Archive of Our Own ^beta

“You want me to what now?”

Her face was burning.  It had to be – she could feel the heat flushing her cheeks.  She pressed her lips together and looked away.  Her hands clenched at her sides, clenching and unclenching to dispel some of her nervous energy.  Dingo was still staring at her through those tacky orange shades he had worn that day, his eyes wide and eyebrows high on his forehead.  She blinked quickly – once, twice – when she felt tears pricking at the corners of her eyes.

She hated this.

Asking anyone for help, but especially asking Dingo for help.

She was Ladybug, for Pete’s sake!  She should be able to do anything on her own, and yet…

“Teach me to dance,” she huffed, because that was the one thing she couldn’t learn on her own.  Two weeks of bruises and failed YouTube lessons (and a Miracle Box full of kwamis snickering every time she tripped over her rug or bumped into her desk or decapitated her mannequin) had proven that.  He blinked and lifted his shades to squint at her.

“…o…k…?” he said slowly.  She pushed out a breath and rolled her eyes.

“I know you know how,” she said.  She folded her arms across her chest, like a shield, and glared at the spot of scuffed tile by his boots.  “I saw you and Bri last week.  On the boat.”

His shades clattered to the floor.  He blinked at her again, and the phrase deer in the headlights drifted across her mind.

“…you were asleep,” he said.  “Everyone was asleep.”

“Juleka and Rose were making out,” she huffed.  “Luka was asleep.  I was…not.”

She had been curled up against Luka’s side and pretty close to sleep herself, but she had been startled awake when she’d heard them tripping back up from below deck.  When they had seen almost everyone had stopped paying attention to the movie, they’d snuck off to the upper deck.  Marinette had followed after them, wanting to let Luka rest (he’d been running himself ragged lately, between work and Jagged) and not really wanting to watch Juleka and Rose swap spit, but then she’d seen Dingo spin Brielle before tugging her against him.

They had been dancing.

Not just swaying to the music – not like most of the couples she’d seen at the school dances she had attended over the years – but real, proper dancing.  With dips and twirls and everything.  Eventually they had settled into a slow swaying, but even that had seemed to have proper steps that felt more practiced than just rocking to a beat.

It had looked so…romantic.  Magical, though that might have been the atmosphere created by the fairy lights Rose had strung up two summers ago lining the upper deck.  Maybe it had just been the lights of the city beyond.  Maybe it had been the soft look on Dingo’s face, or the equally warm smile on Brielle’s.  They had looked…happy.  She had never seen them so peaceful.  So content.

…she wanted that.

She wanted to dance with Luka like that.

Except…she didn’t know how.  She was so clumsy, and despite all the dances she had been to over the years…no one had ever actually danced with her.  Alya had tried to orchestrate things with Adrien, but Chloé had put a stop to that soon enough, and even then their dancing had been no more than swaying to the music.  She had danced with her friends – with Rose, and Alya, and Mylène, and Juleka, and even Alix once – but it was easy to dance with your friends or by yourself.  That was just moving to the music, bouncing around waving your arms and…she had never danced with a guy, though.  And especially never with a guy she felt anything for.

That dancing was supposed to be different.  Slow dancing was supposed to be…special.  Romantic.  Something that made you feel like a fairytale princess out of an old Disney movie.

That was the kind of dancing Dingo had been doing with Brielle, and it was the kind of dancing she wanted to do with Luka.

Luka hadn’t made it to the Valentine’s dance.  He had tried, especially after he had realized…but then an akuma had attacked, and by the time she had gotten back to the dance and found he actually had made it the band had been packing up for the night.  She had been so upset by the whole thing she’d run off without even talking to him, and by the time she’d pulled herself together she’d been too ashamed to face him.  He had told her later he had been hoping to catch at least the last dance with her – even if the last dance was something playing from his phone as they danced in an empty gymnasium – and somehow that had only made it worse.  He’d never seen her bolt from the doors, and he’d waited for her until the night custodian had kicked him out.

He’d been working the night of the winter dance, so he hadn’t made it to that one, either.  And he’d be graduating next month, and then there would be no more dances with him – like he would come back to a school dance after passing the BAC, even for her.  She just…it was silly.

