#Midnight in paris oneshot

[inloveforlokius]

hey, I wrote a Oneshot of an Oc of mine and Gil Pender

English is not my native language, in fact I am Brazilian. I will post the original version in Portuguese too but for now stick with the English version. There will probably be errors in the English language because I put most of the things for Google Translate to do in English (Don't judge me, I'm still newbie at this).

Previously: Gil, on one of his trips to Paris in the 1920s, met a young attendant at a local cafe from the 20s who was walking along the narrow river Seine, known as Julye.

(the oc is of legal age)

Word count: 2611 words.

the denial of living in the present ♡

Gil Pender is an idiot man from Pasadena, California, in the United States and is about to marry an authoritarian preppy named Inez.

Since Gil got engaged to Inez, he has been having frequent panic attacks. He never understood the real meaning of his attacks, however, he thought it must be something about the book he was writing or his work as a Hollywood screenwriter.

Gil and Inez visited and stayed at a hotel in Paris.

The reason for this was that as Inêz's parents had done important business, the couple stayed for a while to enjoy the ride.

Inez was a beautiful and very intelligent woman, but she and her fiancé had almost nothing in common, the two were completely opposite people and not at all indifferent, Gil was always passionate about literature and the 20s, and dreamed of living in the City of Light after the wedding, more precisely in the rain as he told his fiancee, and he was willing to give up all his work as a screenwriter to become a writer, however, Inez wanted to live in Malibu, in the hot sand of California, after the wedding.

And although Gil loved his future wife there was something that made him feel out of place about her. Even when she had defended him from her own parents who criticized Gil about his illusions about politics and his choices.

But something happened as the couple's time in Paris went on.

In the blink of an eye, the two moved apart drastically, and of course the reason could have been that Inez had had a super crush since college on a man called Paul Bates, a kind of dashing gentleman who was going to give a lecture nearby. from Paris, And she stayed with this guy for a few nights in the meantime that Gil was taking his nightly "walks" to get even more inspired when he was going to write his romance.

However, Gil had no idea that she had kept the stupid pendant.

But Gil also had his secrets, for example: whenever (or almost every day) that Inez wanted to stay late somewhere with her parents or with Paul and Carol, he would always leave early and walk the streets of Paris until midnight and he did that instead of going to the Hotel Bristol where the two stayed waiting for Inez to return.

And when the clock struck midnight, a vintage car from the 1920s always passed by as if it were a taxi from the time and Gil always got into it because it would mean that he had gone to the year 1920, the year where he dreamed of living for so long. , it was a dream to be in Paris at that time where there were so many incredible artists and writers that he couldn't even describe, it was so spectacular.

And there he met the illustrious and talented F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald, Pablo Picasso, Gertrude Stein, Salvador Dali, Luis Boňuel, Man Ray, Ernest Hemingway and TS Eliot.

Gertrude Stein even read and evaluated the book that Gil Pender was finishing and it made his heart almost stop working with excitement.

EDuring these trips to 1920, Gil met a beautiful young girl, Adriana, he seemed to have liked or loved this young woman very much. She was known to be a prostitute and former lover of Picasso himself, but unfortunately, he himself realized that she was fascinated to other things like the golden age and I couldn't stop her from getting lost in another era trying desperately to fill her feeling of loneliness and emptiness.

Just like he did, but he would never admit it.

Gil discovered that Inez was probably cheating on him with Paul shortly after he returned to 2010 and he thought about this possibility with the help of words from one of his conversations with some of the best writers of the 1920s.

When he had the courage and discussed it with Inez, she simply admitted it after a while, causing the two to break up, as well as belittling him by calling him crazy, sick, among others.

Now, Gil no longer had Adriana, who lost her to the golden age, nor his ex-fiancée who left.

He was left ungrounded, confused, displaced but still free.

And now he was more anxious than ever walking around at 2 am in Paris in the 20th century...he knew he shouldn't be in another century trying desperately to escape all his morbid sadness that hit him like daggers in the back but therefore he he still couldn't stay definitively in 2010 knowing that he could live what he so longed to have.

He walked and walked while it was raining heavily on the narrow Seine River, he saw a young woman who made his eyes go a little wide and wide and made his heart flutter a little.

The beautiful lady was without any means of protection against the rain like Gil. She was wearing a loose and short black dress made of silk with satin gloves and black heels, she looked like she had just left a ball at that time, she had beautiful light blonde hair in the style of an almost classic Bob. like Marilyn Monroe.

The lady looks at Gil, seeing the man in a gray suit and red tie there looking at her fascinated, she approached him and spoke without hesitation, her voice was soft and sweet, as if it were a beautiful melody from Cole Porter's classic songs.

-Bonjour, you are lost? - she says looking at Gil, still unsure about the man.

- hey! Yes, I mean, no. -Gil says no with a fake, high-pitched laugh at the end of the sentence.

The woman nodded and turned to leave, but she stopped when she heard the man's voice again.

- Excuse me but are you American? - He asked hesitating while breathing faster. "What the hell got into you?" he mentally asked himself.

- no, I'm just a random Parisian but I learned to speak American English a few years ago - the woman smiles slightly, her red lipstick stands out on her adorable face .

- Could I know your name? - Gil asked, he had his hands in the pockets of the black dress pants he was wearing as he asked.

- well...my name is Julye, and would you be it? - Julye looks at him a little confused, the rain started to get thicker making the lady cross her arms and look down.

- oh, my name is Gil Pender - he speaks awkwardly and sees that Julye was bothered by the rain that had gotten heavier, he then went to her and guided her gentlemanly to under the bridge.

He was always taught by his mother to be a good gentleman, so he lightly puts his arm around Julye as they walk under the bridge out of the rain, she still looks at him suspiciously but with a hint of gratitude in her eyes. almost cyan blue.

- Oh, I'm sorry, I just wanted to make you less uncomfortable in this rain - Gil says, trying to clarify his intentions.

- Should I say thank you? - Julye says smiling sarcastically.

- I don't think it's necessary and if I may, why are you wearing that dress? It's cold today in Paris, you could catch a cold - Gil says with an air of doubt because although the woman looked stunning in the dress he didn't see the point in wearing it on this specific night.

- oh..well, I was in a bar before it started raining with Zelda and Scott - she says raising her face up to look at Gil, she was shorter than him.

-Zelda and Scott? Like the Fitzgeralds?

-Yes, themselves, do you know them? - Julye says looking into Gil's eyes when he asked.

- Yes! Yes, I've been out with them twice and I really admire Scott - he remembered, he was in 1920! He couldn't say how good Scott and Zelda were as if he were talking to someone in 2010 - but, well, on that note, what does a woman like you do?

-I'm an attendant at a local coffee shop, you should visit there, I work from nine in the morning to six in the afternoon - Julye says while looking away from Gil.

Gil blushed, the pretty girl invited him to go to the cafe where she works in such an adorable way? Yes, and it left him like a little pepper. Between that, he knew he could never go, especially because he only has access to Paris in the twentieth century from midnight to dawn... that is, he could never see it in his daily life.

- Thank you for the invitation, I will certainly go to the cafe - he says lying, The two then walked to a local bar out of the rain and in the meantime they talked about various things and Gil even forgot about his sadness about his and Inez's separation.

When the two arrived in front of the bar but didn't go in and instead they sat on a bench where the rain didn't hit and continued talking, and so much time passed that Julye ended up sleeping with her head on Gil's chest.

And certainly, Gil loved it and even stroked her hair while she slept. When he realized that it was going to dawn, he placed the lady on a bench and laid her down gently and placed his jacket on her, he left and as he walked through the streets, he realized that he had gone back to 2010, he looked back at that same place but he didn't even know. There was more bench, it was replaced by a large pole and the bar was now a jewelry store.

He gave a weak smile and sighed deeply - I'll see you again, I promise, Julye.

And so he did. Every day after midnight he goes back to 1920 just to look for the woman, he even knew her address so he could go to her house.

They talked about everything, Gil talked to Julye about cognitive actions and the fear of death that everyone has and at the end of the night, he always ends up leaving or sleeping on his shoulder. They understood each other, they talked about everything, literature, arts, artists, the future, their personal lives and more.

Julye didn't understand why Gil didn't want to see her during the day, they are friends and friends see each other during the day, she thought, so why is that?

On one of Gil's trips to 1920, he found Julye in a square near the elfiel tower. He hugged her and greeted her.

- Julye! It's good to see you - he says sweetly and smiles at her.

- Bonjour, Gil... - she says, leaving the hug, her eyes made it seem like she was in a dilemma.

- what happened? You look thrilled - Gil puts his hand on her shoulder and his face had such a softness that it would easily make someone tell him what he was hiding.

-I don't understand you sometimes. You say we are friends but we never meet during the day and you always disappear and then pretend that none of this happened... why is that? - Julye says a little angry and sad at the same time.

Gil pulls her and comforts her, and starts to talk - look... it's okay, I know I haven't been giving you explanations but I'm just trying not to hurt you and apparently I failed at that, I'm sorry - he says as he watches Julye lay on his chest.

- Look, you know when you have one kind of life during the day and at night it's like you're in another life? - Gil says, lifting Julye's face to look at her face to face.

- I think so... - Julye says quietly - so you kind of have two different lives?

-It's almost that, but I'll tell you something, when I'm here, with you I feel like this is my place - Gil smiles and Julye also smiles lightly caressing her cheek.

Even though Gil lied about some things, not all of them were lies, he really feels like when he's with Julye it's like he's in the right place.

The two stayed there, hugging each other, feeling the breeze of the wind, they were both in the early morning moonlight.

Gil sometimes wondered if he and Julye could be more than friends, but he never really persisted with that thought. .

He decided to lighten the mood by changing the route of his affairs.

- Julye, do you think I would be a good writer?

- Yes for sure! You are incredible at writing and if it is your passion then you should embrace it and not be afraid of failure - she says smiling, she has always supported Gil in all possible circumstances.

- Don't exaggerate, I'm not that good - Gil says and smiles seeing Julye pout.

- I disagree, you are very good at writing, you are like a poet - Julye says persisting in the idea - you should at least try to do what you like.

- Thank you, you really know how to keep me going - Gil smiles at her - that's what friends are for - Julye says and smiles too, she takes Gil's arm and the two walk down the sidewalk together.

- friends...yes, we are friends - Gil says walking with her.

At the end of the night, Julye turned to Gil and gave a smile that was pleasant to see.

- so this is where I say goodbye to you.

- Yes, I know, but first I want to test one of the theories Ernest Hemingway told me a while ago - Gil says, taking her hand.

-And what theory would that be? - She asked with a hint of curiosity.

Then Gil lightly pulled her by the waist until their lips connected.

He kissed her sweetly but firmly, Julye returned the kiss with the same soft intensity, placing her arms around Gil's neck and the two of them deepened the kiss, totally immense at the moment.

Julye bit Gil's lower lip, asking for passage and Gil gave in, making Julye slide her tongue into his mouth where their tongues meet, they now have their tongues almost dancing in Gil's mouth fighting for dominance.

They separate when they both become short of breath.

- so that was your theory? - Julye says breathlessly.

- Not exactly, but it made me realize and feel many things and one of the things I felt for those seconds when I kissed you was that I was able to dazzle immortality for a while - Gil says smiling, giving Julye a light peck.

It's like Ernest Hemingway said and believed that the moment two people who have a true passion kiss or have sexual relations, they can create a truce over the fear of dying and that's exactly what Gil felt with Julye, he managed for a few moments get a glimpse of what it's like to be immortal.

He felt like his heart was going to explode with so much love and he wanted to show Julye that day but time was about to run out so they said goodbye with a few more passionate kisses and sweet words of affirmation, and went each their way.

And Gil was still certain at that moment, he would still do and give all the love that Julye deserved.

[the-offside-rule]

Football Oneshots Masterlist

Promptlist

Christmas Oneshot List

Baby Promplist

Liverpool

Andy Robertson - An Evening In

Andy Robertson - Silent Night

Harvey Elliott - Fall Into Me

Trent Alexander Arnold - Not So Expected

Trent Alexander Arnold - Dinner

Trent Alexander Arnold - Mastermind

Trent Alexander Arnold - Feel Better (smut)

Trent Alexander Arnold - Jolly

Trent Alexander Arnold - Good Cop, Bad Cop

Ajax

Jordan Henderson - Emergency? (smut)

FCBarcelona

Eric García - Chaos

Fermín Lopez - loml (smut)

Frenkie De Jong - Swift Coded

Frenkie De Jong - Baking

Pablo Gavi - Dancing In The Dark

Pablo Gavi - Kiss & Tell

Pablo Gavi - Sorpresa

Pablo Gavi - Think Again

Pablo Gavi - For Forever

Pablo Gavi - This Is Nice

Pablo Gavi - Skating Rink

Pablo Gavi - My Golden Boy

Pablo Gavi - Love Lies (smut)

Pablo Gavi - Fangirl

Pablo Gavi - Don't Start

Pablo Gavi - Fantasize pt.1 [smau]

Pablo Gavi - Dounle Trouble

Pablo Gavi - Sunburn [headcanon]

Pedri Gonzalez - Real Life Lessons

Pedri Gonzalez - Worried Much?

Pedri Gonzalez - Ladrona

Pedri Gonzalez - Smiler

Pedri Gonzalez - Little Imperfections

Pedri Gonzalez - Bakery

Pedri Gonzalez - Stuck With You

Pedri Gonzalez - What Stays In The Camp Nou (smut)

Pedri Gonzalez - Holy

Pedri Gonzalez - Baila Conmigo

Pedri Gonzalez - Duolingo

Pedri Gonzalez - Until I Found You ft. Ferran Torres

Pedri Gonzalez - Peek-a-boo

Pedri Gonzalez - Punto De Vista

Pedri Gonzalez - Come With Me

Pedri Gonzalez - Quiet

Pedri Gonzalez - Nobody Gets Me [smau]

Robert Lewandowski - A City We Barely Know

FCPorto

Nico Gonzalez - New City, New Faces

Newcastle FC

Anthony Gordon - Freezin'

Anthony Gordon - Uh-Oh

Brighton

Evan Ferguson - Fairytale of New York

Arsenal FC

Declan Rice - Cupid and Psyche

Declan Rice - Triumph

Martin Ødegaard - Isn't It Strange?

