"Hey Princess, do you still have some sewing commissions this weekend?" Adrien asked after their class ended

"No, I don't have one yet, Kitty. Why?"

"I would like you to fix something for me," the blond said as he scratched his neck incessantly. "I...somehow damaged an important item that was given to me as a gift."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. Did you bring it with you?"

"Oui," he answered then rummaged something in his bag. "I'm not sure if it was Plagg's fault or what but the threads are starting to get loose."

Marinette felt like someone punched an air out of her gut when he presented her a blue scarf.

The exact scarf that she gave to him on his birthday.

"It's my most favorite scarf since it's blue and so comfy during winter," he told her. "Did you know that my father gave this to me on my birthday?"

"Y - Yeah! I - I heard you when you told Nino about it!" she sputtered as she averted her gaze from his green, observant eyes. "Y - You were so happy about it!"

"I see."

There was something odd on his tone but she brushed it off casually. She pried the blue scarf from his hands to check the seams.

"You might have snagged it by accident. Probably a zipper or some sharp item when you put it in the laundry."

"Is it repairable?"

"Of course," she told her with a wry smile. "O - Once I found the exact shade and quality of the yarn used here, I - I can finish this in just a day."

"Oh, thank you, my Lady. You're awesome as always."

.

.

.

"I'm horrible, Tikki," Marinette bemoaned as she slammed her head repeatedly on her study desk. She has been doing that for almost an hour after she finished dinner.

"You should have told him the truth, Marinette," the red kwami replied while cradling her second cookie. "I don't think Adrien will be mad at you for keeping it as a secret."

"But I don't want to crush his happiness for the sake of truth!"

"How about your happiness?"

Marinette was not able to provide an answer. Instead, she pulled out the blue yarn she had used to create the scarf and began to mend the loose strings on the article in silence.

"His happiness is my happiness, Tikki." she finally said as her hands busied itself knitting. "I don't mind being just his friend forever. I know it hurts, but seeing his genuine smile is worth the pain. You don't need to worry about me..."

She held back a scream when familiar green eyes were staring at her on the glass window. He waved his gloved hand excitedly then pointed her skylight door, gesturing her that it was locked.

"Cha - Adrien?! What are you doing here?!" the girl hissed as she slammed the door open. "You startled me, you stupid cat!"

"Forgive me, my Princess, but I came bearing some gifts," he released his transformation then handed her a bag of potato chips and popcorn. "Since it's Friday night with no homework or upcoming tests next week, not to mention that you don't have commissions to be done this weekend, I was wondering if we can have some anime marathon tonight?"

She darted him a beady glare "If this is another Shippuuden or Ouran High School shit again, I swear I'm going to kick your ass out of my balcony."

The blond gasped incredulously with a hand clutching his chest "How rude, my Lady! Naruto is an all-time favorite hero and Tamaki is a legendary gentleman!" before she could sass back, he passed her a DVD case. "What I have here is a fashion-themed anime. Have you heard about Paradise Kiss?"

She scrunched her nose cutely, which told him that she didn't know it yet curious to know the story.

"Alright, I will let you in because you have some food." she sighed exasperatedly. "Make sure you clean your paws first before you jump on my duvet."

"Absolutely!"

Adrien was barefooted, wearing a loose drawstring pajama pants and a white cotton shirt. Ever since their reveal, he would often drop by at night wearing his most comfortable clothes like sleepwear or onesie jammies. Sometimes he would spend the entire evening there and sleep on her chaise lounge then wake up and leave before Nathalie noticed his absence.

It was a common routine for them, and Marinette didn't want to change it for a bit.

"What's this, Princess?" Adrien picked the blue yarn that was attached to his scarf. "How come you have the yarn already?"

"Ah, uh...I didn't know I have that yarn lying around." she lied, grabbing the yarn and the article away from his privy hands.

"With the same shade and quality?"

"Ye-Yeah! Ca - Can't you believe it?" she winced at her squeaky voice. "N - Now let me tidy up my things so that we can watch that Paradise Kiss - "

"You don't need to lie to me, Marinette."

The raven-haired girl paused then forced herself to look at his emerald hues with guilt " Wh - What?"

"I already know the truth about the scarf, my Lady," the blond reached out for her as they sat on the chaise lounge. "I might be a dunce, but I pay attention to details. Remember what you said during the bowler hat competition? You said that you always sign your creations."

She gulped audibly when he flipped the edge of the scarf and traced the subtle linings by his finger, "I might have missed it if I wear this on rare occasions."

"I'm sorry, Kitty," Marinette groaned, covering her face with her hands. "I didn't mean to hide the truth from you. It's just that...I don't want to spoil your happiness."

"But I feel like a fool for being happy with something that is not real."

"I know but..." she dropped her hands on her lap and chewed her bottom lip "We weren't that close that time, Adrien. Besides, you already announced it to everyone that your father gave you this scarf. What do you think you will do if I told you the truth back then?"

"I will thank you for the wonderful gift that you have given to me."

She shook her head "You might, but you will never treat this scarf the same way as you always did before you know the truth."

There were a few beats of silence before he uttered "I'm such a terrible person."

"Huh?"

"I'm terrible, Marinette. I'm a horrible and very inconsiderate friend." he raked his blond locks out of frustration. "Never once had I ever treasured your gifts - like the Santa hat for example; I gave it to Santa without any second thoughts. The lucky charm that I'm so proud of? I almost lost it on the subway. And now the scarf that I claimed to love..."

One of her hands wrapped around his clenched fists while the other caressed his cheek "Hey, look at me Chaton. Look at me, please."

Marinette couldn't help but chuckled when Adrien turned his head with puckered lips. "You did nothing wrong, Kitty. You made a good call when you gave your hat to Santa Claus, and it wasn't your fault that the lucky charm fell on your pocket - and you never lost it since I found it on Gorizilla. About the scarf...well, that's inevitable."

"You mean I'm careless."

"This is the first scarf that I've ever made," she said as she took the material from his lap. "So it's not as sturdy as my recent knitted creations. I'm glad that you allowed me to fix this because I can correct those knitting mistakes that I've made and at the same time, I can make this bigger enough to accommodate your new measurement. If you want, I can add some trinkets like pawprints or ladybugs."

"What can I do to repay your kindness?" he asked with sincerity.

"These material gifts are nothing compared to the countless times that you saved me." she smiled. "I want nothing in this world but your happiness, Adrien."

He pulled her closer "I'm happy as long as you're happy, Marinette."

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Bonus:

"Hey, Princess, can you also add 'I'm fur-eezing!' line on my scarf?"

"No."