The Disaster Sisters: Celestial Interference

Part V: When you can't speak

By Kalio

It seemed to stretch on for a long time to Ranma, but when it was over, he watched as Akane didn't seem incredibly fazed. She didn't hit him. She didn't get mad. She didn't look anything but pleasantly surprised.

Now, normally, people would expect Ranma to go kick butt and take names, but not this time. He sank to the hard wood floor. It was cold and it suited his mood just fine. Maybe it was his lack of sleep, or perhaps it was that his heart had skipped too many beats, but it felt like his walls were caving in. All those other guys that he knew never had a chance with Akane he could fight, but when it hit so close to home, with Shinnosuke (a/n: I can't remember how you spell his name, people, I feel horrible and I can't look it up right now, no internet! Gah!) and now with Tatsuya, he couldn't find the will to really fight. Not really. Sure he tried to kill Shinnosuke, but even then, he knew Akane would hate him in the end- at that moment in time, he didn't care, all he cared about was pride. But now, my friends, now it was the happiness of his love involved. And seeing Akane happy with another man was better than seeing Akane happy with another man and hating him, to be sure. That was the last thing on his mind.

Either way, Ranma didn't know how to deal. To cope. It wasn't his style to stay inside and do the silent break down thing, but it wasn't his style to fall in love, either, so who was to say? So he sat there, not really crying- he was past that- but not really thinking. And that is a picture of a broken man. A man whose whole fate- pun intended- rested on getting his butt into gear and telling the girl of his dreams that he loved her and getting the other, less important guy out of the way. But he couldn't... he couldn't even speak.

***

Nabiki was worried. Which isn't to be taken lightly, if you know what I mean. When her little world was upset by someone else being upset, you know it's something big. And Ranma not coming down to dinner when it was called (by Kasumi, made by Kasumi, of course), is big. Really big. So she went upstairs, hoping to give her biggest moneymaker yet, a few words of- God save us- FREE advice, she had no intention of letting him off the hook. She was really going to let him have it -a dose of reality- in only the way Nabiki can.

'Yo, Ranma, you got a minute before the food gets cold?'

Silence was met on the other side of the door.

'I'm comin' in.'

She opened the door to Ranma facing the door, expressionless, as the sun sank, blood red in the sky behind him in the window. He stared, unreadable, at the wall opposite himself, not a flexed muscle in his entire face. It was almost enough to make Nabiki sick.

'Hey. You okay?'

Ranma sat in silence, hoping she would go away, but she didn't so he finally answered.

'Last thing I saw out that window was Tatsuya kissin` my fiancee. How do you think I'm doin`?'

Nabiki walked over and sat down next to him. 'Ranma, I'm only going to tell you this once, so you better listen up. Akane is tired. Was tired, that is, until a real nice guy paid attention to her, after the only other real nice guy in her life decided to insult her all the time. The said other real nice guy is going to have to come to terms with the fact that the real nice guy is going to take tired girl from him if he doesn't tell the tired girl he loves her. This other real nice guy must know that his by now, otherwise, he would be fine when real nice sister comes to talk to him. Therefore, other real nice guy, you need to cough up your feelings to her, unless you want Tatsuya to cough up his feelings first.'

'I can't, Nabiki... I just... can't...'

'Bullshit, Ranma, you can and you will, come crunch time, Akane not going to go for the guy she loves more, but the guy who loves her, can provide some kind of working relationship for her. You will say it, and you do mean it. I know you do. She knows you do, but she can't live with a you who can't say, "You're cute" instead of meaning that when you say, "You're so un-cute!". In the end, she knows you care, but she has to know that you know you care. Understand?'

'She hates me, she said so herself... I can't tell her that I'm in love with her! She'll just kiss Tatsuya and kiss me goodbye with a smack!'

'You'll say it, Ranma, you know it, and I know it. Can I bring you up dinner, and save you the pain of facing them just yet, or do you want to come down to dinner?'

'I just need one thing, Nabiki.'

'What's that?'

'A glass of water.'

'I never thought I'd see the day that Saotome Ranma wouldn't be hungry.'

'It's not that... I just want to cry...'

A/n: I know, sort of short and waaayyy to dramatic, but I had to bring Nabiki in as a good guy. I really don't think she's the ice queen everyone makes her out to be, and I think she can be a source for good when it comes to real people. I think she has a soft spot for Ranma, ya know, since he brings in so much of her cash and all... Please Review, guys, I'd like to know where you think this fic is going! Thanks!