Chapter Text
While their patrol had been sort of pushed to the back burner in favor of eating piece after piece of Valentine’s chocolate, it was lucky for the city that they were out at all. Sometime around ten-thirty that night, Will heard a roar of anger sound from a few blocks away - it was something so inhuman sounding that he knew it could be nothing other than an akuma.
Ladybug had jumped to his feet, wiping at any lingering chocolate that might’ve been stuck to his mouth with the back of his gloved hand, before springing into action, Will close behind.
The akuma had turned any man she saw into a pig, claiming that that’s what all men were every time she did so. Will and Ladybug were lucky enough to avoid any attacks from her, and quickly snagged the akumatized device - a cell phone with a text message open on the screen, It’s not you, it’s me, blah, blah, blah - and smashed it to pieces, releasing the akuma from within.
The battle, in its entirety, lasted over an hour, probably longer. Will was exhausted by the end, wanting nothing more than to slip into some soft pajamas and sleep for the next twenty-four hours. Not even Ladybug’s Lucky Charm did anything to help with his tiredness, only seeming to make the other Miraculous holder appear just as worn out as Will felt.
Unfortunately, their job wasn’t done yet. The physically demanding, yes, but the emotionally demanding - trying to be polite to the citizens they’d saved while also trying to get away as fast as possible - had just begun. Of course, either of them could’ve pretended that their transformation would reverse in any second and run away, but Will hated lying to others, especially when they were just being nice.
Sometime well past midnight, they were finally able to leave the area, launching themselves back onto the roof they’d been on earlier that night. They cleaned up what remained of the Valentine’s box, and Will used the last shred of his energy to smile bright and offer to walk Ladybug home - “These streets can be dangerous at night, Bugaboo, sure you don’t need me at your side?” - but Ladybug simply rolled his eyes and turned to leave.
“Wait!” Will cried. “I bring you a box of chocolates and I don’t get any sugar in return?”
Ladybug froze, turning back to glare at the cat. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I’m only asking for a hug, Lovebug,” Will said, holding his arms out. He knew his Bugaboo hated hugs, but he figured that, if Ladybug was as tired as he looked, he’d let this one slide.
Ladybug rolled his eyes, but returned to Will’s side, arms crossed and glaring up at him. Will’s smile grew, carefully stepping closer and wrapping his arms securely around Ladybug. After a second or two, he felt Ladybug relax, arms slowly moving to rest around Will’s waist.
It wasn’t long before Ladybug pulled himself back, hiding a yawn behind his hand, looking as adorable as Will had ever remembered, and muttered, “Goodnight, Kitty,” before making his way off the roof.
Will went in the opposite direction, feeling the adrenaline draining out of his system more and more with every step, practically dead on his feet when he landed safely in his bedroom. He wished, not for the first time, that he’d thought to change into pajamas before undergoing his transformation. That way, he could’ve detransformed, dropping onto his bed, and passed out right then. But no, he had to spend more time on his feet, changing his clothes and going to brush his teeth before finally letting himself fall into bed - only for his head to hit something hard that was definitely not his pillow.
Will groaned, sitting up again to turn on his lamp, and noticed a rectangle wrapped in white tissue paper, nearly blending in with his pillow. He picked up the package, carefully tearing away the paper and revealing a hardcover book, one he’d been waiting months to get his hands on - it wasn’t supposed to be released for another two weeks.
He flipped open the cover and a small note fell out. It said nothing more than Happy Valentine’s Day in a hasty scrawl, no name or any other indication of who the gift might be from. Will grabbed for the tissue paper sitting on his lap, carefully examining every inch of material for some kind of signature, but there was nothing.
He’d have to ask someone about it in the morning. Maybe, somehow, his mom had found out how much he’d been wanting this book and got it early - she was famous, famous people could do things like that sometimes. There was a tiny part of Will, though, that couldn’t help but think that maybe a certain pretty bug had snuck to give him this.
