Work Text:
The city was oddly quiet. The soft glow from the lamp posts held the warmth of the last few hours of sunlight that had just disappeared over the horizon. Your weekend in Skyhaven had not gone to plan; with Caleb being busy the majority of the day, you were left to your own devices. The most time you had spent with him was during the car ride to the train station, an uncomfortable silence hanging in the air.
For weeks now, there had been something between you two— something unspoken, something neither one of you had the nerve to acknowledge out loud. It wasn’t that you hadn’t tried to push it away either. You had, multiple times. But whenever he was near, whenever his laugh echoed in your ears, whenever he flashed that mischievous grin that made your heart flutter, you felt something in your chest pull. And that wasn’t something easy to ignore.
You tried to tell yourself it was just a fleeting feeling, that Caleb was charming and fun. This was nothing new to you. He had always been adored wherever he went. In your eyes, he was the same charming boy from your childhood who took care of you, and you were just another person caught in his inevitable orbit. But every time he looked at you and his voice dipped slightly lower when he spoke your name, it felt different. It felt like more than just friends, more than a caring childhood friend. And that scared you.
Caleb had a way of drawing people in with ease, with that handsome smile and the mischievous glint in his eyes, it was impossible to resist. He was like fire: dangerous and all-consuming, but for some reason, you couldn’t help but want to be close to him. You wanted to burn in his gaze until you were nothing but ash.
With a soft sigh, you nestle into your couch, gazing out the expansive window of your apartment. You close your eyes, a poor attempt to clear your mind, but as always, your thoughts circle back to Caleb.
Perhaps if you weren’t so caught up in the neverending cycle of your thoughts, you would have heard the lock on your door click. Like the bell on a cat’s collar, the distinct noise of Caleb’s necklace alerts you that you have a visitor. But being so caught up that you don’t notice until a voice pulls you out of your spiraling thoughts.
“You look like you’re carrying the weight of the world.”
You didn’t need to turn around to know who had broken into your home. Caleb’s voice is unmistakable, a little lazy, and wrapped in that teasing charm you knew so well. It eases any sense of panic you may have had at the idea of an intruder in your home. A glance over the shoulder is all you offer him, watching as just as he steps into the room, his presence filling the space. You hear the clatter of his keys on the coffee table, his jacket following as he slides into the space next to you. The ease at which he does so grips your heart; he fills in the spaces of your life like he was born for it.
“Am I that obvious?” you ask, attempting to keep your tone light but you know nothing escapes him.
For what it’s worth, Caleb gives you a half-smile, the one he reserves for the moments when he likes to pretend he’s not trying to read you. “You’re always obvious when something’s on your mind. At least to me,” he says, and you are sure there’s an underlying meaning to his words, but you’re not going to mull over it right now. “You’re not exactly subtle about it.”
You offer your own half-smile at that. “I’m fine,” you reply softly, your voice sounding more confident than you felt. “Just tired, I guess.”
He doesn’t seem convinced. But being the perfect man that he is, he doesn’t push you to answer. Instead, he turns his gaze to the window, looking out at the same view. For a long moment, neither of you speak. The silence wasn’t uncomfortable; it rarely was. It just feels just heavy. It feels as if there was a lot you both were tiptoeing around, both scared to say the wrong thing in fear that the fragile balance you two struggled to uphold would shatter.
“What’s on your mind then?” he asks quietly, his voice soft but steady. There was no teasing tilt to his tone, just a quiet curiosity that made your heart race.
You open your mouth to respond, but the words quickly become stuck in your throat. The truth was right there; you want to say how much you love and adore him, how his mere presence makes your heart flutter, and how much you were scared of losing him again when it feels like you barely even have him now. But you couldn’t. You couldn’t bear the thought of what that would mean. And you couldn’t bear the thought of your Caleb disappearing again.
Instead, you force a half-assed shrug. “I don’t know. Same old things.”
Caleb looks at you, and you can feel the way his gaze zeroes in on your face. He knows that’s not the truth, and you’re scared that he can somehow read your mind.
“You’re not very good at pretending. You never have been,” he says, finally calling you out with a soft chuckle. There is no accusation in his voice, only understanding as he attempts to catch your eye. “You know you can talk to me, right?”
You swallow, but your voice barely makes it past your lips. “I don’t really know what to say.”
Caleb cups your chin, forcing you to look at him. His gaze is intense, almost like he is searching for something in you, something he can pull out and read like an answer key. His eyes, deep and dark, lock onto yours, and for a brief moment, everything else disappears.
“Say anything,” he whispers.
His words felt like a revelation, a key turning in a lock you hadn’t even known was there. He nudges the door open, and you feel as if you can slam it open. The look of reassurance he gives you fuels you as you attempt to sort the mess of your heart. You could be honest, right? Even if it scared you, and even if it meant something you weren’t ready to face. You could be honest with Caleb.
Right?
“I can’t,” you say, voice shaky as tears start to pool in the corner of your eyes. “What if I ruin everything?”
Caleb’s hand moves from your chin to your cheek, his thumb running under your eye and catching the tears that fall. He leans forward, kissing your tears off his thumb. You struggle to breathe, scared that if you let your breath go he’ll disappear.
“You won’t ruin anything,” he says quietly. “Just.. don’t hide from me. Please.”
His soft plea breaks you. You don’t know what it is about Caleb, whether it's the way he makes you feel seen, or how easy it is to be with him, but it’s hard to keep pretending things are okay.
“You don’t understand,” you whisper, your voice barely audible. “I don’t know what you want from me. I don’t know what this is between us, and I’m scared. I’m scared of messing things up.”
Caleb doesn’t pull away. He just stares at you, as if trying to read your heart. Then, very softly, he speaks again.
“I’m not asking you for anything you’re not ready to give,” he replies. His words seem so simple, yet they’re so reassuring, calming your racing heart. “I just... want you to stop pretending like I don’t know. I know what I want, and it’s only ever been you. I just want you. ”
You feel the weight of his words settles deep in your chest. How long have you been running from this? How long had you been pushing it down, thinking that if you just ignored it, it would go away?
But it hadn’t. That pull was still there, unwavering and undeniable. No matter how much time had passed.
“I... I love you,” you whisper, your voice trembling with the vulnerability you had kept hidden for so long. “I love you so much, and I don’t know what that means. I don’t know what it means for us. But it scares me. It scares me to think about what happens next.”
Caleb’s face softens, his fingers tucking your hair behind your ear as he catches your gaze. When your teary eyes meet his, steady and full of something you can’t even begin to name, you begin to feel silly. He looks at you with so much love and understanding, holding space for you in a way that only he ever can.
“I love you too,” he says, his voice quiet but clear. “I love you more than you realize.”
It was everything you wanted to hear but never thought you’d get. Not in this sense.
And yet, here he was, sitting in front of you, offering you the truth without any walls. He didn’t need to say it again. You could see it in the way he looked at you, as if loving you was the natural thing in the world.
“I just needed you to say it,” you say, almost pouting at how small you felt under his gaze. “All this time, I wanted you to say it.”
“Sorry,” Caleb chuckles, a genuine, unguarded smile that makes your heartache in the best way possible on his face. “Well, now I have.”
And just like that, the world didn’t seem so complicated anymore. After all, with Caleb in your corner, there was nothing that scared you.