Chapter Three
Halcyon
It was incredible the positive effects intercourse had on the human body. Ranma was in a better mood than he had been in months. He had been sure he would certainly drop from exhaustion at some point. Working three jobs was a daunting task indeed, and even he had to admit to himself he pushed himself too hard. However, if months and months of hard work resulted in a concerned boyfriend 'making him feel better' with lots of rejuvenating (and freaking awesome) sex, then it was completely worth it.
Ranma zipped around the Azalea Cafe with a new spring in his step, feeling like he could spit fire if he felt so inclined. The past few months he had been giving his customers half-hearted smiles and slightly slower service. Now, he greeted each one with a smile that could split his face in two, even going as far as calling the more regular ones by name. He had caught sight of his boss Azalea a few times, smiling at him in approval. Ranma smelled another raise coming his way.
Ranma went over to his next table, grabbing his notepad and pen as he walked. Clicking the pen, he looked up and grinned at the two young girls at the table.
"Looks like Mizuki wasn't lying!" one of the girl's said excitedly before Ranma could say his usual greeting.
Ranma took a better look at the two ladies, then a light bulb went off and his eyes widened. He pointed at the girls with his pen. "Oh, you're Sayuri and Yuka, right? Akane's friends from Furinkan High."
The girl with the long, light brown hair, Yuka, nodded. "Wow, Ranma, I didn't think I'd ever see you working in a place like this." she said.
Ranma shrugged. "When I noticed it had just opened, I thought it'd be easy to snag a job here and it would be popular since it's a new place, y'know? Plus, I've had a little experience in the restaurant biz. So I figured I'd breeze by an interview easy enough. It's pretty busy most of the time, but I like fast-paced jobs, and you can't turn yer nose up at the pay." Ranma laughed slightly. "Anyways, what'll you two have?"
"I'll get a chai latte," said Sayuri, the girl with the dark brown hair tied back into a short ponytail with a red ribbon. "and some cheesecake."
"Cheesecake for me, too. Mizuki did say the sweets here were just as scrumptious as the...service." Yuka went a little pink and giggled.
Ranma cleared his throat awkwardly, feeling his ears burn, and tried to ignore the googly-eyed look Yuka was giving him. Where had this come from, anyway? As far as he knew, these girl's had been like Akane's devoted bodygaurds, always standing up for her and getting angry at Ranma whenever he teased Akane or put her down, which he had a knack to do quite often, so most of the time these girls were very cold around him.
"I'll get some chocolate milk with that, too, please." Yuka added, breaking Ranma out of his reverie. Ranma quickly scribbled down the order, nodding.
"Yeah, the cheesecake is pretty good here. It practically borders on gluttony." Ranma stowed his notepad and pen away in the pocket of his apron. "Back in a bit."
Ranma turned around to leave, when Yuka suddenly spoke up again.
"Ranma?"
Ranma turned around with a quizzical look on his face, his eyebrows raised. "Hm?"
"You look...lighter." Yuka said. Her eyes widened and she blushed suddenly and looked down at the floor. "I know that sounds silly, but that was the first word that popped into my head."
Ranma chuckled, and shrugged. "Maybe I lost some weight." he joked.
"I think what Sayuri is trying to say...very poorly, mind you," Sayuri began, giving Yuka a look that made the girl blush up to her ears. "is that you look happier. I mean, you were always known at Furinkan for your devil-may-care attitude, but besides that you always seemed like a pretty easy-going guy...but, there was a time at one point where you seemed...I guess...a little sad."
Ranma stared at Sayuri, fascinated that these two girls who had appeared to dislike him so much had caught so much about him. He even knew when Yuka was talking about when she said he looked sad.
It had been three years ago. He was seventeen. Seventeen and very, very confused.
Ranma had long since drowned out the voice of the teacher. Which was very easy to do because it was math class and they were doing calculus. It wasn't the lesson that had Ranma distracted, but the class certainly wasn't getting his mind off of things. As Mr. Taisetsu* droned on, Ranma stared out the window, his mind in a completely different place.
It was back in his room, last night, right after dinner. A very awkward dinner. Ranma hadn't spoken the entire time on account he couldn't breathe right. This was because of a certain boy sitting right beside him. A boy who'd just kissed him without any warning at all in the middle of their spar in the dojo.
Ranma had run out of the dojo as fast as his legs would carry him and into the house, up the stairs, and into his room. He had stayed there for what felt like ages, burying his face in his pillow as hundreds of thoughts swirled through his mind, torturing him endlessly. He vowed never to leave his room again simply out of utter humiliation. Then Kasumi called up to him that dinner was ready, and that they were having curry. Which he loved. Ranma practically flew down the stairs.
He stopped dead at the entryway to the dining room as his eyes met Ryoga's from where he sat beside Akane at the kotatsu, his steaming bowl of curry rice already set before him. Ranma stayed hanging by the entrance, feeling foolish, unsure whether to sit down or flee. Kasumi looked up and smiled at him.