She knew it was silly.

But he was taking her to the spring dance, hopefully as her boyfriend, and…she wanted to dance with him.  She wanted everything out in the open, and she wanted to dance with him, and maybe even…

“You’ll always go for the big, romantic gesture, huh?” Dingo sighed, tipping his head back.  She frowned, confused by what he meant, but he was smiling as he looked at the ceiling.  “God, you two really are perfect for each other…”

“I won’t tell anyone,” she insisted.  “Your secret’s safe with me.  No one will know you can do something as lame as dance.”

She offered him a weak smile, and he snorted.

“Fuck if I care about that,” he said, toeing the tile with his boot.  “Bri’s the one who’ll get pissed you caught us.  She’s the one with the image to protect.”

“…Bri likes me,” she said.  Dingo grinned at her.

“Yeah, she does,” he said.  He sighed and shook his head as he bent to pick up his shades.  “Ok.  But I gotta warn you…I’m really not that good.  Most of what I know Lulu taught me so I could impress Bri.  He’s the one who actually took lessons.”

“I know,” she groaned, dropping her face in her hands.  “That’s why I need you, Dingo.  He’s gonna ask me to dance, and all I’m gonna be able to do is sway and step on his feet, and he’s gonna rethink everything and dump me on the spot and –”

“…don’t he actually have to be dating you to dump you?” Dingo asked, his eyebrow lifting.  She squeaked and jerked back her eyes snapping up to him and her face getting even hotter.  His grin was evil.  Shadow-Hawk-Stupidmoth evil.  “You two keeping secrets from poor ol’ Dingo?”

“…never mind,” she huffed.  “I’ll ask somebody else.  Anybody else.  Juleka will –”

“Juleka will give you so much more shit than me and we both know it,” he snorted, reaching out to catch her arm as she turned to leave.  His smile softened.  “Relax, baby girl.  I’ve got you.  It’s cute.”

“I just…he means everything to me, Dingo,” she mumbled.  “I don’t want to mess it up this time.”

“Believe me,” Dingo said, tipping his head towards her.  “You didn’t mess it up last time.”

Her answering smile was small, and he squeezed her hand before letting go.

“Thank you,” she said.  He nodded.  “Can…can you come by the bakery tonight?  Or sometime this week, if tonight’s no good?”

“Tonight’s perfect,” he said.  “Lu’s working, and Bri’s parents are taking her out for a fancy dinner for that award she won.  I’ll be by around six?”

“Thank you,” she said, jumping on him and giving him a tight hug.  He chuckled as he rubbed her back.

“Any time, baby girl,” he said.  “Any time.”

– V –

The bakery was closed by the time Luka pulled up, but he could still see the kitchen lights on through the windows.  He could easily ring the buzzer on the side entrance, or just call Marinette and let her know he was outside, but he was hoping to surprise her.  He locked his bike up by the corner lamppost before knocking on the door.  He could see Tom standing at the back table, frozen with a piping bag in his hand, and after a few moments passed he knocked again.  Tom looked up, a frown on his face.

“We’re clo…Luka!” he called, his expression instantly brightening when he saw him at the door.  He hurried over to let him in, holding the piping bag upright so it wouldn’t drip.  He wrapped his free arm around him in a tight hug once he was inside.  “Why didn’t you say anything, son?  Or warn us you were stopping by!  I would’ve left it unlocked!”

“I got off early, and I was hoping to surprise Marinette,” he said.  Tom chuckled, locking the door behind him before they went in the back.  “Is she still up?”

“Of course,” he said.  “Or she should be.  It’s Friday – she usually stays up later on Fridays.  She still has a curfew, though, son.”

He was grinning as he said it, even tossing him a wink, and Luka’s answering chuckle was only a little nervous.  He adored Tom, and he knew the feeling was mutual, but…he was still Marinette’s father, and at least three times Luka’s size, and…well.  Luka figured it was just good sense to stay on his good side.

“Of course,” he said.  “We’ve both just been pretty busy this week, and I’m working most of tomorrow, too.  So…”

“I get it, son,” Tom chuckled, patting his back.  “Young love is hard enough, but it’s even worse when your schedules are so demanding.”