Nico was moaning and groaning to Jason about how he’d forgotten to sign the stupid Valentine. How could he forget? It had been a simple, four step process: 1. Get the book from Sally’s publishing out; 2. Write a note to put in the book (a note that was supposed to be signed); 3. Wrap the book; 4. Give the book to Will. Not only had he forgotten to actually give Will the book himself, he forgot to give any kind of indication who it was from! How could he be so stupid?
So he’d sat with his head down on his desk, complaining up until the second the bell rang, when he finally fell silent. It wasn’t long after the teacher started talking that Nico’s eyes slipped shut, the lack of sleep from the night before catching up quick, and he was asleep within the next few minutes.
At the sound of a textbook slamming onto the desk next to his head, Nico shot upright, suddenly very awake, eyes wide and heart pounding as he stared up at his teacher.
“Mr. di Angelo,” she hissed, “seeing as both you and Mr. Solace seem to think that it’s okay to sleep through my class, the two of you will be partners for this project.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Nico said quietly, and as soon as the teacher stepped away, he slouched in his seat.
“Dude,” Jason whispered, elbowing him in the side, “what’s the deal? You and Will are, like, dead to the world right now.”
Nico shrugged. “I dunno, I didn’t sleep last night. I don’t know about him. Um, what’s this project on?”
Jason and Piper agreed to help Nico and Will out with the project after school that day, the four of them heading over to Will’s and gathering under the shade of one of the big trees in his yard. Once the basic concept of the assignment was explained, Piper excused herself, saying that she had to be home at a certain time, and Jason offered to walk her to the end of the block. As the two disappeared from Nico’s line of sight, his eyes followed them - he’d been suspicious about the two of them for a short while now.
His eyes were drawn away when Will started digging through his backpack, setting a few things aside to try to get after whatever it was that he needed, and Nico spotted the book he’d gotten him as it was placed on the grass.
Nico turned back to the work in front of him, trying not to think about whatever ideas had gotten about how that book ended up in his room, wrapped and without a signature, when Will asked, “Hey, do you want a snack or something? A glass of water? I can run inside and get you something, if you want.”
“No thanks,” Nico said quietly, proud of himself for not stuttering in the two simple words.
Will leaned slightly closer, like he was trying to get a look at Nico’s face. “Are you sure? I don’t mind.”
Nico nodded, starting to draw mindless shapes in the margin of the paper in front of him.
Will leaned back again, silent for a moment before he said softly, “You don’t like me very much, do you?”
Nico’s head snapped up, eyes wide and looking a lot like he did when his teacher woke him up from his nap. “What?”
“I get it,” Will muttered, “a lot of people don’t really like me, I try not to take it personally.” He shrugged. “If you really don’t want to work with me on this, we can split the work and do it on our own, or something.”
Nico was silent for long enough that Will glanced up at him, cueing Nico’s cheeks to glow pink, shocking him into speaking. “I don’t like-- I don’t not-- You don’t-- I--” His mouth snapped shut so forcefully that his teeth clicked together. Nico stared back down at the paper in front of him, starting to tug at his bangs as he said finally, “I l-like you just f-fine.”
Will cracked a smile. “Are you sure? You don’t seem to confident about that.”
Nico glanced up with a frown. “I am,” he insisted, holding back the waver that threatened his voice.
“Cool,” Will said calmly. “I like you just fine, too.”
Nico ducked his head, hiding the blush that was growing on his cheeks. “Cool.”
He wouldn’t have even noticed when Jason returned if not for him pointing out Will’s new book that was still sitting in the grass and saying, “Hey, Will, is that--”
Will grinned and held up the book. “The collection of serial killer biographies that I’ve been waiting to get for months, yeah! Isn’t it cool? It’s not supposed to come out for two more weeks, but I got it last night.”
