SHOOTING STAR.
CHAPTER FIVE.
The moment he'd been dreading all day had finally arrived.
Ukyo was already upstairs, getting ready for bed. He had offered to do the dishes, since he'd been too nervous and needed a distraction once Mr. Kuonji decided to call it a night. The man had kept him focused on playing his role and trying to win his approval; and he'd been terrified of screwing Ukyo's plan up. But there was a more terrifying prospect in his mind now.
After he finished putting everything away, he checked the door and turned the lights off.
He went straight to the bathroom, brushed his teeth, washed his face, brushed his teeth again, organized the cabinet, stashed the towels by color, cleaned the already spotless toilet, counted the tiles on the walls, washed his face a couple of times more and sighed in resignation when he decided he should just go through with it or he'd spend the night in the bathroom.
He slid the bedroom's door open, half hoping she would be asleep already, and took a hesitant step forward.
She was sitting on the middle of the bed, with a bunch of papers scattered around. She didn't even acknowledge him as he slid the door closed and walked around the bed. His sleeping bag waited open and ready for him on a futon, with a fluffy pillow and clean beddings that were not his.
He smiled at her attempt to make him feel comfortable, but his level of uneasiness escalated another notch.
He tried hard to ignore the fact that she was wearing just a modest cotton nightdress and sat on his sleeping-bag. "W-what are you doing?"
"Numbers," she mumbled as she scribbled down on a notepad, while checking on different papers.
Her thighs were peeking out the hem of the short nightdress, both legs curled gracefully at her side, and he wondered if her skin was as soft as it looked…
He brushed a hand across his face, shaking his head slightly; what the hell was he thinking?! He was about to go to sleep in the same room as this girl! He shouldn't be regarding her like that!
"Are you okay?"
Her voice snapped him out of his thoughts, making him jump.
"Uh, y-yeah, just a l-little tired…"
"I'm almost done here; go to bed. We have to get up early tomorrow."
"Okay," he nodded, standing up and walking to the wardrobe to retrieve his sleeping clothes.
It was an interesting sight, he mused, having his clothes so neatly stashed beside a girl's in her wardrobe. He had to admit Ukyo had picked nice things for him, probably because she had been dressing as a boy for so long. She hadn't even asked him his size; just a look over and she'd known, since everything fit him perfectly.
After a quick trip back to the bathroom to change his clothes, he got into his sleeping bag, trying to ignore the other presence in the room. The main light went out, leaving the room bathed in the soft glow of the night lamp. The softness of the sheets and comfortableness of the futon relieved the tension of his muscles, his body sagging with tiredness. It had been a very stressful day, to say the least; but now he could just lie down and close his eyes and…
"Ryoga?"
Her voice, shy and uncertain, sent an electric shock throughout all of him, like a thousand needles pricking at him in different places at the same time. He pried his eyes open and saw her leaning on the edge of the bed.
"Y-yes?"
"Is it comfortable?"
He nodded, not knowing what to say. Was lying down in his sleeping bag on a soft futon and clean sheets comfortable? Yes, definitely. Was lying down in his sleeping bag with her so close that he could hear her breathing and every little move she made comfortable? Not so much.
He watched her smile a little, resting on her elbows with her hair sprawled around her shoulders and one of the spaghetti straps of the nightdress fallen off, and he'd come to appreciate how feminine she could look without her even noticing.
He had to admit she was rather attractive when she wasn't being a violent tomboy.
Her small smile became a full smirk, "You do realize I'll kill you if you try anything, right?"
And there it was, the little threatening monster. He narrowed his eyes at her, blushing like mad.
She didn't wait for a response; she just rolled to her side and faced the wardrobe, whispering a soft 'good night'.
The night lamp went off as well, submitting the room in darkness. Her breathing became slower as she drifted to peaceful slumber, and he just laid there, listening to that rhythmic sound, lulling him into oblivion as he tried to ignore the furious thumping of his heart.
The last coherent thought he recalled was that it wasn't so bad to fall asleep in her room, after all…
Lunch rush had been crazy, to say the least. Costumers have been surprised that 'Ucchan's' had been open on a Saturday noon, and everyone around Nerima had seemed to agree on having lunch at her restaurant that day.
