Ranma ½: Game of Pretend

*Disclaimer: * Ranma ½ and all related titles © Takahashi Rumiko; Shogakukan Entertainment's Shounen Sunday; Kitty TV; and Viz Communications.

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Part 2-- First Night and Morning

Ranma ½

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Akane's room was cool-- the window was open. Ranma entered fully, keeping his eyes down cast, certain he was blushing a tiny bit at least. This is so stupid,he thought belatedly, carelessly dropping his futon on the ground. Why'd we ever do this?

'Okay, what's up?' Nabiki said sharply, cutting into Ranma's thoughts.

'What do you mean, Nabiki?' Ranma said, laughing nervously.

Nabiki waved a hand around the room in a general sweep. 'This,' she said. 'Why are you two so close all of a sudden? And you want to share a room?' She sniffed. 'I smell a rat.'

Why does she have to be so darned smart? Akane thought, not for the first time. She arranged her face into what she hoped was an innocent expression. 'Sister, we just realised that we needed to spend time with each other…so at least we could have practice for when we're married….' Akane blushed, belatedly realising the intent in which her words could be taken. The story was slightly different from their first, but the new version was even more plausible than the other.

'Oh come on!' Nabiki said impatiently. 'You expect me to believe that? I'm not Father or Saotome Uncle, you know.' Ranma and Akane glanced uneasily at each other.

'We're trying to trick Pops and your dad,' Ranma said after a few moments' pause. Akane flinched: When he said "trick" Akane felt like she was doing something terribly bad. Nabiki raised a questioning brow.

'If they think that we're responsible enough to be married, then maybe they'll stop pressuring us,' Akane said. 'You know, reverse psychology. Like what you said. But please, don't tell them!'

'Interesting,' Nabiki said. 'Good plan, too,' she added appreciatively. 'But, you know, I have a bad memory. I could accidently let slip to Father and Saotome Uncle what's up.'

'What?' Ranma and Akane burst out in unison. 'Nabiki…you wouldn't,' Ranma said. He was starting to sweat. Would this be the end of their brilliant plan? If Nabiki did tell the two fathers what was going on…really…then not only would they be angry, they would arrange for the immediate joining of Ranma and Akane in marriage.

Nabiki smiled thinly. 'Oh yes I would,' she replied. Akane didn't disbelieve her. She sighed.

'Okay, Sister,' she said, resignedly. 'How much?'

'How much?' Ranma repeated, yelping. 'Come on, Nabiki, you know we don't got any money!'

'Now, now, calm down Ranma,' Nabiki said lasily, calm herself. 'And little sister, I'm hurt-- I don't always charge, you know.' Ranma snorted; Nabiki glared daggers at him.

'Frankly, I'm interested in this little scheme of yours,' she continued. 'It'll be…amusing, at any rate. And…I want to check and see if little Ranma here is going to be my younger brother-in-law.'

'Stop calling me that!' Ranma protested. Nabiki smiled that sharp smile of hers and wagged a finger in his face.

'Remember, Ranma, Akane,' she said in parting, as she paused by the door, 'my memory could fail me at any time.' And with a wink, she exited.

Nabiki's leaving left a very awkward atmosphere in Akane's-- no, Ranma and Akane's-- room. Akane glanced downwards, rubbing one foot with a toe of the other. Ranma scratched the back of his head, looked up, looked down, and generally just looked around.

'Er…nice room,' Ranma said stiffly, attempting to break the silence. Akane briefly glanced up and flashed a half-smile.

'Thanks,' she said quietly. She too was uncomfortable, though sleepy. But there was no way she was going to sleep in the same room with Ranma, that stupid pervert! The awkward silence pervaded the room once more, but this time Akane tried to dispell it.

'I'm a bit hot, aren't you?' she said, not waiting for a reply, and moving quickly towards the window. She tried to crank it up a bit more, the crank being stuck, and succeeded only in throwing the window fully open. She shivered suddenly, her face struck with the unexpected blast of cool air. Now Akane's room, which was before comfortably cool, was now very cool, cold even.

The clock on the far wall beeped once. Ranma glanced at it sharply, glad for the distraction-- it read 9:25. 'I guess it's time to sleep,' Ranma said. Akane glanced at him, still at the window, and nodded a second later.

'Yeah…it is,' she agreed. 'I'll just go and brush my teeth.' She shuffled out of the bedroom, in her yellow pyjamas, as quickly as she could.

Once out, she leaned against the door. It was very warm in the hallway compared to her room. This is never going to work, she thought despairingly. Ranma and I are uncomfortable being even in the same room together. How can we ever make Father and Saotome Uncle believe we are in love? She sighed, then walked into the bathroom to really brush her teeth. Brush. Spit. Brush. Spit. Rinse. The routine calmed her somewhat, and she re-entered her room feeling better.

