When Walls Crumble

Chapter 8: Cryptic Flirting

The next morning at school, Alya practically pounced on Marinette the second she arrived.

"Tell me everything! Now!" she squealed, unable to contain her excitement.

"About what?" Marinette inquired. "My date?"

Alya laughed. "Well, sure. I want to hear that too. But I was talking about the new superhero! The teal one who saved your life! Spill!"

Marinette looked down at Tikki who gave her a be careful look. "Well...his name is Viperion and he can do little rewinds. He saved my life and...that's it. That's all I've got for you."

Alya whipped out her phone and typed a quick note. "Awesome! This is going on the Ladyblog tonight! Now tell me about your date!"

Marinette sighed, looking off into space. "We got ice cream and he wanted to know what happened when he was akumatized because he was worried that he hurt my feelings. And then the Evillustrator showed up and he tried to protect me, and after it all was over he kissed me and walked me home."

Alya giggled. Marinette had it bad. Again.

But it was better this way. Her unrequited love/obsession was never good for her, so it was great for her to date someone like Luka. And speaking of Luka...

"Hey, Marinette!" he greeted her as he walked into the classroom.

"Luka!" Marinette shouted, abandoning Alya to give her boyfriend a hug.

Adrian walked in right behind Luka. "Hey, guys!"

"Hey, dude!" Nino gave his best friend a fist bump.

"So," Adrian started, turning to Luka and Marinette. "I heard you two had a run-in with some superheroes last night. How was it?"

"Pretty terrifying, at first," Luka answered. "But then they saved Marinette and I could breathe again," he smiled down at her. Marinette blushed.

"Oh, stop it! You're embarrassing me!"

"Cat Noir talked to you, right?" he continued. "What was he like?"

Marinette laughed. "A little full of himself, but he's funny."

Luka nodded. "When push comes to shove, he does what's right. But yeah. Funny, but arrogant."

Adrian looked down at his shoes. He had never thought of that. He wanted to come across as confident, but he never realized it was cocky. He put a smile back on his face. "I see. And what about the new guy? Viper-something?"

"Viperion," Marinette corrected. "He saved my life and he seemed nice to me," she answered, winking at Luka, a gesture unnoticed by everyone but Adrian.

Luka laughed. "I guess he was alright. But Ladybug? She was incredible! She managed to put a harness around Nathaniel while both of them were free-falling from the Eiffel Tower!"

Marinette punched his arm. "Someone's got a crush, huh?"

Luka winked. "Only for you, Mare."

The joking and cryptic flirting might have continued indefinitely were it not for the bell. They all filed into their seats and sat down for the lesson.

The next few months were a blur for Marinette. She and Luka went out somewhat regularly and when disaster (or Hawkmoth) struck, Luka did his best to be helpful with or without the suit.

Knowing his girlfriend was the red-spotted heroine gave Luka slight anxiety issues. His power sometimes wasn't the one she needed and he would have to trust Cat Noir and whoever else was on the scene at the moment to protect her for him. On the occasion that she or Cat Noir chose him to help, he joked with Cat Noir, earning sighs and groans from Ladybug. And whenever they finished, he took Marinette out on a date to celebrate a job well done.

One such day, as they were walking home from the cafe, Marinette brought up a possible problem.

"I'm worried about Cat Noir," she began.

Luka furrowed his brow. "Why? What's the matter?"

"He asked me out the other day and..."

Luka smiled. He had noticed that Cat Noir definitely had a crush on Ladybug a long time ago but he also knew Marinette thought of him as a brother or best friend.

"And?" he encouraged her.

"And I may have accidentally mentioned having a boyfriend. Before then, he knew I was crushing on someone else, but now he knows there's no chance."

"So you're worried he might get akumatized?"

"I'm not sure. I think if he was going to, he would have that day. But Hawkmoth isn't the only villain in town. Mayura may be able to use his despair. I'm not sure how to fix this. I don't know how to explain it to him without leading him on, but I do love him. It's just a more familial kind of love."

"Say it just like that. Assure him that he isn't meaningless to you. Maybe you can convince him that it's better that way. Most 'high school couples' crash and burn before long. Tell him you wouldn't want that risk. When you are really close friends, you get over it sooner when you disagree. I normally have a good idea of what people want to hear, and I think he might be initially a little hurt, but if he thinks it over, he'll be touched."

"Wow, Luka!" she breathed, "Thanks! That's a great idea!"

"No problem, Mare. Now get in your spandex and find the lost kitty!" he joked.

Marinette laughed. "See you later!" She ran off to a nearby alley to transform.