He felt his cheeks warming as he nodded.  Tom nodded towards the steps.

“Go on,” he said.  “Go say hi before she has to get to sleep.  There should be some snacks on the counter, if you’re hungry.”

“Thanks, Tom,” he said, waving before he jogged up the steps.

Tom wasn’t wrong.  It had been hard, the past few weeks.  They’d only been back together maybe a month, but they’d both been so busy.  He’d been picking up extra shifts at the pizzeria, trying to save up for after school, and Jay seemed to be pulling him into the studio every chance he got.  He still had his schoolwork, final performances, and the spring showcase on top of it all, and Marinette’s own schedule was crazy enough between school, commissions, and…

…well.

At least she didn’t have Hawk-Shadow-Whatevermoth to deal with anymore, but someone had snatched the Butterfly Miraculous before she could retrieve it.  Gabriel Agreste might be dead, and the akuma attacks had stopped for now, but that didn’t mean Marinette had let herself relax.  It had been two months, but she was still running nightly patrols, bracing for the inevitable.

He’d finally convinced her to give them another shot the month before, but if he was honest…he knew he was her boyfriend, but there were times he didn’t really feel like it.  She had been too nervous to tell anyone, after the last time – so while her parents knew, his family didn’t actually know.  He hadn’t even told Dingo, and he told Dingo just about everything.  They’d been taking it slow.  Glacially, it seemed.

…he hadn’t even kissed her yet.  And it wasn’t for lack of trying, or because he didn’t want to.  There just…hadn’t been time to.  Opportunity.

It was part of why he was actually looking forward to the spring dance.

Yeah, it was a lame school dance, but…he was kind of looking forward to spending the night with Marinette in his arms.  Dancing.  Hopefully finally getting that kiss that always seemed to get stolen away from them…

He shook his head clear of those thoughts as he knocked on the door and opened it.

“Sabine?” he called, looking around.  “Tom said it was ok to come up.”

The flat appeared to be empty, though the lights were still on and he could hear music coming from Marinette’s room.  A peek down the hall showed the light under Sabine and Tom’s door was on, and he assumed she had turned in for the night.  He glanced up at Marinette’s door and saw it was open.  The lights were still on, and along with the music he could hear movement upstairs.  His smile grew, and he took the steps two at a time.

“Hey,” he called, knocking on the jam before climbing inside.  “Hope you don’t mind…”

He paused once he finally saw her.

Her and…Dingo?

Her and Dingo.

Who was holding her in a dip?

With her pajama-clad leg fully extended (and was she wearing heels???) and both of their heads turned towards him, eyes wide and mouths open like…the phrase deer in the headlights drifted across his mind.

What the hell????

“Luka!” she cried, and then shrieked when Dingo promptly dropped her on her ass.  The asshole took such a large step back he bumped into her desk, both of his hands raised and a look of sheer panic on his face.  He was hardly paying attention to him, though, as he rushed to help Marinette up.  She had pushed herself up on her elbows and was wincing, her face twisted in pain.  “Owww…”

“Are you ok?” he asked, kneeling beside her and pulling her up.  She offered him a small smile and nodded.  “Are you hurt?”

“Just my pride,” she sighed.  He looked her over another moment, his hands moving restlessly along her arms, before he looked up at Dingo.

“Ding, what the hell?” he asked, his brows furrowed.  “You could’ve hurt her!”

“Sorry!” Dingo said, his hands still raised.  “Wasn’t expecting you!  Didn’t want you getting any ideas!”

“The only idea I’m getting is further confirmation that you’re an asshole,” he said, rolling his eyes.  “You don’t just drop people, Ding.”

“You’ve never had a someone before, Lulu.  For alls I know you’re the jealous type, and I wasn’t risking a black eye because you thought I was getting handsy with your girl,” Dingo sniffed.  Luka rolled his eyes and stood.  He helped Marinette up, frowning when she winced again.  He was definitely considering a black eye, but not because Dingo had been getting…handsy.

“Like she’d let you,” he sniffed.  He frowned as he looked between them.  “…why were you getting handsy, anyway?”

