Fictober Day 10: Listen, I can’t explain it, you’ll have to trust me
Yoyoing across Paris had never felt better. Ladybug was still flying high after her date with Adrien that day. Shortly before they had to part, he’d walked her back to the bakery again. This time, in the shadows of the alley, they’d kissed a few more times before parting.
Naturally, she’d immediately gone upstairs to her room to call Alya and squeak about the fact that she’d finally gotten the chance to kiss Adrien - and to confirm that yes, it had been well worth the wait.
She landed on a rooftop and giggled to herself, pressing her hands to her chest. The feel of his lips, the way his eyes had sparkled, the weight of his hands on her shoulders... she couldn’t help wiggling as the memories washed over her again.
Ladybug swung around to face her partner. Chat was leaning casually against his baton, head cocked slightly. His kitty ears were swiveled in her direction, like he thought he might miss something she said. He looked every inch the focused kitty.
“I am happy,” Ladybug said with another giggle. “Very happy! I went -”
She paused mid-sentence, suddenly remembering that she had not told Chat about her date. And while she could lie and tell him that she was happy about a grade or something like that, the thought left a sour taste at the back of her throat.
“You went where?” Chat prompted, straightening up. She’d really caught him now; he was in full curious cat mode and wouldn’t rest until she gave him a satisfactory answer.
Ladybug bit her lip, then mentally shrugged and went for it. “I went on a date, actually. With the guy I have a crush on.”
Okay, maybe she wasn’t be totally honest. She didn’t just have a crush on Adrien. She was in love with him. But Chat didn’t need to know the depths of her feelings. That seemed a little mean.
Chat blinked, obviously surprised. “Really? And I’m guessing it went well.”
“It went really well. We kissed and he asked me to be his girlfriend,” Ladybug admitted, watching him closely.
“Ah, no wonder you were standing there laughing to yourself,” Chat teased.
She blushed. “In my defense, I didn’t know you were standing right behind me.”
Chat chuckled and shook his head, retracting his baton. He didn’t seem upset, which honestly surprised her. Not that she wanted him to be, but he’d always been so insistent that the two of them were meant to be together.
To the point where sometimes she got a little frustrated with his attitude. She didn’t belong to him; she was perfectly capable of choosing who her heart belonged to, and it wasn’t Chat. She’d almost thought there might be tears, or even another love confession, when she told him about her date.
Instead, Chat was smiling slightly as he came to stand beside her. “Since we’re confessing things, I went out on a date with someone too.”
Ladybug froze, staring at him in stunned disbelief.
“It’s this girl from my class,” Chat went on, seemingly unaware of her paralyzation. “She’s always been a friend of mine but lately... I dunno. My best friend told me a couple weeks ago that she has a crush on me and it just... it made me look at her differently.”
“Really,” Ladybug croaked out. She didn’t know why this was so shocking. Considering that Chat had been trying out a pick-up line a few days ago, it was the next logical step. But Chat must’ve taken her reaction the wrong way, because he sighed.
“Listen, I can’t explain it, you’ll have to trust me when I say that she’s really sweet and that I like her,” he said, his voice taking on a dreamy cast. “Ironically enough, we kissed for the first time today too. I didn’t know anyone but you could make me feel that way.”
Her heart twisted in her chest. Ladybug worked hard to pull her expression back into something approaching normal. This was a good thing, right? It meant that Chat was moving on from her. He was dating other people. That was good.
“I’m happy for you, Kitty,” she whispered.
Chat turned to her and smiled. “Thanks. And I have to say, it’s partially thanks to you.”
“To me?” Ladybug repeated.
“About a month ago, you told me that I needed to move on,” Chat said, blissfully unaware of the reaction his words were having. “You said that for the sake of our partnership, you wanted me to find happiness. It made me really think about things.”
“I did say that, didn’t I?” Ladybug said quietly. She remembered that conversation. Chat had brought her another rose. Sick of trying to find ways to gently steer their relationship back to platonic waters, she’d told him in no uncertain terms that he needed to look for happiness outside their partnership.
For once, he’d actually listened. The realization should’ve felt better than it did.
“Yup. And I’m glad you did. It really hurt at first, but then I did a lot of thinking and now... well. I have a girlfriend and you have a boyfriend!” He grinned at her and she smiled back automatically.
“Yeah... so, um, what’s she like?” Ladybug asked.
“Come on now, Ladybug. I can’t tell you that. Secret identities and all that,” Chat said. “Don’t wanna break your own rules, right?”
“Right,” Ladybug said woodenly. This was why he’d changed. This was why he didn’t flirt or call her nicknames or kiss her hand. Someone else was getting that attention now.
She didn’t know why that thought left a terrible pit in her stomach.
