Project 25913 Fics

i like it when you hold me tight

Summary : aspik gets his much needed coffee.

---

Desperada plays a note and shoots a ball, Ladybug explodes into gold. Second chance. Desperada swipes her guitar a bit too close, Ladybug disappears into a sticker. Second chance. As was the routine. It shouldn't have taken this long.

Adrien exhales. Yes, he wants to protect his lady, and he will keep going until he can't.

But let's be real, he's also tired as heck. The last five minutes… haven't been that forgiving. Adrien's heartbeat may have been restored to its normal pace, but he remembers the heat of the battle, the rapid pouncing in his chest as his legs try to keep going across meters that seemed like hundreds each…

and he remembers his coffee from this morning, a hefty while ago. It hadn't been so long yet, but the memory of the taste fades into oblivion. He can't keep going like this.

And so Adrien swipes a second chance, not noticing the concerned look on Ladybug's face when she sees him go silent.

He's back to the same place again, his body energized and ready as ever, but his mind shriveling away like a raisin. Ladybug sees Aspik hold his palm up like a stop sign, him taking the bet to lean against the dirty sewer wall and smudge questionable gunk against his costume.

Ladybug glances away, opting to sit next to him. Her right hand finds his left, both of them foregoing any romantic thoughts as she leans against him and squeezes his hand, flushed palms pressing against each other.

"How long has it been?" Ladybug dares to ask, eyes staring across the obnoxiously polluted sewage stream. As unwelcoming as the environment was, Adrien felt at home. He welcomes the question, and he nestles deeper into her touch.

"It's been two months." Adrien looks elsewhere this time, and oh.

She sees now.

"How tired are you?"

"Like I could go for a coffee right now." Adrien laughs, as if everything was fine. He jests, but Ladybug thinks she could do something about it.

"Lucky charm!" Ladybug softly tosses her yo-yo in the air, the sudden pink glow almost blinding them. She lets go of his hand to catch the regular cup of medium-dark roast coffee with a little milk. The coffee may be slightly hot, but it couldn't replicate the same warmth Adrien's hand gave her.

"Drink up," She held the beverage to him, barely managing not shoving it in his face. He opens the lid and gently sips the coffee. "It might take a while to kick in, but I hope the few minutes left gives some energy."

…

Not long after, the cup is devoid of liquid and put away to the side. Adrien's still not fully awake yet, but he hopes that by some magic force, the miraculous coffee's effects carry on through the rewinds.

The small snake head on his bracelet threatens to meet the end and make this moment remembered by them both. He wants that too, but he knows he needs to do something.

"Thank you, Ladybug." Aspik dives in and kisses her cheek, coffee-stained breath paid no mind. Ladybug's jaw slightly drops, him unaware as he pulls the snake head back and resets the past few minutes.

Second chance!