Walking out of the changing room, Marinette couldn't help but feel good about herself. The free Fabletics outfits sent to Ladybug on multiple occasions had finally come in handy. The fit around her glutes were perfect, the leggings appearing almost like a second skin, one equivalent to that of her suit. Thank goodness the outfit was black and not red.

She looked around for Adrien. He said he was here from 7, and now it was 7:30; she just needed to...

As her eyes searched her surroundings, they finally landed on a mop of untamed blond hair lying over a weight bench. The occupant of the hair was, very impressively, lifting, what she guessed, was double his body weight. This was an unexpected yet glorious sight to behold.

Okay, so she might have been slightly exaggerating the weight, but still... phwoar!

She tilted her head to one side, studying the trainer alongside Adrien before looking down at the man himself.

Holy smokes!

He was wearing a grey vest top meaning his biceps were completely on display for her viewing. The tension in them made her mouth water as he effortlessly lifted the weight time and time again. She never realised he was that strong.

"Girls, we've just made it."

Looking to the side, she noticed 'the plastics' were there too, ogling Adrien like he was some sort of meat.

"One more, Adrien," the trainer said as Adrien prepared the bar for one more rep. "Great work today!"

Adrien filled his cheeks with air as he lowered the heavy weight onto his chest, exhaling and lifting it to a full locking, delicious height. Oh goodness! Suddenly her thoughts ran wild with visions of Adrien carrying her completely at ease. Swoon! She could just imagine it now as he cradled her to his chest and took her to safety.

The trainer supported the weight from his hands, helping him drop it on the stand before helping Adrien to sit up. A celebratory handshake, a fist bump, and finally Adrien turned his head, his eyes locking with hers.

He broke out into a wide, wonderful lop-sided grin – one so perfectly Adrien. Standing up, he grabbed a towel and wiped his head, jogging in her direction. He stopped, standing in front of her and slinging the towel around his neck.

"Hey, Marinette."

Adrien swooped down to her level and pressed a kiss to her cheek. The plastics huffing in discontent as Adrien showered her in affection. After kissing her cheek he took her into a hug, her arms remaining at her side and cheeks beginning to grow a wonderful shade of beetroot.

Oh, merde, she wasn't ready for Hercules to come and hug her.

"Sorry," he laughed, slightly embarrassed. He pulled himself away from her body. "I'm probably disgustingly sweaty." He reached up to rub the nape of his neck, his cheeks suddenly containing a tinge of red that Marinette was sure wasn't just from physical exertion.

"It's okay. You can sweat on me anytime." Her eyes widened in shock at what she had just said. "I mean, I want your sweat on my body. No, no – I mean you're fit. Physically. Attractive. I –" she placed her hands over her face and let out a rather large whimper.

"Oh my, what does he see in her?"

"What a mess!"

Marinette looked down, the shame taking over as she heard the plastics commenting on her behind her back. Just what she needed!

"Come with me," Adrien said, placing a hand on her lower back and guiding her away. "Let me show you the ropes. I'm all yours for the evening."

Marinette looked up at him, only to find his stern face glancing over her shoulder and in the direction of the other girls that had been standing and staring. Had he said that for their benefit? Or was he just trying to save her from the girls' bitterness?

"Okay," she breathed out, allowing him to guide her around the venue. They'd walked in silence when, without warning, Adrien stopped and looked towards Marinette. Her knees went weak from the glistening joy in his eyes. Maybe it was the endorphins from his workout? But she couldn't help the little thrill inside that it might be for her.

"I'm sorry about them. I call them 'the plastics'. I know, I know, it's not nice to call people names. But they just remind me of 'Mean Girls'."

Marinette giggled, using one hand to cover her mouth.

"What's so funny?" he asked, a slight laugh leaving his mouth.

"I call them the same thing."

He broke into a delicious grin.

"Well, Glen Coco, what brings you here? It doesn't seem like you need to work out. You look pretty impressive without the need for all of this. I mean, your body's amazing... You're really toned... your legs are perfect... your glutes... your... oh boy!" She watched him close his eyes: obviously she wasn't the only one accustomed to verbal diarrhoea. "You look good, Marinette. How come you're here?"

She cringed. Was she going to tell him the truth?

