Chapter Text
Ryoga wiped his brow as the scorching sun started beating down on him, cooking the poor boy in the process. He tiredly slammed his backpack down and shook his head, "Dammit...where in the world am I now?" He whined, and the wind responded to his question by lightly blowing his hair, potentially telling him to hush and take it easy. If he had a nickel for every time he wondered where he was, he'd buy a thousand maps and understand none of them.
Originally, he was going to be training in the mountains due to him losing a petty spat with Ranma; of course, nothing was out of the ordinary there, but the way he lost struck a chord with him. He didn't intend to be gone for as long as he was, but it's been about a month or two since he had even visited Nerima, but maybe it was time to get back—whether that was going to take a day or a couple more months, he wasn't sure.
But one thing was for sure: he wanted to write. As he set up his camping gear, he sat on a pretty uncomfortable stone and brought out some stationery. "Hm..let's see here." The boy scrounged around in his smelly thousand-pound knapsack to get a pen and put it to paper. "Dearest Akane—no, that's probably too formal..." He crumpled that one up. "Hey, Akane!—too desperate." That one was also balled up on the ground. When midday became night, he finally held his letter and examined it carefully for any spelling mistakes.
'To Akane:' It read, 'It's been a while since we chatted, huh? I've been training in Hokkaido, so I can finally beat Ranma in a fair fight. He should expect a real fight from me soon, so you better tell him to prepare. Hopefully that moron hasn't been bothering you for too long. -My condolences, Ryoga.'
With a satisfied nod to himself, he sealed up the letter. "Now I just have to find a place to mail it..." He'd normally bring some souvenirs, but this time, she'd be left empty-handed, which hurt his heart. 'Oh, Akane, if only you knew...if only you knew the love I felt for you, how much my heart longed for you. Every day you're the reason why I open my eyes!' He dropped to his knees and nearly crumpled the innocent letter in his hands as he balled his fists together. "Ranma, how dare you embarrass me in front of her like that?!"
The painful memory swelled in his simple mind.
.o.o.o.
A month ago, Ryoga was in Nerima for an extended period of time, so he had been boarding with the Tendos and the freeloaders, the Saotomes. Every morning since then, Ranma and Ryoga began their testosterone-measuring contests, thinly veiled as sparring matches.
Ranma was silent for the most part as the two of them started parrying each other's attacks, while Ryoga was trying to pick up the pace because Akane was always—and forcibly so—their spectator. She sat there with a dull smile plastered on her face, wanting to spend her Sunday morning doing anything else besides this. Ryoga got lost in thought as she waved to him lamely, and his heart fluttered slightly, but due to his lack of focus, he took a rough kick to the face, causing him to land on his rear.
Akane grimmaced and sucked her teeth as she saw Ryoga fall backward. Ranma looked at him, slightly concerned as he saw his rival thud to the ground. "What happened? I didn't hit ya that hard."
Ryoga dusted himself off. "I was distracted," he acknowledged, slapping Ranma's hand out of the way, trying to help him up. He jumped back and saw Ryoga's eyes light up again the second he turned to Akane, Ranma looked at him with annoyance.
"Are you okay, Ryoga?" She beamed like a candle that was just lit. As the Lost Boy glanced at her, he felt his heart skip a couple of beats.
"Y-Yeah, I'm fine...Thanks for asking, Akane. I think I'm just tired."
"Tired? What, we just started, man!" Ryoga eyed Ranma with the same annoyed glance he had and moseyed to the hardwood floor to sit next to Akane, but Ranma stepped in his way before he had a chance to do so. "Come on, porkchops, ya can't be tired of me already!" Ryoga growled, already starting to get tired of Ranma's interference.
"Ranma, look. I-" Ranma hopped on top of Ryoga's head, causing him to crumple to the ground. "You bastard! I was just-" he strained, chucking Ranma off of him. Ranma was sent careening into the koi pond, changing instantly. "-taking a break!" He cracked his knuckles, ready for round two. Ranma emerged from the water a sopping, drooping mess.
