you closed the door to the english teacher's office behind you, turning your attention to the man sitting in a chair behind his desk.
"y/n. come sit." your teacher gave you a welcoming smile, beckoning you over to one of the chairs across from him.
you returned a polite, close lipped smile as you nervously walked towards the chair. you didn't know why he'd asked to see you. you didn't think you'd done anything wrong.
you tucked the skirt of your uniform underneath your thighs as you sat, looking around the teacher's office. it was simple, with a couple of plants set up against the windowsill and papers and books piled up on the large wooden desk.
"i hope you don't mind, y/n. he's late," the english teacher grumbled, looking at his watch with an irritated expression.
"no, it's fine," you said quickly. "sorry, who's late?"
almost on cue, the door opened quickly, revealing a tall figure.
"hey. sorry." he gave the teacher an apologetic smile, but his eyes glistened with amusement. you recognized the boy as kuroo, the captain of the boy's volleyball team.
you wondered what he was doing here at the same time as you. you didn't really associate with him. he was popular, with many girls that liked him because of his handsome face and nicely built body. he took advantage of that. kuroo was known for sleeping with many girls, and you'd heard a large amount of rumors about how good he was in bed.
you, on the other hand, were known by most people, but you wouldn't consider yourself popular.
"please sit, kuroo." the english teacher gestured to the chair next to yours.
kuroo looked over at you, his eyes sweeping up and down your sitting figure before making his way over to the chair. he sat down and leaned back into the backrest, crossing his arms over his chest and opening his legs.
you thought it was a little bit disrespectful, but you didn't say anything to him. instead, you spoke to the teacher.
"so, why are we here?"
the english teacher sighed, and pulled out a folder from a pile on his desk. he looked over at kuroo.
"you need to get your grades up in my class," the teacher stated plainly to kuroo, and you immediately saw the boy tense up. he uncrossed his arms and fidgeted with the golden hoop earring in his ear.
so that's what this was about.
"what does that have to do with me?" you asked slowly, looking at kuroo out of the corner of your eye.
"well, the thing is, y/n. you're fluent in english, aren't you?" the teacher looked at you knowingly, in a way that told you there was no backing out of this.
you sighed. "yeah."
"i would love it if you tutored kuroo for a little while. just until he can get his grade up and keep it there."
you fought back a grimace. you felt kuroo watching you, a small smile playing on his lips. the thought of spending time alone with him made you flustered and annoyed at the same time. but whatever type of fluttering you felt in your stomach didn't matter. kuroo was off limits. you knew he would play you. he'd broken countless hearts, and yours would be no different.
"um..." you trailed off, feeling cornered. you didn't really want to. it was a waste of your time, and kuroo wasn't someone you'd typically hang out with. he seemed cocky and shallow, just a pretty boy and nothing deeper than that.
"of course i'd be offering some kind of compensation," the english teacher interrupted your train of thought. "i won't give you any homework in the duration of your tutoring. you don't need it anyways, you're fluent."
it was tempting, but you weren't sure if it was tempting enough.
kuroo leaned forward in his chair suddenly, a smirk on his face. he placed his large hand on your thigh and gave you a quick wink. he turned back to the teacher with a polite smile.
"she'll do it," said kuroo, giving your thigh a small squeeze.
"what?" you said, taking kuroo's hand off your thigh in a mix of anger and confusion. "you don't get to decide that!"
kuroo chuckled at you, patting your hands. "i'm sure we can find a way to make it enjoyable for you."
your eyebrows drew together as you frowned. his voice was smooth like honey. it made you feel things, and you didn't like that. you were used to avoiding these types of things, relationships with guys had just not been a part of your life.
"well then," the english teacher clasped his hands together and leaned forward on his desk. "it's settled. thanks for all the help, y/n. enjoy being english homework-free."
you growled to yourself before noticing kuroo getting up. you'd missed the cue that it was time to go. you quickly got up, and you and kuroo bowed to the teacher respectfully.
"have a good afternoon, you two," he said kindly, his eyes crinkling into little crescents as he smiled.
you nodded at him, and kuroo sent his signature smile before the two of you walked out of the office.
