𝐈 𝐎𝐖𝐍 𝐘𝐎𝐔

𝐈𝐗 | 𝐃𝐑𝐈𝐕𝐄

꧁꧂

Oh...

It's raining...

Staring up at the dark and grey cloud-covered sky, torrents of rain dropping onto the earth and wetting the greenery and pavement, (Y/N) stood just outside the entrance of the school for a moment. She had always liked the rain, but at the same time, she didn't like getting caught up in it, and there was a bit of way to the student parking lot.

    "(Y/N)!" A voice called, the girl turning to see Cage approaching her with a wave. "Sorry to make you wait for so long."

    "I wasn't waiting for you," she stated bluntly.

    "Did you forget?" Cage chuckled, completely ignoring her answer as he slid his hands into his pockets, his dark gaze flicking out towards the rain-soaked streets. "We have our tutoring session this afternoon. And every afternoon from now on until you feel confident in chemistry."

    "Well, my tutoring sessions with Mr. Henderson were only on Monday's and Thursday's, so I think ours should be as well," (Y/N) murmured.

"But Mr. Henderson mentioned in his email that it would be better if I tutored you everyday considering you were still having a little trouble in his class," he mentioned, flashing her that charming smile of his to hide the lie that slipped through his teeth—Thorne had never said anything like that in the email, but (Y/N) didn't need to know that. "Besides, what have you got to lose studying just a bit extra everyday?"

(Y/N) exhaled.

She knew Cage was right.

Too tired to continue trying to argue, she merely gave a shrug, accepting his offer.

His smirk broadened.

"I'll drive you, and I can have your car delivered to your place again," he then began again as he started to steer her towards his sleek black car.

"You know how to drive, right?" (Y/N) raised a brow at him.

"You wound me," Cage placed a hand to his chest with faux sadness as he slid into the driver's side just as she slid into the passenger's. "I may be driven to school everyday because I can, but that doesn't mean I don't know how to drive. I'm not that incapable. I mean, I got here this morning just fine, didn't I?"

"Just checking," the girl hummed as she clicked her seatbelt in.

Settling back in her seat as Cage started the engine and pulled out of the parking lot, (Y/N) could feel her eyelids starting to droop from how toasty the car turned, a vast difference to the icy winds outside. She felt so comfortable at the point, from the warmth to the almost rhythmic tapping of the rain against the windshield, that she was sure she would have drifted off to sleep if she hadn't forced herself to stay awake.

Rubbing her eyes, she let out a small yawn.

"You tired?" Cage asked, his dark eyes pinned to the road in front of him.

"Yeah," she mumbled, snuggling deeper into her jacket, her voice soft. "Your car is so nice heating up so fast... it's cozy..."

"Does your car not do that?"

"No... it's kinda old."

"Should I buy you a new car, then?"

"No... too much work..." she trailed off, her eyes then snapping open after processing his words so she could turn her gaze towards him. "Well, actually, I mean... if you're offering..."

    Cage laughed at her switch up.

    (Y/N) stared at him for a moment longer before turning away, a small smile of her own on her lips. When he noticed that, he couldn't help but feel a bit of pride in himself for being the one to make her smile—it meant that Thorne wasn't the only person who was able to break her nonchalant expression. Pulling up into his driveway, Cage parked the car and hurriedly jogged inside his house with (Y/N) right behind him.

    "Welcome home, young master," an elderly man dressed in a sharp black suit greeted.

    (Y/N) blinked.

    What the...?

    This guy wasn't here last time, though...

    Noticing her confused look, Cage then said, "This is Mr. Presley, the supervisor of the house. He's in charge of the help and making sure that the house operates smoothly—probably why you didn't see him yesterday."

    "Oh..." she nodded.

    Cage then gestured for her to follow him back up to his room like last time, Mr. Presley watching as they did so. As he readjusted his glasses, he had wondered what made Cage change so quickly, but now it seemed as if he had his answer. Cage never took the time to introduce him to his other guests before, nor did he ever invite the same person back to his place twice.

    Something was different this time.

    Deciding not to poke his nose too much into the situation, Mr. Presley promptly turned around and resumed his duties.

Meanwhile, upstairs, (Y/N) was currently wrapping a blanket that Cage had provided her with around her arms as she sat down at his desk, trembling a little bit from how cold it was. While she felt a little bit like a drowned rat, Cage found the scene before him a bit adorable, propping his head up whilst snickering softly under his breath.

"I'm glad me being cold is amusing to you," she muttered, wrapping the blanket tighter around her.

"I can't help that it is," he held up his hands in defense before then taking out the chemistry textbook again, flipping open the pages yet glancing at her from the corner of his eye. "I guess you're not good against the cold, though?"

"Not really."

"I can have Mr. Presley send up some hot cocoa or something, if you want?"

"Bro, that sounds really good right now," (Y/N) nodded as she then took out her chemistry folder and notes. "Thanks."

As the two began their study session, it wasn't long before a knock on the door could be heard, Mr. Presley then entering with a mug of steaming cocoa in his hands. Presenting it to (Y/N) who murmured a soft 'thanks' again in response, the older man turned to leave. However, he hesitated with his hand just on the handle, turning back ever so slightly to see Cage gazing at (Y/N) softly while she eagerly drank.

Mr. Presley tilted his head.

Something was distinctly different.

He then turned around, closing the door behind him as he left the two alone.

꧁꧂