Martin Ødegaard - Pinnekjøtt

Real Madrid

Jude Bellingham - When We Were Young

Jude Bellinagham - An Unexpected Gift

Jude Bellingham - Moving

Jude Bellingham - Stop Thinking

Kylian Mbappe - The Lights of Paris

Kylian Mbappe - Midnight

Paris Saint Germain

Marco Asensio - Jo Soc Culer (smut)

Manchester United

Alejandro Garnacho - Admire Me Later

Alejandro Garnacho - Cuffin' Season

Gary Neville - Are You Sure?

Mason Mount - Late

Mason Mount - Coffee Talks

Mason Mount - Silent Treatment

Mason Mount - Play Pretend

Mason Mount - Theatre of Dreams

Manchester City

Jack Grealish - School

Jack Grealish - Snowman

Ruben Dias - Test

Atheltico Madrid

Julian Alvarez - Feliz Navidad

Rodrigo Riquelme - Elevator Secrets

Rodrigo Riquelme - Falling For You

Sporting Club

Francisco Trincao - Birthday Cake

Lyon

Houssem Aouar - Emotional Support Person

Chelsea FC

Ben Chilwell - Baby Wrap

Joao Felix - Unrequited Love

João Felix - Fatherhood

Marc Guiu - i like the way you kiss me

Marc Guiu - Espresso

[maibluemen]

fic masterlist!

sorted approximately in chronological order of when they take place, though oneshot fics aren't necessarily part of a single continuous timeline. multichap fics, unless otherwise stated, are though.

(yes i only have the one multichap fic so far but there will be others. someday. and this list will update accordingly as i post stuff lol)

like they do in babylon (early 1800s)

rated: e ship: rusliet summary: for the past several nights, russia has been calling lithuania to his study to talk and drink with him, and lithuania doesn't know why--until russia kisses him.

no other sadness in the world (1800s)

rated: g ship: rusliet summary: ivan and tolys have their nightly conversation over tea

plein air (ca. 1880)

rated: t ship: frapol summary: It had been Francis’s idea to head south for a bit, and it had been his suggestion that morning to spend the day at the beach. “You need to rest,” he’d said, “and the warm air will your lungs good.” Feliks hadn’t complained—he was sick of Paris, and the warm air did make it much easier to breathe…he’d missed the sea, too. It's the wrong sea, though, he thought.

last light (1939-44, with some flashbacks)

ongoing rated: e ships: rusliet, ruspru, lietbela; past lietpol and pruaus characters: prussia, lithuania, russia, estonia, belarus, austria, poland, a bunch of human OCs, some others warnings: ww2, rape/noncon, graphic depictions of violence, substance abuse and addiction, mentions of csa summary: just some desperate people trying to survive with (and sometimes in spite of) each other.

midnight rendezvous (1950s)

rated: e ship: ruspol bingo prompt: spanking summary: feliks wants to blow off some steam, and ivan is willing to help.

sweet dreams (1950s)

rated: e ship: rusliet bingo prompt: somnophilia warnings: somnophilia, dubcon bordering very much on noncon summary: clearly, tolys trusts ivan completely, otherwise how could he be sleeping so deeply beside him?

heartlines (1990s)

rated: m ship: lietpol summary: feliks learns to be a little more comfortable with himself around tolys.

between shadows (present day)

rated: t ship: lietbela summary: little lietbela vignette fic that follows them through the seasons.

[two-white-butterflies]

midnights hotd series

all oneshots have happy endings, except the ones marked with angst.

lavender haze - aemond targaryen aemond targaryen's lover was known as the green witch of pentos, he knew from the moment he saw her that she'd be a hard conquer. in which he realizes that not all women want to be wives.

maroon - daemon targaryen it is the night of your wedding, and instead of making love. you both decide on playing chess.

anti-hero - daemon targaryen the reader is the first-daughter of viserys and aemma, as she realizes what war is about to begin. she marries her uncle. snow on the beach - aemond targaryen aemond targaryen married a stark and discovers that there are things about her that contradict each other.

you're on your kid - daemon targaryen (anti-hero sequel) five years after your coronation.

midnight rain - aemond targaryen and daemon targaryen daemon targaryen was always your first choice, but after he leaves for pentos, you find yourself falling for his nephew. he returns a year later, and you choose him. *angst*

question...? - aemond targaryen aemond targaryen cheats on alyss rivers with her beautiful sister. he returns to his witch, and questions are left to be unanswered.

vigilante shit - daemon targaryen daemon targaryen helps you ruin otto hightower's life.

bejeweled - aemond targaryen aemond refuses to give you attention so you decide to make him jealous. *smut

labyrinth - daemon targaryen stages of falling in love.

karma - daemon targaryen you capture alicent hightower, and karma gives its revenge.

sweet nothing - aemond targaryen the war between the blacks and the greens begin, you and aemond however run off to pentos.

mastermind - aemond targaryen aemond has always planned to make you his.

the great war - rhaenyra targaryen you had always been beside her, following her commands. but now that the war is over, you are left to look back.

bigger than the whole sky - aemond targaryen the reader is rhaenyra's only daughter. she witnesses aemond kill her brother, and she vows to avenge him. *angst

paris - viserys targaryen they all scheme behind the king's back, but with the queen in his side, he couldn't care less. because they were somewhere else.

would've could've should've - daemon targaryen you were always aware of your husband's tastes. but now you begin to realize that you aren't an exception, but a rule. *angst*

comment to get tagged in the series.

[star-girl69]

Women’s Sports Masterlist

“The Alchemy” Series

Women’s Hockey

Caroline (KK) Harvey-

-no longer writing for kk harvey-

oneshots:

After Midnight

Guilty Pleasure

If You Lie Down With Me

Can’t Help Myself

Too Sweet

Lovers Rock

headcanons:

texting with kk

part two

Jesse Compher-

series:

none yet!

oneshots:

The Alchemy (coming soon!)

headcanons:

gameday hcs

Lacey Eden-

series:

none yet!

oneshots:

I Wanna Be Yours (coming soon!)

headcanons:

none yet!

Women’s Basketball

Caitlin Clark-

series:

none yet!

oneshots:

No. 1 Party Anthem (coming soon!)

headcanons:

none yet!

Georgia Amoore-

series:

none yet!

oneshots:

Take Me To Paris

Little Bit

Caught You Girl

Stargirl Interlude (coming soon!)

Daylight (coming soon!)

Talking Body (coming soon!)

headcanons:

none yet!

Morgan Cheli-

series:

none yet!

oneshots:

Tough (coming soon!)

headcanons:

none yet!

[lucy-the-cat]

The Red Queen Midnights Collection is a series of AUs set in the Newblood Queen universe, a Mareven role swap au where Newbloods Rule, Reds are still oppressed, and Silvers exist in a hazy space in-between. Read the main series here

this is all the options no one voted for, rank your favorite so I can order them

[lineffability]

tagged by @aduckwithears and @dancingcrowley so I'm doing it now at last

favorite color: greens of all kinds, olive, moss, grass, spring leaves, pretty water

last song: the fruits by Paris Paloma

last movie: phew....currently in series mode idek when I last watched a whole movie....maybe pride n prejudice? that one gets repeated at least once a year so

currently watching: apart from the fact that good omens has taken lodging in my brain and runs there on a loop, I'm also watching BBC ghosts and ofmd, oh and this really cool post apocalyptic anime with a sorta-trans (it's complicated) character ahh what's the name it's really good!!

other stuff i watched this year: one piece! only murders, wwdits, poker face (amazing), phew there has to be a ton more but these came to mind first

shows i dropped this year: marvelous miss maisel, I like it but at some point just forgot to watch bc i wasn't that into it anymore...might pick it up again at some point

currently reading: Climbing the Mango Trees by Madhur Jaffrey and about to start The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

currently listening to: my gomens playlist + witchy playlist + Midnight Burger podcast (thanks @fabledshadow for the rec!)

currently working on: life......hoping to work on Meanwhile the World Goes On again soon, as well as the Rocky Horror GO oneshot

current obsession/s: Good Omens. Full stop.

I'm tagging @queerfables @azfellandco @fellshish @gingiekittycat @sabotage-on-mercury (or anyone who feels like it - feel free to answer or ignore)

[mollymarymarie]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

Thank you for tagging me @squintclover you treasure ❤️😘 i'm gonna make this a keep reading, because i get wordy

1. How many works do you have on ao3?

In total, I have 39 works on Ao3

2. what's your total ao3 word count?

so i didn't know this but apparently i have over a million words

3. What fandoms do you write for?

I don't write for HP anymore, but that's the majority of my fics. I have a few for the marvel universe and two weird real people fics (which now give me the ick so i won't be writing those anymore either)

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Dear Your Holiness (lots of people share my priest kink apparently)

The Road Not Taken (for the angst, i'm sure)

The Lad That Loved You (it's my oldest wolfstar fic)

Bird Set Free (figure skating, Yuri On Ice, what's not to love)

When It Counted (this one sort of surprises me, but it's amortentia-based, so I think that aspect is the draw)

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

I do! not as often as i'd like but i do read them all right away, i have notifications for ao3 comments turned on. in that way, i get to enjoy them twice!

6. What is a fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

I have a short oneshot called Midnight about Halloween 1981 and I have another one called Where The Willow Don't Bend about Remus being a ghost at Hogwarts. I think those both end pretty angsty

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

In general, all my fics have happy endings. i go to fiction to escape the fact that almost nothing in life has a happy ending so i don't really like ending stories with anything except happiness. I really like the ending of We Can Pretend - they're in love, they get to be together, they're in Paris, their friends are all there with them, they're singing Nat King Cole to each other on a balcony while coq au vin is on the stove. fantasy scenario tbh.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

sure do. i won't list it. one thing that happens (which isn't exactly hate, but it makes me laugh) is when people criticize the fact that wolfstar are mentioned as having greys in The Road Not Taken because they're only 28/29 so they can't possibly have grey hair lol (i definitely had greys by that age, 100%)

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

yeah most of my fic is smut, but i'm sort of getting away from that. the TENSION is the best part, in my opinion.

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

nah, not really interested, i guess.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

I don't think so. my fics have been put up on other sites without my permission but my name was still attached to it, at least.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

a few! usually DYH. it's always nice to have someone ask for permission to translate.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

no, mostly because i'm a control freak lol

14. What's your all-time favorite ship?

it used to be wolfstar (kinda soured on me for multiple reasons, the biggest one being JKR is a piece of shit and getting associated with her works is not fun)

15. What's a wip you want to finish, but doubt you ever will?

back when i was watching Preacher, i was (still am) obsessed with Joe Gilgun, so i definitely have a Proinsias Cassidy fic in the WIPs somewhere that will never get finished, but i do go back to it from time to time because, i mean, irish vampire. give it to me.

16. What are your writing strengths?

do i have any???? people tell me i do tension well. maybe that?

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

first of all, NOT PLANNING AHEAD, figuring it out as i go and then having to go back and change a bunch of shit when i inevitably fuck it up. also, commas. i use FAR too many commas. i won't be stopped.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

i have a few fics that i have done that for. with French, with Russian, and now with Portuguese. it's difficult, Google Translate will only get you so far, but i LOVE languages so much. people will usually politely correct me

19. First fandom you wrote for?

OH TRUTH BE TOLD the Good Charlotte fandom, i am not even joking you right now. wrote an ENORMOUS self-insert fic for me and my friends with the members of Good Charlotte (i was with Benji, obviously) at the age of like 15 and the plot was SO fucking ridiculous. i mean. john mayer was there, ville valo from HIM was there (the main character had dated both of them before benji, of course). Elijah Wood was in there at some point and i think he was a murderer???? i should do a dramatic re-telling of what happens in this fic over tumblr (i will not post it, it is so so badly written)

20. Favorite fic you've written?

truthfully, i think it's Dear Your Holiness. i wrote that just after losing my grandmother and all of the conversations about faith still sort of hit me in the gut even now. plus the tension is really nice, i love the idea of a heavily tattooed Remus, and it's the music of my teenage years so it's very sentimental for that reason, too.

[vinkunwildflowerqueen]

2023 Birthday Oneshot

Like We Were Somewhere Else

It’s their first New Year’s Eve since leaving Oz, and suffice to say, it’s not the New Year’s festivations that Fiyero is used to. In another time, another life, he knows exactly the kind of New Year’s Eve he’d give Elphaba. Then he decides that there’s nothing stopping him from doing just that. He just needs to get a little creative.

Musicalverse post-musical Fiyeraba New Year's Eve fluff... in May. Because why not?

This was supposed to be my oneshot for New Year's, and then I got COVID and then I got writer's block and then I couldn't rework it to be non-NYE related to make it not weird to post in May. So... Happy New Years?

This was initially inspired by Taylor Swift's 'Paris' (not the song from Midnights I thought I'd be writing about but whatever) and then I guess it took a little 'New Years Day' turn and then ended up as kinda neither. But here we are. Enjoy.