“Really?” Jason asked, eyes flicking over to Nico, whose gaze was still locked on his homework and whose head was shaking subtly, as if he was saying, Drop it, Jason. “Where’d you get it?”
“It was a Valentine’s gift,” Will answered, opening up the cover and sliding out the note. “There was this note, but nothing was signed, so I’m not sure who it’s from, yet.”
“Interesting,” Jason continued, despite Nico’s glare. “Any idea who it’s from?”
Will smiled softly, about to answer, when Nico slammed his textbook shut and stood abruptly, slinging his backpack onto his shoulder. “I have to leave,” Nico said, loud and clear, but when he turned to face Will, his voice grew shaky once again. “Can we...tomorrow?” he asked, holding out his textbook and hoping Will understood.
Will nodded, and Nico immediately turned on his heel and walked away.
Jason had just left Will’s house when the akuma appeared just a block away from where Will sat. Will cursed, stuffing his school supplies in his backpack before running upstairs to his bedroom and calling on his transformation. He launched himself out the window, spotting his Ladybug flying across rooftops and meeting him on the street at the akuma’s feet.
Will extended his staff, leaning against the end and smiling down at Ladybug. “Afternoon, Bugaboo. Sleep well last night after our late night excursion?”
Ladybug reached up and flicked Will’s nose. “Not the time, Kitty. Let’s move.”
It took about ten minutes to figure out that the akumatized object was the victim’s belt, which was not an easy article of clothing to get away from a person, especially when it’s possibly the one thing that person’s protecting the most.
Will had gotten swatted aside at least seven times, and Ladybug wasn’t doing much better. Will had already used his Cataclysm, diving for the akuma’s belt - he’d never felt so incredibly uncomfortable reaching for a man’s crotch - but missing and sailing face-first into the side of a minivan. He dropped to the ground in a daze, only shaking himself out of it when he felt a burn like acid melting into his hand.
He hurried to his feet, not wanting to waste his one power move, but only succeeded in slowing the akuma down by destroying one of his boots.
“Chat, are you alright?” Ladybug called from across the street as Will pushed himself onto his hands and knees, taking a second to catch his breath. He raised a thumbs-up, his improved hearing catching the slight huff before Ladybug said, “That’s not an answer.”
“Aww, worried about me, Bugaboo?” Will called, though his voice was strained.
“I’m worried about everyone if we can’t get this under control.” Ladybug stood directly across from him on the street, eyeing their surroundings and gently tossing his yoyo in his hand. He looked at Will as he caught he yoyo and suggested, “Clothesline?”
Will grinned. “Clothesline.”
Ladybug tossed him the yoyo, holding the end of the string in his hand as Will held tightly to the other end, and they ran down the street, aiming the string of the yoyo at the akuma’s knees and taking him out. It wasn’t long after that that Ladybug was able to remove the akuma’s belt, holding it out for Will to rip with his claws.
The akuma was released and purified, and Ladybug stepped closer to Will, cupping Will’s cheek in his hand and pressing his thumb gently to the skin under Will’s eye, where Will had hit the minivan the hardest.
“We need to find that Lucky Charm,” Ladybug told him, looking at him with concern.
Will tilted his head into the touch. “Aww, you do care.”
Ladybug pushed Will away by the cheek, though he was smiling gently. “Help me look for it.”
The Lucky Charm had been a bandana, and Will still wasn’t sure what good that would have done them, even if the attack had gone as planned. He looked up toward the balconies lining the street, finally spotting the familiar red and black fabric resting on a thin flagpole between balconies.
“Found it,” Will called, using his staff to raise himself up, hopping onto the flagpole and keeping his balance in a crouch. He returned his staff to its normal size, taking the bandana and tying it around the staff. “Incoming!” He tossed the staff down toward the street.
Ladybug caught it easily, keeping the staff in one hand and tossing the bandana into the air with the other. Will felt his pain disappear as the damage to the city restored itself, just as it always was at the end of a battle.
