After being sick for a whole week Alya was finally allowed to go to school.

She would probably stay outside for a while, waiting for Marinette to come, then call her to hurry and not to be late for the class. Then call her again, and finally go to class without her, expecting her friend to run into the class at the last moment.

That was how it usually went. Usually, but not today.

Alya raised her eyebrows in surprise to see Marinette waiting for her in front of the school entrance instead. The girl was standing on the stairs, talking to Felix of all people!

"Hey, Mari!" Alya called, waving her hand to her friend. "You are early today!"

Both Marinette and Felix turned to meet her.

"I think I just rested well for the last few days." Marinette replied, and for some reason turned her eyes away.

Alya looked at her friend suspiciously. Then looked at Felix and noticed a slight, but visible smug smile on his face, turned to Marinette. Alya looked between them once again and narrowed her eyes.

What was sweet Marinette even doing next to mister evil?

Then Alya remembered that he actually saved her from being crushed by a wall a week ago. She frowned.

"I guess I owe you one." She said, looking at Felix.

He smirked.

"Not many people are crazy enough to do what you do with those reports." He complimented her? "I find them very useful, so we can call it even."

"Well, I didn't really need your help back there, you know." Alya noticed. "I'm sure Ladybug saw me and was about to save me anyway!"

"Something tells me she didn't." Marinette said guiltily.

What? Was this girl out of her mind?! It sounded as if she was apologizing for Ladybug's actions. Doesn't she understand Felix stands just next to her and may figure her secret identity out?!

"How can you know it, girl, you weren't even there?!" Alya said expressively, jerking her eyebrows towards Felix, trying to remind her friend that they weren't alone.

"Girl. Right." Felix said, giving Alya a calculating look. "Judging by your reaction, I'm not the only one who keeps the secrets of the local heroes." Then he looked at her intently. "Let me guess... the fox?" Felix smirked. "Inactive at the moment."

"Uh..." Alya was looking at him in shock for a moment, then looked at Marinette, thinking how much did this boy already knew, how dangerous it was, and how could she keep at least her role as Rena Furtive a secret.

When she looked back at Felix, Alya saw him raising his eyebrows in surprise.

"Or so everyone believes." He concluded. Was he actually able to read through her mind?!

Alya looked at Marinette again, searching for support and a way out of this situation that she wouldn't imagine happening even in a million years...

"Just don't look in his eyes if you want to keep at least some secrets safe." Marinette jokes, answering her silent question.

Does he really know? Ladybug's identity? And hers? Did he figure it out by her slip up a week ago? Or just now? And he just figured she had a miraculous too?

Damn it! And why did Marinette look so calm? Does she trust Adrien's evil cousin?! And did he really figure it out all by himself?

The curiosity took better of her, when Alya turned back to Felix again.

"Are you really so good, smart boy?" She asked with a challenge. "Maybe you figured out who Shadowmoth is as well?"

Felix was looking at her silently.

Alya's eyes widened.

"You did, didn't you?" She said quietly.

"I might have my suspicions." Felix admitted.

"You didn't tell me that!" Marinette accused him.

But her voice was soft, as if they weren't discussing Shadowmoth's identity, from which the safety of the whole city depended, but rather she was offended that Felix didn't share his secret with her when he should have, simply because of the closeness between them.

And that was exactly what brought Alya into an alarming mood. Not the miraculous secrets, but the way those two were watching each other, as if they actually were close.

"You didn't ask me." He smirked at Marinette, but Alya noticed some warm expression in Felix's eyes when his gaze connected to Marinette's.

Which confirmed Alya's previous observation: it was not clear how much was Marinette aware of the fall of her defenses, but for a week while Alya wasn't at school, her friend let Felix not only into her secret life, but also into the secrets of her heart.

If it was in the form of a friend or romantic interest — the journalist still had to find out.

"Anyone want to actually tell me what is going on here?" She asked, almost physically feeling the way she interrupted their staring-at-each-other reality.

"Uh..." Marinette looked at her confusedly.

"We don't talk about it." Felix answered for her. "As you must already know, it is a secret."

"How isn't it a secret for you?" Alya insisted.

"I didn't say I knew anything." He shrugged. "But well, I just came to Paris a week ago. Who knows..."

Alya looked at her friend again.

"Mari?" She said questioningly.

Marinette shrugged.

"I don't know anymore." She sighed.

*

Throughout the day, her friend continued to amaze Alya.

Marinette never once spoke of Adrien during all the time at school. She didn't blush when he greeted her and didn't stutter while talking to him during a break.