"Come sit, Ranma. I've already made up your portion; it's there between Ryoga and Akane."
Ranma bit his lip, and awkwardly made his way to his seat. He lowered himself down between Akane and Ryoga. Their closeness inevitable, Ranma tried his best to bear it, grabbing his chopsticks and starting to eat, ignoring the boy beside him who was burning a hole in the side of his head with his stare. Ranma's humiliation at this point had transitioned, like it always did, into the next stage. This stage was anger, and as it consumed him Ranma picked up his bowl of curry and began shoveling his food in at a speed insane even for a Saotome.
Halfway through the bowl, he put it down and grabbed his cup of tea, chugging it down like he hadn't had a drink in days. He slammed his cup down and reached for the teapot. Just as Ryoga did. Their fingers brushed against one another, and Ranma felt a wave of electricity travel painfully through his fingers and up his arm, into his chest. He shuddered violently as if he had been shocked, and snatched the teapot and moved his hand away. The rest of dinner went like this, which didn't last long because Ranma was soon finished his bowl. He downed another cup of tea in record time, then stood, making everyone look up at him.
Ranma felt his cheeks burn. "Gochisousama deshita**," he muttered quickly. Then he hurried out of the room.
Ranma walked upstairs and down the hallway, his mind reeling. His small bout of anger had quickly passed into steam, and his body now felt heavy. All he felt like doing was sleeping. Hopefully he would wake up in the morning and all of this would have been just one big, crazy nightmare.
"Ranma,"
Ranma froze, his hand hovering just as it was about to open the shoji door to his bedroom. He turned his head to see Ryoga, standing a few paces from him. It must have been a miracle that he was able to follow Ranma out of the dining room without getting lost.
"I'm goin' to bed." Ranma muttered, looking away.
Ryoga lurched forward and grabbed his shoulder. "Ranma!" he exclaimed as quietly as he could. "Stop avoiding me."
Ranma jerked his arm out of Ryoga's grasp and turned on him. "What's with you, man? You've been actin' really weird for a while now...I mean, you don't even seem to get mad anymore when I call you P-chan...that used to make you so pissed you'd attack me. I don't think we've had a real, serious fight in forever. All we do is spar, and then you don't even take me seriously! You tripped me, and what do ya do? You catch me and take the fall for me like I'm some...some schoolgirl heroine from a manga or something! It's pissing me off!"
Ryoga just stared calmly at him. "You're right. I've been feeling like this for a while now." he said quietly. "In fact, I think it started back when we went to junior high together. Back then I repressed it, because I was confused, and frustrated. These past few months have been different, however. That old, buried feeling came back. To tell you the truth, I don't think it ever really left. It's been writhing around inside of me ever since I locked it away. I finally had to let it free."
Ranma frowned. "What are you tryin' to say?" he asked.
Ryoga stepped closer to him, causing Ranma to take a step back. He felt his back press up against the shoji door, Ryoga's breath on his face as he leaned in far too close.
"What I'm trying to say," Ryoga whispered. "is that I think I've fallen in love with you."
Ranma's eyes widened, and he felt his mouth drop in utter shock. Ryoga? In LOVE with HIM?
"Wha...b-but...I..." Ranma stammered helplessly, feeling his entire body warm excessively at Ryoga's proximity, and Ryoga made no intention of moving away any time soon. Ranma shook his head violently, becoming flustered.
"That's the stupidest thing I think I've ever heard you say!" Ranma nearly shouted. He clamped his mouth shut, worried the others would hear him. He continued in a quieter, but still frantic, tone. "How can you all of a sudden be in love with me when it seemed so obvious all this time you've hated me? You've had it out for me since we were in junior high, for cryin' out loud. You seemed hellbent on doing nothing but beating me in combat...then the next thing I know you're actually nice to me then you go and k-kiss me! How can love come from hate?"
"Ranma," Ryoga said, and Ranma cringed at the softness in his voice. "I've never hated you."
Ranma gawked at him. Then he scoffed loudly and looked away.
"Yeah right, P-chan!" he laughed nervously. "What about all those times you screamed 'prepare to die', or 'I'll send you to Hell'? Y'know, when you greet a guy that way, they kinda get to thinkin' ya might hate 'em, just a smidge." his voice started dripping with dark sarcasm.
Ryoga cringed, and looked down at the floor. "I was still frustrated with myself. That's the best way I managed to hide it. So the whole thing about getting vengeance on you for running out on our fight? That was just a masochist's excuse to follow an impossible pipe dream. As time went by, it got harder and harder to hide how I truly felt." Ryoga finally looked up at Ranma, his hazel eyes so soft they were like puddles of liquid. "Then I just had to admit to myself that I couldn't hide it anymore. If I kept acting the way I did with you, it would only continue to push you away. So I dropped that stupid vegeance thing, and instead started acting nicer to you. It's worked up to this point. You started smiling at me more, really smiling; not the cocky grin you'd give me after a spar. We started talking, just normal talking that wasn't just about martial arts. It was about life...long chats on the Tendos roof that would go on for hours at times."