Ao3 Link

FFnet Link

[muddyorbsblr]

works in progress – 2023 (update 1)

So a lot's changed in the last few weeks which means that priorities are shifting and things are…well…you'll see. Here's what's coming in the next few months:

14 Days of Valentines – this is starting in a few short weeks and y'all finally get to see why the posts have been few and far in between. 14 Days. 14 Stories. 13 smut and 1 almost-smut. Let's see if I can actually deliver on these lol

500 Follower Celebration Requests – am I a clown for opening up requests again fully knowing I haven't even finished 10 from the 30+ requests I received for this? Yes. Do I regret it? Absolutely not, because I've already got requests from some of y'all for this new batch that I can't wait to get to 🥹

relinquish the crown season 1B – yes they're coming back and i can't wait for you all to see what shenanigans are coming

relinquish the crown AUs – I have less than a handful of oneshots in this universe revolving around soulmate AUs. That's all I'm gonna share for now

what if…? – there have been moments from my stories where I've gone "what if this happened instead of what i actually put out?", and I've decided to choose chaos and put those thoughts to paper.

sworn fealty parts 2 & 3 – this is still coming i swear 🥴

the Midnights Collection – the second of these stories (Paris) will be posted during 14 Days of Valentines

song-inspired stories – the Treehouse album by He is We, Locksmith by Sadie Jean, Fat Funny Friend by Maddie Zahm, Live Cinema by Ellie Williams, Flight Risk by Tommy Lefroy, and a bunch more

winding road of redemption – yes this is still happening and this time around the smut won't be implied

captive mind, taken heart – sounds new but it's really…Kilgrave v Loki. it finally has a title, broad strokes plot points, and the major story points all plotted out

professor hiddles series – you heard that right. and i already have some plans for this

professor laufeyson series – i only have a vague concept but it's not as fleshed out but i'll work on it when i have time

one look and they'll know – these horn dogs are back for a handful of companion pieces…one of which may involve a gusset…👀😏

i can't wait to start sharing the 14 days fics with y'all and i'll see you in a few weeks! or a few days if a stray drabble finds its way into my brain and refuses to leave 🥴✌️

[high-functioning-lokipath]

Midnight In Paris - Scott x Reader (Surprise Character x Reader) - Words: 2418

You sat down at your computer with a sigh. You really needed to edit your post for today and reply to a few asks that had backed up on your Tumblr page. But instead you decided to work on a new project. You looked at your desk and nodded approvingly. "Ok! Coffee, music, blank document, photos from when I was 7, and photos from last summer. Ready!"

And that's why birds do it, bees do it

Even educated fleas do it

Let's do it, let's fall in love

Y/N took a deep breath as she stepped off the plane in Paris. She'd been here once before as a little girl but those memories had faded and the magic of Paris had been lost. "This I do remember," She muttered, crinkling her nose as the pungent smell of jet fuel filled her nostrils. She rushed through the airport wanting to get to her sightseeing plans as soon as possible. The hotel she'd made reservations at was small but quant. After checking out the room, dropping off her luggage, and freshening up a bit, she headed out into the city just in time to catch the golden sunset reflecting across the elegant architecture.

As she walked up and down cafe lined streets and avenues dotted with interesting shops, she couldn't help but wish she could have seen Paris in what's been called its heyday. Y/N laughed at her own line of thought, remembering the lesson of the movie she'd watched not 3 nights before. Midnight In Paris was one of her favorite movies. And it had one of her favorite actors too. Even if his screen time in it totalled only about 5 minutes and 34 seconds. https://youtu.be/yIcTbQj4bZw

Eventually, dinner time came so she stopped in a small cafe/bar to order a meal. "Mercí," She told the waiter after being seated. She decided to order some wine too, of course.

"Bonne nuit, Mademoiselle," Someone called out to her as she left the restaurant hours later. The wine had left Y/N substantially more tipsy than she expected after only a few glasses.

As she made her way back to the hotel, she giggled, thinking of the movie once again as a nearby clock struck twelve and marked a new day. Shaking her head, she told herself, "It's just a movie. Things like that don't happen in real life."

"Pardonnez-moi, mademoiselle," A gentleman exclaimed, stumbling out of what seemed to be a small nightclub and bumping into her, knocking her to the ground.

"No problem," She replied, dusting herself off and standing. Glancing inside the bar, she saw it had an oddly warm and inviting atmosphere for such a loud place. Deciding that the night was still young, she walked in.

"Hello!" A young lady with a heavy southern American accent exclaimed, walking up to her. The air was smokey and there was an old song playing that Y/N knew she recognized but couldn't quite place. "Well don't you look different! Wearin' pants to a party like this! Don't worry, darlin'! You look just fine!" Y/N nodded silently, shocked at the woman's reaction.

"Women have been wearing pants for decades now!" Y/N thought to herself.

"Are you alright, darlin'?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Y/N replied quickly. She suddenly realized who the young woman was. Or at least looked like. "Pardon my confusion, but I'm afraid I had a bit more wine with my dinner than I had planned." She chuckled lightly and shook her head, trying to clear her mind.

"Nothing to apologize for," a man spoke up from behind her. "Zelda has a way about her that does that to people regardless of their sobriety." Y/N turned around and fought the urge to gasp in surprise. "Scott Fitzgerald," He said, holding out his hand. "A pleasure to meet you!" She reached out and shook his hand.

"Nice to meet you too," She replied with a grin, seemingly unable to look away. She couldn't believe this was happening to her. It was just like the movie! "I'm Y/N," she finally said, still smiling at Scott.

"Well, I'll be off then. I've spotted quite a few interesting pursuits for the night, so," Zelda said with a smirk. "I'll be off!"

"Just be home at a reasonable-and she's gone," Scott sighed. He chuckled awkwardly and took a slow drag from his already lit cigarette. "My sister is bound to drive me to insanity one day!"

"Your sister?" Y/N exclaimed. Scott nodded, eyes lit up with amusement. They both laughed loudly and Y/N shook her head. "You do know most everyone else thinks you're married!"

"I have noticed people tend to assume that," He chuckled, leading her towards another group of people. "I'd like you to meet some friends of mine," He said. As Y/N followed him around the room, she found herself mostly stunned into silence at seeing each face that she'd come to know from rewatching Midnight In Paris a million times. She took a sip from the drink that had somehow found its way into her hands and glanced around the room as Scott was busy talking with someone she couldn't remember the name of.

"There's no way this is happening," She muttered to herself hours later. Laughing quietly, she shook her head. "I probably hit my head on the pavement and am having a concussion-induced/Paris-induced dream. And the wine probably didn't help. That's got to be it! Well, perhaps I should wake myself up now," She reasoned. Squinting at a clock, she figured the sun should be rising soon so she started making her way to the door.

"Leaving so soon?" Scott asked, grabbing her arm before she walked out.

"Yes," She sighed. "It was wonderful meeting you, Scott. Thank you for a lovely evening."

"Will you be around tomorrow? There's another party."

"I'll try to make it," Y/N replied, not wanting to disappoint him even if it was a dream. "Goodbye, Scott," She smiled. Gathering her courage, she stood on her tip-toes and gave him a kiss on the cheek. She turned away quickly and ran out the door. In her rush, she stumbled on an uneven part of the sidewalk and fell down.

"Are you ok?" A young lady asked a few moments later. Y/N looked up at the stranger and nodded embarrassedly.

"Yes, I just," she stopped mid-sentence when she turned and saw the bar she'd just walked out of was completely empty. "I just tripped," she said slowly. "Um, thank you."

"No problem," The girl smiled. "Au revoir!" She called out, continuing on her way.

Y/N went back to her hotel and took a brief nap to refresh herself for the day. Eventually, she put the night's events aside mentally and moved on with her plans. That is until she found 'the dress'. She was passing a line of boutiques and in the window of the last one was a Y/F/C 1920's style drop waist dress. It even had a matching hat and purse. Half an hour later, Y/N found herself back in the hotel room trying to get her makeup just right to match the outfit.

"I don't know what I'm doing," She told herself as she walked back to where she'd been the night before. Sitting on a bench across the street, she waited. For what exactly, she was not sure, but she knew she had to wait. Soon enough, the clock struck 12 midnight and, just like in the movie, an old car made its way down the street. Y/N was so distracted trying to look inside the vehicle that she didn't notice the change across the street.

"Y/N! Y/N, you came back!" Scott yelled as he and a few others came out of the bar. She ran across the street now that the car had passed to meet up with him, grinning like mad.

"Scott! I didn't-" she paused, chuckling lightly. "I didn't think I would see you again."

"Didn't I tell you there was another party tonight?" He asked, slightly confused. Y/N nodded, still grinning, and decided not to explain for now.

"Where are we off to?" She asked, linking arms with him. He smiled and they headed to one of the cars parked nearby. The night went by in a flash. Near morning, the group found themselves at a small cafe/bar. A few had already gone home and the rest were preparing to leave. Soon it was just Y/N and Scott left. She stared at him for a moment before shaking her head and laughing lightly.

"What's so funny?" He asked. "You know, you get the oddest look on your face sometimes. Like you've gone somewhere else," He commented.

"I have," she replied, taking a sip of her drink. "You know, I've always wondered what it would be like to be here," she said, gesturing around her. "Or even somewhere else, another time. And it's been wonderful! But you were right! A person really can't live in the past. It's just not possible."

"I'm not sure what I said to help you," He chuckled. "But it's funny, I have a character that should learn that lesson," Scott commented. "I'm working on the book right now but I think I've just gotten an idea from you. Thank you," He smiled.

"Oh! That's right!" Y/N said, realizing her favorite F. Scott Fitzgerald writing wasn't even released, and apparently not even finished yet.

"Perhaps we should be making our way home," He said, glancing outside at the rising sun. He stood and held his arm out for Y/N to hold. "Let me walk you?" She nodded and they headed outside into the crisp morning air. She pointed in the general direction of her hotel, wondering somewhat what would happen when they arrived. "Are you cold?" He asked her.

"No, I'm fi-" But before she could finish, he had already draped his jacket over her shoulders. "Thank you," Y/N replied, blushing brightly. She pulled the charcoal suit jacket around her, genuinely glad for it's warmth. When they were about a block away, she stopped, turning to look at him. "Scott," She sighed. "I can't come back. I'm afraid if I do-" she paused again, looking around at the beautiful city just starting to wake up. "I guess I should thank you. You've been so kind to me and I appreciate it. It made my visit to Paris so much better."

"I'm glad to hear that, Y/N," He replied. "I will miss you. But I am, at the very least, happy to have had the pleasure of meeting you." He leaned forward and kissed her gently, surprising Y/N. She closed her eyes and sighed into the kiss, trying to commit every feeling to memory. "Goodbye," She heard him say, one they separated. She didn't have the courage to open her eyes and watch him go however.

"Goodbye," Y/N finally whispered to herself when she opened her eyes and saw the city, modern and bustling all around her. Y/N wiped away the few stray tears and broke out into a run, wanting to get back to her hotel as fast as possible. As she rounded the last corner before the building, though, she collided with someone walking around the same corner. Y/N lost her balance, the person she ran into being much taller, and fell down. "I'm so sorry!" She exclaimed. She was rushing to pick up the items she dropped when she saw a hand held out to her.

"It's alright," The man said. "No harm done. Now can I help you up?" He asked, smiling sweetly.

"I-uh, well, yes. Thank you," She stuttered. He helped her gather her things and handed them to her.

"Were you heading to the hotel?" He asked. Silently, she nodded, not trusting her own voice at this point. "Well, then, let me walk you back. I was heading there myself." He smiled at her as they started walking down the sidewalk. "Oh! I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Tom."

"Done!" You exclaimed. Letting out a sigh of relief. You had been needing to write that for a long time but you never quite felt up to it. "Holy crap!" You yelled, looking at the clock. It had taken much longer than you expected to write it. You knew your husband would be home shortly so you rushed out to start dinner.

"Honey! I'm home!" He called out, walking through the door. He was grinning like mad, obviously in a good mood if he was using such a cliche line on you.

"Hello, Tom," You smiled, as he came up behind you, giving you a hug. He peppered your neck with small kisses, making you giggle loudly. "Tom! Stop that!" You exclaimed, wriggling out of his arms. "I need to finish dinner."

"Alright, darling. I'll change then," He relented. A while later, once dinner was safely cooking in the oven, you heard him call out to you from the bedroom.

"What's wrong?" You asked, walking to the doorway. Then it hit you. You'd left the document open on your laptop which was on your desk in the bedroom.

"What's this?" He asked, pointing to your new writing.

"It's for the blog," You said honestly. He knew you had a Tumblr page, although he still refused to see what was posted about him on there. Just one mention of the site could still get him embarrassed.

"Yes but," He glanced at it again, brows furrowed. "That's not how it actually happened, is it?" He asked, quite confused. You chuckled and shook your head.

"Well now, I can't very well ask Scott to verify my story, can I?" You smirked.

"Of course not," He chuckled. "Although I must say you did an excellent job of adapting the story of how we first met!"

"Thank you, dear," You smirked, walking away to the walk-in closet you shared.

"What are you not telling me?" He asked suspiciously.

"Oh, nothing," You replied innocently. When you walked out of the closet you completely ignored Tom, whistling as you headed back to the kitchen.

"What is that you're wearing?" He called out, running after you. You laughed as he caught up with you in the living room. "Is that a new charcoal suit jacket?"

"It's not new, Tom, not new at all."

TAGLIST FOR THIS POST:

(my apologies if you didn't want to be tagged for this but I'm going to include all my Loki, Marvel, and RPF lists on here since you may enjoy this)

@lucywrites02

@delightfulheartdream

@serpentargo

@khena

@nyx2021

@kaz11283

@weasley-main-lover

@up-to-mischief

@lokislittlesigyn

@darkacademicfrom2021

@lokiwhxre

@loki-laufeyson965

@bartv21

@another-crazy-fangirl

@whatafuckingdumbass

@ladylulu143

@lokislittlesigyn

@gaitwae

@mysticunicorn7

@kind-of-crazy-butthatsokay

@thoughts-and-lovely-illusions

@for-hearthand-home

@lokistoriesblog

@alexjcrowley

[sonseulsoleil]

I would love to see something with 13, 17, or 20 from the summer prompts please! Dealer's choice.

Hello, I'm sorry this took so long! But here is a little oneshot from the prompt "lifeguard"--though I may have stretched things a bit. Also I suppose content warning for cold water and mild hypothermia symptoms. But this is really just the Paris Squad being chaotic.

“Are we sure this is a good idea?” Tara eyed the pool suspiciously. The water rippled gently, glinting in the moonlight. 

“It’s a fantastic idea,” Darcy answered, throwing open the gate to the pool. No one was quite sure how she managed to nick the keys from the Higgs’ P.E. teacher, but they all thought it best if they didn’t ask.  

“What if we get into trouble?” Sahar bit her lip. “It’s after midnight!” 

“Exactly,” Darcy nodded. “No one’s going to come out and check on the pool this late. We won’t get caught.” 

Charlie pursed his lips. “What if someone gets hurt?” He asked quietly. “It’s dark, and—” 

Darcy flipped on the lights. “You were saying?” 

