For You - a Miraculous Ladybug fan fiction

Chapter 17 - Surprise

I'm not dead.

Hi! Merry Christmas, and if you don't celebrate it, then happy holidays!

Here's the second Ladrien chapter! This has memories of Glaciator, btw.

 After a few minutes, Adrien calmed down. Once she was sure that he was okay, Ladybug spoke up.

"About what we should do, I have another surprise."

"Seriously?!" Adrien chuckled. "Remind me what I did to deserve you, Princess?"

"Being the kindest person I know," she told him honestly.

He blushed faintly. She smiled. Then she picked him up bridal style and started to walk towards the window.

"Uh, what are you doing?" Adrien asked.

"Taking you to the other surprise." She suddenly smirked. Adrien raised an eyebrow. "Unless you don't want me to, in which case -"

"NO!" He shouted. The smirk widened on her face. "Please do!" He said desperately.

"Alright, Handsome Boy," she said back. Ladybug took out her yoyo and threw it through Adrien's window, and then pulled on the string. They went soaring through the air, Adrien screaming the entire time. Ladybug gracefully landed on the top of a building and started jumping from rooftop to rooftop. Adrien panted heavily.

"I think I purrfer my methods of transportation." He told the red superheroine.

"To each their own," she shrugged.

"Now tell me, how did you get all those pictures anyway?" Adrien looked up at her, curious to hear her answer to his question.

"I asked some of our friends to send them to me," she replied, while jumping to another building and continuing to run. "The photo of you and your parents I got from Nathalie. She really liked my idea and gladly helped me. She said that if I ever needed her help she would be there."

Adrien made a mental note to thank his father's assistant. Unlike his dad, Nathalie actually seemed to care about what he was feeling, what he wanted. Even though Gabriel Agreste has gone to jail, Nathalie continued to live in the Agreste mansion, taking the responsibility of taking care of Adrien on her own hands. After she learned about his identity, Nathalie even surrendered herself and handed the Peacock Miraculous to Adrien, while asking nothing in return.

"You are truly amazing, M'lady." Now it was Ladybug's turn to blush. Adrien thought she was beautiful like this, her hair flowing from the cool night breeze, her eyes determined and yet so soft. He smiled and she just smiled back.

After a while, they arrived. Ladybug landed on a rooftop not far from her home, and set Adrien down. The pout he had on his face while she did so was expected but cute nonetheless.

Adrien looked around the rooftop. There were rose petals on the floor and candles on the railing. It looked beautiful and yet so familiar. Although he couldn't put his finger on it, Adrien knew that he had been here before.

Ladybug sighed sadly, causing Adrien to quickly face her. "Are you ok?" he asked the superhero, carefully wrapping his arms around her.

"Do you remember this, minou?" she asked, ignoring his question.

"Remember what -" his voice died in his throat as the memories struck him like lightning.

"I'm so sorry," Marinette said, on the same rooftop that was decorated the exact same way.

"Why? It's not your fault." Chat replied.

"No - yeah - I mean, what I mean is, I'm very sorry, for you. Cause, you prepared all this, and then, she didn't show."

"She told me she might not make it but I had my fingers crossed. I really wanted her to come." He sighed.

"Maybe she had a really good reason for not coming." Marinette leaned against the railing. "Like, a problem or something."

"You're only saying that to make me feel better." Chat said sadly.

"Yeah. I mean no - I mean look out!"

Adrien's head shot upwards as his flashback ended. But then he remembered something else that happened on this rooftop.

"It's beautiful Chat Noir," Ladybug said as she walked towards him. Chat smelled the red rose in his hand.

"Aren't you glad you finally came?" He asked, looking at her. She stared at the ground.

"Listen. I don't want to play around with your feelings. It would be the same as lying to you. I don't want to do that." He gasped and she looked up at him."You're more than a partner, Chat Noir; you're my friend. And I never want to lie to a friend."

"But why do you think it would be lying?" He said, confusion in his eyes.

Ladybug looked at the ground again. "Because, there's this boy I..."

"There's a boy? Who is..." he began.

"It's... I can't tell you who it is. We can't know anything about each other, our identities must remain a secret. We're both superheroes, Chat Noir, we don't have a choice." The way she looked at him, Chat could tell that she didn't want to lie but she didn't want to hurt him either. And he appreciated that.

Chat Noir stepped closer to her and she stepped back just a bit. They stared at each other's eyes. After a few seconds, he smiled. Ladybug continued to look at him as he handed her the rose.

"I get it Ladybug. Your friendship means everything to me." Chat gave her a kiss on the cheek. "You can keep the rose; it goes with your costume." Then he stretched his baton and ran back home.

Adrien's eyes widened at the memory. Even though he acted fine, it still hurt. Every day after that, he couldn't stop thinking about the boy that Ladybug told him about, and how he could never compete with him for her heart. How he could never know. How she could never love him.

The blonde looked over to the bug-spotted hero next to him, and saw the tears starting to fill her eyes. He saw it happening in slow motion: Ladybug shaking and falling to the ground. Using his Chat Noir reflexes, he caught her halfway through her fall. She clung onto him as she started sobbing, burying her face in his chest. He just held her, rubbing her back and planting a kiss on her head every now and then.

"I'm - I'm so s-sorry," she cried. "I n-never meant to h-hurt you, I just c-couldn't lie a-about it." Ladybug's crying continued and he held her closer to him. "And all this t-time, you were p-probably wondering who that b-boy was, and I-I didn't tell you, b-but if I did tell y-you, I probably would've s-saved you from a-all that misery, and I'm so sorry Chaton -"

Adrien couldn't hear more of this, more of her blaming herself, more of her crying, more of her crumbling right in his arms - so he did the only thing he could think of to get her to stop, he kissed her. She was surprised but kissed back, fighting the pain in her heart. Hearing her sobbing broke him, and Adrien found himself crying for her. They both kissed each other desperately, wanting to make sure that their soulmate would stay with them even after all of the regrets and the mistakes. After a while, they both let go of each other.

"I'm sorry I hurt you." Ladybug told him.

"Don't apologize, Princess. I know that you didn't mean to. It hurts me more to see you hurt," he said honestly.

She smiled and wiped her tears. "I have something for you." She opened her yoyo and took out of it a single red rose.

"Is this -"

"The very rose that you gave me on this rooftop while telling me that our friendship meant everything to you?" She chuckled. "Yes, yes it is."

"And... you kept it?" Adrien asked in shock.

"I would never throw away a gift from my Kitty," she replied.

Adrien couldn't do anything but kiss her lips again.

That will be it. Until next time! 🎄