Not Quite Right - One-Shot

Hey guys, Bugaboo here! I’ve had this idea in my head for a while now, and I thought this would be the perfect time to post it. With the new Frozer trailer release, the Lukanette vs. Adrienette debate is hotter than ever; this piece has a little bit of both. I wish I didn’t have to say this, but NO SHIP HATE! Respect everyone’s opinions :two_hearts: . Now let’s begin with Marinette Dupain-Cheng’s wedding day....

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As Marinette gazed into the mirror, she realized that everything was finally perfect. All of her friends and family were outside, waiting to be seated for the ceremony. She was wearing a stunningly white a-line dress with a lace stitching down the back; each seam felt like it had been made just to be worn by her. Her hair had complied beautifully and was cascading down her shoulder, each blue curl looking like a gentle wave of the sea. Her best friend and maid of honor was standing in the mirror behind her, delicately placing the veil on the bride’s head.

Yes, everything was perfect. But Marinette had a troubled feeling in her chest.

“Hey Alya?” she said softly, unsure of how to phrase her concerns.

The red-head smiled, her cranberry bridesmaid dress making her look even more fiery, and met Marinette’s eyes in the glass. “What is it girl?”

Marinette opened her mouth, then closed it again. This was stupid, right? It didn’t mean anything. “Never mind,” she decided.

Alya spun her friend’s chair around and looked her in the eye, her right eyebrow raised slightly in a curious way. “Look, Mari, if there’s anything you need, or want, or need to say, or need me to do, just tell me. Anything at all. I want this day to be perfect for you.”

Marinette took a deep breath. Sometimes her friend’s level of kindness was suffocating. “Okay, this is probably stupid, but... I had a dream last night,” she started, thinking that it was a stupid thing to bring up. “I was getting married.”

Alya grinned. “Gee, I wonder what brought that on. Totally random,” she said sarcastically.

Marinette didn’t laugh. “The thing was, and this probably doesn’t mean anything, but... in my dream, I was marrying Adrien.”

Alya’s smile melted away, replaced with a look of shock. “Adrien Agreste? From high school?”

With a roll of her eyes, Marinette replied, “No, a different Adrien. Yes, Adrien Agreste!”

Alya bit her lip, looking concerned. “You don’t still have feelings for him... do you?”

“No!” the bride protested. “I had a silly crush on him for a few years, but then he moved to California and I haven’t seen him since. Nothing ever happened between us. Why would I still be in love with him now?”

“I think you’re right,” Alya answered. “I don’t think this means anything. It was just a dream.”

“Yeah,” Marinette said quietly, trailing off a bit. “Just a dream.”

Alya slammed both of her hands on the arms of Marinette’s chair and moved her face inches from Marinette’s, startling the bluenette. “Listen to me, Marinette Dupain-Cheng. You love Luka, and you have since the day you met him. You’re going to go out there and marry the love of your life and forget about this stupid dream!”

Marinette blinked, taken aback. Then a smile appeared on her face and she nodded. “Of course. Of course! I knew it was stupid, but I’m glad I told you.”

A knock on the door echoed through the room. Both girls turned to see Juleka step inside, wearing a matching dress with Alya. Her face lit up at the sight of Marinette in her wedding gown.

“We’re ready,” she announced, smiling faintly. “I can’t believe you’re about to be my sister.”

Marinette blushed and hugged her friend. “I’ve always wanted a sister,” she replied. “I could never have asked for a better one.”

Alya, Juleka, and Marinette left the room and walked out toward the chapel, stopping I front of the entrance. One by one, Marinette’s bridesmaids linked arms with Luka’s groomsmen and walked into the chapel. The bride could hear music playing inside and people chattering slightly.

Soon enough, she was left alone outside the church doors. Her father stepped around the corner, his arms covering his eyes. “Can I look now?” he asked.

Marinette smiled. “Of course, Papa.”

He uncovered his eyes, which immediately started to spring tears. “Oh...” he worded eloquently. Unsure of what to say, he wrapped his daughter into a big hug. “I love you so much, my baby girl.”

Marinette was dangerously close to crying as well as she hugged him back. “Stop it, Papa, I can’t ruin my mascara,” she urged, but never wanting the embrace to end.

He let go of her and dried his eyes. “Of course, of course.” He presented his elbow. “Shall we?”

With a nod, the daughter grabbed hold of her father’s arm and stepped through the doors.

Everyone instantly rose to their feet as the bride entered the room. The isle before her was strewn with rose petals, leading the way to a breathtaking floral arch. Beneath it stood Alya, Juleka, and Chloe one side, beaming with joy. On the other side was Nino and two of Luka’s cousins.

And in the middle stood Luka.

Marinette saw his face melt into an expression of pure amazement as his fiancée walked toward him, step by step. His long, black hair playfully framed his face, making him look as youthful as when they’d met twelve years ago. Though his blue hair was long gone, the color was represented in his suit, which was a dashing shade of cobalt.