Nick squeezed Charlie’s hand–which he’d been holding for the entire walk from Tara’s house to the Higgs/Truham shared pool. “Don’t worry, Char,” he said softly. “I’m CPR certified. I took an emergency medicine course a few summers ago.” 

Charlie blinked up at him. “You are? You did?” 

“Yeah,” Nick blushed. “You know how rough rugby lads can get—”

Darcy snorted. “I’m sure he does.” 

“Darcy!” Charlie choked out, and at the same time, Tao began to make loud faux gagging noises. 

“Anyway,” Nick said, voice firm but not sharp, a voice he’d developed on the rugby pitch and perfected with his friends. “I thought it would be smart to know what to do if someone got really hurt. It ended up being a good thing because one time Christian took a nasty tackle and I was the only one who knew how to test for a concussion before the medics arrived.” 

“See, there you have it,” Darcy grinned and clapped Nick on the shoulder. “Nicholas here is basically a lifeguard. What’s the worst that could happen?” 

Tao groaned loudly. “Don’t say that!” 

Elle patted her boyfriend gently on the shoulder. “There, there,” she said dryly. 

At this point, the entire gang had made their way through the metal gate and onto the pool deck properly. The bright white of the fluorescent lights burned Nick’s eyes slightly, and he briefly wondered why they even had lights out there. Why would anyone be swimming at night? 

Besides them, of course. 

Nick shrugged off the backpack he’d brought, containing towels for both him and Charlie, as well as a water bottle and a couple of granola bars just in case. The rest of their friends did the same, shrugging off clothes and setting out towels, as if it was the middle of a summer afternoon, and not after midnight in the middle of September. 

Charlie was the first to the pool, as he was the only one who didn’t have anything to take off or put down. He rolled up his black jeans, perched at the edge and slowly dangled his feet into the water, before instantly recoiling and yanking his legs up onto the cement. 

“Jesus fucking Christ!” 

Everyone stopped. 

“You alright, Char?” Nick asked, already jogging across the pool deck towards his boyfriend. 

“I’m fine,” he rolled his eyes. “But the water is fucking freezing.” 

Tara threw her arms up. “I told you this was a bad idea!” She turned to start packing up her stuff, ready to throw in the towel on her girlfriend’s harebrained scheme. 

But Darcy Olsson was nothing if not stubborn. She dipped her toe in and shrugged. “It’s not that cold.” 

Elle, Tao, Isaac, and Nick all followed suit. Tao and Isaac recoiled, the same as Charlie, but Elle seemed to take a moment to consider. It was definitely unpleasantly cold, but it was tolerable, in Nick’s opinion. 

“I guess…” He sighed, trying to be as even-handed as possible. “It’s cold, but it’s really not that bad.” 

Charlie gasped. “Betrayal!” 

“I agreed that it’s cold!” Nick tried, running a hand through his hair. “I just think it’s tolerable, at least for me.” 

Charlie giggled. “You’re so cute when you’re flustered.” 

“Hey!” Nick huffed. “That’s mean!” 

Whatever Charlie was about to say was interrupted by a loud splash. Nick and Charlie looked over just in time to see Darcy’s head surface in the middle of the deep end. 

“Come on in!” She called. “The water’s great!” 

“Hm,” Nick shook his head. “No, thanks!” He looked back at Charlie. “I’m good right here!” He punctuated his statement by pressing a chaste kiss to Charlie’s lips. 

Tao rolled his eyes. 

“Got a problem?” Nick asked, a teasing lilt to his voice. 

“Besides that nauseating display of affection?” Tao quipped, though there was no real bite to his words. At this point, after over a year of friendship, Nick knew that Tao was secretly quite invested in his and Charlie’s relationship. 

“Yeah,” Nick grinned. “Besides that.” 

“Well, you said yourself the water’s not that cold,” Tao pointed out, smirking slightly. “If that’s the case, what’s stopping you from taking a swim?” 

“Tao,” Charlie said. A warning. 

“I dare you to jump in the pool,” Tao said, his smirk growing into an evil grin. “I bet you can’t do it.” 

Charlie dropped his head into his hands, knowing full well what Tao had just done. Nick Nelson prided himself on being, for the most part, pretty levelheaded. He wasn’t like some of his mates on the rugby team, who recklessly threw themselves into dangerous and stupid situations. But there was a series of words that, more than anything, made his brain immediately switch into what Charlie dubbed Idiot Rugby Lad Mode. 

And Tao had just said it. 

Nick was up from his seat next to Charlie and standing back at the edge of the water in a flash. “How much do you want to bet?” 

“I bet you £15 that you can’t jump in the pool and stay there for at least twenty seconds.” 

“Make it £20 and you’ve got a bet,” Nick responded, putting his hand out to shake on it. 

“£20?” Tao scoffed. 

“One for every second I have to stay in the water,” Nick answered easily. “Why? Are you worried you won’t win?” 

Tao’s face hardened. “Obviously not.” 

“So, then?” Nick raised an eyebrow. “Do we have a deal?”

Tao pursed his lips. “Fine. We have a deal.” 

They shook hands on it, and Nick reluctantly stepped away from his boyfriend. He pulled off his shirt, kicked off his flip flops, and approached the edge of the pool. 

“Ready to concede?” Tao asked. 

“You don’t have to do this,” Charlie said. 

Nick took a deep breath. “I’m sorry, Char, but you know I have to do it.” 

“I know.” Charlie let out a deep sigh, covering his eyes with his palm. “I can’t watch this.” 

Finally, Nick dove into the pool. The water was a shock to his system, almost painfully cold. Immediately, he felt his heart rate jump. He surfaced, gasping for breath, already shivering. “Fucking Christ! Jesus fucking fuck!” He yelled, unable to hold back. 

“Twenty seconds, Nicholas!” Tao called out. 

“I know!” Nick shouted back. 

He glanced around the pool. At some point, Darcy had admitted to how cold the water was, hopped out, and was now shivering in Tara’s arms, so it was just Nick in the pool. He tried to tread water, but his muscles felt heavy and sluggish from the cold water, so he moved until he could stand flat instead. 

“Ten more seconds!” Tao yelled, waving the stopwatch on his phone. 

Nick’s brain stopped working. Vaguely he heard his friends counting down from ten, but his thoughts were slow, and couldn’t keep up. Until finally, Tao shouted once again. 

“Alright, Nicholas, get out of there!” 

Nick swam to the stairs as quickly as he could (which wasn’t that fast) and pulled himself out of the water. Immediately he was wrapped in a warm towel and a firm embrace. Charlie. He became aware of a clicking sound, which he realized belatedly was the sound of his own teeth chattering. 

“I can’t believe you did that,” Charlie scolded him. “What is wrong with you?” 

Nick shrugged, and looked up, looking for Tao. “Where’s my twenty pounds?” He spat, stuttering slightly with his chattering teeth. 

Tao huffed and pulled out his wallet, pressing the money into Nick’s open palm. “Can you take this?” He asked, handing the bills to Charlie. “I’m still wet.” 

Charlie nodded, taking the money and shoving it in his pocket. “Can we go home now?” 

“Yes,” Nick answered immediately. “I’m so fucking cold.” 

“Same,” said Darcy, who was still shaking slightly. 

Tara and Charlie exchanged a glance. 

The group (except for Nick and Darcy, who sat, wrapped in towels, shivering) collected their things and packed up their bags. Tao walked home, and took Elle and Isaac with him. Tara drove herself, Darcy, and Sahar home. Which left Nick and Charlie. 

“Please don’t call my mum,” Nick begged, giving Charlie his best puppy dog eyes. 

“Nick. I’m not having you walk home sipping wet,” Charlie shook his head. “We’re calling your mum for a ride.” 

“Ugh,” Nick groaned. “Fine.” 

Nick pouted in silence as Charlie spoke to his mum.

 “Yes Sarah, he’s fine—no, no, I think all he needs is a hot chocolate and—yes, thank you. See you soon.” Charlie slid his phone back into his jeans pocket. “She’ll be here soon.” 

Nick nodded. “Okay,” he said, unable to say much more as a wave of fatigue flooded him. 

“Hey,” Charlie put a hand on Nick’s cheek, wincing slightly from how cold his skin felt. “You alright? You know she’s not going to be mad.”

“‘M tired,” Nick managed.

Charlie frowned. “Jesus, Nick. I think you’ve got mild hypothermia.” 

“Oh.” 

Charlie stripped off his jumper—which, as usual, was really Nick’s jumper—and handed it to Nick. “Put this on, you big idiot.” 

Nick did as he was told. “Won’t you be cold?”

“Not as cold as you are,” Charlie responded. 

Nick wrapped an arm around his boyfriend. “Thank you, I love you.” 

Charlie frowned at him. “You’re an idiot.” 

“Char,” Nick whined. 

“But,” Charlie’s frown turned up into a smile. “I love you, too.” 

[spooky-z]

MIDNIGHT SKY

I have three important warnings about the AU oneshot.

The first is that this story is a little different from what I have already written. What does that mean? It means that the story will have dirty jokes, (1) detailed french kiss and alcohol. And sexual tension. Yes. An ace trying to write UST. Ah! They are 18 here.

The second is, of course, language. There is nothing more explicit than what I have written in other stories. It's just that it's hard for me to write stories without cursing like a sailor. Sorry.

The third is that I didn’t tag anyone in this story for the reasons above. I didn't want to make anyone uncomfortable.

The two songs featured in the story are (in order of appearance): Gone by Charli XCX and Midnight Sky by Miley Cyrus.

9.6K (the story is under "read more")

Maribat by @ozmav

In that au, Alya and Marinette dated for a year at the Collège, but when they joined Lycée and Lila arrived, they broke up because Lila managed to convince Alya that Marinette was cheating on her.

Lila's obsession with Adrien in the canon is replaced by Marinette, that is, instead of Adrien, Marinette is Lila's target here.

Since Lila never lied about being friends with Ladybug, Mari never suspected the girl.

So, Lila comments to Alya that it was very strange Marinette's constant disappearances and how the girl made up weak excuses about it

Alya is hard to convince at first, but with Lila's time and persuasive words, she ends up giving in and believing in Lila.

Alya accuses Mari, Mari denies it, but it's no use.

They break up.

Everyone starts to exclude Marinette, supporting Alya who is heartbroken because she still loved Mari.

Except Adrien, who is a good friend for the designer.

So, while everyone was focused on Alya, Lila approaches Marinette and Adrien in the image of a concerned and supportive friend.

She offers a shoulder for Marinette to cry, and friendship to Adrien.

This is, of course, hidden from everyone.

Lila uses Adrien and Marinette for personal gain. Knowing that Adrien was too innocent and Marinette too kind.

Marinette falls in love with the Italian and with Adrien's encouragement, she confesses.

They start dating and Lila loves that Marinette kisses the floor she steps on

This is all hidden from the class.

Lila gives the excuse that she didn’t assumed her sexuality to anyone and that she is not ready yet

Mari and Adrien are quick and comfort the Italian, telling her that she doesn't have to force herself into anything. That they loved her.

Months go by, Kagami arrives at Dupont stealing Chloe's heart and befriending Adrien

Eventually she joins the pair (adrien and marinette) bringing Chloe and Sabrina together, who apologize to Marinette

They start to hang out together as friends and Mari is happy.

This makes Lila angry, since adrinette are no longer isolated and available to her all the time.

Lila accuses Mari of not having more time for her and not loving her anymore, trying to make the girl feel guilty

Mari fearing that the same thing that happened with Alya, happens with Lila, starts to isolate herself from her friends, giving her full attention to Lila

Kagami and Chloe notices Marinette's behavior and how sad the girl looked

Marinette can't take it, and tells the four friends what had happened and that sends red lights to Kagami who starts watching Lila closely.

That’s until Chloe and Sabrina find a mistake in one of Lila’s lies and tell the fencer

And so, Kagami investigates and uncovers all Lila's lies

Including why Alya broke up with Marinette and she tells Marinette

Marinette doesn't believe in Kagami and fights with her friend, because Lila would never do that to her

So, Mari starts to avoid Kagami and Chloe and Lila celebrate with the victory

Lila warns Kagami to stay away from Marinette, because Mari was hers, thinking that the Japanese girl was interested in Mari

Kagami becomes Onii-chan, exposing Lila to Chat Noir and Ladybug

Marinette again has her heart broken and she cries on her friends' shoulders after asking for forgiveness for not believing.

She breaks up with Lila the next day when Lila is alone without the class present.

Lila tries to make the girl change her mind, blame Marinette's friends, emotional manipulation, but it's no use and Mari leaves without looking back

Lila has an outbreak of anger, but surprisingly, no butterfly appears

She tries to win Marinette back throughout the week, but the girl pretends not to see her and the group of friends was also quick to repel the Italian.

Kagami being the most brutal

With that, Lila takes personal revenge and begins to lie about Marinette and her friends

About them bullying her and harassing her.

Everyone believes in the girl and the group of friends become the outcasts of the class

Even though Lila made their lives hell, she still believed that Marinette would come back to her

The same for Alya, who still liked the girl, but treated her badly for revenge.

That is, until Lycée's graduation party takes place.

▫▪▪

The fact is: Marinette was happy.

For a while she thought it would be impossible to be happy. When you discover that the two people you loved with all your heart were two fake ones, it’s kind of makes you think that you are actually the problem.

And for a while she thought just that.

When Alya, instead of asking her to talk privately to try to understand what was going on, decided that the best time to yell at her was in the middle of the courtyard with all the students watching the show; her thoughts were that she might deserve it.

It had been humiliating, yes. She never felt so much embarrassment and hurt as she did that time. But being honest, Marinette knew that something like that could happen, since she couldn't tell her secret to Alya. It wasn't much of a shock.

She tried to convince Alya, denied it, did what she could. In the end she gave up and ran home to lick her wounds, putting on her big girl mask.

It was really a surprise that there wasn't even a butterfly. For her or Alya. No sign of akuma for an entire week.

Or later, when she found out that the girl she loved, the same one she loved the floor she stepped on, was all the time lying to her and that it was Alya's cause to break up with her.