"Looks like I struck a nerve!" Ranma spoke, now in her female form, trying to fight Ryoga while soaking wet. Ryoga could feel the cold water whizzing past him and Ranma trying to throw wet punches in his direction, but kept his guard up and continued to gracefully evade the annoying attacks. "C'mon, Ryoga, where's your energy at! Usually, I'm the one dodging your attacks!"
"Ranma! I don't wanna get wet! Cut it out!" With a tired huff, Ryoga closed his eyes and poked the ground gently. "Bakusai Tenketsu!" He shouted, as rocks and debris burst in between the two, Ranma nonthewiser, getting hit with the full brunt of his attack, she backed up a few steps, her face and sleeveless shirt dirtied from Ryoga's brutal attack. Ranma stood there, stupidly coughing up the dirt she swallowed, and shook her head at Ryoga.
Ranma guffawed mindlessly, "If ya wanna talk to that mule so badly, then you should fight for your prize, Ryoga!"
"Prize?!" Akane spat reflexively, "Ran-MA!"
The pigtailed girl ignored her scream, "You should instead spend time with your training buddy, didn't you say ya wanted to get stronger?" Ryoga glanced at Ranma, his clothes slightly tattered and dirty from the Bakusai blast he had performed. Before he had a chance to retaliate, Akane stood beside him, causing Ranma to roll her eyes. "Always sticking up for him, huh?" Her tone changed with slight malice. Akane was quick to notice her shift and gritted her teeth, not desiring to be irritated at nine in the morning.
"Not this again! Ryoga said he was tired. Why don't you just respect that?!" She stomped up to Ranma, making him flinch slightly.
"I do respect it, but pork-for-brains over there was smitten with you and got himself distracted! He knows he's not tired, he's just making goo-goo eyes at you because he wants ya to feel sorry for him! And plus..he didn't have to ruin my shirt ya know...?" Ranma lamented as her favorite light-grey sleeveless shirt was ruined. Akane rested a gentle hand on Ryoga's shoulder and glanced at him softly.
"It's okay to be weak, Ryoga, I understand. You can't always beat Ranma." Akane's words pierced through his heart and stabbed him, he nearly fell to the ground as Ranma looked just as shocked as him. Akane didn't register the slightly backhanded words she spouted until she saw Ranma about to stifle a chuckle. "Oops, I mea—"
"Oof right in the manhood!" Ranma slapped Ryoga's back heartily, causing Ryoga to growl. "See? This is what I'm talkin' about, don't you think that-" Ranma was silenced almost immediately once she got a punch directly to the gut, causing her to heave over.
'Embarrassing...'He trodded off before jumping on Ranma's head and out of the Tendo Dojo. "Ryoga, wait! I-I didn't mean it like that!" Akane looked off at him, mildly upset that she let herself slip.
.o.o.o.
He clenched his fist and cursed the sky before eventually realizing that his letter was still in his hand, crumpling from his violent gesture. He glanced at the letter and sighed, throwing it into the fire. Midday was becoming early evening, and Ryoga decided that instead of doing his nightly training, he'd just retire early for the night since the fire was already burning so fiercely, and not because he wanted to cry due to the crumpled-up and ashy letter that took him two hours to write.
He set his head on his backpack and looked at the stars, his arms crossed behind his head. He started thinking to himself, remembering that he had last seen a few cabins not too far off from these woods. A mattress and pillow would be a godsend, considering that his lumpy backpack and flatter-than-cardboard sleeping bag put him on the path to getting arthritis in his mid-twenties. Hesitation set in before stomping the light fire out, and he went on his way to find those cabins...
'Wherever they are...'
He was reassured once he saw a wooden sign written in Katakana reading, 'Traveling Lodges two miles away, take a left after this fork and continue on well-lit path.' "Alright! Now we're going somewhere!"
He sure was.
The wrong as hell direction.
