"Faceless Future" Book 2 of "Secrets Unraveled" Trilogy |COMPLETED|

Chpt 26: Adrien's Romantic Date.

Marinette was looking at herself in the mirror, trying to decide whether she liked the outfit she picked out for the date tonight. Since she didn't know what they were doing, she didn't want to wear a dress. She had chosen a white, short-sleeved blouse that had tiny pink and black dots, with puffed sleeves and a peplum waist. She matched it to slim black pants and her favorite pink flats. She'd grab her black, thigh-length trench coat before she left in case it got cool.

Now for her hair.   What could she do with it for something different?

"Tikki, what do think I should do with my hair?" Marinette called over to her kwami who was peering out the window.

Tikki flew over and looked at her in the mirror. "Hmm. Do you think your hair is long enough for two braids? That might be cute! I see a lot of braids on girls your age these days."

"Alright, I'll see if I can do it," said Marinette as she took the hair bands out of her hair. She stood in front of the mirror and started the first braid up near the crown of her head.

"What do you think?" she asked Tikki when she finished the braid.

Tikki examined the braid. "Why don't you do the other one? That will give us a better look."

Marinette quickly braided the other one, noticing that she was going to be late if she didn't hurry. She finished it and decided she kind of liked it, for something different, even though the braids were quite short. She went over to her vanity and got a pink flower clip out of her drawer and put it in her hair.

"Well?" she asked Tikki as she turned to face her.

Tikki smiled. "It's so cute, Marinette. I think it's a good choice!"

"Okay. Anything else I'm forgetting? Why am I so nervous? It's not like it's our first date or anything!"

"Actually, in a way it kind of is," said Tikki with the hint of a smile. "You haven't had any dates since Adrien found out the truth about his father. In a way he's a different person than he was before all of that happened."

Marinette thought about it, surprised by what Tikki said, but she found she did agree. They hadn't been acting as anything more than just friends too often these past few weeks.  "I guess you're right! We've both been dealing with so much since then. So many things changed that night, including us revealing our feelings to each other, and we've never really revisited any of that. Adrien moved in here and we've just been kind of . . . I don't know. We've been sort of stuck, I guess."

Tikki flew up and adjusted Marinette's clip. "Just have fun tonight! You both deserve it!" She gave Marinette a hug. "You'd better go!"

"Right!" said Marinette as she grabbed her purse, opening it up to let Tikki fly inside.

She hurried down the stairs and looked around, but didn't see Adrien.

"Mom, have you seen Adrien? We're supposed to be going on our date tonight."

Sabine looked up from her crossword puzzle and gave her a secret smile. "He went out a bit ago but he said he'd be back soon. Have a good time tonight, sweetie!"

"Thanks, Mom! Should I wait for him downstairs then do you think?" asked Marinette as she grabbed her coat from the closet.

"I would give him a few more minutes. I think that he has a plan," her mother replied, returning to her puzzle.

"Um, okay," said Marinette, wondering again what Adrien had planned for tonight. She stood near the door, fidgeting with the ruffle on her blouse and folding and re-folding the coat over her arm.