And that in the end she became a villain almost bigger than Hawkmoth in Marinette's life; leaving her isolated, almost without friends; making up lies or accusing her of things she hadn't done. Lila tried, and in a way, managed to ruin Marinette.

She thought this was her destiny: failed and illusory relationships. No sincere and passionate romance. Kisses that wouldn't make her blood boil or her heart race. Nothing that made her weak and wobbly legs.

Marinette had broken up with Lila just six months after they started dating. She was about to turn sixteen. Alya broke up with Marinette after a year of dating, she was fifteen.

Maybe it was a curse, she thought. Since she was lucky enough to have been chosen to be a hero; loving and concerned parents; wonderful friends (all four); talent recognized by powerful people (Audrey and Gabriel).

In the same way as Ladybug and Chat Noir, if she had one side too good, the other would have to be as bad as to balance the scale.

What Tikki had firmly denied and said that Marinette just needed to be patient, that the right person for her would show up. She just needed to mature and wait for it.

Marinette tried to be positive about the words of the little goddess. Really. She really tried.

So, when she turned sixteen and Adrien announced that he and Luka were in a relationship, Marinette celebrated for her friends. She was genuinely happy for them. But when Sabrina, not even a month later, appeared hand in hand with Felix, both with red cheeks and babbling about deciding to try a relationship; Marinette broke.

She broke down and gave up.

Seeing how Chloe changed when she was with Kagami or how Felix was opening up more and more because of Sabrina, showed Marinette that she hadn't been enough for Lila. Or Alya. She was the problem.

Then she stopped.

Marinette began to focus more on studies, friends, commissions, training as a guardian and life as a hero. Not looking once for romantic relationships. And she was like that. Increasingly strong and independent, not once bowing her head to other people.

For her seventeenth birthday, Luka - who had discovered he was Jagged's son and was now living with the man - invited family and friends to celebrate at the rockstar's mansion in Gotham. Trying to keep the group away from Paris and Akumas for a while. Everyone agreed, since it was a good idea.

(Gabriel who was leaving for a business trip in New York and allowed Adrien to go with them, like a long-delayed vacation.)

And it was there that Marinette met Damian. Tall, arrogant, beautiful green eyes, olive skin, broad shoulders, defined muscles, dark hair like the night and a permanent frown as a causal expression. She felt like air was being stolen from her lungs.

The second time they kissed - the first being just a brush of lips - Damian held her tightly. His fingers sinking into the flesh of her hips, the palm leaving feverish impressions on her skin, the fullness of his cologne soaking her senses, the sharp drag of his tongue against the roof of her mouth, pulling the tiniest delightful sighs from her lungs.

Marinette had been lost in Damian. She dragged her hands through his smooth, combed hair, as if she were drugged with passion. Her nails scraping over the bare skin on the back of his neck, never wanting to let go. The sounds that escaped, Damian swallowed fervently, looking just as drunk as she did.

Marinette was weak, wobbly, her blood was like lava, her heart was beating as if it wanted to break her ribs, she was short of breath and her brain was like goo.

It was there that she gave herself over to love once again.

They returned to Paris, Luka staying in Gotham, but promising video calls and visiting when he was off tour with Jagged; Adrien was sad, but he was also the musician's greatest enthusiast.

For Marinette, leaving Gotham and, consequently, Damian, had been painful. The chaotic, disgusting thoughts about how the relationship had been only a 'summer love', but in the end it was him who insisted on continuing. Then the same promise that Luka had made to Adrien, Damian made to Marinette.

Returning to Paris was fine, but returning to Dupont had been disappointing. Somehow, Ms. Bustier's class came to believe that Chloe, Adrien, Marinette and Sabrina had been absent for a week, just to get attention and as a result, the verbal attacks became more violent. Alya and Lila being the two most aggressive.

Aurore, a few days after the group's return to Paris, had told Marinette that Alya let slip that she was dating Nino just to hurt her. As revenge for being 'unfaithful', so that Marinette would regret having deceived her.

Marinette was really sad for Nino, as he seemed to really like Alya.

Thus, a year passed in the blink of an eye and in two days, there would be the graduation party for all classes of graduates.

The first idea - coming from the teachers - was that the party would be in the American style of prom. Beautiful dresses, king and queen and all that bullshit, but all the students who were graduating refused. They wanted something different.

Hawkmoth and Mayura had been defeated, they were all graduating, all of them of age wanting to leave the lycée in style. And Chloe - as always - at the meeting with all the class representatives, offered the Moulin Rouge as a graduation party.

Everyone loved it. Well, almost everyone, since the teachers thought that a graduation party at a nightclub would be overkill; but with all the students excited about the idea and the fact that they were of age, the school allowed it.

It was three months of organization. Selling tickets to non-students, buying drinks - alcoholic and non-alcoholic -, food - since no one would be able to stand all night without eating -, talking to the club's employees, making the guest list. It was exhausting, but it only increased general anxiety.

"What do you think, bug?" Chloe was wearing a yellow sequin bodycon dress with spaghetti straps and four-inch silver strappy high heels. "Kardashian or Paris?"

Marinette chewed the strawberry in her mouth. One side of the earphone to the ear, the phone in one hand on a video call with Damian and with the other hand, she wagged her finger, asking Chloe to turn.

"Hmm, I think it would be better to choose something that you won't have to fix up every time you move around a lot." The brunette considered after Chloe turned to her again. "We are going to a nightclub to drink and dance, so I think a bodycon is not the best idea."

Chloe pouted, looking at the back of the outfit in the mirror. “But that dress makes my butt so round. 'Gami would love it.”

Marinette looked at the phone in time to see Damian raise an eyebrow at the subject, an amused gleam in his eyes. "For sure, but choose something that you will be able to dance with me because I intend to leave that club without feeling my legs."

She was biting into another strawberry when Chloe put her hands on her hips, still looking at herself in the mirror. “Watch out, bug. You spend a lot of time without feeling your legs, an hour can become dangerous.”

Marinette frowned without understanding, but the wink that Chloe sent and Damian's laughter took the confusion out of her.

"Chloe!" She took the pillow closest to her on the bed and threw it at her friend. "No sexual jokes." The blonde was laughing as she returned to the closet, easily avoiding the pillow.

"Because actions speak more than words." Damian had a small mischievous smile on his face. "And I'm a man of action."

“Oh? We'll see." Marinette threw the second and last piece of the strawberry into her mouth, chewing it slowly as she stared at the camera. "I'm looking forward to your actions, baobei."

▫▪▪

While Marinette was eager to leave the lycée and forget her classmates for good, she was also feeling salty about everything. About how Lila would get away with it, go on with life as if she hadn't fucked Marinette's entire lycée life.

On the one hand, she wanted to unmask Lila so that everyone could see how rotten the Italian was. On the other hand, she no longer cared what others thought of her, much less wanted to help them get rid of Lila's slimy claws.

There were more cons than pros and she didn't know what to do.

"Marinette, why don't you let your hair down?" Tikki flew to the girl.

"I don't know, Tikki." She took the mascara, wiping it on her lashes. "My hair is too big and I'm going to sweat." Marinette turned her face away from the mirror, studying the makeup.

She had decided to dare that night. After spending years with just mascara and gloss, Marinette had smeared black eyeshadow on her upper and lower eyelids, a little highlighter above the pink cheekbones and a pink nude lipstick.

The makeup had become a spectacle, giving it a mature look.

"Just take a ribbon to attach." The little kwami pouted and Marinette rolled her eyes affectionately. "And it will also match your outfit."

"Okay, okay. Let me fix this mane, then."

Marinette thought about wearing one of the many evening dresses she had designed before, however, considering the same advice she had given Chloe, she choose something safer.

Skinny jeans with subtle rips in thighs and knees, lace crop top with spaghetti straps and sweetheart neckline, her loyal Louboutin daf platform ankle boots. All black except for the Chanel red – synthetic – leather jacket that Damian had given her as a gift.

She opted for different jewelry this time. Tikki and the earrings would stay with Sabine, and a small, discreet pink gold earring in the shape of a ladybug took place. On the neck, the choker that matched the earrings adorned the delicate skin, as well as the ring on the finger.

"There." Marinette announced. The hair was in uneven curls, giving volume. "What do you think?" She opened her arms for Tikki to take a closer look at the choice of clothes.

She had adopted the sexy and dangerous look with praise.

"You look wonderful, Marinette!" The kwami squeaked excitedly. "Damian will love it!"

Marinette smiled excitedly. "Do you really think?!"

"She's right, my love. You look stunning.”

The two jumps in surprise at the new voice and Marinette turned in time to see Damian enter her room. Tikki soon became scarce.

"Dames!" She quickly approached her boyfriend, happiness on her expression. “When did you arrive? I didn't get late, did I?”

Damian was quick to wrap his arms around her waist, pressing the smaller body against him. There was an evil smile on his face. "I just arrived and I missed my girlfriend a lot, so I decided to show up early."

Marinette wrapped her arms around his hunched shoulders, her fingers sinking into the short hair on the back of his neck. "Good, because your girlfriend was really missing you too."

"And what does she intend to do about it?" Damian dragged his hands under the leather jacket, letting his hands roam over the bare skin on her back.

Her eyes darkened with the touch and the proximity of their faces. They hadn't seen each other for a few months since Damian had been busy joining Tim in charge of WE and that took a toll on both of them.

The hunger for touch - Damian's touch - for Marinette had become unbearably difficult to control without him around to relieve. But now he was there, so close that every slight movement of their heads resulted in their noses rubbing against each other.

And she wanted more, much more. Damian didn't seem averse to that, if the warm look was any indication.

"What do you want-" He didn't give her the chance to finish her thought, his lips firm against hers in a passionate kiss.

And Marinette gave herself up again, as anxious as she was, to get lost in their own little world. She wanted it so, so much. It was disturbing how lost in Damian she was.

"I didn't want to disturb the love birds, but they are all waiting in the limo." The two of them reluctantly moved away.

Both were panting, Damian's lips red and damp with lipstick marks on his skin, his hair ruffled by Marinette's fingers; she was no different, lipstick had smeared the skin around her mouth, her lips were red and her eyes were blurry.

Adrien had been the one to interrupt the two, still standing on the stairs and leaning on the bedroom floor as if watching a very interesting movie. He had a mischievous smile on his face.

Damian sighed, regaining consciousness, frowning at being interrupted.

"Sometimes you are a pain in the ass, Agreste." He grunted as he helped Marinette adjust her clothes.

"And you still love me." Adrien showed his tongue in retaliation. “Don't forget to clean that lipstick stain. You know that if Jason and Tim see it, they won't be talking about anything for a week.”

“Thank you, Adrien. We will be leaving soon!” Marinette replied before Damian said something rude and dragged her boyfriend over so she could wipe his face with makeup remover.

The model took no more time in the room and went down.

"I think it's best not to apply lipstick again." Damian leaned against the dresser, arms crossed over his chest, watching Marinette fix her smudged makeup.

Her hand faltered over the lipstick tubes with his comment, rethinking the options, and decided to pick a strawberry chapstick.

"I don't think you're going to care about the artificial strawberry taste, are you?" She winked at Damian boldly and took a second look at what he was wearing.

"Not at all. Now let's go, before Chloe comes for us.” And he pulled her into the hatch on the floor.

The girl was so distracted by his presence that she hadn't even paid attention to what he was wearing. And she approved the choice of the set.

Damian wore a gray v-neck t-shirt folded inside his black slim fit pants - without a belt -; over the shirt, a graphite blazer folded below the elbows to show the inner print of the piece; polished black shoes on the feet.

And she thought seeing him in a three-piece suit was surprising.

They left the house without much fanfare. Sabine and Tom sitting on the couch with Tikki and Plagg watching some old movie on TV just waved their hands, telling them to have fun and call if they needed anything.

Chloe's limo was parked right next to the bakery exit. Luka leaning against the open door, talking to Félix and Jason.

Félix had - surprisingly - left his ties and waistcoats in the closet this time. Wearing a rare gray polo shirt, regular cut black jeans with leather belt and on his feet, Gucci loafers. Only the hairstyle remained the same, as he and Damian were two people who breathed hair gel.

Jason hadn't changed much. All in black, regular pants looking well-worn on his knees, combat boots, Henley with open buttons and a leather jacket. Hair looking much wilder than on a normal day.

Luka, on the other hand, wore almost the same as Jason. The differences were that Luka did not have a leather jacket, his shirt was a white button down and was wrapped around his forearms and his pants were leather. But that was not what caught Marinette's attention about her friend.

It was the first time she had seen Luka in person in months (almost a year) and she learned from Adrien, that he had adopted a new haircut and that he had gotten some tattoos. But she didn't think he would have both arms full with complex designs and colors.

His hair was short on the sides and nape, the natural tone left untouched in the shaved parts. With longer top totally dyed blue. She was able to see that there were more piercings in the ears, a dark ring on the nose and a black plug in each ear.

"Hey, guys! Sorry we are late." Marinette smiled at their friends who had stopped talking to look at them.

"Good night, Mari."

"Bugnette, what's up!"

"Ma-Marinette, your music is still fantastic."

"Luka, you're total rock 'n roll! Jagged must be proud.” She commented.

"I liked the Red Hood style, Bugnette." Jason pointed out the similarities.

"It would be interesting to see Red Hood kicking ass on a six-inch platform heel." Felix looked at Jason, considering.

"There is an image that I would rather not have in my head." Damian groaned as if in pain.

Jason opened his mouth to probably swear at his friends and brother, but was interrupted by Chloe, who came out of the limo snorting in irritation.

“Can you guys get in soon? I want to make a dramatic entrance and you are getting in the way!”

“Wow, Chlo. You are wonderful." Marinette ignored her friend's angry snort, preferring to look at the clothes the girl was wearing.

"Of course. I am always wonderful.” Posing with hands on hips.

Chloe's outfit was not the most outrageous outfit she had ever worn before. They were simple pieces, but together they made a fatal set.

She wore a black satin top with spaghetti straps, folded into a white high-waisted mini shorts, on the legs, four-inch black over the knee boots - Tom Ford's lace-up nappa she loved - and on the neck there were two chokers: the broadest was white with black print and the thinest was leather decorated with crystals; plus a gold necklace with bee pendant.

