Chapter Text
Previously
“Say anything and I’ll actually hurt you,” he said as he tried to curl up into himself.
“What? That you totally suck at flirting?” Claude asked in a teasing tone.
“That’s it!” Alec pounced at Claude. Claude started screaming.
“Huh, I can finally see the resemblance,” Chloé said to Anais as the others tried to stop Alec from killing Claude.
Marinette was on her toes, waiting for Alya as an akuma to come any minute. When she heard what happened from multiple people at once, then calmly explained by Nino about the events before, she was certain that a heartbroken themed akuma would come for Nino or possibly Anais. As everyone talked mindlessly as they walked towards the laser tag arena, Alec and Félix were talking to Allegra about school work, Claude, Alan and Nino were discussing about video game music while, both groups a few steps ahead of her while she lagged behind with Chloé and Anais. She kept looking over her shoulder, making note of any hidden places she could transform in. A hand clasped onto her shoulder startled her back into reality, she turned to see it was Anias, her arm wrapped around Chloé’s shoulder and warm smile on her face.
“Hey, relax. I know you’re worried about that Alya chick coming to swoop in and cause havoc, but you don’t have to worry about that anymore. She ran off fifteen minutes before you and Claude arrived and we’ve been walking for like ten minutes-”
“Ani honey it’s only been two minutes,” Chloé said.
“Wait? Really? Feels way longer than that. You sure?”
“Yes I’m sure, you’re just lazy.”
Anais brought up her hand to her chest and let out exaggerated gasp.
“I can’t believe that you, my sweetheart! My waking world! The sun to my moon!-”
“Jesus ‘Nais, dramatic much?” Alec cut in from the group ahead of them.
“-Shut up, no one asked you.”
Alec stuck his tongue at her while Anais made a face at him.
“Okay, where was I? Oh yeah- Light of my life! You wound me! Absolutely wound me!”
She dramatically leans her body on top of Chloé pretending to fall in pain.
Chloé rolled her eyes and smiled.
“Stop being so dramatic, and get off me you big oaf, you’re heavy.”
“And now she’s calling me fat? Devastated! Completely devastated!”
Anais leans a bit more weight on Chloé, causing them to stumble a little. Both laughing as they nearly fall.
Marinette giggled at the interaction.
Anais steadies herself along with Chloé as she tries to subdue her laughter.
“Okay, okay, okay I had a point to this- what was my point-? Oh yeah! It’s been like an hour-”
“Twenty minutes.”
“Tomato Potato. Point being: it’s been a long time and if she was going to be akumatized, she would’ve been destroying everything by now. You can relax Maribear.”
“Okay one, that is not how the saying goes, and two, Marinette she has a point. Cessaire isn’t going to come and break everyone’s heart or whatever her power may be and destroy things. You don’t have to worry anymore.”
Marinette’s shoulder lost a bit of tension and smiled at the two.
“Yeah, you’re right. Thanks guys.”
Anais smiled as she wrapped her arm around Chloé again.
“No problem.”
“It was nothing, plus we need your head focused on what’s important: The laser tag match,” Chloé said as she snuggled close to Anais and a wicked smile on her face.
Marinette eyes get a competitive gleam in them as her mouth turns upward to a smirk.
“Of course. I’m bringing my A-Game to this.”
They all soon walked into the laser tag arena, excitement building up as they looked at their surroundings. The main entrance was painted black with swirls of glow in the dark paint of different colors that stood out in the dimly lit room. To their left were tables and a food stand with fattening and overpriced food, while to their right was the flashing lights and loud sounds of the arcade. In front of them was a desk with prizes for the arcade and sign up sheets for laser tag, and two large doors which lead them to the many arenas. Everything was buzzing with activity of other people in the large space.
Félix and Alec walked towards the desk to talk to a worker and get them all situated. They quickly gave them sheets along with pencils to fill out for the game.
“The guy said we have to fill out all the stuff and sign a waiver or something,” Alec said as he pulls out his credit card.
“Why they need a waiver is sort of concerning, but understandable judging the many casualties that could happen just by being in the arena,” Félix said as he too takes out his credit card. “Also Alec, I can pay for it.”
Alec smiled.
“No, it’s fine. I got,” he said as he holds his hand out with his credit card to the worker.
“Alec, you paid for our last outing, let me pay this time,” Félix pushes Alec’s hand away and tries to give to the now nervous looking worker.
“Oh jeez, not again” Alan said as he witness the interaction.
“I’m confused, what’s happening?” Nino asked as Allegra hands him one of the sheets of paper.