Before Marinette knew it, her father was kissing her on the cheek and releasing her arm to go take a seat. A few more steps forward, and she was face to face with her husband-to-be. As usual, her heart swelled when she looked into his crystal blue eyes, which today were shimmering with tears. However, the exhilarating rush she felt when she was with him seemed subdued. Wedding jitters, she supposed.

The pastor raised his arms, and everyone took a seat. “We are gathered her today to celebrate the love between...”

Marinette drifted off a bit as she stared into Luka’s crystal blue eyes. The amount of love and comion she saw in his gaze made her feel so valued. She couldn’t believe she was going to spend the rest of her life with someone who treated her like a princess day after day. Here, now, she realized that the dream she’d had really was just a stupid result of her subconscious mind. She wanted to wake up every day staring into those emerald eyes.

No- blue eyes. Blue eyes! Marinette’s heart race picked up. That was meaningless, she told herself, you just had Adrien in your mind, nothing more. You love Luka!, she reminded herself.

“I do,” Luka said, breaking the bride out of her daze.

“And do you, Marinette Dupain-Cheng, take Luka Couffaine to be your lawfully wedded husband?”

Suddenly, Marinette’s mouth went dry. She felt her hands grow sweaty and her heart threatened to pound out of her chest. She couldn’t breath; it seemed like the air in her lungs had solidified.

In a panic, she slowly began to shake her head. “I... no... I can’t!” she shouted. Unsure of what else to do, she turned and ran back down the isle and out the front doors.

Some of her friends and family raced after her. “Marinette! Stop! What are you doing?” they called. She didn’t listen. She just ran.

Realizing that her heels were showing her down, she quickly kicked them off in the grass in front of the church. Her friends were still in pursuit. She held up her dress and kept running. All she knew was that she needed to get away and think.

As she reached the main streets of Paris, she quickly hailed a cab. The driver pulled up beside her and gave her an odd look, but didn’t say anything. She jumped into the backseat. “Drive!” she demanded.

The vehicle began to pull away. Marinette looked out the window and saw her persuades come to a halt. Alya looked shocked. Chloe seemed angry.

But the look on Luka’s face... Marinette would never forget. A look of shattered emptiness replaced the love that had been in his eyes. He looked completely heartbroken.

All she could think to do now was bury her face in her hands and cry. Tears flowed freely down her face, dripping into her wedding gown that had been slightly torn and muddied from her mad dash. What had she just done? Her friends and family, her wedding, her fiancée, it was everything she’d ever wanted! So why had something seemed... not quite right?

Understandably, the driver seems unsure of how to talk to a girl completely adorned for marriage who had just raced into his cab and broken into tears. “Um, where to?” he ventured awkwardly.

Marinette wasn’t sure what to say. She figured she couldn’t go home; someone would find her there, and she really needed to be alone. She decided to give him the address of the little coffee shop that had once been her parents’ bakery. Her childhood home.

After a few minutes of awkward silence, the cab pulled up to the coffee shop. He gave her a price for the ride and she realized she had no money.

“Would you mind if I ran inside to get a few dollars?” she offered.

The guy shrugged. “Sure, just leave something behind so that I know you won’t run off. How about your earrings?”

“No!” Marinette yelled instinctively. Her heart fell slightly. It had been ten years since she’d been Ladybug, but sometimes she forgot that that chapter of her life was over. Now she wore a very unmagical pair of silver, dangling earrings. “Actually, yeah, that would work.” She removed the jewels and left them in the car.

As Marinette approached the door of what had once been her bakery, she realized that it was closed. Of course it was; the owners, Rose and Juleka, were at her wedding. No matter. Marinette knew exactly what flowerbed the key was hidden in. She unlocked the door and grabbed some money from the . She’d pay them back later.

After paying the driver and retrieving her earrings, the would-be bride finally found herself alone. The silence of the building was unnerving. She climbed up two flights of stairs into childhood bedroom, her bare feet causing each step to creek slightly. Pushing open the overhead door, she ed that it had been converted into an area to make perfumes. She pulled herself inside.

Incapable of standing anymore, Marinette fell to her knees. All of her emotions rose up at once at broke her into and ugly barrage of sobs. She wanted to get rid of all of her pain, guilt, confusion, and sadness as quickly as possible, figuring that she could cry it all out.

What had she done? Her boyfriend of 8 years, a man who’d never done anything but live and adore her... she’d run from him over some dream about a silly childhood crush.

Maybe it wasn’t too late, she thought. She could run back to him and apologize through teary eyes and hope he’d understand. This would just be a funny story they would tell their grandchildren and everyone would laugh.

A sharp pain brought Marinette’s attention to her hand. She realized she’d been clutching the earrings a white-knuckled grasp. The sharp backings had pierced her skin and left behind tiny pinpricks of blood.

She opened her palms and let the jewels fall loosely onto the floor. As she often did, she wished now that she could leave the problems of Marinette behind and fly through the city as the masked heroine she used to be. She was invincible back then; no one could break her down.

