unexpected feelings | marichat

chapter fifteen

marinette's pov
   i looped my arm into his and led him to the small world boat ride. he gaped at the line.
   "we're gonna wait in THIS line?!"
   "come on! you'll love it," i pleaded, and he relented. every once in a while, we'd get looks from some people, possibly trying to figure out why he looked so familiar, but they would turn away fast. he had taken his tail off and forced me to put it on around my waist as "payback". without the tail and the ears showing, plus the mask underneath his glasses, he wasn't THAT recognizable.
   "i hope you know you look ridiculous in that get-up," i teased, and he scoffed.
   "i think i look pretty good," he said, pulling an overly dramatic model pose. halfway through, he hit his hand on the railing. "OW!" he screamed, jumping back in pain. he had gone back too hard, though, so the action sent him tumbling onto the ground after tripping on the chain that marked where the line was. i exploded into laughter.
   he got up quickly, brushing himself off. now EVERYONE was staring.
   "well, you're not very nice," he pouted, noting how i was trying to sustain my laughter. that sent me into another heap of laughs. what is WRONG with me?!?
   finally, i calmed down. "and i thought cats always landed on their feet," i said, leaning into him so no-one else would hear. his eyes widened and he grinned.
   "a pun? i'm already rubbing off on you," he said proudly, patting his own back.
"and you've gotten clumsy, which means i'm rubbing off on you!"
the line lasted another half hour until we finally made it into the ride. we got onto the boat along with a few other people behind us, and it began moving.
   i was right, he loved it. or, was at the very least entranced by it. he was looking around at all the different sceneries it had, his eyes wide and sparkling. it was near child-like joy, like he was six again and this was his first time here.
   he ooh-ed and ah-ed at everything , despite this being an extremely calm ride. i couldn't help but stare at chat. the more i spent time with him outside of saving paris, the more i got to see the hidden parts of his personality. it made me regret rejecting every offer he would make of going to the movies, or having dinner together.
   i hadn't even realized we'd reached the end until our small boat halted, and i quickly fixated my gaze on anything that wasn't chat noir. i prayed he hadn't caught me looking. you idiot, why were you staring in the first place?
   lucky for me, he seemed too preoccupied in visiting the gift shop next. he grabbed my hand and pulled me off the boat, walking towards where the small guide map said the closest store would be. i looked down at our entwined hands. the action felt so natural, given how many times he'd grabbed my hand while fighting an akuma. still, it was funny how he did it so casually without knowing i was ladybug.
   "okay, okay, so we should get some mouse ears, oooh ooh!! and some shirts, maybe some-"
   "as much as i'd love to walk out of here with disney's logo all over me, where are we gonna find the money to buy all that?" he grinned and shook his head, as if the very question was stupid.
   making sure nobody was watching, he subtly grabbed his staff and pulled something out the compartment. i could practically feel my eyes bulge out of my skull as i saw the massive wad of cash in his hand. was he insane??
   "huh?! where in the world did you get all that mone- stop laughing! i'm serious, did you like, rob a bank??"
   "don't worry, marinette. all i've robbed are people's hearts," he winked. "i've been saving up."
   how anyone could manage to save up that much money was beyond me, but i gave into the temptation of shopping after seeing a particularly adorable pair of mouse ears, which were emblazoned by some sewing needles and thread.
   as i tried them on, chat explored the store, practically grabbing everything in his sight. i sighed and looked back into the mirror before me.
   we walked out sporting full fledged park outfits. i was sure we could probably blend in with one of the colorful statues from the maze if we tried.
   chat and i sported matching t-shirts- "in case we get lost and need to find each other!" according to him- and both carried a new character bottle, but he was honestly the star of the show. he had ditched the beret for a musical ear hat, which i knew he would play at the worst times, a new pair of large sunglasses, some weird slap bracelets, a 'limited edition' fanny pack, and a small cat plush. if he had looked unrecognizable before this, i was certain nobody would know who he was in this outfit.