Ranma had set up his futon and was in the middle of changing into his pyjamas when Akane walked in. Unfortunately, she had entered right at the time that Ranma was putting his shirt on, but at that point, he was still topless. She blushed a brilliant, burning red and cast her eyes downward quickly, mumbling an apology. Ranma too blushed deeply and pulled on his shirt immediately. Not that it was too much of an improvement, Akane noted, since he only slept in shorts and a sleeveless shirt.

Akane climbed into her bed, grateful for the warmth her comforter brang. She felt, for a moment, that she was being selfish, when she was sleeping on a bed and Ranma was sleeping on the floor. But the only alternative to that would be to let Ranma sleep in the bed with her, and that would never happen!

Akane closed her eyes, squeezed them shut, but Morpheus refused to bear her away on the wings of sleep. The image of the shirtless Ranma impressed itself behind her eyes. Akane's eyes flew open and she was left staring into the dark ceiling.

A cat yowled outside. The sound ushered in unwelcome thoughts of Shampoo in to Akane's mind, and how the Chinese Amazon would always be calling Ranma "Airen". That annoyed Akane to no end…plus the fact that Akane always felt inferior when Shampoo was around. Shampoo could cook. And she was passably pretty, Akane had to admit, though she did so grudgingly. Another feline answered the first. A burst of cold air blew in through the open window, and Akane shivered, trying to burrow herself further into her bed-clothes.

The clouds obscuring the moon drifted away, and the room was illuminated slightly by the ghostly, silvery light. Akane turned her head to the side, where Ranma was sleeping. His chest rose and fell with the even, steady rhythm of sleep. The moonlight cast his face in a pale glow. Akane shivered again. This was too much; she threw the comforters off her and quickly went to the window, where she attempted to shut the window. It made an ominous, loud creaking noise.

'A-Akane?' said Ranma sleepily, starting awake with the window's creak. Years of sleeping on the road had taught him to always be on his guard, even while asleep. 'You all right?'

Akane grunted, partly as an answer and partly with effort. Suddenly, and quite unexpectedly, the window came crashing back to lie snugly in the sash. Akane gave a gasp of surprise and quickly turned from the window. She paused there like a deer caught in headlights, waiting to see if she would hear footsteps outside of the door. When she didn't, she sighed in relief and made her way back to bed.

'Sorry for waking you,' Akane said, as she once more snuggled down into her bed. This feels so much better, she thought luxuriously, burrowing inside her bed-clothes. Her eyes were starting to feel unbearably heavy; she couldn't keep them open any longer, and her mind was going a bit fuzzy…. 'I'm not cold anymore,' she said groggily, half-coherent. 'Good night, Ranma, don't let the bed bugs bite,' she said quietly, her eyes closing. She turned her eyes only slightly and saw Ranma back asleep, sprawled out on top of his futon. She smiled, and finally relieved her eyes of their burden, delivering glorious sleep to her.

Ranma, however, wasn't so lucky. Though he appeared to be asleep, he really was awake. It was one of those nights when you just can't get sleep, for what ever reason. Ranma'd had them before, but tonight that feeling was heightened by the fact that he was sleeping in Akane's room. He was sleeping in Akane's room. He was sleeping in Akane's room! Ranma was further made uncomfortable by the fact that he was thinking. Thoughts have this annoying way of making themselves known at night-time, the time least given to great, philosiphical thoughts. But Ranma's thoughts mostly came at night-- which is why, perhaps, they never were present during the daytime.

Life had been so simple--well, as simple as life on the road with Genma could be-- before his father had dragged him off to Nerima so he could marry one of Genma's friend's daughters. Even the curse hadn't seemed to have mattered so much, for as long as he stayed away from cold water he was fine. The real complication in his life was this existance at the Tendo Dojo, and one inhabitant in particular.

Ranma sighed. He really couldn't figure it out. He couldn't figure out his emotions, he couldn't figure out Akane's actions. They were both contradictions unto themselves, and often clashed with each other. It's all Pop's fault, he said to himself, for the millionth time since he had met the Tendos. But when he thought it this time, it was with less ill feeling and with less conviction. Perhaps, it wasn't such a bad thing Genma had affianced him to Akane….? Ranma shook his head violently.

Really, did Pops think I couldn't get a girl by myself? he thought. I mean, I get girls without even asking for them! He grinned, his pride swelling up. After all, he couldn't help it if he was a hot martial artist, could he? Every other girl could see that…every girl except Akane. But that didn't matter, right? He didn't care what Akane thought, because at the end of the week, he and Akane would not be getting married. Yeah, that's right, thought Ranma. And, comfortably at ease with his heart and soul for the time being, Ranma shut his eyes and fell into a deep slumber.

**

'Ranma! Ranma, wake up!'

