Thanks to everyone that reviewed this story so far. I appreciate all your comments. I hope that everyone is enjoying this. I never thought I'd be able to write a "serious" Ranma fic, after all, I've only ever done comedic ones. But I'm really having a good time writing this one. Well, enough about me - on to the chapter!
Disclaimer: Ranma and related characters are owned by Rumiko Takahashi. Only the storyline is mine. Yes, small consolation, I know, but it makes me feel a wee bit better.
Better Left Unspoken
Akane ran up the stairs, taking them 3 at a time. She raced down the hallway and into her room. Closing the door, she couldn't stop shaking. It had happened. After 6 months, he was back. Damn him for coming back! Damn him for going away! Damn him for still having such an effect on her! She had thought that she was getting over him, but just seeing his face, his smile, his eyes, oh, his eyes... - it had brought back every single feeling that she had ever felt for him. The love, the anger, the sadness - all threatened to swoop in and overwhelm her.
She started pacing back and forth - she couldn't stay still or she'd go insane. What was she going to do? How was she supposed to act? From the way that he had shown up, all super casual, maybe that was how he expected her to act as well? Like nothing had ever happened? She couldn't do that. But she couldn't let him see how he made her feel. There was no way she'd let herself be humiliated by him again.
"Oh God... I don't want to love him, but I do. It's not fair! I tried so hard this past while to get on with my life, and he had to show up and ruin everything! How can you love someone, but hate them at the same time? I don't understand... Oh Ranma..."
Part of her wanted to run back down the stairs and throw herself on Ranma and beg that he give them a second chance. But the other part of her - the part that had struggled to rebuild after he had left --wouldn't let her. She stood by her closed door, and shut her eyes. She could hear faint snatches of her sisters and Ranma talking downstairs. Nabibi's voice being the most audible. She couldn't really make out the words, but she could tell that Nabiki was seriously pissed. Akane smiled. Nabiki had been so great lately - after having been the one to get Akane out of her slump, the two of them had been really close, talking about everything and anything. Nabiki understood better than anyone about how Akane felt about Ranma. So she wasn't too surprised that Nabiki was probably ready to strangle Ranma just for having the nerve to appear like this.
"Ranma, you IDIOT!" One sentence carried audibly into Akane's room. Yep, that was Nabiki - Akane couldn't help but grin a bit, although it had a bit of hysteria in it. How many times had that sentence been said in this house? Of course, it had usually been said by her, followed by a malleting. And then of course, the insults followed. Akane trembled, not wanting to rehash the old memories, but they kept surfacing, one after the other, the bad and the good.
She heard footsteps coming up the stairs, and then a light knock on her door. Dashing away the tears from her eyes with a sweep of her hand, she went to answer it after Nabiki had said it was her.
"Akane! Are you okay? Look, I don't know why that jerk showed up here, but I'll get rid of him. I can have him out of here in about 5 minutes. Kasumi's just talking to him right now, but still..."
"Nabiki... thanks for the offer, but I can't do that. I've got to talk to Ranma. I need him to tell me why he did what he did. I need to hear it to get on with my life."
"No! You were doing perfectly fine without him coming back and messing up your life again! I'm not going to let him hurt you again. I won't let you go through that kind of pain again."
"I don't think Ranma could hurt me any worse than he did when he left before. I've grown up a lot in the past 6 months, Nabiki - I'm not a little girl anymore. I just need the closure, that's all. He can say his piece, and then he can go do whatever." Akane said the words, but her eyes told a different story.
"You still love him as much as ever, don't you? I don't understand it... how does he still have such a hold on you?"
"It's not a hold - it's more like a bond. Ranma and I went through so much stuff together for almost 2 years. And I loved him with all my heart - that's not just something you can wipe away just because you want it gone."
"I know, Akane. It's just hard for me - I feel so powerless to help you this time."
"Oh Nabiki!" Akane grabbed Nabiki in a ferocious hug. "You've been the biggest help to me, but there are some things that I'll have to do on my own. And confronting Ranma is one of them. I might need your shoulder to cry on later, but you need to let me do this myself."
