They sat silently for a few moments. Ranma actually wanted to give her some time to compose her feelings; he wanted her to be ready to talk to him. But her silence was also torturing him. He looked at his hand which she still held loosely, she looked so depressed, her eyes glued to their interlocked hands. He took a sharp breath and said,
"Kane.. I.."
"I am sorry, Ranma!" Akane said with a shaky whispered tone. "I am so stupid! I shouldn't have agreed to this plan to go to that party!"
"Huh?! But why? It was really thrilling if you ask me!" Ranma said with a smug tone, wanting to make things more casual to her.
"What!.." Akane looked at him, surprised.
Ranma smirked at her surprised face as he said jokingly, "And boy, I really really enjoyed it there.! That was the first time I danced like this! You know you should start dancing professionally, Kane! You are very good at it!"
Akane shook her head in disbelief! Here she was feeling guilty about everything that happened and he was saying the complete opposite of it! She turned her face away from him and stopped talking with him. Ranma pulled her hand again as he called to her,
"Kane, please look at me."
Akane shook her head, ignoring looking at him completely. Ranma grumbled and said,
"Hey, won't you talk to me?"
She shook her head again, not saying a word to him. Ranma sighed smiling fondly as he asked her again,
"Are you angry at me?"
She ignored him, but held his hand strongly.
"Kane.. Listen I.."
He couldn't finish his sentence as at that exact moment, Akane's tummy made a growling sound, making her embarrassed and Ranma shocked. Akane instantly hugged her belly tightly, moaning in embarrassment. Ranma cleared his voice as he tried to suppress his laughter, then he asked her in a funny manner,
"It's okay, Kane! I am sure you are hungry! Do you want me to bring anything for you? Maybe some…. Orange juice?"
Akane hastily looked up at him, his silly laughter making her growl in annoyence. Her instant kicked in as she went closer to him and started beating him on his chest,
"You BAKA!! BAKA!! BAKA!!!" And she kept hitting him softly.
Ranma laughed softly and let her do as she liked. In honesty he didn't even feel any pain by her hits. Then when she heard her little sobbing sound, he gave a long sigh and grabbed both her hands and said softly,
"Hey! I am sorry. I was just teasing you.."
Akane half-heartedly tried to pull her hands from his firm grip, she shook her head as she said with a shaky whispered tone,
"No! You are so cruel! I hate you!"
"No you don't!"
Akane felt a sudden deja vu; she stopped resisting and looked up at him with wondrous eyes. Ranma must have felt the same as he also looked back at Akane with a compassionate look. Sighing deeply, she slowly laid her hand on Ranma's cheek, as she traced his forehead injury with her slender finger. She bit her lower lip hard, her eyes filled with tears again as she observed him closely. Ranma took a deep breath, he laid his hand on her cheeks and wiped her tears clean. Akane gave him a serious look as she asked him with trembling tone,
"Ranma, please, don't hide from me. I know you are hurting. You're not fine! Please tell me the truth.."
Ranma smiled at her and whispered softly, "You really want to know the truth?"
Akane hastily nodded her head as she said while gulping down her emotions,
"Please Ranma. I want to help you.."
Ranma smiled and whispered softly, "Honestly, I was not fine before; but now I am fine, Akane. I was more scared then in pain. I was afraid that your family wouldn't let us be friends anymore; and honestly, that thought scared me a lot! And…….. I uhhh… I kind of thought that, ….. that…. you might be angry at me for.. Uhhhh… for.."
"For what, Ranma?" Akane asked with a whispered tone, stopping him in the middle of his sentence, intensely looking at him she continued saying, " For taking care of me? For tolerating my madness? For respecting me enough to not respond to my touches? For what should I be angry at you, Ranma? You tell me.."
Ranma took a long breath as he traced her face with his eyes. She looked so vulnerable at that moment and so tired, sitting in front of him. He smiled at her and said,
"You look so weak, Kane! Why'd you starve like this? You shouldn't have done that.."
