warning/s: language! fluff! full of errors! also, this chapter is filled with time skips because the first past is basically a montage :( BTW THIS IS A MODERN AU. no akumas, no ladybug, no kwamis, etc.

word count: 3748

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"Please make the flower garlands. Both of my hands are too occupied for writing lectures!"

Ms. Mendeleeiv kept on blabbering about Science. Nathaniel had his eyes on the teacher while his hands are under his desk... making flower garlands. The teacher was just elaborating on how a human person farts after they die before the bell rang. 

Everyone but him exited the room. When the coast is almost clear, he brought out the tray carrying a bowl of flowers and a thin wire. Before he inserted another flower, he heard someone calling his name. 

He followed the voice and saw your head, peeking by the doorway. With a timid smile, you presented him a handful of flower garland you made on your own last night. Nathaniel ecstatically smiled. 

////

"I don't want to spend my time beating eggs. It's better to beat my Maths."

Nathaniel was mixing the batter while you pour a bowl of it inside the cupcake tray. The container was filled halfway. Now with the tray done, how are you supposed to bake the cupcakes if the school's oven was not working?

The both of you stared at it, clueless. 

"I have an idea," you started.

He looked at you questioningly. 

In your place, you ran and ran, slowly breaking into a sweat. Not long after, you heard the familiar beeping. When you were sure that your heart beat isn't going down sooner, you stopped and touched the tray. Slowly, the cupcakes were baking and rising. Whenever the beeping stops, you'd run again, not letting go of the container. After a while, it was finished. You and Nathaniel looked at each other in victory.

////

"I don't really like cleaning for plants... I like cleaning dead bodies more!" He showed you his forceps and a dead frog hanging in his fingers. 

You dug through the dirt with your shovel as Nathaniel beside you was diligently watering the planted seeds. 

"Oh! And can you please destroy the plants from the other sections? We don't want them getting the better score."

The two of you stared at the plant box in front of you that clearly belonged to the class next to them. You shared a blank, knowing look before taking a step, escalating to jumping and skipping around the box, completely destroying the plants and shrubs. You couldn't help but feel guilty for effectively ruining the juniors' hard work so you just clasped your hands together and silently prayed. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" You said in a panic. 

You continued to jump up and down while saying sorry, failing to notice the redhead watching you in amusement, as he stomped on his own set of plants. He laughed to himself. 

////

"Lastly, clean our classroom so that we'd get lots of extra credit!"

Nathaniel wiped one of the desk as you slowly toured around the room to pick up trash along the way. The atmosphere was quiet, yet calming. You liked this comfortable silence as the two of you just do your own thing. 

You crouch down next to a desk and spotted a couple of crumpled papers, putting them inside your trash bag. "Some of them are so damn disorganized," you muttered to yourself. You stood up and began to walk back, not expecting to feel actual static electricity when your elbow collided into Nathaniel's. 

He paused in his movements as you jumped away, turning around to face him. Silenced ensued as the both of you stared in surprise. He looked at your skin, then your eyes while you just give him a confused expression yet a face of realization. "How?" You said to yourself, but he heard you. "Is it because I'm falling in love with you?"

It was as if time stopped and Nathaniel felt his heart racing as he stared at your features. He almost looked hopeful, but he was still silent, waiting for what's to happen next.

"I'm just kidding."

He blinked. 

"Check out my heartbeat," you said as you showed him your watch, displaying the number 85, then 84...

Nathaniel chuckled weakly, trying to recover from a rollercoaster of emotions. "I know that." He shook his head, smirking. 

You grinned at him, not entirely fooled by his facade, but you let it go for now. You turned around and picked up the trash bag you just dropped. "Maybe you accidentally touched a wet surface," you began. "---increasing your tendency to conduct electricity."

He paused as he processed your words. He looked down at you. "Tendency to what?" 

You gave him a blank look. "Um, it's simple Physics." You turned around and found pieces of candy wrappers. "Everybody has their own capacitance to store electricity. Mine is too low."

He frowned at the fact. Curiously, he asked, "So how low can it be?"

"Look," you said as you picked up a random plastic bottle full of water. You stood up and showed it to him. "If the bottle is me," he nodded. "---and the water is electricity..."  You trailed off, removing the bottle cap. You turned the bottle sideways, letting the water fall into the garbage bag. Nathaniel watched the bottle slowly being emptied. That's a lot of water. 

Then you stopped and tipped it upwards again. He stared at the almost empty bottle. 

"Your electrical capacitance level has decreased a lot."

