caleb is a pretty crier. the way the tears make his purple hued eyes glisten even brighter, or darker. the way it changes depending on why he’s crying is something you’ve noticed. if he’s crying from pleasure or happiness, his eyes seem to shine brighter, the tears enhancing his colored eyes.
if he’s crying from anger, desperation, or sadness, they grow dim and turn almost black with how dark they become.
either way, he was always pretty with the tears streaming down his face. they’d be so visible to you; going down his cheeks, tracing his jaw, falling down his adam’s apple before disappearing beneath the collar of his shirt.
unfortunately, whenever he’d be in front of you with tears down his face, your first initial thought would be how pretty he was. then, of course, you’d tend to him with nothing but care and love. cooing at whatever was wrong that made him break down in tears.
however, on the not so rare occasion he didn’t need comforting, but rather a voice of reason calming him down, that’s when caleb was truly at his most beautiful, in your opinion. when he’d be so angry, so jealous, so possessive that tears are streaming down his face. not for himself, but from how hard he’s restraining himself to not go to whoever was spiking up his envy and “taking care” of them.
“do you see what these people do to me?” it’s a rhetorical question, of course all you can do is lend him an ear to hear his tantrum, “i don’t want anyone else near you, but me. you don’t need anyone else, but me,” the angry tears make his eyes darker. “you don’t need them. tell me you don’t, tell me you don’t need them,” he repeats it a couple more times, words practically slurring together as he presses his forehead against yours, eye contact still being maintained.
“i don’t need them,” he whimpers at your confirmation, eyelids fluttering shut and allowing the tears that were gathering on his waterline to be released. they drip onto your skin, but you let them soak in, not daring to wipe them away.
you lean up ever so slightly, kissing his tears and tasting the saltiness of them with a small smile on your face, “don’t need anyone but you, caleb,”
“say it again,” he groans, arms lifting to be on either side of your head as he cages you in. you breathe in his cologne as you move so your whispering right into his ear everything he needs to hear. your hand goes up from his stomach, pressing ever so lightly to make his breathing ragged, to his chest, to his neck, before finally resting on his jaw.
“i’m yours,” you hear him whimper as you lightly squeeze his face, “and you’re mine,”
“that’s right,” he swallows the lump in his throat, “you don’t belong with anyone else, but me. you promise me it’s going to stay like this forever?” he’s speaking through gritted teeth, sounding almost angry. but you know him better. know that he’s speaking from a place of desperation, not anger.
“i promise, caleb,” you coo, affectionately rubbing your thumb up and down his cheek. he reacts well to your touch, nuzzling into your palm and even kissing your skin so softly you’d think you were made of porcelain.
“i’ll be whoever you want me to be, i’ll do whatever you want me to do — just don’t leave me.” his words are ragged, new tears springing to his eyes again. he grabs your wrist, fingers trailing upward and holding your hand in his as he presses you further into the wall.
his hips are against yours the moment your pressed to the hard surface, keeping you there and unable to escape. not that you wanted to, you quite liked being in this position. caleb trapping you, making it physically impossible to leave him.
as his head ducked down into your neck, wetting it with his tears and kisses, you could only smirk in satisfaction. having caleb so vulnerable, so emotional in front of you always brought a smile to your face. he was never one for hiding his feelings, anyway. but to know you invoke such a strong reaction in him to the point he falls into tears; regardless of it being from envy or joy, it will always bring a smile onto your face.
caleb x male!reader — being older than caleb, but shorter and smaller than him
[ can be read as in a relationship or that classic slow-burn, caleb is desperately yearning, childhood friend to CAN WE PLSPLSPLS BE LOVERS trope :3. personally, i wrote it with the latter in mind bc i LOVE that....as it's obviously seen in eveyrthing else on my profile ]
he would enjoy teasing you so much about this. always talks about how you used to be so much taller when you two were younger and wonders what happened, all a cocky smirk on his face. it’s not like you’re short either! it’s just that caleb is a tall piece of work (6’2 heart eyes hehe). not to mention, the fact that he works out and is basically a gym rat doesn’t mean he’s even somewhat equal to you in terms of muscle mass. if you were to stand in front of him, the width of his body would be almost double the size of yours.
so standing next to each other, a lot of people assume he’s the older one. but then he goes on to lovingly call you his hyung with a boyish grin on his face.
some of his habits include:
— leaning down to hear you, even though you’re not even that much shorter than him! he just really likes rubbing in your face that he is just taller. so whenever you speak, he’s bending at the waist to lower his face near yours, teasingly saying, “sorry couldn’t hear you, you’re so much shorter than me,” which almost always results in you shoving his face away.
— uses it to his advantage, a lot. being bigger than you generally means he overpowers you in a lot of contexts. for example, you want to get up off of the couch from your tv-binge crossed with cuddling session? that’s a hard no coming from caleb. he’ll hold you by the waist, pressing your back into his front and making sure you really can’t escape. you’d have to plead your case hard in order for him to even loosen his hold. but just when you think you’re free, he’ll tug you back down by the wrist, making you fall right on top of him.