   "even the cashier wondered why we had so many things!" i giggled, thinking back to the poor girl's face as she tried to inconspicuously look at his face and figure out who he was, while at the same time confusedly scanning our items.
   he laughed and pointed at a dome shaped building ahead of us. Star Wars Hyperspace Mountain, the sign read. "we have to ride that," he grinned mischievously.
   it seemed he regretted his choice as the ride started, though. he clamped my arm and screamed like a maniac the whole time. every turn we took, he dug his head into my shoulder, which was as hilarious as it was endearing. when the ride finally stopped and the lights switched back on, he looked positively traumatized. i was almost afraid he was going to faint, so i held onto him as we walked out.
   "aren't you used to going at super fast speeds while saving paris?"
   "i'm no scaredy-cat, but that was NOTHING like jumping over buildings with my stick or swinging on ladybug's yoyo. that was horrible!" he shuddered.
   i had to laugh. for the amount of times he put on the overly brave hero act, it was nice to get to see a dent in his armor.
   "well, since i don't want you to have a heart attack on any more rides, we'll ride calmer ones," i promised him, leading him towards the screens near the exit. "but first, look at your face!!!"
   i had forgotten to warn him of the in-ride pictures, so he didn't have time to prepare himself for them. his head lay half buried in my shoulder, but was up just enough for me to catch a glimpse of his face. it held a look of pure terror. i laughed, snapping pictures of the screen and codes with my phone. these would definitely need to be printed later.
   "hey! you don't look so good either, you know," he said, pointing at my open mouth and windblown bangs. i cringed.
   "who cares, i'm not the hero afraid of roller coasters," i grinned. he groaned.
   as promised, we only went on the calmer rides for the remainder of the hour. there was, of course, the occasional coaster, but nothing too scary. by the time we walked back to the castle to meet back up with alya and nino, chat's childish excitement had returned, and he pointed out nearly everything around us.
   alya and i headed towards the nearest restroom to fix our hair while the boys waited outside.
   "you look like you had a lot of fun," she said, pulling a brush out of her bag and looking at my outfit. i looked at myself in the mirror and smiled. as messy as the rides had left me, i was radiating happiness, and it showed.
"it's been amazing, i'm so glad i brought chat noir along," i gushed, toying with the ear headband. "what about you and nino?"
immediately, her face lit up. "ah, we've been having the best time!! he got me this adorable ladybug necklace, and some matching earrings that look exactly like hers!!!" she held up the small chain that was dangling from her neck, then tucked her hair back to show me the earrings.
"wow, they look so... real," i said, getting closer to look at them. if i didn't have them on myself, i would have thought she stole the miraculous.
"i know, right? so, so cool! he's the best. even despite his fear of roller coasters," she laughed, and i joined in.
"nino, too? chat noir was TERRIFIED on the first coaster. i was afraid he wasn't gonna make it out alive on the first one!"
   we finally made our way out the restroom, still laughing at the boys.
   "what's tickling your funny bone?" chat asked, prodding me lightly on the side.
   "just the fact that you and my boyfriend are scared of roller coasters," alya smirked. the guys both vigorously shook their heads.
   "afraid? i wasn't afraid, i was just... being careful," nino argued, and chat backed him up immediately.
   "yeah, and i was just... pretending! yeah, i'm a great actor," he said overly-proud, kissing his "muscles".
   "uh-huh. this is so going on the ladyblog, by the way."
   chat made an undignified face and looked at me for help. i shrugged.
   "there's not supposed to be fake news in the ladyblog, you know," he glared, but he honestly looked more like a little kitten trying to fight its mother.
   "cmon, it's not that bad. at least you're not afraid of the dark or something like that," i quipped, and he brought his face closer to mine. i gulped.
   "are you afraid of the dark?"
   "umm.. me? no! i'm not afraid of anything," i mocked, gaining back my composure and kissing my arms for extra effect. he smirked.
   alya then cleared her throat loudly, her arm resting on nino's shoulder. chat noir backed away quickly, as if he was caught committing a crime.
   "anyway, what're we gonna eat?"