Work Text:
Caleb’s Playlist :
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Joyride — CORTIS
You had suggested it one afternoon, more as an afterthought rather than anything more concrete. The idea of taking a full week off for a getaway trip with no proper plan. Just a car, a haphazardly packed suitcase, and enough adrenaline to let the wind take you wherever you felt like it was worth celebrating Caleb’s birthday at.
Mentioning such absurd ideas out of your own mouth was never a foreign concept. And neither was the concept of Caleb fulfilling those same absurd ideas; though you didn't think he’d actually take this one seriously until the night before, where he knocked on your door and invited himself in with nothing more than a backpack filled with clothes and whatever else was important enough for him.
You stared at him, mouth agape. “Are you really taking a week off from being the fleet's colonel just for your birthday?”
“Yeah?” He replied easily, sitting on the couch with no regrets left in the world. “That's what you want, right? A chance to celebrate my special day in the span of a week, where I'm all yours.”
“I didn't think you'd actually take it seriously…” you mumbled, looking to the side, fiddling with your fingers. “I don't even know where we should go.”
“I thought that's the point of it.”
Caleb stood and approached you, holding your hand in a way your eyes naturally followed after. He held your gaze when it flew over to his face, as if he had already anticipated it. A tug, and you came close enough to feel his heartbeat against your chest. It fell into a rhythm identical to yours, tying you both together.
When he leaned in for a kiss, you held no strength to stop him. It lasted only a fleeting moment, but long enough to make you crave already.
Has it really been this long since you had him to yourself? You found yourself licking your lips, chasing after the faintest bit of flavour he left behind, unaware that it occurred without a second thought.
Caleb observed the movement, looking back at you with a certain gaze. He breathed, once.
“Let’s not think about anything else, okay?” Caleb whispered, treading through your hair. Soft, carrying your scent which he missed. “For tonight, I just want you. For tomorrow…we’ll figure it out.”
Caleb’s Playlist :
▶︎·|၊|။||||။၊|။|||။|||။ 3:03
Chasing That Feeling — TOMORROW X TOGETHER
Caleb didn't wake you up until it struck 11 in the morning. And that was the kindest thing he could do, considering what he had just put you through the night before.
When you did gradually come to be later on, the first thing you felt was panic. A rise of something wicked that compelled you to sit up straighter than he ever managed to make you do back while you were younger—your habits of slouching were one of the few things he didn't quite get around to fixing.
It just so happened that at the same time, Caleb was bringing in breakfast to you; just nowhere near to dropping it with all due to his gravity working just as fast as his reflexes. He raised a brow, whistling low. “Good morning?”
“Why didn't you wake me up!?” You exclaimed, eyes trembling. “We were supposed to leave by now! I don't even have anything packed yet, oh my god, and then the car isn't at full tank, and I haven't done any research like I was planning to do last night because you—”
“Because I decided to hog up all of your time, that's what you're gonna say,” Caleb interrupted you softly, setting the breakfast table down beside you. It was hard to resist the allure of it—omelette, pancakes, toast…a dream. It must be a dream to have him tilt his head at you too, flicking your forehead like you were still a child.
“We have the whole week, so what's the rush? We can leave now, later, even at midnight if you want to.”
He had a point. There was no need to feel like the world was ending just because you slept in.
Puffing your cheeks, you made the decision to steady your resolve right then and there. “We're leaving in two hours. I don't want another second wasted after this.”
“As you wish, my colonel.”
True to your word, you finished breakfast and packed your bags in record speed. Then the keys were inserted, the car roof was pulled down, and after one quick gas refuel; everything was set in motion. Not perfectly, but together.
“There,” setting your phone on the holder, you let the GPS play as Caleb drove.
“Where we goin’?”
A smile. “Somewhere we won't be found.”
Caleb’s Playlist :
▶︎·|၊|။||||။၊|။|||။|||။ 3:18
That Summer — NCT DREAM
“Hm.”
“What? Are you doubting my decision making skills?”
“No, not at all.” Caleb casually replied, crossing his arms with a thoughtful expression. “I just wonder if a certain pipsqueak has other intentions by choosing this place.”
You looked at him once, incredulous, before looking away with a huff.
The second time you looked back at him, it finally struck you what he was talking about, and you might have gone a shade red. “It's just a waterfall, what could possibly happen?”
“Oh, I don't know. Let's think; it's a waterfall, deep into the forest, and there's nobody around except us…”
Two arms sneaked around your waist without a moment wasted, squeezing up the space between you both. Your breath halted, just as Caleb began waddling with you in his grasp towards the edge of the waters.
“This means that whatever happens here,” Caleb spoke, warmth spreading from his chest and intercepting with yours, kicking up the beat of your heart hidden within the cage of your rib, “will only be our little secret. What a perfect spot you've chosen. I didn't even pack any swimming trunks, so how do you expect me to get in?”
