** I do not own Ranma 1/2. That masterpiece is the property of Rumiko Takahashi.**

Late in the evening, Nodoka knocked lightly on her son's bedroom door to check in with him about dinner. It was really quiet, but he hadn't eaten yet and she would be damned if she was going to let him get away without eating again. She tried one more time. With no answer, she slowly opened the door to see the two sleeping teenagers on Ranma's futon. Nodoka eyed the situation, filling with anger. This is not how an honourable man acts. "Ranma!" Nodoka yelled.

Ranma shot up instantly and looked at his mother in horror. Crap, crap, crap. I fell back asleep for too long. "It's not what it looks like!" Miyuki stirred and moaned a little in her sleep, snuggling into Ranma's side. Crap! Miyuki, you're not helping!

"Son, this girl needs to go home right this very second. Once she has left, you are to come see me and your father at once. We need to discuss this disrespectful behaviour as a family." Nodoka looked at her son with more anger than she has ever shown him before. Nodoka needed a minute to process what she just saw and figure out her next move, which is why she had Ranma deal with the girl in his room on his own before he was to come down.

Ranma flinched and nodded. "Yes, mom."

Nodoka stormed out of the room, slamming Ranma's door on the way out. She went to find her husband. Miyuki stirred again.

Crap, crap, crap. Man, she's a deep sleeper. "Miyuki. Hey, wake up," Ranma gently shook her shoulder. Miyuki moaned. Ranma sighed. "Miyuki! Hey, you need to wake up." Ranma shook her a little harder.

"Ranma?" Miyuki groaned.

"Hey, sleepyhead. I need you to wake up. Can you wake up for me?" Ranma urged.

Miyuki opened her eyes and sat up in the futon. She stretched, rubbed her eyes, and looked at Ranma. "We fell asleep?" she asked.

"Yeah, and we were just busted. I'm sorry, but you have to go home right now. My mother is going to kill me, maybe literally." Ranma pleaded, an apologetic look in his eyes.

"I'm sorry, Ranma. I don't mean to keep getting you into trouble," Miyuki looked at him with sad eyes. "Your family must hate me. I'll go."

Ranma took her hand and pulled her into a hug. "This isn't your fault. It's mine. I will call you later, but right now I need to talk to my family and figure out what I'm in for."

Miyuki smiled up at Ranma. "Okay. Good luck, handsome." she winked at him. Ranma walked her out.

Ranma sat very cautiously across the table from both of his parents.

"Son, you are engaged to Akane Tendo with the intention to inherit the Saotome and Tendo Schools of Anything Goes Martial Arts and unite them. Your father was to raise you to be a man among men when he took you from me at a very tender age, and that includes being a man of honour! A man who ignores his commitments and responsibilities is a man who lacks honour. It seems to me that you lost your honour somewhere along the way. I don't know exactly when this happened, maybe you just didn't get the parenting you needed growing up to learn how to be a respectful man, but I will not have you continuing this behaviour a moment longer" Nodoka took a deep, laboured breath, trying to control her own rage.

"The schools must be united, Ranma! How could you do this to me?! Uh, I mean, Akane?" Genma scolded, concerned about what this meant for the schools.

"I swear, it wasn't what it looked like!" Ranma pleaded. "We were just talking and we fell asleep. I've been so tired since I saw that doctor and I just couldn't stay awake. She must have fallen asleep at the same time. We didn't mean to. It was an accident!"

"Ranma, you need to set your priorities straight and, at minimum, apologize to Akane. We knew that you needed time in therapy to figure things out, but we did not mean that it was okay to share your bed with other women. Even if you accidentally fell asleep, it is no excuse for her to have been there in the first place. You do understand that, right son?" Nodoka crossed her arms over her chest.

Ranma lowered his head. He could feel the anxiety and panic starting. He tried to breathe through it, but he was so overwhelmed that it was starting to take over. "Yes, mom. I'm sorry. I know I keep making stupid decisions." He started breathing heavily, closing his eyes.

Nodoka looked at Genma, "How are we going to handle this, husband?"

Genma looked at Ranma sternly. "Ranma, my boy. Soun told you both that lingering relationships should be settled before a couple can be married. That did not mean it was okay to pursue a brand new one. However, you have this delay in your wedding to do just that. Settle them. All of them. I expect you to earn your honour back."

Ranma continued fighting the panic attack that was coming his way. His senses were going haywire. He felt suffocated. He closed his eyes again and kneeled over slightly, clutching his chest. Nodoka's face fell slightly. "Ranma. Son, breathe. You're okay."

Ranma didn't see flashes of Saffron this time and was quicker to steady his breathing. He looked at his parents, through heavy breaths and said, "Sorry. For everything. I know that doesn't fix anything right now, but I don't know what else to do quite yet."

Nodoka looked back to Genma with a touch of concern. "Husband, I think that's enough for tonight. Ranma, you'll go explain yourself and apologize to Akane immediately. The one thing I do know for sure is that she can not go another minute putting up with your disrespect," she ordered.

