Disclaimer: I do not own any characters of Ranma 1/2.
Sliding Doors
By: Lotusmoon
"Ukyou, you know you're the best okonomiyaki maker in the Japan. Besides the fact that you already know that. Hehehe!"
Ranma scoops another mouthful of okonomiyaki prepared by Ukyou.
"Why thank you Ranchan." Ukyou sweetly smiles as she huffs a big 'here comes a big surprise' look.
"Ranma, I got selected to participate in a cooking tournament and they said I have the possibility of winning the grand prize." Wide eyed, Ranma swallowed another okonomiyaki.
"Why that's great Ucchan! When's the tournament?"
"In two days." Ukyou replied.
"Oh man really? That's a shame. I'm going have to eat somewhere else by the next two days." Ranma said jokingly.
"Oh Ranchan, don't worry I'll only be gone for 2 days and when I get the grand prize I'll make you all of your favorite okonomiyaki."
"Really Ucchan? Gee thanks!" Ranma swallowed another serving of Ukyou's specialty and the two went of talking about the tournament.
"Akane, where's Ranma? Dinner is almost ready. I wouldn't want him to miss dinner. I'm cooking his favorite." Kasumi said sweetly.
"As far as I know, that bottomless pit stomach of his is at Ukyou's. If I were you Kasumi, I'd rather serve him poison than waste my energy cooking for him. Besides, I think he won't be eating dinner here anyway."
"Oh why is that?"
"Because that jerk is better off living with…." Akane was cut off.
"Akane haven't anyone ever told you it's not good to make assumptions and to speak for other people?"
"And where did your morals come from?" Akane spitted back.
"Hiding somewhere. I want to use it at picture perfect moments like this." Ranma said sheepishly.
"Hmp!" Akane walked off going to her room and slammed the door.
What's her problem?
"So Kasumi what's for dinner?" Ranma asked.
"Your favorite" Kasumi replied in her sweet gleeful tone.
"Oho, haha! You're the best Kasumi" Ranma said while patting his stomach.
"I am having a great day!" Ranma announced.
"This is the worst day ever." Akane slammed her door and plopped into her bed her face lying on the pillow. She turned and was now gazing at the ceiling in her bedroom.
Ugh, that was an understatement. This is a normal day. Gee. It's not like this day can't be categorized as horrible, but still, bad.
To Akane, the situation that goes around in her house as far as any other household in Nerima can only be three things; either bad, worse, or horrible.
"I don't know how I get to cope with this kind of life. But then again, It's not like I had a much more fun life before." Akane sat up and stared at her study desk for a couple of seconds. She stood up and grabbed a book and opened it.
I guess a little bit of reading will help me switch focus.
She started reading but after a few minutes she closed the book and gave out a big deep sigh. That sure didn't work. Ugh as if things around here can get anymore worse.
She started to hear a commotion downstairs, like a bug bite that she desires to itch, in Akane's mood she just applied hydrocortisone cream.
I shouldn't have said that. I know I shouldn't have said that. Like it would matter anyway if I go down there and know what the raucous is all about.
She then grabbed her journal and look at it, she then took hold of a pen and opened the pages. These should work. This is the one thing I know works. Akane then started to write.
-- I hate this. This situation I'm in. It's an endless roller coaster that makes me dizzy every now and then. I don't hate my life; I just hate how things are. --
She continued to scribble words down on the page. On her last entry
-- If things could only be different. --
"Hey Akane, you wanna come with us to the novelty shop later after school? I need to buy something for my little brother it's his birthday today." Akane was busy staring at the outside view by the window in her classroom that Sayuri had to ask again.
"Akane, hey Akane." Yuka tapped her shoulders to get her attention but it didn't work.
"Hey, look who's here that Chinese bimbo!" All of a sudden Akane looked over to where Sayuri and Yuka were pointing.
"Where? Where?" Akane said in a stone voice.
"Nowhere Akane we were just trying to reach you. Eventually our satellites not working." Sayuri and Yuka started acting like they had an antenna above their heads. "Earth to Akane!" and the giggled.
