Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Ringing a doorbell shouldn’t be this hard, and yet she’s been standing outside of the Saiki house for 10 minutes now. The last time Kokomi had been this nervous about knocking on her boyfriend’s door was back before they started dating. She had used the excuse of getting cooking lessons from Kusuo’s mother as a way to get closer to him. She had been so nervous back then, she accidentally ran the neighbors bell. She’s been to his house plenty of times after that, but he was always home. She rested her head on the wall that surrounded the house in frustration. Letting her mind wander back to what brought her to this situation.

—

Kusuo had asked her to meet him at the school’s rooftop during their lunch break. “Kuboyasu wants to take us to a gang fight after school”, Kusuo said. Kuboyasu wasn’t really taking them to a fight, he just wanted them to meet his friends from his old gang. ‘It’s obviously going to end up in a fight’, he argued. Kokomi chuckled, for as much as he complained about being dragged into things by his friends, he never seemed to just deny their invites. “I guess I’ll be walking home by myself today then”, she said. It’s been a while she’d done that, ever since her relationship with Kusuo became public the psychic would usually walk her home. And whenever he couldn’t she’d walk most of the way with Chiyo, but she had cleaning duty that day. She furrowed her brows thinking about what awaited her home, nothing, she realized. Her parents were enjoying themselves on a cruise in the Caribbean, and her brother was away filming his newest movie. Of course that was normal, but Aiko wasn’t waiting for her anymore. Guess she’ll have the house to herself today.

‘If you want company, you can always go to my house’, Kusuo suggested having listened to her thoughts. Kokomi looked at him like he had grown a second head. “Without you?” she asked as it was the most insane thing ever. ‘My mom won’t mind’, he assured her. But Kokomi wasn’t so sure, “I can’t just go knock at your door, demanding to be let in”. She can’t imagine anything more embarrassing. ‘You could take my keys’, he suggested. And well that wasn’t just embarrassing, it was mortifying. What would Mrs. Kurumi think of her if she let herself in like she owned the place. That was not how a perfect girlfriend would act in front of her boyfriend’s mom. What is she even supposed to say? “Hi, I can’t handle being alone at home so I invited myself over”. Kokomi would perish on the spot before she said that.

‘You’re such a pain’ Kusuo said dryly, snapping her out of her spiral. She turned around to look at the psychic with a scoff. Her lips formed a pout, offended by his words. “I happen to be universally regarded as a delight,” she said proudly, turning away from him. She heard a low hmm coming from him. ‘Then I guess you won’t have a problem’ Kusuo retorted. Her mouth opened to argue but said nothing. He had played her, ‘I did’, turned her confidence against her. ‘Yep’. She let out an annoyed groan, she hated when he did that.

‘Mom will be thrilled you went to see her, I promise’ Kusuo assured her.

—

And now she was here, still struggling to ring a stupid doorbell. She could practically feel Kusuo’s judging eyes behind her. Except he wasn’t behind her, he was with the boys. Kokomi was on her own, and she’ll continue being on her own until she rings the bell. She let out a long sigh in defeat, and delicately pressed the button. “Coming!” Mrs. Kurumi’s was heard from inside. A few seconds later, Kusuo’s mother opened the door. Her kind face lifted in surprise to see her there. “Kokomi! What are you doing here?” She asked, smiling. Kokomi pushed down her inner worries, giving the older woman a soft smile. “Well Kusuo went out with the guys today, so I thought I’d come by to keep you company”, she said. Yes she had twisted her story just a tiny bit, but she didn’t want to seem desperate. Kurumi’s face lightened up, “You came to see me?! How sweet!”. She stood aside to let the young girl in.

The Saiki’s house felt different than her own. While hers was elegant and extravagant, theirs was simple and cozy. Kokomi liked theirs better. The big rooms of her house always felt empty. All the expensive furniture that never got used because she’s the only one regularly spending time there. On the contrary, the Saiki’s house felt warm and homey. It was smaller than hers, but she thought it was nicer that way. She sat on the living room’s couch, while Kurumi prepared them tea and snacks. Kokomi held her hands pressed against her thighs to calm her nerves. It was a good idea to spend time with Mrs. Kurumi, she was her boyfriend’s mom afterall. She could probably tell her stories of when Kusuo was little. She giggled a bit to herself imagining a pink haired baby with Kusuo’s stoic expression. She quickly quieted her laugh as Kurumi set a tray on the table in front of them.

