"Oh yeah? Who damages half the dojo just because of little arguments? Do you have any idea how much money it takes to repair the building? It's already bad enough living in this cramped apartment," the man retorted.
Akane Saotome glared at her husband, ignoring the stew behind her. "If I remember correctly, it was you who sold the dojo off, without asking what I thought. If you don't like our living conditions, don't blame it all on me". Her voice rose. "Besides, you're so lazy you can't even find a stable job! I'm trying my hardest to make our family a decent meal, and it doesn't help with you complaining all the time."
A boy and girl, both young, reached for the doorknob on the kitchen door.
"Decent?" Ranma gestured in disgust at the now overflowing pot that was letting out vile smelling liquid, if it could be called a liquid. "When was the last time you made a decent meal? I guess all those cooking lessons from Kasumi didn't hel-."
"Mama, is it time for dinner-"
The girl stopped short when she saw the expression on her parent's faces.
Akane massaged her temples. "Not in front of the children…" She ushered them out, saying that dinner would be ready in a few minutes.
Ranma scowled grimly. "That's likely. And what are you so tired about? I'm the one that has to work hard, and when I come home, what do I get? A plateful of crap."
"Just shut it! You don't know how hard it is to manage this household!" Akane held a rolling pin threateningly over her head.
"I see you haven't really matured. Still violent and immature," Ranma drawled, completely unafraid. "If U-chan was here…"
"Oh, now it's Ukyou?!" Akane's face turned a livid red. "Wait-U-chan, isn't it? That's all you talk about! U-chan this, U-chan that." She attempted to mock copy Ranma's voice. " U-chan would understand me, U-chan wouldn't try to poison me, U-chan wouldn't hit me. Well, I'm sick of it!"
Ranma's eyes turned from their usual blue to red. " And what about you?" He was practically yelling. "You keep on going on about Ryouga! `Ryouga appreciates my cooking, Ryouga would help around the house, Ryouga wouldn't insult me'!! What's up with that?!"
A heavy tension filled the room.
Akane could feel her eyes getting hot.
"Fine. If you feel so uncomfortable around here, why don't you just get out." She turned around and went back to cooking.
"Maybe I will." Ranma opened the front door and pulled on his shoes. He walked out and slammed the door shut.
A resounding echo filled the room, leaving Akane with water in her eyes.
*****************
Ranma absent-mindedly walked down the steps of the apartment, still thinking about the previous argument. There had been a lot of those ever since he and Akane married. He sat down on the stairs of the lobby, paying no mind to the janitor.
He sighed. Today his temper got the better of him. He didn't usually get so angry that he walk right out, but it was all this stress getting to him. Work was busy; he mostly had to work the whole day to support the family. Selling the dojo helped a bit, but the fact that Akane's father and his moved away didn't help much. Family…it had been eight years since they were married. Their two children, Hitomi and Seiya, were already five years old now.
Ranma didn't think much about their future when he was married, he was just a young teenager who won fights and got into unpredictable situations. Speaking of those, he finally got the cure to get rid of the curse and stay a male. That helped a lot with Akane, but were they really going to be okay in the long run? He regretted not thinking about that first before just going on ahead with life.
Not that he would have thought about it. When he and Akane met, it was definitely not on good terms, but slowly he began to have feelings for her. It was just hard to admit. Of course, he considered Shampoo and Ukyou friends, but just that. Nothing more. Akane was different. Now, he thought if he'd made the right choice. Was Akane really the one for him? Akane was hard to talk to, and whenever she thought he looked at a girl the wrong way, she hit him. He thought about their earlier fight, and what he had said about Ukyou.
It was true that he missed her, needed her comfort. She was, after all, his best friend. He should of felt glad for her that she moved somewhere else and opened a chain of restaurants in her name, but he couldn't deny that he was upset. He also missed her cooking. Akane couldn't cook, no matter how hard she tried. Ranma could almost smell her special Okonomiyaki just for him, wafting through the air.
Yes, he had thought of her only as a friend, but now he realized she was something more special.
"U-chan…." Why can't you come back? I made a mistake. I know. Why can't you come back?
Ranma sat up and shook his head to clear his mind. It was too late; he knew there was no point in dreaming up fantasies.
"You finally awake, eh Saotome-san?" Asked the janitor peering up at him. "You look kind of drained." "I'm fine, Yamamoto-san. I just need some sleep." "All right," Shinjo Yamamoto said as he looked out the window. "It's getting dark, you wouldn't want to upset Akane-san by not showing up for dinner, now wouldn't you?"
"Yes. I'd better be going now. Good night, Shinjo." Ranma took the elevator to his floor.
*****************
Akane left the food, or vile concoction, she admitted bitterly, on the table and told the children to wait ten minutes before eating. She lay down on her bed, suddenly feeling very tired and worn out. She still hadn't gotten over that argument, his words were still ringing in her ears.
Akane knew she couldn't cook for the life of her, but he didn't have to rub it in so much. But then again, that was Ranma. She closed her eyes, feeling blissful at being able to have rest and upset at the same time. Now he not only brought Ukyou in, but also Ryouga. Although she tried to deny it at first, the feeling was inevitable.
She missed him. She really, really missed him. She missed everything about him, his determination, understanding, kindness, and how he appreciated her food even though she knew he was trying to make her happy. She was happy with him. But she was also happy with Ranma.
At first, she hated Ranma's guts. He was such a jerk and pervert, always making rude and mean comments. But then….He showed a side to her that she had never seen before, that he really was a regular guy who had feelings and was lonely at times. Perhaps that's one part of him that attracted her, but she knew she felt more than friendship. She could never admit it, but she always felt jealous when Ranma was hanging out with other girls.
Now…what did she really feel? She found herself thinking of Ryouga often, even after she found our Ryouga was really P-chan. She had nearly clobbered him, but it wasn't his fault. Anyway, he found a cure to stay human, the same one Ranma used. But that didn't really matter. To her, Ryouga was a friend she could rest her head on, a friend who would listen to her, do anything for her. But was he just a friend? Deep inside her, Akane knew the answer.
Oh Ryouga, I'm sorry. Did I realize too late? Did I let myself deny it too long?
She knew the answer to that, too.
Her eyes filled with tears. Ryouga had moved on. He was married to Ukyou.
She reluctantly lifted herself off the bed, wiping away some tears that had escaped from her eyes down her face. The children are waiting, she told herself, and went to eat dinner.
R&R, please^_^!!