"Alright, but I'll be waiting right outside when you talk to him. I hear anything that makes you upset like last time, I'll be in there with a horde of people ready to get him out. I could probably get him deported even though this is his homeland."
Akane laughed. "Hahaha, Nabiki, I can't believe you were actually able to make me crack a grin at that! I don't think that those kind of extreme measures will be needed. I'm sure Ranma just came back to get his things, and then will take off again." She sobered up quickly. "The only problem is, I don't know if I want him to leave again. Maybe we can work things out - maybe we still have a chance... Maybe I can make him love me..."
"Hey! Remember! Be strong! Be the Akane that I've seen in the past months - the survivor, the fighter! The Akane that knows she is a person by herself - who doesn't need someone else to complete the picture unless she wants them to!" Nabiki looked worried. Fragile, emotional Akane was the last person she wanted to see resurfacing.
"You're right - and I know it. I will be strong. I won't let him hurt me again like before. But like I said, I do need to talk to him - to at least give him the chance to explain his actions."
"Akane... there's something you should know. Ranma did write to you - from what he said, it sounds like he wrote a couple letters a week to you. The stupid idiot just didn't mail them correctly, so they never got here. I don't know what the letters said, but that's why he walked in the way he did - he didn't know that this was the first contact with him since then."
Akane sank down on her bed, visibly stunned. *He wrote to me? And a couple of times a week? He hadn't forgotten all about me! Maybe he does care! Maybe we CAN still work this out...* Akane slapped herself in her mind. *Wake up girl. Just because he wrote, doesn't mean anything. They could have been "The weather is nice here" type letters. Don't get your hopes up.*
"Earth to Akane..." Nabiki said, sitting down beside her on the bed. "Look, I know you have to talk to Ranma. Did you want to do it tonight or wait? Personally, I think you should wait until tomorrow - give yourself a chance to calm down. If you go and talk to him now, neither of you will be able to be reasonable - it'll just end up being another typical Ranma and Akane fight fest, regardless of how much either of you have matured."
"You're right, I will wait until tomorrow. Thanks, Nabs. I don't know what I would do without you helping me through this." Akane yawned loudly. "Okay, I've got to get to sleep - don't know how much I'll get, but I'm totally exhausted. Seeing Ranma tonight... well, it's hard to explain what it was like - good, bad, terrifying, horrible, incredible..."
"I know, Akane - I can see it in your eyes. Just be careful okay? I love you, you know."
"Love you too, Nabs... night..."
Nabiki left the room quietly, as Akane was almost already dozing off. Heading towards the stairs, planning to go outside to get some fresh air. Hearing voices coming from the dining area, she paused. Listening in on Kasumi's and Ranma's conversation, she heard Ranma express his feelings for Akane, and Kasumi's advice.
*Hmm... So you're gonna try and win her back, huh? Well, you'll have to go through me first.*
As Ranma left the room and headed for the guest bedroom, Nabiki pulled him aside.
"Look, I don't know the whole story, and I don't even know if I want to know. Right now, all I know is how much pain you caused Akane. I heard you say to Kasumi how much you love her, and what you're planning to do. I don't know if you'll be able to do it - I'm not sure whether Akane will be won over. But I'm telling you now - I'll be watching. If I see you messing with her in any way, shape or form, you are history. There will be no way that Akane would ever consider being with you after I was through with you. If you hurt her again, even once, that's it - no more chances. I'm not going to tell Akane what I heard - that's for you to tell, not me, but I'm warning you. Right now, I don't like you. I can't stand you. But because of Akane, I'm giving you the opportunity to make things right. To correct past mistakes. So, Ranma, treat my sister right, or else." Nabiki finished by walking off, her back stiff.
Ranma looked after her and sighed. "Looks like Akane isn't the only person who's trust I have to gain back. I'll do it though." Looking up towards Akane's room, his eyes glistened. "Akane... Can I ever make things right...?"
End Chapter Four
Well, this was a shorter chapter this time, but that was only because it fell into the same timeline as the previous one. Coming up next - Ranma and Akane talk. What will happen? Will they overcome their problems? Hey, I'm asking you, cause I don't know... Just kidding... But really, things in this story are writing themselves. Like Nabiki - I didn't plan for her to be a possible obstacle for Ranma to win back Akane - it just kinda happened... Anyways, read and review - new chapter soon - basically as soon as I get a chance to write one this weekend.