I mean obviously it would be good for him to know. if he's been here a while then maybe he knows some of the guys, or maybe he might want to throw his own hat in the ring. She stood frozen, staring at him as she had an internally monologued about how to respond.

She was 19 years old, and by now she should've been able to talk to Adrien... her friend, her buddy, her gym partner who was wearing joggers that clung delectably around his assets. Even with the huge sweat streaks under his armpits and down his back, he was still a God walking this Earth. Calling him Hercules previously was nowhere near good enough for this look.

"Promise you won't judge?" she finally answered, deciding that honestly was the best policy.

"Never," he stated.

"Swear on your anime collection."

He gasped and moved his hands over his heart, one on top of the other. "You fiend!" he exclaimed, his eyes sparkling with amusement.

"A girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do." She crossed her arms over her chest, pushing a hip out to the side as she raised her eyebrows at him; Adrien broke out into a guffaw of a laugh.

"You drive a hard bargain, Mlle. Dupain-Cheng, but yes, I swear on my anime and manga collection. Which, by the way, I think you still have at least 6 of?"

"That was four years ago, Adrien. How can you remember?"

"I remember a lot about you, Marinette." They stood staring, her stomach doing some weird somersaults and a hard fluttering she'd never felt around him before. Maybe it was gas? What had she eaten before coming this evening? Nothing? Damn, she was hungry, that must've been the reason. Once she'd finished here, she'd go search for a Big Mac or something.

She sighed, Adrien standing looking at her expectantly. "Ok, so you know Ladybug is writing a dating blog? I - um - I thought I might follow it." She hadn't realised her hands were winding around each other in front of her – a nervous twitch from telling her crush that she was here actively trying to find someone to date.

"And you thought of a gym as a good place to look?" He raised an eyebrow at her, his lips pulling deliciously with it.

"It just fits in with my schedule. Plus, it's close to ESMOD and mine and Alya's apartment." She shrugged. "It just seemed a good option," until I saw you, she thought.

"Awww, the girl pad. I still haven't had a chance to come and visit. Maybe, if you'll have me, I could come see it soon—bring Nino with me? Pizza too?"

Her heart began to rejoice and sing fluffy love songs. Would she ever not want this guy? "You drive a hard bargain, Agreste," she pondered. "I might give you your missing manga back too." She winked, froze, then whimpered. Within their exchange, she seemed to have forgotten who she was talking to. It had become so easy and fun, just like when she was talking to... no! Oh no!

How had her brain got Adrien and Chat mixed together?

"That would be cool," he said casually. Thoughts still caught up in how Chat Noir had squeezed himself in her head, and she'd missed the look Adrien had given her. The one that always made her weak in the knees. "So," he coughed, "any options for possible dates so far?"

She looked up at him, pink bubbles surrounding his head as she fluttered her eyelashes and said in the most sultry and sexy voice she could muster up.

"You, Adrien. It's always been you."

He bent down and picked her up, swinging her around, both giggling. He lowered her down and began to caress her face, his smile to die for as he moved in closer and closer, his eyes studying her lips like they were the stars in the night sky.

She closed her eyes and puckered her lips, ready to meet his... closer, closer and...

Cue the record scratch because what actually happened was she panicked. She panicked hard, which ended up with her pointing to a random guy stepping up to the cycling equipment. "Him?"

She winced, and from the way Adrien's body tensed next to her, he was wincing too. The guy, who she thought was named Paul, stepped up to the machine with a tee soaked in sweat. Sweat that, unlike Adrien's attractive man lines, had taken over his top, and she couldn't work out if it was originally grey or black.

"Him? Really?"

Adrien's shocked voice only added to the internal berating she was giving herself. Her lips screwed up, eyebrows frowning as she nodded.

"Yep," she squeaked out, "him."

"Marinette, I don't want to judge your tastes in men. But are you sure? I mean, he's not exactly the same standard as Luka is he?"

She couldn't help the noise that escaped her mouth; not sure if it was from her awful choice in men or because Adrien had brought up her one and only previous relationship. She looked between Adrien and Paul again. Dammit, she would have to commit to this now.

"I want to try something different from Luka." She mumbled, and what the hell was she thinking? This was on the complete opposite end of the spectrum.

"Different is definitely one word to describe him. The dude just put a can of Pringles in the bottle holder."