Ranma woke up slowly, his eyes groggy, to find Akane kneeling next to him, shaking his shoulder. She was already dressed in her school uniform, and looked bright and fresh.

'Whaddaya want now?' Ranma muttered, disgruntled. He rubbed his eyes and opened them fully, but his glance took in the brightness of the sun in the room and the chirping of birds.

'School,' Akane said simply. Ranma jumped up out of the futon, his hair tousled and his clothes wrinkled.

'You woke me up just for that?' he grumbled. Nonetheless, he ran into the bathroom to change into his clean day clothes and tie his hair back in a pigtail. When he was done, he walked lesiurely into the dining-room, looking much better. 'Ahhh, breakfast,' Ranma said, his mouth almost watering.

'Come on Ranma, let's go!' Akane said, grabbing his wrist and dragging the unwilling Ranma to the door. The unfortunate young man was able to grab a few bites to eat however, which he chewed while being dragged along.

'Hold up a moment,' Soun said. Akane puased and turned towards her father.

'Er, how were you last night?' Genma continued.

'Anything we should know?' said Soun, encouragingly. Ranma and Akane looked at each other, mystified by their fathers, though they had an unpleasant idea of where the conversation was heading….

'Does little Akane here have to…er… "eat for two" now?' Genma said, peering closely at Akane and Ranma.

'Not until they're married, Saotome!' Soun protested, though he too peered interestingly at the two. By this time, they were a deep red with embarrassment, and even anger on Akane's part.

'No!' the two burst out in unison.

Now, at any other normal time, the response from Akane would have been, "With a pervert like Ranma?" Ranma's response to that would have been, "With a macho chick like Akane?" Indeed, Akane opened her mouth to speak those very words before she caught Soun and Genma looking at them, and all of a sudden she remembered about her and Ranma's little plan. Speaking those insults would definitely not have convinced Soun and Genma that Ranma and Akane were in love.

Ranma, who was waiting for Akane's insult so he could reply back, was surprised when she opened her mouth and closed it again. Perhaps, he should go first this time. He too opened his mouth before Akane ground on his foot with her own. He turned around, more in annoyance than pain, and caught Akane's meaningful glances to the mystified Soun and Genma. Oh yeah, Ranma thought, remembering also. We gotta pretend like we're in love, but we're definitely not going to do that!

'What we mean is,' Akane said, forcing a semblence of a smile, 'is that we agree with Father.'

'Uhm, yeah,' Ranma said, scratching the back of his head. 'We're planning to, er, wait. We do have another week, after all.' Soun and Genma were still looking at them with slightly raised brows. And so Ranma forced himself to move his arm and slip it into Akane's.

Her hand tensed in his, but then relaxed slightly. Ranma, however, full of nerves, kept an iron grip on Akane's hand. Akane pressed back equally hard.

'So…we'll be going to school now,' Nabiki said, coming in. She had watched the entire exchange hidden in the doorway, and only just now decided to make herself known. 'Isn't that right, little brother?' she said in a mock-baby voice to Ranma. The boy tried to force a smile that ended up looking like a wince.

Stop…calling…me…that! he said to himself, sqeezing Akane's hand harder. The two, still hand-in-hand, if only to fool Soun and Genma, followed Nabiki outside.

The moment they were out of earshot, Akane and Ranma dropped each other's hand as if it were a hot potato.

'You didn't have to break my hand!' Akane said to Ranma, nursing her red hand. 'You just had to hold it!'

'I didn't wanna do any of it!' Ranma shot back. He shook out his hand, which was purple from lack of circulation. 'But because of that stupid deal that we got into with Pops, if we show that we don't love each other, they'll force us to get married!' The feeling was starting to come back into Ranma's hand. 'Uncute tomboy,' he muttered. Now that they weren't in the vicinity of Soun and Genma, he had every right to insult her.

'Pervert!' Akane yelled. She was getting riled up again. Here it goes… she thought, waiting for Ranma's next insult.

But it never came. Instead, the start-of-school bell rang loudly at that moment, and Ranma, Nabiki, and Akane ran for all they were worth into the school.

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A/N: Was this chapter a bit choppy? Disjointed? Even…disorganised, in parts? If it is, like in the night scene, then good! That was the effect I was going for. Usually I'm all for smoothness and flow in a story, but in that scene, I wanted a lot of detail, and emphasis put on that detail. Right.

Thanks for all the reviews. I love y'all. But if you could do me a favor: Comment on the parts that you really thought were good, and why; and on the flip side, tell me what you didn't like, and why. See, all these smaller fanfictions I have are practice for my magnum opus, Wine, Roses, and All That Jazz. It's not going to see the outside of my hard drive for a loooong time, but I'd appreciate it all the same if you could comment on specific parts. Thank you.