After tireless walking, Ryoga finally had enough sense to take a break, it was nearing midnight—not that he'd know that—and his legs were giving out. With heavy pants and short breaths, he collapsed onto a sign and stayed there, completely unaware of his surroundings. 'I...I think I'm going to die here, no food or water...this might be the end-' His thoughts, wistful and somber as his mind pictured Akane for the last time. Before getting absolutely whapped upside the head and his eyes meeting with a brunette.
"U-Ukyo?" He strained, wincing from his pain, his eyes opening wider than her sliding screen door.
"Ryoga-sugar?" There was a moment where she glanced at him, before smacking him on the head again, "What's wrong with you?! I thought you were a prowler!"
"Ouch! Hey, that's painful!" He coughed before realizing he was in need of help. "I haven't eaten all day, could I have some okonomiyaki?" Ukyo glared at him before sighing and shaking her head.
"Fine, come in before you let all the heat out."
Although he hadn't noticed it before, Ukyo was in her pajamas and tiredly cooking her trademark dish on the grilltop stove. Ryoga had a helping already, but Ukyo decided to cook some herself since the commotion had woken her up. "I hadn't seen you in a while, sugar. Are you okay? You look somehow worse than usual." Ryoga glared at her, resulting in her giving a cute smile in response.
"I've been on a training trip to best Ranma, and-" She laughed in his face, causing him to groan loudly, cradling his head with his hands. "So much for sympathy."
"Come on, sugar, we all know how this goes! You leave dramatically, train for a week or longer, come back and show some Achilles heel in your 'grand plan', and Ranchan beats you with not just his strength but his knowledge too! What makes you think this time you have a shot?" Ryoga held up a finger in retaliation but shook his head in defeat.
"Maybe you're right..."
"Of course I am," she turns off the grill and sits next to Ryoga, her food piping hot. "At this point, you're better off confessing to Akane." She wolfed down her okonomiyaki and burnt her tongue, causing her to fan it with her hands. Ryoga took mild enjoyment in seeing her suffer.
"That's easy for you to say, you're so much more forward than I am. And...more attractive." Ukyo blushed at the random compliment.
"W-Well, maybe that's true—thank you—but aren't you tired of not getting your point across? It's gotta get annoying at some point, right?" He nodded defeatedly, and Ukyo hummed to herself before snapping her fingers, "Well, here's an idea! How 'bout I drop you off at the Tendo's and you take Akane out on a date, the worst she could say is no, right?"
Ryoga was silent, letting the idea simmer in his mind before nodding. 'Maybe...I could give it a shot?' As if reading his mind, she smiled, "Great! Get ready, because we'll be heading over there first thing!"
"What?!" The Lost Boy yelled, "U-Ukyo, I don't know about doing this right now, I mean, I-I'm not even sure if I'm ready yet!"
"Nonsense!" She ribbed him causing him to hunch over, "For as long as I've known you, all you need is a kick in the butt and a step in the right direction, Hibiki!" She grabbed his shoulders, and he started tenderly rubbing his full stomach. "Don't chicken out now, this is the perfect plan, Ryoga! All you need to do is follow through."
.o.o.o.
Early morning came, and the two teens were on the Tendo's doorstep. Ryoga started shaking so hard, his bones started rattling. Akane was outside, minding her own business, her nose in a book, so distracted that she didn't even see the cute chef and dishelved boy walk into the garden. Ukyo shoved Ryoga towards Akane, and he lost his step, falling straight onto the wooden floor, surprising the daylights out of her.
"R-Ryoga!" She shouted, her book being thrown across the sitting room. "Ryoga!" Her tone softened as she gave him a gentle hug, immediately healing his pain. He peeled himself off the floor and looked at the beautiful girl in front of him. "I'm sorry for what I said those few weeks ago, I know that you aren't weak; I just meant that it's okay to be weak sometimes."
She really is bad at apologizing. Ryoga thought to himself as he remembered the countless times Ranma complained to him about Akane rarely apologizing to him, but the bandana'd boy swallowed his pride and moved on. "W-Well, now that I'm here, I wanted to ask you a question." She turned to face him better, "douwannagoonadatewithmetoday." He smushed his words together, blushing profusely.
