"…"
Staring silently at her mother, Haruno slowly unclenched her tightly balled fists. Her lips trembled slightly before she pressed them together firmly.
She raised her hand, placing it over the back of her mother's hand, and leaned her cheek into it.
Then, she gently rubbed against it, squinting her eyes as if savoring the moment. The smile on Haruno's face hadn't faded.
"There's no need for that… But I'm already used to it."
After all, even the one she loved so deeply had never seen her cry.
As long as she could still smile, Haruno felt she hadn't lost, hadn't let go of what mattered.
"Silly child… But it seems I don't have the right to say that to you." Saori withdrew her hand as if giving up. Yet her gaze was no longer commanding. She looked at Haruno gently and naturally, like an ordinary mother who just wanted to have a heart-to-heart with her daughter.
"So, forget about important matters for now. Is there any feeling you'd like to share with me?"
"Feelings I want to share…"
Perhaps this was the first time she'd heard her mother speak like this.
A faint ripple stirred in her heart. Haruno, who had planned to deflect and retreat to her room, unconsciously said these words:
"I… clearly have a boyfriend who's ready to get married…"
Saori's eyes widened suddenly. Her face was full of shock. She seemed to want to ask something but forcibly held back. With a twitching expression, she forced a smile, trying to be a good listener.
"Mm… Mm, and then?"
"You've met him before, even helped me chase him. But my plans were seen through right away. All the bodyguards I brought to the amusement park were dealt with by him…"
"?? T-that's impressive…"
"By the way, he's Yukino-chan's classmate. But he's very mature. Sometimes, he's also really sweet… Oh, and he's got a sharp tongue."
"You… this…"
"There's so much more to tell… Sadly, none of you remember."
Haruno gently bit her lip. She smiled helplessly, blinking quickly twice. She looked at her mother with a strange expression. "Do you think I have mental issues? But to me, you're the ones with the problem… We both remember, so why don't any of you?"
"Why were all those experiences and precious things erased? I was the one who came first. Why can others push me aside and casually say I'm the one meddling?"
She kept asking, not expecting answers. She just wanted to pour out everything she'd been holding in, all the things buried in her heart, to her mother.
"It's not fair! Why, after struggling so hard to recover my memories, do I still have to go through this… Why didn't his feelings come back with my memories? Why do I have to watch my boyfriend flirt with other girls? Why do I have to be forced into being the villain…"
"Why does it have to be me…"
"I just want to be with him. I want to have the truest, most perfect love…"
Haruno didn't cry.
Though her voice gradually trembled, and her eyes began to redden. She had to swallow occasionally, holding back the sting in her nose.
She wouldn't cry.
Yet her calm smile hid a sadness deep enough to drown an entire city.
"Haruno…"
Saori no longer cared about the weight of the information in those words.
Her eldest daughter, always mature and strong, looked for the first time in front of her like a little girl who'd just had her heart broken. She showed a fragile, confused expression, unsure of what to do.
Her heart ached slightly. But she didn't know what the jerk who hurt her daughter looked like, his name, where he lived, or how to plan against him.
She could only turn that anger into compassion. Raising her hand, she gently stroked Haruno's head, now much taller than her own. She comforted her in a soft voice:
"Speaking it out is good… Haruno, this might be your first time in a relationship."
"Though I don't know the exact situation, what's called love has no such thing as fairness. It's normal to feel confused. It's normal to feel scared. As long as you slowly get used to it, everything will be fine."
Haruno gradually calmed down. Her expression shifted slightly. She looked at her mother with a faintly amused gaze.
"Mom, your comforting skills need some work."
Saori quickly pulled her hand back. She glared angrily, but the tips of her ears flushed a soft cherry-blossom pink.
"Don't talk back! Whose fault is it that you kids never needed my comforting since you were little? I never got the chance to use my powers!"
(The always dignified and commanding Mom can show such an embarrassed and awkward expression?)
Realizing this, Haruno's mood instantly lightened. The surging emotions, like crashing waves, slowly subsided. Even the dark thoughts that had surfaced earlier gradually faded.
Indeed, speaking out all the words bottled up in her heart, even if the person across from her was confused, still made her feel lighter. Her thoughts were no longer so negative.
Her rationality was analyzing her current mindset. Then she heard her mother ask again:
"So, what do you want to do now?"
"Do what?" At the question, the near-criminal plans resurfaced in her mind.
Haruno shook her head. She didn't want her mother to see that she'd ever considered breaking the law. She smiled as if accepting the situation:
"I have to work and study now. Plus, with his avoidant attitude, I can't do anything. I can't just go to him and whine like a kid who didn't get candy."
After all, she had promised him she'd hold back until the truth was revealed.
Haruno didn't want to cause him trouble either. That wasn't what a good girlfriend should do—though when they were together, she barely felt the age gap, she was still older than Yuu. She should manage her emotions and selfishness and think of him with a mature perspective.
Thinking this way, Saori countered with a question:
"Why not? Has he ever considered how much you're suffering?"
"…"
Bullseye. Haruno fell silent, unsure how to answer.
"Listen to me, Haruno."
Saori lifted her daughter's downcast face. She spoke with a serious expression: "You've always been free. Even though you took on the heavy responsibility of being the eldest daughter to inherit the family business at a young age, you've always gotten what you wanted within the bounds of maturity. You've never hesitated."
"Pocket money from Grandpa, the latest toys, things you wanted to try… From childhood to adulthood, you've lived far more easily than we did. That's why your father and I trusted you with so much pressure—because you know how to adapt, how to balance freedom and restraint. That's one thing Yukino will never match you in."
The corners of her lips curved into a smile. Saori gently flicked Haruno's forehead, as if scolding a bright child who got a ninety-nine and started complaining. Her tone remained firm:
"But when it comes to love, you're like a handcuffed baby. You could easily break free from those limits, but instead, you lie in bed, sobbing. You don't dare do anything—you're not at all like the daughter I raised!"