Chapter Text
Day 1: Confession
Kim glanced around nervously, standing guard while Max fiddled with the lock on Lila’s locker. Marinette and Alya had promised to keep her occupied while they worked, but his stomach still churned in little knots, his gaze flicking back to the door every few seconds. Kim and Lila had become fast friends through their love of pranks and innocent mischief, and although they normally directed their tricks at others, they still pranked each other a good bit of the time too.
But this time was different.
This prank had to be done perfectly because it held the key to their future, and Kim really didn’t want to mess it up or get caught pulling it. Lila had become someone very dear to him, someone he looked forward to seeing every day, someone he wanted desperately to impress, and before he could fully realize it, he’d fallen hopelessly in love with her. So there he stood at her locker while Max fiddled with the combination, roses in hand and a delicately wrapped ball of confetti sitting on the bench next to him with detailed instructions from Marinette on how to rig his trap.
“Are you almost done?” He asked impatiently, glancing back at the door and biting his lip.
“Nearly. Patience would be appreciated,” Max replied without looking up from his work. “Aha! Got it.”
Kim breathed a sigh of relief then got to work immediately. With Max’s help, he got everything in place and carefully shut the locker once more. He’d actually pulled it off! Now all he had to do was wait for her to open it, so he sent a quick text to Alya to let her know the deed was done.
“Thanks for the help, Max,” He said, slipping his phone back into his pocket and taking a deep breath.
“Do you want me to stay behind for moral support?” His best friend offered, but Kim shook his head.
“Nah, I want to do this on my own,” He replied decidedly, squaring his shoulders.
“Good luck.” Max patted his shoulder before pacing from the locker room as Kim began to pace.
After several minutes, he heard the locker room doors open and froze in place, holding his breath as he heard the clank of Lila’s boots approaching. When she saw him, she smiled in greeting, tilting her head to the side a little in confusion.
“What’s up, Kim?” She asked curiously.
“Oh, nothing. I was just waiting for you so we can plan our next prank,” He said smoothly, shoving his hands in his pockets. “I’m thinking about possibly replacing Chloe’s hairspray with spray-in hair color.”
“Nice! That’ll make her head explode for real,” Lila chuckled in approval. “Let me just get my stuff.”
“Sure.” Kim nodded, holding his breath as she turned to open her locker, blood running cold when she began twisting the combination in on the wrong locker. “Uh, isn’t this your locker?”
“No.” Lila shook her head, pulling it open, and sure enough, inside were a number of Lila’s belongings. “Why?”
“Oh, uh, no reason.” He pursed his lips and glanced at the door next to hers guiltily, but before Lila could speak, Nathaniel strolled in casually.
“Hey, guys,” Nath greeted with a nod as he stepped between them to open his locker.
Oh no.
Lila examined Kim’s expression with a contemplative glare before a smirk spread across her lips, and she stepped back, crossing her arms over her chest and awaiting what lied inside Nath’s locker. From the next row over, Max slapped a palm to his forehead, realizing his mistake.
“Max, I told you guys locker 25!” Marinette hissed under her breath as they all peaked around the corner to watch.
“The ink smudged against Kim’s water bottle from gym class!” He shot back defensively, and Marinette and Alya mirrored his face palm.
“What the-” Nath gasped as he pulled open his locker door to a face full of confetti, and Kim pinched the bridge of his nose as Lila cupped a hand over her mouth. “What the hell, Kim!”
I like you. Will you go out with me? The unfurled note read, covered in red glitter and tiny confetti hearts.
“Uhhh, got you!” He declared triumphantly with a laugh, and Nath simply rolled his eyes, brushing away glitter from his sketchpad and grabbing it out before slamming his locker and walking away.
“Wow, I never knew you felt that way about Nathaniel,” Lila teased when they were alone again, and Kim put on his best poker face.
“It was just a silly prank. It didn’t mean anything,” He said, rubbing the back of his neck as Lila looked him up and down.
“It’s a shame. I’m a little jealous of your feelings for Nathaniel,” She said with a sigh, placing her hands on her hips.
“Yeah, right. Like I’d ever have a crush on him.” He huffed, waving it away.
Lila eyed him for a minute, pursing her lips before rolling her eyes and grabbing Kim by the collar. He felt his breath hitch as her lips touched his, and slowly, he wrapped his arms around her, leaning into the kiss with a delighted sigh. When she pulled away, her green eyes met his with a softer glint, and she tapped his nose with her index finger.
“You’re really sweet when you want to be,” She murmured against his lips, brushing them with her own and teasing him into thinking she’d close the distance again, but at the last second, she pulled away abruptly, her signature smirk taking its place. “So, I’ll meet you here tomorrow with the hair color?”
“Uhhh,” Kim stammered, eyebrows furrowing a little in confusion.
“For our next prank. We need spray-in hair color, right? I’ll pick some up on my way home,” She said with a chuckle, pushing his jaw up with one finger to close his gaping mouth.
“R-Right. Yeah! Totally.” He nodded, cheeks burning as she sauntered away, hips swaying slightly before she stopped at the end of the row and turned over her shoulder with a smile.
“Oh, and Kim?” His eyebrows raised expectantly, and she averted her gaze shyly before flicking it back to him. “I like you too.”
Kim leaned against the locker with a dreamy sigh, gazing longingly at the door even after she was long gone. Max and the girls appeared from around the corner with giddy grins, offering their congratulations, but they soon realized that his brain had melted to a puddle, so they left him in his love-sick haze to replay the moment as many times as he’d like.