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macaronsforchat · 4 years

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ML Christmas in July Day 1 - Gift Exchange

@mlchristmasinjuly

read on ao3!

Marinette hurried through the snow with her gift as quickly as she could, trying her hardest not to slip and fall. Salt had been sprinkled on the pavement in front of the school, but a fresh layer of snow had fallen, making everything slightly slippery again.

Marinette clutched her gift to her chest, taking a deep breath and feeling her lungs nearly get frosted over with how cold it was.

Reaching the front steps, she used a gloved hand to hold onto the railing, stepping up slowly and finding her footing before shifting her weight. She was buzzing with excitement, but if she was too eager, she would find herself with scrapes and bruises.

“Need some help?” someone asked, and she turned towards the sound of the voice, the words slightly muffled through her earmuffs.

Adrien stood at the top of the stairs, a gloved hand outstretched to her. She felt her fluttering heart melt away some of the snow that had accumulated on her coat, and she smiled brightly.

“Thanks,” she said with a gentle laugh, taking a few more steps before she could reach his hand. Even though they both had gloves on, that little bit of contact made her cheeks a little redder than they already were from the cold.

Adrien helped her balance up the last few stairs, steadying her when she slipped just a little. She looked up at him with a sheepish laugh, noticing that his other hand was holding his present. She couldn’t help but become curious as to who he’d gotten for Secret Santa, more excitement shooting through her veins.

“Wonder when the snow will let up,” he said, drawing her eyes back to him. She smiled, taking one last glance out at the wintery scene before stepping into the school. It wouldn’t be totally warm until they got into a heated classroom, but it was shelter from the wind and snow for the time being, so she was grateful.

They both stopped just inside of the door to kick the snow from their shoes and to brush the melted snowflakes from their arms and hair. She glanced at him every once and a while, remembering how he’d looked as Chat Noir last night doing the same thing just before he’d kissed her.

“Ready?” he asked, and she nodded promptly, wanting to take his hand just in case she slipped again. But she settled for walking next to him, holding her gift safely in her arms and grinning when she thought about giving it to him.

They ascended the stairs to Ms. Bustier’s room, hearing the chatter from all their classmates before they stepped through the door. Once they did, soothing heat washed over their bodies, and they both slipped off their coats.

“Hey!” Nino called, fist-bumping Adrien and tipping his hat at Marinette, she smiled and said a polite hello, taking a look around the room before starting towards her seat.

Marinette loved the holiday season. Everything was so soft and gentle, and snuggling up under a warm blanket (with her secret boyfriend) had recently become one of her favorite ways to fall asleep. Plus, everyone seemed to be in a better mood more often. All of it made Marinette’s smiles more abundant and brighter than ever.

“Alya!” she called, bringing her friends eyes up from her phone as she sat on their shared bench.

“Hey girl! Are you excited?” she asked, shooting a look at the gift in Marinette’s arms.

“Totally! I can’t wait to see what you’ll get!” she grinned, sliding her bag off her shoulder and setting it on the ground.

“Did you read my blog post from last night?” Alya asked, and Marinette raised her eyebrows, shaking her head. Maybe if she hadn’t been so deeply buried in Adrien’s arms the previous night she would have had time for other leisurely activities. But that wasn’t the case.

Thinking about it made her blush a little, so she turned her head, sitting down and preparing to hear what her friend had to say.

“Someone got a picture of Ladybug and Chat Noir kissing!” she exclaimed, making Marinette’s throat seize up and her eyes go wide.

“What?” she choked out in disbelief, taking her friend’s phone from her hand as she offered it to her. The picture in question was pretty blurry; it had been taken from so far away that it was hard to tell if the superheroes were kissing or just standing at a weird angle. Plus, they’d been trying to hide themselves in the shadows.

Of course, Marinette knew that they were kissing, but she couldn’t tell Alya that.

“Oh my gosh,” was all Marinette could say, throwing a glance at Adrien when Alya took her phone back and seeing that his shoulders were tensed almost to his ears.

“I totally think they’re dating,” Alya said proudly, and Marinette could only scoff, not wanting to seem too interested.

She watched Adrien as he turned to look at Alya, a slight flush on his cheeks. Marinette gave him a look that said, “Whoops,” and he could only give her a guilty smile in return. No one saw that exchange of course. They’d been getting good at avoiding everyone else’s gaze.

Well, obviously not as superheroes.

“Okay, class!” Ms. Bustier called out suddenly, clapping her hands together a few times as the voices around the room grew quieter. “I know you’re all excited, so let’s get started. We’ll take 15 minutes to give our gifts to those you were assigned for Secret Santa, and then we’ll begin our final review before break, alright?” she said cheerfully, clasping her hands together before everyone stood up in excitement.

Marinette felt her heart jump into her throat, an unexpected nervousness washing over her. She knew that he would appreciate his gift no matter what. Maybe she was nervous about who was going to be gifting her something. What if it was Chloe?

She glanced over at the blonde, seeing that she had an uncharacteristically warm smile on her face. She was walking over to Kim with Sabrina’s encouragement, and the sight made Marinette smile before her attention was brought elsewhere.

She hadn’t stood up yet, but neither had Adrien she realized, looking at him when he tapped her desk softly.

“Hey,” he smiled, leaning forward to put his arms on her desk. She could see all the things he was trying to say with his eyes, and it was adorable to watch him try to hold back a bigger smile for her.