Akane had a blank smile on her face. "What was that, Ryoga? You spoke too quickly."
He took a heavy breath. "Would you like to go on a date with me, Akane?" He exhaled his whole sentence, feeling like a swollen balloon, but much to his surprise, Akane clasped her hands together and smiled.
"Ahh! Yes! And if you don't have an idea of where to go, I do!" She excitedly pointed upstairs, "Nabiki took me to this restaurant in Tokyo one time, it's very pretty! It's called the 'Walking Fish', it's a very big restaurant, so you can't miss it." Ryoga chuckled to himself as he took a mental note of the name of the establishment.
"I'll meet you there at 7 o'clock sharp then." Akane had a weary smile.
"Sure!" It sounded more sarcastic if anything. "I'm going to go ahead and prepare, don't be late!" She waltzed upstairs, her prussian hair bobbing with every step. After a second of sitting there and looking like more of an idiot than usual, Ryoga got on his knees.
"I-I DID IT!" Only to be smacked in the face with one of Ukyo's bombs.
"You moron, you only did a quarter of it!" He squinted his eyes, half of his face, and a majority of his hair was covered in granulated flour. "The next thing you have to do is make yourself look presentable and right now..." She looked him up and down, "You're due for a wardrobe change."
"Maybe I wouldn't need that, if somebody didn't throw hakurikiko in my face!" He wiped the flour off his face and ruffled his hair.
"It's chuurikiko, idiot—and if anything, this flour is showing me that you look good in white, let's go shopping for some new clothes!" Ryoga groaned as Ukyo dragged him by his feet like an excited toddler.
.o.o.o.
After a couple hours of shopping, Ukyo had found something more suitable for Ryoga to wear than his regular yellow tunic and tight pants. She instead gave him a black pullover shirt, some black jeans, and a sleeveless yellow vest to go with it. He didn't protest, but the only thing he didn't like was how he was bandana-less.
The two of them, now situated in Ukyo's restaurant, are talking amongst themselves, Ryoga having a hard time adjusting to more tightly fitting clothes than he's used to.
"...and don't give girls dead flowers. They don't like that." She hummed to herself, "Really, don't give anyone dead flowers, I don't think anybody likes that." He nodded, taking genuine notes of what to do. "And with that, I think you're good to go. Now, it's time for the test." She slammed a massive book in front of him and put on some mock glasses. "There's one-hundred and ten questions, this exam is closed book, and you need a 70% or higher in order to pass. You'll be granted seventy minutes."
Ryoga raised his hand.
"Yes?"
"But I have to leave in thirty minutes!" She pushed up her glasses.
"Fine, but don't think you aren't taking this test later, Hibiki! I spent...an embarrassingly long time making this," she blushes, as she stayed up a majority of the previous night coming up with questions.
With the help of Ukyo's navigation and handholding, Ryoga was sitting on one of the benches outside the restaurant, waiting for the beautiful girl of his dreams to show up. He hadn't realized just how extravagant everything there was, from two large fountains of koi fish shooting water from their mouths, to the sidewalk being nothing but marble. He was afraid the price of water alone would've run him dry.
As if that was going to do him any favors, no wonder the place was named the "Walking Fish" there was nothing by koi and carp iconography plastered over the building and he was able to get a glance inside the restaraunt itself, a massive fish tank lined the wall—that was a hazard. What wasn't a hazard, however, was the lovely, 'bluenette' who waved him down. She looked beautiful, she had on a sky blue dress, with dark boots to match, a massive white bow was tied behind her short hair, and the ribbons on the end draped softly with each step she took.
"Ryoga!" She cooed, causing him to catch his breath. "You're here! Are you ready to go inside?" She asked, meeting up with him as he wordlessly started walking in the same direction as her.
"O-Oh yeahh..."
After talking to the receptionist, Akane said that Nabiki Tendo sent her, and the two of them were seated right beside the massive fish tank. Coral, rock, and sand adorned the bottom of the tank, and Ryoga couldn't help but look anxiously as the fish swam about, envying how they could swim in water and not be cursed.