“It’s nothing,” Anais said with a sigh. “Both of them were taught at a young age to be courteous, especially to our friends and families, and that includes paying for things. Félix. because his father taught him this as an edicate thing, and Alec, because our mother is Asian.”
“Félix. I’m paying,” Alec said pushing Félix’s hand away and held out his card towards the scared worker.
Félix takes Alec’s card with his other hand and holds out his own card again.
Félix glares at Alec as Alec glares at him back.
Alec grabs Félix’s card and throws it across the room.
Félix looks at Alec in shock as Alec pulls out another credit card. Both locking eyes, a silent battle between the two as the worker tries to leave without them noticing.
“And that’s our cue to leave them be,” Allegra said as she ushers them to the tables by the food stand as Alan goes to retrieve Félix’s discarded (thrown) credit card.
They all sat down on chairs with tables near each other while Alec’s and Félix’s bickering could be heard from afar. They start to fill out their sheets.
“Alright first: name. Easy!”
“Claude you spelt your name wrong.”
“No I didn’t-! Oh shot you’re right.”
“How do you misspell your own name?”
“It happens, shut up!”
“Why does it need our address?”
“And our birthday?”
“Why the heck is gender important?”
“Don’t question it, just fill it out.”
“No, do question it, these guys could be stalkers!”
“I’m pretty sure if a multi-chained franchise had lawsuits involving them selling or using personal information of their customers, they wouldn’t be doing so well. ”
“And how do you know they haven’t had this issue before? Did you look it up-?”
“Claude shut up!”
“Guys just sign the waiver and get this over with so we can play.”
“Your handwriting looks awful ‘Llegra.”
“Shut up Anais, yours literally looks like scribbles!”
“Hey what does it mean by nickname?” Alan asked.
They all freeze and look down at their paper to see the last box to fill out is labeled “Nickname”.
“I’m not sure actually,” Allegra said.
“Maybe it’s asking what we’re preferred to be called?” Claude asks.
“That doesn’t make sense, we could have just put that in the name column,” Chloé pointed out.
“No I think Claude’s on the right track,” Marinette chimned in. “I think it’s the name we use in the game, kinda like an avatar name.”
“That makes sense,” Nino said as he starts thinking up of cool names to use.
“Awesome! I’m going to have the coolest name!” Claude exclaimed as he quickly writes something.
Anais snorts.
“I doubt that,” she says as she tries to see what Claude is writing.
“Ah ah ah!” Claude says loudly as he covers his paper. “You’ll see when your screen flashes my awesome name when I shoot you with my awesome skills!”
“Again, doubt that. Guess I’ll figure out your name when you end up in last on the scoreboard.”
“Okay rude.”
“Hey why don’t we make a game out of this?” Allegra cuts in. “We all write nicknames and make sures no one reads the others and during the game we have to figure out who belongs with which name.”
Nino smiles.
“Sounds fun, I’m in.”
“Me too.”
“Count me in.”
“I’m down.”
“I am toootally losing that game.”
“Optimism Alan, you gotta work on that man.”
After they wrote their nicknames the other two start walking towards them, both looking slightly peeved.
“Something wrong you two?” Anais asks a smirk on her face.
Alec scowled.
“No, but after five minutes of us arguing, that guy, whatever his name was it was Noe or Noah-”
“Not even close, his name was Paul.”
“Yeah. Whatever. He finally told us that apparently someone already called this morning saying that she’ll be paying for a group of nine teenagers that will walk in around at a certain time. She gave them her credit card number and told them to charge it for the amount of times that group of teenagers will play. She was also specific about two of those teenagers are going to argue about who gets to pay so they’ll be for sure about which group of teenagers to pay for. Now what did they say her name was again Félix?”
“I don’t know Alec, if I can recall they said her name was a Mlle. Dupain-Cheng.”
Everyone turned to Marinette who was wearing a shit-eating grin.
“Oooh plot twist.”
“Shut up Claude- Marinette, why did you go through all that trouble just to pay?” Alec asked.
“And why didn’t you tell us you already paid for it?” Félix chimned in.
“Because, you two never let anyone else pay because of your whole “courteous” thing and when I try you two team up to stop me so I had to take desperate measures. Also Alec, if you’ve somehow forgotten, I also have an Asian mom so I was brought up just like you on this matter. Also, “all that trouble”? Alec you once told us that you had Anais tackle your cousin just so you two could pay for the meal.”
“Point taken, well that’s settled, did you guys fill out your sheets already?”
A chorus of “yes” are heard from the group.
“Great! We didn’t, so just give us a moment to fill everything so we can hand them in at the same time.”
