Chapter Text
Ten Years Ago
Caleb POV
I regret every day that I didn't ignore the knocking at our front door.
Grandma told me not to answer it when she wasn't home, and, at the time, maybe it felt like I was rebelling. I had only just turned fourteen.
Behind the door was a kid and his mom, both sharing the same golden eyes.
"Hello there! We just moved in next door. We'll be your new neighbors!" the mom sing-songed, and I caught a glimpse of her sharp teeth. I could feel my eyes getting wide.
Her son nearly pounced on me. "I didn't know there would be a boy here!" He gripped my shoulders tight, and I froze.
"Now, now, darling, we don't want to come on too strong, okay?" The woman pulled him off me and gave me another smile.
His enthusiasm never died.
"I'm Valko!" he nearly shouted, and I tried to keep myself calm.
"I'm… Caleb. Grandma's not home right now. Can you come back later?"
The mom was about to say something before I heard MC gasp behind me. I turned to find her staring.
"Is that your natural hair color?" she squeaked, and I glared at her for being rude.
Valko only smiled wider. "It is! It runs in the family. Who are you?"
"I'm Caleb's sister!" she announces, and I gawk at her. "My name's MC. Are you going to school around here?"
"Yep. I'm attending Bloomshore Middle School. I'm starting seventh grade this year."
"Me too!" MC rushes in close to him, and my blood nearly boils. "I'm twelve, how old are you?"
From then… They were inseparable.
"Stop picking at your food!" Grandma growled, and I narrowed my eyes on her. "You're sixteen now, Caleb. Start acting like it."
I fought not to roll my eyes at her.
Valko and MC ate and giggled in the corner. Every day they met up, went for walks, and talked. Tonight was one of the "lucky" nights we had him over for dinner.
Later that night, I tried not to hover around the hallway and listen to them talking in MC's room, but something about the way he seemed more serious had drawn me. The room was quiet, full of whispers, and it made me nervous.
Valko was not a whispering kind of guy.
I lingered until I heard a small sound. My eyes got wide. Were they… kissing?
I promptly threw the door open.
They didn't separate fast enough, and I was given the unfortunate privilege of watching them tangle their mouths together for a few seconds before pulling away.
MC's face was full of blush, panting in Valko's hold. His tail and ears were out, swishing and turning to me. Neither seemed to regret this decision, staring at me like it was strange to find me in my own house. I wasn't wanted here.
I stood there for what must have been only a few seconds, but it felt like an eternity before I backed away and ran to my room.
The next day, he and his family left.
Present Day
Caleb POV
I shook my head at the number of bags I ended up with from the store. The summer heat had turned balmy, and everything felt sticky.
MC wanted snacks, cool drinks, and meat for dinner. I didn't dare tell her no. I also knew she would probably beg me to turn the AC on as soon as I got home.
I smiled. I sort of liked the AC off. The heat makes her want to wear less.
I'm so tangled in my own inappropriate thoughts, I nearly jump when I see a large figure leaping from MC's bedroom window down to the sidewalk I'm walking on.
My brain tries to piece everything together too slowly. MC's window. Tall figure. Not MC. Probably a man. Who the hell was in her room?
The man turns to me, and recognition lights his golden eyes.
"Caleb?" he huffs, and his voice has gotten terribly low. A huge smile overtakes his face. His movements are precise, his body lithe and muscular.
I pause, my brain now screeching to a halt.
"Valko?" I feel a thousand emotions erupt in my chest at once. "What are you-" I swallow. "When did you get back?" I nearly bite my tongue with all of the words trying to escape at once. Why are you back after ten years? Why are you here? Why were you in MC's room?
He kicks a few small rocks off the sidewalk and smirks.
"I just got back today. I'm living a few miles from here, but close." He looks me up and down. "Damn. You got tall."
I want to tell him that he is as tall as me. His stupid ears might give him a few inches over me, though.
"Want help with the groceries?" he offers, still assertive as hell. I start to shake my head no, but he's already reaching in to grab a bag from me.
Something snaps inside of me, and I am about to tell him to fuck off-
MC leans out her window. "Hey! Right on time, Gege! Valko is here!"
I stop dead in my tracks.
"Y-yeah! I just saw him." I turn to face Valko, trying to force a fake smile, and find him already staring at me, inches from my face.
His look stops me cold. He stares at me in complete shock, like I've said something insane. I thought about saying something insane, like "go home and never come back," but I'm sure it hadn't left my lips after seeing MC so excited.
His ears and tail explode from his body all at once, drawn into existence out of nowhere.
I lean back, and his head follows. I look up to see that MC has disappeared from her window.
He leans in, close to my neck, breathing in deeply.
I shudder. What the fuck is he doing?
