The drama teacher's voice echoed through the auditorium:
"Alright girls, you're up. Let's run the love duet from Act II!"
Kagami stepped onto the practice platform like she was going into a sword match.Composed. Steady. Every movement precise.
Marinette followed, nervously adjusting her mic belt, cheeks already glowing pink.
They'd run this scene four times already. But somehow the words "just a rehearsal" didn't feel real anymore.
"You're the light I never looked for," Marinette whispered, in character.
Kagami stepped closer.
"You're the warmth I didn't know I missed."
It was the way Kagami said it — not as a line, but as a confession.
They were barely a foot apart. Breath mingling. Lights soft.
"Cue the kiss," the teacher called.
Marinette panicked. "Wait, like—now?"
Kagami met her gaze — utterly unreadable, except her hands were shaking just slightly.
"Just follow me," she said quietly.
Then Kagami leaned in.
And kissed her.
It was supposed to be short. Chaste. Stage-blocked.
It wasn't.
Kagami's lips brushed against Marinette's like a question she'd never dared to ask.Marinette froze—then melted, leaning into it, her hands finding Kagami's shoulders for balance.
Kagami's fingers tangled in the back of Marinette's shirt, just for a second — just long enough to make her feel wanted.
They broke apart.
The room was dead silent.
Marinette stared at her, blinking. "That… was not just acting."
Kagami blinked back, calm but pink at the ears. "No. It wasn't."
Marinette nearly dropped her prop sword.
Later that night. Empty stage. House lights dimmed. Luka sat cross-legged near center, strumming quietly on his guitar.
Adrien found him there.
"Rehearsal was... intense," Adrien said, trying to laugh it off. "Saw Marinette and Kagami's scene."
Luka didn't look up. "It was beautiful."
Adrien sat beside him. Not too close. But not far.
"Do you ever feel like you're being pulled in... too many directions?" Adrien said. "Like your heart's made of magnets and everything's trying to stick to it at once?"
Luka smiled, still playing. "I feel like that every time I write a song."
Silence. Then:
"I don't know what I want," Adrien whispered. "I kissed you. And I felt something real. But I also keep thinking about Marinette. And seeing her with Kagami... it made me sad, but also happy, which makes no sense."
Luka looked at him now. Eyes soft. Gentle.
"It makes sense," Luka said. "Hearts aren't puzzles. They're chords. They vibrate to more than one note."
Adrien's breath caught. "That's... poetic."
"I'm a musician," Luka said, smiling. "But also... I like you, Adrien. And I don't need you to be certain."
Adrien looked at him — really looked.
And something inside him quieted. Like Luka's presence was a tuning fork for the chaos inside.
He reached out, brushed Luka's knuckles. Barely.
The contact was featherlight. But Luka didn't pull away.
Adrien whispered, "This feels different than anything else."
Luka replied, just as soft: "That's because it is."
They sat there — under stage lights, hearts wide open, no masks, no lines.