"kuroo." you said his name firmly, quite annoyed with him for making a decision (that would greatly affect your life for the next few weeks) for you.
the boy looked back at you, his eyes glowing with amusement. "y/n." he mimicked your tone, making the anger in your stomach rise to your throat.
you gave him a look that said, 'what the fuck is your problem?' kuroo only laughed.
"don't look so sad about it," he said, leaning his face a little bit towards yours. "i think it'll be fun."
"fun?" your voice was laced with disbelief, and you scrunched your face up at his proximity. "i'd rather do anything but fucking teach you english."
kuroo hummed, that same cocky smile still on his lips. "meet me in the library tomorrow right after school. i gotta go. i have practice."
he ran away from you then, his backpack bouncing against his back. you wanted to tell him you had dance practice an hour after school ended, but he was already gone. you watched him wave and fist bump a few boys, and flutter his fingers in greeting at a few girls. you supposed he had volleyball at the same time, so it would work out.
nevertheless, you sighed in frustration. he really doesn't care about what i have to say, huh?
•••
"bitch! you're tutoring the kuroo tetsuro?" your best friend, ayako, asked you, her hand coming up to cover her mouth.
the two of you were walking home together, as you did every day. you and ayako lived near each other, so it was convenient for the both of you.
"yeah," you said indifferently.
"do you have any idea how many people would kill to be in your position?" ayako's voice was heavy with excitement.
"i do." you rolled your eyes. "but i don't understand why. he's annoying."
"he's not annoying, he's hot."
"you do realize this doesn't mean i like him or we're dating or anything, right?" you asked her.
"i know," ayako said, linking her arm with yours. "but don't be so close-minded. maybe you two could be friends."
"he's a fuckboy, ayako," you said, shaking your head.
even if you wanted to, being friends with kuroo would not be a walk in the park. his overwhelming popularity would cause you to become a target for many girls, including one in particular: kasumi.
kasumi was a main source of all your insecurities, and she had been for years now. her perfection was incredibly irritating. she was the definition of pretty privilege, and because of that many people didn't see her ugly interior. kasumi was a bitch, intent on seeing other girls' downfall. she basked in the praise from others, and put everyone down to keep her spot at the top. people saw kasumi as royalty, and that just pissed you off.
it was well known that kasumi and kuroo were fucking. they had been for a while now. kasumi seemed to be completely entranced by him, but you didn't think he liked her. he seemed to just entertain it. it was an opportunity for sex, and you assumed that's all kuroo was after. besides, he was fucking other girls besides her.
if some kind of friendship between you and kuroo were to come out of these tutoring sessions, you'd have to keep it on the low. you didn't want to be the center of attention. you could already hear the gossip, painting you as a home wrecker or even worse. you wanted none of it.
you shouldn't have let kuroo walk all over you. you shouldn't have let you make the decision for you. now you were stuck.
"see you tomorrow, ayako!" you waved at her from your doorstep. "get home safely." her house was just a few blocks away. you always felt bad leaving her.
"bye, y/n! see you!" she waved back, a grin lighting up her face.
you turned away from her and entered your house, locking the door behind you. immediately you were met with your parents bustling around the house, carrying things into different rooms.
"hi honey," your mom said, pressing a quick kiss on your cheek before walking away from you swiftly. you took off your shoes and followed her into the living room.
"hi," you said slowly. "what's going on?" you asked, but you already had a hunch.
"we're going on a business trip," she said flatly. "we'll be gone for about a month."
of course. just like you'd thought.
"you can take care of yourself, right?" you dad called from the kitchen.
"i always do," you said, only letting yourself feel a little bit dejected. what did you expect?
"good," he said, coming into the living room and inspecting the three open suitcases that were filled to the brim with clothes, toiletries, and files needed for their work. "are we good to go?" he asked your mom.
"i think we have everything!" she said, brushing her hands on her pencil skirt. she turned to you. "we're leaving early in the morning tomorrow."
you nodded. "okay. i'm gonna go get some sleep. have a good flight."
your parents smiled, and you were enveloped in a warm group hug. you knew they loved you and supported you. it was just that some things got in the way sometimes.