•Afterglow• || Book of One-shots

1: My Only Sunshine

The final battle was over. Hawkmoth was defeated. Paris should've been celebrating along with the famous superhero duo and couple, Ladybug and Chat Noir. But the atmosphere was far from joyous.

Just at the foot of the Eiffel Tower, surrounded by a huge crowd of mourning Parisians, among which were also present Rena Rouge, Carapace, Viperion, Queen Bee and Ryuko, sat Ladybug, with Chat lying on her lap, bleeding profusely. Hawkmoth was gone, but not before one of his akumatised villains sent a destructive beam towards Ladybug's way. Chat had jumped in front of her to deflect it with his staff, but Volpina prevented him from doing so, which resulted in him getting hit by the beam. It had severely injured Plagg, Chat's kwami, and weakened the hero more and more every second. Taking advantage of this, a sentimonster of Ladybug slashed his torso with a sword that her senticharm had given her. Chat hadn't given up yet, but only after Hawkmoth and Mayura fell to their deaths, did the bitter truth dawn on him. He was dying.

Two of his ribs had broken, and his nose, mouth and torso were bleeding, making Ladybug's red suit redder than ever. Both of their faces were smeared with blood, sweat and tears, painting a gruesome and heavy picture to the Parisians surrounding the two.

Chat blinked slowly and looked up at Ladybug, frowning softly. The pain was too much for him to bear, but he couldn't, wouldn't, show it, not in front of his Lady. She couldn't stop crying since the moment he fell into her lap and had to break out the truth to her. Chat slowly reached out and wiped her tears, causing Ladybug's gorgeous bluebell eyes to meet his piercing, green sclerae ones. The Parisians were amazed at how they still looked at each other with the same amount of love and admiration, even when one of them was currently heaving his last few breaths.

"You are my sunshine..."

Ladybug's crying came to a halt, just as she heard these words leave her partner's mouth. He had a slight smile on his face, and surprisingly, it didn't look forced.

Ladybug tried to smile as well, and with trembling lips, whispered back, "My only sunshine..."

Chat's smile widened slightly. "You m-make me happy..."

A single tear escaped Ladybug's eyes. She still remembered that day. It was probably the happiest day of her life. Both Ladybug and Chat Noir had decided to reveal their identities, and so they did after patrol one night, and made their relationship official. And that song, it was extremely special to her, because it was the same song that they had danced to that night. It was also the first song that they had danced to in their superhero forms.

Sniffing slightly, she smiled at those memories. "When skies are grey..."

Chat knew that she was thinking back to that day. It was about 6 months back. He wished he could let her know how much he loved her. He wished they could go on dates, have ice cream together, maybe marry and settle down, and knew that his Lady wished the same, but now he knew that all of that was impossible. Ladybug would have to spend the rest of her life without him, they wouldn't get to grow old together in each other's arms, and that thought broke him more. Chat's eyelids became heavier and it was becoming more and more difficult for him to breathe. With all the strength left in him, he sang back, "You'll never know dear, how much I love you..."

Just as he said this, his breath hitched. He tried to let out a few more breaths but it seemed incredibly difficult now. Ladybug's eyes widened involuntarily and a few more tears escaped her eyes. Her vision had become blurry, but she could see how hard he was struggling to breathe. Struggling to stay alive. For her.

Chat was now panting heavily, his chest rising up and falling down at an increased pace. He inhaled deeply one last time and managed to whisper, "I love y-you, M'lady...", before his breathing finally came to a stop. His clothed chest fell back down and his eyes became glassy. And just like that, he was gone.

Ladybug choked back a sob and knowing fully well that he wouldn't be able to hear her anymore, whispered back, "P-please don't take my s-sunshine away..."

That was her cue to completely break down. Clutching Chat's lifeless body, she buried her head in his chest and sobbed, wishing for all of it to turn out a nightmare, but a hand on her shoulder let her know that it was real. Her partner, best friend, and soulmate was no more. And it shattered her heart into a million pieces.

Rena rubbed circles on Ladybug's back with her thumb, trying to keep her own tears at bay. Ladybug raised her head slightly and placed a feather-light kiss on Chat's forehead. "I l-love you too, Chaton...", she barely whispered, but she believed that wherever Chat was, he had heard her. And that was enough for her. Even if she wouldn't be able to hug him, kiss him, tease him or hear him call her M'lady ever again, she knew that Chat would never leave her side, that they'd always love each other. Always...

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