Ranma remembered those nights.
"So, you acting all buddy-buddy with me...all those times on the roof...that was just your elaborate scheme to get into my pants, was it?" he snapped, his voice cracking with a pain of betrayal he tried very hard not to show.
Ranma suddenly felt like a sheet of glass. He felt cold, breakable, and see-through. Ryoga stared at him with such a sorrowful expression, with such sympathy that Ranma could hardly bear it. He looked away again.
"No. I would never think of doing that to you, Ranma. You're my best friend." Ryoga said softly. Ranma gasped, and looked up at his long-time rival.
He had always considered Ryoga his best friend, besides Ukyo and Akane. There was a difference, however, in having a best friend who was male. There weren't any walls between them, they could talk about anything. If they got into a fight, they just fought and would be done with it, without having to buy some cheesy thing to apologize. When they sparred, they could be friendly, do it for exercise. Or they could go for real, go as hard as they wanted, and they wouldn't need to worry about the other getting seriously hurt because their skill practically matched. Ryoga had an inch on him in height, his arms a bit thicker, so he was stronger. Ranma just nearly matched Ryoga's strength, but with his school's aerial-type style of fighting, and his slightly lankier frame, Ranma was faster. The two skills clashed perfectly when they fought.
The more he thought about it, the more enticing the idea became.
"I...I know that I am. You are to me, too, bud. It's just that...I..." Ranma couldn't find words, and he hated it.
"I know it probably scares you to think of changing what we have right now..." Ryoga began.
"I ain't scared of nothin'!" Ranma cried, out of instinct.
To his surprise, Ryoga simply chuckled at him. Ranma's eyes widened at the sound.
"I know you aren't." Ryoga told him. "Am I right, though? You don't want us to change?"
"No, of course I don't!" Ranma said loudly, getting angry again. "I don't know where the heck this sudden love for me came from, but...I'm tired of it! Do you think I like it when Kuno or...that Mikado Sanzenin guy paw at me and try to kiss me? No, because I hate it. It makes me hate my curse even more! They're all in love with this fantasy pigtailed girl who is actually a boy inside, hating himself. Mikado even...he even stole my first kiss." Ranma suddenly shuddered at the memory. "You were there, you remember. I was humiliated by that."
Ryoga remembered. Ranma, in his girl form, had been kissed by the pretty boy skater. Even then, as he watched from Akane's arms in the form of a pig, he had felt an overwhelming jealousy and anger towards Sanzenin. Then, he watched helplessly as Ranma, in a shocking display of public emotion, had run off the skating rink, crying like nobody's business. After a few minutes, a very pissed off male Ranma had taken her place, and beat the ever living shit out of Mikado. Ryoga was positive that his feelings for him had grown a bit more that day.
"You think that after that, and all those dumb perverts at Furinkan who asks for pictures of my girl-form, even when they know it's actually ME...and that idiot Kuno asking me out for dates all the time...you think after all of that, I'd even think about being with a guy?" Ranma told him.
"I'm not Kuno, or Mikado." Ryoga said sternly. "Or any of those boys at your school. They all just want you for your girl-form...not me. I love you as a person, male or female. I don't love girl-Ranma and I don't love boy-Ranma. I just love you. Has anyone ever told you that before?"
Ranma shook his head no, unable to form words. Ryoga grabbed his shoulders suddenly.
"I wouldn't be with you for my own benefit, or to gloat that I was the one who got you. Not like your fiancees would. Besides, it's not like you were ever engaged to me for some sort of promise, so you have no obligation with me. You aren't being forced to be with me because of a food cart, or a dojo, or an ancient law. You're with me because YOU want to be. You tell me, Ranma, doesn't that sound like something you want?"
Of course it did. It was only what he'd wanted his entire life. Before he was born he was tied to people, forced into marriage because of a deal. If he didn't comply, it would dirty the name of Saotome and his family honor. He had always longed to be able to make his own decision, no matter what it happened to be. It seemed like everything in his life was already planned out for him down to the last syllable, and he couldn't stand it. He just wanted to be free.
"Of course I want that," Ranma said, shutting his eyes tightly. "but not with you! Pops would be horrified if he saw his son do such an unmanly thing...of course I want to make my own decisions, but...I still want to please my family. I've worked my ass off my whole childhood to just get praise from them. They'll all hate me if I did something as crazy as be with you. All my hard work would go to waste. I'm not about to throw that all away. Besides, I don't even like you. I don't want you to love me. I don't want you to kiss me. I don't want to kiss you. I don't like kissing you!"