Nathaniel just nodded in defeat as he turned to the desk he was wiping on just moments ago. He smiled, a weak smile. With the towel on his hand, he scrubbed on the surface firmly and vigorously. He was wiping it up and down, faster and faster. 

"What are you doing?" Your brows furrowed at his sudden weird behavior. 

Without notice, his head turned abruptly with his lips upward, before grabbing your wrist in hopes of scaring you. Your eyes widened as you stepped back and stared him down weirdly. 

Nathaniel let out a bashful laugh seeing that his plan had failed. "Not shocking enough, right?"

You huffed and dropped your trash bag in dismay. He let go of your wrist and watched you in suspense. 

Just as what you did in baking the cakes, you ran in your position, making Nathaniel worry, but at the same time, terrified. "H-hey, hey. What are you doing?" Oh, he knows what you were about to do."

He slowly backed away, just like your watch slowly beeped. You locked eyes with him seriously, unable to wait for your heartbeat to reach 120 any longer. 

"Hey, you can't do that!" Nathaniel exclaimed. He made a run for the back of the classroom and you took off, running after him. He turned left and around the desks. You tried to reach him but he dodged your hand successfully. The room was now filled with the beeps in your watch mixed with your laughter and Nathaniel's whines. 

////

The lights are closed. The locker room was quiet and vacant. No one seemed to witness a figure sneakily walking inside the room. After walking, they stood in front of a locker that belonged to none other than their idol, their role model, the one their heart beats for. They didn't waste any time and opened the locker door easily.

Inside the locker was Adrien's gym bag. They hastily opened it and rummaged through, finding a black shirt. They brought it closer to their nose and sniffed it. They already know that his clothes smell like the perfume he advertises. After some time, they placed the shirt back in the bag. They thought they heard something so they quickly shouldered the bag and closed the locker. But before they could make an escape, someone turned on the lights. 

Their eyes widened and immediately turned to face Chloe Bourgeois with her hand on the switch, glaring daggers at them. They stuttered out an excuse, when someone suddenly captured them and dragged them all the way to the back of the school where the garden was located. 

////

Wayhem slowly stepped back as he was being cornered to a fence by Ellie, Chloe, and Sabrina. "Y-you don't understand! I-I didn't do anything wrong!"

Wordlessly, Sabrina held up Adrien's gym bag, and Ellie showed him the black shirt Wayhem had sniffed out. Chloe scoffed at his excuse. "With this much evidence, you're not turning yourself in? Disgusting. Utterly disgusting!"

Ellie stepped closer to him dangerously. "What are you planning? Spit it out!"

"What plan? I don't know any plan-"

"Bullshit!" Ellie screamed, trapping Wayhem with her arm outstretched, making him plead in mercy.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I was wrong!" He begged, his tears building up at the corner of his eyes. 

Not long after, Chloe strided next to her. "You took Adrien's photo, didn't you?"

"No, no I didn't! I swear, I don't know how to take a photo! I'm not a photographer to begin with!"

Chloe and Ellie shared an annoyed look somehow having the same thought on what to do with the hopeless guy in front of them. He begged and begged for mercy, going as far as kneeling down on his knees. 

"Let me go, let me go please! I promise, I won't go near Adrien again. I wouldn't even think about him! Just please let me go!"

Chloe grabbed the side of his face. "Too. late." Before she stepped back, she pushed him against the metal fence. Aligning with the rest of her gang, she commanded, "Girls! You know what to do."

Wayhem's eyes widen in terror. He's heard rumors going around that when you mess with Chloe, Ellie, and Sabrina, you'd get what you deserve. Something... painful. He screamed in agony. The bunch of candles near them were out and the pile of leaves flew away. 

The three girls only glared at him, maintaining a strict stance. "Retreat," Chloe said. They left him lying on the ground, with blood seeping out of his nose. 

////

"What a wonderful day. A day for victory. Victory in sports, I mean. The winning team gets to go to the finals next week," The spokesman... spoke. "The first selected team is The Blue Team!"

"BLUE! BLUE! BLUE!" The crowd screamed with their fist banging in the air, the blue bandanas around their head showed support to their team. 

"In this team, it seems that they have the saying, 'Teamwork makes the dream work'. Let us see in this race against... The Golden Team!" 

Marinette looked at the stand occupied by... 5 people. She looked at Mr. Damocles sheepishly, wanting to lighten up his mood. But the moment she turned away, she looked dejected and disappointed at herself. 

Hiding behind the metal divider, Nathaniel sighed sadly, already thinking that his plan didn't work. He wanted to cheer her up so badly, but in this situation, the only thing cheering her up is the stand filled with junior high students, but that's not happening any time soon. 