“promise to come back?” he’ll ask with his puppy dog eyes, “i’ll be so lonely waiting for my cute hyung,” he whines, and you can’t tell if he’s really playing it up or if he’s seriously this distraught. seeing as he does it every single time you want to leave though, you’re starting to think it’s the former.
— guard dog privileges. well, even if you were taller and more muscle-y than caleb, there’s no way he’d ever let his guard down when he’s out with you. you being smaller and shorter than him just makes it easier for his presence to really linger to those around you. walking through the store, caleb is not far behind, holding onto your wrist in a tight grip to not lose you.
and even if he did, his head towering over those nearby makes it easier for him to find you. but, still he hates being separated from you for too long. leaves him feeling twitchy and anxious.
when people you know come up to you, caleb takes the backseat in the conversation, standing behind you and just listening intently. his buff arms are crossed over his chest as he quietly, but intently, observes whoever it is that is striking up conversation with you. if their gaze looks up at him for even a second, he narrows his eyes and tilts his head. as if he’s waiting for a reaction from them, for them to do something just to give him an excuse to pounce.
yeah, he enjoys using his height and intimidating build like that probably the most.
— if he hears anyone else make comments about your height and/or build, he actually will fight them. it’s a very much “you’re lucky he’s here right now because if he wasn’t, you’d be dead,” situation…he don’t play about his (unofficial official) mans yall T.T caleb is very protective of your image and you, in general. so even though you’ll catch him making jokes 24/7 about how hes younger, but taller and whatnot, the moment anything similar to that is said by some random, he’s actually rolling his sleeves up.
“were you talking about [name] just now? think carefully before you respond,”
“let me catch you saying stupid shit like that again and i’ll really fuck you up,”
“hyunngg, can’t i just punch him? just once? nice and hard?”
meanwhile, you’re dragging him by his wrist with as much force and strength as you can, but he’s planted like a tree, staring that mf down. not until you physically pull his gaze away by turning his head does he back down. and even then he’s still throwing glares over his shoulder at the person.
— likes being the small spoon just to annoy you sometimes. he juts his entire body into yours, that backwards scoot thing, and sighs in relief and relaxation at your warm embrace. meanwhile you’re trying to get his ass off of your entire waist and stomach. he’s talking about, “hehe, hyung you’re so comfy~” meanwhile you CANNOT breathe.
but even if he isn’t little spoon, he’s still obsessed with cuddling into you. if he’s the big spoon, you’re unfortunately still suffocating in his heavy ass limbs sprawled over on top of you.
he’s a big physical touch guy and you have to put up with him and his clingy demands for as long as he’s around, aka for forever.
his head will bury itself into your neck or rest comfortably on top of yours, the feeling of his breath hitting your forehead while he sleeps peacefully. the arm around your waist is secure. if he’s feeling extra handsy, his hand will sprawl out wide across your stomach and rub up and down. it’s funny because it’s a motion that relaxes you, but it seems he does it more so for himself than you — wanting to truly feel your skin against his at any given moment. his legs will tangle with yours, resting in between your own, squeezing every now and then.
and not even in a perverted way - he loves when you two sleep in just your boxers and nothing else because it lets him really feel you. he just loves being able to squeeze and grab at you whenever he please, his wandering hands when he sleeps are a testament to that.
— lowkey, he kinda manhandles you. not in a rough or rude way, though. it’s all very gentle and careful, but he does do it. he’s just so strong and loves the feeling of being in control and protecting you. what i mean by manhandle is kind of like, just maneuvering you around in crowded spaces, pulling and tugging you to keep you close and to follow him. he always walks ahead, clearing a path for the two of you since most people do make space for a glaring, 6’2 buff guy. you don’t know he’s glaring though and just assume people are being really kind…they’re not, they’re kind of scared.
(scenario time because i love to think about caleb just so easily using his strength to guide you with little to no effort because he’s so strong and buff and handsome and muscle-y and i want to bite his biceps) (im very serious)
you two were waiting in line at the busy cafe, at the end of the counter waiting for your name to be called. in hindsight, going to the one cafe on campus during peak traffic hours wasn’t entirely the smartest decision, but you really wanted a good caffeinated drink and who was caleb to deny you that. he would jump that counter and craft it for you himself if he could, but opted to just patiently wait like everyone else.
one of the baristas called a name of a person standing behind you and caleb, who was hovering a centimeter behind you for this exact reason, quickly pulled you in by your waist, keeping you steady despite you losing your balance at the sudden grab.
“caleb! i almost knocked you over! actually, you and the other ten people next to you, what was that for?” he just shakes his head, eyes trailing over the guy who was now grabbing his coffee, clenching his jaw.
“it’s nothing, just wanted to make sure you didn’t get body slammed,” he says in a simple tone, watching the guy until he left. then he turn his gaze down to look at you, “are you okay?”
flustered at his sudden concern and soft voice, you nod, going silent.
“people gotta learn some manners,” he sighs, brushing your hair aside before cupping your cheek with a touch that can only be described as gentle. his other hand still rests comfortable at your waist. he gives it a tender squeeze, “stick close to me, okay, hyung?”