Ryoga's eyes solidified, and he grabbed Ranma's chin and made him raise him head. Ryoga leaned forward intently, his eyes narrowed.
"That's too bad," he murmered. "because I like kissing you."
Then Ryoga's lips trapped his own before Ranma could reply or run away. Ranma grunted, shutting his eyes tight as he pressed his palms to Ryoga's chest, trying to shove. Ryoga gripped his shoulders quickly and jerked him close, trapping him. Ranma pushed at his chest desperately, but when he managed to push him away a little Ryoga would simply pull him back into his chest again. Holding him tighter each time until Ranma could barely breathe in his arms and gave up, for he knew if he tried again Ryoga's impossible strength would knock the breath out of him.
It felt wonderful and Ranma hated it. He wanted to pull Ryoga even closer as he jerked in his arms, still trying in vain to get away. Still pushing half-heartedly on his chest, Ranma groaned against Ryoga's mouth, feeling his warm breath on his face. Ryoga sighed, pressing Ranma harder into the shoji door, gripping his hair in his fingers. Ranma's shaking fingers clumbsily felt around on the door behind him. He slid the door open roughly, making he and Ryoga tumble inside, their lips still interlocked. Ryoga swung his leg back and quickly slid the door shut with his foot. Ranma backed up, gripping Ryoga's shirt in his hands.
Ranma tripped on his own feet and they fell backward messily onto Ranma's futon, but Ranma felt no pain as he landed on his back with Ryoga on top of him. They grew even more frantic, breathing harshly, grunting, teeth snapping. Ranma moaned in his throat, running his hands up Ryoga's back, feeling all of the firm muscle through his shirt. Ryoga broke away with a gasp and attacked his neck, making Ranma make a small, high-pitched noise that made Ryoga lose his mind. Ranma bite his tounge to hold back moans as he writhed beneath Ryoga as the boy kissed and licked his neck, which he had never known was so sensitive. Ryoga suddenly bit him, and Ranma, unexpecting, cried out. Ryoga, discovering a sweet spot, continued the action, exploring the pigtailed boy's neck. Ranma's mind went fuzzy.
"St-stop...I can't think," Ranma whispered, frowning suddenly at his own words.
Ryoga broke away and looked at him, grinning. "That means I'm doing a good job." he joked. Ranma opened his mouth to retort, but Ryoga silenced him with another kiss.
This kiss was different than the first, which had been frantic and messy. This kiss was slow, and calm. It held a strange sweetness that made Ranma's heart throb. He slid his arms around Ryoga's neck, sighing gently against the kiss. When Ryoga finally broke away, Ranma was breathless, his eyes half-lidded, his face flushed. Ryoga smiled at him, brushing Ranma's bangs from his eyes.
He keeps doing that, Ranma thought, hekeeps smiling. He never used to smile, he always seemed so serious. I'm the one that makes him do this. I make him smile.
Ranma's eyes widened at this realization and he stared at Ryoga in shock. Ryoga chuckled, and leaned in. Suddenly his eyes widened and he grabbed Ranma's arms and pinned them on either side of Ranma's head, and quickly moved his body off of Ranma's, sitting on his knees beside him. Ranma was confused for a moment, then the door opened.
He quickly looked at the door, where Genma stood, watching them quizzically. He raised at an eyebrow at Ranma's position.
"What're you up to?" he asked.
"Wrestling," said Ryoga quickly. "and I finally managed to pin Ranma."
"Oh," Genma said. Then he shrugged. "All right, then, that's enough for today, boys. I'm going to bed. You staying the night?" Genma looked at Ryoga.
Ryoga shook his head, letting go of Ranma's wrists. "Nah, I think I'd rather not overstay my welcome. Tell Kasumi the curry was delicious, and thank you all for the hospitality. I'll be off now."
Ryoga stood up and went to the corner of his room to grab his travel pack. Then he went over to the window and opened it. Jumping up, he squatted on the windowsill, then looked over his shoulder back at Ranma, who sat up on his futon and stared at him. Ryoga smirked, and lept out the window and disappeared. Leaving Ranma all alone to his thoughts...
"Mr. Saotome?"
Ranma jumped noticeably in his seat, and looked up. He'd been so deep in thought he'd forgotten he was in class. He looked up at Mr. Taisetsu, his eyes wide. The middle-aged, balding teacher looked at him with a bored expression through his large glasses.
"Yes, Taisetsu-sensei?" Ranma blurted.
"Do you have the solution to the problem on page 270?" Taisetsu asked.
Ranma looked down at his notebook. The first two questions were written down (incorrectly) and then the rest of the page was blank except for stupid little doodles.
"Er...no, sensei." Ranma mumbled.
"I figured as much. If you have time to daydream in my class, Mr. Saotome, then you probably won't mind missing the rest of the lesson. Go stand in the hall."
