Behind the Mask - A Miraculous Ladybug Fanfic

Chapter 2

Marinette's POV

A few weeks have passed since I faced Chat Blanc. Every day is the same. I wake up, go to school, come home, wait for an akuma alert, go to sleep, repeat.

Chat Blanc haunted my brain. Every night when I went to sleep, I had to relive that nightmare all over again. My best friend and partner, heartbroken. Paris flooded and destroyed. My corpse. My constant reminder of the consequences that would result from one of us finding out the identity of the other. The consequence of our love.

"It was our love that did this to the world milady."

"Marinette? Marinette!"

"Huh-what?" Suddenly, I'm brought back into reality. I fell asleep in class and Miss Bustier caught me. Again. It happened at least once a week anymore. I slept so poorly every night that keeping my eyes open at school was nearly impossible.

"Marinette, please see me after class," Miss Bustier said calmly. Shit. I was in trouble. I desperately tried to ignore that burning feeling of everyone staring at me.

"Yes, Miss. Bustier," I replied solemnly.

-

-

-

After class ended, I reluctantly stayed behind and walked over to Miss Bustier's desk, bracing myself for the lecture I was about to get.

"Marinette, what's going on?" Miss Bustier locked eyes with me, and I tensed up. "All of this is so unlike you. Falling asleep in class, your grades dropping, and you look like you haven't slept in about a month. You're one of my brightest students so I know it isn't because you're struggling in school. You can talk to me, Marinette, I'm here to help," she put her hand on my shoulder in an attempt to comfort me.

"I'm sorry Miss Bustier, I'm just under a lot of stress right now. I don't think anyone can help me with it," I say, with tears beginning to well up in my eyes.

"Whatever is going on is bad enough that it's affecting your work ethic in school. It hurts me to see you like this knowing that you are capable of so much more."

"I know," I replied, and then the tears fell. One by one, they cascaded down my face. Caught off guard by my breakdown, Miss Bustier pulls me into a hug.

"Marinette, you may be beyond any of my help, but there are other options. Have you considered talking to someone?"

Of course, now she's going to think I'm crazy.

"No! I mean- I don't need it. I'm just tired and I haven't been able to sleep well. Once I get some rest, I'll be fine." I tried to reassure Miss Bustier.

"Just, give it some thought, okay? I'm worried about you. All I want is for you to be happy and succeed. Working with a counselor could help you. You can talk about anything with no judgment and they'll help you find solutions."

"I'll keep that in mind, thank you, Miss Bustier, for everything," I gave her one final hug and then started out the classroom.

"Wait, one more thing. Unfortunately Marinette, another reason I had you stay after class is because you failed the last exam. I'm going to have to send it home with you so your parents can sign it." She handed over the graded exam, and I was mortified. On the front page alone, I could see red ink written all over it. 58.

I was so dead. How on earth was I going to explain this to my parents?? I've never gotten below a 90 on ANYTHING.

"I'll bring it back to you tomorrow, Miss Bustier." I put the exam in my bag, trying to not panic, and then walked out into the hallway. I wasn't prepared for the person that was waiting outside the door.

"Adrien??"

"Hey, Mari, I was just waiting on you because I thought we could walk to our next class together?" Adrien wants to walk to class with me?? Why does he seem so nervous?

"Yeah, of course, but how come you didn't walk with Nino? You always do," I respond, inquisitively.

"Honestly, I was worried about you," Adrien replied sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand.

I felt heat rushing to my cheeks.
"Y-you were worried about me? Why?"

"You haven't been yourself for weeks, Mari, and I- I miss your happy self, a lot. You're one of the most important people in the world to me, and I'll do anything to help make things better for you." My heart swelled at his words, and I could feel my cheeks burning.

I didn't think I'd be able to form any sort of words because of how flustered I was, so I showed my appreciation for him in the best way I knew how. I pulled him into a tight hug and buried my face into his chest.

"Thank you, Adrien, that means a lot to me."

"Of course, Marinette. I'll always be your friend." he hugged me back, tighter than I had hugged him, and sat there and held me for a few moments.

A friend? Of course. That's all I'm ever going to be to him.

-

-

-

Adrien's POV

"Thank you, Adrien, that means a lot to me."

I could feel my cheeks starting to burn. What is this feeling?

"Of course, Marinette. I'll always be your friend." I said as I hugged her back. For some reason, those words felt weird slipping off my tongue.

I had noticed Marinette's energy shifting over the last few weeks but I couldn't figure out why. I wish I knew though, because I just wanted to protect her at all costs.

I felt Marinette stiffen in my arms after what I said. Did I do something wrong? She sat there for a few moments before pushing me away.

"Is... everything okay Marinette?" I asked.

"Y-yeah. I should get going. I'm fine, really," she responded softly with a hint of coldness to her voice. She wouldn't even look at me, her eyes stayed focused on the ground.

Her energy didn't match what she was saying. I could tell she wasn't fine at all. Before I could say anything else, Marinette had already speed-walked away. Wow, that was fast.

Marinette pushing me away shouldn't have hurt as bad as it did, but it did. I really did care about her a lot. I would always choose her over any of my other friends in a heartbeat. Part of me wanted her as more than a friend, but I could never betray Ladybug like that. Ladybug was who I loved.

Truth be told, part of why I'm so drawn to Marinette is because of her resemblance to Ladybug and the fact that she has so many qualities that remind me of her. Both of them were compassionate, selfless, strong, and brave.

And neither of them would ever want to be with me.