She wasn't complaining, though; working had kept both her and Ryoga busy and her father off their backs for the first half of the day. She had put her fake fiancé in charge of the cash box, that way he would stay put and not wander off to Okinawa. Luckily he had gotten the hang of it quite fast, and her dad hadn't seemed to notice it'd been his first time.
She rested her hands on her hips and bent backwards, stretching. It was almost three in the afternoon and her sore muscles screamed for a shower and a nap, but she still had to do the dishes and straighten up the place for dinner time. She needed to have everything ready before eight.
"Ukyo, I'm done here." Ryoga announced tiredly, having finished counting the profits and stashing the money on different piles.
"I'm going to put this away and clean up. You can take a nap or have some rest since I dragged you out of bed so early…"
"Okay…"He nodded, walking to the apartment.
After she finished cleaning up the grill, straightening up the tables and mopping the floor, she was pleasantly surprised when she found the dishes done in her little and spotless kitchen, ready for dinner rush.
She knew it hadn't been her dad, since the man had claimed himself eager to spend the afternoon lazing around in front of the TV after lunch rush. He had seemed quite pleased with her restaurant's management, easing a huge weight off her shoulders. Besides, Ryoga had done the dishes the night before as well.
The pretty chef smiled at the gesture; she knew that he was an attentive, considerate boy, as he'd proven to be towards Akane when wooing her, but she'd never expected him to be that way towards her, especially with the way she treated him sometimes… well, most of the time.
Ukyo stifled a giggle when she reached the living-room. Her father sat on the large couch, watching TV. Ryoga had seemed to intend that, but now he was sprawled on one end of the couch, snoring softly.
"I asked him to watch TV with me… He didn't last ten minutes," Takeo chuckled softly.
"I've kept him on his toes since he came here on Thursday, he deserves a little rest."
"He was on another training trip?" Her father asked curiously. Ukyo just nodded, cursing herself for her little slip. She had to be more careful around her dad. "He seems to be gone quite often, to be honest, honey." He murmured.
She just pressed her lips, covering the boy with a blanket. She hadn't told her father about his problems with directions, or his curse, for that matter. She didn't think he would've approved of him as easily if he'd known those little details.
"He's staying now." She replied softly, suddenly feeling the urge to defend him.
"Good, he seems to be quite helpful around here."
"He is, dad; but he's still a martial artist." She reminded him carefully.
Her father nodded and said nothing else, focusing his attention on the TV again. He patted the spot between him and her fake fiancé and she smiled.
Ukyo sat, letting her body sag on the couch with the pleasure of having a little time to laze around until dinner time. Ryoga made a contented sound and snuggled under the blanket, making her giggle. She glanced at her dad, who shared an amused smile with her before half-closing his eyes, his head dropping on the back of the couch.
When her father started snoring as well, she snatched the remote from his lap and surfed through channels.
She found a movie and leaned back, making herself comfortable.
It wasn't long before she drifted to sleep as well…
Ukyo stretched luxuriously on the large couch, her muscles clenching and unclenching with pleasure. She felt rested and fresh, ready to face dinner crowd; which reminded her…
She looked around, noticing she was alone on the couch, under the blanket she had covered Ryoga with before and the TV off. Where was everybody?
She looked at her wristwatch and bolted upright, it was almost eight!
Flinging her legs off the couch, she stumbled upstairs, washed her face and brushed her teeth, changed into a fresh jacket and ran downstairs.
She was pulling her hair up in a ponytail when she reached the kitchen door leading to the restaurant and froze. The sound of the batter on the grill reached her ears; along with a soft murmur of costumers coming in.
It was barely eight and the restaurant was open and crowding slowly.
Ukyo stuck her head out the door, staring at her father taking charge of the grill and Ryoga sitting at the cash box as he'd done earlier that day. They were talking about something, Takeo speaking in hushed tones while Ryoga listened and nodded his head every now and then, looking like he was ready to bolt through the door. It was time to go in his rescue.
She stepped into the restaurant and walked behind the grill, stopping next to her 'fiancé', and her father hushed. She instantly knew he'd been talking about her.
"You didn't wake me up," she scolded softly to the young man.
This made his cheeks go instantly red for some reason and he avoided her gaze.
"Um, your dad said you could use some rest…" He looked down at the countertop and started fiddling with a pen. Ukyo just blinked, wondering what had gotten him even more nervous.
"Okay…"
Her father started two more orders with practiced ease and smiled at her.
