Having cold feet wasnt necessarily bad. Its a normal occurrence. Even I could feel that at times. Same as being nervous when meeting someone.

Perhaps, if Im not as shameless as I am now, I mightve been a nervous wreck last night in front of Namis mother.

And thats what Shio and Rae felt today when it came to meeting my parents. No matter how welcoming I described them, they would still build an image of them in their minds on top of any other considerations they might have. And in turn, they began to think about how to approach them without making a fool of themselves.

Talking to Rae about that topic as I walked her to the bus stop, her apprehensions slowly unfolded but still... she didnt change her mind about not meeting them today.

And now, after talking to the girls who gathered at the Literature Clubs clubroom as well as to the girls gathered by Akane, were about to go home.

Coming with me were Kana and the five girls from my class. None of them backed out. But thats not because they fully prepared themselves to meet them, they actually witnessed the girls from the other school eagerly expressing their desire to meet my parents and introduce themselves.

Its like a competitive spirit has been ignited in them. Those who were thinking twice after I also told them to think carefully and it didnt have to be today, they scratched that and courageously stood up.

Although Saki still had her inferiority complex, the girl also got influenced by what she witnessed.

Yua and Elizabeth were being passionate as they even rehearsed how they would introduce themselves. Then theres Yukari who got pulled along by her friend. Miho and Miyako sighed in defeat but they still expressed their willingness to come.

Among the girls gathered there, Hiyori was the only one who thought of postponing but in the end, after I talked to them about my realization that I shouldnt pressure them into meeting my parents, Ririka and Aika also backed down as they wanted to prepare themselves and gather their courage first.

As for Yae, Aoi and Eimi, they didnt say anything and just watched everything in interest.

Ah right. Ria wasnt there yet but Akane told me that theyre going to fetch her from her school before going together.

Those not there with them were Mizuki and Otoha. The two noble girls. Mizuki already told me that shed pick another day to come and meet my parents because of the work shes trying to finish. As for Otoha, shes with Hitomi and still staying in the hospital, waiting for her grandfather to get better.

As for Haruko, who I ran into when I returned from walking Rae to the bus stop, shes with the girls from the Poem Appreciation Club. Even without me opening my mouth to ask her since thats a chance, she answered by saying that shell meet them when its her turn to sleepover again. Like last Sunday, shell bring Serizawa-senpai with her.

You met my mother last night, Ruu... Its my turn to meet yours. Nami said with a red face while rubbing her legs together. By doing that, she garnered weird stares from the other five.

Shes definitely remembering not the moment that I meant her parents but the night we shared... Well, with how strained she walked earlier which she reasoned as her having leg cramps, my girls already knew what happened.

Uhm... Ruki, will I be fine? Aya held onto my sleeve as she asked with her face wrought with worry.

Im sure you will. They wont bite anyone. More like, theyll be curious and ask all of you weird questions, especially my mother so watch out for that.

I said that not just for Aya but also for the others. Looking at how they nodded as if theyre making a mental note, I smiled at them.

With this, were now set on going home.

Instead of taking the train, Satsuki suggested that we take the bus instead even though it would be a long walk to our house from the bus stop where we would disembark.

As for the reason why she suggested that, there are fewer people on the bus than on the train. Furthermore...

Youre sitting with me.

Thats right. She planned on having me sit next to her. The backseat was occupied by another passenger so we had no choice but to pick the two-seaters.

Upon seeing how Satsuki quickly made a move, Nami and the others could only smile wryly as they sat on the nearby seats.

Just like this, the less than an hour bus ride was spent in slight tranquility.

Even if Satsuki had me sit with her, she just enjoyed my shoulder as her pillow. She had just finished her basketball practice after all so... the girl was definitely dead tired. And with me next to her, she felt a sense of security to fall asleep while on the bus.

When the others saw that, their bitter smiles relaxed before being replaced by their understanding.

An hour later, after the long walk from the bus stop, were now in front of our house.

My parents car was still parked outside and even though we havent stepped inside yet, we could already hear the slightly rowdy situation inside.

Alright, dont be surprised. I reminded them as I pulled open the front door and entered the house first.

Ara~ Welcome home, my son. And daughters... How nice it is to finally meet all of you. My mother greeted us by the front door.

Compared to her tight office suit that I saw through the video call earlier, shes now wearing a baggy one-piece dress, typical of a Japanese housewife. Her slightly wavy long auburn hair stretched to her back, adorned by a simple ribbon holding a clump of her hair.

She had slightly lazy-looking smiling eyes as her gaze alternated between the girls behind me. She then clapped her hand as out of nowhere, she prepared house slippers for everyone.

Come in, come in. Dont be shy. With the same welcoming smile on her face, she urged the girls behind me, who were probably dumbstruck at how my mother welcomed them, to go inside. I cooked something for everyone so... go straight to the kitchen.

As if hypnotized by her words, neither Nami or Satsuki, the two who had the strongest personality among the six, could say anything. They could only nod at her as they went inside followed by the other four.

In less than 30 seconds, I was left behind with my mother at the front door. Shes looking at their backs while slightly giggling in pure bliss.

Ruki, theyre too lovely! You better introduce them to me one by one! Her lazy-looking eyes opened wide. Fantastically, her eyes were sparkling like those anime characters or like Otsuka-senpai with her uncontrollable curiosity.

Alright, alright. Im home, mom... Really, do you have to wait for us at the front door? Arent you coming off too strong?

What are you even talking about, son? I didnt do anything. Come, hug your mother. I missed my baby boy.

My mother opened her arms wide as if asking a young child to jump in her embrace.

As always, she never changes.

Baby boy... I muttered in difficulty. However, my feet still moved as I entered my mothers embrace. No matter what, Im still her son and through this... Im certain, even when my desire was still running rampant, my love towards my parents never changed.

Welcome home, mom.