Will heard a familiar beep and held out his ring, watching as the paw print blinked and signaled that he had four minutes left as Chat Noir.
He looked back at the ground, where Ladybug was standing right where he planned to land, and called out, “Watch out, I’m coming down.”
Will waited for him to take a few steps back before he swung down, hands catching the flagpole so that he could get some momentum going for a flip before he landed, but the flagpole snapped before he could. He fell back, not having enough time to even rotate in the air to land on his feet, and ended up flat on his back on the sidewalk.
“Chat!” he heard Ladybug cry out before he was kneeling next to Will’s shoulder. “Are you okay?”
“Careful, Lovebug,” Will wheezed, “or I might start thinking you care about me more than you let on.”
“Chat, this is serious,” Ladybug insisted. “Do you think you can get up?”
“No,” Will told him, rolling his eyes.
Ladybug’s eyes grew wide with fear. “What do you mean, no?”
“I mean, you’re supposed to ask if I can wiggle my toes, first,” Will explained. “Because if I have spinal damage, that’s an easy way to tell. And if I do have spinal damage and I move, it might make it worse.”
Ladybug sighed heavily. “Can you wiggle your toes?” Will did, grinning up at his Ladybug. “Can you do whatever else you’re gonna tell me to tell you to do before you can sit up?”
Will made a face like he was thinking before he sat up, ending with his face inches from Ladybug’s. “I think I’m good. Just got the wind knocked out of me, is all.”
Ladybug frowned at him. “Don’t scare me like that. You know I can’t do this without you.”
“Aww, Bugaboo,” Will cooed, but was interrupted by the beeping of his ring - down to two minutes, now. “I’ll let you help me to my feet if it makes you feel better.”
Ladybug rolled his eyes but took Will’s hands, pulling him up to stand, keeping a tight grip on his hands to keep Will from moving away. “You’re sure you’re okay?” he asked once again.
“Sure thing, Bugaboo,” Will told him, stepping back and slipping his hands away. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve gotta run.”
Nico only paused for a second when he saw Chat turn his back to him before he started to follow him. He was pretty sure that Chat had hit his head when he fell, and while he didn’t know how to check for a concussion, but he knew that he wanted to. He knew that Chat probably wouldn’t have anyone check for him after he released his transformation, so he needed to do it now.
So Nico chased after him, following him into an alley on the side of the street, calling out, “Chat, wait a second! What if you have a concussion or something?”
Chat’s eyes were wide when he turned to see Nico behind him, almost looking like he was afraid. “I said I’m fine, don’t you believe me?”
“Of course I do,” Nico told him, still moving closer even though Chat had frozen in place, “but I think someone should look you over, just in case. You fell at least twelve feet. Onto concrete.”
“I’ll see a doctor or something,” Chat told him, “just, hang on a second--”
“Chat,” Nico warned, stepping closer once more until they were practically nose-to-nose, Chat almost backed up against a wall and Nico standing firm in front of him with his arms crossed.
“Ladybug,” Chat said pleadingly, and Nico heard the familiar beep of a Miraculous - not his own, the sound wasn’t close enough to his ear for it to be his own. The widening of Chat’s eyes simply confirmed Nico’s thought.
Nico met Chat’s eyes, breathing out, “Oh no,” before he felt a pair of hands grabbing him and pulling him forward roughly, a hand weaving in his hair and holding his head against Chat’s collarbone.
“Please don’t look,” Chat whispered into his ear, but Nico had already committed the flannel shirt before him to memory. It was just as familiar to him as the golden locks and freckled skin he saw every day. He drew in a deep breath, trying to calm his pounding heart, but he realized that he couldn’t tell whether that really was his own, or if it was Chat’s. The scent was familiar, nearly the same scent he remembered from the night before when Chat had hugged him, only this time his scent wasn’t masked by the material of his suit. This was pure, and, again, almost too familiar. Nico felt like he was standing pressed against a complete stranger somehow, but reminded himself that this wasn’t a stranger, it was Chat, his partner, his best friend. “Please, please, Ladybug, don’t look at me.”