Ranma cursed mentally, grumbling to himself as he sauntered over to grab the two buckets in the corner of the classroom. The teacher went back into his dull lesson as Ranma filled the two buckets (which he'd been filling with warm water lately in a sudden stroke of Saotome genius) and went out into the hall.
Leaving himself all alone with his thoughts in the quiet hallway.
"I guess I just had a lot of things on my mind back then," Ranma said, sounding far away.
"Well, you still look better." said Sayuri. "You're with Ryoga now, aren't you? It was going around back then that you two got together."
Ranma nodded, although Sayuri's bluntness made him a little nervous. "Goin' on nearly four years, now. My twentieth birthday is coming up in a few days."
"Oh, well, happy birthday." Sayuri said with a smile. "Say hi to Ryoga for us, too. We always thought you and Akane would end up together, even if you were an ass to her in high school..."
Ranma coughed.
"...but, I guess you don't roll that way. Who would of guessed? You think you know a guy..."
Ranma nearly choked.
"Anyways, I wish you two the best." Sayuri finished.
"Er, thanks a lot." Ranma mumbled. "Uh, I better go get your orders, then."
He hurried off before they could say anything else, and prayed his horrible blush would fade soon. Ranma thought about splashing his face but that would probably trigger the curse. Sighing, he made up the orders and went about his day.
Around five Ranma was finally done his shift. He walked slowly up to the front door of the Hibiki residence, grabbing the mail before he entered the house. Ranma slid out of his sneakers, sighing contently, grateful for any moment of freedom to kick off his shoes and relax.
"I'm home!" Ranma called out. "Got a bunch of mail!"
"I'm in the dining room," Ryoga called. "C'mere for a second, will you?"
Ranma walked over to the dining room, wondering what Ryoga needed from him. He flipped through the mail as he went, reading over the sender's names. They were all from Ryoga's parents, with different dates and assortments of stamps from across the country.
"SURPRISE!"
Ranma's head shot up from the letters in his hands and his eyes widened at the sight of Ryoga, Akane, Ukyo, Kasumi, Nabiki, Mr. Tendo, and his father and mother standing in the dining room, which was decorated in red balloons and streamers. There was a banner along the back wall that said 'Happy 20th Birthday, Ranma!' in bold red letters.
"Oh," Ranma said, then felt instantly foolish.
Ukyo laughed brightly and flew over to him, giving him a crushing hug. She pulled away and ruffled his hair. "Just remembered you're twenty today, didn't you?"
Ranma blinked. Today? His birthday was today? He'd been sure it was a couple of days from now. "Wh-what's the date today?"
"April 9th, Ranma." Akane said with a giggle, coming over to him. She squeezed him tightly and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Don't tell me you've been working so hard you haven't kept track of the days?"
"Well, uh..."
Akane laughed. "You dummy," she teased. "so I guess Ryoga was right when he told me you work too hard. Come on, sit down."
"Um, yeah, sure..."
Akane grabbed his hand and pulled him over to the kotatsu, which was covered in red paper plates and napkins. Each place even had their own red chopsticks. Ranma took in the room as everyone sat down, Ryoga taking his place beside him. Ranma looked over at Ryoga, who was smiling at him, and raised his eyebrows.
"Pretty red in here." he commented.
"It's your favourite colour, isn't it?" Nodoka asked him. "Ryoga said so. It was his idea to make the party a red theme. I think it was a lovely idea."
"It is my favourite colour." Ranma said, still looking at Ryoga. "Thanks. The place looks great."
"You're welcome. Now take that damned apron off, will you?" Ryoga sighed in exasperation, and reached over to untie the knot in the back. Ranma stammered incoherently, and tried not to look at his father, whom he could feel staring at them.
"There," Ryoga said triumphantly, holding up the apron. He tossed it away and grinned. "Let's eat, shall we? Kasumi prepared a whole bunch of food, all of your favourites, of course."
"Oh yes, let's begin. I'll start bring out the food. Father, Mr. Saotome, would you be so kind as to give me a hand...we should let everyone plan their outing for this evening." Kasumi said, glancing at Ranma. Kasumi could be hard to read, but Ranma understood why she was pulling the fathers away, and he gave her a small smile in understanding. Even if it was only for a moment, it was good to have Genma out of the room for a while. She smiled back, and she and the two men walked into the kitchen. Nodoka excused herself, saying she would help as well.
"So, what's up with the elaborate surprise party, huh?" Ranma asked suddenly, turning to the rest of the group. "I thought we were just celebrating by going to that club."
"We are going to the club, but a few days after you guys left from Akane's welcoming party Ryoga called us up and said we should throw you a surprise party. If we had told you, it certainly wouldn't be a surprise, now would it?" Nabiki said sarcastically.
"Well, you really didn't need to go to all the trouble." said Ranma. "The club thing was a party enough."
