She had him by the braided pigtail. It wasn't an intentional target. It just sort of happened. He was misunderstanding her, she was misunderstanding him, and not willing to spiral into adolescent insults (so easy, so habitual, but less common these days with China and the battle with Saffron still fresh in their memories), so she had reached out to forcibly, yet relatively gently, keep him from retreat.
She didn't expect him to spin around so suddenly. Their faces nearly planted together. Both sets of cheeks heated at the unexpected closeness; the blushes formed equally deep and crimson on his surprised face as it did her shyly determined one.
Ranma's hands awkwardly poised midair for balance, and her thumb remained a mere centimeter from his face, still clasping the end of his pigtail.
Like the sudden snap of a rubber band, Akane released her grip on his hair, but neither made further motion to back away.
"Just...go and come back safely, okay?" Her voice was a study in contrasts, soft and sincere, but carrying an underlying heat of exasperation.
A warm sensation filled his chest and brought a natural smile to his face, before his trademark aggravating smirk replaced it. "Of course I will. I'm not a klutz, like some people."
Akane's brown eyes flashed and her nostrils flared. She deliberately breathed deeply to rein in a rising temper. There was no talking seriously to him sometimes!
She was ready to stomp off before she acted or said anything they'd both regret, when he stopped her mid turn, his large, calloused hand hesitant and gentle on her petite, but equally tough hand.
"It's...not like I want to go..." His free hand was nervously rubbing the back of his head, while the hand holding hers was unconsciously tracing circles with his thumb over her palm.
Week long training trips with his Pop used to be a normal part of his life, something neither dreaded or looked forward to, just accepted routine. Nowadays , it brought clashing emotional baggage. There wasn't much of anything his father had left to teach him, so without the promise of greatly improving his skills, the necessity of leaving behind the Tendo home...and a certain someone within it… left a bitter aftertaste.
Feeling awkward and conflicted, Ranma hadn't wanted to drag out the goodbye. Hell, he wished he didn't have to say any goodbyes in the first place! So of course, his chronic foot-in-the-mouth disease picked now- when Akane was at the door before the sun was even out to see him off - as the perfect time to flare up. He'd started with an abrupt "shouldn't you be in bed, tomboy?" and it quickly degenerated from there.
Akane felt her own conflicted emotions keenly. She was still miffed at his earlier rude behavior, but the feel of Ranma's thumb tenderly on her hand was acting like a heat sink to her boiling temper. His amended words and downcast demeanor penetrated through her own insecurities to help her recognize his own.
Akane breathed out an exasperated sigh. "Honestly, Ranma…
He tensed for a moment, expecting the worse.
"...is it so hard to say you'll miss me?"
His brain and mouth struggled to come up with a response, halfway to stuttering a partial denial and halfway to admitting, perhaps...maybe, sorta... when her next move stunned him in place.
Soft and as ethereal as butterfly wings, Akane's lips brushed against his right cheek in a warm and all too brief kiss.
His stunned expression made her laugh, a soft tinkle of bell-like laughter that was abruptly cut-off when his mouth met hers.
The initial start was clumsy enough to reassure her that Ranma was as inexperienced as she was… yet the intensity behind it was quickly joined with equal passion on her part, of feelings denied and years of sweet moments interrupted before they could come to full fruition. They were both creatures of physical action, and in this they were finally able to communicate in perfect harmony.
"You coming, boy, or do I have to drag your lazy ass with me to Hokkaido?!"
Reality crashed upon them, making them both jump, but not fully pull away. Thankfully, Genma had merely shouted from the doorway; he had missed the entire scene. Otherwise, Ranma had no doubt he'd be hogtied and dragged to a wedding altar… though the thought wasn't nearly as troublesome as it once was.
Ranma gritted his teeth in annoyance before responding in kind. "As if you could, old man! Catch your breath while you still can."
Ranma turned back to face his fiancee. Her cheeks were highlighted in a pink blush, and though he had originally thought he'd never seen her more beautiful than last week in her wedding dress, this was a radiant beauty that was more natural and stunning in its simplicity.
His fingers fidgeted in nervous procrastination. "I, uh, guess I'm leaving."
Akane nodded, her chest was tight with the overwhelming happiness from their first kiss, which blended uneasily with the impending bitterness of separation. For a moment she had trouble getting her throat to swallow, let alone form words. The traditional response of "take care..." managed to come out as a small croak. Akane quickly cleared her throat, hating herself for seeming like such an emotional wimp. She seized on her frustration at the situation, and with her arms crossed huffily across her chest, but with also a teasing smile at her lips, she responded more forcibly. "Or else!"
The feisty reply brought a smile to Ranma's face. That was his tomboy, all right; too prideful and macho to give girlish tears and sentimental declarations of missing him. Yet, her actions told him clearly that she would.
He motioned to leave, but found his feet unwilling to budge further. Even more than wanting to have the last word, he didn't want to leave any room for misunderstandings. They'd had too many already.
Blushing more deeply than when they'd kissed, Ranma forced out an answer to her earlier query. "I'll miss you," he admitted, as he stepped outside to join his father. He was still less than enthused to be leaving, but if it meant getting this kind of send-off...maybe training trips were something to look forward to, after all.
Original Publication Date: November 17, 2020
Inspiration Fanart: pin dot it slash POAMVIM