Akane looked down and said with a shaky tone, "I know that Ranma. I am sorry….. But, I didn't even feel like I was hungry. Akio was angry at me, Kasumi was upset and….. I couldn't get any news about you! I was so scared about everything that was happening!"
"It's okay! I understand!" Ranma laid his hand over her hand, which was tracing his wound softly and said, " We are fine now. Don't worry about anything!"
Akane sighed and nodded her head. Then suddenly her face became red and she looked down in embarrassment as she said in a shaky whispered tone,
"Ranma …. I am sorry.. for ….you know; for….." She looked away and said in a fast whispered tone, "For kissing you without your permission…!!"
"Huh?" Ranma's heartbeat stopped. He was not expecting her to raise this issue this early; but now that she had raised it already, he had nothing to say to her. His silence might have made her more nervous. She started playing with her hands, looking down as she said again,
"I shouldn't have… Oh Kami, this is so embarrassing!" She laid her hand on her forehead, then taking a deep breath she said, "I was such a baka. I shouldn't have kissed you without your permission! So please.." She looked at him again and said, "Please forgive me. You must have felt so horrible that.."
"Horrible!? Are you crazy!! Do you have any idea how hard it was for me to.."
"Okay, stop!!" Akane was glowing red, she looked away again and said with an agitated tone, "That's what I am saying, dummy! I am sorry that you had to go through that experience!! Now forgive me please!" She said somewhat forcefully.
Ranma bit his lower lip to control laughing at her face; he didn't want to make her feel more uncomfortable as she was feeling now! He wanted to make her comfortable around him again. But the way she said those last words made him want to prolong the situation to tease her. He cleared his voice and said in a serious tone,
"You are right! You shouldnt have done that without my permission! Kiss is a big thing, you know?"
Akane seemed surprised at first; she slowly turned to face him, a cute pout adoring her face; then she said with a soft whinny tone,
"I am so sorry, Ranma!"
Ranma wanted to end his teasing game then and there; but he needed some answer from her. Although, it's risky to ask her so bluntly about this personal information about her; but this is something which had disturbed his sleep since the day she had kissed him. That's why, despite knowing the risk , he pushed his curiosity out in the open. He gave her a serious look and said while narrowing his eyes at her,
"Sorry can't fix everything, Kane!"
Akane moaned and asked somewhat impatiently, "Then what do you want me to do?"
Ranma pretended to think for some moment, then he said to her,
"I will accept your apology; in only one condition.. You have to answer me something.."
Akane was ready to present her beautiful smile to him, but his last sentence made her more curious; as she asked him in a confused tone,
"What answer?"
Ranma showed her his pinky finger and said, "First promise me you won't lie to me."
Akane moaned again and huffed; she crossed her pinky finger with his and said, "I promise I will be honest with you, Ranma. Now ask me!"
Ranma narrowed his eyes and asked her in a whisper tone, "It was not your first kiss, was it?"
Akane wasn't expecting that question at all. Her mouth went open as she looked at him with utmost disbelief. After a moment of shock; she cleared her voice and tried to pull her finger from him. But he kept on holding her pinky finger and pulled her slightly towards him. Akane blushed madly and said,
"This is stupid! Of Course that was my first kiss!"
Ranma still didn't look convinced at all. He gave her a suspicious look as he shook his head. Akane growled and said,
"Believe me or not, Ranma; I haven't kk… I mean it was my first time! And if you want to count kisses on cheeks and foreheads, then there are many!"
Ranma still looked doubtful and more surprised than before. That made her self conscious as she asked him hesitatingly,
"But why are you asking me this suddenly? Was I… was it that … bad?"
That statement of hers made him react quickly as he said in a haste, "No way! That was awesome! That's why I asked you if you had an experience before! But… but if you don't have any experiences before… then how come you are so good at it?" He asked fearlessly, throwing his shyness out of the window.