You took a deep breath and decided to clap along with the rest of your team mates. The air was so cold that your exposed legs might be made out of ice now. Curse these short golden shorts that you have to wear. You took a look on your team; they're not looking bad themselves... except for Wayhem who apparently wore a neck brace. Adrien had informed you that Kim had to go on a trip with his family so Wayhem would replace him, but looking at the state he's in, wouldn't it be better if Kim would just ditch his family trip and re-replace the injured person?

You heard Alix ask him a question. "You looked horrible. What happened?" You also wanted to know what happened. 

"I... just slipped... from the stairs."

"Oh." Alix nodded in understanding.

Meanwhile, the blond beside you began to tear the jacket off his body, revealing the uniform from underneath. The crowd immediately screamed in happiness, as they bask in the warmth and sexiness that is Adrien Agreste. He also went to pull his pants down that showed the paired shorts that accentuated his gluteus maximus. Oh my God.

Alya rolled her eyes and decided to look at somewhere else. She noticed something familiar so she informed Marinette about it. "Hey, Mari! Look!" She pointed at it. The bluenette turned to the side in curiosity and saw short kids walking in single file. They were all wearing glasses. They're here. 

Nathaniel beamed in hope. The plan worked. 

Not long after, they stopped in front of Marinette, crowding around her. One of them spoke professionally. "We will attend the stand." Slowly, a huge smile formed on her face. 

///

"Hey, I want to swap places with you so bad!"

You turned around and saw your opponent approaching you in her blue uniform. "Why?"

"Cause you're in Adrien's team! If I were you..." She made grabby hands and let out a squeak. You didn't even question what was going on inside that girl's head. You pretended you weren't interested but you stole a glance in Adrien's direction, where he was instructing Wayhem to hold the baton in a rock-sign position. 

You didn't expect him to turn to you and shouted, "Good luck, Y/N!" Your eyes widened and a small smile appeared on your face. Beside you, was the girl trying her best to contain her fangirling. You locked eyes with him and he gave you a comforting and reassuring grin. You wanted to smile back, when all of a sudden, you heard a beep. 

You immediately checked on it and saw that the numbers were going up. 99, 101, 102, 101--

You looked away in panic. Panicking isn't going to help you calm down, it's doing the exact opposite. You tried to calm yourself by breathing. 

"Be in position!" You heard the referee say. Both Wayhem and the other guy crouched down with the baton in their hand. "Ready." After some time, he raised the mini-gun (?) (idk what to call it) in the sky and pulled the trigger, producing a BANG sound. 

The race began and Wayhem took off, running like the wind. He eventually run past the blue team, making the blue crowd yell their name. "BLUE!" 

Meanwhile, Marinette looked at her own crowd in confusion. With her megaphone, she called. "Um, what are you doing?" She saw all of them, open books in their hands. They weren't cheering, let alone watching the relay. 

"We have problems about Pythagoras tomorrow." The girl in glasses answered for all of them in a bored and knowing tone. 

Nino and Alya shared annoyed looks. 

"Oh, the golden team is taking the lead!" Wayhem could almost reach Alix now. He was almost there. Eventually, with his outstretched arm, he passed the baton to the next player successfully. "The second set of runners are so intense!"

Alix run with all of her might. She looked at Adrien's golden-clad back. "Adrien, you dumb bitch!" She yelled. She was not running out of breath, not yet. 

He gave her a determined smile "Go, Alix!" He slowly galloped forward until the pink-haired girl could pass the baton to him. And when she did, he immediately took off. He appreciated the screams and cheers he got when he ran. It gave him more energy to sprint across the field.

"Adrien! Notice me!" One of the blue members called. The golden girl in front of Marinette glanced at the other side, annoyed because of the distraction in her studying. 

"Oh my," one of the announcers commented. "Our girls are really crazy about our school's superstar, Adrien." To prove their point, they screamed when sunlight radiated on Adrien's fair skin. Nathaniel, upon hearing the comment, rolled his eyes so hard, he could see his brain. He ignored it in an instant and instead focused on the race. 

You huffed in concentration but it was hard to do because of the same girl beside you gushing about Adrien. "Adrien is coming soon!" She exclaimed. "His legs are so shiny and smooth, oh my gosh!" 

You followed her praise and glanced at his flexing legs. It was as if there was a Greek chorus in the background when you saw his legs and muscles. It was getting difficult to breathe. Beep, beep. 116, 117,118

Ugh, why did she have to mention the freaking legs?! 

Now you're going to struggle slowing your heartbeat down, but how can you do that when the love of your life is coming towards you with his sexy body and is about to pass a stick made out of metal? 