Her hair was in a messy ponytail and her makeup was simple; black eyeliner, shadow on the eyelids was a sparkling metallic - yet soft - there was a lovely pink on the cheekbones and her lipstick was nude.

"I'm getting more and more excited about it all." Marinette murmured, an evil smile on her face.

Chloe winked at her friend, having the same thoughts as her. "Come on suckers!"

▫▪▪

When they arrived at the club street, there was a considerable line at the entrance for people who had bought tickets; but as Sabrina, Adrien, Chloe, Marinette and Kagami were students, they were entitled to VIP entrance and could take two guests each.

"That's a lot people." Adrien commented sitting next to Luka and Chloe.

He wore an oversized pastel pink button-down shirt; the last three buttons open with the left end folded into the slim fit light blue denim pants. On the feet, off-white converse with white socks.

The hair, which he had let it grow - not too long, just long enough for a little ponytail - was parted on the side and messy, two kitten clips holding the right side of the bangs, while the left side fell textured over the eye.

"I see Nath and Marc from your class coming." Kagami lays a finger on the window, showing the two boys to enter.

She wore a pleated red peplum off-shoulder knit top, black leather pants with golden zippers on both sides; and on the feet, six-inch silver gold peep toe platform high heels.

Her hair, now in a pixie cut, had her bangs pushed aside. The makeup, she just had a thick black eyeliner on her eyes, ruby lipstick on her lips and minimal blush. Accessories include a pair of diamond earrings.

"Aurore and Claude too." Sabrina replied. That night, she had left her glasses at home, opting for contact lenses.

Sabrina opted for a black backless bodysuit with spaghetti straps, a pleated two-tiered skirt with the first being gold sequin and the second layer was peach tulle. On the feet, five-inch black lace up bandage high heels.

Red hair in a French bob, with loose curls and messy bangs. A silver necklace with a fox pendant around her neck. The makeup the same as Kagami's, changing only the color of the lipstick, which was a wine purple.

"Everyone has arrived." Jason says, his eyes glued to the phone.

"Everyone?" Marinette asks, eyebrow raised.

"Yeah..." He looks up, feeling the sharp edge.

"Everyone who?" Damian asked, already knowing the answer to that question.

"You know..." Jason looks away before speaking again. “Artemis, Dick, Kori, Tim, Conner, Cass, Steph, Babs, Duke and Jon. Bruce and Selina didn't come because Helena cried every time they put her in the crib.”

Damian grunted and Marinette laughed, incredulous. Luka and Adrien were out of breath from laughing.

"My god, the entire Wayne family under one roof..." Félix gasped in horror.

"If Paris remains whole tomorrow, I will ask my father to declare a holiday." Chloe joked.

"Okay, I think we better get in soon because this is getting weird here." Marinette opened the limo door and let out a breath.

It was now or never.

▫▪▪

Lila was ready. This was the last chance she would have to mess with Marinette, before everyone followed the path of adulthood with colleges and jobs.

Was she a little obsessive? Yes. She would not deny it. But there was something about Marinette. Something that she couldn't name, that made her waste hours of the day thinking about her; feeling angry that the girl broke up with her and never looked twice at Lila again.

She simply pretended that the Italian did not exist, regardless of the lie that Lila told or accused her, Marinette did not even blink in her direction and that left her burning with frustration, a bitter taste in her mouth.

When Marinette broke up with her, the first thing she thought was that it was Alya's doing, but she soon gave up on the idea since Alya was her most loyal follower and didn't know about Lila and Marinette's relationship.

But she knew that Marinette would not have found it out on her own, that she had help and that the person who had done it would pay. It was only when she noticed Kagami's murderous looks that everything fell into place and she tried.

Lila tried so hard to ruin Kagami Tsurugi's life. At school, at home, with the girl's fencing partners. Everything. But somehow Kagami was untouchable.

So, she went around, attacking Chloe with gossip around the school, accusing Marinette of bullying, telling everyone that Adrien was gay, throwing suggestions to Sabrina's stupid father; everything she could do she did and in a way, she got some results, but nothing significant.

Not even when Lila talked – lied - about lovers or high society ex-lovers like Damian Wayne, Peter Stark, Princess Shuri to make the girl jealous, Marinette reacted.

It was frustrating. Marinette getting further and further away from her control, the days and months passing, the anger rising. But she had everything ready for that night.

Lila would recover what was hers for better or for worse.

Nino choked on his drink and coughed violently, drawing her attention.

"You're right, man?!" Kim asked worriedly as he hit the DJ on the back.

The whole class was sitting in a discreet corner of the club that filled up more with each passing minute, so the boy was soon surrounded by concerned colleagues.

Lila tried not to roll her eyes in annoyance.

Nino inhaled the air trying to compose himself, his outstretched arm pointing to a somewhere in the club. "Ma-MA"

Alya frowned in confusion before following the direction with her eyes, where Nino pointed. The reaction she had was almost identical to Nino.

"MARINETTE?!" She screamed; the club's music drowning out, but the class was able to hear without a problem as they were close.

Lila felt a sharp pain and burning in the back of her neck from the speed that she turned her head, but it didn't matter. With ‘Marinette, Marinette, Marinette’ singing in her mind, she rested her eyes on the sight of the gods.

There she was. Sin itself. Lila felt her mouth dry, feeling deeply dehydrated.

She had other people with her, but the Italian had eyes only for Marinette. For the way the pants hugged the curves like a glove, the contrast of red and black against the alabaster skin, the sudden ability to walk in heels.

The loose hair that she never showed anyone, just for Lila, but now everyone was seeing.

"Wow, Marinette looks beautiful." Alix sighed.

"I didn't know Sabrina could look like this..." Max commented back.

"Chloe looks beautiful, too." Kim's cheeks were flushed.

"... Mari..." Alya said again, her eyes glassy, unaware of Nino's grimace.

Lila felt her anger burn again.

Everyone was looking at Marinette. Everyone was coveting what was hers.

She swallowed the rest of the gin violently before placing the glass on the table and walked to the dance floor.

Tonight, Marinette would look at her, only at her.

▫▪▪

Meeting Damian's family on the sofas in the VIP area of the Moulin Rouge had been quite a scene, since the group of heroes - and vigilantes - attracted a lot of attention, even though they were doing nothing but talking and drinking.

Artemis and Kori, two tall and strong women, wearing simple clothes: Kori with a black lace trimmed silk satin mini dress accompanied by black shorts, and on her feet, four-inch open toe pump noir from Visage; Artemis, on the other hand, was more comfortable with blue ripped skinny jeans, a transparent black button-down blouse - a lace bralette underneath - and on the feet, Jeffrey Campbell's four-inch rodillo-hi wedge sandal.

Babs was also tall, but not quite as tall as the other two. She was wearing a scribbled multicolored Jeremy Scott mini dress and red YSL stilettos opyum 110 on her feet. Cass was the most casual, all in black wearing a black t-shirt with sleeves wrapped around her shoulders, denim and converse Chuck Taylor.

Steph was wearing a black Prada technical nylon jumpsuit with black Oxford heels and Marinette was never so proud.

She succeeded in just a year, making them understand that jeans and hoodies were not the solution for everything. Only Cass who was still fighting her, but Marinette was nothing but persistent. She was going to make it.

From the boys, there was not much difference from the ones she had seen before. All between Félix and Luka. Which was disappointing, honestly.

They were all sitting, talking and drinking, Jon had disappeared with Mirelle in the middle of the dance floor and Tim had gone to the bathroom when Adrien jumped off Luka's lap.

"I love this song!" He shouted excitedly. "We have to go!" He took Marinette and Chloe's hand, pulling both without thinking twice.

Chloe laughed excitedly, turning quickly just to wave goodbye to Kagami and Marinette blew a kiss to Damian who leaned back against the couch, relaxing to watch the girl.

They had to push some people out of the way to get a good space, but soon they were dancing.

‘Why do we keep when the water runs? Why do we love if we're so mistaken?’ Adrien sang for both of them, arms up as he moved his hips.

‘Why do we leave when the chase is done? Don't search me in here, I'm already gone, baby’ Chloe sings back shaking her head while tossing her ponytail over her shoulder.

‘Why do we keep when the water runs? Why do we love?’ Marinette shrugged to take off her jacket and do a slow body roll. The sharp and sensual hips.

She looked over her shoulder, catching Damian's eye across the dance floor. He smiled; his eyes dark. Tim catches the change and laughs hard. Damian looks at his brother, his expression irritated.

Marinette dances again with her friends, putting her jacket back on her shoulders, getting lost in the music. Feeling the melody vibrate under the skin. Dancing was really wonderful.

The three of them stayed on the dance floor for what seemed like hours. Jumping, singing or just playing with each other. At one point, Sabrina joined them, but she didn't stay long.

Adrien was flushed from the effort; Chloe had a wet neck and Marinette was scalding in that leather jacket. That's when they decided to stop and go back to their table.

Chloe and Adrien were quick to sit on the plush seats, leaving only Damian's lap free for her to sit on, which she didn't hesitate to do.

"Hey, big boy." She wrapped her arms around his neck. "You come here often?"

Damian hugged her waist. "No, but if you want, I can come." He kissed her neck, his arm stretched out on the table to pick up the water bottle. "But first you have to drink water and take that jacket off to cool off."

She made a face, but didn't complained when she took off her jacket - which Damian threw on the table - and took the water from his hand. She managed to drain the bottle without having to stop to breathe, the thirst she hadn't noticed, calmed.

“Water has never tasted as good as it does today. Wow." She sighed in delight.

"I know something much better." Damian whispered in her ear and lowered his head to place a kiss on the back of her neck, enjoying the goosebumps.

"D-"

"If you guys stop flirting for a moment and pay attention to me, I would appreciate it." Adrien caught their attention.

"Agreste." Damian growled as he pulled his mouth away from her skin. “This is the second time today. Second."

Luka laughed at his friend, blinking slowly. “Easy Wayne. He just wanted Marinette to see that.” He pointed discreetly at the dance floor.

Dance floor where Alya and Lila danced against each other, trying to sensualize. Trying was the key word, since Lila didn't seem to know what she was doing. But the worst was not them trying to sensualize, but trying and, on top of that, looking at Marinette waiting for a reaction.

"Do they really think this is going to work?" Sabrina asked really surprised.

"I wish I could unsee it. Jesus." Felix grunted.

"They can be worse than Tim." Dick stifled his laughter in Kori's dress and she stroked his hair.

"It's like a live trainwreck." Kagami had a glass of whiskey in her hand, trying to hide her laughter.

"This is disturbing." Jason raised his eyebrow at Alya twerking. "Very disturbing." He was sitting on Artemis's lap, his eyes barely open, almost asleep.

"I should sue them for this." Chloe was extremely irritated.

"Think on the bright side: at least they haven't started-" Damian raised his eyebrow, before rolling his eyes. "Forget what I was going to say."

"They really are- oh my god." Marinette put her hands on her face in disbelief.

Lila and Alya were kissing. Kissing in a very obscene way, if Marinette could add.

"Guys, this is worse than I expected." Cassandra commented without emotion. A beer in her right hand and her left arm on Stephanie's shoulders.

Marinette was not really believing the general situation of what was happening. Of course, she imagined that Lila would try some of her irritating plans to humiliate her in front of everyone, but she didn't think that Lila would be allying herself with Alya in such a rude way.

For God’s sake! Alya had a boyfriend and even though she didn't really like Nino, she should at least respect him. Nino was not a bad guy, perhaps too innocent for falling for the lies of the two girls, but he was still kind and fun. Quite honest.

Seeing Alya simply dismissing his feelings as if it was nothing, made Marinette disgusted.

If she still liked either girl, that would be the moment when the feeling would end.

"I feel so bad for her boyfriend." Steph said pointing to a dark corner on the other side of the club, where Nino looked devastated.

Marinette felt her anger burn at the sight.

She had arrived at the club determined to do nothing against Lila or Alya, but that changed when she saw Nino looking so heartbroken.

Those two would pay for thinking only of themselves.

Marinette turned to her friends, the miraculous team, with a stormy expression. “Bee, Cat and Fox-” Chloe, Adrien and Sabrina straightened up, their eyes hardening. "I have a plan and I think you will like it." She smiled like the devil, the three showing equal smiles.

"What about me, Mari-hime?" Kagami asked, eager to help.

"You and everyone are going to sit here and watch."

Damian squeezed her waist, reaching for her ear again.

"I love it when you look like this. Ready to bite heads off."

Marinette turned her face only to place an innocent kiss on his lips, before moving away to Damian's ear.

"Then you will love even more what I am about to do." And she bit the lobe of his ear, pausing only to appreciate the way his fingers dug into the bare skin of her waist, before getting up.

"Now if you guys excuse us, we have a show to do."

▫▪▪

Lila was about to open her mouth again to deepen the kiss with Alya, when the music was abruptly cut off and everyone started booing.

"Sorry! Sorry!" The DJ - Allan from Mr. Dubois' class - said into the microphone. "I know you want to keep dancing, but a very peculiar request came and I thought you would love it."

She looked at the spot where Marinette had been sitting - sitting on the lap of a man Lila had never seen before - but did not find the girl. Only Tsurugi and Couffaine were still sitting there with the strange friends. None of Marinette's other three minions were there.

The man who had been with Marinette before noticed Lila's gaze and raised an eyebrow in defiance and she had to look away back to the DJ booth.

"What do you think of a live show?" Allan asked, getting excited by the enthusiasm of the audience. "Great, great- because I have four friends here who want the high point of the night!"

Lila had a really bad feeling about what was about to happen.

He turned back, waving to the people in the back and when they reached the light, Lila's heart dropped to her stomach.

Marinette, Chloe, Sabrina and Adrien were smiling like a cat that ate the canary while waving to everyone.

"You must recognize them: Adrien Agreste, Sabrina Raincomprix, Chloe Bourgeois and Marinette Dupain-Cheng, from Ms. Bustier's class!" Everyone shouted excitedly. "The stage is all yours." He said to them when he handed the microphone to Marinette.