When he pulls back, his eyes look drunk, and a blush is creeping up his neck.
"I-I have to-" He steps back abruptly, his tail swishing behind him. "I'll see you guys later, okay?" he rushes out, and suddenly, he's leaping down the street in his wolf form.
MC comes from the front door now and finds me alone.
"Hey, where did Valko go?" She's out of breath, like she was rushing to meet him. I would be annoyed if I weren't so baffled by his behavior.
"I… don't know," I shake my head, still staring down the street after him. "He sprouted ears and a tail and then just fled or something." I look at her, hoping she'd have some sort of explanation, but she looks as confused as I am.
"Sprouted… his tail and ears? He only does that when he's overwhelmed or feeling strong emotions. Were you guys fighting or something?"
I blush immediately. We were about to. Maybe.
"No! We weren't fighting. He was just offering to-" I pause, realizing that he was, in fact, trying to be nice to me. "He was offering to help me carry in the groceries." I deflate a little.
"Hmm." She shakes her head. "Well. Hopefully, he comes back soon."
I force myself to nod.
The next few days feel weird. We haven't heard anything out of Valko, and MC seems worried.
I turn in bed all night, trying to think of what I might have done to offend him.
He was smelling me. I smell myself. I don't think I smelled bad. He'd looked floored, like I'd just told him off.
I'm deep in thought when I hear the bushes rustle outside.
I snap to attention as a figure jumps in my window, catching him with my evol. Who the fuck is-
"Valko?" I whisper, feeling a sense of deja vu. I put him down on the ground again. He shakes it off like a dog.
"I had to come see you after the last time, I'm sorry," he rushes out, looking sheepish.
"MC has been worried about you. What the hell was that? You just… turned and left or something?"
He only stares at me for a moment, his nose wrinkling as he's talking to me. Then he covers his face.
"I-I didn't think t-this through," he whispers. "I should come back later-"
"No! Tell me what's going on right now!" I hiss, leaping up from my bed and walking toward him. His eyes get big. He keeps his nose and mouth covered. "Do I stink or something? You act offended whenever you're near me now."
I'm so fucking angry at this man. First, for coming around at all. Second…. for not coming around? I don't know.
"No, you don't stink or anything, you just smell so-" he swallows, removing his hand from his face. He starts to back away.
"Smell so what?" I'm barely a foot in front of him now.
"I don't know! Your smell has changed since we were younger, okay? It's different, and… and-" He looks like he's about to bolt.
"Different?"
"It smells…" he swallows. "Good."
The balmy night air rushes into the room, fluttering the curtains and my hair. I'm gawking at him.
I must have misheard him.
"I smell… good? I smell good to you? What does that mean?"
Anger roils in my veins. What if this is all some sort of joke?
His nose scrunches again, and his wolf ears and tail burst into existence. He walks forward quickly, catching me off guard, and buries his face against my neck. I'm too shocked to move, going stiff as his arms reach out to grip my shoulders and hold me still.
Then I feel the slightest heat, wet and soft against my neck. Is he licking me?
I start to back up, and I get a full view of his face. He's panting, eyes drunken again, tail swishing behind him.
"You smell good. Warm like summer, sweet like apples," he begins, and I feel my eyes getting wide. "Soft and clean, like a lotus. I want a taste."
His voice has dropped an octave, and a growl erupts from his chest.
I make a choked sound. "T-taste?" His eyes lowered to my mouth, his long tongue licking his lips.
"Gods, you were made for me."
Time feels like it's slowing down, and my knees get weak.
Something about his voice and the way he's looking at me makes my pants a little tight, and I feel horrified at my own reaction.
He whines then, tail swishing faster. He pulls me forward, wrapping an arm around my lower back, and his lips are only a breath away from mine. I can feel him panting near my mouth.
I need to push him away. I need to tell him to stop.
I can smell him too, earthy and sweet. He swallows, closing his eyes. Is he going to kiss me? I can feel my heart rate increasing.
Then he lets go of me. I tremble a little, suddenly feeling cold without his heat.
"Fuck," he growls. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have come to your room. It's covered in your scent. I won't act weird, okay?" His eyes are panicked. I only stare at him. "This isn't supposed to happen like this." He backs away further, running a hand through his hair. "I will see MC tomorrow. I will stay in the living room. I will try to give you space. You don't have to see me again. I understand if I freaked you out."
He's walking backward toward my window, and suddenly I feel a panic that he's leaving.
"I'll… I'll see you around, okay?" he whispers, then he leaps backward.
I rush to the window, and I'm not even sure of my intentions.
Was I going to ask him to stay? Was I going to tell him to go?
He told me he would give me space now, and I thought that's what I wanted. But when I look out the window and see no trace of him, I somehow feel immense disappointment.