Nico took a shaky breath and nodded his head. “I won’t,” he said softly.
He felt Chat’s fingers move through his hair - fingers, not claws, Nico couldn’t help but notice. “Can I trust you not to look?” Chat breathed, before he answered himself. “Of course I can, I literally trust you with my life every day. But...can you promise me anyway?”
“I promise, Kitty,” Nico answered.
“Okay,” Chat said. “Okay. Thank you. I’m-- I’m stepping back now.”
Nico nodded once more and squeezed his eyes shut as he felt Chat stepping away, his hand slipping out of Nico’s hair, and Nico shuffled backwards a few steps to give Chat room to move around him.
“Thank you, Bugaboo,” Chat said softly, sincerely, and Nico felt a gentle hand on his cheek and the press of lips against his hairline. “I’ll see you soon.”
The hand slipped from Nico’s cheek and he heard hurried footsteps moving away from him. Nico felt like he might collapse.
They don’t see each other again until the next night, having decided a while beforehand that they wouldn’t patrol on the night after an akuma attack, giving themselves time to rest instead. Nico, however, instead of using his night to finish up homework or get some well-needed sleep, he laid awake in his bed for half of the night, trying to think of some possible way that he was wrong about what he was thinking.
He didn’t want to be right, but he didn’t know how to convince himself otherwise, and it wasn’t like this was something he could just casually mention to Jason - especially not at three in the morning on a school night - he couldn’t just pick up a phone and say, I think Will Solace is Chat Noir even though I’ve barely spent any time around Will, but I know Chat well enough by now because, by the way, I’m Ladybug.
He didn’t want to be right. He didn’t want this to change his relationship with Chat, he didn’t want it to affect the way they fought together, he didn’t want anything to change.
But he also didn’t know how anything could stay the same, now. Nico had seen. Not much, and he hadn’t meant to, but he knew those freckles that were usually hidden by the edges of his mask or the high collar of his suit. He saw those golden curls at school every day, which were always messier after school and when there were half-hiding a pair of black cat ears. He knew that scent, the same one that clung to Chat’s clothes even without his suit, the same scent that had filled Will’s room when he’d gone to drop off the gift.
He’d seen Will wearing that flannel the day before. He’d worn it to school. He was wearing it when the four of them were working on their projects at Will’s house. He was wearing it in that alley after the attack.
There wasn’t any evidence against it. There was nothing to make Nico believe anything else.
He didn’t sleep very well that night.
He was jittery during school the next day, trying to stay awake and anxiously awaiting his patrol with Chat - with the boy that sat behind him in every single one of his classes - with Will.
He ran right home after school, unaware of what he was doing until he got a call from Jason about an hour later saying he’d gotten a text from Will saying that Nico hadn’t shown up to work on their project - and he hadn’t; he’d forgotten. He made something up, something he knew he wouldn’t remember later, something off the top of his head to get him out of having to see Will any sooner than he was ready, and locked himself away in his room until dinner.
Sally asked him a few times what was wrong, Percy picked on him for being quieter than usual, Nico offered monosyllabic responses.
And then he left for his patrol.
He was early.
He was terrified.
Nico was sitting with his knees hugged against his chest when Chat arrived - he was still Chat until proven otherwise, Nico told himself over and over again. Just Chat, his partner, his best friend, and nothing more, nothing complicated. He could do this.
Chat dropped down next to him, bumping their shoulders together once. “What’s up, Bugaboo?” Chat asked, his usual bright smile dialed down a bit - it was sort of calming. “Turn that frown upside down, pretty faces shouldn’t look so upset.”
“Chat,” Nico warned, pulling his legs closer to himself.
“Sorry,” Chat told him easily. “But really, how are you feeling, Ladybug? You’re looking a little down.”
