Jitsu -A different story-

Perhaps the idiom that time fixes everything is not entirely correct, there are times when something is left present that does not change or improve in any way despite letting time take its course. That itself can form a kind of shadow in your heart, one that takes root in you and that is very difficult to try to eliminate. Many may live with it until the end of their days, while others are lucky enough to find an answer to those complicated feelings that overwhelm them, referring to luck in this case as the help of someone else, a chance encounter, supporting something or someone else, or simply understanding yourself and the situation you find yourself in...

With that said, it's easy to imagine that both Shizune and Kurono had that kind of luck, the simple fact of meeting each other changed their lives in different ways, showing them a happiness that they had refused to experience over time and making them see beyond of what was in front of them, which could be considered the first step in finding a tranquility that they had lost a long time ago.

"I'm sorry, Shizune. With everything that happened it's already quite late." Kurono apologized once again while both he and Shizune were in front of the door of Rena's apartment since when he looked at his watch, he realized that it was already after midnight.

"Hehe. You really don't need to worry, Kurono. I feel calmer after everything you shared with me, it won't affect me much to sleep a little later, although, in reality, I worry more about you since you are also going to work tomorrow." Shizune took advantage of that information so that Kurono would stop feeling that way, as well as let him know that she would be fine.

In short, Kurono told Shizune all the details after talking about Mei. He talked to her about how he had adopted a somewhat serious mentality but focused on his future, how he had Kazumi's support throughout that time, how he climbed little by little to create his company into what it is today, and the story of how close he was towards any romantic feelings until he met her.

Shizune was aware of all this in a general way, but she was also grateful for the details that made her visualize Kurono's past a little better. She also felt calm since she could notice Kurono's slight change concerning it, especially when he mentioned Mei since that melancholic expression had not returned to his face.

"But…" Kurono wanted to say something else like he was going to make sure to reward Shizune somehow for all her help, but just like how Shizune had said, he didn't have to worry too much, and the fact that the words he wanted to get out of him and stopped it was precisely because Shizune had just approached him to share a small kiss full of warmth.

"I love you… I hope you get a lot of rest." There was a small smile on Shizune's face as she said that and looked at Kurono's static figure before opening the apartment door and slowly entering.

Kurono still didn't move since he had really been a little surprised, but it didn't take him long to calm down, and as if it were something involuntary, a smile also appeared on him while his footsteps took him back to his car.

…

"Yawn… It seems like it's late." Shizune was already in the safety of the apartment and fatigue had just hit his body. "I thought they would be asleep by now."

At that moment Shizune was talking to herself since she had just seen how most of the lights were on, perhaps this was not entirely strange, but you have to know that whenever Shizune told Rena that she would be a little late, usually they left only the living room light on for her if Rena and Akio were going to sleep early, so finding themselves with all the lights on was something new.

Shizune was about to raise her voice a little to find out if Rena or Akio were awake, but as soon as she took a breath to do so, she had to stop abruptly when a figure was coming down the stairs and the surprised expression on her could be seen by anyone at that time.

Perhaps there would be nothing strange in the scene, but in reality, that figure was wrapped only in a light sheet, his hair was a mess and you could see some small marks that at first glance you would not be able to say what caused them... But keeping that description in mind, maybe you could get a little idea of how that figure ended up like that.

"H-Hello, mom… Welcome, haha…" And, by the way, the figure we were talking about was actually Rena, Shizune's beloved daughter.

For her part, Shizune's sight focused on Rena for a few seconds, which the latter felt like an eternity since Shizune didn't say anything.

"This… It was already very late and I figured that you and Kurono-san decided to spend some quality time, and…" Rena was making a somewhat futile attempt to explain the situation, but she wasn't really doing much good in reality.

That situation only lasted a little before Rena ran off in the direction of the bathroom while Shizune went to her room without thinking too much about her daughter's privacy. She was about to get ready to go to sleep, but the sound of her cell phone was enough to keep her awake a little more, especially because of the person responsible for the call.

"I'm sorry for the timing, although I think I was lucky to find you awake." A rather familiar voice was heard by Shizune, and it belonged to no one but Kazumi. "How was it?"

Shizune made herself comfortable in bed since she knew what was coming next, but she also take the opportunity to hear some things from Kazumi, and in the end, sleep came to Shizune even later than she thought.