"You take a break, Ukyo; I'll be in charge of the grill tonight… if that's okay?"
"Uh, sure, dad…" She shrugged; if the man decided to leave her off the hook for the night instead of watching her work from behind her back like a hawk, she wasn't complaining.
"Good. You two should go watch a movie or something, I don't know; spend some quality time together. I bet you haven't had an evening alone in a long time, eh?" Takeo winked at her and laughed, returning his attention to the grill.
Ryoga's back straightened up in shock, and he darted a desperate look towards her way.
What in the world…?
That jackass, it wasn't as if they were going to truly spend some quality time together!
"Are you sure?"
"Honey, I've been taking care of things on my own for a long time. Go." He dismissed with a hand gesture, never looking back.
"Um, okay… Come on, sugar." She nodded to the kitchen's door and walked back to her apartment, Ryoga following her.
Once they were out of earshot, she turned to face him and could have laughed at the look of pure terror on his face.
"What in the world is wrong with you?" Her voice trembled with annoyance.
"N-nothing…"
Ukyo couldn't help it; she had to roll her eyes. This boy's shyness was just too much sometimes.
"Look, just because my dad thinks we're a couple doesn't mean we have to do, uh, whatever couples do, alright?"
"I-I know."
"Okay." She frowned, what was the big deal, then? "So, would you like to watch a movie or something?"
His eyes snapped towards the couch and back at her, wider than before, and his face turned pale.
"A movie?" He squeaked, and she had to wonder if the guy was wrong in the head.
Ukyo pinched the bridge of her nose. "I think I've hit you on the head too many times…" She murmured hastily.
"Uh, I don't think that's a good idea." He said in a more composed voice, scratching the back of his head.
"Okay, then what do you want to do?"
"I could use some training…" He said in a tired voice, brushing his face with his palms. She brightened up; now that was something they could do, alright!
"Great; let me change my clothes first. I'll be right back!" She bolted upstairs, excited that she was going to blow off some steam. It had been a while since she trained, and she never had a partner around.
She hadn't been lying when she told her father that Ryoga was a very strong and skilled martial artist. If there was something she respected about him, it was his devotion to martial arts. Something she herself would love to have, if she wasn't such a busy girl.
Hopefully Ryoga wasn't one of those 'no hitting girls' idiots, or she was going to teach him a lesson the hard way.
With not a small amount of excitement, she changed into her training clothes and got ready for a training session with her 'fiancé'.
Ryoga stood exactly where Ukyo had left him, staring at nothing, wondering how the situation had turned so complicated in such a short amount of time.
When he'd said he'd wanted to train, he'd meant alone. He needed the workout, to distract his mind from the confusing thoughts he'd been having that evening.
Waking up on the couch, with Ukyo tucked under the cover with him and snuggling close to him, one of her hands resting on his stomach and her nose and lips brushing against the side of his neck, had been terrifying… and admittedly, kind of nice.
Thankfully her dad had been already gone by then; it wasn't as if they had been doing something impudent, and they were supposed to be engaged, but he knew the truth and being caught in such situation wasn't something he was looking forward to.
That was why he had freaked out when Ukyo suggested a movie. He might be twenty now, but due to his lifestyle he still wasn't accustomed to relating with girls and still didn't know how to deal with them.
It hadn't helped having her father talking to him about her and how happy he was that Ryoga was in her life and how good and beautiful and wonderful his daughter was. At least the man had done all the talking; he didn't know what could have gotten out of his mouth if he'd dared to pronounce more than two words at once in his frantic state of mind.
The best thing to do was to keep away from her until he cleared his head, avoiding anything that might turn into some kind of accidental physical contact.
But there he was now, about to train with her.
She came back wearing a pair of loose jogging pants and a muscle shirt, her ponytail bouncing behind her.
"Ready?"
He nodded, not knowing what to say. Ryoga followed the girl to the backyard, where the sun was still setting, tinting the sky in orange hues.
"Okay, let's start!" She clapped her hands and rubbed them together expectantly, yet he made no move.
"How about a little warm up first?" He suggested and started moving his arms around. She followed suit, taking a few steps closer to him.
She stretched her limbs gracefully, and bent over and back, warming up her entire body.
"I'm ready," she announced, bouncing on her heels. He cringed at her enthusiasm; the little thing seemed ready to tear down a whole building.
