Pull Me Back - Kuroo x Reader

Chapter 2

"Hey hun, is that the last one?" My mom asks as I trudge down the stairs with a heavy box in my arms.

"Yeah...This is the last one," I reply, breathing heavy and feeling sweat trickle down my neck. Of course, the day we move has to be the most humid and hot one to ever exist. 

My mom holds the front door for me as I walk through and make my way over to the moving trailer attached to our car. With one last push of strength, I heave the box into the trailer and position it so it fits snugly with all of our other boxes. 

"Phew," I say, wiping my forehead, "that sure does take it out of you."

My mother chuckles as she pulls the trailer shut and makes her way to the driver's door. 

"Now we've only got to do it one more time when we get to the house!" She says in a sing-song voice. I can't help but smile, she is just so excited to get to our new house. 

Before I get into the passenger side, I glance back at our old house.

It's a cool house, with modern accents and lush landscaping. It's also huge, something that I've never thought was important, but something that immediately caught my wealthy, doctor-parents' eyes when they first bought it. As I take in it's appearance one last time, I can't help but think that it looks a bit haunted. 

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"We're hereee!" My mother basically screams as we pull into the driveway of our new house.

"Wow," is the only thought that goes through my brain when I see it. Because we lived a few hours away from Tokyo, I've never actually seen the house in person, but the pictures online really don't do it justice. 

It's the exact opposite from our old house. Well, scratch that, it's still way bigger than two people would ever need, but that isn't what makes it so mesmerizing. It's not modern and trendy, but instead artistically traditional, with beautiful sloping arches and cherry trees out front, with the last of their delicate pink blossoms still clinging on. 

Now this is beautiful house.

I look over at my mother, who is watching me with a satisfied smirk on her face.

"I decided it was time for a change. So why not change our style up?"

"Oh Mom, it's just beautiful." I say, smiling and leaning over to hug her. I'm so proud of her, it's like she evolved into a better, stronger version of herself after my father.

We begin taking the boxes into the house, and my enchanted mood quickly turns into a hangry mood. I didn't eat much on the road, and the heat is starting to get on my nerves. 

After about an hour, we finally finish bringing in boxes and unpacking the basics when we come to a bad realization. Somehow, we left the boxes of our food at our old house. Hours away. 

"UUUGGHHHH," I whine, rubbing my hands on my face. My stomach loudly rumbles in protest as well. 

"Hun, I'm sorry, but you were the one who said that was the last box we had to load up...Why don't you run to that store we saw? I think it should only be about a ten-minute walk. I have to get ready for work, so I probably won't eat here anyways. Just pick up whatever you want, my treat!"

My mom has an evening/night shift tonight at her new job, which I know is going to  be brutal after all of the packing and driving, but she insisted she wanted to get the lay of the land as soon as possible. I'm sad I'll spend the first night in the new house alone, but I also know better than complain about it. She's the one who will be up all night working. I don't know how she does it; she seems to have a constant supply of energy, whereas for me, it's a struggle to even pull myself out of bed in the morning. 

"Okay, yeah, I think I'll do that," I say, walking over to my freshly unpacked shoes and throwing on some converse high tops. "Will you still be here when I get back?" I ask.

"Hmmm," my mother murmurs, looking at her watch. "I don't think so, I should probably leave in the next fifteen minutes, I want to make sure I get there with plenty of time to meet everyone."

Smiling to myself, I give her a hug and tell her good luck, goodnight, and that I love her before walking out the door into my new city.

I have to admit, the scenery is beautiful. I'm blessed to be living in a nice part of town, but that's not all it is. Something about living in a city with so many different stories, people, and people with stories, is amazing. I hum to myself, looking around at all of the different things I could sketch. Yes, I think Tokyo will suit me just fine. 

Thanks to my bad sense of direction, I get lost. It's really not a problem because I enjoyed the walk, but by the time I get to the nearby convenient store, my stomach is growling so loudly that I'm sure people passing me can hear.

Slightly embarrassed, I grab a basket and start looking around. I grab some packs of ramen and a few hardboiled eggs to add on top. I also give into my cravings and throw a bunch of boxes of mochi into the basket. A girl's gotta eat. 

After grabbing some other essentials for the house, I make my way to check out. 

The cashier is a tall boy, who looks around my age. His hair is dark, and manages to look good while giving off major bedhead vibes. He's handsome, I will admit.

"Hi, did you find everything okay?" He asks, his voice smooth and deep. 

"Um, yeah, thank you." I say glancing down as I unpack the food in my basket for him to scan.

He chuckles, and I look up at him.

"Wow, someone likes mochi!" He says as he scans the fourth box of matcha-flavored mochi.

My faces immediately heats. Like, come on, was that really a necessary comment?

"I--uh, yeah, I guess like mochi, what can I say," I say, giving him a faint smile. 

"Oh, I mean, there's nothing wrong with that. I love mochi too actually, I'm pretty sure I could down all of these boxes in one sitting, so no judgement there...your real crime is not getting any red bean-favored though." He says, giving me a crooked smile.

"Really? You'd choose red bean over matcha?" I say quirking an eyebrow. I have no idea why I am even having this conversation right now. 

"Hell yeah! Have you even tasted red bean? Like come on, that depth of flavor is completely unparalleled. Freaking immaculate!" He's laughing now.

Alright, because I didn't know the dictionary could talk...

I actually said, "Would you hate me if I said I didn't like the taste of red bean? Kind of tastes like shit if I'm being honest."

He just gapes at me, looking all goofy and cute. Wait a second...CUTE? 

"I...I don't even know what to say to you right now. It feels like you just pushed a dagger into my heart," he says, closing his eyes and clutching his chest. "But my mom raised me to not hate random strangers, so no, I don't hate you."

A smile has slowly taken over my face, and I'm about to respond, when my stomach just about breaks the sound barrier with an enormous grumble. Fuck me.

My face heats up, and just like that, I'm embarrassed and on-edge. 

"Uhhh...well why don't I get you checked out here so that you can dig into the mochi ASAP. Kind of sounds like you need it."

"Thanks," I say, no longer feeling the conversation.

I pay him and he hands me my bags, his hands brushing mine. I thank him again and then walk out the door. I thought I might've heard him say "Wait!" as I left, but it could've also been my imagination. The truth is, it's been a while since I enjoyed talking to another person my age.