"Perhaps he's just on a high carb diet?" Now she was just talking out of her ass. Oh dear Lord!

"Well," Adrien seemed to sigh defeatedly. "If that's what you want, let's go get him."

"What?" Her voice raised at least four octaves. Adrien wasn't actually going to help her with this, was he?

Marinette had never wanted to be swallowed into the depths of hell more as Adrien gave her a slight push in the direction of Paul and his Pringles, Pringles Paul. She looked at his hair slicked back into a ponytail; her brain trying to figure out if he was sporting a perm.

Adrien tapped her on the shoulder, dropping her a 'go get 'em wink' before he made his way to the treadmills. The machines where she would meet him once she had gotten herself a date. A date she didn't want to go on and with someone who seemed to be more interested in getting Netflix on his bike's screen than actually doing any type of physical exercise.

She turned back to Adrien, catching an expression on his face she hadn't seen before, one that made her heart weep. He looked sad, and she had no idea why. He noticed her staring and changed the look to his usual smile, the one she knew he used when he thought that's what people wanted to see.

Adrien gave her two thumbs up, the nod of his head a clear sign he wanted her to go for it. Taking a deep breath she turned back and walked up to Pau; her dreams moving further away with each and every step she took.

"Hi," she said, "Paul is it?" She already hated every moment of this.

"Hey. You're that flexible girl, right? Quite impressive."

She watched as Paul selected the latest episodes of what looked to be some type of horror show and popped the lid of his Pringles, his legs starting slowly on the machine and his mouth munching on the rather large amount of snack he'd taken from the tub and shoved into his mouth.

"Oh, um, thanks. I was just wondering if you fancied grabbing a drink sometime. I'm new here and wanted to make some new friends." There was no chance she was implicitly asking this guy out on a date. Yes, she thought she might have to date around, but as Paul reached into the tub again and shoved another lot of potato snacks into his mouth, Marinette was sure he was 100% not her type.

"Sure." He sprayed crumbs over Marinette in response to her question. Her body cringed at the disgusting display in front of her. Had no one ever told him not to talk with his mouth full?

Taking a deep breath, she forced a smile. "Great. Have you got your phone on you? I'll give you my number?"

He handed her his phone, asking her to name herself 'Flexible Girl' before agreeing to meet her at a local Italian restaurant the following evening. She wasn't sure whether to celebrate because she had something for the blog or cry because she would have to go on a date with this guy. A guy still shoving Pringles in his mouth like a starved man and laughing at someone being beheaded by a chainsaw.

Crying seemed like the best option.

Turning around, she walked over towards where Adrien was programming a couple of treadmills. She gave him a fake smile followed by two thumbs up, walking to stand beside him and watch how he was setting the machines up.

"It went okay then, I take it?" He wasn't looking at her. His eyes firmly placed on the equipment and pressed buttons instead, each beep causing her heart to plummet.

"We're going out for food tomorrow night, more of a 'getting to know you thing' than a date."

"Hum." Adrien continued what he was doing before indicating for Marinette to step up onto the treadmill as he positioned himself on the one beside her.

They began to move in tandem in a steady paced walk at a slight incline. She gazed over at him, slightly moving her head to see what he was doing. His jaw was set in a position that made his cheekbones razor sharp. His face was pure perfection, and even though Gabriel Agreste was an asshole, he'd created something wonderful in Adrien — inside and out.

"Are you going alone?" Adrien's words came out of thin air. He still wasn't looking at her. Instead, he reached forward and changed the setting on his machine, increasing the speed and taking himself into a slight jog.

She moved towards her controls, matching his speed and then setting it a couple of paces faster.

"Yes."

Adrien stretched forward again, upping his speed to double Marinette's. The fencer was able to make it look effortless as his feet pounded against the track like an Olympic marathon athlete.

"Do you think that's safe? You don't know the guy?"

"I'll probably tell Alya. She knows I'm following the blog, and as she's always on her phone, she'll come and save me." She looked to the side and studied Adrien's speed, increasing hers to match before pushing herself 5 extra paces.

Adrien turned his head to look at her, the quick action causing her to stumble a little and lose her footing. She grabbed hold of the bars and jumped, putting her legs out onto the still surface before looking down and preparing to reset her pace. She counted to five in her head before jumping back on and continuing her pacy run. She looked up and over to Adrien, only to notice he was staring in the direction of Paul, his jaw once again set in stone.

