Pull Me Back - Kuroo x Reader

Chapter 5

Thankfully, my mom got off of work at around 5 pm tonight, so I decided I would cook dinner. I try to come up an idea given the limited ingredients I had accumulated at the convenience store yesterday, but I just can't. There's instant ramen, but I feel like I need to do something a little more.

"I mean, I could just run to the convenience store really quickly. Yeah, that's a great idea, I don't have enough to make something anyways." I think to myself. Deep, deep down though, I know I just want to see Kuroo again.

Throwing on some sneakers, I head out and briskly walk to the store. No point in getting the ingredients if I can't even make the dinner by the time my mother gets home.

Finally, I reach the store, heart pounding in anticipation. I walk in the front door and glance toward the register. Some middle-aged guy is standing there, looking bored out of his mind, and gnawing on a toothpick. Damn. I can't help but feel a bit disappointed.

It's not that I have feelings for Kuroo, it's just that talking to him makes me feel happy...Makes me feel alive in a way that I haven't in a while. It feels good to joke with him...

I shake my head to clear it, and focus on the task at hand: Food.

I grab everything I need and head home. Playing music while I cook, I whip up a delicious meal for my mother and I. I have to say, my cooking skills are well above average.

She comes trudging in the door at around 5:30 and we eat together. She tells me about some of the staff gossip at the hospital. Of course, she's been there for one day and she already knows all the drama. That's my mom for you.

"So hun, how was your first day at Nekoma? Some of the nurses have kids that go there too, it seems like a great school!"

I usually don't like sharing every detail of my life with people, even my mother, but I decide to tell her about pretty much all of it.

"Aw HONEY," she cries, lunging over to hug me, "I'm so happy you're meeting people and that you're taking challenging classes! All that hard work will pay off eventually!"

I paste on a smile. This is what I mean. She doesn't mean anything bad by it, but she completely disregarded all of my comments about how I love art class and focused on the "challenging" STEM classes. Gosh, I wish I would've shut down the idea of me going to medical school a long time ago.

"Hey, Mom...So what would you say if I wanted to do something a bit more...Artistic for a job?"

She looks at me blankly.

"I just--uh--don't really feel like something science-based is what I'm meant to do--"

"Nonsense honey! I know that science and math are challenging sometimes, but there is nothing more fulfilling than helping people who need it! Sure, art is a hobby, but honey, you have to realize that it can't be your job. How would you make money? How would you support yourself? Artists don't do well 90% of the time and I can't just watch you throw away your life. Please just give it some time, I'm sure you'll find something that interests you in the medical field. There's so many different directions to go in!"

It was so much worse than I thought. I could feel tears coming, but immediately pushed them back; I hadn't cried in years, and I wouldn't start by crying in front of my mother.

"Okay," I said, unable to come up with anything else to say. I didn't really want to say anything else to her anyways. I got up to clear the table and start the dishes, but my mother beat me to the sink.

"Here, why don't I do these? You cooked the whole meal, and I bet you need to get started on homework anyways!" She gently took the bowls and plates from me, sympathy in her face.