I don't own Ranma & Crew…but you all already knew that. :D

The lace on the gown was delicate, quite a contrast for the woman who wore it. Yes, no longer a girl in his mind but a woman. It was amazing to him how something so basic as a change of clothes could change the way you look at a person. In that split second, she became more endeared to him than she had before. He'd seen her in dresses before but this, this was a wedding gown…not the traditional gown but western style of her own choosing, and much more beautiful than the one she had been put in only a few weeks earlier by their idiot fathers. His breathe caught as she looked up at him, almost daring him to say something, whether it be a compliment or insult, she was daring him to say anything to break the tension that had risen since they saw each other in their formal attire. A thought of some importance had rushed through his mind at the time….It's bad luck to see the bride before the wedding.

Since that day, he had often wondered if she would have gone through with the wedding. She had taken the destruction with a calm that often came before the storm. Yet, the storm had not come. In its place, was a mellow depression that was easily hidden among the routine daily life in Nerima. Everyone felt that something was wrong but none willing to ask for fear that the storm would show and they would be caught in its raw fury. He had watched and wanted to do something, but neither had the will nor the knowledge to do what needed to be done. He was taught to run away from his problems until he could find a way to defeat them…and that was what he was doing now running away, but he couldn't actually stay away from her. While his mind told him to run away and figure everything out, his soul screamed at him to stay with her and never let her go again. His brain was in overload between the two almost weddings and what happened at Phoenix Mountain that this distance he had put between them had gone on for almost two months. He couldn't ask for advice from the "adults" he knew. They just wanted him to marry her, prove himself manly, or worse marry one of his other would be fiancées. He needed to figure this out on his own and so he followed her as she left on the night of the full moon at 2 in the morning.

She had stood there in the gown that she had picked out and waited. She knew what was going on, this time she was awake. When he burst through door, so upset and angry she was panicked for a moment, until she saw his eyes. She couldn't remember the conversation if any that had occurred at that moment, because she was overwhelmed with feelings she wasn't sure were real or reciprocated. She had often wondered what he was thinking when his eyes were unguarded for that split second when shock hits a person she wasn't sure if it was love or dismay because just as fast as it was shown it was gone to be forgotten or ignored by both. To say she was disappointed about the wedding would be an understatement, she was devastated but she wouldn't show it. Although her feelings were usually easy to read she tried to keep this one hidden. He looked so relieved once everything was over and all the "guests" had left for the evening. Her sister had told her that it might have been that he was happy the others didn't do more damage but she knew that he didn't want to marry her. She wasn't sure if it was because of her or their age but she knew. And so she continued her routine as if nothing was wrong. She sighed to herself when he would follow her, thinking that she didn't know he was there. Before Phoenix Mountain she wouldn't have know he was, but now she could sense him everywhere she went. She needed some time alone and so she waited until the time was right for her escape.

She had thought everyone was asleep when she snuck out of the house. It was late, nearly 2 in the morning, she had made sure it was going to be a full moon and luckily it was a clear night. She hadn't expected him to wake up and follow her. Part of her wanted to lose him in the city and then back track, another stronger part of her just wanted him to see her and how hurt she was, and so she let him follow her to the ocean. She wasn't going to do anything desperate or crazy. She was going to sit on the beach, watch the moon and think. Think about her life, friends, school, home and most importantly what really happened at Phoenix Mountain and the Wedding. It all happened so fast she didn't know what to think. She cared for him so much but she wasn't sure that she wanted to get married either. She had agreed to the marriage out of fear of losing him after Phoenix Mountain and wondered if she would have been happy getting married so young. She would never know. Their 'friends' either for relationship issues or the barrel of water from the spring of drowned boy that her father had shipped in for the groom had destroyed the wedding. She wanted to know if her fiancé was disappointed, for any other reason other than losing the cure to his curse, like not being married to her. He had so many girls after him at any point that she knew he wouldn't really ever have a problem finding someone. She knew she had suitors, but none of them knew her like she thought he did. They all wanted her because they thought she was beautiful. She thought they were idiots. She had never thought herself beautiful until she was told she was cute when she smiled. Then that idiot had tricked her.