One thing Marinette always admired about Adrien was his eyes. They always sparkled with mischief and curiosity, love and compassion but right now, he looked more daring and dangerous. Right now, the glint was one of extreme protectiveness; her stomach doing that funny flutter again.

She looked down, checking her feet were still moving in rhythm and time of the machine. 1 – 2 – 1 – 2 – 1 – 2. She was back on track when the beeping next to her startled her.

Adrien had increased both the incline and the speed. His feet were pounding hard against the track, sweat coating his hair, head, and shoulders. This is what sportswear commercials were about. Pure male masculinity and swoon worthy biceps. Okay, maybe that was just her. But the view was mesmerising. She looked out in front of her, noticing 'the plastics' were all stretching, each of them presenting specific body parts to Adrien. The sight was enough to make her gag.

Marinette looked down at the control panel and then at her legs. She was moving well, had a regular pace and, to be honest, it was feeling quite easy. She looked again at Adrien's settings and decided to match, pressing the button to raise the front of her track before increasing the speed.

"Don't worry about Alya," Adrien said, his voice barely heard over the erratic thud of their feet.

Marinette began to move backwards a little, struggling to maintain her speed at the selected incline. She knew Adrien was talking but, right now, she needed to concentrate on what the machine was doing, and not falling off; pushing herself she climbed up and back towards the controls. Once she was there, she could decrease the incline and maybe slow it down a little. She'd just made it to the top when Adrien's words hit her with an impact equivalent to driving very fast into a very hard wall.

"I'll come with you."

Those four little words caused her legs to tangle into an intricate web of limbs. One greater than the power of her yo-yo as she lost all momentum and timing before being thrown backwards off the machine. She closed her eyes tightly, bracing herself for the impact, only to be cushioned from the blow. She continued to stumble backwards; however, when they hit the wall it wasn't her back that had taken the impact.

The sound of air leaving someone's lungs was the only indication someone else had taken the brunt of the fall because right now, she was numbly looking at the two empty treadmills.

He'd saved her.

Adrien Agreste had saved her.

Coming back to the present, she felt the tightening around her waist and Adrien's chin on her shoulder as he breathed heavily into her ear.

"Are you okay?" His hot breath hit her shoulder and sent a shiver down her spine. She closed her eyes and moulded herself into his body. His arms were firmly wrapped around her waist, protective and secure, and his body cradled her perfectly. It was a place she wanted to stay in forever — his body to hers.

"Yeah," she whispered.

Her eyes opened once more, and her hands moved from where they'd placed themselves on top of Adrien's. "I'm okay."

He spun her around in his arms, her eyes coming into contact with his. The sweat between them was forgotten as Marinette got lost in the eyes that filled her dreams day after day. She watched his Adam's apple move as he gulped and placed his hands on her hips, his eyes never leaving hers as he steadied her once more.

"I think we need to take things slower," he whispered. A slight husk in his voice as his chest moved with deep, settling breaths. Her own hands braced herself on his upper arms; the feel of his skin against hers only added to the mortification of the situation.

"Slow and steady wins the race, right?"

He smiled – his perfect, white straight teeth.

"Just watch out for the false starts."

Marinette wasn't sure they were just talking about the running machine anymore as he continued to keep his complete attention on her, her legs threatening to give way and leave her in a heap on the floor.

One of his hands left her hip, the cool air hitting the spot and sending a chill down her spine, his hand slowly guiding itself to her face, where he pushed a stray strand of hair from where it had placed itself on top of her eyelashes. He moved the small section of hair behind her ear, gently brushing her skin as his fingertips passed. She melted into the touch, allowing her eyes to close and memorise every feeling and effect.

Marinette's dreams from the past resurfaced. Her, Adrien, three kids, a hamster... then the warmth of his touch disappeared as did the dream, only to be replaced by a rather large, black cat.

Her eyes shot open to find Adrien had moved away. His hand travelled to the back of his neck as he rubbed against his skin. "We better turn the machines off."

He walked past her, concentrating on the task at hand, leaving her heart empty and alone. She looked towards where Paul was still on the cycling machines, laughing to himself and eating his Pringles before turning her attention back to her friend.

Oh, how she wished Adrien would be the one on the date with her!