I hastily wiped my eyes, checking to make sure it didn't look too much like I'd been crying, before getting out of the car to collect the groceries from the trunk.
I loaded as many bags as I could manage onto my arms, knowing that the boys most likely weren't going to help. I shut the trunk of Michael's car with my elbow & make my way to the door, thanking every deity known to man that we had a door that was easy to open with full hands.
I somehow managed to unlock, open, & close the door without dropping anything & making it safely to the kitchen. I set the bags on the island & began to put the groceries away.
“Oh, hey! You're back!” Ashton said, coming into the kitchen from the game room, startling me, causing me to almost drop a can of soup. I gasped, spinning around, the hand not holding the can of soup to my chest. “Sorry. I was not intending to scare you. Did you want help putting the groceries away?”
“Sure.” I went back to putting the canned goods from the bag in front of my away, my heartbeat slowly returning to normal.
“GUYS! GET OFF YOUR LAZY ASSES & COME HELP PUT THE GROCERIES AWAY!” Ashton grabbed a bag of produce, opening the fridge & making sure everything got put in the proper place to stay fresh the longest.
“I don't know why we have to help. You're already out here.” Luke grumbled as he padded into the kitchen, Calum shuffling in behind him.
“Cause I do all the shopping & cooking for you guys so the least you can do is put some boxes in the fucking cupboard.” I snapped, not feeling like dealing with Luke's pouty shit after my trip to the store.
“Sorry.” he said, half defensively, half guilty. He grabbed a couple bags, going to the cupboard next to the fridge to begin putting his share away.
I grabbed the last can from my bag, realizing the only place left with room was the top shelf I was just barely too short to reach. I stretched up on my tiptoes, rolling the can towards the end of my fingers, still not quite able to reach the shelf.
Suddenly I felt a hand on my hip, another one reaching up to take the can from my hand, placing it on the shelf, before falling to my other hip.
“Hey. I missed you while you were gone.” Michael said, pressing a kiss to the top of my head. I flinched a little, ducking out of his arms, quickly grabbing another bag of canned goods for the top shelf. I just barely saw the small confused & hurt look on his face as I passed him the bag.
“I wasn't even gone that long. I'm sure you didn't miss me that much.” I grabbed myself a bag of stuff for the freezer in the garage, quickly exiting the kitchen.
“What the hell was that all about?” I heard Calum ask just before I shut the garage door.
***
After all the groceries were put away, I made my way upstairs, determined to take a nice, long shower & hopefully forget about my shitty trip to the store.
I made my way upstairs & into mine & Michael’s shared bedroom, grabbing a pair of yoga pants & a baggy t-shirt before continuing into the en suite to start the water.
Once I've got the water to a comfortably hot temperature, I undress & step into the steamy water, letting it run over my neck & shoulders, hoping to sooth some of the soreness from both the day & carrying all the groceries in.
A few minutes later, I hear the bathroom door creaking open.
“Babe, you're gonna melt if you keep taking showers this hot.” Michael laughs at his own joke. I can almost hear him shaking his head at me. “We're gonna order some food from that Chinese place we always order from so you don't have to cook. What did you want?”
