Waterproof (A Miraculous Ladybug Fanfiction)

Waterproof

The clouds massed over the city, ignorant of their own poignancy as they streaked across the dark sky. However persistent, the stars' shine was blurred by the clouds' murky presence. The trees rustled in occasional whishes of the breeze. As was expected at the late hour of one a.m, the nearby stores were closed, houses were asleep, and the street was empty. Rain sprinkled upon the City of Lights in a jittery chime, splishing into puddles and tap-dancing on the car.

Marinette sat in the passenger seat of the black sedan. Beside her in the driver's seat, Alya tapped at her phone's screen, intently focused. With the sun visor's mirror open, the bluenette, meanwhile, criticized her reflection. Oh, gosh. I look horrible. In truth, she looked stunning, wearing a strapless black dress with stockings and a black coat, but her mind, a captive to worry and pessimism, insisted otherwise. I can't do this. She gingerly brushed a strand of hair back into place. I won't know what to even do there! As she wondered why she'd decided to come along, Marinette bit her lower lip, unintentionally smearing the lipstick that she had so carefully applied. In the yellowish glow of the light on the ceiling of the car, it was difficult to see where remasking layers were needed. She brought the lipstick to her lips and after a few quick strokes, she tossed the makeup back into the glove compartment. A sigh escaped her as she again judged her image. Why can't I just look pretty? Despair crept into her thoughts and the bluenette exhaled with the hope of calming down. But the rain, tip-tap-plopping in an unpredictable rhythm against the windows, mimicked her heart's nervous fluttering against her ribcage. Her blue eyes drifted over to the side window and fixed themselves on a singular drop. The drop had trickled away, leaving Marinette's blue eyes out of focus; her mind toiled with possibilities, both dreaded and fanciful ones.

"Alright, let's go, girl!" Alya locked her smartphone as she suddenly exclaimed.

The bluenette's thoughts shattered and she turned to her friend with alarm before her face dulled to expressionlessness.

Alya paused her enthusiasm to apologize. "Sorry, I was scrolling through my feed again." A smile broke across her lips. "You know I gotta be kept updated! Hey, did you know that--" Her voice died when she noticed her best friend wasn't really paying attention. The ombré's face darkened. "What's wrong, Marinette?"

At her name, Marinette's eyes snapped back into focus. "Wha- oh, nothing!" She offered an unconvincing smile. "Nothing."

Alya huffed. "Girl, we've been over this. You look fab!"

Dejected, the bluenette nodded. "Oh, I know... I shouldn't have eaten all those cookies."

"What? Fab not fat." She enunciated the last consonants of the words, speaking in a humorously unimpressed tone. When the bluenette didn't laugh, Alya continued insistently, "Honestly, Marinette, you look so darn perfect! Like, I'm jelly. You have nothing to worry about. And if this is about the 'scariness' of the nightclub, you don't have to dance, okay? You can just hang out at the bar."

"I know." Marinette looked down at her black dress, looked back at Alya and hesitated. "B-but..."

Raising an eyebrow, her best friend wordlessly demanded that she continue with her question.

"Well," Marinette went on quietly, "what if... what if Adrien doesn't think I look pretty?"

"Then he is a blind idiot." The answer was immediate. Alya grinned as she added, "Or he's lowkey gay."

Marinette nodded, genuinely laughing at the joke. When the two recovered from their giggles, her friend spoke.

"Okay, but you are going to tell him, right? You've had a crush on him for what... seven, eight years?" The ombré smiled. "Like, girl, how about me? I can't keep the secret for much longer!"