Adrien, Chloe and Sabrina already had microphones in their hands.

The melody started and Marinette, along with the three of them, headed for the stairs that led to the dance floor. The light following in their footsteps.

La-la, la-la, la

They leaned against the railing, posing. Marinette first, Adrien behind her, Sabrina next and Chloe at the top.

Yeah, it's been a long night and the mirror's telling me to go home (go home)

Marinette started to sing, her voice rocking everyone in the club watching her and the three friends doing backing vocals.

But it's been a long time since I felt this good on my own (uh)

She ran a hand over her bare belly before going up to her hair, pushing it out of the way. Marinette was breathtaking.

Lotta years went by With my hands tied up in your ropes (your ropes) Forever and ever, no more (no more)

Marinette rocked her hips to the side, shaking her head in denial and the other three did the same, but Lila's focus was only on Dupain-Cheng.

The midnight sky is the road I'm takin' Head high up in the clouds (oh, oh)

Her voice came raw, sensual. She slid while holding the railing of the stairs, never failing to move her hips. A wild glow in the eye.

I was born to run, I don't belong to anyone, oh no Don't need to be loved by you (by you)

She got up and the four started to sing together in what looked like the chorus.

Fire in my lungs Can't bite the Devil on my tongue, oh no Don't need to be loved by you

They started down the stairs slowly, still dancing to the melody of the song.

See my lips on her mouth Everybody's talkin' now, baby Ooh, you know it's true (yeah, yeah)

It was then that Marinette, for the first time in months, looked directly at Lila. To Lila and Alya, who was shaking next to the Italian.

That I was born to run, I don't belong to anyone, oh no Don't need to be loved by you (loved by you)

She raised her hand and with her finger, signaled a 'no' before winking at them and looking away again. Lila was having trouble assimilating everything.

La-la, la-la, la

They reached the dance floor, everybody making room.

She got her hair pulled back 'Cause the sweat's drippin' off of her face (her face) Said, "It ain't so bad if I wanna make a couple mistakes"

Side by side, they waved their hands in front of their faces as if they were hot.

You should know right now that I never stayed put in one place Forever and ever, no more (no more)

They started to walk in a circle, looking at each person around them and smiling.

Marinette took the lead again.

The midnight sky is the road I'm takin' Head high up in the clouds (oh, oh)

Her voice was raw, resonating through Lila's body like a charm.

I was born to run, I don't belong to anyone, oh no Don't need to be loved by you (by you)

The four returned to stand side by side, to sing together.

Fire in my lungs Can't bite the Devil on my tongue, oh no Don't need to be loved by you

Adrien turned to Chloe and Marinette turned to Sabrina, her back to Adrien. They approached, so close that any mistakes Marinette and Sabrina could bump each other's mouths.

See my lips on her mouth Everybody's talkin' now, baby Ooh, you know it's true (yeah)

Lila felt the hatred burn in the pit of her stomach, disgusted by the intimacy that Sabrina - the same girl who had scorned everyone with Chloe for years - had with Marinette, while she only had a quick look and worst, she had to share with Alya.

That I was born to run, I don't belong to anyone, oh no Don't need to be loved by you (by you)

They moved away from each other and started walking on the dance floor, messing with people. Marinette getting closer and closer to her.

Until she stopped in front of Lila.

Oh I don't hide, blurry eyes like you

And sang to her. Directly to her. Marinette inches from her. If Lila reached out, she could touch Mari's skin again.

Like you

Marinette looked up at someone - Alya - behind her for a moment, before leaving again.

The meaning in the letter does not go unnoticed by either.

I was born to run, I don't belong to anyone, oh no I don't need to be loved by you (by you)

They walked on the dance floor again singing and dancing together.

Fire in my lungs Can't bite the Devil on my tongue, oh no Don't need to be loved by you

Marinette approached someone, the same guy as before, the one she was sitting on the lap. He was a few people away from Lila, but even with the distance, she was able to see the way his eyes were dark with possessiveness.

He advanced, being pulled by Marinette, before she turned her back to him making him embrace her.

See his hands 'round my waist Thought you never be replaced, baby Ooh, you know it's true (yeah)

Lila saw his hands go over Marinette's hips, the comfortable way he hid his face in her neck and the swing of her hips against his. As if it were normal for them.

Jealousy was burning again in Lila's chest.

That I was born to run, I don't belong to anyone, oh no Don't need to be loved by you (yeah)

Marinette looked up, meeting Lila's. The lyrics of the song were like a knife in her skin.

La-la, la-la, la, la-la

She saw Marinette turn around in his arms and kiss him. Slowly and deeply, completely oblivious to the screams of the audience.

You know it's true, you know it's true Loved by you

The others finished singing the song and with the end of the song, the hope that Marinette would return to her died.

But Lila would make her regret that.

▫▪▪

"MARI, I DIDN'T KNOW YOU COULD SING!" Kori shouted over the applause.

"I didn't know the three of you sang." Conner commented in surprise.

"I think everything they do comes out well." Jon snorted.

"Thanks, guys." Marinette laughed sheepishly. It was still difficult to receive so much praise.

"You sang like a Rockstar, Bugnette." Jason raised his hand and she hit a hi-five.

"That's why I always invite her to be part of my music." Luka laughed; arms wrapped around Adrien.

"Damian doesn't seem happy about it at all." Tim commented, looking at his sullen brother.

"Oh no. He's like that because you interrupted us four times tonight.” Marinette replied.

"I'm surprised he hasn't tried to kill us yet." Dick laughed.

After the group of friends finished singing, they were approached by friends excited by the show. Damian getting annoyed at being interrupted for the third time that night.

Chloe had kissed Kagami, Adrien jumped into Luka's arms, Sabrina and Félix having a moment; but when Damian tried to monopolize Marinette, his family appeared to interrupt them.

"It’s because I’m without my katana here, otherwise I would have already killed you."

"Uh-oh here comes trouble." Adrien looked over Marinette's shoulder and she feared what it was about, but she turned nonetheless.

And for sure. There was a problem.

Alya, Lila and the entire class, even a constipated-looking Nino, walking up to them.

"And here they come wanting to be humiliated again." Sabrina shook her head in disbelief.

When the class reached them, Marinette was able to notice Alya's murderous look at Damian, as Lila had a smug smile on her face and Nathaniel's apologetic look.

"Good night, Marinette." Lila greeted, the fake sweet tone already taking Mari's patience.

"So, it's him, huh." Alya snarled, Nino looked like he was about to cry.

"He...?" Damian frowned.

"You must be Marinette's boyfriend." Lila doesn’t answer the unspoken question. "My name is Lila Rossi; it is a pleasure to finally meet you." She raised her hand to him, but he didn't react. Still looking at the group with contempt.

"Damian." He replied dryly.

The two had a silent dispute to face.

"Ah- hi, Juleka!" Adrien waved at the girl and she looked away, refusing to wave back. Luka had a sad gleam in his eyes.

Juleka was not part of the group of people who attacked them verbally, but she also remained neutral, since Rose really believed in the bullshit that Lila told. She didn't want to become a pariah of the class like Marinette, and it hit the Couffaine siblings hard.

Which got worse with the discovery that Jagged was Luka's father and that Luka was leaving Kitty Section to live with him in Gotham.

Juleka never forgave him for it and blamed Adrien for supporting Luka's departure

"So, it was with you that Marinette cheated on Alya, huh." Alix said without caring about anything.

"You aren’t that great." Kim looked analytically at Damian and Marinette felt Damian exhale heavily.

"Who said that?" Marinette asked Alix.

Ivan raised an eyebrow at her. "It's common knowledge that you cheated on Alya, Marinette."

"Don't act innocent!" Alya shouted. "I can't believe you exchanged a year of relationship to be with this... ugh."

Chloe stepped forward to defend her friends, but Marinette stopped her.

"Alya, whether you believe it or not, I never cheated on you." She said calmly.

Alya scoffed. "It seems to me that you got over it really fast, since you were exchanging spit with this one."

Marinette blew out an incredulous breath. “We broke up almost three years ago, Alya. Did you really think I was going to be single forever?”

Max frowned upset. "People who can't stay faithful shouldn't be dating."

"I agree with you, Max. I'm glad I was never unfaithful." Marinette responded as calmly as she could at that moment.

"You should have more compassion for other people, Marinette." Lila decided to get involved. "Knowing that Alya would be hurt to see you being cozy with your... boyfriend." A false expression of concern on her face.

She looked at the Italian, her face blank. Lila hadn't noticed the opening she left for Marinette.

"What are you talking about, Lila?" She asked, confusion on her face. "You didn't seem concerned about Alya when we dated for six months after she broke up with me."

Alya turned to face Lila, surprised by Marinette's words. The class was in the same state.

"What are you talking about, Marinette?" Rose asked, shock clear in her expression.

“Lila, after Alya broke up with me, came to me offering a shoulder to cry. She stayed by my side while I tried to forget about Alya and in the end, we started dating.”

"YOU WHAT?!" Alya snarled.

Marinette tilted her head. "I thought you told them, Lila."

Lila's eyes were wide, not knowing what to say.

“But why would Lila date you, if she was the one who said you were cheating on Alya? It doesn't make sense.” Nino pointed.

"Maybe because Marinette never cheated on Alya and Lila lied to you about everything." Felix replied.

Alya shook her head in denial. "This has to be a lie, because if it's true..."

"... If true, you broke up with your girlfriend just so that Lila would have the opportunity to date her." Nathaniel commented, a devilish smile on his lips.

"It's a lie, guys!" Lila shouted. "She's just saying that to mess you!"

Alya stopped shaking her head, considering Lila's words.

"I have proof." Marinette said and Lila stiffened. “But it doesn't matter anymore. Today is the last day I have to see you, so it makes no difference whether you believe me or not.”

"Last day?" Lila asked curiously.

"Yeah. I'm going to live in Gotham with these losers here.” And he pointed to the batfam, superboys - even if they were from Metropolis -, alien, amazon and the miraculous team behind her. "Today is our farewell." She shrugged.

"Oh." Alya sighed.

Lila didn't like what she heard. Angry again.

"So what? You are leaving just like this? Are you going to leave me to live with this nobody?! "

Damian snarled. "What did you call me?!"

"Damian." Marinette said and he stepped back. “And yes, Lila. I will leave just like this. I owe you no satisfaction from what I do or don't do. You decided to lie to me and I decided that you would not be part of it.”

She picked up the jacket on the table and took Damian's hand. The party was over for her.

“I grew up and you should do the same. Goodbye."

Deciding to leave as soon as possible, Marinette did not wait for Lila's answer and pulled Damian away.

She was an adult now; teenage intrigues were no longer part of her daily life.

When the two reached the Moulin Rouge's sidewalk, Marinette turned to Damian.

"So, how about a tour in your hotel room?" She winked at him.

Damian smiled beatifically. "I thought you'd never ask."

Tikki was right. Waiting was worth it.

BONUS #1:

"Hey, Damian did you saw Ma- oh"

“Okay, this is it. Run Agreste.”

"But-"

"Shut up and run."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"...!"

"LUKA HELP ME!!!"

BONUS #2:

Marinette picked up the phone, noting that there were two voicemail notifications.

She was surprised, since everyone who had that number was in the gardens enjoying Alfred's birthday party.

Marinette put the phone to her ear, curiosity eating at her.

"Hello, Mari?" She inhaled hard. How did Alya get her phone number? “Hi, it's me Alya, Alya Césaire. Hah of course you know who I am... You, uh, must be wondering how I got your number... I got it from Nathaniel. Don't be mad at him, please! I needed to talk to you, but it's like you moved to Narnia. You probably blocked me, hah.”

She felt tears prick her eyes. As much as Marinette held a grudge against Alya, she still missed the friendship they shared and hearing her voice like that was like putting salt in the wound.

“Mari- Marinette. I wanted to apologize. I'm sorry for everything.” Tears falling freely. “I know that just words won't undo everything I did or said to you, but I needed you to know that I regret everything. I loved you, I still love you, but I see that feeling has rotted and blossomed into the worst of me. You didn't deserve anything that we did for you. I want you to understand that I was stupid, childish and did not weigh the consequences of my actions, but that I am trying to improve-“ The signal for the end of the voicemail rang and Marinette immediately clicked on the second message.

“Sorry, I reached the time limit. Hah. After that night at the club, I came home and thought about everything a lot. Nino has been helping me daily and- I'm grateful Mari, because Nino was kind enough to forgive me for what I did. I think I'm really falling in love with him now that I'm not blinded by meanness. Lila is no longer in Paris. I may have... left some videos at the Italian embassy for her mother to see and even if she is of age, some things would be really harmful for Ms. Rossi at the embassy, so the two left Paris. The last thing I heard was that she was arrested for stalking a girl from university she was attending. Anyway. I thank Mari, for being my best friend, my girlfriend. I love you. Bye." The finishing beep rang again and Marinette put the phone down.

The tears came down salty, wetting the beautiful fabric of her summer dress. She felt light, relieved as if a heavy weight had been lifted off her shoulders.

Marinette knew it would take her a while to actually talk to Alya, but deep down she knew she had already forgiven the girl for everything.

"Mari?" She heard Damian's voice and the silent footsteps on the wooden floor.

She quickly wiped away her tears, trying to compose herself. "I'm here, Dames."

He entered the room worried. Her voice seemed unsteady. "Hey-" Damian stopped, observing the state she was in and ran to her side on the bed. "What happened, habibit?"

Marinette pressed her forehead against his, a shy smile on her lips. "I'm fine, love." Damian put his arm around her, pulling the girl onto his lap. "Really. I'm fine. No need to worry."

Damian kissed her lips tenderly. "Of course I worry. I will always worry about you.”

She pulled him in again for a kiss. Longer, but no less sweet.

"I love you, Damian Wayne."

"I love you, Marinette Dupain-Cheng."

[e-milieeee]

four ways to say i love you

Summary: It’s the little things—such as waking up at five in the morning to cook for him or lending her a coat when she’s cold—that mean the world. 

Because Marinette loves her partner very, very much, and she’s so lucky that he feels the same. 

