Falling For Him

Chapter 17

"Hey Adrien," called Alya, walking up to him. Nino and Marinette trotted alongside her as they headed to Luka's houseboat for the Kitty Section practice. Marinette seemed to be in a good mood and she twiddled her thumbs excitedly.

"Did you see Alya's new post on the Ladyblog?" questioned Marinette, her bluebell eyes shining with excitement. Adrien didn't seem too disturbed or nervous about facing Luka, so she concluded that he must not have seen the photo yet.

"Well," started Alya. "Turns out Cat Noir has moved on from Ladybug to... a boy."

Adrien looked at her, confusion written plainly on his face. He awkwardly scratched the back of his neck, wondering how they figured out Cat Noir was dating Luka. He thought back to anything that could've given it away and suddenly remembered their kiss.

Alya pulled out her phone, flashing the screen in front of his face. The girl always had her phone out and didn't miss a single thing. He should've known she would've snapped a picture of it. He glanced at it, observing Cat Noir and Viperion's passionate embrace. Despite his disappointment and surprise, he managed a small smile. He thought they looked like a pretty attractive couple.

"Who knew, right?" babbled Alya. "Cat Noir gay? Viperion also gay? I wonder if they know each other's identities in real life..." The brunette continued to talk animatedly, her glasses slipping down her nose every few sentences.

Adrien ran his fingers through his hair nervously, twiddling the locks between his fingers. This definitely was not his plan on coming out. He was relieved that no one knew he was Cat Noir, so it wouldn't impose too much of a problem. Hopefully, it would blow over by tomorrow and no one would talk about it anymore.

Marinette watched Adrien, the anxiousness clear in his beautiful eyes. She had to admit, Adrien hid his feelings very well. There were no tears in his eyes and he still held himself with such poise. She resisted the urge to pat him on the back, knowing that she shouldn't know that Viperion was Luka.

"This anonymous person sent it to me," finished Alya as they arrived at the entrance to the boat.

"An anonymous person?" asked Adrien with surprise. If it wasn't Alya, then who? His mind jumped to Marinette, but she couldn't know about their identities, right?

"Yeah. Thank god, I was running out of stuff to write on the Ladyblog."

Adrien's eyes filled with puzzlement, his mind reeling. For some reason, it mattered to him who this person was. Did he have a stalker? Did the person see him de-transform?
He saw Luka across the boat and the boy's reassuring blue eyes made some of his worries drift away.

"We should talk," whispered Adrien to Luka as he walked by the musician. Luka nodded his head, noticing Marinette grinning widely. Her bluebell eyes shone as she gazed at their expressions. Why would she be happy? Did she know one of their identities? She couldn't have, the only person that would know is Ladybug. His heart dropped in his chest. Marinette was Ladybug. It was just a suspicion, but the more he thought about it, the more it made sense. She always did disappear during akuma attacks and even her demeanour was slightly similar. That must mean Marinette had been rejecting Adrien. He almost chuckled at the thought, but his momentary burst of joy was crushed by a sudden thought. How would Adrien react if he knew Ladybug, the girl he loved so dearly, was actually in love with him? He glanced over at Adrien. Adrien's riveting eyes were fixed at Luka and as soon as the blue haired boy gazed at him, he gave him a sheepish smile. Luka gave one back, realizing that Adrien was no longer in love with Ladybug. Maybe he would tell his boyfriend the truth.

The band played their songs, Adrien playing the piano and Luka playing the guitar. Their fingers ran expertly over their instruments as Rose sang the song loudly. Marinette scrutinized the two boys, looking for any tension. She couldn't find much; she assumed she would just have to wait.

Rose sung her last note and the boat went silent, the spectators applauding. They started to clear the boat and Marinette watched Adrien grab ahold of Luka's hand and yank him into his room. She watched the door close, tapping her foot and wishing she could listen into their conversation.

Adrien paced in the room, his footsteps echoing slightly. "I don't know why I'm so nervous about this," started Adrien. "I mean, I guess it's not a big deal, but clearly we have a stalker."

"Well, Marinette already stalks you..."

"Yeah, I thought she could have taken the picture, but she doesn't know either of our identities, right?"

Adrien fixed his green eyes on him and Luka winced. "Well, I think she knows mine. I have a suspicion that she's Ladybug."

Adrien blinked. Marinette is Ladybug? He mulled it over in his mind, sorting through memories. He thought Marinette was Multimouse, but it could've been an illusion. She was very ingenious that way. It also made sense: her constant absences, the difference in the way she treated his two alter egos and even some of the random comments she made.

Luka was watching him intently, waiting for him to say something. Adrien's eyebrows were creased and his mouth was set into a frown. Adrien, sensing Luka's uneasiness, plopped down beside him on the couch and grabbed his hand. "You do realize I'm not in love with her anymore, right? I don't have any feelings for her whatsoever; you're the only one I love."

Luka smiled brightly and Adrien felt like he was basking in the sun. Luka's smile was incandescent. "Okay," Luka replied, nodding his head. "Of course, we have to keep her identity a secret..."

"Of course. You said you wanted to tell Juleka today. I'm fine with doing it, unless she knows you're Viperion. Because then she could figure out my identity."

"She shouldn't know that I'm a superhero," answered Luka. Adrien nodded and they headed out of Luka's room. Most of the band had already departed, except for Marinette and Juleka who seemed to be having a friendly conversation. Marinette's eyes kept darting over to the door impatiently.

As the two boys stepped out, she turned away from Juleka, searching their faces for any sign of sadness. Sensing none, she raised her eyebrows in surprise, deciding to drop it. She waved her goodbye to the purple haired girl and descended from the ship.

"Hey Juleka, we have something to tell you," started Luka, glancing at Adrien.

His sister smiled slightly, glancing at the nervous expression of the two boys. "I think I already know," she said. "You're dating, right?" Her brown eyes flashed mischievously at the look of surprise plastered on the two boys' faces.

"How did you know? Do you think anyone else does?" questioned Adrien.

"No, I don't think so. I can just sense these things because it's my brother. Honestly, I've been shipping you guys for a while."

"Oh?" Luka raised an eyebrow, surprised by Juleka's response.

"And I didn't tell anyone else," continued Juleka. "Not even Rose."

A/N: Sorry this chapter took a while to write; I didn't have much ideas for it and it's a little boring. In the next chapter someone will get akumatized for a stupid reason. I just needed them to get akumatized for the plot. After that akumatization there will be one or two more chapters before the ending chapters which will have a lot of angst. Anyways, I hoped you enjoyed it so far.