Hinata had called Akane in the morning, to inform her to tell Ranma that they won't allow him in the pub anymore. His demanding tone made her angry, but she kept her cool and decided to talk to him face to face. Akane walked silently on the road towards her workplace. Last Night's events were still fresh in her mind, making her feel anxious and uncomfortable at the same time . She couldn't think of anything properly after what Ranma did last night. It was very risky. He didnt even know how to fight, but he jumped to fight all those five guys all by himself! She doesn't have any idea how to handle him anymore. All she knew was, she can't let this happen again and she needs to have a serious talk with Ranma about it. She reached her workplace and went inside the building with a hard expression on her face. She walked towards Hinata's office room and knocked on his door.
"Yes, come on in.." he heard his door opening and closing. He looked up from his document works and arrogantly smirked when he saw Akane standing at his doorway.
"Oh hello, Juliet! I was expecting your visit." He checked his watch and asked, "But aren't you a little early for your shift? Your shift won't start until one hour.."
"I know that, Hinata. I came early today because I have something to discuss with you."
"Is it about your friend? Then you know the answer already, he is not allowed to come into this restaurant after the destruction he had made last night."
"Is it your final decision?" Akane asked sternly.
"Yes, it certainly is, sweetheart. Anyway, if you want to start your shift early then you can do that too. I will pay you for the extra hour." Hinata said in a casual tone, dismissing their conversation.
"That won't be necessary anymore, I am quitting this job today."
Hinata dropped his pen on the table and asked her in a hard tone,
"Are you serious?"
"I am certainly serious, Hinata." Akane replied boldly.
"But you can't do that.."
"It's my choice, you can't stop me."
Hinata stood up in a panic. If Akane's not Mr Tatawaki's relative, he wouldn't have any problem with her leaving. Tatawaki owes a huge debt to him and because he had agreed to give this job to his precious sister-in-law, Kuno had been very temperate about their deal. But now if Akane decided to leave his restaurant then maybe things won't run as smoothly anymore. He took a deep breath and said as calmly as possible,
"Please, let's just talk about this."
"Sorry, I have already made my decision."
"But why? You can't just leave like that!"
"Ofcourse I can! I never signed any contract with you!"
"BUT STILL.." He raised his tone, but then took a deep breath and said with a much calmer tone, "At least give me a valid reason.."
Akane growled at him and replied hotly,
"You are asking me for a reason!? Seriously! Then listen carefully; When I joined this job you promised Kuno-san that you would take care of me. But I have been HARRASED multiple times here! Have you taken any precautions for that? NO! YOU DIDN'T! Instead of taking cautions , you declared that the person who stood up for me is no longer allowed in this restaurant! Last night what my friend did was nothing but what a gentleman should have done! However, instead of thanking him, you are telling him off! HOW DARE YOU! You know what, I never said any of this to Kuno-san before, but this time I won't keep quiet anymore."
She huffed and turned to leave. Hinata quickly ran to her side and grabbed her hand to stop her.
"Please Miss Akane, don't tell him anything!"
Akane slightly turned and glared down at his hand . He quickly let go of her hand and said in a panicked tone,
"I am really very sorry for what I did. I promise I won't repeat my mistakes anymore. I promise you, your friend will always be welcome here. If you want I will hire him as your personal bodyguard as well! Please, I deeply apologise to you. I promise I won't cut any salaries from you and you can take leave for this weekend and I will still pay you in full. Miss Akane, please try to understand, I need your help as much as you need mine."
"I am sorry; but I have given you lots of chances. But you failed me all the time. I can't risk my dignity anymore." Akane said, her voice shaky with uneasiness.
"I know you have given a lot of chances to me. I am just asking for one more chance. Akane please, If Mr. Tatawaki finds out about this, he won't help my business anymore and I would be completely bankrupt. I am going through a very bad situation right now. This is the only business I have left. If I lose it, me and my family will lose everything. Please understand my situation, I…I beg of you."
Akane sighed and turned to face him again. Then she said with a straight tone,
"I work here on an hourly pay basis, and I don't want any extra payments from you." She sighed and said, " Mr Hinata, I didn't have any idea you were going through such difficulties. I didn't want to talk to you like this, but you left no other choice for me. Don't worry, I won't leave this job and I won't say anything to Kuno-san as well. But I certainly want to take a leave today and I DON'T need any payment for my absence."