Well, at least he assumed the fish weren't cursed. 'Can a fish drown?' He thought to himself, thinking of the Jusenkyo guide holding up a sign telling a tragic tale of "A poor, poor fish that drowned three thousand years ago!" But his thoughts were interrupted as a glass of water softly clattered in front of him, and Akane was looking at him with a tiny grin.
He took a sip, and it was refreshing, but he wanted to be cautious. Before the waiter could leave, Ryoga called him down, "Hey! Uhm, do you mind bringing hot water to this table?" Akane and the waiter shared the same confused expression. The waiter simply shrugged and made his way back to the kitchen to give the teen his glass.
"Hot water?" Akane tilted her head cutely, as Ryoga fumbled trying to make a believable enough excuse. "You don't want iced water?"
Ryoga snapped his fingers as a lightbulb went off, "They say it's good for digestion! I visited a town—well, I guess I stumbled into a town—in Kurume, and this old priest told me that warm water increases your digestion, it's good for uh..." He rubbed his fluffy hair. "Weight loss."
Akane looked down at herself and blushed, "O-Oh, maybe I should start doing that too!" She sighed as she adjusted her dress and fiddled with her fingers, "I've been slacking on my training lately, it'd be nice to go back into it..." Suddenly, she shook her head, "Stupid, Ranma says my thighs are getting thick! Just who does he think he is?!" She felt her temper rise, before chuckling sheepishly, "Bu-But he's not here, so I guess I shouldn't think about that!" Her voice was more anxious than she expected; she cleared her throat, causing the two of them to sit there awkwardly.
But thankfully, the waiter came before things became unbearable.
"Oh, Ryoga, do you know what you're ordering? I already knew what I wanted." He hadn't even thought about eating, he stuffed his nose in the menu, seeing several pictures of their specialty dishes.
"Man, it all looks so good...Surprise me," he said, handing the menu to the waiter, while Akane smiled, he was so in his head attempting to look cool, that he hadn't even heard what Akane had ordered. Though with insurance on the table and food out of the way, he felt his shoulders slump for the first time that night as he was able to fully relax.
Akane idly conversed with Ryoga—a majority of it was trivial. Kasumi and Dr. Tofu seemed to be meeting with each other more often, Nabiki and Kuno were still getting into their money-driven shenanigans, and Shampoo had recently stopped crashing into the side of the dojo, now instead opting to land through the roof. Nothing out of the ordinary, really. In the back of his mind, Ryoga was diligently remembering the note-taking he took with Ukyo, but it soothed him instead of hindering him, causing him to carry on a rallying conversation without one stutter. Things were great, until...
She asked a very simple question, causing him to backpedal.
"Y'know, I haven't seen P-Chan in about a month or so, have you run into him?" Ryoga took a sip of his ice water as he glanced at his hot water. Akane chuckled cutely, "You two get lost so often, that I'd almost think you and him run into each other sometimes!" It was an innocent joke, but Ryoga clung to both waters so tightly, he could feel the glass cracking under his calloused hands.
"P-P-Chan's fine, last I saw him, he was in Nerima. And you're right, I do run into him, sometimes I give him my bandanas for warmth."
"So that's what that is! I always wondered why you and him always shared that same bandana!" He smirked, her conclusion coming a little too close for comfort.
"Ha, yeah, I'm afraid that if I take him with me, we'd both end up getting more lost!" It was a pretty convincing lie; he almost believed it himself. Akane smirked as she took a sip of her water.
"You're always so kind, Ryoga. Sometimes I really wonder if Ranma would ever show as much compassion as you." He blushed, "I mean sometimes it feels like Ran—" Her sentence was interrupted as a bowl of steaming Miso Ramen clattered in front of them. It was elegantly garnished with a slab of chashu, pepper, and parsley, and Akane's eyes were as big as the bowl. "Ahhh!" She chirped as she tore apart the chopsticks, completely disregarding her previous statement about the pigtailed boy. Ryoga glanced at her, pigging out and staring slightly jealously. He wasn't sure if he was jealous of the food she was eating or the immediate attention she was giving the food.