Disclaimer: Ranma and related characters are owned by Rumiko Takahashi. Only the storyline is mine. Yes, small consolation, I know, but it makes me feel a wee bit better.
Better Left Unspoken
Akane ran up the stairs, taking them 3 at a time. She raced down the hallway and into her room. Closing the door, she couldn't stop shaking. It had happened. After 6 months, he was back. Damn him for coming back! Damn him for going away! Damn him for still having such an effect on her! She had thought that she was getting over him, but just seeing his face, his smile, his eyes, oh, his eyes... - it had brought back every single feeling that she had ever felt for him. The love, the anger, the sadness - all threatened to swoop in and overwhelm her.
She started pacing back and forth - she couldn't stay still or she'd go insane. What was she going to do? How was she supposed to act? From the way that he had shown up, all super casual, maybe that was how he expected her to act as well? Like nothing had ever happened? She couldn't do that. But she couldn't let him see how he made her feel. There was no way she'd let herself be humiliated by him again.
"Oh God... I don't want to love him, but I do. It's not fair! I tried so hard this past while to get on with my life, and he had to show up and ruin everything! How can you love someone, but hate them at the same time? I don't understand... Oh Ranma..."
Part of her wanted to run back down the stairs and throw herself on Ranma and beg that he give them a second chance. But the other part of her - the part that had struggled to rebuild after he had left --wouldn't let her. She stood by her closed door, and shut her eyes. She could hear faint snatches of her sisters and Ranma talking downstairs. Nabibi's voice being the most audible. She couldn't really make out the words, but she could tell that Nabiki was seriously pissed. Akane smiled. Nabiki had been so great lately - after having been the one to get Akane out of her slump, the two of them had been really close, talking about everything and anything. Nabiki understood better than anyone about how Akane felt about Ranma. So she wasn't too surprised that Nabiki was probably ready to strangle Ranma just for having the nerve to appear like this.
"Ranma, you IDIOT!" One sentence carried audibly into Akane's room. Yep, that was Nabiki - Akane couldn't help but grin a bit, although it had a bit of hysteria in it. How many times had that sentence been said in this house? Of course, it had usually been said by her, followed by a malleting. And then of course, the insults followed. Akane trembled, not wanting to rehash the old memories, but they kept surfacing, one after the other, the bad and the good.
She heard footsteps coming up the stairs, and then a light knock on her door. Dashing away the tears from her eyes with a sweep of her hand, she went to answer it after Nabiki had said it was her.
"Akane! Are you okay? Look, I don't know why that jerk showed up here, but I'll get rid of him. I can have him out of here in about 5 minutes. Kasumi's just talking to him right now, but still..."
"Nabiki... thanks for the offer, but I can't do that. I've got to talk to Ranma. I need him to tell me why he did what he did. I need to hear it to get on with my life."
"No! You were doing perfectly fine without him coming back and messing up your life again! I'm not going to let him hurt you again. I won't let you go through that kind of pain again."
"I don't think Ranma could hurt me any worse than he did when he left before. I've grown up a lot in the past 6 months, Nabiki - I'm not a little girl anymore. I just need the closure, that's all. He can say his piece, and then he can go do whatever." Akane said the words, but her eyes told a different story.
"You still love him as much as ever, don't you? I don't understand it... how does he still have such a hold on you?"
"It's not a hold - it's more like a bond. Ranma and I went through so much stuff together for almost 2 years. And I loved him with all my heart - that's not just something you can wipe away just because you want it gone."
"I know, Akane. It's just hard for me - I feel so powerless to help you this time."
"Oh Nabiki!" Akane grabbed Nabiki in a ferocious hug. "You've been the biggest help to me, but there are some things that I'll have to do on my own. And confronting Ranma is one of them. I might need your shoulder to cry on later, but you need to let me do this myself."
"Alright, but I'll be waiting right outside when you talk to him. I hear anything that makes you upset like last time, I'll be in there with a horde of people ready to get him out. I could probably get him deported even though this is his homeland."