Hinata sighed and nodded respectfully,
"I am sorry for my carelessness, Akane. Thank you for understanding. See you tomorrow then?"
Akane silently nodded her head and walked out of his office.
She gave a big sigh of relief as the fresh breeze blew onto her sweaty face. She felt as if a huge burden had lifted off her heart. When Hinato told her that he wouldn't allow Ranma to come to the restaurant anymore, she felt so outrageous! Her reaction came so naturally; just the way she feels whenever anyone tries to say any bad things about her family members. She sighed and shook her head. This incident had proved to her that, she can't deny the fact anymore that this baka Ranma has managed to steal a place in her heart for him. She smiled fondly and placed her hand over her heart. She could feel it beat so fast as she thought about him. And just like her imagination coming into reality, she saw Ranma casually walking towards the restaurant. She giggled silly when she saw how surprised he had become upon seeing her. He ran towards her in haste and looked at her up and down in worry.
"Hey..! What are you doing here so early, Kane?"
She smiled at him softly and replied,
"I was waiting for you."
Ranma smiled back at her. But his smile turned into a frown as he asked her,
"But why? Are you scared to go in there alone?"
Akane giggled and hooked her arm around his arm and said while pulling him to walk with her in a different route,
"Yes, I am very scared. Now come with me.."
They sat beside each other at the nearest park, the same park where they met each other for the first time. Akane placed her hand bag on the bench and politely asked him.
"Show me your hand,Ranma."
"Huh?" He gave her a confused look.
She gave him a narrow look and said,
"Your hand, Ranma.."
Ranma hesitated at first, he swallowed hard and then showed her his left hand.
Akane huffed and shook her head. She sighed tiredly and carefully grabbed his right hand and forcefully made him show his right palm to her. She flinched and bit her lower lip when she saw a purplish bruise on his palm and the way it got injured as well. Ranma looked up at her and when he saw her troubled-looking face he started to feel guilty for making her worry like that. He wanted to hide it from her knowing how worried she might become if she sees his bruise. But she found out anyway, but he doesn't want to make her feel peccant about anything. He cleared his throat and tried to talk to her in a casual way,
"Hey…. don't worry, it's nothing.."
"I know what it is, Ranma." Akane sternly looked at his wound and said, "I was wondering if this would happen to you, and I was right!"
"But.. but how'd ya find out! I am sure I haven't shown any sign to ya."
She gradually smiled up at him and said,
"You are forgetting from whom you were trying to hide it from. I am a martial artist, you remember? And we often get these types of bruises while fighting and especially those who don't fight on a regular basis."
She reached for her bag and pulled out one small bottle from it. She carefully laid his hand over her lap and started to put an ointment on his bruise. She hissed as she applied the ointment as she asked him,
"Is it paining, Ranma? I am sorry, I will try to be more gentle.."
Ranma didn't say anything to her. He kept looking at her with fascination as a warm sensation spread through his heart.
"Why did you fight them, Ranma! You don't even know how to fight and you risked yourself so recklessly! What were you thinking, baka!"
Ranma examined her every move with a great appreciation. He smiled at her kindness and replied in a soft whispered tone,
"I wasn't thinking anything.."
Akane stopped, but did not look up at him. Ranma looked down at their hands and said,
"And I didn't care what they do to me, as long as you are safe."
Akane sighed and started putting some more medicine on his hand and then with a small gauge she carefully starts to roll the gauge around his hand.
"I know how to take care of myself, Ranma. I don't like to be dependent on anyone to protect myself from danger. I would have cracked all their bones in one second if I wished to, but my hand was bound with those damn rules.."
"I know how you feel and that's why I did it for ya, remember what I said, your wish is my command." He replied casually as he winked at her.
That made her giggle as she looked up at him and said,
"Don't act like such a dummy and please, promise me you won't do it ever again."
"I never make false promises, Kane. Maybe I am not a great fighter like you are, but I promise you, it won't stop me from protecting you from any danger."
His voice was so thick as he declared his feelings to her. Her heart started pounding with excitement and an unknown feeling of protection surrounded her, making her feel so lightheaded. She shook her head and slowly tied the bandage on his hand and finished her job.