Notes: I was initially going to do one side of the lovesquare, but all sides are equal and therefore have all four sides in this oneshot :) Post reveal, established relationship. A commissioned piece for @mlbforblm—there’s plenty of talented artists and writers who still have slots, so make sure to commission! 

Or read on AO3

Adrien is brushing his teeth when Ladybug comes crashing through his window.

He’s a little later than usual today, still decked in his Ladybug pajamas that he’s so unashamedly  proud of. He has tied his bangs back with an elastic band, and it sits like a little tree on top of his head, water still dripping from his face.

“And here I was, thinking you’d be ready to eat breakfast,” she tsks playfully.

He grins back. “Sorry, M’lady. Plagg turned my alarm off.”

His smile is, as usual, contagious and in a way that can’t help but to smile back. Ladybug returns to his room and takes out the box from her bag, where she’d painstakingly prepared breakfast for him at the expense of a shattered bowl and spilled jug of milk. It’s still warm to the touch, thankfully, and her slightly rough landing in his room hadn’t messed it up too much.

Adrien joins her a couple minutes later. He has taken the hair tie out, but his bangs fall softly over his eyes like it does when he’s Chat Noir, and Ladybug wants to run her hands over it so to feel just how soft it is. She refrains herself, though, as they both settle cross-legged on the ground where she has laid their breakfast out.

His mouth drops open. “Wow,” Adrien marvels. “When you said you were going to make a feast, I thought you’d fry an egg or two and slap it between some bread and that would’ve been it. This is… can you describe food as gorgeous? Because this is gorgeous.”

“Just because that’s the only thing you can cook doesn’t mean it’s all I’m capable of,” she sniffs, but underneath, Ladybug preens at the compliment.

It’d taken a lot of effort, and Ladybug had collected the ingredients the day before and planned every single detail before going to bed. Then, at five in the morning, she dragged herself out of bed looking and feeling like a zombie just to prepare it.

There are four egg rolls drizzled with homemade sauce, then sprinkled with dried seaweed and sesame. Next to that are neat cuts of green onion cake, made from absolute scratch (she burned herself in the process of deep-frying them). Inside the longest container are fried fish, the ones her mother had prepared the night before. Finally, the leftover mooncakes from the Lunar Festival are in the little box, tied with a red bow. Marinette had spent careful care on that one.

“Miso soup,” Ladybug tells him as she hands him the thermos. “Uh… I think I added too much paste and it’s too salty, so you might not want to drink that one. And…” She opens the last box, where a variety of fresh-cut fruit awaits. “For health reasons, there are fruits. Oh! Also a cheese platter for Plagg, but he’s still asleep, so he can have it later.”

Adrien is positively beaming when she unpacks everything. “You’re the absolute best,” he gushes.

“Couldn’t have you starving on your diet, right?” The nonchalant act can only go so far when she’s grinning so wide. “I’m just hoping it tastes as good as it looks.”

“It’ll taste good just because you made it.” He throws her an exaggerated wink, then immediately reaches for his chopsticks to dig in.

Ladybug watches him take a bite out of green onion cake. He chews, swallows, eyes lighting up. “This is amazing, and I promise I’m not just saying that because my diet’s forced me to eat boiled chicken breasts with no seasoning of the past week.”

She giggles. “Just let me know when you want me to bring you breakfast.”

He places a hand on his chest. “I can’t believe Ladybug’s my personal delivery girl. Do you offer lunch services as well?”

“Only for you, kitty.”

His grin is worth getting up for at 5am.

***

Marinette is freezing at lunch break, but they’ve agreed to eat outside, so she sucks it up. At least the lunch she’d packed for her and Adrien is warm.

It’s late autumn now, and the last couple of leaves cling to otherwise bare trees. She regrets the outfit she picked—cute, but not practical. Especially not in this weather. Looking at Alya bundled up in a hoodie and combat boots, Marinette really regrets the dress.

The noodles in the thermoses are slightly soggy, but the flavour is still there. They chat for a while—about upcoming tests, about projects and the end-of-the-year field trip that is still months away, and everything is lovely. Lovely, but cold.

Halfway through, her noodles emptied, Adrien notices her shivering. “Are you cold?” he asks, eyes growing wide in concern.

Alya halts her conversation with Nino as well. “Wait, Adrien’s right, you’re wearing a dress. I’m chilly and I have a sweater on.”

Marinette, who has refrained from speaking for the past couple of minutes in fear of her teeth chattering too loudly, manages to shake her head.

She gets a scrutinizing look-over by Adrien before he makes his verdict. “This isn’t going to do,” he declares firmly. Then, with one fluid movement, he shrugs his own sweater off and drapes it over her shoulders.

“Oh, he’s smooth,” Alya remarks with a wicked grin.

Smooth, indeed. The jacket is wonderfully warm, and, with a content sigh, Marinette slides her arms through the sleeves. There’s also the faint smell of his cologne and it’s so very him that she can’t help the smile that crosses her face.

He opens an arm in a beckoning gesture and Marinette happily settles into his embrace.

***

Because of his father’s strict rules, it’s much easier for Adrien to come by as Chat Noir after school, which he does almost everyday. Sometimes it’s between his schedules, sometimes it’s after, late into the night when both his father and Nathalie believe he’s asleep. Marinette always listens for the thump on the skylight, an indication that he’s there. The trap door is always left unlocked for him, so she only needs to wait as he climbs down the ladder.

It’s nearing nine when he comes this time. She sits at her desk finishing up the rest of the notes when the door creaks open and Chat Noir climbs down.

“Evening,” he greets. “What—ooh, you brought croissants for me.”

He zeroes in immediately on the food that Marinette had, admittedly, prepared for him. Between Adrien’s schedule and that godawful diet his father insisted putting him on and his time sprinting across rooftops and fighting akumas, it’s a miracle that he hasn’t fainted from lack of nutrition. Marinette has made it her personal goal to make sure he’s properly fed, and she ensures there’s a snack waiting for him every time he drops by.

Half a minute later, he’s munching enthusiastically on the food and Marinette can no longer focus on the rest of her notes. She sorts them out—there’s at least four pages that she’d copied in her neatest handwriting—and then hands them to Chat.

“Here,” she tells him. “You missed both physics and mathematics today because of the photoshoot, so I copied the notes from class and re-organized them. I also added a review section from last class so it’s easier to figure out just where we are since the two lessons are connected. And…” She shuffles through her desk once more, producing the textbook. “It’s on page one hundred and twenty seven to one hundred and twenty nine, if my notes don’t make sense. You can study here, if you’d like. My parents won’t be coming back up anyway, so we should be left alone for now.”

The last time her mother had walked in on her and Chat doing homework together, she’d been understanding. Understanding, but skeptical. It had been awfully hard to explain why Paris’ superhero was lounging in her room like he lived there—and much harder more awkward to explain that Adrien was one hundred supportive of her friendship with Chat after her father had become defensive that he had ulterior motives.

Chat takes the papers from her. “You’re absolutely unbelievable,” he tells her, eyes shining in a way only his can. “Seriously, Marinette, have I ever told you?”

She pretends to count on her fingers. “Let’s see… only about six times today. Why? He shakes his head, a grin pulling at the corner of his lips. In one fluid movement, he leans down to pluck the textbook from her hands and plants a quick kiss against her cheek in the process. “What would I do without you?”

“Go hungry, probably? Start lagging behind in all of your classes?” Marinette tsks at him. “God, you’re right. What would you do without me?”

Chat’s laugh is wonderful and full and happy. “Then aren’t I lucky to have you.”

***

The akuma strikes at midnight.

Marinette, about to change into her pajamas after just sending off Chat Noir, curses to herself. She’s tired and not in the mood to transform, but when Chat comes crashing back down from the skylight urgently, she knows she has no choice.

“Akuma!” he informs her, as if the tremors outside could be caused by anything else. “It’s close to here. We should be able to take this one quickly.”

“Why is Hawkmoth even awake?” Marinette grumbles, but transforms nonetheless. Chat waits patiently on the side, though he’s drawn taut, prepared to scramble into action the moment she’s ready. Then they’re climbing out of the skylight, into the light, where the akuma has begun its rampage. The once-quiet night is ripped apart with panic and terror.

The akuma is relatively easy to deal with: a little girl, apparently inspired by Frozen, is decked in full Elsa, wielding similar powers. She covers the streets in ice, a snowstorm whirling around her, as spirals of icy sculptures rise and fall.

Both she and Chat have icicles hanging off them by the time Ladybug purifies the akuma. Even after she releases the Miraculous Ladybug, the cold from the girl’s powers haven’t seeped out of her bones. Judging from Chat’s chattering teeth, he feels the same.

Despite her watch reading 12:32 and the next day hailing as a school day , they stop by at a 24-hour-cafe for hot chocolate. A couple minutes later, seated on the rooftops warming their chilled hands, they’re huddled against each other and staring out at the gleaming cityscape.

“Another successful take-down, m’lady?”

Ladybug laughs as he raises his cup for a toast, and she obliges and bumps her own against him. Hot chocolate sloshes over the lid, splashing onto her suit. She flicks it off. “What a team we make, huh? Now, if only Hawkmoth would get the memo and stop creating his akumas so late. Why is he even up now? Say, do you think he has a life outside of being Hawkmoth?”

“He probably wants to catch us off guard in the middle of the night. Remember that one time we got woken up at three because there was an akuma attack? Plagg wanted to tape my mouth shut so I couldn’t transform.”  

Ladybug groans. “I did really bad on a test the next day because I got three and a half hours of sleep—I fell asleep halfway through the test! It’s— ugh. He’s so annoying.”

“There’s one good thing about midnight akumas, though,” Chat points out.

She takes a sip from the hot chocolate, which, during their conversation, has cooled down to just below scalding. “A good thing?” Ladybug echoes. “Name one good thing, chaton.”  

He nudges her shoulder. “You, m’lady. It’s nice just being alone like this without anyone else, right?”

Then, like he’s said nothing out of the ordinary, Chat goes back to drinking his hot chocolate with infuriating nonchalance.

Ladybug finds herself smiling. “You know,” she tells Chat Noir. “You’re ridiculously good at this. Where do you even get the inspiration to say these things?”

“You.”

“You are completely overdoing it.”

“You love me, admit that.”

“No.”

“So you would get up at five in the morning to make breakfast for just anyone, Bugaboo?”

Ladybug relents. “Okay, maybe a little.”

Chat Noir’s laugh rings crystal clear throughout the night, loud against the crisp air. Ladybug wants to trap that laugh and hold it close to herself. She can’t help but treasure it, after all: it’s a sound that chases away worries, soothes fears, and she thinks she's so, so lucky to hear it everyday.  

“I love you,” he tells her when his laughter dies down. “Don’t forget that, m’lady.”

Ladybug leans her head on her shoulder. “I love you too,” she replies quietly. “You better not forget it, either.”

Notes: Here’s my fics masterlist! 

[lucy-the-cat]

The Red Queen Midnights Collection is a series of AUs set in the Newblood Queen universe, a Mareven role swap au where Newbloods Rule, Reds are still oppressed, and Silvers exist in a hazy space in-between. Read the main series here

Sweet Nothing (Queen!Mare makes Maven her consort), Would've Could've Should've (something about Maven and Elara), and You're On Your Own Kid (Elane bonding with Maven) are locked in since they won the last two polls. This poll is for determining the next oneshot.

[njamil21]

For title game: Midnight Flowers?

Characters: Bridgette Cheng, Felix Agreste

Category: Fanfiction, oneshot/drabble

This is also such a good title, I’m so excited to be getting these!! Sorry for taking so long on this, I started it last night, fell asleep, and had to do some errands but I just finished it now. This one is a bit sappy to make up for the angst I just wrote and it turned out longer than I expected but I hope you guys like it!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“So I have a chem paper to write, those math assignments need to be finished, and I have a jacket commission I haven’t even started on,” Bridgette said as she wove the red blossoms from her balcony together.

“And yet, you’re not doing any of those things,” Chat Noir commented, briefly glancing at her before returning his attention to the flowers in his own hands.

“Yeah, pretty much.”

As Bridgette tied her stems together, she snuck a look back at the cat hero that was sitting on her balcony ledge, one leg dangling on the side as he carefully fussed with the flowers in his claws. She never expected to spend an evening with him teaching him how to make flower crowns, but it was a slow patrol night and she was procrastinating anyway so Bridgette won’t complain.

“Can you take a look at this? I can’t tell if I’m doing this right.” Chat Noir shifted his position to fully face her. He handed the flower chain and Bridgette could already tell that his knots weren’t tight and the flowers were too loose before she got a closer look.

She still smiled and held it gently, mindful of her own flowers. “It’s a good start!” Bridgette said and carefully adjusted his stems. “I remember when I first started, I made my knots too tight so my crown became a bracelet instead.”

Chat Noir gave a polite smile but looked down at the stray petals and leaves on the floor. “I’m no good with this kind of stuff,” he admitted. “I’m not used to actually making things and the claws don’t help much.”

Bridgette hummed in acknowledgement and handed his flower chain back to him as she scooted her chair closer to him. “Well, it’s a good time as any to start,” she said, her voice light and encouraging. “I’m already jealous of who’s going to be receiving your crown tonight.”

Chat Noir didn’t respond back as he returned his attention to finishing his crown, but in the dim light, she could spy a shy smile that felt vaguely familiar to her. They worked in amicable silence and before they knew it, two hours had passed and they both needed to be asleep at least thirty minutes ago. No “real” work got done that night but they both had completed flower crowns in the end so Bridgette counted that as a win.

She set her crown, a thing made of red petunias and expert experience, atop Chat Noir’s hair while being mindful of his ears. He was always giving her flowers as Ladybug, so Bridgette thought it best to return the favor, even if he didn’t know it.

But before she could say goodnight, Chat Noir dropped his crown on her head in turn. It was still quite loose and some of the flowers were limp, but it fit perfectly on her head. “Thanks for teaching me,” he said, a blush as red as the flowers bloomed on his cheeks and Bridgette found herself quite taken with the sight. “Have a good night.”

And with that, he leapt off her balcony and into the glittery Paris skyline.