"That's just an excuse to party without the geezers," Ukyo said, waving her hand dismissively. "This is the pre-party with all the family members, and cake, and presents. We would have opened presents at Cornucopia, but it'd be way too loud in there to enjoy it, and then you'd have to lug the presents around all night and take them home."
"True, but..." Ranma began.
"Ranma, just shut up and enjoy your birthday party, okay? You don't turn twenty everyday, so we're going to celebrate." Akane scolded him.
"This is your Coming-of-Age day, Ranma. We're supposed to make a big deal out of it." Ryoga explained.
Ranma sighed. "I guess you're right. Sorry." Ranma said.
"No need for apologies, sugar. Just loosen up and enjoy yourself, all right?" Ukyo told him, smiling.
Just then, Kasumi walked back into the room followed by Soun, Genma, and Nodoka, all carrying plates of food. Ryoga had been right, it was all of Ranma's favourites. The table was quickly set and everyone got their portions and dug in.
"Ranma, we never had a chance to talk the last time you were over." Soun said suddenly. "How have things been going? I heard this past year you picked up another job. You still work at the community centre, don't you?"
Ranma nodded, chewing. "Yup. I started a job as a waiter at the Azalea Cafe." Ranma told him.
"Oh, and what is that like?" Soun asked.
"Pretty fun. Real fast, and busy, but that's what I like about it. I've got a really nice boss, too." Ranma explained. "I still do classes at the community centre, too. Obviously at the dojo, too."
"That sounds awfully busy." Nodoka commented. "However are you managing, dear?"
Ranma shrugged. "I'm used to it."
"Oh, yeah, he's totally used to it. It's perfectly normal for him nowadays to come home late at night completely exhausted and pass out the second his head hits the pillow." Ryoga put in, rolling his eyes.
"I think it's perfect that a boy his age is working so hard. That kind of thing toughens you up." Genma muttered.
"You think so, Pop?" Ranma said, looking up. Ryoga frowned at him, thinking Ranma looked far too pleased.
"Of course, boy. Young men like you are at the prime of their lives. They should be out in the working world making a living, putting food on the table, keeping their families afloat like a real man should." Genma explained.
"Absolutely." Ranma said quickly, nodding along.
Ryoga caught sight of Ukyo looking at him, and turned to see her staring at him with a bewildered expression. Ryoga gave a small shrug only she could see, and shook his head.
"So, do you have a job, Ryoga?"
Ryoga looked away from Ukyo to look at Ranma's father, who was giving him a stern look. Ryoga cleared his throat.
"Er, I haven't got one, sir." he muttered.
Genma raised his brows. "No job?" he asked, stunned.
"He can't get a job because of his family curse." Ranma explained in Ryoga's defence. "He'd get lost, remember?"
"Ah, of course, of course..." Genma said quietly, sipping his tea. "So, if you can't get a job, what do you do?"
"Uh..."
"He does the housework." Ranma lied quickly. Ryoga knew this wasn't true; Ranma did all the housework and rarely ever left something for Ryoga to do while he was at work, aside from a load of dishes or laundry from time to time. Ranma always told him doing housework required a lot of roaming around the house, and he didn't want to risk Ryoga wandering too far and ending up getting lost.
"So I guess he's like the housewife in this circumstance." said Genma bluntly.
"Dear..." Nodoka began in chastising tone.
"Well, I wouldn't say that exactly..." Ranma began.
"So," Ukyo piped up loudly. "Kasumi, you totally gotta tell me what you put in this, because it's delicious."
"Thank you, Ukyo. Well, if you really want to know, this recipe actually came from my mother's old cookbook. First, I..."
Ryoga looked at Ukyo, who glanced at him quick enough to wink, then looked back at Kasumi. Ryoga bent his head to shovel in a bite, hiding a thankful smile. Ukyo had saved them all from another Genma Lecture. How dare he try and pick another fight with Ranma on his birthday? Had he no shame? Did he not see how hard his only son tried to get his approval? Ranma worked his ass off, and Genma still wouldn't even look him straight in the eye when they spoke to one another. Ranma was genuinely trying to make ammends with his father, but Genma just kept pushing him further away. Which only made Ranma work harder. Ryoga frowned to himself, clenching his hand, hiding under the table, into a fist.
He felt Ranma's hand cover his own, and he looked over at him. Ranma's steel-blue eyes were concerned, his brow furrowed just so. He squeezed Ryoga's hand, and gave him a tiny smile only for him and raised one eyebrow slightly.
Are you okay? the expression asked.
Ryoga smiled back. He snuck his other hand under the table and placed it over Ranma's, which still clutched his firmly. He rubbed his thumb gently over the smooth skin on the back of Ranma's hand, and gave him a short nod.
Yeah, don't worry. he replied.
