hello it is late n i am tired n impatient so have a half-edited thing that is hopefully less flowery than confessions was
also yeah this is gonna be a daily thing again
[ most recent ]
Cat Noir gets hurt.
It’s what he does, really. He’s the loud one, the distraction, the soldier to Ladybug’s tactician, and so of course he gets hurt.
This time, like every time, Ladybug keeps fighting. This time, like every time, Cat Noir is okay at the end of the day. This time, for the first time, half of her is in love with the man, and so she cries and scolds and kisses her lover.
She forgets in the moment that Ladybug is not Marinette, or maybe she forgets that she is Ladybug. All she can think when she sees her partner restored is that she loves him more than she can bear not to express.
Cat Noir says nothing, only stares with his big green eyes in blank shock. Marinette stares back, uncomprehending, until she realizes what Ladybug has done.
“My Lady,” Cat Noir murmurs.
Ladybug runs. Cat Noir does not follow.
Adrien is freaking out.
Ladybug had kissed him. Him! Cat Noir! But her lips had felt eerily like Marinette’s, and then she had run away.
(Lips must not vary too much, he thinks absently. They probably use the same chapstick.)
Why had she kissed him? Hadn’t she rejected him? Then again, he reminds himself, he’d rejected Marinette, too, and yet they’re together now— Marinette and Adrien, as well as Marinette and Cat Noir. Had Ladybug had a similar change of heart?
It’s hard to imagine. Cat Noir had gotten to know Marinette outside of class, giving Adrien that unexpected window. How would Ladybug have had the time to interact with him when his hours were consumed by Marinette? It’s impossible.
“Are you okay?”
Marinette jumps. “Y-yes, I’m fine?”
Adrien keeps silent, waiting.
“Cat Noir will break up with me,” Marinette finally says softly.
It’s Adrien’s turn to jump. Thinking circles around Ladybug’s actions meant that he hadn’t even thought to wonder how Marinette would feel, even though it involves one of her boyfriends… “Why do you say that?” he asks.
“Because he wants Ladybug,” Marinette says quietly, sadly. “And now he has her.”
“You don’t know that,” Adrien tells her.
“She loves him,” Marinette says.
“She kissed him,” Adrien corrects.
Marinette falls silent. When Adrien offers his hand, she takes it.
“You don’t need me anymore, do you?” Marinette finally says, breaking the silence.
Cat Noir emerges from behind her chimney. “What do you mean?”
Marinette is lost for an instant. “Because Ladybug loves you,” she blurts. “So you don’t… you have the one you love, now.” But her heart aches at the idea of letting her Cat go, even to herself.
“She never said she loves me,” Cat bursts, almost before Marinette even finishes explaining. “She didn’t… she didn’t say anything at all.” His teeth are bared in a grimace which gleams in the darkness of the night. “She just kissed me and ran. She probably did it in the heat of victory and didn’t mean anything by it.”
“She did,” Marinette insists, because she loves her Cat, and so Ladybug does also. “She loves you, Cat Noir.”
He rushes out of the night, then, to wrap his arms around her. “And I love you, Marinette. Ladybug isn’t my girlfriend, you are.”
“But you love her, too,” Marinette mumbles into Cat Noir’s shoulder. He smells like Camembert.
“She’s not my girlfriend,” Cat Noir repeats. “And if she has a problem with us, then….” He trails off.
Marinette pulls away to look into her boyfriend’s eyes. “She wouldn't—” she starts, and blushes. “I mean— when you two talk, you’ll find out, but I— if you would rather be with Ladybug than with me, I understand.”
“You do, don’t you,” Cat Noir muses, bowing his head.
Marinette leans up to press a gentle kiss to the corner of his lips. “Of course.”
Featuring Max Mayfield, Lucas Sinclair and El Hopper.
Dustin Henderson and Will Byers mentioned.
487 words. So! Addressing the elephant in the room; this one is very short and kind of unfinished. That is because I wrote this one on the 28th, and have lost all ambition to make them good. Also, my knowledge of coma stuff is limited. But I like the blind hc, so that's what this is, even if it's very messy. (Sorry).
Max feels something grab her hand. Only it feels as if it wasn't actually touching her. Like a piece of glass was sandwiched between the two. She tries to open her eyes, but all she feels is a tightness around her lashes. She gasps erratically, feeling like she has a chain wrapped around her throat. Not to mention something pressed down on her nose and mouth, which makes her hyperventilate more. She hears some type of mumbling, but in her foggy state, cannot discern what is being said. Am I dead? She wonders, before an odd warmth runs up the back of her neck. And a tension inside her releases. “Come on!” A voice says, much clearer than the mumbles she had heard previously. I know that voice. She thinks, before letting out a wheeze. “Lu–Lucas?” She rasps out, still unable to open her eyes. A chorus of gasps run throughout the room. She hears a beeping that she assumes is her heart beat monitor.
“Max?” Lucas says, sounding close to tears. She swallows, but her mouth is dry. She grunts, trying to force her eyes open. She goes to move her hand, in hopes of giving a thumbs up, only to have a single finger twitch with no other movement. Sh!t, I'm really in a bad way, aren't I? She thinks, before her eyelids flutter open. She whimpers. “Wha– why... Why can't I s-see?” She babbles, tears spilling down her cheeks. She hears the heart rate monitor beep more rapidly as her heart plays pinball inside her chest. She flails out an arm, reaching for something, anything. She can hear Dustin muttering swears under his breath in a panic, and the sound of running footsteps. “I'll go get a d–doctor!” Will says, as the door squeaks in his wake.
Max feels two hands grab her arms on either side. “Max, I'm here, okay? Try to stay calm.” Lucas says, and she feels another squeeze on her left arm. “You're okay.” Max chokes down a sob. “El?” She asks, and she hears her best friend chuckle between sniffles. “I'm back.” El responds in that gentle and uncomplicated way she always did. Max sniffs, as she takes a breath, more controlled this time. “Is everyone here?” She asks, sliding an arm back in a sorry attempt to sit up. She feels a hand behind her back, probably Lucas or El's, push her to a sitting position. The bed squeaks, and there is a small dip in the mattress, as if someone sat on the bed. “I'm scared.” Max admits, with a shiver down her spine. “We'll work this out together. It'll be okay.” He squeezes her hand, and she smiles. “Did you seeing losers at least win?” She asks, and they laugh. “Yes, we won.” Lucas says, with a chuckle. Max sighs. We won. That's all that matters right now. We'll work out the blindness another day.