“Hi,” she grinned, glancing down at her present and remembering that she’d wanted to give it to him first before she received her own gift. She placed it in front of him, sliding it closer and watching as his eyes grew wide.

“You were my Secret Santa?” he asked in disbelief, letting out a happy chuckle when she nodded enthusiastically. She wanted to tell him how she’d jumped up and down when she’d gotten home the day they’d drawn the names. She also wanted to tell him how she’d agonized over what to make him. But she sat in silence, putting her face in her hands and waiting for him to open it.

“Wow,” he breathed out, placing his hands on the gift carefully and picking it up to feel its weight. “What is it?” he asked, and she let out a laugh, shaking her head.

“You have to open it,” she grinned, knowing that he would have done a lot more teasing if they’d been alone. He eyed her for a moment and then began to untie the bow, lifting the lid of the box and gazing inside. She watched in unbearable anticipation, seeing a bit of confusion flash in his eyes.

Adrien picked the gift out of the box carefully, glancing up at her.

“A coupon book?” he asked, sounding amused but a little lost. She snickered, tilting her head and waving her hand for him to open it. He smiled wider, flipping the ribbon-bound book open to the first page.

“Redeem for one chocolate chip cookie,” he read out, making her giggle. He laughed with her, flipping through a few more pages. She’d hidden a few in there that she knew would make him smile a little wider, watching his hand hover for a moment and knowing that he’d found one.

“Redeem for one kiss,” he spoke softly, and she pressed a finger to her lips, glancing around to make sure no one had heard. He laughed quietly to himself, his cheeks flushing pink. He closed the book and held it to his chest, grinning at her.

“Thank you, Marinette,” he said, making her heart swell at the warmth in his words. She nodded, wishing she could hug him and giggle with how overjoyed she was.

“Don’t let anyone snoop through that,” she told him quietly, laughing a little when he winked in return. She sat up a little straighter, realizing that she’d been leaning towards him subconsciously.

Adrien placed the book back in the box, closing it and placing it on his desk. He picked up his own present as Marinette stood up, wondering when her Secret Santa would approach her. Nathaniel had mentioned a few things in the art room that made her suspect it was him, but when she glanced in his direction, she watched him hand Ivan a small gift.

“Marinette,” Adrien called, and she turned back around, blinking at him. He was holding his present towards her, and she furrowed her eyebrows.

“What?” she wondered, staring down at the thin, rectangular box wrapped in festive paper. He laughed, her eyes wandering up to his own.

“It’s for you, silly,” he told her, amusement glowing in his eyes. She leaned back, completely surprised. What were the odds that they’d gotten each other?

“Oh,” she breathed out, stepping forward to take the gift into her arms gently. Her fingers were tingling with delight, overjoyed that something so lucky had happened.

Just then, Alya and Nino returned to their seats, laughing about something but stopping when they saw what was happening.

“Oh, you got Marinette, Adrien?” Alya asked, and the two looked up, smiling a little too stiffly.

“Yeah,” he chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck and smiling at Nino briefly. They’d both settled in to watch Marinette open her gift, and she hoped it wouldn’t be incriminating, glancing into her boyfriend’s eyes with a little bit of apprehension. He nodded her on, the look in his eyes telling her that everything would be okay. She took a deep breath and began to tear at the wrapping paper, trying not to seem too excited. Or nervous.

She lifted the lid off the box, already having guessed that it was the type of box that clothing was gifted in. When she saw the fabric and color of the present, her heart jumped into her throat, and she almost panicked. Adrien pretended to clear his throat, drawing her eyes up and giving her a reassuring smile.

Marinette lifted the hoodie from the box, her fingers shaking slightly as she moved to run her thumb over the embroidered cat head on the front.

“Adrien, isn’t that your hoodie?” Nino asked, and Marinette jumped slightly, her wide eyes looking up at him. Adrien was already turned to his best friend, smiling gently.

“Marinette adores Sailor Moon and told me how much she liked my hoodie, so I got her one so we could match,” he explained, looking back to Marinette with a gentle gaze. She was able to take a steady breath at that point, hearing their friends chuckle in understanding.

Marinette knew better, though.

As she turned to look back at the little image of Luna on the purple fabric, she could smell his scent emanating off it. There was no doubt that she had been gifted Adrien’s hoodie. There was no way it was new. She could see the slight fraying on the drawstrings, one of his hairs on the sleeve, and the smell was a dead giveaway for her. She’d tried to steal that particular hoodie before, but he’d promised he’d buy her one someday.

Looking up at Adrien, she couldn’t help the wide smile that appeared on her face.

“Thank you, Adrien,” she said softly, trying not to let her love for the blonde boy standing in front of her shine through in her voice too much. He chuckled, nodding.

“No problem, Marinette,” he smiled back. They knew no one else would ever be able to tell that they were both saying silent I love you’s to each other, but they were, and it made the two smile even brighter.

“Do you wanna see what Alix gave me?” Alya asked, breaking their eye contact. Marinette smiled, agreeing happily and sitting down with her friend.

When class started a few minutes later, Marinette slipped the hoodie on, breathing in his scent and knowing that he was smiling at his desk in front of her.

She also knew that he wouldn’t have to use a coupon to get a kiss later that evening.

~~~~~

welcome to ML Christmas in July! I'm so thrilled to be trying something new, and I hope you all enjoy! the holidays are my favorite time of the year, so I think I'll have a lot of fun with this week!

thank you so much for reading! <3

also, here’s the hoodie if you wanna see!

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