At first, Alya decided that Marinette was finally ready for the next step — to confess her feelings to Adrien, or at least to invite him out on a date.

But then the unexpected happened.

Felix, who was sitting behind Marinette, bent over his desk and handed her a note. The girl read it, gradually blushing. Then she turned around and she and Felix looked into each other's eyes for a long time, until Alya pushed Marinette in the side, when the teacher finished writing on the blackboard and turned to the class.

If Alya hadn't seen it with her own eyes, she wouldn't believe it! Did Marinette replace one blond with another?

But when Alya gave her friend a questioning look, trying to understand what was happening, Marinette just waved her hand, showing it wasn't anything important.

Alya turned to look at Felix and saw him sitting with his elbow on the desk and his face propped on his palm with a pensive, almost dreamy expression on his face.

What had happened here in the week she was gone?

*

The icing on the cake was the conversation between these two after school before going home.

"See you at your place at 6, as usual?" Felix asked, coming to where Marinette and Alya were standing.

"Better at your place today." Marinette replied. "I'll come a little earlier. I still need to see your mother, to discuss something."

"Hopefully not like the last time?" Felix knitted his brows, but his expression remained warm.

Alya watched this conversation and her eyes widened more and more.

"Why not?" Marinette asked playfully. "Don't you find it cute?"

"I... uhh... I do not think that my opinion on this matter can be considered qualified." The boy replied, lowering his gaze and... blushing?

Really? Alya's eyebrows jumped up in surprise, and she turned to look at her friend again.

"Oh, don't be shy, Feli!" Marinette highlighted the nick-name, clearly to tease him. "Your baby photos are adorable!"

"You can't use it as an incriminating evidence to blackmail me anyway." Felix rolled his eyes, but Alya could see he liked this playful conversation. "Don't forget to take your jacket." He reminded. "If you don't want to wear mine on your way home again." Did it only seem to her, or did Felix really speak with concern in his voice? "And your head too, if you're planning on walking." He added, narrowing his eyes.

"I won't stay that long this time." Marinette looked away, slightly blushing. "That's why I'll see your mom earlier." She looked back at Felix playfully again. "Unless you wanna have a pillow fight rematch." She smirked at him.

"I was under the impression that the last time I won." Felix smirked back.

"From my position it looked like you were defeated." Marinette smiled at him with shining eyes.

From my position? — Alya thought. These two not only looked like they were dating, but they practically discussed love games with pillows in bed.

Alya sighed. Her patience could only bear so much.

"So," she said, placing her hands on her waist. "If you two are done flirting, would you like to bring me up to date?" Both looked at her blinking, as if the meaning of her words hadn't reached their understanding. "Are you guys dating or something?" She hinted.

Marinette's face turned red immediately.

"Of course not!" She exclaimed, waving her hands in the air. "Why would you think that, Alya?!"

Felix was just looking at them silently, also blushing.

"Well, it sounds like you see each other out of school regularly, have some romantic time spent together. Felix even introduced you to his mother and you were watching his baby-pictures?" Alya listed. "Like really, I watched Nino's baby pictures with his mom after a year of dating him! Oh, and I'm not even starting on notes sharing during the lessons and all the flirting."

Marinette looked at her with her mouth open for a few moments. Then blinked.

"I think you just put separate facts together and misunderstood, Alya." She said finally, not even blushing, that meant that she really believed in what she was saying. Well, but nobody canceled the concept of denial... "We're just doing a school project together." Her oblivious friend continued. "And Felix's mother ordered some dresses from me." Then she threw an uncertain look at Felix. "I think you can say that we are... friends?"

"We are?" Felix asked, giving her a long penetrating look.

"I suppose?" Marinette replied quietly, as if waiting for his approval.

Alya narrowed her eyes on Felix. With what did this mischievous boy impress poor Marinette so much in only one week, that she blushes and wants to be friends with him?

"Friends it is." Felix smirked. "You know what they say: many wonderful things can grow out of friendship."

Without taking his eyes off hers, Felix took Marinette's hand, bent down slightly and kissed her knuckles.

Alya admired with delight the way her friend blushed slightly and held her breath while watching his actions.

Felix was smiling at her, not losing her eyes.

Alya saw that these two completely forgot about her presence. And she couldn't even blame her friend for that.

If she wasn't already happy in a relationship with her boyfriend, and some attractive guy was courting her in such a charming way, she would risk her heart too, forgetting everything around.

Right, Alya sighed. Friends indeed.