The rest of the dinner went by smoothly, then Nodoka gathered up the plates, Akane and Kasumi helping her. When they came back, Akane hurried out first and went over to the dimmer switch, lowering the lights. Nodoka walked in holding a cake with short candles and sparklers that illuminated her face as she slowly walked into the dining room. At the sight of the cake, everyone broke into song, which had never been performed for Ranma before. Instantly embarrassed, he gave a short laugh and didn't meet anyone's gaze as Kasumi set the cake in front of him. The song ended and everyone clapped and laughed.
The room paused for a moment, and the sparklers slowly died out. Ryoga nudged Ranma's arm. Ranma looked at him curiously.
"You're supposed to blow out the candles." he told him.
He heard Ukyo hold back a snort.
"I know," Ranma said, rolling his eyes. "did ya think I lived in a cave? I was just admiring Kasumi's workmanship, that's all. You did make this, right, Kasumi?"
Kasumi nodded. "Yes, with help from Akane." Kasumi said proudly.
Ranma's eyes bulged in horror. "Akane helped you?" he exclaimed, jabbing a finger at Akane for emphasis.
Akane huffed. "Oh, shut up, Ranma! Of course I helped!" she snapped. She blushed from a mix of anger and embarrassment. "M-my roommate has been helping me with cooking. I've gotten better. All I did was ice the cake and put the candles on, though, so you can relax."
"Oh," Ranma said. He took a better look at the cake. It was covered in white icing except for the top, which was rimmed in red. It was a little sloppy, but definetly a huge improvement from all of Akane's other cooking disasters. He hadn't even noticed at first that it was a little crooked, in fact it looked like Kasumi's work. The candles were made to look like the Japanese character for the number twenty, Ranma noticed. Definetly an Akane-esque touch. He smiled.
"It looks awesome, Akane. You've really improved." he said genuinely.
Akane beamed, and started nervously twirling her hair. "Y-you really think so? I mean, it's not like I cooked the thing. I just decorated it." she mumbled quickly.
"Well, your problem was when you cooked, you rushed things. By the looks of this cake, it looks like ya put a lot of time into it. If you can do that, then that means you can do that when ya cook, too." Ranma told her.
Akane looked like she'd just won a million dollars. "Th-thank you, Ranma." she blushed again, then waved her hand at him. "The wax is dripping. Blow out the candles already, and don't forget to make a wish."
Ranma obeyed, blowing out the flames with a gust of air, and everyone clapped.
"Okay, now for presents! Ukyo, can you cut up the cake while Akane and I go grab the gifts?" Kasumi said, and she and Akane stood and went out to get the presents. Ukyo cut the cake, giving the biggest of the slices to Ranma. Ranma tried a bite, and couldn't stop the pleased 'mmmm' from leaving his lips. The cake was totally delicious.
"Open mine first, Ranma!" Akane giggled, running over to him with her present. She sat down beside him opposite Ryoga and shoved the present into his hands. His comment on the cake had put her into an incredibly good mood, it seemed.
"Sure thing, 'Kane." Ranma smiled. He unwrapped the slim box, wrapped in (big surprise) red shiny paper, to reveal a white, thin box. He picked away all the tape (Akane had put way too much on) and opened the lid. He pulled out a blue and grey plaid shirt with a plain black T-shirt.
"I thought the shirt would go nice with your eyes, no?" Akane said, looking a little embarrassed. "Look, there's more." She grabbed two small black things out of the bottom of the box.
"Wristbands?" Ranma questioned.
"It's been ages since you've worn them. You always liked them." Akane smiled, and handed them to him.
"They're great. It's all great. Thanks, Akane." Ranma said with a grin.
Akane leaned in and gave him a hug. "Anytime. Happy birthday."
Next was Nabiki, who got him a bunch of horror movies, and Ranma looked through the titles with enthusiasm.
"Carved, Naked Blood, Ichi the Killer***...oh man, I've been wanting to watch all of these for ages." Ranma said with a grin. "Thanks, Nabs."
Kasumi and Nodoka got him a plain green notebook, which was almost filled with both of their own recipes and all written in Kasumi's neat handwriting. Soun and Genma got him several books, which Ranma was surprised about until he read the covers: Pressure Points and How to Use Them, One Thousand of the Most Deadly Attacks in Martial Arts, The Greatest Martial Artists of the Feudal Era...the titles went on like this. Ranma looked up at his father and Mr. Tendo.
"Study up, son. Can't have you getting rusty." Soun told him, nodding.
Ukyo handed him a simple card, which took nearly three minutes for Ranma to read because she had covered the whole inside of it with gush about their childhood, their friendship, memories, and thousands of other things that had him laughing. Attached inside was a slip of paper that simply read 'Valid for One Pizza'.
"A free okonomiyaki?" Ranma asked with a grin.
"Heavens, no. Okonomiyaki creation is a fine art, each one perfectly crafted out of love...I can't just give them away! That coupon is for a regular pizza whenever you want one, and it'll be on me." Ukyo explained.
"Oh, awesome. Free pizza. Thanks, Uuchan."