"Yes, mom." Ranma took a few more deep breaths, then got up to go see Akane.

Nodoka looked at Genma, "What are we going to do? He seems to be falling apart. We need to find out more about this girl. Why is our son so affected by her and what is she going to mean to our son?"

Genma nodded, "We need to know if she is a threat to our plans to unite the schools."

Ranma approached Akane's room. He took a deep breath while looking at the wooden duck on her door. He knocked gently. "Hey, Akane? Are you still awake?" he called.

Akane opened the door, dressed in her pajamas, and looked at Ranma. "Yes, Ranma?"

"Hey, are you ready for that chat?" Ranma gave her a fake smile.

"Right now?" Akane looked at him, confused.

"Yeah, turns out I'm not allowed to wait." Ranma gave a fake chuckle.

"You were busted, weren't you?" Akane eyed him.

Ranma scratched his head, "Uh, yeah. Yeah, I was. I'm in a lot of trouble, actually. Mind if I come in?"

Akane raised an eyebrow at him. "I guess." She moved to the side to allow Ranma into her room. Ranma sat on her desk chair while Akane sat on her bed.

"What would you like to say to me, Ranma?" Akane asked.

"First of all, I'm sorry for everything. I know I haven't been very respectful of your feelings while hanging around Miyuki," Ranma lowered his head.

"Go on," Akane crossed her arms.

"I'm sorry for everything. I've acted like a real ass since we got back from China. I'm still not very good with words, but I'm going to try my best here. I really care about you, Akane. You are very important to me. I honestly don't know what happened since we got back. I stupidly thought that pulling away and hanging out with someone else would be the way to keep you safe, but that was selfish because it was about my own feelings and not yours. I know that wasn't fair to you and was really stupid of me. I hope, in time, I can earn your forgiveness. I know you can handle yourself. I've seen it. Running up the Phoenix to stop the water and save me.. that was heroic and I can't remember if I thanked you, so thank you, Akane. I'm the problem, not you. I'm scared something will happen to you. I know it's stupid, but I haven't been able to shake it." Ranma continued.

Akane looked at him. "Ranma, I went through a lot at Jusendo, too. I was turned into a dehydrated doll and almost died! I have had to deal with that on my own, while the person I was trying to save was treating me like I've done something wrong. I don't deserve the way you are treating me now and I definitely don't deserve to marry someone who has feelings for someone else." Akane said bluntly.

"I know. I'm so sorry about all of that and I don't know what I feel when it comes to Miyuki. Honestly, I don't even really know her." Ranma explained.

"Ranma, you could cut the sexual tension between you two with a knife," Akane said sternly.

"What? No. It's not like that. I mean, I don't think it is." Ranma said, confused.

"Everyone, literally everyone, has seen it. It's not like you two have been hiding it. Seriously, it was so disrespectful the way you have been so open about your relationship with her. You've never kissed me, let alone danced with me like that." Akane said flatly.

"I didn't think you wanted to kiss me," Ranma said nervously.

"You're an idiot. Don't get any ideas, though. I am not looking to kiss you right now." Akane clarified.

Ranma took a deep breath, trying to keep his anxiety under control.

Akane sighed and lowered her arms. "Ranma, I think that we were forced into this too young. We haven't had a chance to experience any other relationships or explore who we are with other people. Jealousy has always gotten in the way. We were betrothed and have treated each other as possessions that we are entitled to since we were made aware of our fathers' arrangements. You also didn't really seem all that interested in dating anyone, anyway. Maybe it's important that you continue to explore whatever this is with Miyuki. You know, to figure out what you want. I wouldn't want to try and force her out of your life and have us resent each other. I think we both need to grow up a little and that means experiencing all kinds of relationships and experiences. I'm not going to end our engagement yet. I thought about it. A lot. We will see how things evolve, but right now if our fathers tried to force us down the aisle- I would not say I do."

Ranma blinked. "Is that really what you want?"

Akane looked into his eyes. "No. This doesn't sound like it's going to feel great for me to watch, but it's necessary. I think we should stay friends while we figure this all out, though. Nothing more. We have been through a lot together and we need to find our way back to basic friendship. Please don't place any expectations on me."

Ranma' lowered his head. "You're going to date other people?"

Akane nodded. "For now." She sighed, "But, I think it's important that we stay friends during this time. Don't lie to me. Don't be disrespectful. You have therapy now. Make use of it."

Ranma stood up. "I'm so sorry about all of this, Akane."

"Just go. I need some space right now. We can talk tomorrow." Akane looked away.

Ranma walked out of Akane's door. He thought he could faintly hear Akane start to cry when the door shut. His heart broke. I'm so sorry about all of this. Don't hate me, Akane.

The next day at dinner, Ukyo arrived with okonomiyaki for the entire family.

Soun and Genma beamed. "Thanks for the grub!" They said in unison before they started chomping down on the food presented to them.

