffed before purring. Marinette beamed before stroking Plagg's head. "Oh, who's a pretty kitty? You are." She said, scratching Plagg's ears.

"You can hold him if you-"

"Yes! I me-mean, y-yes, pl-please." Marinette said, standing back up straight, looking down embarrassed.

She glanced up from beneath her thick eyelashes and I laughed, handing her my kitten. Before even properly placing him in her arms, Plagg jumped onto Marinette. He licked her face and she giggled, cradling him in arms. A light blush spread over her cheeks and nose as she tickled the kitten. "Thanks." Marinette said, handing Plagg back to me. 

"Yeah, it's no problem. See you around then." I smiled.

"Oh, of course. Goodbye." Marinette waved before skipping off.

"What a cutie." She said.

Oh, how true, Plagg was certainly adorable. "Of course he's a model."

I was sure I had mistaken her words.