“How am I feeling?” Nico asked, frown deepening as he stared down at his feet. “I’m not the one that has a possible concussion. How are you feeling?”
“Ah, ah,” Chat started, “I asked first.”
“You also promised to see a doctor yesterday,” Nico reminded him. “Did you?”
“As a matter of fact, I did,” Chat told him, leaning toward him, head tilted at an odd angle to try to meet Nico’s eyes, but Nico simply looked the other way. “I’m a little battered and bruised, but no broken bones and no concussion. Now, how are you feeling?”
Nico kept his eyes locked on the horizon.
“Ladybug, please,” Chat begged. “I promise you, I saw a doctor, I’ll be fine in a few days. Thanks to the suit, I barely felt anything. I’m fine, but I don’t think you are. Please, please tell me what’s wrong so I can help.”
Before he can stop himself, or even think out his words before he says them, Nico blurts out, “I think I know who you are. Under the mask.” He wasn’t sure how he could hear anything over the sound of the blood pumping in his ears, but he somehow heard all of the air leave Chat’s lungs. “And I think I want you to know who I am. It’s-- It’s only fair.”
“Bugaboo, are you sure?” Chat asked gently. “I don’t mind, honest. If you’re not comfortable with me knowing your true identity, that’s fine, I’m okay with that. I’m just happy to know you one way or another. We don’t have to.”
Finally, finally, Nico looked up at him, eyes filled to the brim with fear, maybe a little bit of sadness, a little bit of hope. “Do you...not want to?”
Chat reached over, covering one of Nico’s hands with his own. “I want whatever you want. I want to get to know the perfect boy under your mask, sure, but only if you’re comfortable with it. And only if you’re comfortable knowing me, too.”
“What did we say about people being perfect?” Nico reminded him.
“That I’m as close to perfect as it gets,” Chat answered with a bright smile, “but however this goes, I’ll treat you like you’re perfect, because that’s what you are to me.”
Nico felt tears starting to prick at the corners of his eyes - not tears of happiness from having someone who is so possibly Will saying those words to him, but tears of fear of rejection, tears of fear in general. “What if you don’t feel that way after you see me?” Nico asked.
“Lovebug, even if you were a serial killer under that mask, I’d still wanna see you every day,” Chat told him, just about confirming Nico’s suspicion with his words, “even if it meant I’d have to visit you behind bars.” He cracked a grin, trying to get Nico to smile back at him, but Nico’s gaze dropped back to his feet. “How do you want to do this?” Chat asked softly.
They stood about ten feet apart on the roof, facing each other, both of them fidgeting like crazy.
“Would you like the honors of counting us down,” Chat offered, “or do you want me to do it?”
“Together,” Nico told him, voice so quiet that his normal human ears wouldn’t have been able to pick up.
“Together it is,” Chat said with a nod. “You can still back out, if you want. I won’t be mad, I won’t pressure you into this.” Nico nodded, bringing his eyes up to lock with Chat’s. He didn’t understand how he hadn’t figured it out sooner, just by looking into his eyes - Chat’s mask covered his eyes fully, but the blue screen concealing the true color of his eyes was a near perfect match to a cloudless sky, only more vibrant. A perfect match to Will’s eyes.
“Ready?” Chat asked, and Nico nodded again. “One,” Chat said, and Nico barely breathed the word along with him. “Two.” Nico could feel his entire being shake, like his pounding heart was going to knock him off his feet. “Three,” they said together, and as Nico released his transformation, he was briefly wrapped in a cloud of pink.
His eyes were shut, squeezed as tight as possible so that there was no chance of seeing whoever might be in front of him. He gave himself one more second to hope that, maybe this isn’t Will. Maybe he was wrong, somehow.
But then he opened his eyes. He saw Chat across from him - he saw Will across from him.
Neither of them move, neither of them speak.
He’s disappointed.