“m’kay,” you murmur, feeling bashful at his affectionate self.
when the two of you finally make it out of the crowded space, he’s still holding you close with his arm around your shoulder. you walk side by side and there’s a secret pleased look on his face at how snug you are against him. right where you should be.
tall, muscle-y, and buff caleb can be a handful sometimes, but at the end of the day his 6’2 self is just full of so much love for you <3
caleb x male reader, based off of the card stage oberver bc i played it and ltr smirked the entire time bc mc is soooo me
-> implied childhood friends (atp assume every caleb x male reader is a childhood friends trope tbh), mc's name is lily, caleb is #gayaf <3
“oh my god, no way!” lily’s voice exclaimed, knelt over caleb’s belongings. “you won’t believe what i just found!”
“hm? snooping doesn’t get you anywhere, lily,” you chide her, not entirely interested as you help put away his belongings.
”snooping does in this case!” she bounds over to you with a smile on her face, “look what i found!”
“a piece of paper?” your eyes watch her expectantly, “and that is significant because…”
“because it’s not just a piece of paper! it’s a love letter, without a doubt!” she points at it, “look it’s got his favorite stickers plastered all around it!” she points to the little figures. an airplane, apples, oranges, and even some cute animal stickers.
“did you open it?” you ask, not out of curiosity, but more so in a warning way.
she shakes her head, “of course i wouldn’t actually read a love letter to caleb-oppa, that’s so weird! but, look at the evidence, it’s all pointing towards a love letter! it was even stuffed in his planner, the one written with all his assignments, which means he kept it there because it was something of utmost importance to him! what else would it be besides a love letter!” her rambling continued on as she followed you around his room. it seems she had given up cleaning and organizing in favor of trying to convince that what she had found was truly groundbreaking.
“hm, maybe it’s all those coupons he kept from you that you wrote when you two were kids,” you muse, not putting it past caleb to keep things like that. no, he definitely did, “it probably is, honestly. you know how he is and how he loves holding you to your word like that,”
she pouts, shaking her head, “he’s already used up all the ones i’ve given him…i think, or at least, that’s what it feels like,” she murmurs the last part of the sentence in a dejected tone, looking tired at the memory, “i swear he’s used countless coupons in the past couple months, just for stupid stuff too!”
“you’re the one that wrote them,” you comment, ruffling her hair to see her expression screw up in even more annoyance. “and if it isn’t coupons, then i have no clue what it is…or why we should even care,” you try subtly reminding her that caleb’s love life, if it was even that, isn’t necessarily your guys’ business.
“you don’t care? what if someone steals caleb from us? he’s already graduating — learning that he’s getting into a committed relationship just means less time for us!” she reasons and you almost chuckle at her obviously, very serious concerns.
“who’s stealing who exactly?”
speak of the devil and he shall appear.
lily nearly squeaked before she hurriedly shuffledso that your taller figure was blocking her body from caleb’s view, hiding what she was doing, quite literally, behind your back.
“nothing, lily just has a raging suspicion-”
the girl had immediately covered your mouth with her hand, standing on her tippy toes to do so. you tilted your head in confusion, widening your eyes at her as if silently saying “what gives?” but she just shushed you with her finger to her lips.
“nothing, i was just saying…how messy your room is! and how you have so much stuff! like, how are you even going to fit this all in one suitcase?” she starts rambling, a habit that she has when she lies, but caleb doesn’t press on further. instead, he opts to wave his hand at her dismissively.
“i can sort through the most of it by myself,” he says in a matter-a-fact tone.
“oh, so you just invited us here days earlier from your actual graduation to show off then?” you tease, looking around at his room, “i mean, look at all the photos on your desk of the friends you’ve made, its cute how much of a social butterfly you are, caleb,”
he looks at the stray photostrips and pictures he has on his desk, sheepishly scratching the back of his neck, “well, those photobooths always give extras, so i can’t just not take them,”
”it’s good to see you were well acquainted, they all look so friendly,” you say, a smile on your face as your eyes trace over the photographs.
your words seem to snap lily out of her stupor as she rushes forward and begins observing the photo, scanning all of the faces in the pictures.
“wait, tell us about all of them! i want to know more!” her enthusiasm seems off-putting to both you and caleb, but the latter doesn’t say anything and decides to appease her. he lists off of a lot of names, noting their relationship to him with simple words like “classmate” or “study-buddy”.
“why didn’t you have any girl friends? girl, space, friends?” now this made caleb falter slightly, confusion written across his face.
”uhm, i don’t know? they just weren’t in my social circle like that,” he says it casually, as if it’s really not all that important. but to lily, and her mission in proving that caleb has a secret, hidden girlfriend, it’s of all the importance.
“you’re such a liar! all the girls in highschool would woo over you, you mean to tell me they didn’t even try being your friend in college?” she scoffed at the idea, showing how unbelievably a bad liar caleb was being. but he was telling the truth.
“i’m not interested in girls anyway!” he exclaims in defense of himself, eyes flickering to you in realization of what he said before he corrected it, “er- i mean! getting to know girls like that! ugh, pip-squeak! you and your silly questions are really making my mind melt!” his gaze looked at your reaction for a split second, but he snapped his head away from your eyes when they made eye contact with his. the reaction made you quirk your brow up in intrigue.
meanwhile, lily just giggles behind her hand, enjoying the way her interrogation is playing out, “hm, your reaction says otherwise! i think maybe you have a secret you’re not telling me and oppa,” hearing yourself be dragged into the conversation, you lazily look over at the two. “i’ll get it out of you eventually, dummy caleb!”
