Note: I'm a bit behind, but enjoy this chapter a day late! It's probably my favorite so far.

August 5, Entry #31 of Gabriel Agreste's Secret Journal

Adrien and I had our first father-son bonding experience today, and it was much better than I had anticipated.

It all started yesterday at dinner when Adrien told me he wanted to take a drive in the country.

I told him, "Okay, as long as you are safe and let the Gorilla drive behind you."

He said, "Of course."

Then I told him that I would also be in the countryside, as I was attending a shoot there for the fall line. The photographer wanted some nature shots to complement the clothes. I suggested that perhaps we should drive together.

Adrien shuffled around a bit, then said. "I'm sorry Father, but if it's okay, I would rather drive separately. Marinette is also coming with me."

"Oh, why is that?"

"Well, uh, you see-"

I interrupted my son, as I realized what he was trying to say. "Ah, the intern wanted to be a part of the shoot, didn't she? You two were planning to visit the set, weren't you? She could have just asked, you know, instead of going through you. I would have been quite pleased to offer her a chance to go."

"Err, yeah! Yes Father, that's exactly the reason! See, Marinette didn't want to overstep since you invited her to your last shoot. It was my idea to drive by it."

"Very well then. Since you both want to be there, I'll allow you both to come. I expect to see the two of you promptly at nine in the morning there. I'll have Nathalie email you the address and directions."

"Thank you Father." For some reason, Adrien didn't seem nearly as excited as I was expecting.

Anyway, this morning I left the house, my personal driver escorting me to the shoot. I considered bringing along Pumpernickel for company, but then remembered the no-litter-box incident from yesterday. I figured it was best to leave her in Nathalie's care, even if I did have to endure an I-Told-You-So look.

Everything was going fine, until the car started smoking halfway through our drive. My personal driver pulled over, and I got out my phone to call for another car.

It was then I realized we were in the middle of nowhere, I refused to hitch-hike, and that if I was to call for another car, I would be late to the shoot. That would be unacceptable.

Then I remembered that Adrien was also on his way to the shoot, and that perhaps I could hitch a ride with him and the intern.

I called him. "Hello Son, this is your Father."

"Mr. Agreste! Is something wrong?"

"Hello intern. Where is my son?"

"He's driving, and thought it would be unsafe to answer his phone."

"Very well, a smart decision. Intern, how close are you to the shoot?"

"Um, we are just about halfway."

"Perfect," I said, then hung up because the car started making a hissing noise, and thought it best to check with the driver to see if I frantically needed to run away.

After making sure the car was not going to explode, I realized I probably should have given the two more details. It was then too late to call them back, as I saw an Agreste car making its way down the road.

I frantically waved my arms up and down to catch their attention. It seemed to work, as the car suddenly put on its breaks, swerved a little, then slowly pulled up beside me.

"Father!" Adrien ran out of the car, the intern close behind him. "What happened?!"

"The car broke down. I need you two to take me to the shoot or else I'll be late. That cannot happen." Adrien and the intern looked at each other.

"Sure!" The intern squeaked out. Adrien sighed.

"Thank you." I said. "Now Adrien, where is the Gorilla?"

"Oh," Adrien scratched the back of his neck. "We may have...lost him."

"You what?"

"Um, lost him? Maybe we turned down a few alleys to confuse him, called him and told him we were hanging out at Nino's instead, and since Nathalie has approved that as a safe place to hang out, he didn't have to follow us?"

"Hmm," I said. "You're lucky you weren't attacked. It's a good thing I called and found you. Now, hand my driver your keys so he can drive us."

My son stared at me. "You're just going to leave the other car on the side of the road?"

"Yes. I've already called Nathalie to get someone to pick it up."

"Of course you did," Adrien mumbled, fishing out his keys.

"Good. Now, let's get going. We are running right on time." I opened the back door and motioned for the intern to get in. I got into the car after her, taking the middle seat. Adrien stood outside the car, aghast.

"Father!" he hissed. "What are you doing?!"

"Preparing to leave for the shoot, as you should be doing as well." I patted the seat next to me.

"Don't you want to sit in the front?"

"And sit by the driver? No. That would be improper for someone of our rank."

"Our rank, why would that even…?" Adrien let out a sigh. "Father, at least let me sit by Marinette."

"I'm sorry Adrien, but I must sit in the middle. Looking at the horizon line calms the stress I have concerning the shoot."

Adrien grumbled, but he eventually sat beside me. The driver turned on the car, and immediately, the song "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" came blasting out of the speakers.

"Son," I turned toward Adrien. "I did not realize you liked the Lion King so much."

"Uh, yeah Father." Adrien's face was red. "It's a great movie."

"Yes, yes it is." It was then I noticed the intern had been quiet for quite some time. I turned to her, about to ask how she was liking working at Agreste Fashions, when I saw a basket on her lap.

I pointed to it, "Why is there a basket?"

"Um, well, we didn't know how close we would be to a restaurant for lunch, so we packed a little something to eat," the intern said, smiling sheepishly.

"A wise move," I nodded. "Speaking of lunch, it is getting later and I did not eat breakfast. Would you mind if we broke into the food now?"

Adrien put his head in his hands. "Sure Father. Eat what you want."

"Thank you," I said as the intern passed me the basket. Inside, I found chocolate-covered strawberries. As I took a bite of the chocolatey goodness, the song "Can't Help Falling In Love" by Elvis Presley came over the sound system.

"Delicious. Would you two like some?"

"Yes, thank you," the intern said.

"Okay," said my son.

"They are really good, Adrien," commented the intern.

"Thanks, this is just not how I imagined us eating them."

"It's better, correct?" I said. "You know, I think this is the closest we've eaten together in a long time. Normally we sit at opposite ends of the huge dining table."

"Yes," said Adrien. He sighed again.

I was still a bit hungry, so I looked into the basket again and pulled out a plain croissant.

"Look at that. It's in the shape of a heart. Impressive," I said, then gobbled down the whole thing.

"Wow, what a coincidence," Adrien muttered. The intern smothered a laugh behind her hand.

I looked in the basket some more. "This is a poorly packed lunch. Where is the meat? Vegetables? Cheese? Oh wait, I see the camembert. Although, you do have the desserts covered. Adrien, just because you don't model as much doesn't mean you can be careless about what you eat. I didn't hire you a nutritionist for nothing."

"I'll keep that in mind Father," Adrien muttered as yet another love song came over the radio. Strange. I'll add that to Adrien's list of weird quirks. Perhaps I'll ask Nathalie if she thinks I should be worried about that.

Regardless, the rest of the drive passed very nicely, even if I did most of the talking, and Adrien kept sighing dramatically. I'll have to ask Nathalie about that weird behavior too.

We arrived to the shoot at the perfect time, and it went very well. Adrien and the intern stayed all day watching and learning from me, and then, as we were driving home together, I found some heart-shaped chocolate croissants in the bottom of the basket. It was a wonderful day.