Move My Heart (Lev Haiba x Reader)

Chapter 16: A Quick Getaway

A month had passed since you and Lev had last talked. Ironically, you had told Lev to grow up, but you refused to take that advice for yourself. It didn't seem like he was going to reach out anytime soon, so you were stuck feeling both angry and regretful. To make things worse, the adrenaline from your fight influenced you to talk to Kenzo the following Monday at school, and tell him you weren't interested. This backfired, and instead of being the understanding person he promised he would be, he began acting cold, always isolating you from his other friends. He definitely didn't take rejection lightly, but you weren't even surprised. Still, you decided to give it some time. It's not like turning someone down romantically was a crime, so you hoped Kenzo would get over it soon. One afternoon, you were walking to a convenience store near your house, when you noticed someone familiar standing in front.
"Hey, Kenzo," you called out. Kenzo looked at you, and you couldn't exactly read his expression.
"What a coincidence seeing you here," you said, and he shrugged.
"Kenzo, stop. Can you not act like this with me, please? Do you seriously not want to be friends now?" He sighed, and gave a small smile.
"It's not that, y/n...it's... look, I'm sorry. I guess I needed space? I don't even know if it's that. Whatever, I know I was being a jerk." He sounded somewhat sincere, but he wasn't off the hook yet.
"Kenzo, why'd you lie about Lev?"
"Y/n, the truth is, I really—"
Then, a girl walked out of a nearby store, and Kenzo immediately shut up. She was very pretty, with bright skin and silky black hair. She swung a shopping bag, and put her arm in Kenzo's, smiling at him. Well, he sure did move on fast. A smile immediately replaced his previous look, and whether it was fake or not, you couldn't tell.
"Y/n, this is Suki, my girlfriend. Suki, this is y/n, she's a friend from school." Suki smiled at you, and you instantly liked her. At least she didn't seem like the possessive type. Kenzo looked at you, as if trying to read your expression.
"She saw me down the street, so she came to say hi," he explained.
"Yeah, I haven't really talked to you that much at school lately." A look of guilt spread on his face.
"Look, y/n, again, I'm sorry that I ignored you. Obviously now I'm over it, and I wanted to talk to you sooner, but honestly, I guess I was embarrassed. Anyways, I'm with Suki now, so don't worry about me still liking you, that ship has long passed." He said that last part playfully, and you rolled your eyes. It was like the hostile, distant person he was just a second ago disappeared.
"Well, I'm happy for you Kenzo. And seriously, you've got to figure out a better way to deal with rejection," you teased back.
"We should probably get going," Suki said, visibly bored, and Kenzo nodded.
"Yeah, sorry about that. Y/n, I'll see you at school," Kenzo said, and you said bye to him and Suki. You guys parted ways, but Kenzo called out to you.
"You know your friend? The one who waited for you at school? You should give him a chance." You stopped walking, surprised, and looked back at Kenzo, but he had already turned the corner. Did he actually just say that? The guy who used Lev to his benefit, telling you to go out with him? If that wasn't a sign from the universe, you didn't know what was.

Turns out, the opportunity to give him a chance would come sooner than you thought, because a week later, your mom revealed that you and the Haibas would be taking a weekend trip to the countryside. In her words, it was "to allow both families some much needed rest and relaxation, as well as get to see a part of Japan besides the big city." Your excitement to be doing something other than homework during the weekend trumped the dreaded feeling of having to see Lev again, without having properly reconciled. Although you weren't sure of all the details, based on what your mom said, you and the Haiba family, (minus Alisa, since she had to study for college exams), would take a train out to a small, but relatively well known town, where you would rent a small house with them for two nights.

Come Friday afternoon, you and your parents headed to Ueno Station, where you would be meeting the Haiba family. The building was pretty crowded, filled with tourists from other cities and businessmen heading out on a long trip, and you maneuvered your suitcase through the crowd.
"Over here!" You turned and saw Lev's mom waving at your family from the other side of the station, beaming. Her husband was at the ticket counter, and next to her Lev stood towering, expression unreadable. The parents greeted each other, and you and Lev awkwardly nodded to each other. The group headed towards the platform, you and Lev on either side of your parents. It was kind of difficult to push your suitcase through. You heard your suitcase roll over something, and as the wheel jammed, your body slammed into the handle. The pain was sharp, and you cursed under your breath. You rubbed your stomach and leaned down to inspect the wheel. It had gotten caught in a branch, and you lifted the suitcase slightly, trying to yank the branch out. You finally got it out, and threw it aside. When you got up, you looked around and noticed your group wasn't there anymore. You did a 360, but they were nowhere in sight. You walked slowly with the flow of the crowd, looking left and right for them. You took out your phone, but there was barely any cell service. You continued forward, and made your way down a flight of stairs, coming to a platform. You looked at your ticket and saw the platform name matched the one you were departing from, so you figured your family was near. You looked around, and through the crowd, you saw Lev. He was taller than nearly everyone, and his grey hair made him stand out.
"Lev!" you called out, waving at him. A look of relief spread across his face, and you momentarily forgot about the rift you guys had. You made your way through the crowd and met up with him, and the both of you walked together.
"We lost you for a second there," he said. "Our parents are by the train doors, waiting."
"Sorry, my suitcase got stuck," you said, glad to have found him. As you made your way to the train, you walked in silence, neither of you acknowledging your previous conversation. When you reached your parents, they smiled in relief, before giving you a quick lecture on the dangers of wandering off, which made you extremely embarrassed. As you boarded the train, Lev grabbed your suitcase and hoisted it up into the overhead bag compartments, and you mumbled "thanks".
"Lev, us and y/n's parents are up in this row, you and y/n have seats over there," Lev's mom said, motioning to a pair of chairs in the rear of the cabin. It hadn't crossed your mind that you and Lev would be sitting together, and you saw Lev was already on his way over to your row. He leaned down to sit, but then turned to you.
"Do you want the window seat?" He asked. You smiled, in spite of your determination to look annoyed. Maybe he was just trying to make amends, but nevertheless, it was thoughtful. You nodded, thanking him and sinking into the plush seat. He sat too, and the two of you busied yourself with other things, you staring out at the station through the window and him fidgeting with the train seat in front. The awkwardness returned, but luckily faded away as the train began to move. You peered out the window and watched as the train pulled out of the station and began to speed up. You felt Lev lean towards the window too, peering over your head. Your parents were busy chatting loudly a few rows up, and the train cabin was relatively full. The ride was pretty uneventful, and as you looked out at the city whizzing by, Lev had fallen asleep quietly beside you. Soon, you felt yourself slowly doze off too, and you rested your head slightly to the left. Your head sunk into the cushion of the chair, and you repositioned yourself facing Lev, entering a deep sleep.