“why do you even care that much? weirdo…” caleb murmurs, walking away from her and to get some of his things off of his bed, which was scattered with a bunch of belongings.
he reaches for his planner, spraying the pages open in fluidity. he repeated it a couple of more times before dropping it onto the bed and looking through the other stuff in front of him.
if you hadn’t known him better, you would think he was just looking for something underneath all of his junk. but you and lily could see it; the hint of franticness and panic in his movements. without even seeing his face, he seemed to be more frenzied than a couple seconds earlier.
“uhm, are you okay, caleb?” you ask, walking over and seeing his face, eyebrows pinched together in worry.
“i’m, uh, fine. just looking for something,” he explains in a rush, “you guys haven’t touch the things on my bed, yet, right?”
you shake your head, speaking for yourself before looking over at lily, who you know for a fact did. that’s where she got that “love letter” from anyway, that planner that caleb just flipped through about 10 times.
“nope, not yet,” you deadpan at her lie, but caleb seems to believe her. he runs his hand through his hair before shaking his head.
“nevermind, i’ll look for it later,” he turns around to face you properly, taking your wrist in his hand and pulling you with him, “let’s head out for some fresh air, i have to do some shopping for dinner,”
you and lily share a look of confusion, wondering what got caleb all jumpy. hurriedly, you grab onto her wrist as well, caleb now dragging the two of you out of his dorm room and onto the streets of skyhaven.
when you arrive at the supermarket, lily glues herself to your side to continue gossipping about the supposed love letter she found, “see? he wouldn’t act that way unless it was a love letter! i kind of want to read it now,” there’s a mischievous glint in her eyes, but you flick her forehead in disapproval.
”why don’t you just ask him, lily?”
“but there’s no fun in that! i want to hear him say it,” she whines, punching your shoulder, right before holding your arm close to her body. the two of you walk in sync with each other, as she pressed her cheek to your sleeve. “it’s interesting to think about caleb getting a girlfriend, isn’t it?”
your face makes an expression she can’t read, “not really, he’s charming and like you said before, he’d always get attention in highschool,”
“yeah, but highschool isn’t even serious,” she waves her hand, eyes rolling, “didn’t people confess to you all the time too? and look where you’re at now! still single!” she sticks her tongue out at you, teasing you.
“haha,” your mocking laughter makes her giggles even louder, “don’t speak as if you know everything either, lily, you graduated from highschool, like, last year,”
“i know enough,” she says with finality, “i know that caleb was super worried about that letter and he was super flustered explaining his girl-friend situation earlier. he’s probably thinking of her right now,” she sighs, dreamily almost, as if she’s envisioning caleb and his secret relationship. “one of you needed a girlfriend sooner or later, i’m kind of glad it’s caleb! means that he can stop hogging you all to himself, finally some lily and [name] time together!”
“nobody hogs anybody,” you try to reason, but she just rolls her eyes and pouts, “plus, i’d be happy for him too, but you’re beyond excited,” you laugh, finding her investigation equally odd and endearing.
“what are you two talking about over there? stop making me look like a guy that’s here all by myself,” caleb halts in his step, waiting for you two to catch up before he grabs your hand, “c’mon, hyung, i need help picking what meat we should have for dinner tonight,”
“hey! i was just talking to him!” lily cries out, following after you as caleb tugs you away.
“yeah, and you’ve been talking to him for the entire day — my turn, pip-squeak,” he says, tone light and not that serious, but his expression doesn’t have a hint of a joke being told. you’d call it a warning glare, but it wasn’t that hostile…right?
“ugh, just like i said, hogging,” lily comments to herself, busying herself in looking at the snack and chip section. “i’ll be waiting here!”
”that wasn’t very kind, caleb,” you chide, once again playing peace maker between the two. he just shakes his head, grip on your wrist only tightening.
“you guys are only here for a couple of days before i have to be sent off to that program, even farther away from home than skyhaven. you two spent the entire day yesterday and today together. meanwhile, i haven’t even been able to spend more than 10 minutes with you — alone,” caleb’s ramblings make you affectionately ruffle his hair, a sad smile on your face.
“okay, well, we’re here together now so it’s okay. don’t be so mean to lily next time, though,”
he rolls his eyes at the mention to mind his manners again, “she knows what she’s doing and she always gets away with it because you let her!”
“careful how you speak, one would think you dislike her — which we both know is the opposite. you adore lily,” you say as if reminding him, but he just groans.
“only don’t like her when she takes away my time from you,” he says, leaning more into your figure. the height difference between you two wasn’t much, the shoes you were wearing making you only a couple of centimeters taller than him. but when he was hunched over, into your frame, it made him look shorter and smaller than he actually was.
“oh, you big baby,” you run your hand through his dark hair, tugging at the roots at the base of his neck, “c’mon, tell me what you want to eat and i’ll choose the best ones,” you coax him, making him unbury his head from your neck and look at the selection.
