A Pinch of Potpourri ~ Oneshot collection

Ribbons

It all started when Nino blabbed out that Marinette had a crush on him. Of course, Adrien thought it was a joke, considering that Marinette almost always had a look of utmost discomfort when he talked to her. But it was confirmed when Alya completely lost it and nearly strangled Nino to death for opening his big mouth.

"You better not have told him about the scarf!" Alya seethed, her voice low and harsh. Nino's shirt collar wrinkled and stretched within her tight grip and he was sure that it was as good as ruined.

"I didn't! I didn't!" Nino raised his hands in surrender. He would have said anything to have her release him but he was being honest. The comment about Marinette's crush slipped through his lips by accident. He and Adrien had witnessed a boy being turned down by the pigtailed girl and Adrien made a comment in passing about how surprising it was that Marinette was still single. He figured there had to be at least one person at school who caught her eye but it seemed like she was rejecting everyone who showed any interest.

"Well, yeah. That's because she's totally head over heels in love with you." Nino stated as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Before he could even let that first revelation sink it, a second revelation came from Alya while she was busy trying to kill Nino.

"Scarf?" Adrien blinked at the two, hand unconsciously rising to grasp the blue scarf around his neck. Nino and Alya froze before suddenly straightening up, throwing their arms around each other's shoulders and laughing stiffly.

"Scarf? What scarf? There's nothing about that scarf you don't know about." Nino rambled nervously, only to have Alya stomp down on his foot. He yelped in pain.

Adrien's brows furrowed in confusion and suspicion at the way they were acting. Alya sighed in defeat and released Nino. She walked up to Adrien and placed her hands on his shoulders, intimidating him by how serious she looked. Alya was a friend but they weren't super close so it made him wonder what it was that she knew about the scarf that his father had given him.

"Please don't be too upset, okay?" Alya looked him straight in the eyes, with marked concerned. He could only nod in response. "Marinette was the one who made you that scarf. She missed her chance to give it to you so we dropped it off at your place. I'm not sure what happened but," She exhaled and averted her eyes. "You came to school the next day thinking your dad got it for you."

Adrien's mouth opened and closed a few times, unsure of what to say. Nino glanced at him with worry. They all knew how much the scarf meant to him, especially when he thought that it was his dad that gave it to him. When Nino first heard about it from Alya, he was furious. He was pissed on Marinette's behalf, having her hard work stolen and feelings stomped on. On one hand, Nino was relieved that the truth was out because it was only fair to Marinette and Gabriel didn't deserve the credit. On the other, the myriad of emotions that passed Adrien's face—shock, disappointment, hurt—made him wish that the truth stayed buried.

"Marinette made this?" Adrien tugged at the scarf and looked down at it. It was as if he had to make sure he heard Alya right the first time.

"Yeah." She confirmed.

"Why didn't she tell me?" He whispered, still looking at the scarf as his fingers ran down the plush yarn of the accessory. He momentarily put his own feelings aside and wondered how Marinette must have felt when she heard him say that his father had gotten it for him.

Alya released him and sighed, placing one hand on her cocked hip and running the other through her curly locks. She looked across the courtyard and spotted Marinette chatting with Rose. Adrien followed her gaze towards Marinette to see her laughing along with Rose before the shorter girl stood on her tippy toes to give Marinette a hug.