Ryoga took a deep breath, rolled his shoulders and prepared himself. Better to get over with it already.
"Okay, come on." He assumed a fighting stance and waited for her to attack.
Ukyo flung herself at him, punching and kicking, delivering surprisingly hard blows; the girl was strong without her spatula as well. He kept dodging and blocking, until he jumped behind her and she spun around a second too late, leaving her side exposed. He took a step back, waiting for her to come back at him, but she just frowned.
"What are you doing?" She snapped.
"What?"
"You had an opening right there, but you just jumped back."
Ryoga shrugged; he wasn't hitting her if he could avoid it.
"Please, don't tell me you follow that stupid 'no hitting girls' rule Ranchan does."
"It just doesn't seem right," he protested.
"How do you expect me to respect you as a martial artist if you can't have a decent spar with me?" She countered back.
"H-hey! That's not fair!"
"Then fight back!"
"I can't!" He did follow the 'no hitting girls' rule.
She crossed her arms and looked defiantly at him, "Listen, I can take it, okay? I'm a martial artist Ryoga, I can take down any guy as much as you do."
"I've noticed," he muttered humorlessly, having found himself under her spatula way too many times.
"Then what's the problem?"
He placed his hands on his hips and looked down, shaking his head. Ukyo growled in frustration.
"Can you at least try?" She growled again, stomping a foot on the ground much like a child would; and then, after a long sigh, she seemed to change her strategy to a more effective one: "Please, Ryoga?"
Ryoga rolled his eyes, hating himself for being so weak against her newly discovered pleading tactics. Not that he liked the old ones, though. He definitely didn't miss being threatened, hit or dragged into doing something.
"I guess I could try…" He sighed, rolling his shoulders and assuming a fighting stance.
He didn't know how much time passed before they collapsed on the ground with heavy pants and covered in sweat. The stars were bright that night, and the moon was full, illuminating the backyard as he rested his back on the soft grass he had mowed the day before.
It turned out that he hadn't had to avoid hitting her, after all, since she gave him a good run for his money; and he had admittedly enjoyed the sparring session once he let his mind concentrate on the exercise instead of thinking about her proximity.
She suddenly laughed and he turned his face to her, lying on her back at arm's length, looking at the sky with a grin on her face.
"What?" He asked, taking a deep breath and enjoying the early summer breeze.
"Nothing, I just…" She shook her head, the smile widening. "I was looking at the stars three nights ago and…"
She trailed off and he waited, wondering what she was talking about; but she said nothing else. She turned to face him then, her eyes sparkling with merriment, and the thought of how cute she looked like that snuck up in his mind.
He really needed to stop thinking such things about her.
"Thank you for this…"
"It's okay, I needed the workout too."
She grew serious then.
"No, I mean, for helping me out. You really didn't have to do it, and yet here you are… I know you're getting something out of it too, but still… thank you Ryoga."
He gulped, licking his dry lips; the look in her eyes was so intense it set his heart racing. She gave him a tentative smile, her chest rising and falling with her still elaborated breath, mimicking his, and he felt like he should say something but couldn't find the right words. His brain was blank as he stared at her, wondering how she could get him so worked up with just a look.
It was easier to deal with her when she was being a tomboy, he realized; Ukyo's newfound femininity was shocking him to the core, to say the least.
And she was still waiting for him to say something.
"I…"
"Hey kids! Want some dinner?" Takeo bellowed from the door, and the moment was totally broken.
Ukyo sat up and faced her father, "Sure dad! Let us get a shower first!"
"Okay!" The man laughed, going back inside.
"I'll go first," she announced while jumping to her feet and hurrying inside, leaving him lying on the grass, staring at the bright sky and wanting to kick his own ass for being such an idiot when dealing with girls.
"You're welcome. You don't need to thank me. It's nothing, don't worry. I'm glad I can help you. Thank you, too." He said to the sky, mocking himself. Couldn't just one of those sentences get out of his mouth at the moment? First time in his life she's truly nice to him and he just stares at her like a dumbass. "I'm such a mess…"
Ryoga took a deep breath and rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands. Why did she have to go all girly on him like that? It was so much easier to interact with her when she was being a manipulating, bossy tomboy; all he had to do then was either stay out of her way or do what she said.
When she acted like a girl, though…
When she acted like that, all soft voice and sweet and gentle, and he saw how cute and feminine she could be when she wanted to, his brain turned into pudding and his tongue tied itself in knots.