Of course, she used to have Chat Noir by her side. Now, she’d never felt so alone.

•

Marinette figured it must be at least three in the morning, but she’d never felt so awake. The stars seemed to shine brighter than ever on a Paris that was finally at peace.

“I can’t believe we finally beat Hawkmoth,” she said to Chat as they sat on the top of the Eiffel Tower, looking over the city. “It seems so quiet without all of the akuma attacks.”

Chat didn’t respond. Marinette looked over at him and saw that his expression was very conflicted. Ever since their victory over Hawkmoth three days ago, he’d seemed rather... off.

“Hey, Chat? Are you okay?” she asked.

He looked up at her, his green, feline eyes seeming dark and stormy. “Ladybug, I talked to Master Fu today. He told me that it’s time to return the Miraculous.”

Marinette’s stomach grew heavy. “Oh,” she replied, delicately touching her earring. She’d known a day would come when her secret identity would be retired, but it still came as bitter news. “I guess I understand. With Hawkmoth gone, there’s not really any use for superheroes, is there?”

”Guess not,” Chat said with an almost empty tone. “I suppose this is goodbye, Ladybug. The end of an era.” He stood up and poised his staff to launch away into the night.

“Wait!” she shouted. He paused and looked down at her. “That’s it? You’re just going to disappear and we never see each other again?”

Chat narrowed his eyebrows. “Look, you’ve made your feelings about me very clear. I’m your partner, nothing more. It’s best if we just go our separate ways.”

“Chat, I still care about you deeply as my friend,” Marinette pleaded. “If we have to give up our Miraculous anyway, we might as well tell each other who we are. Maybe we can still keep in .”

“Don’t bother,” he replied. “I’ll be gone anyway.” He took a deep breath and managed to express a sad smile. “Thanks for the memories, m’lady.”

And with that, he was gone.

•

She never did see him again. Sometimes she’d look around on the streets of Paris and see if anyone could be her former partner, but none of the strangers ever seemed like likely candidates.

Marinette climbed back down the ladder into what used to be her family’s kitchen. She rinsed her hands off and splashed her face. She was happy that she’d chosen waterproof eye makeup today; she’d been expecting to cry, but for very different reasons.

“Hello?” a voice called down from the lower floor. Marinette cursed silently; she’d forgotten to lock the door.

“We’re closed!” she yelled back. Hopefully it was just a customer and not someone looking for a runaway bride.

“Oh, sorry,” the voice called back. “My friend used to own a bakery here, but I guess the building changed ownership.”

Marinette’s heart skipped a beat. That voice... it was a little deeper then she ed, but still familiar. She dried her face and raced down the stairs to see if her suspicion was correct. Forgetting she was wearing a full wedding gown, she tripped on the hem at the last step and tumbled forward.

A pair of strong arms caught her before she could hit the ground. Wide-eyed, she looked up into the brilliant smile and emerald eyes of her former flame.

“Hey Mari,” Adrien said with a wide grin.

Marinette’s heart skipped a beat. She couldn’t believe that the man who’d mysteriously appeared in her dreams and unintentionally ruined her wedding was now here, in person, smiling down at her.

Naturally, she was a bit flustered.

“Adrien!” she screamed, jumping out of his grasp and straighten her hair. “Wh-what are you doing here? I thought you were busy being a famous Hollywood actor.”

Adrien ran a hand through his golden hair bashfully. “Well, I’m filming a movie in Paris for the next few weeks and thought I would see a few friends.” He raised an eyebrow and looked at her unusual attire. “But I think your day might be a bit more interesting.”

Marinette has almost forgotten that she was wearing a torn and muddied wedding dress with a face of makeup that was likely covered in tear streaks. She blushed furiously. “Oh, yeah, I might have just, uh, been at a wedding. My wedding.”

Adrien’s eyes grew in surprise. “Oh. Well, congratulations.”

Marinette laughed bitterly. “Yeah, I also might have left him at the alter. A few minutes ago.”

Adrien’s mouth fell open slightly. “Do... you want to talk about it?” he asked awkwardly.

Marinette bit her lip. “Not really actually. I have a feeling that I’m going to be talking about it for a long time. Why don’t you tell me about California?”

Adrien gave her a suspicious look, but decided not to press her for details. “Sure, I’ll tell you all about it. Let’s sit.”

And so the pair sat down. The dreamy Hollywood heartthrob told one of his oldest friends all about the life his father had picked for him, one of filming movies and being on tv and in magazines. The runaway bride listened carefully as her first crush described how much he missed just going to school with his friends and living some semblance of a normal life.

And in that moment, something clicked for Marinette. She realized why the dream had shaken her so much. She loved Luka; she was sure she did. But the way she’d loved Adrien all those years ago seemed to have a certain spark that she’d never felt for anyone else. She knew that she’d never love Luka in quite the same way; the dream had made her realize that.

And right now, sitting in her childhood home with her childhood crush, something just felt right.

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-Word Count: 2,872-

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