“He wasn’t,” Marinette insisted, stepping closer.  Luka lifted an eyebrow, and she sighed before looking back at Dingo.  “I think we’re busted, Ding.  Thanks for trying.”

“Any time,” Dingo said, winking at her.  He slipped past them, clapping Luka on the shoulder as he went.  “I’mma just…yeah.  See you later?”

“Yeah,” Luka said, nodding.  “Later.”

He watched him go, frowning as he thought back to what he had said – about Luka getting jealous because was getting handsy with his girl.  Had Marinette told him…?  But with Dingo gone and nothing left to distract him, he turned back to Marinette and gave her another look-over.

“You sure you’re ok?” he asked.

“I’m fine,” she insisted.

“You told Dingo?” he asked, smiling a little, and she winced again.

“Accidentally,” she said, “but…is it so bad?  If he knows?”

“I don’t care who knows,” he said, leaning forward to kiss her forehead.  His lips quirked with a grin as he leaned back.  “Were you two…dancing?”

“Shut up,” she said, biting down on her lip when she spotted the little grin.  “It’s not funny.”

“It’s hilarious,” he chuckled.  He snaked an arm around her waist and tugged her against him, his grin growing.  “Especially considering you were dancing with Dingo and not me.  I’m a little hurt, Mari.”

He winked at her.

“Maybe even a little, dare I say…” he continued, leaning closer to grin at her.  “…jealous.”

“Shut up,” she laughed, dropping her head against his chest.  He bent down to kiss her crown, and she sighed as her arms wrapped around him.  “Don’t be.  Hurt or jealous – you have no reason to be, you goof.  It’s…it’s stupid.”

“You’re wearing pajamas and heels,” Luka snickered.  “I’ll say.”

“Stoooop,” she whined, bunching her fists in his hoodie.  “He was late, and…shut up.”

“I didn’t say anything, he snickered.

“You’re laughing,” she huffed.  “Stop it.”

“Why were you dancing with Dingo?” he asked.  She twisted his hoodie in her fists and mumbled something he couldn’t quite catch.  “Sorry?”

“…because I was nervous about dancing with you,” she grumped.  He frowned, but before he could question her she peeked up from his chest.  “Lu.  I can’t…I can’t dance.”

He blinked at her, and then he was frowning.

“So…you asked Dingo to dance?” he asked.  She nodded.  “Why didn’t you just ask me?  I can dance.  You know I can dance.  You guys make fun of me for it all the time.”

“We make fun of you because you actually can dance and insist on dancing like a goof anyways,” she huffed.  He pecked a kiss against her forehead.

“It’s more fun,” he said, “and it makes you smile.  So c’mon.  Why didn’t you ask me?”

“Because I can’t dance,” she huffed, whining a little.  She tried to pull back, but he kept his arms locked around her.  She puffed out her cheeks in frustration.  “I can’t dance – not like you, and not like Dingo!  And you said you’d take me to the spring dance, but I can’t dance, and I didn’t want to step on your toes or embarrass you or –”

“Ok, one, you could  never embarrass me,” he said.  He bent to kiss her forehead, smiling when he felt it crease in a frown.  “It’s much more likely I’ll embarrass you.  Y’know.  With my goofy dancing and all.”

“Shut up,” she laughed.  He kissed her cheek this time.  “I just…I wanted to be able to dance for you.”

“Feels like I want you dancing with me, though,” he said.  “You could have asked me.  I would’ve been happy to teach you.  I still would be.”

“But you’re busy, and the dance is next weekend, and –” she started, and he tapped a finger against her chin to tilt her head up.  She sucked in a breath when she saw the way he was looking at her – the way his eyes drifted to her mouth when it snapped shut, the eyebrow that lifted as she pulled her lower lip between her teeth.  He leaned in, pausing with his mouth barely a breath away from her own – close enough that she could feel his warm breath fanning across her face.  She didn’t move, didn’t speak, and he waited just a moment longer before pecking a quick kiss against her lips, only sort of because he wanted her to stop berating herself but more because he was actually really touched and she was just…she was…so her.  She was gawking at him when he pulled back, a fiery blush staining her cheeks.  “L-L-Luka…”

“I’m not busy right now,” he murmured, reaching up to tuck some loose hair behind her ear.  “And I really want to dance with you, Marinette.”

