Chapter 239: 239: Officially Famous (Part 6)
Just as the time was nearing 4 PM, Don, Donald, Sylvia, and Summer arrived at the Chanel Hills community.
They pulled in without hassle, and as Donald was driving toward their homes, Don was busy tapping away at his phone, much like Summer and Sylvia.
Only, unlike them, who were busy on social media, he was sending a text to Tori that read:
*Hey, sorry I couldn't reach out to you today. I forgot I'd be taking part in the evaluation. Anyway, how was your day?*
Before sending the text, Don paused, his finger hovering above the send icon.
'Seems like a reasonable enough message to send. I mean, it's not like she texted me either. Better than her thinking I'm just an asshole who forgot completely, I guess.'
Not needing to think too long on it, Don tapped the send icon and put his phone away just as Donald pulled to a stop in front of their house.
He turned off the engine and snapped his head toward Don before asking, "Hey, do you plan on going to school tomorrow? Not for the evaluation, but to use the capsules and maybe get a little practice in to prepare for the VR FPS league?"
Hearing Donald say this, Sylvia pulled her attention away from her phone and leaned forward through the space between the two front seats. She asked Donald with curious eyes, "Ooh, what's that?"
Having Sylvia close to his face made Donald immediately blush. He wanted to respond but choked on his words, only managing to mutter out sounds before Don came to his rescue and answered.
"It's a shooting game but in virtual reality and competitive," he summarized before answering Donald's question. "Yeah, man, no problem. That is, unless something comes up. I'll let you know first thing in the morning, if that's all right."
Donald, trying to avoid Sylvia's mesmerizing eyes, answered in a cracked voice, "Y-yeah, man, cool... uh... you know, I'll hit you up in the morning."
Don narrowed his eyes at the response, thinking,
'Real smooth Donald.'
Despite thinking this, Don decided to play along and just answered, "Cool… Do that, man. Text me if anything."
With nothing more left to say, Don took the initiative to step out of the vehicle first before retrieving the box he had put in the back. His doing so prompted Sylvia to lose all interest in Donald as she pulled her head away, saying, "Thanks for the ride."
She proceeded to step out as well, followed by Summer, who simply said, "Yeah, thanks," in a half-hearted tone before exiting the vehicle too.
Donald gave an awkward wave toward Don before the engine roared to a start and he drove forward.
As he was driving away, Summer came to stand beside Don and crossed her arms under her chest before commenting, "Your friend's a little weird."
Don just shrugged and walked away first, waving his hand dismissively. "You say that like you're normal yourself."
This comment of his prompted Summer to frown and snap her head in his direction, looking at him with narrowed eyes as she asked, "The hell is that supposed to mean?"
Don didn't answer and simply kept walking, entering the house first and closing the door behind him.
"Gah, he's so insufferable," Summer growled, stepping onto the property as well, only more aggressively, with Sylvia following behind at a casual pace.
Once inside, Don first checked to see if Amanda or Winter were around by calling out their names, but after getting no response, he simply made his way upstairs and directly to his room.
He had already showered at SHU after the evaluation, so there was no need to do so again. Instead, his attention turned to the box he was holding, which he proceeded to place on his bed before opening it.
Inside, he found some bubble wrap, which he quickly removed to reveal the device inside. It was rather small, no bigger than a TV remote, similar in appearance too with its plastic surface, a few buttons, and a small screen about 2 inches across.
At the back of this device was a single sheet of paper, which Don could only assume was the instructions. He pulled it off the device and quickly read through the information provided.
The instructions stated:
*To use this device, start by pressing the power button to turn it on. Make sure it's within a 5-meter radius of the android you plan on testing. You will automatically get a message on the screen that reads 'Android detected. Proceed with scan,' after which you should press the blue button in the corner. You will then get a message reading 'Connecting' on your screen. The android should be able to detect that an external device is trying to access its systems. Tell it to allow access, and the device will begin scanning. The process should take about an hour, and after completion, if nothing is out of order, it should say 'No external threats found.' If any are detected, assume the android is insecure.*
The instructions were simple and straightforward, and after breezing through them all, Don nodded in satisfaction before placing the device and the piece of paper into one of the drawers of his dresser.
'Well, I promised Mom I wouldn't do any training, but I don't have anything better to do, so I could just do some mental training for an hour while I wait for her to get back and give me that massage.'
Thinking on that, Don couldn't help but smile to himself, greatly looking forward to it after what had happened last time.
With that in mind, he grabbed the now box, planning to throw it out.
But just as he opened the door to step out of his room, he found Sylvia standing in front of it, looking like she was just about to knock.
Seeing Don open the door before she could, Sylvia retracted her hand and put it behind her back, along with the other, while slightly tiptoeing.
"Oh, hey there," she said with a wide smile on her face.
The first thing Don did was look both ways down the hallway. Only after seeing no signs of Summer did he turn his attention back to Sylvia and answer, "Hey," his voice trailing with suspicion before he asked, "What can I help you with?"
Sylvia tilted her head thoughtfully, puffing out one of her cheeks as she did so, then hummed before answering, "I don't know… what can you do for me?" As she said this, she straightened her head and leaned slightly forward, her smile now looking more flirtatious than friendly.
Don couldn't tell if she was genuinely flirting with him or if there was something else he was missing. Before he could answer, though, Sylvia pulled her head back and just giggled.
"I'm just kidding. I just thought I'd come see you while Summer is taking a shower. I get bored really fast, so I thought, why not come here?"
As plausible as that reason seemed, Don felt like Sylvia wasn't being completely honest. But he gave her a slight smirk and played along. "Well, you've seen me now."
Almost immediately, Sylvia bit her lip enticingly, eyeing him up and down. She then extended one hand forward and delicately placed it on his chest before suggesting, "I have. But while I'm here, how about I give you a proper congratulations for kicking ass today and helping me win on the bets I placed on you?" She giggled mischievously.
'Wait… does she mean?'
Don thought, his mind already drawing the quickest conclusion—and it was the right one as Sylvia added with a whisper, "My mouth misses you."