Ranma watched her sit on the beach and pull her knees to her chin. He waited for what seemed like an eternity and then he heard something. It was faint and quiet but he recognized the sound of crying when he heard it. Ranma looked around to make sure no one was creeping behind the buildings, took a deep breath and did the bravest thing he had ever done in his life…willing going to talk to a weeping woman.

She felt a strong hand on her shoulder as she cried and looked up to see Ranma with a look of concern on his face. She thought this might be her only chance to ever talk to him away from the normal chaos of Nerima and took a chance. No lying, or denying anything.

"Akane, are you okay?" His voice was so quiet only loud enough to be heard over the ocean. He wasn't quite sure what to do at this point having no prior training in this sort of thing and so he waited for he to answer.

"Okay? No, I don't think so, Ranma." She could tell that was not the answer he was expecting by how his eyes glazed over just enough to show that he was thinking about what to say next, when he didn't say anything she continued, "when you said that I was cute when I smiled did you mean it?"

This brought him from his reverie. It was the farthest thing he was expecting in his head. Mount Phoenix and the two failed weddings were what he thought they need to talk about, not something that happened almost 3 years ago.

"Why does it matter? That was a long time ago"

"No lies, Ranma. It matters to me."

Ranma sighed, no lies huh? Easier said than done. But she looked tired of the game they both knew they had been playing and so he sat down next to her on the beach.

"yes, I meant it" He was surprised how quiet his voice sound and yet seemed to be the loudest thing in the world.

"then why did you always call me uncute?"

"I don't know"

"What do you mean 'I don't know'?"

"I don't know, Akane. Usually when I talk my mouth runs on instinct and there's not a lot of thinking involved."

They sat for a moment in the silence of the early morning.

"Would you have married me, if everything hadn't gone so wrong?" She held her breath and heard him suck air in preparation. She didn't know if she wanted an answer to this question but it needed to be asked.

"yeah…" He was hoping she would change the subject to something else…he felt uncomfortable, not knowing the script in this conversation.

Akane thought for a minute…it wasn't the right question.

"Do you want to marry me?"

"Eventually, maybe…" Ranma waited for the inevitable explosion of her temper.

"What does that mean?" She was trying to hide the fear and anger in her voice. She had heard him at Phoenix Mountain, and now he was trying to change things.

Ranma winced at the tone of her voice. He decided to do another first in his life…think things out before he spoke…quite an accomplishment considering his upbringing. He turned to face Akane.

"Akane, I am barely 18 years old. I have never had a relationship with a girl before. I would like to have a friend before a girlfriend let alone before a wife. When I got here you offered to be my friend and since then we have had a very odd relationship. I don't know what I want to do, and all this fiancé business is unfair and confusing. I.." he stopped talking because his mouth had caught up with his brain and he waited for her to say something.

Akane blinked…she had never heard so much raw truth from Ranma before and it touched her deep in her soul.

"Ranma, I don't know what to say…do you love me?"

"…yes….." Ranma's face turned bright red with embarrassment

"then we are more than friends…'cause I love you too… Akane found her thumbs incredibly fascinating at this point, "but that doesn't mean I want to get married any time soon either…"

Ranma was so happy at that moment he could have run for miles…he settled for the next best thing and hugged Akane with as much force as he dared and prayed she wouldn't take back what she had said.

"so…does this mean we're boyfriend and girlfriend?" they spoke simulataneously and laughed.

"what do we do about the others?"

"let's not tell them until I can figure a way out of the engagements and not get either of us hurt."

Akane nodded and Ranma put his arm around her shoulders. The important things had been discussed and neither one wanted to talk about how she almost died. Just knowing they did care about each other was enough and they sat on the beach and watched the sun come up.