Chapter 16: Conceal

Somehow, in the time that it takes to go from my locker to the parking lot, I've actually calmed down (to an extent). The one thing that makes me a bit suspicious is his smirk. It's gotten wider the closer we get to the spot where his car must be parked, and I'm not entirely sure why. When I see it, though, I understand. It's difficult to stop a smile from taking over my own face.

"Hey! That's-" I look at him, and he's grinning fully now, his pearly whites on full display.

"You were able to relax a little bit in this one before, right? Even with my so-called horrible driving?"

"Your driving is horrible. But... yes. A little bit."

"Good. Try and replicate that, yeah?" He opens the door to the purple convertible and gestures for me to do the same. I do, taking a few deep breaths before he initiates the trauma. He hangs his arm over the side of the car and glances at me, raising an eyebrow to accompany his smirk. I do the same, though to a significantly lesser extent. He reaches into the console and grabs a pair of sunglasses- Ray-Bans- and tosses them to me. I slip them on as he takes his own out of the chest pocket of his t-shirt, putting them on as he starts the engine.

The first thing I notice is that the engine is about as loud as it was during the test drives. I turn to him, frowning.

"You didn't make it louder?"

He's wearing a more rakish smirk, now. "Nope. Figured it was loud enough as is."

"Thank goodness," I mutter under my breath, and he flashes me a toothy smile.

"You're welcome."

And just like that, he's doing it again. Making me wonder how he thinks. Did he not get it made louder specifically because I said I liked quiet? Then why would he get the purple, instead of the green car, which was quieter? Did he get the purple because it was kind of loud, and if he got the green he'd want to make it louder, possibly making it louder than the purple?

"Hey, you are more relaxed in this car!" he shouts over the wind, and I realize that we're on the road now, where I'd usually be gripping onto something for dear life. But I'm not.

A moment later, I realize that he's also driving a lot less crazily than he usually does, which is probably the main reason I'm not terrified right now. "And you're driving almost like a normal person!" I shout back at him. He grins.

"Are you bored?"

"Absolutely not!"

He smirks and presses down on the accelerator suddenly, throwing me back. I grab onto the seat immediately, and he laughs as he slows down again. I glare at him, though I doubt he can see through my sunglasses, and he gives me an exuberant smile. It only lasts a moment, but it's brighter than the sun (though I am wearing sunglasses, so the sun seems a lot less bright).

He suddenly pulls over, though not as suddenly as he usually does when stopping a car, and I look up to realize that we're at my house. I look at him, but he's already getting out. I quickly take the sunglasses off and carefully place them back in the console, then get out as well.

"I figured you should write your parents a note or something, this time."

"They know I'm supposed to be tutoring you today, though."

"Well..." he's still wearing his reflective sunglasses, but his tone tells me that he's hiding something. I'm immediately suspicious.

"What?"

"I was actually wondering... if you would help me with a project. For school."

I narrow my eyes at him. "And?"

"And it might go overnight."

I stare at him. "You're kidding, right?"

"Why would I be kidding?"

I sigh, dragging a hand down my face. "Overnight? As in, I would be sleeping at your house."

He pauses. "I mean, not necessarily."

"Tell me what you're asking. Actually explain it."

He smirks a little. "It would essentially be a camping trip. A weekend camping trip."

"A weekend camping trip," I repeat. "How does that have anything to do with school?"

"It's a nature study. My tutor suggested it."

"A nature study? Which subject is that for?"

"I can explain on the way. You know all of the important stuff. It's a camping trip that may go until Sunday."

"Sunday. So, overnight twice."

"Yes. But not technically at my house."

"I hardly know you."

"Name's Patrick Dumont. You've met both my parents, my stylist, and you spent at least a few hours at my house last week."

"I didn't know you very well then, either. But this isn't even just hanging out. That's overnight. That's- that's completely different. Are you even aware of what you're asking?"

"Yes. For you to come with me on a camping trip."

"Okay, when you say 'camping trip' do you mean like, in a trailer, a cabin, or a tent?"

"Um... a tent."

"A tent," I repeat.

"Yes."

"One tent?" I don't even want to think about sleeping in a tent with him. Too close. So much anxiety.

He (Patrick?) sighs. "Okay, no. More likely, none. More along the lines of sleeping bags."

"No tent?"

"No tent."

I sigh. "This is- do you really expect me to say yes to this? And even if I did, my parents would definitely not."

"It's for school. You'd get extra credit. I'm sure your parents would like that."

"Only if I left out all the details. I'd have to essentially say a school project for extra credit."

"So do that."

"Shocking as this may be, I'm not super inclined towards the idea of camping without even a tent. Not even for extra credit."

"Not even for a hundred bucks an hour? Which, over that period of time, would be like, around 6 grand? Okay, what if I promise to drive like a relatively normal person whenever I'm with you?"

I wish he didn't know how convincing his arguments are.

He comes closer and takes my hands in his, and I'm sure that since I can't see his eyes, he's searching my face in that way he does. "Still not convinced? Alright. I'll let you drive, instead of me."

Finally, something I can rebut. "I don't have my license."

"You don't have your license?" He sounds surprised. I shake my head. "Huh. Alright. Then... in addition to the first two, I'll never try to get you to skip class again."

"Done." I unlock the door and go inside, gesturing for him to follow. "Take off your shoes. And don't turn on any lights or anything."

"Okay." He takes his sunglasses off and hooks them through the neck of his t-shirt, turning it into a V-neck. I try not to smile too much while I find a pen and paper and scribble out a note to my parents (very vague, mentioning the payment and extra school credit). Then, I look back at him.

"Should I pack anything?"

He shrugs. "Don't worry about it too much. I'm rich, I've got loads of extra stuff that you can use. Is there anything you feel like you really need?"

"I mean, clothes?"

He shakes his head.

"Toiletries, maybe?"

He waves a hand.

I press my lips together (see, this is exactly why this is a bad idea. I don't know him. We're not super comfortable with each other. There will be so much awkwardness around so many things). "How about... underclothes?"

He smirks. "We can share mine."

My face feels like it's about to spontaneously combust. He laughs.

"Don't worry, I'm kidding. But also don't worry about that. I've got plenty of extra everything, most of which hasn't even been touched yet."

I swallow and inhale, then exhale. "Okay, fine. So, do I need anything?"

He shrugs. "Not really. I have a lot of friends over, and there's never really been a problem on the having stuff front."

I nod. "Alright. So... we can just go?"

He pulls out his phone. "Yeah, my tutor will probably be getting to my house around now, so that'd probably be a good idea."

So we leave. I triple check to lock the front door before I go back to get into his convertible. Patrick's wearing his sunglasses again, so I can't tell if he's looking at me or not. It's a little annoying, that he could be doing that thing that he does and I wouldn't even know.

As I'm getting into the car, he pulls his sunglasses down and appraises me. "Has anyone ever told you that it's cute when you blush like that?'

My face had been starting to cool down before, but that comment brings it back. My mouth opens and closes before I manage to get out a, "N-no."

He puts his sunglasses back on and reverses out of my driveway with that signature smirk without responding.

What did you think of the chapter? Any ideas as to why the millionaire's new car isn't any louder? How about why he drove almost like a normal person? And what did you think of the millionaire inviting Todd on an overnight trip (until Sunday) without even so much as a tent? And the comment he made about Todd blushing?

If you enjoyed this chapter, please consider letting me know by voting or commenting! Thank you so much for reading, and happy holidays to anyone celebrating!