"There you go. I have put some medicine on your wound, I am sure by tomorrow you won't feel any pain at all! It's one of our secret ancient medicines. Kasumi always makes sure to make it in batches for me. Knowing very well how I often hurt myself." She giggled softly and held his injured hand and whispered to him,
"I am so sorry, Ranma. I should have tended to you last night rightway. But I was so shocked at what happened that.."
"Oh please, Kane, the last thing I want from you now is to act so formally with me! I also didn't know I needed to take care of this wound until you pointed it out to me, I just thought it was just regular muscle pain."
Akane smiled fondly at him and said,
"Thank you, Ranma. What you did last night, really means a lot to me."
Ranma smiled at her and nodded.
"Anyway, why did you decide to skip today?"
Akane sighed and said,
"To be honest, I wanted to quit today."
"QUIT! Really! THAT'S GREAT!"
"But I couldn't quit, Ranma.."
"Huh!" His celebration lived for a very short time as he asked her with a frown, "But why.."
"Hinata's business is in danger, and if I leave like this, he won't get any help from Kuno-san. He kind of bagged me to stay, so, I couldn't say no . Honestly, I was actually relieved when he asked me to stay. I just took this decision so quickly and so recklessly too. I risked too much, but I had to do that.."
"Why did you do that in the first place! Did you got a new job opportunity, Kane?" He asked hopefully.
Akane looked down feeling embarrassed and gradually, explained all the scenarios to him. Ranma felt his heart beating so rapidly as he heard her explanations. She did it because of him! She didn't even think about the outcomes and decided to quit her job because she wanted to defend him! No one has ever done it for him before and it really moved his heart.
"Anyway, Ranma, there is one good news for you.. Hinata was so desperate to keep me there that he offered me to make you my personal bodyguard. What do you say, do you want to take his offer?" Akane asked,jokingly as she started giggling hard.
Ranma also joined her with her silly laughing and said,
"That's a great opportunity! I must say! I am sure it would be more exciting than roaming around that annoying Ryoga."
Akane stopped laughing when she heard Ryoga's name. She hesitated at first but then said,
"Ranma, I want to say one more thing to you."
"Yes, tell me, anything.."
"Ummm.. Ryoga came to me with a request.."
"WHAT! RYOGA! WHEN! HOW DARE HE..!"
"Calm down, Ranma. What are you doing? Why are you getting so hyper ? This is not normal at all!."
Ranma growled and said heatedly,
"You are asking me to talk to him agin?! After what he did to you?"
Akane calmly replied,
"Yes, I am telling you, Ranma, forgive him already.."
Ranma huffed and looked away from her and said,
"Sorry, but I can't do that.."
"Ranma.. Now you are being stubborn!"
"Look Kane, I'd rather take Hinata's offer to be yar bodyguard then to accept his apology."
Akane sighed and said,
"Ranma, please... I want you to forgive him because I could feel genuinity in his voice. He is really guilty, Ranma. He really sees you as his brother. I don't want me to become a reason for you to lose a friend like him. Please Ranma, try to forgive him this time. If you won't forgive him, how would he learn from his mistake? I am sure he won't repeat his mistakes again.."
Ranma kept silent and looked down. Akane smiled at him and said,
"Just think about it, okay? Umm, shall we return home now?"
"Huh?" Ranma wasn't expecting that, he looked at her quickly and said, "Now? But isn't it too early?"
Akane giggled hearing that,
"You are such a baka! Why do you think I took early leave, huh?"
"Uhhhh…for me, I guess.." Ranma replied in a unsure tone.
She giggled and said,
"Yes, that's one of the reasons. Actually, I am so tired, Ranma. I barely had any proper sleep last week. I wasn't fully prepared for that exam so I had to study all night. I bet you were well prepared for that exam. You answered all the questions so quickly too! I am sure you must be so brilliant to do that! Ranma, you have to help me in my next term, please…."
Ranma sweat dropped as he laughed lightly. Then he replied to her,
"Oh yeah..! Sure! No problem. I will help you out next time."...
"So shall we go then?"
Ranma sighed and nodded his head..
"WHERE IS THAT IDIOT!"
Ryoga rushed out from his room and saw Mr Haro was having a hard time handling a furious looking Ukyo.
"He is in his room resting, Miss Ukyo."
"Oh jeez , Ukyo! What's the matter with you?"
Both Ukyo and Hiro looked at Ryoga at the same time. Hiro smiled at him and said to Ukyo,
"Here he is, Miss Ukyo.."
