"No, Alyn, nothing happened." Marin grumbled for the almost the ninth time to his best friend over his computer through Skype. Alyn had been prompting for details about what happened during Marin and Adrienne's "date" even though there wasn't much that happened. They really just walked around the park and talked.

"There's no way it was just talking, dude." Alyn nearly screamed into his own computer. He was convinced that there was something more to the story. There had to be. Why would Adrienne just go to Marin's house out of nowhere just to talk? She had to have bigger intentions than that. "One sec, I'm adding Nina to this call."

"Why? So I can third wheel it while you two flirt?" Marin joked. He had the right to, seeing as though Alyn was teasing him about his 'date' with Adrienne. How he wished he could call it that. But he couldn't just yet. They were only friends, but now he was really glad they were closer. He got through an entire evening without stuttering like mad.

The first couple minutes of the walk was filled with awkwardness. Adrienne was too worried about saying something that could completely ruin Marin's opinion of her, and Marin could barely make a comprehensible sentence without feeling like he was going to faint. And whenever Adrienne would talk, he'd find himself staring at her lips moving rather than listening completely to what she was saying. He wanted to listen and respect her as she spoke, but he couldn't focus. Here he had never really talked to the girl, and now they were alone on a - Marin would call it romantic - stroll with no interruptions.

That was by far the best part. No one interrupted them. If he were to even say something towards Adrienne at school, Clovis or Miles would stop him as quickly as possible. But when he was just walking with her, away from school, away from everyone, he could really enjoy her company. And that was what they both really needed, was to enjoy each others company. In Marin's opinion, it really helped their relationship and would probably help him be more comfortable with talking to her, especially seeing as though they would be spending a weekend together.

The trip was making him anxious, honestly. He was a little scared. The trip could really make or break their friendship. He hadn't told Alyn about her going with him yet, but he would eventually. He would probably end up telling him a day before the trip. That way, Alyn doesn't have time to tease him about it in front of Adrienne or any of their other classmates.

"Ha. Ha. Very funny, but we don't flirt. You know who flirts? Chat Noire and Ladybeetle. Dude, did you see the video I posted on the Ladyblog last week?" Alyn asked as he added Nina to the call.

It was quite funny, really. Marin didn't have to watch the video, as he would know exactly what happened. Though, there are a lot of moments when Chat flirts, that he couldn't pinpoint which time it was exactly, but he would remember when Alyn told him the villain. "Which one?" He asked.

Nina didn't even bother to introduce herself and just jumped right into the conversation. "The one when Tarantula attacked? It was hilarious. I really wish that Ladybeetle would realize Chat's feelings for him. I mean, it's clear that it's not just a little crush. She really loves him. I mean don't get me wrong, Ladybeetle is cool, dude, but it's kinda heartbreaking to see Chat's face after he rejects her."

Marin could feel the guilt start to overwhelm him. Was he really hurting her that bad by rejecting her? She knows that he's in love with someone else now. And she seems completely fine with it almost all of the time. Sure, she gets jealous from time to time, but he only ever viewed it as a simple character trait. Was it seriously more than that?

"Maybe Ladybeetle likes someone-- Oh my god, Marin, I didn't tell you this, but I think your chances with Adrienne aren't looking so hot. As much as I'm rooting for you..." Alyn shook his head and frowned.

Marin narrowed his eyes at the screen, confused as to what he meant. He was even more confused when Nina spoke up. "Dude, you haven't told him?"

"I was going to, but he was on his date with Adrienne." Alyn defended himself, crossing his arms.

"Just tell me, please." Marin was getting a bit anxious at what they knew. He was sure they didn't know his identity. If they did, they would have confronted him about it at the beginning of the call. But he was still worried. He took a sip of his smoothie that was on his desk.

Alyn sighed and pulled up his phone, holding it to his laptop's camera. "You've got competition like that, man. There's no way you're going to be able to compete with Ladybeetle unless you step up your game.

The blue-eyed boy choked on his smoothie. He managed to force it down his throat, but it was followed by violent coughing. "You saw th-- How did you get that picture? Was this just today?" He continued to let out small coughs, trying to clear his throat. He didn't think Alyn had been there to see him deliberately flirting with Adrienne.

Alyn laughed at Marin for a second then shrugged. "I never miss anything Ladybeetle and Chat Noire related." He smirked victoriously. He wasn't wrong either. Whenever there was anything to do with those two, Alyn always seemed to be there to cover the story, even before news reporters even heard about it. He was truly obsessed with them. It was kind of scary.

Marin was about to say something when there was a tap at his window. "Hey, I gotta go. I'll see you guys tomorrow?" He waved and waited until the two said their goodbyes before leaving the call. He stood up from his chair and walked towards the window cautiously. He was sure he knew what it was, or rather who it was, but he could never be too certain.

And, as he had predicted, he was correct. He opened the door leading to his balcony and saw Chat Noire there. She looked different than earlier though. "What are you doing here?" He examined her closely. Her ears were drooping, her face looked tense, and her whole body was stiff. It looked like she were about to cry.

"What? I can't visit my purr-fect purr-ince~?" She asked flirtatiously with a smirk, though her demeanor stayed the same. She still looked incredibly stressed, and this worried Marin.

As much as he didn't want to stay up too late tonight, there was no way he could just tell her to go home, not while she was clearly not doing well. "Well, let's get inside. It's pretty chilly out tonight."

He was a little confused as to why she was so shocked at his offer. "W-Wait, what?" She stuttered, tilting her head to the side. She was a little surprised that he was going to just let her in. He wasn't usually this lenient with her coming by unannounced. In all honestly, she had expected him to push her off the balcony. Again.

