His Euphoria.
A/N: Hello, It's Mi-chan here. I just came up with this idea and I hope that you guys will like it. This is just all my personal perspective of how would it be if Ranma and Akane had a decent conversation. And in all honesty, I've been thinking that Ranma is really good at hiding his feelings when he puts his mind to it. Please keep in mind that this is purely fiction and updates will be posted regularly so be patient. If you'd kindly leave a review or tell me what you think of my story it'd mean a lot! I'm still an amateur. Enjoy, and thank you for reading my story.
Disclaimer: All rights go to the creator and author of Ranma ½, Rumiko Takakashi.
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Ranma Satome woke up with a start. His heart thumping loudly and his hair was sticking to his skin. It was so quiet in the guest room. He laid back on his futon trying to steady his breathing again.
A few minutes passed and sleeping seemed useless, since he felt wide awake, so Ranma rose to his bed and looked at the clock, it was 3:30 am. Adjusting his eyes to the dark, he sighed wearing his jacket since it's cold outside quietly making his way to the roof.
He looked at the starlit sky, it never ceased to fascinate Ranma. The night sky. A vast, endless, and unknown universe beyond the human eye. A whole new world. A universe that is waiting to be discovered. He felt welcomed by countless stars, constellations, and the moon. For him, the starry night sky is a time of comfort. The serenity and quietness of the nearby trees swaying in the gentle breeze, and the sound of crickets in the night. These precious moments that he gets to steal away from the day allows him to think. He sat there, feeling drained from overthinking everything, how messed up his life was for the past 2 years, he knew that this is not just a phase, he's been feeling like that for months now. Ranma's head was throbbing it was all causing him a massive headache, remembering his fights with Akane on daily basis, getting chased down by four fiancés, and more importantly his curse. He wished it all would stop, maybe if he could just make all thoughts halt. He'd be able to make rational decisions, he scoffed inwardly. Decisions, eh? When was he given a choice at the first place? It was all about his father, him training in China and getting the curse, the whole fiancé thing, staying at the Tendo's house and living with them. He wished that the old man would stop being so self-centered, and ask about he really feels maybe for once at the very least. He felt like a complete failure. Not being able to do anything, it made him feel worse.
Ranma's thoughts were interrupted, as he heard footsteps on the roof towards him, turning his head he was met by a pair of brown eyes, Akane's.
"Can't sleep either?" she spoke softly. She looked unsure whether talking to him was a good idea.
He shrugged and out of the corner of his eyes he saw her bending to sit in a comfortable position.
Silence. But it wasn't an awkward one, both of them seemingly enjoyed just sitting there in silence.
"So, what's on your mind?" Akane asked after a few minutes.
"What do you mean? nothing," he replied.
"Are you sure you're okay, Ranma? You know I care about you, even though we might fight but still I'm your friend, I noticed that you've not been yourself lately. If you want to talk about anything or want me to listen, I'm here," she said softly.
He just stared at her, not knowing what to say as his mind reeled, Akane's tone, her telling him that she cared and kindness tugged at his heart strings not allowing him to formulate a proper response.
"Uh, Akane, wow. I don't really know what to say. Thanks, I really appreciate it, I just you know…have a lot going on my mind right now," he replied.
"And what is exactly going on your mind? Do you want to talk about it? Maybe I can help?" she asked.
"Will you really listen to the end? Without making fun of me?" Ranma asked, he wasn't used to showing his vulnerable side to anyone. But since she approached him, he wanted to talk.
"Of course not, idiot! I asked if you wanted to because I want you to know that I'm here for you and my concern is genuine," Akane replied raising her voice a bit.
"I feel like it's all pointless, why do I have to keep doing this? It's just like I'm drowning. Afraid from the next days or what's going to happen. It's been years since the whole curse thing happened and I can't find a cure yet, aside from that getting chased by 4 fiancés every day, do you even know how it feels? I just want to be happy again like the old days, I'm feeling like a complete failure," Ranma whispers his voice barely audible at the end.
Akane doesn't reply at first, it's not like he expects her too anyway. She takes a breath before talking.
"Ranma, everything has a solution, don't give up yet. I know that you will be alright and I strongly believe so. You may not believe me now and that's okay, because being alright takes time. These rough times you're going through right now are not the end and they do not determine your worth in anyway, they're just a chapter that you'll always remember as the most painful moments you had to live through and that's it. They are not a measure of self-worth. You deserve to live, you deserve that. I know that you will go to China and find a cure. The fiancé issue will be solved soon too, you just need to give it time. Maybe not today, not tomorrow, or a month later, but it will be soon. I'm proud of you and I want you to-"
"How would you know?" he cuts her off, irritation bubbling inside him, "How would you know how it feels like you deserve nothing more than pain? To close your eyes and feel like you don't want to wake up to see tomorrow. Proud of me? For what? Tell me, because all I'm hearing right now is loads of crap that's meant to make me feel temporarily better," Ranma lashes out, voice filled with rage, but more importantly, hopelessness.
"That doesn't change anything, Ranma. I'm still proud of you," she replies gently and he scoffs ready to retort back but she starts to talk again, "I know that you don't believe it and you probably won't anytime soon, but that's because you're looking down at yourself and that's not good. You're always trying your best even when you're hurting, and that's more than enough. You have to understand that you that you are in a very fragile state right now. Your heart is bruised, your soul is damaged to the core, your mind never lets you rest, and yet you're still here trying and pushing through despite everything. Isn't that something to be proud of, Ranma? To me it is, and I will always be proud of you," Akane finished and instantly was met by a bone-crushing hug.
Akane felt him nuzzling his head on her neck. She froze, but then returned his embrace immediately, her arms making way to caress his back soothingly. He'd never held her like this. She'd never seem him in a state like this before. It was painful to see him like this. All Akane could do was embrace Ranma and let the torrent of his tears to soak through her shirt. She ran her fingers through his hair, time and time again, in an attempt to calm the silent war within his mind. Ranma whimpered as he felt all of the over-whelming feelings at once, it was so intense, a fresh set of tears rolled down on his cheeks. He wants to fight back, to scream that she's feeding him nothing but lies, but there was still a tiny hopeful part of him that surrendered, allowing the warmth of her words to wash over him. All what he wanted was to feel peace again.
After of what seemed like for an eternity, Ranma's head felt heavy and his sight was becoming fuzzy. Was Akane really here? Reaching his trembling hand out he grazed her fingers against his right arm, they brushed across her fair soft skin. Looking up at her, he melted, she was here, with him. "It's actually you...you're here," he said out loud, which caused giggles from Akane, as she pulled him closer and Ranma felt safe for the first time in so long.
"Feel better now?" she asked her voice muffled through his shirt.
"Yes, Akane. Thank you," he pulled away gently, feeling embarrassed at himself for hugging her all of a sudden, as he looked at her, she was practically beaming and he couldn't help but smile back.
"We still have a lot to talk about," she said.
"I'm listening," he responded.