Switched

Realign

The next morning, Adrien walked into class five minutes late. He might as well take advantage of being Marinette while he had the chance. He quickly took his seat beside Alya without sparing Marinette a second glance.

"Sorry, Ms. Bustier. I overslept."

"Didn't I tell you that if you were late again, I would have to talk to you parents?"

"Right. I forgot." Adrien dropped a sparkly pink pencil case on the desk.

He heard Marinette groan from the desk in front of him. She twisted in her seat.

"Psst. Hey."

Adrien ignored her and quietly took notes as Ms. Bustier continued teaching.

"Marinette," she whispered sharply. After Marinette failed to gain his attention, she scribbled a note and tried to quietly pass it back to him.

"Marinette." Alya leaned over. "Adrien is trying to get your attention."

He shrugged.

"Hurry take the note before—"

Ms. Bustier's outstretched hand cut Alya short. "Adrien, what is this?" She took the piece of paper Adrien had refused to grab. Ms. Bustier unfolded it. "Marinette, meet me under the stairs at lunch."

"Dude." Nino put his arm around Marinette's shoulder. "My best friend has a crush."

"No way," Chloe snorted.

Adrien couldn't see Marinette's face, but he assumed it was red. She got flustered easily.

"Wait is this what happened when you were under the stairs?" Alya asked. "Does Adrien like you?"

"Alya, would you just drop it?" he shouted.

The room went quiet.

"Wow, she really doesn't like you," Lila said.

"Class let's get back to our lesson. Marinette and Adrien please stay behind when we dismiss for lunch." Ms. Bustier turned back the the whiteboard.

"Dang girl." Alya gave him a comforting shoulder squeeze.

He sat uncomfortably for the next few hours, dreading having to talk to Ms. Bustier when he remembered Marinette's parents wouldn't punish him nearly as harshly as his father would. Adrien almost felt sorry for Marinette.

As their classmates headed to the cafeteria, Adrien and Marinette waited by Ms. Bustier's desk.

"You know that I love social connection in my class," she started. "But only if it doesn't disrupt our other students."

"Yes, Ms. Bustier," they said.

She smiled. "Now hurry to lunch, where you can be social, and return to class with your full attention.

Adrien quickly scurried out. Marinette grabbed his hand as he did. "Meet me in the janitors closet in five minutes."

"Yeah, no."

"I'll be waiting!" Marinette called after him.

Adrien walked into the cafe where Alya was waiting. She threw an apple at him. "What are you doing here?"

"Getting lunch?"

"Marinette!" Alya face palmed. "What is with you? My best friend would never give up an opportunity to be alone with Adrien."

Really? That was the last thing Adrien had expected. Sometimes he wasn't even sure he and Marinette were friends.

"Marinette, you've spent all year crushing on Adrien and now you aren't going to meet him?"

Marinette. Had. A. Crush. On. Him?!

And all this time he'd thought she'd been in love with Luka.

Alya shoved him toward the door. "Go!"

He stumbled out of the cafeteria and down the steps. Instead of going to the janitor's closet, Adrien whipped open his jacket. Tikki flew out.

"Does Marinette like me?"

"Well..."

"Yes or no?" he demanded.

"Yes."

"So you're telling me, I've had a crush on Ladybug aka Marinette and she's had a crush on me and I'm also Cat Noir? But she doesn't like Cat Noir," Adrien groaned.

"Maybe she can get to know you now," Tikki offered. She flew back under his jacket as Adrien headed to the closet.

"What took you so long?" Marinette grabbed Adrien's hand and pulled him into the closet.

"Why don't you like Cat Noir?"

"What?" She wrinkled her nose. "I like Cat Noir. We're partners."

"First, I was asking why you don't return my feelings, because Ladybug has rejected me the entire time I've known her," Adrien paused, uncertain if he should say the next thing that had popped into his brain. "And also, it doesn't seem like you like Cat as a friend very much either."

"That's not true," she protested.

"Then why were we fighting so much? And why did it feel like I was always letting you down?"

Marinette's wide blue eyes stared back him as she registered what he was saying. She opened her mouth to speak but was cut off by a scream.

Adrien and Marinette quickly went outside. Students streamed down the hallway.

"Alya!" Marinette grabbed her friend. "What happened?"

"Chloe's been akumatized again, and because Ladybug didn't purify the last akuma, others are getting akumatized too!"

"Oh this is a disaster!" Marinette buried her face in her hands.

Adrien stepped back inside the closet. "Tikki, spots on."