To Heal a Broken Heart

Chapter 3

"Lessons???"

Chat was surprised, to say the least. It was a wonderful sunny day and he hoped to take his friend out to the roof of that building where they could see children playing in the park and boats going up and down the Seine. Instead of Marinette was proposing to teach him how to make Ladybug fall in love with him.

"Why would I need lessons? I AM naturally charming."

"I am sure you are, Chat! But it didn't work with Ladybug, now, did it? It's not like I will teach you something, I will just give you some suggestions as to what you can do to improve your "charminess". Come on, kitty, you do want Ladybug to like you? And it's a perfect time of the year too. Valentine's day is in a week. If we are smart and quick she will be your valentine and you might even score a kiss... Please, say yes, Chat?"

Marinette was looking at him with pleading eyes but Chat was looking at the window so she couldn't see his face. If the girl could, she would notice a little sadness in his eyes, more like a disappointment. He continued to stand there looking nowhere in particular. It seemed like he was trying very hard to find something in his head, deep inside himself.

"Why do you want to do it, Marinette? Why all of the sudden do you want me to try again? Do you want to see me hurt once more? Or did you miss my embarrassing crying on your shoulder?"

He teased her through now obvious sadness, which Marinette attributed to the fact that he was forced to relive his heartbreak again. She smiled softly at him.

"No, of course, I don't want you hurt. Quite the opposite, I want you to be happy and I promised you to help heal your heart, didn't I? I just suddenly have this persistent feeling that this time she won't push you away, Chat... with some help from a girl who knows what girls want. I think she is finally ready to accept you and love you for who you truly are."

He stayed there for a while staring out the window until suddenly his face lit up with a sly grin and a flicker of mischief appeared in his eyes. He turned sharply to face Marinette.

"Why not, princess. Show me what you've got. Let's go get Ladybug to fall in love with me!"

"Hooray! I promise you won't regret it, Kitty."

Marinette jumped from joy and in a moment of happiness leaned forward and landed a quick kiss on his cheek, blushing horribly. Chat was startled.

"Oh, I am pretty sure I won't regret this, princess."

***

The day flew by very quickly as Marinette was trying very hard to "teach" Chat what he should and shouldn't do around Ladybug. She provided him with all of the small little things that girls liked but boys seemed to forget or ignore all the time. She somehow suddenly knew what Ladybug liked and didn't like about Chat. Amused and a bit confused he was busy putting it all on paper in a borrowed notepad.

"And remember, Chat, the main thing to be yourself around her. Just as you behave yourself with me. I bet Ladybug would've fallen for you a long time ago if you would have toned down your flirtatious advances and just was yourself."

"Got it! Thanks, Marinette. Now, I am all armed to sweep my Lady from her feet. By the way, have you ever noticed how beautiful your eyes are? They are gorgeously blue and radiant."

His grin grew bigger and bigger just as Marinette's face became redder and redder.

"See you in a couple of days, princess!"

He was gone in a flash. Marinette stood there until she could no longer see him jumping between the houses. He just used one of the tricks she has armed him with on her.

"Are you sure it was a good idea, Tikki?"

***

Adrien couldn't stop a smile when he arrived home. He gave Plagg his fair share of cheese for holding an extremely long transformation and started to review his "improve your "charminess" notes.

"What are you planning Adrien. I didn't think you wanted to pursue Ladybug again or was I wrong?"

"Oh no, you are not wrong Plagg. I am not going that road again. But I am just confused as to her motives? Why would Marinette do it? Doesn't she see.... or ....or... I just don't get it!"

Adrien's smile was long gone and now there was confusion on his face. The day was getting to its end. The room was getting darker.

"What you don't get? She probably got tired of you and wants to pursue Adrien again. It's not like you were a thing or anything. Just friends and Adrien was EXTREMELY interested in Marinette recently, wasn't he?"

Plagg smiled slyly at Adrien. But that remark only added to his worrisome look.

"Oh, believe me! I went high and low to let Marinette know how interested Adrien is. If that would've worked I would've not had an issue with the whole secret identity reveal. We could just hang out as Adrien and Marinette. Go finally on a real date, hang out like a normal couple, and not spending our days hiding from the people and trying to figure out how to find each other. It would've been wonderful!"

"It would've been? Why? Didn't it work? Did I sleep that much? I seem to miss a lot of your daylight life because I am so exhausted after those hours you spend with Marinette."

"That's the problem, Plagg. It didn't. It's like Marinette suddenly lost most of her interest in Adrien. Nino even suggested that maybe she found someone else. He tried to get some info from Alya but she said that she doesn't know of anyone else. And believe me, Alya would've known if there was someone."

Now Plagg was puzzled and confused. Kwami thought long and hard floating around until he suddenly jumped.

"Could she have actually fallen for Chat? You did spend a lot of time together, and honestly, I think that you both enjoyed it."

Adrien looked at the kwami smiling, wondering if it really took him that long to finally have this realization.

"I hoped so too. I was already starting to think about how to reveal to her my secret without spoiling anything. I was going to take her out for Valentine's Day and tell her then. You know, the grand romantic feature first and then: ta-da! I am Adrien! Please, don't run away."

Adrien paused for a moment imagining the surprise on her face and a dozen of different reactions and how he would react to each one of them so in the end, they will embrace, and... he blushed.

"But now she proposes to get Ladybug and me together. Can't she see that I like her much more than Ladybug? Or maybe there is really someone else? I don't get it. I just don't... What kind of game is she playing?"

The confused look was gone, replaced by a smirk.

"But if my princess wants to play games, we will oblige, won't we, Plagg?"

"We will?"

Plagg was surprised that his usually persistent chosen one was giving up so easily.

"Of course, we will, Plagg. Playing doesn't mean losing. Whatever this game is we will win it."

"We will?"

Plagg was more confused than ever. A piece of cheese, which Adrien just in time handed to him, seems to help him a lot.

"Of course, we will, Adrien!"