Akane didn't had any idea how to respond to Ranma. Should she feel shy, or angry or to be proud of herself. For some unknown reason , instead of being shy and hesitant, her pride puffed up. She gave him a prideful stare and said,
"Well, ofcourse it was my first time , Ranma! Don't forget who you are talking with! I am a Tendo girl; I meant to be the best at my every first time!"
Ranma absentmindedly asked her, "Every first time?! Does that means…"
Akane hastily stopped him by putting her hand infront of his face, "DON'T YOU DARE GO THERE!!!!" Akane lashed out feeling ashamed and agitated; realizing her mistake and the double meaning of her words very late.
Ranma gulped and looked at her, his face flushing red. He was thankful for her lashing out, or else his wild imaginations were taking him to a heated dreamland. He shook his head and cleared his voice and said, "Well, uhh, alright then.. Umm; so.. Shall we go join the others then?" Ranma tried to say with his nervous tone.
Akane took a deep calming breath and looked at him, pouting angrily at him. Then she said with a hissing tone, "Not so fast; Ranma! You got your answer; now it's my turn!"
"Huh?! But Kane.."
"Was that your first kiss as well? Tell me honestly!" Akane asked while crossing her arms over her chest.
Ranma's heartbeat stopped for a moment. He gulped hard and fearfully looked at her. He shook his head and said in a low hesitant tone,
"Do I really need to answet that?"
Akame growled and said, "Only truth!!"
Ranma moaned and said in a low hesitant tone, "Uhhh.. No.. maybe…"
For some unknown reason, Akane's heart dropped. She felt like she had been betrayed! A low growl came out of her mouth as she asked him,
"What do you mean by maybe..!"
Ranma got more nervous looking at her angry face. He gulped hard and said while sighing defeatedly,
"I…I … Uhh.. It was not my first kiss!"
Akane was angry; more at her than Ranma. She knows she should not react the way she was doing now; but it's as if her own self was not listening to her anymore. She looked away from him and said with her greated teeth,
"Pervert, Baka!"
Ranma was amused by her change of attitude. But who was he to note that? When he first thought Akane might have kissed someone else before, it made his body burn with rage and jealousy. He felt like, he was the one who could only get this experience with her; not anyone else! That's why when she told him he was her first; that made him the most happiest man on the earth; until she came up with her own inquiry. Does this mean, she was feeling just like he did? Is she…. He smiled at the thought and asked her in a sly tone,
"Kane.. are you..by any chance… Jealous?!!"
"WHAT!! NO WAY!!" That statement made her react immediately! She hastily turned to look at him; she went closer to his face to defend herself by saying, "Jealous!! For a perverted guy like you who had kissed multiple women before!!"
"Multiple women! No; No! You are misunderstanding!" He tried to defend.
"WHATEVER, you kissed before and that's what matters!"
"But they never made me feel me the way you made me feel..!!" Ranma said casually, forgetting about being shy anymore.
Akane couldn't say anything after that. She dropped her angry act and tried to act nonchalantly. But she couldn't help the smile that suddenly came to the corner of her lips. She again started to feel confused about how to feel about this! Should she feel proud of herself or be angry at him for comparing her kiss to another woman! Her heart started fluttering like a butterfly as she heard him chuckling seeing her dumbfounded expression. She growled at him while smiling and playfully slapped his face and said,
"You are an absolute Baka!"
"Ouch!" But her soft slap made him realize the pain he was actually in as her hand accidentally touched the side of his injured forehead. Akane got worried and carefully pulled his face down to look at him.
"I am sorry, I am sorry!! This is so stupid of me! I forgot to finish doing your dressing!"
"It's okay! I am fine, Kane! Don't worry.."
