Jitsu -A different story-

Before you know it, time flies by. When everything is calm and there is not much to worry about beyond the day-to-day, it makes you experience different feelings, you feel relaxed and clear; you feel like resting after having made enough effort in your own way, although there is also the point where if that same situation persists you can get trapped in a kind of monotony.

Maybe you define a simple routine that you stick to too much, a difficult comfort zone for you to get out of, or simply a lack of desire to do something different that can alter the point to which you are already accustomed. It may even be that none of this happens and you simply enjoy that kind of tranquility. Still, despite all this description or idea, it was not very difficult to guess that, in a specific department, everything previously mentioned differed a little from that same situation. "I… I did it." With a lower tone of voice than usual, those words carried with them a sense of accomplishment, as well as relief once they were said, and if you looked closely, that voice belonged to Rena.

"Congratulations, Rena. Now try to move him gently so he doesn't wake up." With the same tone of voice, those words that were directed at Rena were giving her some instructions that she began to follow quickly, and to someone's curiosity, the person who had just spoken was Shizune.

Repeating all the steps and advice in her mind, Rena moved around her room until she reached one of the corners of it, in which a small white crib was located. It wasn't long before Rena carefully lowered her arms, and after a few seconds of making sure everything was okay, she could now see how, lying comfortably and breathing calmly, in the crib was her beloved son Makoto sleeping peacefully.

As always, a cute smile appeared on Rena's face just by seeing her son like that. She would surely spend a good while watching him sleep without anything distracting her, but this time, Rena noticed that, next to her, and also watching Makoto, Shizune's figure had appeared and then she heard the voice coming out of her.

"He's incredibly cute when he's asleep." Shizune couldn't help but say what was on her mind, but that wasn't strange at all since, like Rena, Shizune felt a great affection and love for Makoto, after all, Shizune also grew fonder every day with the little member of the family.

"I know, he's a cutie... I'll turn on the device to monitor him. Let's go down to the living room in the meantime." Rena did just that, and following Shizune a moment later, they both walked down the stairs until they reached the living room of the apartment and sat down on the couch while Rena made sure to turn on the monitor to keep track of everything that happened with Makoto.

"Sigh… I've indeed been told this countless times, but being a mother is incredibly exhausting."

"Hahaha. I'll tell you something. You'll never get used to it, honey. It's one of the greatest adventures you can have in this life." Those kinds of comments were no longer rare to hear for either of them and although Shizune was the first to laugh at Rena's condition, in the end, she also laughed a little at everything that was happening to her.

To summarize, it was necessary to make clear that three months had passed since Makoto was born, and as Shizune had said, Rena and Akio's life had been full of many trials and adventures with the arrival of their son. From adapting to schedules, supporting each other, studying many aspects to take into account having their son with them, problems sleeping, etc.

It really was an arduous test, but for the good fortune of both, in addition to the fact that they really helped each other and communicated properly, having Shizune with them had been a great help.

Fortunately, from the beginning, everything had gone well. The birth ended without complications, Rena and Makoto were healthy enough, and in the end, everyone was able to meet little Makoto, who received many praises while Rena and Akio received many congratulations from all their acquaintances and friends. So, after all these months and many preventive measures, as well as constant appointments with the pediatrician, Rena was quite comfortable having Makoto living in the apartment without any problems.

"Aside from that somewhat tired appearance, how do you really feel?" Returning to the moment when Shizune shared the room with Rena, a new question was directed toward her.

"Hmm… What can I say? I am very happy right now, Mom." Rena had not thought too much before saying that answer, although in reality, many somewhat hidden feelings were behind them, especially due to the small emotional instability that Rena had gone through after pregnancy, but thanks to the help and patience of her loved ones she was able to reduce quite a bit, so that at present that is not something that bothers her.

"You don't know how happy I am to hear that." Shizune had also let out a sigh of relief at Rena's words. Shizune had put a lot of focus into taking care of both Rena and Makoto, so it was very important to her that Rena was perfectly fine.

"Yes… I know I've been repeating it a lot lately, but thank you for all your help." As Rena had said, it wasn't the first time she had let out similar words, and it wasn't the first time Shizune had heard it either, so as always, she was going to say a few words to Rena in response, but Rena wasn't going to allow that. "I felt like this was the perfect time, so again, I want to thank you for everything... Thank you for all the help you've given me, thank you for all the advice you've given me, thank you for the love you've shown me and Makoto… And I know that even thanking you countless times wouldn't be enough… But thank you, Mom… Thank you for giving me life, thank you for taking care of me all this time, thank you for all the support you've given me up until this point in my life."

Shizune had to say that she hadn't expected those words at that moment, it wasn't as if Rena had never said something like that to her, but at that very moment, Shizune could tell how different those words were compared to any other time, and this time, those words had actually reached deep into her heart, but at the same time, the last thing Rena said would be what would have the greatest impact.

"I am happy. I am happy to be alive, I am grateful for everything I have now, and there are many things I want to do and see that the future holds for me, but right now, I know I can tell you those words I always wanted to… I am happy that you are my mom, I wouldn't wish it had been any other way, and I want you to keep one thing in mind… I love you deeply."