Chapter 04: That Crazy Caleb
1368 Words
"I was just thinking, just imagining, not daydreaming," I pouted at Caleb. Every little thing, he accuses me of daydreaming.
"And isn't imagining the same as daydreaming? You're starting to get delusional, Adeline. You should get your brain checked."
"Caleb! I'm going to get mad at you," I turned to him with a frown.
"Do I need to apologize?"
When he said that, I didn't say anything else. I stayed silent and looked out the window. Besides my family, no one else would apologize to me. I'm not that important to anyone.
Then the car fell silent, with no more arguments.
Several minutes later...
"Are you hungry?" Caleb asked, but I remained silent and didn't say anything. "Adeline."
"If you don't want to talk, that's fine. But I'm hungry. I'm going to stop and eat." Caleb pretended to slow down the car, but I still ignored him.
"What do you want to eat?" He asked me again, even though he had just said I didn't have to talk.
Why do I have to speak?
"Your brother told me you like Japanese crêpes. I know a delicious place. Want some?" he kept asking.
Why does this crazy guy keep asking? And how does he know I like Japanese crêpes?
"If you don't answer me, you'll miss out on some really delicious Japanese crêpes, Adeline," Caleb continued. The way he acted made me realize he was trying to make up with me.
"Is this your way of apologizing?" I turned to look at him. There I go again, dreaming like I'm the heroine in a romance novel.
"Yeah, I'm apologizing. Stop being mad at me."
Thump, thump, thump!!!
My heart was pounding. My heart was beating so fast. Caleb said something like that. At first, I thought he was going to scold me. Why is my heart beating so fast? Or could it be...
"Why is your face red, Adeline? Were you out in the sun today?"
When the car stopped at a red light, Caleb turned on the light to look for something in the compartment, then turned to look at me.
"Yeah, yeah," I made a sound and put my hands on both cheeks. What's going on, why is it red? I barely got any sun today.
"Or maybe your blood sugar or blood pressure is up?" That crazy Caleb said while reaching out to touch my forehead.
"You i***t!" I immediately swatted his hand away.
This i***t thinks my blood pressure is up, and what does blood pressure have to do with touching my forehead? Even if I'm a bit chubby, I don't have any health issues yet.
Wait! Or do I?
"Hey, why are you scolding me? I was just worried."
"If you're worried, don't jump to conclusions, okay? I'm not that fat, jeez."
"How would I know? Just in case your blood pressure is up, I could take you to the doctor."
"Stop talking, Caleb, the light's green now."
"So, do you want some pancakes or not?" Caleb drove off and turned to ask me.
"No, it's late, and I'll get fat."
"Eating a bit more won't change your figure."
"Keep talking, and I'll start dieting. It's annoying to keep calling me fat."
"Don't."
"Why? Afraid I'll get pretty and someone will hit on me?" I turned to look at Caleb.
"No, I'm just afraid the places you frequent will go out of business without you."
Just listen to him, my brother's friend, talking like that.
"Caleb..." I frowned at him again.
"You don't need to lose weight, you're as cute as you are."
Thump, thump, thump!
There it is... Caleb made my little heart skip a beat again.
"So, what do you want to eat? I'm hungry."
"Barbecued pork rice from the alley near my house is fine. It's delicious. I've been collecting points; eat 10 dishes, get 1 free. If I eat today, it'll be the 10th dish, so I'll give the free one to you as a thank you for the ride."
"I'm rich, I don't need freebies," Caleb said.
"I know you're rich, but why not get a freebie? It's our right. Why should we..."
"Stop, stop, I just meant I can take care of you, no problem." Caleb reached out to cover my mouth.
Thump, thump, thump, thump!!!!
Once again, the words 'I can take care of you' make my heart race again. I think something's wrong with my body! This isn't good!
“Caleb!” I called out loudly as I pulled his hand away from my mouth.
“What?”
“Take me to the hospital. I feel…”
“What do you feel? Tell me, where does it hurt?”
“My heart is beating irregularly. I'm afraid I might have heart disease.”
“Is it beating irregularly right now?” Caleb turned to look at me before signaling to pull over.
“No, it's normal now. It only happens when…”
“It's not normal. You might have heart disease because of your weight, sorry.” Caleb interrupted and reached out to touch my left chest.
Oh, no… I felt a strange excitement.
I sat still and glanced at Caleb's face, which seemed to be intently listening to my heartbeat. Caleb's face is indeed handsome, but it has small scars that are visible up close.
Thud, thud, thud…
The more I looked at his face, the more I felt my heart beating faster. Maybe I have a strange condition when I'm near Caleb. If that's the case, I should stay away from him to protect my heart. He turned to look at me, then leaned closer. Our lips were very close.
I think what I'm experiencing might not be a strange condition after all.
I closed my eyes after blinking in shock for a while. This is like a scene from a romance novel where the hero leans in close to the heroine, and then…
“What on earth are you imagining, fatty?”
“Ouch! Why did you pull my lip like that?” I opened my eyes and complained, holding my lower lip that Caleb had just pulled.
“You don't need to go to the doctor.” Caleb moved back to his seat.
“Why?”
“Because you don't have heart disease. Your heart is racing because you're near someone as handsome as me.”
"You're so full of yourself. I've told you before, there's no way I'd ever be your girlfriend."
"I wasn't planning on making you my girlfriend. And stop imagining that I was going to kiss you like just now."
"H—how did you know?" I started breathing heavily. How did this crazy guy know I was imagining he would kiss me?
"You were practically sticking your lips out waiting for me to kiss you. If I didn't notice, I'd be blind, wouldn't I, Adeline?"
"That's not true! You're seeing things. You're accusing me. Who would want to kiss you? I don't want to kiss a guy who kisses random girls. Hmph. My first kiss has to be gentle and make my heart flutter."
"I've never kissed anyone. I just hook up and move on."
"..."
"I've never had a girlfriend, but I did have someone I loved. But now she's with someone who deserves her." At this point, Caleb's voice sounded sad.
"Why overthink it? If you truly love someone, isn't it enough to see them happy? If you're not meant to be together, forcing it won't work." I just wanted to comfort him because it seemed like he was upset. I guess I'll have to ask my brother who this person is.
"You sound like you're comforting me. You don't need to comfort me. I'm not sad. Besides, I've got women lining up for me. I'm rich. I can buy whatever I want."
"I swear I'll never take you as my boyfriend. If I ever do, it means I've been seriously drugged with mosquito repellent." I raised three fingers, making a vow to myself and to the street.
"Did you even ask if I want you? You never stop imagining things. Let me tell you, a guy like me doesn't go for a friend's sister."
- Writer
