Jitsu -A different story-

Time passed, more specifically, little more than two months had passed since that night when everyone enjoyed that pleasant dinner. Both Shizune and Kurono had fulfilled their promise and, whenever they had the opportunity, they agreed to meet in the small park where they met to spend time and enjoy each other's company.

That day was no different, Kurono had invited Shizune to one of their meetings and they were both on the same bench as always while they talked about anything that seemed interesting or funny.

"So you don't like being called sir?"

"No, I know I fall into that category, but it feels weird every time someone calls me that."

"Haha, that's interesting to know, sir."

"Do not start…" Yes, after spending so many days together and getting to know each other better, Kurono and Shizune had become very good friends, so much so that they would even tease each other with little jokes whenever there was the opportunity, and the laughter that could be heard coming out of them still confirmed plus that.

"But don't feel that way, Kurono-san, you're still young, just... It could be said that you are more mature and that confuses people, how to say it?... You convey the feeling that a leader would have."

"I guess running a company has a weird impact then... Anyway, can you wait here for a bit?" A confused face appeared on Shizune's face when she heard that.

"Eh?... No problem, but where are you going?"

"Don't worry about that, I won't be long." Moving a little away from the area, Kurono's figure had disappeared from Shizune's sight while she had stayed on the bench alone with her thoughts.

'I've never seen Kurono-san act mysteriously, the strangest thing he's done was the time he was petrified because a bee was near him. Hehe, he looked cute when he had that relieved face and got a little closer to me.' A small blush in addition to shaking her head was what Shizune did after that thought crossed her mind. She was not even aware of how long she was lost in thought until she saw what had appeared in front of her and that familiar voice sounded.

"This is…"

"This was what I was looking for, I saw that the vendor was nearby and I ran to catch it, I hope you like it." What Kurono was referring to and what he had put in front of Shizune was a simple ice cream cone that would melt at any moment if left outside. "The weather is still hot, so I thought it was a good idea to eat something cold, although maybe I should have asked you before, I don't know if you like it."

"No, I like it, thank you very much, Kurono-san. How much was it for it?" Shizune was already going through her handbag and thanking Kurono for the trouble he went to, but it seemed like she was acting unconsciously.

"What? No, it's a gift, you don't need to do any of that." Kurono had quickly prevented Shizune from continuing with what she was doing and, after a few apologies from her, she had taken the ice cream that was in front of her to start eating it at the same time that Kurono sat down next to her again.

"It's delicious, I really feel revived, the heat has increased in recent days."

"Yes, you should be careful if you spend a lot of time in the sun." Their talk had returned to its course as they talked about the first thing that occurred to them, the scene was truly pleasant, but a peculiar sound made it attract the attention of both.

"Sob... Sob..." That little crying seemed to come from a little girl not far from them, and Kurono was the first to get up to see what had happened.

"Hello, what happened to you little girl?" Kurono didn't really know how to deal with the situation, but the first thing he had to do was find out what had happened.

The girl hadn't said a single word besides the little sobs that came out of her, but as if answering Kurono's question, she used her finger to point to the ice cream cone that was lying on the ground at that moment without a chance to save it.

"Oh, I see the problem... Here, you can have this one, I haven't tasted it yet." As the best idea at the time, Kurono had shown a kind smile as he handed his ice cream to the little girl who had stopped crying as she watched the cold dessert with sparkling eyes, but before she thought to take it, a few words came out of her in Kurono's direction.

"A-Are you a bad person?" With that question, Kurono didn't know what to say as he realized the situation and how it would look like from someone else's point of view, but luckily there didn't seem to be anyone to misunderstand everything, besides Shizune showing up to listen to all.

"Haha, don't worry, honey. Kurono-san isn't someone bad, he just wants to give you this gift so you won't be sad anymore." It was what was needed, the support of a feminine figure as well as a motherly one so that the little girl no longer felt so reluctant to accept Kurono's kindness. With a little more confidence, she took the ice cream that was only a few centimeters from her, and after tasting it a little, a totally sincere smile appeared on her face replacing the sadness from before.

"Thank you very much, sir. It's good that you are not a bad person!" That was what the girl said before saying goodbye properly and running away until the sight of Kurono and Shizune couldn't see her anymore.

…

…

"Sir…"

"Haha, I'm sorry, but it's quite funny, haha!" They had already returned to the usual bench at the time that Kurono kept repeating that word in a low voice and Shizune was amused by the expression he had. "Forget that Kurono-san, the important thing is that you were very kind at that time, you acted like a hero."

"I just couldn't see her so sad. Children should smile and not feel that way..." Some kind of nostalgia was mixed in those words that just came out of Kurono and Shizune could tell it, but that feeling went away as quickly as it came.

"Kurono-san, could you turn around for a moment?" Kurono had done exactly that so that in his sight, the same ice cream appeared a short distance from him as he looked up from him to search for an explanation. "You couldn't taste your ice cream, you can eat some of mine, hehe."

Kurono wanted to refuse at first, but he thought that he shouldn't avoid Shizune's good intentions, so he tasted a little and then felt the vanilla flavor freshness run through his body.

"It's delicious, right?"

"Yes, but…"

"What's the matter?" Shizune could see that Kurono had a strange look, it seemed that he wanted to say something, but the strangest thing was when that same look turned into an amused one.

"Should I consider that an indirect kiss, Shizune-san?" Obviously, he had said that to annoy her, and seeing Shizune's completely flushed face, he knew he had succeeded.

"I-It's not! Are you a teenager to think about such things?"

"Well, your blush tells me that you really thought so, haha." Kurono's laugh echoed throughout the area as Shizune slapped him to the side in revenge. This summed up the days they spent together, and as always, the darkness of the night indicated that the end was near.

"I guess it's time to go back, and I think you won't let me go alone, will you?"

"No, accompanying you is my self-imposed task... But I wanted to take the opportunity to tell you something..." Shizune felt strange again because of the way Kurono was acting, but she simply stayed silent while she listened to what he had to say.

"Shizune-san, I…"

…

…

Shizune had already returned home and had said goodbye to Kurono besides thanking him for having accompanied her. She had closed the door while she had a thoughtful look and a feeling that she had not felt in a long time was generated inside her, she wanted to go to her room to lie down and analyze everything, but the voice of her beloved daughter prevented her from doing so at that moment.

"Well, well... Do you know what time it is? Next time I'll have to put a stricter curfew on you, but if you're with Kurono-san then I don't have to worry, today we'll have our typical questions and answers session, so..." Rena had appeared with the simple intention of joking with her mother like she had been doing every time she knew that Shizune was with Kurono, but when she saw her mom's expression, she really worried. "What's wrong mom, are you feeling bad or something?"

"Huh? No, I'm fine, it's just that I'm thinking about something Kurono-san told me."

"I see, and can I know what it is?" Rena was indeed curious, her mother rarely had that kind of expression and she didn't understand what reason there would be for it, but once she heard the words that came out of her, an emotion combined with many feelings filled her completely.

"Kurono-san... He asked me out on a date."