Why he reacted like that, he had no idea, and it confused and frustrated him.
It didn't matter, though. Her father would be leaving tomorrow, and then they would spend a couple of days more trying to find the temple, and after that he'd probably never see her again unless they bumped into each other occasionally, so he should just stop worrying about it… but somehow, he knew deep down that his troubles were only beginning…
Ukyo slid under the sheets, her body protesting with tiredness.
It had been so long since she last trained, and she and Ryoga had gone on for three hours straight without even realizing it!
She had felt guilty for leaving her father alone for so long, but he had seemed more than pleased that they had spent so much time together; which was understandable, since the man had admitted to believe that Ryoga didn't truly exist before he met him.
And then she'd felt guilty again for lying to him.
She sighed, covering her eyes with her arm. She wasn't proud of what she was doing, but it was necessary. If only her dad would just trust in her and give her the restaurant without believing she needed a man in her life…
The door opened and Ryoga's footsteps sounded in the room, nearing his sleeping bag. He'd stayed downstairs doing the dishes again. Luckily for them, her father had gone to bed early.
"Are you as worn out as I am?" She asked with a whine.
"A little bit," he answered sleepily. She chuckled, and then he added: "Your dad seemed quite contented this evening…"
"Yeah," Ukyo agreed moodily; "he's happy that he's finally confirmed that I have a man in my life."
Ryoga snorted, "As if you'd need one. You're the most independent woman I've ever met."
Ukyo sat up and looked down at him, lying on his back in only his sleeping shorts and an undershirt, his eyes closed.
"Exactly! I am totally capable of running my restaurant on my own! Why can't he see that? Why did he have to impose that stupid condition on me?"
Ryoga opened his eyes and rested his weight on his elbows, looking up at her with a constrict expression.
"Maybe that's not the reason why, Ukyo. Maybe he's afraid that you'd be too busy with your business to find someone…"
She blinked; well, she hadn't thought of that. And she had to admit that her father wasn't entirely wrong about that, either. After all, when was the last time she'd gone out on a date? Guys got tired of hearing her say: 'I can't, I have to work tonight'.
"Is that what you were talking about earlier?" She leaned over the edge of the bed, lying on her stomach.
The lost boy nodded, a slight blush spreading on his cheeks.
"He kept telling me how happy he was about me being with you…" He scrunched up his nose.
"I feel terrible about this, but he's given me no choice."
"I know," Ryoga said; "but he only wants you to be happy. I mean, I know it's not the right way, and he shouldn't force you to get engaged, that should be your decision; but still, I think it's the only way he could come up with to make amends, I guess…"
"Make amends for what?"
"Ranma."
Ryoga looked away, blushing even further.
"But, isn't he doing the exact same thing now? I mean, the only difference is that he's not choosing the groom."
He nodded, pressing his lips together, then shook his head and looked at her again with redder cheeks.
"I think you're doing the right thing, Ukyo."
"Really?" She brightened, feeling a bit relieved, since Ryoga had seemed to be against her idea from the beginning, only accepting to play his part to gain her help.
"Yeah…" He looked away again. "I mean, I still think it's wrong to deceive your father, but you're the only one who should decide what to do with your life, especially when you haven't had that choice before."
Ukyo bit her thumbnail and smiled.
"Thank you…"
Ryoga cleared his throat, nodded, and laid on his back again, so she rolled over and turned the lamp off. She was about to say good night when his voice drifted across the darkness.
"I g-guess t-that's what I wanted to say before… in the backyard."
She smiled again.
"Oh… well, I'm glad you understand… good night, Ryoga."
"Good night." He whispered, and she just laid there in the dark, listening to his breathing and feeling relaxed and contented for the first time in a long, long time…
Hello! I hope the long chapter compensates for the long absence! I had this chapter written, as well as a couple more, but I hadn't had time to revise and upload it until now.
I think it's totally cute how they are starting to relate to each other, don't you? Ryoga is finally loosening up around her and she's being nicer to him –without having to-. What do you think about Takeo? It wouldn't be one of my fics if Ukyo's dad didn't interrupt them at some point. Lol.
As always, thank you so much for reviewing, you know every word you write is utter encouragement to me! I hope you've enjoyed this chapter!
Hugs,
Anya.