The boy sat with one leg crossed over the other, leaning lazily against the back of the leather sofa, a freshly lit cigarette trapped between his fingers. His gaze drifted carelessly around the room before finally settling on a dark corner. “Her, then.” In the dead silence of the room, his voice was neither loud nor quiet, sounding utterly frivolous. “Hey. I like you.” 01 The VIP lounge of the club was loud and chaotic, the smell of smoke and alcohol blending into a decadent atmosphere. “Hey, everyone quiet down! Caleb’s dare is up!” The group playing cards stood in a circle. A guy with a buzz cut, Finn, read loudly from the card in his hand: “Find any girl in the room…” He paused, his voice pitching up with excitement. “…and confess your love to her.” “Damn! Caleb loses one hand and the stakes are already this high?” “The main girl isn’t even here yet. Who else is he gonna confess to?” “…” The room erupted in shock and chatter. The only one still sitting, the boy, leaned lazily against the sofa, smoking his cigarette as if no one else was there. “Caleb, you should wait for Serena…” He slightly lifted his eyes. The teasing, the noise, the gossip—everything instantly died down. Looking as though he couldn’t even be bothered to fully open his eyelids, he scanned the room for a second before carelessly locking his eyes on the furthest corner. “Her, then.” He tilted his chin up, using his usual lazy drawl, looking utterly frivolous. “Hey. I like you.” I had traveled back to this exact moment. 02 Eighteen-year-old Caleb Sterling had sharp features, a bold brow, and a wildly magnetic charm in every move he made. Across the dim lighting, our eyes met for a split second, and my eyes instantly welled with tears. “Caleb, this…” No one expected him to end the game so quickly and carelessly, let alone pick me as the “lucky girl.” Finn lowered his voice, hesitating. “Man, that’s Serena’s sister. Is that really a good idea?” Today was Serena’s eighteenth birthday party. She had a massive crush on Caleb—everyone at our high school knew it. Everyone was waiting to see if they’d finally get together tonight. With the atmosphere building up, they all assumed Caleb would wait to confess to Serena. No one expected this curveball. Finn looked at me and panicked when he saw my red-rimmed eyes. “She’s a good student… look, you scared her to tears.” Caleb had already looked away, his cigarette hovering just below his lips. Hearing this, he stopped and looked back at me. He furrowed his brows slightly, the temperature around him dropping a few degrees. He seemed annoyed that I couldn’t take a joke. The air grew heavy. Finn scratched his head, trying to lighten the mood, when I finally suppressed the trembling in my heart and spoke. “Say it again.” I stared at Caleb. My tone was firm, though my voice couldn’t help but quiver. “I didn’t hear you. Say it again.” 03 Seventeen-year-old me was insecure, sensitive, and withdrawn, yet fiercely proud. I was the kind of person who completely blended into the background. But because Serena was my sister, I was forced to endure the scrutinizing stares of others. Our family was a major real estate dynasty in Seattle. Serena was my total opposite—beautiful, bright, and born for the spotlight. I was the adopted daughter, brought in simply to be Serena’s playmate. Serena was a social butterfly who loved to party, and she always dragged me along. Over time, I became known as Serena’s little shadow. She always told me to be more outgoing and make more friends, but she didn’t know how much I loathed these social events. My quiet awkwardness only served to highlight her dazzling charisma. At her eighteenth birthday party, I hid myself in the shadows as usual, agonizingly waiting for the night to end. Until Caleb looked at me. 04 I knew who Caleb was. I knew everyone in Serena’s circle. Caleb smoked, drank, skipped class, hit the clubs… he was the most rebellious troublemaker of them all. With a slight raise of his eyebrow, he exuded a dangerous charm that made girls scream and chase after him. He could easily treat a confession as a joke, completely disregarding how offensive and abrupt the game was to a girl. He possessed every trait I despised most in teenage boys. Insecure as I was, I had been so angry and humiliated that my face flushed deeply. But I hadn’t noticed that the cigarette in his hand slipped through his fingers and dropped to the floor. Back then, I hated Caleb. But now, I wanted to get to know him all over again. 