"Y/N!"

You shook your head and get in position. You looked behind you and got ready. He was getting closer, and the beeps in your watch was getting faster. You closed your eyes in anxiety and began to run forward, not looking back. You should be looking at the baton, but now you're doing the opposite. 

"Y/N?" 

You decided to turn around and maybe- just maybe, it wouldn't be too bad. But the moment you had turned your head, he showed you his comforting smile and an outstretched arm. 

Everything went slow motion. Your watched had reached 120 and the fast beeping complemented the quick beating of your heart. You reached for the baton, making Adrien think that you're ready, but the moment he let go of the baton, you retracted your arm. Adrien's smile immediately fell when the stick slipped off his fingers. 

"Shit!" Nathaniel exclaimed. 

The stick almost fell to the ground, had it not kicked by Adrien's shoe, sending it directly towards the center of your face, and it bounced off, flying into the air. Everyone watched the stick taking its precious time in the sky. They followed the baton until it landed in your hand. 

The crowd closed their fists in victory and exclaimed, "Yes!"

Your face scrunched in pain as you took off with your eyes closed and your grip on the baton. You felt hot liquid trickling down your nose but you ignored it. 

"Uh, hey! Hey! Wrong direction!" Adrien told you and tried to grab and turn you around. Your eyes widened when you saw his face and then your eyes widen even more when the blue chick began to catch up on you. You ran in the other direction and it was neck in neck. 

The blue chick ran past you, but you're not giving up that easily. It was like electricity was running through your veins and you felt energy all over again. You let your feet take you forward, not listening to the constant beeping in your watch. You can catch up. You have to catch up. 

In the midst of all the running, you notice a head full of red hair in a determined stance. "Adrien is gay, Y/N! Adrien is gay!" 

"Adrien is not gay!" You shouted in anger to overcome his mockery. With this emotion now fueling you, it was as if you had an upgrade and even more electricity flooded your system in light speed. 

You outran the girl and victoriously crossed the finish line. "Yes!" You heard Nathaniel cheer, along with the other golden team. 

"The golden team gets to go to the finals!" The man announced excitedly. 

You slowly skidded to a stop and hastily let go of the baton. You placed your hands on your knees and tried to catch your breath, your watch still beeping. 

"Good job, Y/N!" You turned your head slightly and saw Adrien running towards you with a gleeful smile and both of his hands showing you his thumbs up. You sighed in exasperation and ran away from him. "Hey, where are you going?" You didn't stop. You ran and ran to the locker rooms, anywhere, just far away from Adrien. You just failed to notice Nathaniel looking at you in worry and concern. 

Inside the locker rooms, on a chair, you waited for your watch to go back down to 120, all the while still catching your breath. Your bloody nose still existed, a bit dried, but you can wipe it later. 

"Has the beeping slowed down yet?"

You looked at the voice and saw Nathaniel, in front of you. Wordlessly, he handed you a handful of tissues. 

Beep, beep, beep, TOOT!

With a growing smile on your face, you quickly stood up and enveloped him in a tight hug. "We won! I'm so happy!" You celebrated, still holding him. 

Meanwhile, the boy you're holding was taken aback. He never hugged a girl he's age before. No girl even hugged him the way you did. He let out unlaboured breaths as he stared forward. He just saw this new side of you, but so far, he liked it. As he regained his composure, he slowly wrapped his own arms around your waist and tried to drag this longer. It was as if he didn't want the hug to end. He wanted this memory to last forever. 

"I'm happy too."

You only let out a happy hum in reply. 

Nathaniel was so happy that later that night, he drew the exact feeling he felt when he was in your arms. He pressed the lead harder to add pressure to your hair and smile. He looked at the finished page with a blank look and leaned back into his chair. He began to turn the pages back wherein he illustrated the part of when you shouted back at him in the race. Then the next page that showed you being sweaty but handling it like a rockstar. The next page expressed how quick you ran with electricity surrounding you, along with some praises written beside it. 

He quickly closed the binder and stood up from his chair, walking across his room towards a specific shelf. He placed the binder next to the stack of his old binders. This time, it was numbered 25, with the 5 taking in the shape of a lightning bolt, because it reminded him of you.

end of chapter seven

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i apologize for the lack of the updates, but here i am now, trying to make it up to you with a 3700+ word chapter!! and omg i just know that this chapter is full of mistakes because it is rushed and i am out of my mind lately because of lack of sleep and i'm trying to practice my keyboard typing (mostly speed). but yeah, hope you enjoyed it regardless!

sayonaraaaa! oyasumi :))

KimmiePines