Hi, I'm sorry it's been a while since I last updated. It's hard to write exactly the way I see things happening in my head, and it's even harder since english isn't my first language... But anyways, I hope you'll enjoy reading this new chapter called "Fighting temptation"

xD

Chapter 3

Ranma didn't move.

The lips didn't go away.

After a few enjoyable minutes, Akane slowly and reluctantly broke the kiss.

Ranma still had his eyes closed, and Akane wondered for a second if he really wasn't sleeping anymore. Though she had felt him respond to the kiss, somehow. And she could swear his chest was moving faster than before.

"Ranma ?" she whispered, leaning over him.

Ranma opened his eyes slowly. When he saw Akane's face a few inches from his own, he instinctively lifted his head up, almost brushing her lips with his nose.

"Akane are you... real ?" he asked in a shy whisper.

"Of course I'm real... baka" Akane answered with a nervous laugh.

The young boy was at a loss for words. So was she staying in Japan after all ? His heart started racing as the hopes were building themselves again within him.

"Have you changed your..."

Akane shook her head, slowly, but with a determined look on her face. Ranma felt all his hopes vanishing at once and his heart being ripped yet once again.

"Then what are you doing here..." he began angrily, already getting up.

"I want you" Akane spoke, firmly grabbing his wrist to hold him back.

Ranma froze in place.

Despite the cold breeze, Akane felt like her whole body had suddenly caught fire. Her head almost hurt from the throbbing in her temples. 'Too late to go back now...'warned an anxious voice in her head.

"Before I leave... I want to give something to you" she said, trying to sound bold but feeling so vulnerable.

Ranma wondered if he wasn't dreaming yet once again. There was no way in the world this was real. And even if it was, it had to be a joke.

"Oh." he said, and almost hit himself for having nothing better to say.

He slowly turned around to look at Akane's face, still suspicious and afraid she would laugh at him and yell something like 'Gotcha baka !!!'. But Akane looked... embarrassed.

Embarrassed, sincere and... cute.

The young girl was still wearing her white bathrobe, her now dry hair blowing gently in the breeze and reflecting the moonlight. 'An angel', Ranma thought. His eyes then met the hand that was tightly holding his wrist.

The young boy swallowed hard. He felt like his legs were gonna collapse under his weight any time now. Never had he felt so weak. 'Weakling' said an angry voice in his head and then 'say something!'.

Akane let go of his wrist, suddenly looking hurt and confused. "I... I'm sorry" she whispered.

Ranma suddenly felt like his tongue had been given back to him. "N-no ! Why ?"

The young girl shook her head. "You obviously don't feel that way about me..."

Before Ranma could respond, she added almost angrily "...and I know I'm no Shampoo, Ukyo or even Kodachi..."

"That's a sure thing!" Ranma exclaimed without thinking.

Akane's face got so red that it looked as if it was about to explode. "Well thank you !" she cried, jumping on her feet and starting to run away.

"W-what ? No wait ! That's not what I meant!" Ranma only just realized how his words had been interpreted.

The young girl stopped running, but didn't turn around. She didn't want him to see the few tears his words had caused to fall. "What did you mean then?" she asked, hoping for the best as well as dreading the worst.

"Akane you're b-better than them..." Ranma stuttered, feeling the thick shell around his heart crack open.

Akane froze in place.

"Shampoo pisses me off" he continued, "Ukyo's just a friend, and Kodachi... how the hell can you even compare yourself to that looney?!"

"I meant... physically" Akane heard herself say, suddenly feeling excessively self-conscious.

Ranma couldn't help but sneer - fortunately, Akane was still facing the opposite way and couldn't see him. So she was still worried about what he thought of her appearance, huh ? Maybe it was time to tell her what he really thought of her looks... Man, that was gonna be hard, but Ranma felt that it was worth it.

"You'rrrre... beautiful" he stammered, his face turning bright red almost instantly.

Akane turned around to face him, in a state of shock. Was he trying to make fun of her again? Or was he really... sincere ?

"You may not be as feminine as Shampoo, or even as sophisticated as Ukyo..." Ranma continued without looking at her (otherwise he would have seen her clenched fists and the red flare in her eyes) "you really are a tomboy actually... but that's what I like about you"

Akane's fists unclenched, and she couldn't hold back the smile that was already stretching her lips.

"I like your short hair, and I like how your eyes sparkle when we spar"

Ranma nervously scratched his forehead. He still couldn't look her in the eye just yet. He had to let it all out first.

"Wanna know what I thought when I first saw you ?"

"Tell me" Akane whispered, almost begging.

"I thought you were... cute"

The young boy slowly looked up, meeting his fiancée's gleaming dark eyes. She was smiling. And that reminded Ranma that...

"And I... love to see you smile"

Akane's smile broadened, and suddenly, her lips were on Ranma's, kissing him with all the passion and hunger she had been keeping inside during all these years. Ranma froze for a moment, but his body responded to the kiss before his mind realized what was going on.

His hands especially, were moving on their own, his fingers waving into Akane's wet hair, caressing her soft neck...

Akane wrapped her arms around Ranma's neck and stood up on her toes to better reach his mouth. His shoulders were tense beneath her wrists and the muscles in his neck were taut. Her arms dropped as she felt his hands sweep the thin fabric from her shoulders. Slowly, the bathrobe slid down her back and her legs, to envelope her feet. It was an unfamiliar feeling for her, being caressed by the gently moving air, especially on her breasts and the now freed hair at the junction of body and thigh. Ranma was suddenly overwhelmed by two distinct but equally intense feelings. First, his arousal level reached a point it never had before. Akane was naked, right in from of him, - for once she wasn't trying to hide it - and she didn't seem the least embarrassed by her nudity. Involuntarily, he glanced at her exposed breasts, and then it was too much for him. He wanted her, right here, right now. Fighting against his own instincts, he tore his gaze away from Akane and forced himself to calm down by taking deep breaths. He could have just taken her without caring to make sure that was really what she wanted, but he had enough respect and self-control not to give in to the temptation.

The other feeling wasn't a very pleasant one. He was scared. He could feel the adrenaline travel up and down his spine, his stomach was in knots, and he couldn't swallow or speak because of the big lump in his throat.