"That looks pretty good, I wish I had gotten some, too."
"Well, I'm more interested in the noodles, but you can have my chashu cutlet if you'd like!" 'Ch-Chashu? That's pork!' As Akane was cutely eating her noodles, in Ryoga's mind, he pictured her stabbing a little piglet with her chopsticks, and he started sweating bullets.
"Heh, I don't like pork. It's too..." He trailed off, trying to think of a word that would best fit, but nothing ever surfaced. "I mean- what about P-Chan, don't you think he'd be offended?!" Akane stopped scarfing down one of the eggs to hum introspectively.
"Well, he's not here right now, it'll be a secret between us two!" She winked, picking up the cutlet with her chopsticks, "You'll like it, Ryoga, just give it a try."
He was split, just like her chopsticks. Would he rather eat his own kind and become a cannibal—to some extent—to have an indirect kiss with Akane? Or would he pull up his big boy britches and respectfully decline Akane's offer, gaining her respect and laughing it off as some type of allergy? He chose the third option. "I think I have to piss, I'll be back!" He said crudely and loudly, as he noisily slid back in his chair, garnering slight unwanted attention between them.
"Ryoga..." Akane blushed, slightly embarrassed by the eyes staring coldly at her and her crass date.
It took him about ten minutes to find the bathroom, he was in there by himself, and he slammed his hands on the bathroom sink—almost breaking it—glancing longingly into the mirror to see his pointed pupils staring right back at him.
"Alright, Hibiki. You're a man of honor, but you can't just...eat yourself to get a kiss from Akane." He imagined his cursed form, dancing around him, coated in barbecue sauce. "...Can I?" His piggy self started dancing more, as he now had an apple shoved into his tiny mouth, "But, it is Akane." P-Chan got squewed with a pitchfork with a loud squeal, causing Ryoga to shout, himself, and accidentally break the faucet amid his daydreaming. He could see his world shrinking in size, but that didn't stop him from having a squeal heard from around the world.
The sink only had one faucet, and of course, he had to be an idiot and break it. Things were going so well, but of course, he had to have a moral dilemma. It couldn't wait till after he left the bathroom?! He hopped up on top of the sink and got buffeted with the water, it was still cold. He could try and meander to the women's bathroom to change, but that would only cause more trouble.
As Akane was silently picking at her food, she started to get worried about Ryoga's sudden actions. His food was starting to get cold; he was in the bathroom for a weirdly long time for him declaring he only had to piss. "Ew." She said aloud, as she thought about the alternative.
Leaving her disgusting thoughts behind, she glanced at Ryoga's perfectly untouched food. It was Beef Gyū Don, and it was starting to look more appetizing by the passing second. Akane hadn't eaten anything since breakfast, and it was barely breakfast, just a plain bowl of rice. She spent so much time trying to figure out what to wear, she nearly starved herself.
'Maybe a nibble.' She slid his plate over and ate a small bit of his food, causing her to coo. "Mmm!" She said audibly as she took another bite.
'Okay, one more. ... Okay, one more. ... Okay, one more.' ... (for the sake of brevity and not annoying the reader, she did this about twenty more times.)
'Okay, one more.' (Dammit.)
The piglet hung his wet clothing over the stall door in the hopes of it drying, but there was no way he could transform himself back in a timely manner. He grabbed his hamper by the teeth, it plopping onto the floor as he dragged it into the stall and rested it on the hook. Ryoga set his shoes in front of the door to give the illusion of the stall being taken and eventually sauntered out of the bathroom. 'That's right! I've still got my warm water!' Thankfully, he and Akane were sitting a little out of the way from people, so he could walk through mostly undetected.