"You heard me. It's cold. Get inside." He sighed as he watched her just stand there, her mouth hanging open ever so slightly. "We're friends, right? This is what friends do."

Marin smiled as he watched her eyes light up and her ears perk. 'Did that one sentence really mean so much to her? What is her normal life like...?' He gestured for her to enter, and she happily walked through the balcony door, sitting down on his computer chair backwards.

"So, what brings you here? I'm pretty sure it's not just because you wanted to see me." Although it could be true, it was probably unlikely. Usually Chat had something she wanted to say.

"I don't know, I just..." She trailed off for a moment, chewing on her lower lip gently before continuing. "I just needed a friend to talk to. I'm kind of struggling a bit."

Marin frowned at her answer and sat down on his bed. "Struggling with what, exactly?" He raised a brow. Depending on what it was, he might be able to help. Though, the chances of that were quite slim. He wasn't the best at giving advice or helping people through their personal problems, as much as he wished he could be.

"I'll give you three guesses, but I'm sure you'll only need one." She chuckled to herself, rubbing the back of her neck.

"Ladybeetle?" He guessed, pretty sure he was spot on with his assumption.

"Ding, ding, ding, we have a winner. Tell him what he won." She smiled, laughing at her own joke. She then leaned back in the chair and let out a sigh, the smile fading from her face. "I just don't understand what I'm doing wrong. I care about him. I love him, honestly. I really do. And I don't think he takes that seriously. I don't think he takes me seriously."

He could hear the hurt in her voice. Today really was just an eye opening day for him. He really had never taken Chat's thoughts into consideration. He always figured that her advances were really just playful banter, but everyone else, including Chat herself, was convincing him otherwise.

She spun around on the chair, letting out another sigh. "Am I really that much of a joke to everyone?" She stopped and looked at Marin, her eyes brimming with tears. "Do you think I'm a joke?"

His eyes widened at her question. "No! No, god, no." He stood up and walked over to her. He crouched down to be eye level with her. "You are not a joke. Not to me, not to him, not to anybody. Chat..." He placed his hands on both sides of her face. "You are perfect just the way you are. I know you care about him so much. You're a great person, and if he can't see what's right in front of him, then it's his loss. He's missing out and you are worth more than that. You deserve more than him. Way more."

Chat fell silent and she could barely manage a nod as she stumbled up from the chair and tackled him in a hug. He managed to keep himself standing, despite losing his balance a bit. He could hear her quiet sobs in his ear and it broke his heart. He rubbed her back soothingly, slowly moving down until he was on the ground with her in his arms.

He could barely begin to comprehend what was happening in his head. Had he really been hurting her this bad all this time? Was she really in all this pain all because of him? He couldn't wrap his mind around it. He was supposed to be Paris' hero, but he was hurting someone so close to him, without even realizing he was doing it.

As her sobs began to silence and her body stopped shaking, he pulled away from the hug slightly. They were still close, but her face was not buried in his shoulder. "Would you like some hot chocolate? Maybe a sna--" He cut his sentence when he noticed a small bruise on her cheek. "How'd that bruise get there?" He found it odd how it was in the exact same place where he had thought he saw Adrienne's.

"H-Huh?" She felt her cheek and pressed down on the spot, wincing at her foolish action. "Oh, the akuma fight the other night with Ladybeetle. I was so tired, and I couldn't keep my focus, so I ended up with a few scratches and scrapes. Nothing major though, so don't worry about it." She dismissed it with a wave of her hand. "But about those snacks. I hear your bakery is the best in town." She smiled.

Marin laughed at her eagerness for the snacks. "Of course, Kitty." He stood up. "Would you like some milk and cookies?" He teased, smirking playfully.

"Har. Har. Very funny." She pouted, crossing her arms and looking away from him. After a few seconds though, she nodded. "Yes."

He had to hold back his laughs to hearing her answer. He knew that sometimes she could act like a cat, but it was kind of crazy how similar she was to the animal. "Coming right up." He chuckled and made his way down to the kitchen. He had to be quiet, seeing as though his parents had headed to bed early. He quickly grabbed the cookies from a Tupperware container on the counter and poured a glass of milk.

He made his way up the stairs, finding Chat looking at his computer. She turned from the screen to look at him with a large grin when she heard him come up the stairs. "I like your background." She giggled.

His face went red as he placed the food down at the desk and turned off his computer. "I did not give you permission to touch that." He glared at her.

She took a cookie from the container and bit into it, chewing it and swallowing before taking a sip of her milk. "You never said I couldn't. So, you have the hots for Adrienne too? I mean, it's understandable why you guys like her. She's sweet, and kind, and quiet, and perfect, and everything everyone wants her to be. She's the perfect girl." She smiled sadly, looking down then mumbling to herself. "But that's just not who she is..."

Chat drank the rest of her milk, avoiding Marin's questions about what she had mumbled, saying he couldn't hear her. Once she finished, she took a few cookies and stood up. "I should probably get going and let you sleep. So sorry to have bothered you so late at night. I'm sure you were trying to sleep." She walked out onto the balcony.

"No, I- Wait, Chat, did I say something that upset you?" Marin followed her out. When he didn't get an answer, he grabbed her wrist and stopped her from leaving. "Chat, answer me. What happened?"

"Marin, even if I explained it, you wouldn't really understand what I meant. And if I do explain it, it'll give you more information about me than you need to know. Just keep in mind that things aren't always as they seem." She gave him a smile, then yanked her hand away, jumping from the balcony, leaving Marin to sit and ponder over her words.