“pork belly,” he says simply, before turning his head back into your skin, breathing you in.
“oooh, you have a grill in your dorm? we can have samgyeopsal,” it was almost mouth watering to think about.
“hm, we will have to use the shared kitchen but no one would mind, so it’s fine,” he leans more of his weight on you, making you chuckle slightly at his clingy behavior, “it sounds yummy. promise to grill my meat for me?” he asks gently, making you smile at his childish request.
“of course i will. should we leave lily to fend for herself then?”
he laughs as if the joke you told was too funny, but that’s only because he knows that lily would never grill her own meat, relying on one of you two to do it for her, “yeah, just wait to see how that’ll play out,”
“probably another fight between the two of you,”
“probably,” caleb hums, watching you with a dreamy smile on his face.
he’s been trying to keep his need to be near you to a minimum, but he’s feeling a bit too angsty to hold back. ever since you’ve arrive, as he told you earlier, he’s barely had any alone time with you. he thought that the three of you were going to sleep in his dorm room for the entire stay until his graduation day, but the academy wouldn’t let him.
so, an unfortunate solution was you and lily rooming together in a hotel that was a couple of blocks down. and since the school was being strict on curfews and staying out anywhere that wasn’t your own dorm, he wasn’t able to stay the nights with you guys. he assumes the academy is just paranoid of the big graduation ceremony being ruined, but it just annoyed him to no end.
he was only able to spend, what felt like, passing moments with you. so he was really trying to soak in the alone time you two would get now, even if it was in the supermarket.
it didn’t help that he couldn’t find one of his most prized possessions earlier. the thing that was hidden in his planner, that he strategically kept there so he always knew where it was. his fingers twitched in anxiety at the thought of it being currently missing. he swallowed harshly, reminding himself to turn his room upside down until he found it. he wouldn’t leave until it was back with him, safe.
the letter he thought was missing when it was currently sitting in lily’s purse that was slung over her shoulder.
only because it was a letter you had written for him to only open once he graduated from college. what was written inside, he had no idea. and he had been so patient — for years since you had handed it to him — to not open it and take a peak at it. but now that it was time for him to properly unravel and read it, it goes missing.
it was enough to make worry and anxiety creep into his mind every couple of seconds. he had to find that letter. it was the one thing that kept pushing him along on nights where the assignments became too much, when the exams were so stressful. it was his grounding anchor to keep going until he was finished. he thought of it as his ultimate reward coming from you.
at the end of caleb’s trailer, you can see him and mc play fighting and then she gets up from his chest (hes laying down on the boat, shes on top of him), but he immediately pulls er back down and into a hug and that is exactly what inspired this today thank u infold for that miniscule detail because it did send me into cardiac arrest.
“caleb! stop!”
the harmony of your guys’ shared laughter echoed in the open space around you. caleb was currently laying on the boat beneath you two, using his evol to keep it steady as the two of you rough housed.
his hands were tickling and digging into your sides, bringing forth an entire bodily reaction from you. laughter, but also jerking away from his invasive touch as you tried holding in your giggling. but caleb wasn’t having any of it. he wanted to hear you laugh. to see your smile, the crinkle in your eye as you finally let get of your laugh.
“course i can’t stop, darling,” he says in a sing song voice, continuing to prod at your side. it seems your self restraint truly collapsed with that last tickle since you collapsed onto his chest right as he dug into your side.
his smile only widened at the feeling of you pressed against him, pulling you in and holding you tight in a hug to feel you even more. the way your breath hit his neck and cheek as you tried regaining control of your breathing from your laughing fit. the way your thighs straddled his, feeling of your muscular chest against his own, as well. your one hand resting on the side of his face as the other propped you up so you wouldn’t be entirely collapsed onto him.
he gave a rough tug to your waist to make sure you were fully pressed against him.
“you’re so mean,” you heave, smacking his chest with your one hand a couple of times, only enciting a chuckle from.
“i made you laugh, that’s all that matters to me,” he confesses easily, grabbing your assailant hand in his and kissing your knuckles with utter swiftness. “if making you laugh is mean, then i guess i’m the villain, baby,”
the petname he uses so gently with you, a smile on his face the entire time he chides you, “don’t need to attack me in order to make me laugh,”
“not attacking, per se,”
“oh, it was very literally attacking. i’m still feeling the pain of your fingers digging into my side, caleb!”
“let me kiss it better then,” a mischievous look is on his face as his hands trail from your thighs to your waist, lifting the hems of your shirt. a spark almost ignites in his eyes as he catches a glimpse of your abdomen, your happy trail making him lick his lips. he was greedy and insatiable when it came to you and your body, you can’t blame him for acting like he was watching something so terribly interesting when he was really just staring at your body.
he loves every bit of you, including your happy trail.
before he could lift your shirt even higher, you smacked his hands away and also sat up off of him.
aware of how far you were from him now, as far as you can get when straddling the lap of someone resting in a row boat, he frowned and immediately grabbed your wrist.