Ukyo smiled at the family, aside from a missing young man with a pigtail. Ukyo looked at Akane. Akane shrugged, "He hasn't come out of his room since we got home."

Ukyo looked at Akane with concern. "Are you okay? What happened? I can tell something happened."

Akane took a small helping of her food and led Ukyo outside. "Long story short, I told him to go date Miyuki and we would not be following through with the engagement at this time. That also means I can date, too."

Ukyo's jaw dropped. "What? Why would you tell him that?"

Akane half smiled at Ukyo, "Because I can tell it's what we both needed. He needs to figure this out before he can be commited to anyone, and, honestly, I deserve better."

Ukyo stood stunned from a moment. "Wait, if this is what he needed then why is he hiding in his room?"

Akane shrugged. "I assume it's because he's not allowed to go out without an escort for a while yet, so he can't really go see her unless one of us brings him."

Ukyo nodded. "Yeah, that makes sense. I think I should go talk to him. We haven't had a good best friend talk in a long time."

Akane smiles at Ukyo. "That sounds like a good idea."

Ukyo knocked on Ranma's bedroom door. Ranma was laying on his futon, reading some manga. "Come in."

Ukyo looked at her friend. "Ranma, you look stressed." she observed.

"Thanks, Ukyo. You look good, too," Ranma joked.

"You're not mad at me anymore?" Ukyo approached cautiously.

"Nah. I mean, Akane forgave you and you've been there for her while I've been an ass, so I think we can just forget about me being mad at anyone but myself." Ranma gave a fake smile.

"Well, you have been an ass to her. She just told me about the whole dating other people decision she came to. That had to hurt," Ukyo said solemly.

"Yeah, it did hurt. A lot, actually. I know I have no right to say so or even feel that, but it was painful to hear her say that." Ranma lowered his eyes.

"I didn't mean for you, idiot!" Ukyo looked at him with bewilderment, "You're right, you have no right to say that. I'm your friend and I'm not going to sugar coat this for you. If you wanted Akane, you have had so many opportunities. I don't know why you keep blowing it, but you're doing a wonderful job of it!"

Ranma cringed. "Ouch. Okay. I mean, you're right but geez, Ucchan."

Ukyo frowned at him, "Good. You need to wake up. So, what are you going to do now?"

Ranma sighed and laid back down, "I don't know. Stay in my room until I die?"

Ukyo smacked him. "Wrong. You're going to do as she asks and respect her wishes. If you want a future with Akane, you need to take time to figure everything out. You definitely can't have this other girl lingering in between. You need to go figure that out."

Ranma blinked. "I can't even leave the house without an escort for 13 more days. I doubt my parents will let her back in the door any time soon, so I don't know how I'm supposed to do that."

Ukyo looked at Ranma suspiciously, "Why wouldn't she be allowed in the house?"

Ranma looked nervous, "Uh, cause my mother caught us sleeping together in my bed."

Ukyo's eyes nearly popped out of her head, "What?!"

Ranma put his hands up defensively, "It's not what it sounds like. We were just talking and fell asleep. Clothes stayed on. I know that's not a great excuse, but we weren't sleeping together, we were just sleeping. Akane even saw us."

Ukyo's jaw dropped. "Oh, Ranma. No wonder she wants you to go figure this out. That must have ripped her heart out. How could you?"

Ranma covered his eyes, "I know. I'm an idiot. I apologized to her, but it wasn't enough."

Ukyo sighed. "Let's see if your parents will let me get you out of this house for a little bit. If they say yes, we do what I say not whatever you want. As much as you need to figure this out with Miyuki, you probably also need a break from it all."

Ranma nodded, "Sure, Ucchan."

Ryoga approached the Tendo household. Finally. Found it again. He knocked at the door.

Kasumi answered with her trademark smile, "Oh, hi Ryoga. Ranma is out with Ukyo, but Akane is here."

Ryoga nodded, "Thank you, Kasumi."

Kasumi lead Ryoga into the house to where Akane was sitting in the living room. Akane smiled up at Ryoga, "Hello Ryoga! It's nice to see you again."

Ryoga could see pain in her eyes and grew concerned. "Akane, what's wrong?" he asked.

Akane looked down, "Just having a bit of a rough day, Ryoga. Ranma and I had a hard conversation yesterday. I guess we are going to date other people for a while."

Ryoga perked up quickly, "Other people? Is there someone you had in mind for yourself?" Ryoga inquired.

"I don't think I'm ready quite yet. There's no rush. I think I just need to feel good about myself first before I worry about anyone else." Akane decided.

"That actually sounds like a pretty good idea. I'm sorry Ranma did this to you. Do you want to go for a walk?" Ryoga asked.

Akane smiled, "That sounds wonderful."

Ryoga looked at her nervously, "Of course, I'll need you to lead the way, though."

Akane laughed, "Don't worry, Ryoga. Let's go."

*** Author's note: This was originally supposed to be an Akane/Ranma pairing, but I'm going to leave that a mystery for now. Will they end up together in the end? ***