Chapter 5
AN: Guess who's healthy again. I'm sorry for making you all wait so long. But fear not, I am back and writing. Hope you enjoy.
*words* Are thoughts
Ranma sat cross-legged in his room. He was deep in thought. A footstep behind him caught his attention.
"I heard what you did to Ryoga. Care to talk about it?" Genma asked. He sat down beside his son.
"There's nothing to talk about pop. He stepped over the line. I snapped and lost control." Ranma said quietly.
"Ranma my boy, I've seen you get plenty angry with Ryoga on many occasion, but not even you have the audacity to beat him up that bad. What's wrong?" Genma asked cautiously.
"Damnit pop, why can't you just leave me alone?" Ranma asked, turning from him.
"It's Akane, isn't it boy." He said. Ranma's breath caught in his throat and Genma knew he had struck gold. "I know how you feel about her. I've known for a while now. But does she know?" Ranma sighed and turned around.
"That's what's wrong pop. I can't tell her. You see how she acts around me. She hates me." He said his gaze lowering.
"Does she? No one understands why a woman does the things she does, but sometimes she says things she doesn't mean. How is it that boy puts it? Me thinks she doth protest too much?" Genma said, his face serious. Ranma half-grinned.
"Kuno. What a moron. Though some of the things he says do make sense. And I guess she does have a right to be mad. Though it's not like it's my fault." Ranma said. He then stood up.
"Where are you going boy?" Genma asked. Ranma flashed him his special smile. Genma knew Ranma was going to try again. He walked down to Akane's room, and then paused. What would he say? How would he say it? He knew he had to, but it was so damn hard. He turned the knob and opened the door.
"Akane I…" He froze like dear in the headlights. There she was, changing into a new pair of pajamas, nude from the waist up.
"YOU PERVERT!" The whole household looked up towards her room as the sickening crunch of jaw, the explosion of window, and the trademark "I'm sorry" of Ranma as he flew off into the distance.
"Honestly!" Akane huffed, lying back down in her bed. She had needed to change out of her old pajamas since they were coated with sweat and were making her chilly. She put her arm over her forehead to try and block out some of the light from outside. It was hurting her eyes, which made her head hurt. However the breeze from the newly opened window felt nice. She heard a soft knock on the door and sighed. If it was Ranma…
"Akane? Can I come in?" Soun asked. Akane's eyes opened and she coughed.
"Yeah dad, come in." She croaked. The door opened and Mr. Tendo stood there looking solemn.
"I take it you just had another fight?" Soun asked. Akane growled.
"That pervert walked in on me again. He keeps looking at me when I'm undressed." She huffed.
"Akane, do you know why he came to see you?" Soun asked. Akane looked up at him confused.
"N-no. I just saw him staring at me and I lost it. I never gave him time to explain." She said, realizing she had lost her temper again. She heard voices from the hall and recognized Dr. Tofu's voice. "Why's Dr. Tofu here? Is he here to check up on me?"
"No actually. He's here to check on Ryoga. He and Ranma had a fight." Soun said. Akane growled.
"I've told him not to bully him. Why are they always fighting?" She asked.
"It was his own fault this time sis." Nabiki said from the doorway.
"Nabiki?" Akane asked, sitting up and looking at her sister.
"Ranma's having a rough time right now. We were talking when Ryoga butted in. Ranma tried to calm him down, but as usual he had to fight. I don't blame Ranma for doing this. I'm actually surprised he didn't kill the guy. I know I would have, if I felt as bad as he does." She said. Akane got confused.
"What's he got to be upset about?" Akane asked, her temper rising. Nabiki shook her head.
"It's not my place to say sis. Nor is it yours, daddy." Nabiki said, shooting a look at Soun. He nodded.
"She's right Akane. Why don't you ask Ranma when he gets back?" He said before leaving the room. Akane sighed and put her chin on her knees.
"Ranma's upset because of me? So what did he come to tell me? Stupid jerk." She said, rolling over. She attempted to go back to sleep, but found she couldn't get her fiancé off her mind.
* * *
Ukyo struggled with the large sack as she moved towards the alley. A heavy rain had started and her clothes were already soaked through.
"Why couldn't it have waited two more minutes to rain? I hate taking out the garbage in weather like this." She grumbled. She noticed a soft whimpering further down the alley and got curious. She walked slowly towards the sound. When she saw a familiar head of red hair, she stopped short.
"Ranma-honey? Is that you?" She asked. Ranma didn't respond at first. She just sat there, in the rain.
"Hey, come on sugar. You're gonna catch your death in this weather. Come inside." Ukyo said, moving closer. It was then she noticed that Ranma was trying to hide her face. "Hey are you crying?"
"I aint doin no such thing. It's just I got something in my eye." She said. Ukyo sighed. Even in his female form he was too stubborn to admit when he, or rather she, was crying.
"Come inside silly. I'll get you something to eat and warm you up." She said. Ranma finally stood and followed her inside. Ukyo quickly fired up her grill, and started mixing ingredients. Within moments, she had Ranma's favorite recipe cooked up and served. But Ranma didn't even budge.
"Okay sugar. I just offered you a free meal and you didn't even blink. I know something's wrong." Ukyo stated. Ranma looked at her plate for a few moments before speaking.
"I don't know what to do Ukyo. I've had these feelings inside for so long, but I can't seem to do anything about it. Every time I try to say them, they get pushed further down and I say something stupid." Ranma said. Ukyo blushed a deep crimson.
"Well I uh… I'm not sure what to say Ran-chan. I didn't know you felt this way." She scratched the back of her neck, surprised by Ranma's words.
"I can finally admit it to my self, but I just can't bring myself to tell her." Ranma said. Ukyo's breath caught in her throat.
"H-her?" She asked. Ukyo could feel her heart begin to pull at her chest.
"But it doesn't matter because she hates me." She said. She had said it so quietly, Ukyo had barely heard.
"Who hates you?" Ukyo asked. She already knew the answer. Had the war finally ended? Had Ranma finally made his choice? She grabbed the kettle that was ready and poured it onto Ranma. Instead of answering, he just sighed and lowered his head into his hands. Ukyo moved from behind the counted to stand beside her fiancé.
"Hey sugar, I'm sure it's not all that bad." She said. *What the hell am I doing? If he breaks up with her then he's free to be with me! But why do I feel so bad for him?* Ukyo couldn't figure out why she wanted to help him. She knew that there was no way she could have him as long as he was with Akane, but for some reason, she knew he had already devoted his heart to her. That meant they could never be what she really wanted them to be. She heard a knock at the door and initially ignored it. That is until it became a constant thumping.
"Hey, we're closed alright? Come back tomorrow!" Ukyo yelled at the door. But the banging only got more insistent. Ukyo growled and stormed over to the door. She threw it open ready to beat on the intended interruption, but her face froze when she saw whom it was.
"I'm sorry to bother you, but is Ranma here?" She asked. Ukyo nodded and stepped aside. The woman walked over to Ranma and placed her hand on his shoulder.
"Dearest son, I heard everything from that husband of mine. Would you like to talk?" She asked. Ranma stiffened at the voice.
"Mom?!" Ranma asked. Nodoka sat down beside him.
"I know you're having it tough right now, but please don't give up. She loves you, I know she does, she just has the same problem you do. She can't admit it to you, or herself yet. But the time will come." She said. A faint hint of a glimmer passed Ranma's eyes.
"Gee you think so?" Ranma asked. Nodoka nodded and Ranma sat up and sighed. "So what do I do about telling her how I feel?" Nodoka just smiled.
"You'll find a way my son." She said.