🖤
Cassy started noticing it in the smallest details.
The way Caleb stopped correcting her immediately. The way he paused—just slightly—before speaking to her. The way his gaze lingered when she thought he wasn't looking. It wasn't loud. It wasn't obvious. But it was there.
And it was changing everything.
—
"Miss Williams."
Cassy looked up from her screen. "Yes, sir?"
Caleb stood beside her desk. No folder this time. No instruction. Just him. "Come to my office," he said.
Cassy blinked. "Did I do something wrong?"
A pause. Then— "No." That alone was unusual.
—
Inside the office, Caleb didn't sit right away. He stood near the window, hands in his pockets, staring out at the city.
Cassy stayed near the door. Waiting. Always waiting.
—
"You've been correcting my schedules," he said finally.
Cassy hesitated. "Only when necessary."
"That's not your role," he replied.
"I know."
Silence. Then— "Then why do you do it?"
Cassy looked at him carefully. "Because you don't have time to check everything yourself."
A beat. "And you think you do?" he asked.
Cassy shook her head slightly. "No. I just… pay attention."
That made him turn. Slowly.
—
"You pay attention to me too much," he said quietly.
Cassy froze slightly. "…That's part of my job," she said gently.
"No," he replied immediately. One step forward. Then another. Until the space between them shrank again. "That's not your job," he repeated.
Cassy's breath caught slightly—but she didn't move back. "Then what is it?" she asked softly.
Silence. The room felt smaller again. He stopped just a few steps away. Too close. Too still.
—
Caleb studied her for a long moment.
Then— "I don't know," he admitted. That was the second time he said it. And it still sounded wrong coming from him.
Cassy blinked slowly. "…You always know," she said quietly.
"I used to," he corrected. A pause. Then softer— "Not anymore."
—
Something shifted in the air. Not tension. Something deeper. Something neither of them had a name for yet.
—
Cassy spoke gently. "Is that why you've been different lately?"
Caleb didn't answer immediately. Then— "Yes." Honest. Simple. No shield behind it.
—
Cassy looked at him for a long moment. "You don't like it," she said softly.
He didn't deny it. But he also didn't agree. Instead— "I don't understand it," he said.
That was worse. Because Caleb Garcia understood everything. Except her.
—
Cassy's voice softened. "You don't always need to understand something to accept it."
His eyes narrowed slightly. "I do."
"Why?"
A pause. Then— "Because misunderstanding leads to mistakes."
Cassy nodded slowly. "But not everything is a mistake."
Silence. Longer this time.
—
Caleb stepped back first. A controlled retreat. "Go back to work," he said.
Cassy hesitated. Then nodded. "Yes, sir."
But neither of them moved the same after that conversation.
—
Later that night, Cassy stayed behind longer than usual.
Caleb noticed. Of course he did. He stood at his office door, watching her through the glass wall. Focused. Quiet. Still.
And for the first time… He didn't tell her to leave.
—
Instead, he walked out. Slowly. Stopping beside her desk. "You're still here," he said.
Cassy didn't look up immediately. "I wanted to finish this properly."
A pause. Then— "Properly again," he repeated.
Cassy smiled faintly. "It's a habit." Silence.
—
Caleb looked at her work. Then at her. "You don't have to prove anything," he said quietly.
Cassy finally looked at him. "I'm not proving anything," she said softly. Another pause. Then— "I just care about doing things right."
That word again. Care. It always sounded simple when she said it. Too simple.
—
Caleb exhaled slowly. "…Leave when you're done," he said.
Cassy nodded. But before he turned away— She spoke gently. "Good night, Caleb."
He stopped. Completely. It was the first time she said his name without hesitation. Without formality. Just him.
—
Caleb didn't respond. But he didn't correct her either.
And that silence… Meant more than any words he could've said.