Ukyo growled at Ryoga and said,
"I am not asking for him, where is that other idiot?"
"Are you looking for Ranma? Well he is not at home at the moment.." Ryoga replied, casually.
"What! Where did he.." Ukyo started asking but Hiro interrupted them,
"Uhh, I think I should excuse myself now. Miss Ukyo, do you want to eat anything?"
"No thank you, Hiro-san. Sorry to disturb your sleep."
"No problem.." Hiro smiled and slowly left the room.
Ukyo huffed and looked at Ryoga and asked him in a tight tone,
"Where is Ranma?"
Ryoga shrugged his shoulder and said,
"At the usual place.. to guard Miss Akane."
Ukyo moaned and started pacing like a caged lion. Ryoga scratched his hair in confusion as he asked her,
"What happened to ya? Is everything okay?"
She stopped and heatedly looked at him,
"NO! I am not okay! I am really really…REALLY angry! I need to talk to Ranma RIGHT NOW!"
"I told you he is out and I don't think he will come home until late at night."
"I don't care how LATE he comes back! I WON'T LEAVE until I have a face-to-face conversation with him!"
"Alright, alright, why don't you take a seat and make yourself comfortable then.."
Ukyo moaned and started walking towards the sofa. But before she could take a seat, the main door opened, revealing none other than the person she was looking for. Ranma wasn't expecting to see Ukyo there, he got totally surprised as he asked her,
"Ucchan?! What are you doing here? It's almost midnight.."
Ukyo growled and started walking towards him with heavy steps, as she burst out saying,
"SO WHAT IF IT'S MIDNIGHT, HUH! DID YOU LEAVE ME ANY OTHER CHOICE LEFT, IDIOT!"
Seeing Ukyo's unusual anger,Ranma pulled up his hands up in mid-air as if surrendering to her as he asked her in a calming tone,
"Wait wait wait.. Calm down, Ucchan. First, let's just talk about it.."
"What to talk about, Ranchan?!"
Ukyo furiously pulled out two pieces of paper from her backpack, she grabbed his hand and not so gently put the paper over his hand as she asked him angrily,
"THIS?"
Ranma got confused, he checked the paper and realised what it was about. He gave her a sneaky smile and said,
"Uh yeah.. This is.."
"Your results for the test, Ranchan!" Ukyo declared with a disappointed tone.
Ryoga rushed to their side and snatched the paper from Ranma's hand, making him growl in annoyance.
"What! It has my results as well… but oh boy… Ranma how did ya manage to get these marks, this is horrible, man.."
"Shut up!" Ranma snatched the paper from Ryoga's hand and asked Ukyo,
"Look Ucchan, I am sorry. I wasn't actually well prepared for that exam."
"I wanted to help you didnt I? I was practically running after you! What was so important then this exam, huh?! You just can't take this so lightly, you know.."
Ranma looked embarrassed as he asked her,
"But how did ya get yar hand at this so quick?"
"Professor Yamamoto came to our house this evening to show my father your result. He was really worried about you. My father showed me this when I returned home from my friend's party. He was so dissapointad at you, Ranchan. And Ryoga, I think you said you are a pro at this.. Your result is showing the complete opposite to me!"
"Duh,my result is better than Ranma's, at least I passed!"
His arrogant tone made Ranma more furious. He turned all his anger towards Ryoga and lashed out his anger at him,
"JUST KEEP QUIET, RYOGA!"
"Why are ya lashing out at me for? I just told the truth, man! And anyway, if you give your focus to your studies rather than chasing after Akane then…"
"DONT YOU DARE SAY HER NAME WITH YOUR DIRTY MOUTH!"
"STOP OVERREACTING, MAN! I ALREADY APOLOGIZED TO HER!"
"AND SHE DOESN'T WANT YOUR APOLOGIES, CAN'T YOU UNDERSTAND THIS SIMPLE THING?! AND HOW DARE YOU TALK TO HER! YOU ASKED HER TO TELL ME TO FORGIVE YOU?"
"You really asked her that, Ryoga?" Ukyo asked, surprised.
"She talked to you about this?" Ryoga asked, more surprised.
"THAT'S WHAT I AM SAYING! WHY DID YOU ASK HER?"