Anais and Claude groaned loudly as Félix and Alec start filling out everything.
“Also because we have an arena to ourselves, courteously due to Marinette, before I forget, thank you Marinette,” Félix says as he smiles at her.
Everyone loudly thanks Marinette.
“-Does everyone want to split into groups, or would you rather just have it decided by random?”
“We should do boys vs girls!” Alan suggests.
Alec freezes.
“I don’t think that’s a good ide-”
“That sounds fun,” Chloé says.
“Won’t that mean you guys have the advantage since there’s four of us and five of you?” Allegra asks.
“Oh there’ll be an advantage, but not for us-” Alec says before Claude interrupts him.
“Why? You scared to lose to us boys?”
“Not a chance! We’ll wipe the floor with you guys!”
“Understatement of the century, why can’t we do random like Félix suggested?” Alec tries to say when he gets cut off again.
“We’ll totally beat you dudettes!” Nino said with confidence.
“Really? Want to make a bet out of that?” Allegra asked challengingly.
“No. Nu-uh. No bets-!”
“What’s the bet?” Asked Alan.
“If we win you guys have to dress in drag for an entire day.”
“Okay not as bad as I thought but still can we not-?” Alec tried to say.
“Okay, but if we win you girls have to…”
“You guys have to watch all of Supernatural!”
“What?! That’s fifteen seasons! That’s going to take months of binge watching while you guys just have to wear dresses or skirts for a day,” Chloé said exasperated
“Hey! My masculinity isn’t strong enough yet for me to wear female marketed clothing out in public where people may judge me! If I can get over that for an entire day, you can watch a show we guys-”
“Not me.”
“All the guys besides Félix, have been trying to get you girls into. Plus our part of the bet could bring us closer together as a group as we get excited over a show collectively while we discuss why Destiel should’ve been a thing!”
“Claude, dude, you gotta get over it.”
“They’ve been queerbaiting us for almost twelve seasons if we include season four, which I do! They should’ve been together!”
“Claude, it wasn’t going to happen.”
“Dean literally told Cas that the look he was giving him led to sex and then Cas gave the same look harder! That’s just-! Augh!”
The girls started to talk with each other as Nino and Alan tried to calm down a distraught Claude.
“Okay, we’ll watch Supernatural, but you guys go all out! Make-up, wigs, cute outfits, shave your legs, all that stuff! And we do this on a school day!”
“Is no one going to listen to me??” Alec exclaimed.
“Deal!” Claude exclaimed. “Jokes on you, we have uniforms!”
“Except me.”
“Except Nino!”
“Hold on, I did not agree to this.” Félix stated.
A chorus of groans was let out by the group except for Alec who cheered.
“Yes! Thank you Félix! We should not do this!” Alec said loudly.
“Why? You afraid to lose?” Marinette asked cheekily.
“Of course not, I just think this bet is ridiculous.”
“Uh huh, of course you do, you’re just afraid you’ll lose and have to wear a skirt. You’re just chicken.”
A chorus of “oohs” taunted Félix.
“Don’t fall for it Félix! She’s egging you on!” Alec exclaimed.
“I’m not egging him on,” Marinette said innocently while batting her eyelashes.
Félix eyes narrowed challengingly.
“I am not chicken.”
Marinette quirked an eyebrow.
“You sure?”
“Félix please you’re my only hope in getting out of this-!”
“I am very sure. Even without the bet we’d still beat you.”
“So why don’t you put your money where your mouth is then?” Marinette asks as she holds out her hand waiting for him to shake it.
A beat of silence passed through the group before Félix shakes her hand. They all cheered, except for Alec who merely groaned.
“Can I have no part of this?” Alec asked hopefully.
“No can do Lexi, majority rules and the only way to override that rule is by having Félix on your side,” Anais said in a sing-song voice as she starts to collect everyone’s paper to give to the gamemaster.
Alec sighed again as Nino patted him on the back.
“Don’t worry dude. Marinette is usually really clumsy and I can guarantee Anais and Chloé will end up making out in some dark corner eventually. We’ll win for sure!”
Alec looked at Nino with resign, knowing Nino is blissfully ignorant. Not only do they are all majorly competitive, three out of the four girls hold or have held onto a miraculous, one being Ladybug herself. But that wasn’t what scared him. He turns to Allegra, a wicked smile on her face. He shivers. He knows that smile. He’s seen that same smile when she and Bridgette invited him to a paintball match a few years back. That same smile as she sharpshooted everyone on the opposing team.
Alec shoulders slumped knowing his team was going to be absolutely slaughtered.
‘At least I look good in a mini skirt,’ he thought.