She didn't listen to him, she sat over his bed by kneeling her both legs on his bed, facing him, to look at his injury much better. She made him look up slightly and carefully started to do his dressing. Her touch was so gentle, so unlike Ukyo. She was carefully applying the medicine on his forehead and sometimes blew over it to make the pain go away. Soft blows from her mouth made him close his eyes, he gave a long sigh as a soft growl escaped his mouth without his knowing.
"Oh Kami, did I hurt you again.?" Akane asked with a concern-filled tone; softening her movements even more.
Ranma looked up at her and said with a soft smile,
"Nah! It was actually relaxing for a change.."
Akane slyly smiled down at him and shook her head and said, "Dummy…now stop distracting me and let me finish my job." and she again started doing her work. She finished bandaging his forehead. She laid her hands on his cheeks and moved his face from side to side to check for any more injuries; after looking for some moment she found one and started putting medicine over it as she asked him,
"How did you manage to get injured here! Anyways, I am not putting that much medicine over here, Ranma. Or else you might eat the medicine while you are eating …"
Ranma looked down, his tongue got sealed as he couldn't tell her what type of injuries she was tending to now. But after some moments her movement slowed down, her breathing became slow, her hands shaky. Ranma assumed that she might have got the clue and her next whispered words confirmed his suspicion,
"Kami!! I am such a dumb baka!"
She dropped her hands on the side and got down from his bed; then said with a soft tone,
"It's all done, Ranma! Umm, do you need anything else?"
Ranma sighed and said, "Uhh, yeah.."
Akane blinked her eyes in confusion and curiously looked at him and asked, "What is it, Ranma?"
Ranma stood up in front of her. He was hesitant at first, but he knew he wanted to ask her or else, his nervous heart would not let him rest. He took a deep breath and let out hurriedly,
"Look, I don't want us to act hesitant with each other! With you by my side, I feel free all the time. But now, after all those things happened between us, if we suddenly start to act awkwardly with each other then…" Ranma gave a long sigh and said defeatedly, "I don't know what I am saying right now, Kane; it's just... I ... I hope this incident won't affect the friendship that we both have.. Maybe.. I am a little scared that you would change towards me after what happened.."
Akane can relate to what Ranma was trying to tell her. Because she felt the same for him. She was scared that maybe after what happened, it will affect their friendship. But she also doesn't want it to happen. But if both of them act awkwardly with each other now, that might become the cause of their distance, which she doesn't want to happen. She was amused at how hard he was trying to make things right between them; but it also felt unfair that he was the only one who was making an effort. She knows she need to do something quick to let him know that, she also values their friendship as much as he does.
She warmly smiled at him and without any word; she closed the distance between them and gave him a friendly hug. Ranma became shocked at first, he looked down at her head and whispered softly,
" Kane…?"
Akane tightened her hold on his back as she said,
"I can never feel awkward with you, Ranma… I am just glad that everything is fine between us now.. I am so glad, really really glad.."
Ranma realised a big breath as he hastily nodded his head. He couldn't hold himself back anymore as he wrapped his arms around her back and hugged her, not-so-friendly-like. Akane didn't mind though, she gave a satisfied sigh and closed her eyes to savor the feeling their hug was giving her.
"RANCHANN!! AKANE!!! Are you guys done YET!!! We Are hungryy!!!"
Hearing as Ukyo call out to them, Ranma growled in annoyance, making Akane giggle silly as she said,
"Let's go, Ranma. I am actually feeling hungry right now!" She gave a last tight squeeze to him and tried to pull out from his arms; but to her surprise, he didn't let her go immediately. She blinked her eyes in confusion as she asked him in a soft whispered tone,
"Ranma?! Hey, you okay?"
Ranma's feeling was a mess at that moment. He didn't know how much he needed this hug from her until she hugged him. He was actually very tense about the situation and very scared too! As she hugged him , he realized how badly he needed her consolation. He didn't know what he would have done if she would have stopped talking with him or his family would have stopped them from meeting. All these negative thoughts blinded his mind fully. He tightened his hold on her when she tried to move from the hug; but when he heard her concern-filled tone; he gave a long sigh and muttered onto her ear,
"I am sorry; but ... can we stand for a little longer please.."