05 Compared to Caleb confessing to me, me demanding he say it again shocked the crowd even more. Who dared to use a commanding tone with Caleb? Let alone me, the resident mute. In the midst of the eerie silence, the lounge door was pushed open from the outside, letting everyone breathe a sigh of relief. It was Serena, returning from mingling in the room next door. “Well, why is it so quiet in here?” She wore heels and bright red lipstick, walking toward the card table with a radiant smile. “What game are you guys playing?” Finn was still holding the Dare card. Seeing Serena, he quickly handed it over. “Serena, perfect timing! I lost at cards again and was just trying to figure out which girl to do my dare on.” He dramatically made a heart shape with his hands. “Serena, I love you!” The crowd cheered and hooted along, and the room’s atmosphere finally returned to normal. “Aw, sorry about that, but I already have someone I like.” Serena walked over to Caleb, smiling with dazzling confidence. “Caleb, be my boyfriend.” Before she even got close, Caleb had already retracted his gaze from me. With lowered eyes, he crushed the unsmoked cigarette into the ashtray. His voice lost its lazy drawl, dropping into something thick and low. He said, “Not interested.” 06 “Oh. Well, let me know when you are.” Serena shrugged, acting completely unfazed under everyone’s varying gazes, and went back to rallying the crowd to play. The room grew noisy again. I took a deep look at Caleb and, when no one was paying attention, slipped out of the lounge. Outside, the streets were bustling with traffic and flashing neon lights. I stood under the bus stop sign outside the club, spacing out. In my past life, I had some interactions with Caleb after this. We went to the same university, though we had different majors. He coincidentally showed up whenever I needed help the most, but I always assumed he was just doing it as a favor to my sister, so I avoided him like the plague. Later, he matured a lot, and I became less insecure. There were moments when I genuinely suspected his feelings. But aside from that one joke, he never once said he liked me. Even at the very end, when he collapsed in a pool of blood to save me, his dying words were just a smiling: “Don’t cry…” I was deep in thought when a shadow suddenly fell over me. “Are all good students this bad at taking a joke?” Caleb wore a frivolous smirk, but when I looked up, his smile froze. “You’re… crying?” I blinked, my face covered in tears. Eighteen-year-old Caleb seemed to overlap with twenty-two-year-old Caleb. His voice softened, tinged with a hint of panic. “Hey, don’t cry…” 07 Eighteen-year-old Caleb didn’t know how to comfort people. His tone was soft, but his jaw was clenched and his eyes were dark. Seeing my tears still falling, he suddenly kicked the bus stop pole in frustration. Startled, I immediately stopped crying and stared at him in bewilderment. Caleb glared at me for two seconds, then suddenly turned his back, shoving his hands into his pockets. His entire posture radiated irritation. He looked really intimidating. His tone was full of impatience. “If you feel like I took advantage of you, I’ll let you get back at me. Just stop crying.” I stared blankly at his back. “Get back at you how?” It took a while before I heard Caleb’s feigned nonchalant voice. “…You can confess to me once, too?” 08 The night breeze was cool, sweeping through the space between us, making the silence a bit awkward. I stayed quiet. Noticing Caleb’s increasingly tense back, my heart ached. But I pretended to be amused, letting out a laugh to change the subject. “Got a tissue?” I haphazardly wiped my face, getting tears all over my hands, a little shocked by my own messiness. Just as I raised my hand to wipe again, a strong, masculine scent washed over me, and a pair of hands cupped my face. Caleb leaned in, the pads of his fingers brushing away the tear tracks on my cheeks. He avoided my eyes, making up an excuse. “Tissues are dirty.” I stared at him, finding his serious expression endearing. I sniffled, making up my own excuse. “You smell like smoke.” Caleb’s movements halted abruptly. His fingers curled, and when they touched my face again, his touch was noticeably lighter—almost tender, or perhaps cautious. He slightly lifted his eyelids, his voice growing raspier. “You prefer guys who don’t smoke?” Looking up at him, I saw the streetlights reflecting in his pupils, sparkling with a light that made my heart burn. This time, I was the one who didn’t dare look him in the eyes. I didn’t know… I didn’t know if the Caleb from four years later still smoked, why he treated me so well, or when he had started liking me… I knew absolutely nothing about Caleb. Everything I thought I knew came entirely from my own prejudice.
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