My Crush's Evil Cousin (A Miraculous Ladybug Fanfic)

The Right Thing to Do

Marinette licked the ice-cream in her cup slowly, her entire body shivering from the cold temperature of the treat. Andre had given her mint and raspberry ice-cream, something she would normally try to analyze, but this time she didn't really care what the ice-cream seller was thinking when he had given her the tasty treat. All she wanted to do was relax.

Felix idly kicked a rock in front of him as they walked together, his face buried in his own ice cream. Andre had given him blackberry and raspberry ice-cream, something Felix had initially turned his nose up at, but given the way he was scarfing down the treat, he no longer had those reservations.

Marinette giggled and stole the rock from Felix with her feet, kicking it in front of her. "Hey!" Felix exclaimed, bumping her out of the way and stealing it back, kicking it farther.

"No fair, your feet are bigger." Marinette nimbly shifted her foot around his and kicked the rock in the direction of her left foot, which caught the rock and dribbled it.

"I'm a soccer player, you can't beat me." Felix ducked around her and stole the rock, but he kicked it a little too hard, sending the pebble skittering across the bridge and over the edge. They both rushed to the edge to watch the rock sink under the surface.

Marinette burst out laughing and turned around, leaning her back against the railing. "Oh, you're a soccer player, huh? Then what did you call that, a field goal?"

Felix rolled his eyes and leaned on the railing next to her. "It's called a goal, although I might've gotten a red card for foul play there." He nudged her with his shoulder, chuckling.

Marinette liked it when he laughed. It gave her a warm, fuzzy feeling on her insides. Maybe it was because he always seemed to stoic and sad, it gave her hope to see him thriving in some small way.

"Okay, it's about time we started with your training." Felix half turned his body to face her, and Marinette did the same, trying to erase the big smile from her face.

"Oh?" She giggled, unable to help herself. He looked so serious about it, like he was training her to go into war.

"Don't laugh, this is serious." Felix rolled his eyes, but his lips turned up ever so slightly. "I'm going to help you win over Adrien."

Marinette quieted, her smile dripping off her face. She wasn't all that confident she could win over Adrien in any regard, let alone talk to him. Every time she saw his face she got all flustered, and she could never get a word out. She almost wished he hadn't apologized to her that day in the rain. At least then she would be able to talk to him without seeming like a total idiot.

"Okay, fine." Marinette straightened. "You give me a tip, I give you a tip. We help each other."

Felix's eyes narrowed, but after a moment he nodded. "Great. I'll start. First of all, your hair." He reached out, fingering her hair for a brief second, and Marinette felt her cheeks warm up. "I like it down, obviously, but keep it up whenever Adrien is around. He's got a thing for pigtails."

Marinette nodded, her hand going to her hair self-consciously. That wasn't going to be a problem. She liked keeping her hair up. She didn't really like the way it looked when it was down. "Got it." She cleared her throat and cast around in her mind for a good tip. "My turn. If you can't come to an event or are going to be late, tell whoever you are going with. Also, just try not to be late or stand people up."

Felix grimaced, leaning his head back as he groaned. "You are really never going to let me live that down, are you?"

Marinette laughed and poked him. "No, I'm not. It was pretty rude, and I worried about you." She scowled at him.