“oh, no, no, no, where do you think you’re going?” he clicks his tongue as he pulls you back down onto his chest, hurriedly kissing your cheek before you could processs it and shove him away. “wanna feel you — don’t move so far,” he kisses your neck, leaving light pecks wherever he can place them.
“so needy,” you tease, but he only hums in confirmation.
“you already know how much i need you, [name], don’t make fun,” he nips your skin faster than you can react, truly resembling an attention starved puppy. begging for attention and love in any way he knows how.
“stay back, caleb,” you laugh once more, feeling his sloppy kisses on your neck.
“hm, no, can’t resist you,” he pulls you in even closer, peppering your face in kisses all over. he chuckles against your skin, cherishing how cute your scrunched up face is. “you’re telling your boyfriend to stay away? you don’t love me, hm?”
you can only yelp as a response because now he’s turning the both of you to lay on your sides.
“you’re like a big baby, y’know that?”
“i’m your baby,” he persists, smiling as he sees you roll your eyes, “and you’re my baby boy,”
his hand goes up to carress your cheek, the tips of his hair playing with your hair, as his thumb grazes itself up and down your soft skin. he’s looking at you as if you are the center of the universe, as if you are the one who hung up the moon and stars. nothing but adoration and love.
seeing his soft expression makes your face heat up, instinctively hiding it in the inside of his arm that was resting beneath your head as a cushioned support. he laughs at your reaction, going to lean in as he rests his forehead against yours.
“i want to experience an infinite amount of springs with you,” he confesses, “want to see you smile like this for as long as i live, want to hold you like forever,” his voice is soft and mellow as he whispers the sweetest words into your ear. “will you let me? let me be selfish and never let you go?” your throat has run dry from bashfulness as you nod, looking up at him from being tucked in his arms. he’s already watching you with a smile.
a dry laugh leaves his lips and he leans in closer, “wouldn’t have taken no for an answer anyway, baby boy, i’m all yours and you’re all mine. forever,” he kisses you gently, tilting your head back to rest in his arm as he presses into you.
it’s slow and sensual, he wants you to feel all of his love and affection for you poured into this one kiss. he moves to maneuver his body to slightly cover your own, legs slotted in between yours and broad shoulders casting a shadow from the sun over your body. the bangs of his hair tickle your face as him hovering above you makes them hang quite low. you both wish that you could stop time in this moment. the serenity of it all was already unbelievable.
he doesn’t pull away from the kiss until it’s necessary for you two. the smile is still present on his face, though. and his hand is still caressing your cheek.
“i love you,” he whispers, biting the inside of his cheek to restrain himself form leaning in for another kiss.
“i love you more, caleb,” the words you share are genuine and sincere, but can only barely scratch the surface of how much you truly care about your devoted lover. words always paled in comparison to the real feeling, the raw emotions that came with being in love with caleb.
but whenever you said those words that felt like they fell short, caleb’s brain always went haywire. while you may think they might not be enough for him to truly understand, he’s too busy feeling the butterflies in his stomach become more rapid, the heat in his face feel scorching, and the smile on his face uncontrollable. honestly, anything you say directed to caleb can make him feel like a little boy approaching his crush for the first time. but whenever you say “i love you” back to him, it really sends him spiraling into a frenzy of emotions.
“don’t think that’s possible, my darling,” he breathes out, leaning in once more and capturing you in another slow, passionate kiss.
and as you two moulded into one another, the outside world began disappearing and turning into a blur. it felt like a dream that neither of you wanted to wake up from. this was as close to perfection as you two could get. no matter where the two of you were, as long as you had each other you’d be happy.
what if . . . you got a partner and you finally tell caleb
caleb x male reader
cw : older than caleb reader, obsessive possessive territorial caleb, uhm idk if how reader is reacting/should warrant a cw, but he/you are kind of dismissive of caleb...NOT COMPLETELY obviously, but ig youre just rlly strict in your response to calebs breakdown, caleb lowkey crashing out, caleb mentions a gun, talks about using it but not anything super extreme (rlly quick mentioning anyway)
requested? YEP and i loved writing this sm <3 sorry it took so long T.T
caleb is very perceptive and observant. especially so when it comes to you. so when you start acting different, he notices it immediately.
you start spending more time on your phone, walking in on you texting rapidly on your screen as well as being on calls way more often than you usually would be. caleb would walk down to the kitchen in the morning, finding you there cooking breakfast with your phone resting in between your shoulder and your ear.
“mornin’ caleb,” you’d greet quickly, grabbing your phone and fixing your posture to properly ruffle his hair in greeting, “i already have some pancakes on the table, i’m just finishing up with the bacon, if you want,”
he hummed, smiling at the savory breakfast, “thanks, hyung,” he was about to go grab a plate from the cabinet, but hearing your giggle had made him momentarily stop. he looks at you in confusion before noticing that you’re still on the call. he was about to ask who it was you were talking to, but you said, “i’ll see you later, m’kay? wait for me,” and you’re humming and nodding in response to whatever they said before hanging up.
that was when caleb knew there was something going on. when he explained to mc his curiousity and concern on who was calling you at eight in the morning, she just brushed him off.
