~MARINETTE~

I woke up to my alarm. Then I remembered something. Today was my 16th birthday. My 16th birthday! I was so excited!

"Tikki! I'm 16!" I exclaimed. "I need to find the writing...and the symbol." My little red kwami flew in front of my face.

"You are! It's on your cheek!" she replied happily. I jumped out of bed and ran to the mirror. All happiness was drained from my face when saw it really was on my cheek. That wasn't how it was supposed to go.

"WHAT?!" I screamed. "Why is it on my cheek?"

"Don't freak out, Marinette. It isn't the end of the world," Tikki said, trying to cheer me up.

"Not the end of the world? Do you see what it says? Do you see the symbol? My friends will question me. What will Chloé say?" I asked. Tikki looked at me.

"I didn't read it yet," she replied. "Or look at the symbol."

"Well, it says..." I started.

I really didn't want to finish. I turned away from Tikki to hide my cheek. I hoped she wasn't mad at me for it.

"Tell me," she begged.

"Okay... It says... 'I love you.' The symbol is a black and green paw print. I definitely know who my soulmate is now," I explained.

"I don't understand," Tikki admitted.

"I'll tell you after school. I'm gonna be late!" I exclaimed. I quickly ran downstairs with Tikki in my purse and my over my shoulder. I grabbed a hand full of cookies and stuffed them in my purse for Tikki. My parents gave me a confused look, but I just shrugged it off and ran to school.

When I arrived at the school, I ran inside and threw my bag in my locker. I grabbed what I needed for my first class and hurried off to class. The bell rang right before I walked in. I felt everyone's eyes on my as I made my way to my usual seat next to Alya. I knew what they were looking at. The writing. One of the writings that everyone got on their 16th birthday was on my cheek. I felt embarrassed.

I noticed that Adrien wasn't at school. He never misses..." I thought. And it was true. Adrien didn't miss school. It was extremely rare. I was sort of happy since I had my mark and he couldn't see it.

Then I remembered that it would be there for the rest of my life. What would Chat Noir say? Does he even love me? Probably not. He's always teasing me and being playful. I doubt that he likes me. (Poor Mari. You're so dense.)

I guessed that I liked him. He was a great friend. I didn't really mind the puns or the playful flirting. He was just a playful kitten that wanted attention. I supposed that I should give it to him. And I had the perfect plan. In fact, I was thinking it would be funny.

ALYA

The bell rang and we were dismissed. Marinette was day-dreaming so I tried snapping her out of it. I waved a hand my front her face. She blinked a few times and then looked at me. She looked worried. Her face explained why. I had to talk to her about it.

"Girl...We need to talk...about your cheek..." I said. She didn't look like she wanted to. I wanted to know, though, and I wouldn't stop until I did.

"I...need to get to my next class..." Marinette said trying to make up an excuse to leave. It wasn't gonna work on me.

"We have the next class together, so we are talking about this on the way there," I declared. I knew she didn't want to talk about it, but she needed to. I was sure that it would make her feel better to have someone supporting her. That someone would be me.

Marinette sighed. "I'm not getting out of this, am I?" she asked.

I shook my head. "Nope."

"Then I guess I should explain. Do you know what a black and green paw print stands for?" Marinette asked. I thought for a minute. It couldn't be who I thought it was. I had to make sure, though.

"Chat Noir?" I asked. She nodded and I thought that I saw a blush on her cheeks. "I ship it! What should the ship name be...? Hmm... Chatnette? No... MariNoir? No... Marichat? YES!! Of course! Marichat is my new ship!"

"Um... Okay..." Marinette said uncertainly.

"What?" I asked.

"Nothing," she replied. I knew it wasn't nothing, but I decided to let it go.

"Are you gonna explain the writing?" I asked.

"Oh! Yeah! So, as you probably already know, my writing is 'I love you.' Well, since you now know that Chat Noir is my soulmate, I guess I should tell you something..." Marinette explained.

"Yeah?" I asked. Marinette took a deep breath.

"I'm Ladybug," she admitted.

"WHAT?! WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME?!" I questioned her, shouting.

"I wanted to keep you out of harm's way. Out of danger. I wanted you to be safe," Marinette replied. I calmed down at her words. Not completely, though. I was psyched to have Ladybug as my best friend...............I took a very deep breath.

"OHMYGOSHLADYBUGISMYBESTFRIENDANDIAMSOHAPPYANDLADYBUGISMYBESTFRIENDANDIALREADYSAIDBUTI'MTOOHAPPYTOCARE!!" I shouted all in one breath. Marinette looked confused. Then she started laughing. Now it was my turn to be confused.

"You did not make any sense whatsoever, yet you made perfect sense at the same time," she said. "How do you manage to do that?"

"I honestly have no idea," I replied. Then I remembered are conversation from a couple minutes earlier. "The writing?"

"Oh, yeah. I have no idea about that. I'm not really sure what to think," Marinette admitted.

"Just wait until Chat Noir sees your cheek," I teased. I got a well earned glare from Marinette.

"I don't want to think about it," she said. "I definitely don't want him to know that I like him. I don't think he likes me."

"I bet he does. I bet... $20 that he likes you," I betted.

"I bet $30 that he doesn't," Marinette said.

"Are you trying to one-up me?" I asked.

"I'm just telling you how much I believe that he doesn't like me," Marinette replied.

"Oh, it is on," I proclaimed.

"It sure is," Marinette agreed.

~MARINETTE~

Now, all I had to do was ask Chat Noir how he felt about me. That was easiest way to approach this. At the same time, though, it was hardest. I couldn't just walk up to him and ask 'Do you like me?' That would be very awkward for both me and him.

I supposed that I could ask him how he felt about Ladybug as Marinette. Maybe I could call him. Oh, wait. I can only do that as Ladybug and Chat Noir would get suspicious.

I could probably just ask him the next time I saw him. That turned out to be right now.

"Chat Noir!" I called to him. He turned towards me and I gestured for him to come over. He did.

"What do you need?" he asked. Oh, and did I forget to mention that I had my hand on my cheek as to hide my mark? Did I mention that the mark was small? It was about 2 inches long and wide.

"I wanted to know something," I started. "How do you feel about Ladybug?"

I was not prepared for the words that came out of his mouth.

And that, my friends is the 1st chapter of this book. Cliffhanger. I know. Please comment, vote, and enjoy! If you follow me, I will follow you back! Bug out! 🐞