The older woman offered her a cup of tea, which she accepted immediately, before settling down on the couch with a cup of her own. “So what is little Ku up to this evening?”, she asked curiously. “Oh you know, they just wanted a guys hangout, nothing crazy”, she said trying to not get into details. If Kokomi was sure of something, it is that telling Mrs. Kurumi that her son went to meet some gangsters was a bad idea. Luckily Kurumi was just thrilled to hear her son was spending time with his friends.

Talking with Kurumi was surprisingly easy, she seemed genuinely interested to know about her day and how she was doing. Her face was sweet and caring, and her presence gave Kokomi a calm feeling. Her previous nervousness melted away as a warmth formed inside her chest. To her delight, Kurumi pulled out a photo album filled with Kusuo’s baby pictures. “He’s gonna be so mad you showed me this”, she said giggling. Mrs. Kurumi laughed with her, “Well too bad he’s not here to stop me”. They flipped through the pages together, cooing at Kusuo’s adorableness. Kurumi would point out pictures to explain the backstory behind them. Kokomi listened closely, wanting to know what Kusuo was like as a kid. The boy’s mother was more than happy to answer. Kokomi admired the way she talked about her family. There’s no question that she loved them all dearly.

The day turned into afternoon, their tea and snacks were finished, but Kokomi didn’t want to leave. Not yet. “Oh Kokomi, I’m so glad you decided to stop by” Mrs. Kurumi said, “It’s so nice to talk with you, my boys have never been big conversationalists”. The younger girl laughed, it must be interesting to be the only woman in the household. “I was actually pretty nervous to show up here uninvited”, she confessed, “I didn’t want to be a bother”. Kurumi took hold of Kokomi’s hands, getting her full attention. “You’re never a bother honey, you’re always welcomed here”. Kokomi couldn’t help but smile at those words, “I know, I was just being silly I guess”, she said “Kusuo even offered to lend me his keys when i was nervous about knocking”. Kokomi laughed at the memory, she was glad she had listened to her boyfriend in the end. Kurumi smiled softly at her, “Oh right! That reminds me!”. The older woman got up and looked for something in a nearby drawer. A moment later, she sat back down next to her holding a set of keys. “I’ve been meaning to give you these”, she said, handing Kokomi the keys.

She studied the keys in her hands thoroughly confused. “What are these?”, she asked with a curious smile. “A copy of the house keys”, Kurumi said, “So you don’t have to borrow Ku’s keys next time. Kokomi stared at her dumbfoundedly, trying to process her words. House keys? That meant she was fine with her entering the house whenever she pleased. Next time? That meant she was hoping Kokomi would come visit her again. She looked down at the keys, as she furrowed her brows. “I can’t accept these”, she gently handed them back to her. But Kurumi didn’t take them, she simply closed her hand around the keys to make them keep them. “Nonsense honey, you’re family now”. Kokomi looked at her wide eyed. ‘You’re family now’. She repeated the words in her head. Family? The way Kurumi said those words had been so easy. Like it was the most obvious thing in the world. But it hadn’t even occurred to her. And yet it felt so good to hear them.

“Oh dear!” Kurumi exclaimed softly, reaching out to place a gentle Kokomi’s shoulder. “Did I say something wrong?”. It took a second for Kokomi to realize what had alerted her, she’d been so surprised by her words she didn’t even notice she started crying. She lifted a hand to wipe at her tears, but they just kept coming. “I-I’m sorry”, said with a shaking voice, “I-I don’t know wh-why-”. She didn’t get to finish her thought, as two pairs of arms wrapped around her pulling her close. Kurumi held her gently, rubbing her back ever so slightly. “It’s okay sweetie, let it out”, she said, her voice soft and warm.

Kokomi couldn’t remember the last time she had been held like this. It felt so soft, so safe, and she let herself lean into the embrace, allowing the tears to flow freely. Kurumi’s arms were warm and comforting, like a soft blanket she hadn’t known she needed. She realized this is what family was supposed to be like, people you show yourself at your most vulnerable and let yourself be comforted. She hadn’t had something like this in so long. Her parents left to travel the world without thinking about their children. She had learned to be self-sufficient, and really believed she didn’t need to be taken care of. But right now in the arms of the most loving woman she knew, she knew that she was finally part of a real family.

Their embrace lasted a small while longer, until Kokomi’s tears stopped flowing and she was calm again. She thanked Kurumi for letting her into her family, her eyes still holding a light gloss over them. The older woman just smiled and took hold of Kokomi’s hands once again. “Would you like to help me with dinner?”

“I’d love to”, she said