“I’ll…I’m gonna do something lame, like step on your feet,” she insisted.  His hand had come up to cup her face, and he was brushing a thumb along the side of her mouth.  “Or…or…”

“I’m kinda ok with that,” he said.  “And you’ll get better…hey.  Can I kiss you again?”

“I thought we were dancing,” she said.  He chuckled before leaning in to brush his nose against hers.

“We can do that, too,” he hummed.  “You taste really good, though.  Was that strawberry?”

“M-m-my chapstick,” she breathed, sighing a little when he kissed her again.  Her arms came up to wrap around his neck, and he hummed as he pulled her closer.

“Love it,” he murmured between kisses.  He went to kiss her again – to maybe deepen the kiss a little – when she stepped closer and…landed on his foot.  He winced and leaned back, and she squeaked before jumping back.

“S-sorry!  Oh my God, I told you…” she groaned, but he was chuckling as he pulled her back to him.

“Hey, hey, no you didn’t,” he said.  “We weren’t even dancing yet.  Totally doesn’t count.”

“That makes it worse…” she groaned, tucking her face against his neck.  He chuckled as he reached for her hand, threading their fingers together as he slipped his other arm a little lower on her back.  “Luka…”

“Just follow my lead,” he said, smiling warmly at her as she glanced back up at him.  He squeezed her hand and started moving – started dancing – with her.  “And if you do step on my feet…well.  You’ll just have to kiss it better.  Deal?”

Her blush was beautiful, the glimmer in her eyes warm and inviting and making him want to skip the dancing lessons in favor of the kissing it better part.  She nodded, the hand curled around his neck tapping her fingers as they fell into an easy rhythm.

“Ok,” she said, giggling as he spun her.  “Deal.”

– V –

Dingo looked up at the sound of voices approaching.  He pushed himself off the wall when he saw Brielle and her parents walking up the sidewalk, though they paused when they noticed him standing just within the glow of the light above the door.

“Ding?” Brielle asked, frowning.  “What are you doing here?”

“It’s your big night,” he said, stuffing his hands in his pockets and scuffing his toe against the stoop.  “Well.  Celebration of your big night, at least.  Didn’t feel right, missing out on it.”

“You weren’t invited,” M. Girard sniffed.  Brielle glanced at him, and he sighed.  “Oh, fine.  Don’t stay out too late, Brielle.  Your mother needs to be at the gallery early tomorrow, and it won’t do to have you waking her up.”

“Charles,” her mother hissed, and he huffed as he took her arm and led her towards the door.  His eyes slid back to Dingo before they went inside, his lips pursing together like he’d smelled something unpleasant.  When the door closed behind them, Dingo shook his head and chuckled.

“Think they’ll ever warm up to me?” he asked, looking back at Brielle.  She shook her head as he hopped off the stoop and walked over to her.  She held out her hands, and he smiled as he took them.

“I hope not,” she teased.  “That’s the only reason I finally said yes.  They hate you, and the idea that I might actually marry you someday drives them nuts.”

“Gee, thanks,” he laughed.  “And here I was trying to be sweet and surprise you.  Maybe I shoulda just gone home…”

“Shut up,” she said.  She pulled him closer and tipped her head up, her smile warming when he bent to kiss her.  “Why are you here, anyway?  I thought we were meeting up tomorrow?”

“Mari needed help with something,” he said.  She lifted an eyebrow, and he shook his head.  “Nothing serious.  She’s fine – Lu showed up, and he’s more than got it handled.  But…made me miss you.  Just a little.”

“Just a little?” she asked, her smile softening.

“Just a little,” he said.  He pulled her closer, his hand finding hers before the other found its place on her back.  “Hey.  Dance with me?”

“…yeah,” she said, smiling as he led her closer to the streetlights, away from any prying eyes that might be peeking disapprovingly from the windows.  He started humming, and she laid her head on his chest as she followed his lead.  “Ok.”