“he’s busy, y’know? if anything it’s someone from school that needs his help, a lot more people rely on him than you think,” she said in a sing-song voice, flipping through her book without a care in the world, “if you’re so worried about it, just ask him, dummy,”
caleb groaned at her nonchalant behavior, walking out of her room and trying to brainstorm what could possibly be happening. maybe she was right, you were just getting more and more busy with school.
was it exams season for you? you were a couple years older so he wasn’t that familiar with if your school schedule was different from his. with that in mind, he took some time researching what your academic calendar would look like.
— after researching (stalking) caleb tried brushing it off that you were busy with school and balancing responsibilities. but then, your time began being a rarity for caleb. even though it was weeks after the initial phone call at 8 am, you were rarely spending as much down time you used to with mc and caleb. and it was seriously bothering him now.
— he tries figuring out what was taking up all of your time, too, but it just came up on dead ends. you weren’t showing how you were publically hanging out with your friends on the nights you were out, you were always at school and there was never a moments post of you being out at different social settings.
— you also started acting more distant with him, physically. on an emotional level, you were as close as you two were before. always there to support him and offer him a shoulder to lean on in the times he needed it. but physically? he was no longer feeling the hugs lingering, your hands wouldn’t rest on his waist or hips when you two were out in public anymore, your teasing touch was basically nonexistent now. and he hated it. caleb thrives off of physical touch. he loves it. but he yearns for it when it comes to you.
the two of you were watching a show on the couch, a late night, but caleb wasn’t going to complain. it was seldom the two of you spent alone time together. ten minutes into the show, he began leaning and shifting closer to you, trying to close the gap of the couch cushions. and when he was finally able to rest his head on your shoulder, he felt at peace. as if he could knock out right then and there.
that is until five minutes later you excused yourself to grab something from the kitchen and came back, plopping back down on the couch, but farther from him this time.
that easily sent him over the edge.
it wasn’t until a couple of months of this behavior that he finally got the answer he was looking for. but it wasn’t the answer he wanted. not at all.
“caleb, i have to tell you something important,” it was just the two of you tonight, mc sleeping over at tara’s. you had just finished plating your guys’ dinner and motioned for him to sit across from you. “c’mon,”
he followed after you, eyes narrowly slightly as he noticed your stiff demeanor. you were being extra cautious, he could see it in the way you moved and acted. it was as if you were walking on egg-shells with him, which was completely unnatural. you feeling nervous with him? it was more often than not the other way around.
he already had a bad feeling about this.
“what’s going on? are you okay?” he asks, taking a deep breath before following it up with, “these last couple months, you’ve been acting different, are you having problems in school? are people giving you trouble?”
his concern was clear as day and it made you crack a grin at how much he cared. he was always so sweet and attentive when it came to you. so you reached a hand over the table to calm him down and squeezed, “nothing is wrong, let me get that out of the way.”
before he could hold your hand in his, you pulled away, settling on picking up your utensils. caleb’s fingers twitched, aching to hold your own.
“i just wanted to update you on…something,” you cleared your throat, feeling awkward once again, “tell you that i started seeing someone,” you look up at him, gauging his reaction. but it seems he hasn’t actually understood what you meant.
“oh? you have a new friend?” he smiles, trying to ignore the gnawing feeling in his chest. the reason you were sitting him down in a such a serious manner couldn’t be something as naive and innocent as a new friend.
you sigh, shaking your head, “no, more like, i’ve begun dating someone now,” you say, blunt and truthful.
and caleb wishes that you were lying. wishes that you were just pranking him and pulling a terrible, shitty joke out of nowhere for your own amusement. but, no, you just sheepishly smiled at him, a blush growing on your face.
“they’re really amazing and, uhm, i wanted to tell you so that you could formally meet them.”
caleb would rather grab a gun and shoot himself in the foot. his throat was running dry. no, it actually felt like it was burning with something. was he about to vomit? the thought of you being with someone else genuinely made him feel sick. he felt like he was suffocating, but at the same time needed to puke his guts out. this was the worst thing he could have heard, ever.
“caleb? are you okay?” you snap your fingers in front of his face, “i mean, you don’t have to meet them right now! i was just saying in the future, cause they’ve been wanting to meet you and mc for a long time,” you explain hastily, thinking that his silence was due to the overwhelming reality of meeting your partner so soon.
but in reality, caleb was still stuck on the fact that you even had a partner.
his fists clench in his lap as he shakily asks, “how long?” how long have you been lying and hiding this from him? how long has someone been calling you theirs, when you were his? you were supposed to be his, at least. how long have you been even near someone in such intimate ways?
how long. how long. how long. how long. how long.
“almost four months, next weekend would be the four months.”
of course you’re the type of boyfriend to remember important dates, mark them on your calendar and set reminders. you’re the type to remember all the little things and details, the type to make any partner feel special with your habits.
caleb feels his insides twisting.
“how’d you meet?”
“in one of my classes, we started hanging out one on one when we did really good on our group assignment. then from there, well, developed feelings, then started dating,” you shrug as if it’s natural for you to be talking about this subject, as if it’s normal for you to even think about someone that wasn’t him. why can’t you see this is unordinary? not like you at all? can’t you understand that?
