As Isshun and Toru made their way back toward their parents, they first ran into Genzai and Kako, both of whom blinked when they finally got a proper look at Toru.
"Is this Toru-chan? You look so cute!" Kako exclaimed.
She stepped closer immediately, leaning in to admire her up close.
While she knew her son had drawn Toru before and had even seen some of those sketches, there was a world of difference between a quick drawing and seeing the real thing.
"Did you learn how to control..." Kako trailed off, glancing at Toru's subtle look toward Isshun.
Kako shifted her gaze to her son, giving him a questioning look. Isshun responded with a small nod.
'…Oh no. Who do I root for now?!' Kako felt an unexpected wave of inner conflict.
But before she could dwell on that topic further, Genzai cut in.
"Have you shown your parents yet, Toru-chan?"
Toru shook her head enthusiastically. "I want to surprise them!"
'Poor taste,' Isshun thought dryly.
After a bit of back-and-forth, the Shunkan family watched as Toru nervously made her way toward her parents.
"How much do you want to bet they recognize her immediately?" Isshun muttered.
He narrowly avoided getting smacked on the back of the head.
"If you dodge it one more time, I'm hitting harder," Kako said, smiling kindly.
"..."
Thwap!
Isshun stayed still this time, rubbing the back of his head.
"Ack…"
"Don't bet," Kako grumbled.
"Five—"
Thwap!
This time it was Genzai, who winced and rubbed his head as well.
The father and son duo rubbed their heads in pain, but they didn't complain.
The father-and-son duo silently endured their punishment without complaint, eyes still trained on Toru.
"I am kind of curious…" Kako hummed.
"Want to bet—" Genzai began, before stopping short under Kako's glare.
--<>--
Now that Toru was finally on her own, nervousness crept up on her.
'What if my parents don't recognize me?'
But before she could even raise her hand to call out, her mother—Hagakure Kuria—turned toward her, eyes widening slightly as she noticed the motion.
"Toru-chan?"
"...Eh?"
Toru lowered her hand, confused.
'How could she tell?'
"You're Toru-chan, right?" Kuria asked as she approached.
Still feeling oddly nervous, Toru nodded.
Kuria placed her hands on Toru's shoulders, studying her face as emotion welled up before pulling her into a tight hug.
"I… I can see you…!"
Kuria had fallen in love with her husband, Tenmei, long ago, but she had always believed it was selfish of her to have a child.
She knew better than anyone what kind of experiences Toru would face after being born.
That guilt was why she had resolved to shower Toru with as much love as possible, to make up for everything she couldn't protect her from.
And yet, no matter how much Kuria wanted to keep Toru within her sight, she knew that interacting with others would inevitably bring that quiet, painful feeling of being overlooked.
Each time Toru spoke less about her friends.
Each time she spent longer in front of the television.
The guilt only grew.
That was why, when Tenmei mentioned a promotion in another part of Tokyo, even though they didn't need to move, Kuria believed a fresh start might be better for Toru.
At least before she became someone like Kuria herself had been, before meeting Tenmei.
Still, Kuria wondered if she simply hadn't tried hard enough.
So she began to memorize Toru's tone of voice.
Her subconscious and conscious habits.
Her instinctive movements.
If she could predict her daughter well enough—if Toru could feel seen—would she be happier?
That was why, when Kuria scanned the crowd and noticed an unfamiliar figure that somehow felt deeply familiar, she instinctively pieced everything together.
Just to prove to her past self that being seen didn't always require sight.
There was only one person who could have made this happen.
Shun-kun.
When Isshun had come with Toru one day to ask about training, Kuria hadn't agreed just to get Toru outside.
Kuria could tell that he was different.
When Toru first claimed that Isshun could see her, Kuria had been skeptical.
But after watching them interact—even if it was only for a few minutes—it was undeniable.
This child truly saw Toru.
Kuria didn't know if she believed that Isshun could make Toru visible.
But she believed he would be a good friend to her.
Her first concern hadn't even been whether she could see visible.
She was simply grateful that her daughter might finally avoid that quiet, subconscious exclusion.
That was why Kuria loved Tenmei.
They both empathized and related to similar experiences, so they both knew the general feeling of the other, which made them both feel seen.
'I need to thank Shun-kun.'
--<>--
On the way home, Isshun couldn't help but feel a bit awkward.
'I didn't expect to be thanked that much…'
Being thanked by two sobbing parents while Toru awkwardly hovered nearby left him unsure how to react.
But man did it feel awkward.
After several rounds of gratitude, the Shunkan family finally headed home.
"Are you going to head over to Nejire's for dinner or have a celebratory dinner with us?" Kako asked.
After all, Isshun seemed to be at Nejire's everyday, with only a few occasions of Nejire coming to their own house.
However, if Nejire wanted to be teleported to the Shunkan house, she would need to leave her own necklace if she didn't want to trouble Isshun, which she didn't want to do.
"I'll call and ask after I take a bath," Isshun said, teleporting his diploma into his room before heading off.
--<>--
When he returned from the bath, he found Kako and Genzai already seated on the couch, dressed as if they were about to head out.
Isshun, meanwhile, was in his usual casual clothes.
He looked at them, waiting for an explanation he already knew about.
"…I'm glad you're learning," Genzai said. "Kako called Shiori while you were bathing. We decided on a group dinner for your graduation."
Isshun nodded.
He raised a hand to start a snapping motion.
He didn't need to, but it gave his parents time to brace themselves, and it made it less surprising for both of them so he started the habit.
SNAP!
The moment they arrived, Isshun was immediately tackled by Nejire.
"Congrats on graduating, Shun-chan!"
She practically launched herself at him, wrapping him in a tight hug.
"Yeah, yeah," Isshun replied.
Kako looked at the interaction she hadn't seen in a while.
'…Who do I root for now?'
--<>--
A/N: Last arc before canon starts, i guess.
--<>--
3750PS - Not Complete
7500PS - Not Unlocked