Dance In The Rain

~33~ No One Is Out Here

Second-hand embarrassment is real, my friends. Proceed with caution 🥴

Julianne's POV

I see a slim storage type of space in the corner and I start to head for it when his hand stops me as it grabs mine.

"I'm NOT forcing you into a closet, Julianne," he says darkly as he looks around for another place.

Heavy footfalls sound closer inside, and I see the panic in his eyes.

"You're not. I am," I whisper as I go to the corner and hide around it, praying that a spider doesn't crawl up my leg.

I peek around just enough to see Gage walking back over to the couch, and quickly tossing my soda into the garbage before sitting on the couch and pretending like he's bored as he scrolls on his phone.

"There you are," another deep voice says as he opens the sliding glass door, and Gage turns around in faux surprise.

"Hey! I thought you and mom were on a date," Gage says as he sticks his phone in his pocket and stands to face his dad.

Why is his dad so hot? And his brother? Strong genes, I guess

"Mom's Tesla was driving weird, so we came back. I told her we could grab the Model Y but she didn't want to go all the way back into the city."

Gage nods, and his dad looks at him hard for a minute. "First day of freedom and you're back here?"

"I just got back a little bit ago," he says casually as he crosses his arms to try and look bored.

His dad nods as he scratches the back of his neck and sighs. "We need to talk about this grade, kid. I know you think it's just a D, but Gage, Princeton won't accept this."

"Dad, I have a good grade in that class."

"That's funny, because I ended up calling Mr. Fitz. He said that this test will have you hovering around an A-. That's unacceptable."

"I'm sorry. I'll get it up." Gage says softly as he shifts from foot to foot.

"I know you will," his dad says as he squeezes his shoulder in a comforting motion, and I'm surprised. I thought Kenna said he was scary.

He seems pretty great

"Alright, get in position," his dad says softly, and my heart sinks.

What?

Gage's back straightens and his fists clench. "Ok, but can we go inside?" He asks in a strained tone.

His dad looks around with a confused look. "Inside? Your mom and brother are inside. No one's out here. Come on. Mom and I are going to go grab a drink at Quinn's before we get Willow."

Gage scratches the back of his neck and clears his throat.

"Please? The gardeners have access to the cameras out here."

"What's with you?" His dad asks incredulously as he unbuckles his belt and pulls it through the loops.

"Dad...." Gage says in a desperate voice, and it catches his dad's attention.

"You're home awful early, kid. Is someone here?" He asks as he walks over to the bar and looks behind it.

"I just....I really really tried on the test, but Psychology is hard for me. I don't get it."

"Then we will get you a tutor. You know the rules. If you get anything below an A we discuss it. If you get anything below a C you get punished for it."