Jitsu -A different story-

A pleasant atmosphere was what surrounded Shizune and the woman in front of her, which due to Shizune's words, it seemed that she was actually her mother... But Kurono was quite confused since, if she hadn't said that, now... He'd think Shizune had a twin sister.

But seeing them both together, Kurono was able to realize some important differences, especially the feeling that Shizune's mother transmitted; this being one of total maturity and tranquility.

Shizune was about to say something else, but she noticed Rena behind her mother as she raised her hand and pointed her finger in a specific direction. Shizune followed that direction with her eyes and that was enough for her to come back to reality as she realized that Kurono's figure was close to her.

"Shizune, could you tell me who he's?" Shizune clearly heard her mother's question, she had asked Rena the same thing, but her intuition told her that Shizune was the one for her to explain.

Shizune knew that this moment had come, so now she approached Kurono while taking his hand which was not occupied by the luggage, he was carrying with him. Kurono didn't prevent this, he also prepared himself for what would come next.

"Mom... He's Kurono, he and I are in a relationship." Shizune's words were quite simple, but at the same time enough for everything to be clear since anyone would notice Shizune's feelings at that moment. A bit of silence came after that, but Kurono knew it was his turn to talk about a bit.

"It's nice to meet you, my name is Kurosawa Kurono, and what Shizune said is true, I'm dating her." Kurono introduced herself giving a small bow, Shizune saw this at the same time that she was glad that he supported her at that moment, but she wanted to know her mother's opinion in telling her this.

"I see… Nice to meet you too, Kurono-san. My name is Yotsuba Kyoko, maybe I don't need to mention it, but I'm Shizune's mother." She also gave Kurono a slight bow, and Kyoko realized that her idea had been quite right. "Maybe It's just my imagination, but I think you mistook me for her earlier."

Those words caught Kurono off guard, so he could only tell the truth at that moment.

"I must admit that really was the case, I'm sorry for that little mix-up."

"But that can't be possible, isn't it pretty obvious that mom and I are totally different, Kurono?" Shizune said that after hearing the whole situation that happened before she arrived, and now she stood right next to Kyoko so that Kurono was aware that they were two different people.

Maybe that would have been enough, but Kurono could only see two Shizunes in front of him, although there were small differences.

"Actually… I got to the point where I thought you had a twin sister." Those very words made Rena start laughing non-stop.

"Ufufu, maybe that means I'm still a beautiful young lady, thanks for the little compliment, Kurono-san." Kyoko laughed a little at the situation, and then she could see how Shizune pouted a little and approached Kurono again to amusingly hit him because of his response, which made Kyoko have a small calm smile on her face again.

The news did not seem to have affected her much, but if someone could read Kyoko's thoughts, they would realize that the surprise she felt was quite great, she would never have imagined that her beloved daughter would reach this point in this time that she had not seen her. She was obviously happy about that, she just needed to see Shizune's state to realize that everything she had surely experienced had made her change a bit, although it was still her duty to make sure everything was really alright.

"Kurono-san..." After the atmosphere calmed down a bit, Kyoko caught Kurono's attention again and he didn't make her wait. "What exactly do you feel for Shizune?"

That question was quite direct, so much so that it caused a new silence to fill the place, but that only lasted a few seconds as Kurono had no hesitation in answering.

"I love Shizune, I just can't, nor do I want to imagine the simple fact that one day she won't be by my side anymore, so I'm being quite serious with my words." Just like his words, Kurono's expression and attitude were incredibly It would be, he didn't have to lie, they were his true feelings, and if Shizune didn't know that he was only answering her mother's question, some strange thoughts would have appeared in her head.

"And what about you? How do you feel about Kurono-san, Shizune?" Now it was Shizune's turn to be overwhelmed with that question, but just like Kurono, her words were not long in coming.

"I... I love Kurono so much... There's no other way to say it." Although Shizune didn't express everything exaggeratedly, that had been enough for both Kurono and Kyoko to be convinced by it.

"I see..." Kyoko had closed her eyes to think about what she had heard, everything was quite clear to her, just seeing the changes that Shizune had suffered in all this time, but especially that feeling of happiness that she gave off, made that she was unconsciously happy for her, she was her mother, so she thought she understood Shizune quite well. "Then I hope we get along from now on, Kurono-san."

Those words had been enough for Shizune to subconsciously heave a sigh of relief, and she realized that one part of her plan had worked out quite well.

"I say the same, Yotsuba-san." Kurono was happy with the result too, and he couldn't help a small smile forming on his face after saying those words.

"Please, you don't need to speak so formally, it's even fine if you just call me by my name." Kyoko laughed again a little when she noticed Kurono's attitude, it could be the first time they met, but Kyoko had a good first impression of him, and something that made her think that way was because of the mood that Shizune showed her.

She was very different from the usual Shizune that she remembered quite well, always trying to distract herself with anything, showing that positive attitude about everything, and taking care of Rena in the best possible way, but it was undeniable that something was always tormenting her, and although that didn't it had completely disappeared, it was being overshadowed to a great extent.

"I'll try my best, Kyoko-san." Kurono really tried to follow her instructions, but he couldn't help but speak formally since she was Shizune's mother.

"And what do you think, Grandma? Isn't Mom lucky enough?" The serious atmosphere from before had been fading little by little, and once she was assured, Rena knew it was time to have fun teasing Shizune a bit.

"Oh sure, Kurono is quite an attractive man, maybe if he were twenty years younger, I wouldn't mind competing against Shizune for him." Kyoko brought her hand to her mouth so that all her laughter would not run away from her.

That little interaction was quite peculiar, but Kurono had finally discovered where Rena had gotten her joking attitude, although what he heard next made him understand who was the victim of both.

"Mom!"