Disclaimer: Insert another one of my disclaimers here

Response time once again I suppose, sigh.

Just kidding! I love this shit!

Ss4-link: Hey, you're right, things will be going downhill. At least, if I can manage it, you see, I haven't actually planned much out ahead of time, but it's worked out pretty well for me so far, so I go with it.

Matrex: I don't think Ranma killing himself would fit in too well in this story. However, if I ever make a more angsty one, I will certainly consider it.

Fair Character analysis: That was quite a review you've left. Now, since you're most likely not even going to read this, I don't really feel like taking up time to argue ever specific point. Let's just say you're mostly right, but on some points you are wrong. See? Now that's how debate should go.

And now story time perhaps? Oh, I think so.

Walking a Thin Line

Chapter 8

Reflecting

"AND I NEVER WANT TO SEE YOU AGAIN!" Akane screamed at me.

"YEAH? WELL FUCK YOU. YOU'RE NOTHING BUT A TOMBOY, LOUD-MOUTHED, JELOUS BOSSY BITCH ANYWAY. You were lucky to even have me!" I yelled back.

"You call the worst thing that ever happened to me "lucky"? You're a bigger idiot that I thought!" she responded.

"I think that was pretty good, don't you?" I asked Akane.

She smiled back at me and answered "Yeah, it was quite the performance."

Me and Akane where in my room, rehearsing. That's right, rehearsing. Nabiki forced us into it. She said something about it needing to be absolutely perfect or it won't work. Considering the number of times Shampoo and Ukyo see and hear what they want to, I personally thought that we could sort half-ass this thing, but hey, Nabiki's the brains here. We were doing a pretty good job, actually. It wasn't too hard really, I mean, all Akane had to do was be angry, which is basically her standard emotion, and I just had to let out two years worth of rage. All in all, we made a damn convincing couple who despised each other. Didn't stop it from being boring as hell though.

"So, we done here?" I asked, still panting slightly.

"I think so." Akane responded.

"All right, well then, see ya!" I said.

"Wait!" Akane exclaimed, "Where are you going?"

"Uh…out…I guess…" Because really, I had no idea.

"Because if…" she started to say.

"If you even mention Shampoo or Ukyo I will go out and marry them TONIGHT Akane." I interrupted, I mean, she might not even have been asking about them, but it never hurts to get these things out in the open.

"I didn't…I wasn't going to…" she stammered.

Well, I could see this really wasn't going anywhere, and so I left. Via window. Into the pond.

Damn I gotta stop doing that.

And wouldn't you know it, there was Nabiki, watching me as I emerged from the middle of the pond. Perhaps she had been enjoying watching the koi, if so I sure screwed that up for her. But hey, koi suck anyway, am I right?

"So…we're done," was the first thing I told her.

"I gathered as much" she told me dryly.

And that was about all we had to say to each other. Damn, I was still bored. It's funny, now that I think about it. Here I was at the crossroads of my life. Time was limited, tensions were mounting, we were all on thin ice here. A false step anywhere, by any one of us, could permanently screw things up for all of us. But right then, I just felt bored.

And then it hit me.

"Be right back Nabiki" I said suddenly as I started to climb out of the pond.

"To do what now?" Nabiki asked me as I dashed into the house.

"Just hold on a sec!" I shouted back at her.

I changed back into a guy in the kitchen, and went to my room and put on a dry pair of clothes and went right back out.

"Let's go." I told Nabiki casually.

Nabiki looked at me coolly, "Go where exactly?"

"Out." I said simply.

"Out where?" she asked.

"Doesn't matter." I stated as I pulled her up and started walking.

"Ranma, you really want me to start walking with you down to god knows where for no reason at all?"

I thought about that for a moment.

"No, that would be stupid" I said.

"Exactly." Nabiki said, satisfied.

"We'll roof hop there." I calmly stated as I picked her up and proceeded on my way.

"Ranma…that's….not….what…I…meant…" she managed to get out in between jumps.

It was evening, and as I jumped aimlessly, one establishment in particular caught my eye.

"Oooh, lets go the amusement park." I told Nabiki.

Yeah, that's right, it was the shiny lights that got my attention. I'm not afraid to admit it.

"Fine…just…put me…down…" was her reply.

Good enough for me.

I landed on the fence surrounding the place, there were no lights there, and it was dark enough that we wouldn't be noticed. I then hopped to the ground and finally released Nabiki.

She wasn't too pleased at that point. "Well, now what?" she asked me.

"It's an amusement park Nabiki" I told her, grinning, "It's not too hard to figure out."

That didn't help pacify her ire in the slightest, go figure.

"Look Nabiki," I said, my tone now serious "how about we think of this as a date, then it works out, am I right?"

"Most people ask the other person's permission before taking them out." Nabiki replied, her tone slightly lighter.

"Yeah? Well I'm crazy like that." I blurted out.

Her expression hardened at that.

"Look…" I sighed. "I'm not a normal person, we know that, my life, well, it's quite frankly the epitome of chaos. I can't…I mean.. I don't plan things, whenever I do, it just tends to…tends to…" I took Nabiki's hand in mine again, though this time much less roughly. "Nabiki, I know it's not right of me to drag you out here with no warning." I pulled her against me, I could feel her heartbeat alongside my own. Our faces were inches from each other, so I only had to whisper, "But…Nabiki, I wanted to go somewhere, with…with you."

She sighed a little, and leaned her head against my chest. My heart skipped a beat at that. You might think I'm a pussy for being a romantic, but it's really that moment, out of all the ones I had experienced so far in my life, that'd I'd like to preserve forever.

But of course, this is Nabiki. I have a feeling she's a romantic deep down too, but she sure doesn't let it show often. As quickly as I had felt her weight pressed against me, it was gone. And she was her normal amused self.

"You know, you're right." She said. "We should go out and just have fun."

I know that maybe I just imagined it. That maybe it's just me seeing what I want to see, but after she said that, she turned around for a moment and smiled at me. And I think…I think that smile was a bit different from all the other ones I had seen on her face.

It was beautiful.

Author's Notes: Haha fuckers! You though I was gone, didn't you? Well…I actually was, and…well, I was pretty much planning to stay that way, but, uh, it's midnight and I'm bored and I feel like writing and I have no other ideas so, I wrote this garbage.

I mean beautiful piece of fan fiction.

No, no, I'm sticking with garbage.

Also, directly before reading this I read Things Fall Apart by what's his name… Achebe, yeah, that's the one. I also had to read a little mini-biography of him.

I must say, Achebe is a dick. It just had to be said.

Also:

Review kind sir/madam.