Last was Ryoga's gift. He pulled a small, plain box out of his pocket and placed it in front of Ranma. Ranma gave Ryoga a curious look then pulled off the lid and pulled out a necklace. Actually, it was a dog tag that was attached to a thin peice of red string that was braided like hair. On the dog tag, Ranma recognized the kanji for 'forever'. He went a little pink, and prayed it didn't show.
"You like it? I found the tag in a shop somewhere in...I think it was Sapporo. Then I weaved the string myself, and later dyed it red. Kinda funny how it fits the party theme, though that wasn't my intention at first, of course."
"What was your first intention?" Ukyo asked.
"It's supposed to be the Red String of Fate." Ryoga explained.
"My, how romantic." Kasumi said dreamily.
Ranma felt his face go as red as the string. He made the bad mistake of looking at his father, who looked like he was trying to spontaneously get lazor-vision and blast Ryoga. Ranma frowned slighly at the look of anger his father gave Ryoga, and put on the dog tag, stroking the soft string for a moment. Placing his hand on Ryoga's knee from under the table to get his attention, Ranma cast a quick glance at his father to make sure his attention was on them.
"I love it, Ryo. Thanks." Ranma said with a sweet smile.
Ryoga's look of adoration would certainly make Genma's blood boil. "You're welcome. Happy birthday, Ranma."
Ranma laughed lightly, then, in a display of extreme bravery and spite, leaned in and kissed Ryoga on the lips. Right in front of his father. There were small gasps of surprise and delight from the girls, and Kasumi whispered a small "Oh, my". Ukyo bit down on her knuckles to hold back a squeal and gripped Akane's shoulder. Akane, though her eyes were a little longing, gave Ranma a proud smile. Genma had this coming for a long time.
Ranma pulled away, and smiled nervously at Ryoga. Ryoga was looking at him with such pride and love Ranma had to look away. Ranma met his mother's soft brown eyes, and she gave him a sweet smile. Ryoga glanced at Genma, who had started sweating rather heavily and was a little purple in the face. Soun looked a little uncomfortable, but gave Ryoga a weird, lopsided smile.
"Well then, I suppose we should be off, eh, Saotome?" Soun piped up. "Let the young ones have their party."
"Yes, Tendo. We should go." Genma said tersely, getting to his feet. With a small hesistation, as if he'd almost forgotten, he looked down at Ranma.
That's right, you bastard. Look your son in the eye. Ryoga shouted mentally.
"Happy birthday, Ranma." he muttered.
"Thanks, Pops." Ranma said.
Genma nodded and headed to the front door while Soun stayed back to remind his daughters to be safe and not stay out late, and a million other things Ranma didn't catch because they came out too fast.
"Don't worry, father, we'll be just fine." Kasumi assured him.
"Gee, daddy, don't you have a shred of faith in us?" Nabiki rolled her eyes.
"You're embarrassing me, dad." Akane groaned.
Ryoga watched the scene, amused, and then Nodoka rose to her feet. She had stopped carrying around her sword quite a while ago, saying she 'could hardly use the silly thing' in first place. Ranma got up quickly as his mother rose, and she came around the table and hugged him. She buried his face in his shoulder blade, and rubbed his back.
"You've gotten so big." she said against his shirt.
Ranma laughed. "Really? According to Ryoga I haven't grown an inch since junior high." he joked. "Thanks for coming today, Mom."
"Of course I came," Nodoka said with her tinkling laugh. She gave him a tight squeeze, then pulled away and kissed both of his cheeks. "Happy birthday, sweetheart."
"Thanks, Mom."
"Have a good time at the party."
"I will." he said.
She smiled and let go, and followed Soun out of the room. Everyone waved goodbye and waited for the front door to shut. Then Ukyo turned around to Ranma and grinned wildly.
"So," she said. "ready for the best birthday of your life?"
Author's Notes:
Happy birthday to Ranma! :D Next up is the party at club Cornucopia. Shit is about to get real.
Stay tuned for Chapter Four of Emotion!
- Jadells
* Mr. Taisetsu's name is a hidden joke. The word 'taisetsu' translates to 'important', which is funny since Ranma doesn't find calculus 'important' at all. (HAHAHAHA...funny, right?)
** Gochisousama deshita: Japanese table manners. This is said after a meal, in respect to the person who cooked and served the food. So in this case, Ranma is simply just being polite to Kasumi before he high-tails it outta there.
*** These are all titles of various Japanese horror films (Google is your friend!). In canon, Ranma seemed pretty indifferent to all things 'horror' related (ghosts, vampires, monsters, etc). So I figured he would be a fanatic for horror films.
ALSO: In case you were wondering about the chapter title, the definition for halcyon is 'happy, carefree, and peaceful'. The mood of this chapter in a nutshell.
(the chapter titles always relate to the most reoccurring mood in the chapter)