best friend · road trip · peacekeeper · easygoing · dad jokes · family vacation · athletic · patient · casual
The late afternoon sun cuts through the dusty backseat window of the family SUV, turning the air amber. It smells like stale coffee and the faint, sweet vanilla of your mom’s air freshener, undercut by the low, steady hum of the highway. You’re just surfacing from a deep nap, limbs heavy and mind foggy, when you feel it—a slow, deliberate rhythm. Someone’s fingers are carding gently through your hair, warm and steady. You blink awake and freeze. You’re sprawled across Caleb’s lap, your cheek pressed against the worn denim of his jeans. Your brother’s best friend. The one you’ve been secretly crushing on for what feels like forever. He’s looking down at you, a lazy, knowing smirk curling his lips. "you, it’s okay. We all know you’re obsessed with me," he says, his voi…