Jitsu -A different story-

Leaving the night behind, the sun rose again indicating that a new day had arrived. In the area outside the ryokan, it was not very difficult to guess that most of nature was awakening and becoming active upon feeling the rays of the sun. Likewise, beauty and harmony in the environment were presented that anyone would enjoy in their own way.

Perhaps there were a couple more things to say to perfectly describe that image more vividly, but at that very moment, someone had also just woken up in one of the rooms of the ryokan.

A light sheet was moving continuously as the woman responsible for it did the same little by little with her body, her hands had quickly risen to her face, and as she touched her eyes a little to try to eliminate the small traces of drowsiness, she became aware of where she was and what had happened.

"Hehehe… So, it really wasn't a dream." It could be said that that little laugh carried a lot of feelings with it, but at the same time, Shizune couldn't help but feel great warmth and happiness inside her the moment she saw that ring on her hand that had become so special and that made a beautiful smile appear on her face.

Shizune remained that way, remembering everything that had happened the night before. Every moment of that memory made her feel even happier, and that warm feeling she had experienced was repeating itself with every second. Maybe she would remain trapped in it for a few more times, but at that moment, Shizune realized that that wasn't all that had caught her attention.

Something that had to be mentioned was that she looked around the room a little, realizing in this way that it had already dawned, and the day had come when they would have to return to the city. Shizune also noticed Kurono's figure, who was next to her since they had the habit of bringing the futons they slept on as close as possible, but besides all that, what Shizune was most aware of was the fact that both she and Kurono were only covered by the blankets of the futon since they both wore no clothes on.

The reason for this had been something inevitable. After what had happened the night before, both she and Kurono couldn't help but let their feelings take over them. They felt the need to show what they felt for each other in any way possible, and compared to any other occasion, the only thing that moved them was the purest and most honest love that existed between them, and it was something wonderful for both her and Kurono.

Returning to the present moment, Shizune was lying down while looking at Kurono's back. She was already thinking about whether she should wake him up, and although she was thinking of a few ways to do so, she couldn't carry them out as she saw how Kurono's body also began to move as a sign of the inevitable.

"Good morning…"

"Good morning, hehe." Once again, Shizune had to let out a small laugh, although this time it was caused by Kurono's sleepy face.

"Hmm… I think I'm still dreaming." Kurono stared at Shizune for a moment, and he was experiencing something like when she woke up, but instead of saying anything else, that was the first thing that came out of him, giving Shizune a bit of curiosity, but she also took advantage of that moment to start a small talk.

"It's strange that you think that since you're not doing it."

"Is what you say true?" Kurono was still focused on what was in his mind and took advantage of Shizune's words.

"Yes, I'm sure you and I are fully awake."

"I see… If that's the case, I don't want to dream again if this is the reality I live in." The meaning of Kurono's words was obvious, so much so that Shizune didn't take long to understand it, and because of that, she was showing him the same smile as before while he had a similar one on him. "I think we'll have a lot of things to prepare in the future."

"That's right, and there are also a lot of people we have to talk to."

"Still, we have a lot of time for that… Now the only thing I care about is you, I can't let everything I told you not be true." Kurono touched Shizune's cheek while she used her hand to touch his, which made Kurono able to see the ring she was holding.

"You don't need to worry too much about it, like I told you, you've always known how to show me the feelings you have for me, so if you keep loving me the same way, I'll be happier than you can imagine." Those words had made Kurono understand perfectly what Shizune felt.

The calm and tranquility of the moment combined perfectly with the small talk between them, and although they didn't make everything clear or say it directly, they both knew what had changed between them… They both knew that they were now closer than before, and in addition to that moment, they both got close enough for a small but warm kiss to further highlight the feelings that were inside them.

…

…

It went without saying that Shizune hadn't been able to stop smiling all morning even though she knew that this was her last day at the ryokan and that both she and Kurono were preparing everything to leave. Both were experiencing a mood where they kept showing each other affection whenever they had the chance, but that didn't stop them from cleaning up the room a bit and then entering the private onsen to refresh their bodies completely.

The trip back was scheduled quite early, so they hurried enough, also checking that they didn't forget anything before leaving the room and heading to the reception area where Kurono needed to make some moves before they could safely leave.

Maybe in another situation, Shizune would feel a little sad because the vacation was over, she would surely have taken advantage of any moment to enjoy, even if it was just a second more of everything, but at that moment, and if anyone asked her, she could say directly that what she wanted most at this moment was to return to the city, and that was because of the news she wanted to personally share with all the people close to her.

As they had thought, they quickly arrived at the reception. Kurono advanced to the area where the manager who had attended them when they arrived was while Shizune had chosen to separate herself a little from him, but the real reason for this was because she had seen a familiar face in the distance and did not take long to approach her.

"Mio-san."

"Shizune-san?" As if some ghost had appeared behind her, Mio was a little scared when she felt someone approaching and saying her name, but she was able to calm down quickly when she knew it was Shizune.

"Sorry if I surprised you. I saw you here and I was wondering what you were doing." Shizune was glad that she could meet Mio before she left and she was already having some thoughts that she wanted to tell her, but Mio would quickly respond to her words.

"I was actually waiting for you." That very answer had been enough for Shizune to be surprised this time. "I remembered that you told me yesterday that you and Kurono-san would be returning to the city around this time, so I wanted to wait here to see you off."

Knowing that, Shizune felt more encouraged as she appreciated the small friendship she had made with Mio.

"I also wanted to ask you for a way to contact you, once I enter your life it's hard for you to escape from me, hehe." Shizune accompanied Mio's laughter with her own as she also thought about asking Mio for her contact.

Maybe they couldn't meet in person since they lived in different places, but you never knew if they might meet up at any other time, so staying in touch like that was also a way for them to not forget each other.

Shizune reached for her cell phone while Mio did the same, both brought it closer to each other and it wasn't long before they shared each other's contact information, which made them feel more at ease. Mio was about to ask Shizune where Kurono was as well as ask her to accompany her if she was waiting for him, but right after putting her phone aside, Mio realized something, and that something had made her eyes widen in complete surprise.

"S-Shizune-san…" A light stutter came from Mio as she raised her arm and used her finger to point at Shizune's left hand. "Don't tell me that…"

Shizune experienced a second of total confusion, but upon realizing what Mio meant, she couldn't help but let the same happy smile appear on her face as she made it clear to her what it meant.

"Hehe… That's right, Mio-san. Kurono proposed to me."