Akane laughed. "Hahaha, Nabiki, I can't believe you were actually able to make me crack a grin at that! I don't think that those kind of extreme measures will be needed. I'm sure Ranma just came back to get his things, and then will take off again." She sobered up quickly. "The only problem is, I don't know if I want him to leave again. Maybe we can work things out - maybe we still have a chance... Maybe I can make him love me..."
"Hey! Remember! Be strong! Be the Akane that I've seen in the past months - the survivor, the fighter! The Akane that knows she is a person by herself - who doesn't need someone else to complete the picture unless she wants them to!" Nabiki looked worried. Fragile, emotional Akane was the last person she wanted to see resurfacing.
"You're right - and I know it. I will be strong. I won't let him hurt me again like before. But like I said, I do need to talk to him - to at least give him the chance to explain his actions."
"Akane... there's something you should know. Ranma did write to you - from what he said, it sounds like he wrote a couple letters a week to you. The stupid idiot just didn't mail them correctly, so they never got here. I don't know what the letters said, but that's why he walked in the way he did - he didn't know that this was the first contact with him since then."
Akane sank down on her bed, visibly stunned. *He wrote to me? And a couple of times a week? He hadn't forgotten all about me! Maybe he does care! Maybe we CAN still work this out...* Akane slapped herself in her mind. *Wake up girl. Just because he wrote, doesn't mean anything. They could have been "The weather is nice here" type letters. Don't get your hopes up.*
"Earth to Akane..." Nabiki said, sitting down beside her on the bed. "Look, I know you have to talk to Ranma. Did you want to do it tonight or wait? Personally, I think you should wait until tomorrow - give yourself a chance to calm down. If you go and talk to him now, neither of you will be able to be reasonable - it'll just end up being another typical Ranma and Akane fight fest, regardless of how much either of you have matured."
"You're right, I will wait until tomorrow. Thanks, Nabs. I don't know what I would do without you helping me through this." Akane yawned loudly. "Okay, I've got to get to sleep - don't know how much I'll get, but I'm totally exhausted. Seeing Ranma tonight... well, it's hard to explain what it was like - good, bad, terrifying, horrible, incredible..."
"I know, Akane - I can see it in your eyes. Just be careful okay? I love you, you know."
"Love you too, Nabs... night..."
Nabiki left the room quietly, as Akane was almost already dozing off. Heading towards the stairs, planning to go outside to get some fresh air. Hearing voices coming from the dining area, she paused. Listening in on Kasumi's and Ranma's conversation, she heard Ranma express his feelings for Akane, and Kasumi's advice.
*Hmm... So you're gonna try and win her back, huh? Well, you'll have to go through me first.*
As Ranma left the room and headed for the guest bedroom, Nabiki pulled him aside.
"Look, I don't know the whole story, and I don't even know if I want to know. Right now, all I know is how much pain you caused Akane. I heard you say to Kasumi how much you love her, and what you're planning to do. I don't know if you'll be able to do it - I'm not sure whether Akane will be won over. But I'm telling you now - I'll be watching. If I see you messing with her in any way, shape or form, you are history. There will be no way that Akane would ever consider being with you after I was through with you. If you hurt her again, even once, that's it - no more chances. I'm not going to tell Akane what I heard - that's for you to tell, not me, but I'm warning you. Right now, I don't like you. I can't stand you. But because of Akane, I'm giving you the opportunity to make things right. To correct past mistakes. So, Ranma, treat my sister right, or else." Nabiki finished by walking off, her back stiff.
Ranma looked after her and sighed. "Looks like Akane isn't the only person who's trust I have to gain back. I'll do it though." Looking up towards Akane's room, his eyes glistened. "Akane... Can I ever make things right...?"
End Chapter Four
Well, this was a shorter chapter this time, but that was only because it fell into the same timeline as the previous one. Coming up next - Ranma and Akane talk. What will happen? Will they overcome their problems? Hey, I'm asking you, cause I don't know... Just kidding... But really, things in this story are writing themselves. Like Nabiki - I didn't plan for her to be a possible obstacle for Ranma to win back Akane - it just kinda happened... Anyways, read and review - new chapter soon - basically as soon as I get a chance to write one this weekend.