"WHAT ELSE WOULD I HAVE DONE, MAN!" Ryoga lashed out helplessly, "You completely stopped talking with me! I agree that I was wrong, very very wrong, I am sorry for that. I have apologised to you again and again, and I will keep apologising to yo until you start talking with me again… Ranma, man please, …. We have been buddies since our childhood, you just can't end it because of my one mistake. Look, I will do anything to prove you how guilty I am. Please, just give me another chance, pal! I promise I will do whatever you tell me to do.."
"Then leave me alone.." Ranma said with a hard whisper tone and started walking towards his room with hard steps. But he could take only two steps forward,as Ukyo held him back by holding his arm tightly and said with an angry tone,
"Are you trying to ditch me again, sugar?"
Ranma gulped hard, because of his argument with Ryoga, he totally forgot that Ukyo was standing there. He gave her an apologetic smile and said,
"I am sorry, Ucchan. Look, I know you are worried about me, but it's really hard to concentrate on other things when things are so messed up like this.."
"Then why don't you tidy those messed up things, Ranchan?"
"I am trying my best, Ucchan!"
"How? By pushing away Ryoga like this?"
"It's not as easy as it looks!"
"It is easy! You are just being too stubborn to fix it, that's all!" Ukyo said with an annoyed tone. She took a deep breath to calm herself a bit and then said, "Anyways, this is the first time I agree with Ryoga here; I know being with Akane makes you feel happy, so why don't take advantage of this opportunity and ask her to give you some tuition for your studies? As much as I know Akane she is a very kind girl and helps all her friends.."
Ranma growled at her and said,
"What are you saying? You want me to take advantage of her because she is my friend ..!"
"Its called helping a friend, Ranchan! It's not a big deal at all..!"
Ranma got defensive as he said,
"You know what Ucchan, I know she would help me if I ask her to. But she barely has time for herself and now the last thing I want is to bother her with my studies and ask her to tutor me! Unless... unless… unless.."
Ranma paused for a moment as he kept looking at Ukyo with wide unfocused eyes. Ukyo got worried by his change of behaviour as she asked him in a concern-filled tone,
"Ranchan, are you.."
But before she could finish her sentence,
"YES! YES! THAT'S IT!"
Ranma suddenly screamed in excitement, he tightly hugged Ukyo and said in the same excitement,
"OH GOD! YOU ARE GENIUS, UCCHAN! WHY I HAVEN'T THOUGHT OF THIS BEFORE!? YA HAVE SOLVED ALL MY PROBLEMS!" He broke their hug and said while putting his hands on her cheeks, "YOU ARE THE BEST! I OWE YA BIG TIME FOR WHAT YOU DID!"
Saying that, he started running out of the house again. But when he reached the front door he stopped for a moment and called out to Ryoga and said,
"Don't ya dare forget your promise, Ryoga!"
Saying that, he rushed out of the house, leaving behind Ukyo and Ryoga, who stood there shocked and scared by his sudden behavioural change… However, Ryoga broke the silence first as he asked in a soft whisper tone,
"What just.. what just happened!"
Akane came back home earlier than she usually does. She and her sister finished their dinner and talked all night. Before going to bed, Akane decided to take a long hot bath as Kasumi said her goodnight to her.
After a long time, Akane came back from showering and was surprised to find her sister still working in the kitchen.
"Kasumi Oneechan? What are you doing? I thought you went to bed!"
Kasumi smiled at her and said,
"I was actually feeling hungry for some reason. I wanted to make a quick snack for myself before going to bed. Do you want some?"
Akane smiled at her and said,
"That sounds great! Thanks!"
Kasumi smiled back at her, she noticed her sister's attire and said,
"You should go and change, dear, or else you might catch a cold. I am sure by then Akio might come back home too." As she said that, she started making some instant noodles for all of them.
"Okay! I will be back in just a minute.."
Just before she was about to leave, they heard a loud knock on their entrance.
"Who is this?" Kasumi asked, confused.
Akane shrugged her shoulder and said,
"Maybe Akio, why is he knocking the door? Did he forget his keys? Anyways, I will go and let him in. You keep cooking, Onechan.."
"But Akane.." Kasumi rushed to the kitchen's door to stop her, but Akane already left to open the door.
"Oh my, Akane forgot that she is still wrapped in her towels.. How silly!"
A/N: Thanks a lot for your love and support. Please don't forget to write a review to me. It really helps me to write and post quickly. Thank you. I need your support guys...take care..