Okay, that's enough. The teasing was getting ridiculous. You stomped two steps ahead before anything else, pulling him together as you—purposely—lost balance dropped into the waters, soaking you both.
You pulled yourself up with a gasp, feeling fabric stick to your skin, a cool breeze overtaking you until Caleb rose up as well, wiping droplets away from his face. And of course he was wearing a smile. A grin, big with teeth.
How brotherly of him. You rolled your eyes, splashing handfuls of water at him while his guard was down.
“I don't see how there's a problem.” You commented, eyes sparkling. “It's just one day of wet clothes, unless…you didn't bring anything else to change into?”
Before a word, water was splashed right back at you, making you spit when it entered your mouth.
“Sorry, I didn't hear what you were saying.”
“Caleb!”
Another splash of water. And another. And many more until your arms were sore, your stomach was grumbling, and Caleb was tasked with cooking as he always was.
“We didn't even get to fuc—”
You slapped his arm, saying nothing else.
Caleb’s Playlist :
▶︎·|၊|။||||။၊|။|||။|||။ 3:30
I Don't Understand But I Luv U —SEVENTEEN
Diary. Don't peek, especially big brother!
8th June. Starbright Waterfalls. 7/10. Would go again. Except he didn't stop teasing though…
9th June. Xueqi Art Museum. 5.5/10. He was more interested than I thought. Maybe I love him. Just maybe.
10th June. Cardine Cliff. 9/10. We did bungee jumping! I wish I took more photos of him by the sunset.
11th June. Soulfalls Hotel. 7.6/10. A break. But he was too excited when he saw the bed we had, so I'm still sore.
→ 12th June. Haevenly Amusement Park. -3.3/10. I didn't mean to. But he never listens. I…just…I don't know…
With a heavy sigh, you put down the pen and closed the book just as Caleb entered the car, having fueled it up. You hid it, just before he could notice the way you looked away before your gaze lasted too long.
The world outside looked a little less colourful now. And you couldn't tell anymore who was really at fault. Whether the silence that was starting to grow deeper between you both was just the result of your mistake, or his. It happened too fast. The giggles that erupted when the summer sun was bright in the sky; the irritation that grew under the sweltering heat which pinched your skin and upsetted you around sunset; the outburst that occurred just an hour before and now engulfed the start of the night, stretching all the way to the end.
You couldn't tell either where this ride was taking you both to. Did he have a destination in mind, or was he just taking you home? On the night right before his birthday, the sounds of laughter died before your stupidity. The apology was stuck in your throat. Your hands couldn't help but fist the front of your skirt, wrinkling the fabric. Your biggest fear of messing it up happened in the end. What could you do, what were you meant to do, what—
“...I'm sorry,” you finally managed to let it slip out, feeling a weight off your chest.
The car came to a stop by the side of the road. A hand, familiar, bigger than yours, held your trembling fist. Unfolded your bound fingers, intertwining them then.
“It's okay. I'm not mad.”
Caleb’s Playlist :
▶︎·|၊|။||||။၊|။|||။|||။ 3:21
Highway to Heaven — NCT 127
“Happy birthday, gege,” you whispered quietly, letting the wind of the quiet night carry your words into his ear.
In the back of the car, you had a carefully designed cake all done and decorated. The candles were lit as you held with both hands, the flames illuminating the swollen state of your eyes. You were a mess, yet you still smiled as it struck midnight. Nothing could take this moment away from you, at the very least.
Just an hour ago, you finally reconciled with your other half. Just minutes ago, he drove you both up to the highest point of Linkon; somewhere that overlooked the city in a wide view, enveloping the moment in a blanket of dotted lights which could be fooled for stars. Just now, you realized you could breathe again, with no restrictions weighing down on your heart. Your delicate soul, crafted and always meant for him.
Caleb looked at the cake, an unknown gaze written in his eyes. He took his time, memorising the efforts you made into his mind, written somewhere no one could touch, before he blew out the candles.
“Where's my present?”
You swallowed, looking away awkwardly. “I…may have forgotten to get you one.”
He raised a brow, accusatory. “Oh?”
You felt heat on your neck, crawling upwards and suffocating you whole. It was embarrassing, honestly. “You remember the music box that had a silly pair of apples dangling from a single tree branch? I was gonna buy it before we got into that pointless argument.”
Caleb blinked. “Ah. But you can still make up for it.”
“What do you—”
Taking the cake from you, he pulled you in before another word filled the air, swallowing your lips into a kiss.
“After all these years,” he murmured, sliding a hand under your shirt, “you're still my best gift.”
And when he leaned back in, it came with something fervent. A reaffirmation which could've been mistaken as something more shallow by anyone that wasn't you.
“Did you…” you breathed out, writhing with his tongue on your neck, “enjoy the week, at least?”
“Every second.” He confessed, ever fondly. “You were with me, and that was enough.”
→ 13th June. 10/10. In the end, the best place to run away to is wherever my brother is.