“but, i can spare you the details for another time,” you quickly cut yourself off from rambling, clearing your throat again, “well, since i’m dating them now and a taken man,” you laugh at your wording. it’s awkward as if you’re just trying to fill the defeaning silence. you almost expect caleb to laugh too, or at least crack a smile, but he’s simply staring ahead devoid of any emotion.
“uhm, since i’m dating them now, we can’t really,” you pause and he can see you physically looking for the proper words, “we can’t be…as close anymore, like, physically.”
what? what did you mean by that?
as if hearing his thoughts, you clarify, “i can’t be cuddling with you all night, especially not sleeping in the same bed, or doing the stuff we used to do together anymore,” there’s an edge of seriousness to your voice, “i talked about it with them and they understand why we are so close, but we both understand the importance of boundaries. i respect them a lot, caleb, too much to be…careless. i don’t want to ruin this,” you look at him, and have the audacity, to have a sad, forlorn look on your face.
you don’t get the right to be sad, caleb sneers in his head. you’re the one that did something wrong, something horrific, first.
“so, what? what does that mean for me?” caleb asks, still looking spaced out and unaware of his surroundings, “you just, decide that you don’t care anymore just because you have someone?”
your gaze softens, seeing he isn’t taking the news well, “caleb, that isn’t what i said-“
“that’s what it sounds like!" he scoffs, a mix of a sneer and mocking smile on his face, "go ahead, date someone, i can’t control you,” he's now snapped out of his stupor and now his voice is raising in volume, “but you’re acting like this person just has the right to change what’s been normal! you’re just going to change everything, just like that?! all i’ve known is that, all i’ve known is that we’ve been sleeping in the same bed since we were children, sharing clothes, hugging, cuddling — and you’re going to just throw that all away because you’re dating someone?!”
“yes, caleb. that’s what happens when you like someone. you respect them and their boundaries,” you speak calmly, knowing that if you were to raise your voice as well, this conversation would be over and done with. well, the way it was going now it seemed it already was.
“that’s- that’s not fair!” caleb shouts, making you rub your forehead out of stress. this conversation was not meant to play out like this. “that is not fair and you know it,”
“how is that unfair, caleb?” you ask, using that tone where it sounds like you’re no longer listening, only asking to humor him.
he grits his teeth, face scrunched up in hurt and disgust, “because i was here first! i was the one you chose first!”
“what? okay, first of all — what do you mean by that? choosing you first? i never said-"
“i was here first!” he repeats. his words are rough, finger pressing into the table with each word to really drive his point across. and he’s looking at you in shock. as if you're already supposed to understand what he means. were you already so disconnected from each other? was this person driving the wedge between you two even deeper than he thought? his entire body felt like it was burning - in anger, annoyance, disappointment, everything.
while he’s having an internal turmoil, you continue on, “and! it’s not a matter of who gets chosen first, caleb, whatever that means, this is about me and my relationship that i have to respect,” you repeat once again, not wanting to lose the original meaing behind this conversation, “nothing is going to change between us-“
“bullshit, stop fucking lying to me. it’s already changing,” he curses, looking at you incredulously, “you seriously don’t think what you’re saying is unbelievable? you think, you think that that is what our normal is? it’s not! it never was and i won’t let it be!”
“it’s going to have to become the new normal, caleb. this is a serious relationship for me, i’m sorry but, i’m drawing the line at that,” the younger one feels his lip quivering, glaring at you through tearful eyes.
“this isn’t fair, you were…you-”
“i was what?”
caleb squeezes his eyes shut, wanting to erase this conversation from his memory, “you, you were,” he’s repeating them as if it’s a lifeline, “you were mine first!” he finally chokes out, now kneeling in front of you, “what is it about them that you like? i can be anything you want or need, [name]-hyung just tell me. please, please, don’t,” he shakes his head, grabbing your hand in his, “don’t leave me, okay? i need you, i need you. don’t leave me. leave them, not me. don't leave me here.”
his demands are weak, but the weight of his words rest heavy on your shoulders.
“caleb,” he whimpers at the call of his name, hyper aware of your tone. you sound disappointed, but still so patient with him, “i won’t ever, ever leave you. but, i’m sorry…”
you don’t even need to finish your sentence. what’ve you’d said is enough for him to crumble under your touch.
dinner was not supposed to end like this.
— needless to say caleb doesn’t take the news well and he’s already plotting different ways he can make the two of you break up. he’s doesn’t care about the fact that you may not like him back or you may not even want to date him if when you broke up with your current partner. no, caleb no longer cares about that. he’s too focused on wanting you back as his. his, even if you weren’t his to kiss or be initimate with, you were still his. he could still say “you’re mine” in a teasing manner and you’d brush his hair to the side with an amused smile. you were his one and only, and it even felt like he was your one and only at one point. but now, because of that stupid partner of yours, he couldn’t have that security. he hates them for what they've done to your relationship with him. he loathes and detests them and is repulsed just by their mere existence.
so, your partner better be ready for the rollercoaster caleb is about to send their way. gradually, he will make their life harder and harder, so hard that they will have no choice but to break things off with you. when that time comes, he will be waiting for you with open arms.