Akane blushed madly. She could actually feel the way his heart was beating, it was rather wild. She took a deep breath and nodded her head and closed her eyes to savour their closeness for a little longer.
"What's taking them so long!!" Ukyo complained.
Ryoga tried to stand up from the floor as he said, "I will go and check on them."
"No need to.." Akio said and casually laid plates infront of everyone as he said, "they will come when they are finished, no need to rush.."
"We are here!" Ranma declared as he and Akane came out of his bedroom. He got surprised by the way they all settled up the food in the living area. They laid all the food bowls on the tea table as they all set on the ground in a round circle. Ukyo noticed his surprise stare as she said cheerfully,
"Ranchan, we didn't have much space on your tiny dinning table! Kasumi-san had bought a feast for us! That's why setted up everything here, so that we can eat all together.."
Ranma smiled excitedly and said, "Thats a great idea!! Oh gosh, Oneechan, how many dishes have you cooked today?!" He asked surprised, as he and Akane went to sit at the circle. They sat closer together, without giving much thought about it as Ranma handed Akane her bowl of rice.
Kasumi smiled seeing that as she said, "Well, this is all my Akane's favourite foods! I didn't want my imouto to starve today as well!"
Akane looked at her sister who was sitting next to Akio, facing her, as she said, "Oh Oneechan, I am so sorry for worrying you like this!"
Kasumi nodded and said, "Next time please don't do things like this! You are a martial artist, Akane! If you feel angry, hit Akio as much as you wish to, but not starving anymore, okay?"
"Jeez, thanks oneechan!!" Akio mutterd sighing defeatedly as others started laughing seeing his reaction.
Soon they all dig into the food like they all were starving for days. Ryoga blindly dig into his bowl of foods, forgetting there are people watching him. Ukyo did the same, but in a more moderate way. Kasumi was so pleased to see all of them enjoying her food! They all were praising her with compliments; which made her serve them more foods as she also ate with complete satisfaction.
Akio was eating in a very sensible way. He was poking at his bowl of food, chewing now and then. He time to time looked up and to glimpse the scene between Ranma and Akane. Akane was eating at a mild speed as Ranma sometimes put her favorite items on her bowls with his chopsticks as he also kept eating his food. Akane seemed to notice his gesture; she looked at Ranma from the corner of her eyes, her face blushing as she enjoyed her food. Then after some moment, he saw, as Akane suddenly turned to look at Ranma as if she had noticed something. Ranma also looked at her with a questionable stare. She smiled at him and showed him the corner of his mouth and handed him some napkins. Ranma cheekily smiled at her and started wiping the corner of his lip. Then Akane again shook her head and showed him with her finger on her lips, exactly where she saw the stains. Then as if both of them has realized something very awkward; they both got rigid and got red with embarrassment. They hastily looked down and started eating their food silently.
Akio couldn't stop himself as he chuckled to himself, shaking his head. Then suddenly, he felt a touch on his shoulder, he curiously looked at Kasumi; she smiled at him from the corner of her lips as she whispered softly to him,
"Don't you think they look cute together.."
Akio didn't want to answer her immediately. He again looked at both of them; looked down and sighed defeatedly as he silently ate his food.
A/N: I hope you enjoyed reading this! Don't forget to let me know...
Oh God, I am feeling so at lost right now. My loneliness is making me so depressed everyday. I don't know if nowadays people have become so busy with their life that they don't have time to interact at all! Their ego eats them, but still they don't want to make an effort. Its looks to me like they love to make people suffer! I am tired of dealing with these types of people. Its like I am surrounded with them. I want to cry, scream and sometimes I really really want to run away from everything. But I can't.. Has life suddenly become tougher or it always had been like this!..