Behind the Mask - A Miraculous Ladybug Fanfic

Chapter 7

Adrien's POV

As soon as I made it onto the rooftop of Marinette's house, the tears began to fall.

I was used to rejection. Over and over, I've confessed my feelings to Ladybug or tried to kiss her, only to be reminded every single time that she's in love with someone else. But, those rejections were nothing compared to Marinette's.

I couldn't get past the look of horror on her face after I finally kissed her. That moment was supposed to be perfect, and it was, at first. Having her lips on mine felt magical.

It didn't make sense to me. We've been spending time together for weeks without any problems. She used to be in love with me, so what was wrong now? Whenever I kissed her, she kissed me back initially, but it was like a switch flipped. I've never seen Marinette act so cold. Was the kiss really that bad?

I started to leap off the balcony, but I paused. Maybe I should go back and apologize to her. We can just pretend nothing happened and then go back to the way things were before when we were just friends. Yeah, I'll do that.

I walked back to the trapdoor, and as I put my hand on it to open it, I noticed a noise coming from Marinette's room. She was.. crying?

I went back and forth about whether or not to go back into her room, but after remembering that she was the one who told me to leave, I gave up and headed home.

-

"Claws off," I choke out when I make it back into my room.

"Adrien, you know.. love is kinda like cheese, sometimes you just have to-" Plagg started as soon as I detransformed, but I quickly cut him off.

"Not right now, Plagg," I said solemnly, before collapsing onto my bed. I rolled over onto my side as tears continued to slide down my cheeks.

I didn't want to be in my bed. It was so cold, and empty. My room felt like a prison already, which is why I always stayed over at Marinette's anymore. She always made me feel warm and safe.

Yeah, this was going to be a long night.

-

Marinette's POV

I woke up to a deathly silence. Something wasn't right.

The weight of everything that had happened the prior night began crashing onto me, and I could feel my eyes welling up with tears again.

"My kitty... I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have pushed you away," I cried, knowing that it wasn't going to make a difference. He wasn't here.

"I told you, Marinette, this is what happens when you fall in love. It destroys everything," I jump at the voice that I hear from the bottom of my room. I reluctantly peek over the edge of my bed, and I am met with a familiar pair of icy blue eyes.

"Chat Noir?"

"It's Chat Blanc" he snaps, but then immediately calms down, which terrifies me.

"You didn't think I forgot about you, did you?" He says, with an evil chuckle.

"But, I defeated you, I don't understand," I say, as another tear slides down my cheek.

"Everything was perfect until we fell in love again, and then you broke my heart." he says, and then a white glow flickers from his fingertips.

"I'm so sorry," I sob. "I was just trying to protect you."

He steps towards the bed and begins to climb up, and I feel my chest starting to tighten.

"This is your fault, Marinette!" he says as he makes it to the top of my bed.

"Please, don't hurt me," I beg.

"I would never hurt you, Marinette." he smiles at me, which makes me shudder.

"We can fix this together, you know," he says, lifting his hand up to cup my face. "You just have to give me your-"

"NO!" I immediately shove him off me, and then I jump up, trying to reach the trap door.

"Marinette," he says, before grabbing me.

"Stop it, please!" I continue sobbing, as I try to kick him off me, with no success.

"Marinette," he says, louder this time, firmly holding me in place.

"Please, I'm begging," I whimper, trying to escape his grip.

"Marinette!" he says, grabbing my shoulders and shaking me.

-

I open my eyes, and I'm back in my room.

"Marinette, are you alright?" my mom asks from below my bed.

Thank goodness. It was just a dream.

"Maman," I breathe a sigh of relief before climbing down the ladder and giving her a hug.

"Marinette, what's going on? You were screaming and crying," Sabine asks, concerned.

"It was just a bad dream, I'm okay now," I reassure her, but she wasn't convinced.

"You've been having these really bad nightmares for a while now, sweetie, what's going on?"

"I can't talk about it, I wish I could," I say sadly, and I watched as her face fell.

"They were getting better, really, last night was just a bad night. I'm okay, really," I try to reassure her.

"Marinette, you're silly if you think I can't tell when you're lying to me. I know there's something you're not telling us," she paused and took a deep breath. "I can tell it's taking a toll on you. Your father and I love you so much, sweetie, and we'll do anything to help you feel better," she says, pulling me into another hug.

I really was blessed with the most loving and supportive parents in the world.

Having to lie to them constantly was eating away at me. I never kept secrets from them before, and now, I feel so isolated from them.

"If I tell you this, it'll change everything," I say, tears welling up in my eyes.

"Marinette, you can tell me anything. Nothing you tell me will push me away," she smiles reassuringly, and I fall apart.

"I... it's.." I start to reveal myself to her, but stop myself. No matter how much I wish I could tell her, she can't know. It's for her own safety.

"I can't tell you this, maman, I'm so sorry," I sob. "I'm becoming distant from everyone I care about, and it's my own fault because I push everyone away. I feel so alone, but I don't have a choice. I push everyone away because I'm scared, and I can't let anyone know what I'm going through."

"You're never alone, sweetie," she says, pulling me into a hug and rubbing my back comfortingly. "You always have me, and your father, and all of your friends who love you dearly." I hugged her back tighter.

"I love you, thank you."