"Cut it out will you" Akane looked outside. "Like I said Akane, you wanna come to the novelty shop with us later after school?" Yuka asked.
"Ugh, yah sure, sure." Akane replied.
"Hey Ucchan." Ranma paced to where Ukyou was standing. "Hey Ranchan!" Ukyou smiled sweetly.
"Good luck on the tournament tomorrow, I'm rooting for you. Bring home the grand prize okay." Ranma patted Ukyou's back like he would on Ryoga.
"Ahem, ugh thanks Ranchan. I'll remember that."
"Oh look at that the bell rang, see yah later." Ranma paced away waving finally meeting up with Hiroshi and Daisuke.
"Oh Ranma, is this is all I am to you?" Ukyou walked off and carried a slight pain in her chest.
"Hey how about this one, don't you think this looks cute."
"Sayuri, that's a stuffed panda. I don't think boys his age now a days would be so fond of a stuffed panda." Yuka remarked smirking.
Akane watched her two friends' debate, which was better, the stuffed panda or the ceramic angel figure.
Those two are hopeless.
Akane went off looking through the cards in no particular category that carried cheesy messages inside.
Looking thoroughly she saw a card that had a picture of a girl who seemed to be seeking something from the sad eyes of the boy that was standing in front of her. Not much to the appeal of the card, Akane went ahead and opened the card anyway.
In it, she saw another picture of the girl and boy now smiling at each other.
* Love is happy with the truth *
What I don't get this. Akane thought. First they look sad now they're happy. Oh, the vagueness.
"Akane let's go. Are you still looking? Do you wanna buy something?" Yuka asked.
Akane was immediately cut off from her thoughts when she heard her friends call her.
"Oh no, I'm done." Putting down the card, she muffled "huh?"
She walked towards Sayuri and Yuka who finally agreed on the best gift. They walked out of the store and Akane started to ask what they got.
Tick, tick, and tick! The clock went by another minute and for Ranma it seemed like forever.
Man I could've been eating okonomiyaki right now but Ucchan aint here. She won't be back until tomorrow. Akane still hasn't come home. I wonder where she is.
With the last thought he felt his cheeks turn warm and when he realized what just happened he felt butterflies in his stomach.
"Tadaima" As a familiar voice echoed from the hallway, Ranma got up all excited as if he was a little kid getting a big present.
He ran into the hallway and met up Akane.
"Hey, Akane." Ranma greeted.
"Hey, ugh Ranma." Akane greeted back politely.
That's weird, he said Hi to me. I mean it's not like he ever greeted me before but this just feel weird. First time he ever greeted me home. He's probably hungry. Yah right, hahaha!
"So Akane where'd you go? What'd you do?" Ranma asked.
He felt like he wanted to start a conversation. Apparently he was so bored he was sure he wanted to so he did.
"Ugh I went to the mall after school. I bought a book." Akane replied.
Hehe, this is fun and cute too.
"Really, about what?" Ranma asked.
"Uhm" he's different today. Is he hallucinating or something? "About, ugh, stuff. Girl stuff."
"Oh okay."Ranma said.
Akane looked at him cautiously as if he was down with a fever.
"Ugh what Akane? Is something wrong?" Ranma asked.
"Oh nothing."
Ranma was once again sitting in silence.
Hehe. He thought of what happened earlier.
At this rate Ranma wanted to do something anything.
"Hey Akane wanna spar?" Ranma asked.
"Huh?" was Akane's reply.
"Are you sure? I don't wanna slow you down." Akane said mockingly.
"Oh no, I'm sure. I can always let my self be slow to accommodate your uhm, capability."
Ranma smirked as he dodged a pillow that went straight at him.
"Grr, Ranma." Akane said in an angry tone. "Okay so what?"
"Hmm, I guess so. I'll be in the dojo." Akane got up and went to her room to change.
"Ugh Akane you forgot…" Ranma stopped there, aware that Akane was already in her room.