And so, after a bit of searching, he found the familiar pattern of coral and Akane sitting there, cutely, still stuffing her face. His water was left untouched as he grinned to himself, but he couldn't help but notice Akane's slightly bored expression while she ate, which pained him greatly. 'Don't worry, I'm coming back, but I need a distraction!' Seems like Ryoga's food proved to be a good enough distraction, as he noticed that over half of his food was missing. 'Akane!' He snorted, but then realized his grave error.
Akane jolted upright after hearing the tiny snorting noise, and looked down at the chashu cutlet. "P-P-Chan?" She turned ghostly pale. She was so enamored by the food that Ryoga attempted to snag the water, but as luck would have it...
"Ah! Filthy!" The waiter came, attempting to bus the table, but instead grabbed the little piglet by his left ear. Akane audibly gasped as she saw the waiter holster Ryoga.
"Oh wow...I didn't realize everything was so...fresh."
"That's what you should expect from our establishment, miss. We usually make sure to euthanize the animals before they enter the restaurant, but it seems like somebody didn't get the memo. Excuse me." He scuttled away. Ryoga began squealing, squirming, and making a scene as he wondered why Akane hadn't recognized him, but after a moment, he remembered his wardrobe change.
'Stupid Ukyo got rid of my bandana!'
He was hogtied, sitting on the counter, squealing his lungs out. Flurries of whites were rushing past and around him constantly, but everything seemed to come to a screeching halt when a sharp butcher's knife was stuck into the cutting board to his left. He could see where this was going, and he had to act fast. One of the cooks was ready to put Ryoga out of his misery, but he was able to evade the knife with a swift hop and get his zip ties cut from his ankles.
He squirmed off the counter, landing on the cold checker-tiled floor, trying his damndest to figure out what exactly to do next. The chef, attempting to turn him into cutlets, attempted to grab him, only for Ryoga to bite his legs and run to the end of the kitchen. After getting cornered, he had no choice but to attack the now full kitchen of chefs trying to put him down.
"Come on, piggy, there's a bowl with your name on it. Just submit and you'll die painlessly." Ryoga bit down on his hand, causing the chef to wave his finger around painfully. "Ow! Get him offa me!" The other chefs quickly stopped cornering Ryoga to pull him off the chef's hand, but it didn't seem like they were needed, as the head chef flung Ryoga far into a boiling pot.
"AAAHHHH!" He screamed in agonizing pain as he was not only scorched, but also continuously hopping on the hot stove's fire. Wide eyes stared at him as he landed on the floor, the shockingly cold floor causing him to sigh with relief. "Ahhhh..." he wearily looked at everyone in the kitchen, who then promptly fainted on the ground. "Uh oh." He stripped one of the male chefs naked; he fit his frame well enough, but his touque was too big for his head, covering his eyes. He went to search for another one, but the loud commotion caused several people to bust through the door, and he was standing there like he had just stolen a cookie from the jar. "I-"
"What the hell is going on in here! We need you to bus tables, now!" He was shoved straight out the door and handed a tray with a few bowls on it. "You're going to tables seven and nine near the back! I'm not paying you to stand there and look stupid!"
"Y-You're not paying me at all-" Ryoga said mostly to himself as he was now out in the open. He was wandering around with a stupid smile plastered over his face as he kept trying to push up the hat that wouldn't stay up. Eventually, he figured out where tables seven and nine were, so he dawdled around to he found the girl that he liked. Akane! He perked up with a smile, looked at the table, and saw the number on top of it read '7'. "U-Uh here you go!" He attempted to deepen his voice so Akane couldn't recognize him any further. The big toque was a blessing in disguise, it seemed.
"Thank you so much," she eyed the bowl that Ryoga haphazardly slid in front of her, but her warm smile turned to one of annoyance as she glanced at the chair. "You know, my date's been in the bathroom for an awfully long time. I'm starting to think he stood me up..."
"I wou- *deepened voice* I'm sure he would never stand up someone so pretty like yourself." The fake chef smiled, even though she could barely see it, but what he did see was his meal basically being eaten, all of the plates had crumbs so tiny an ant would starve. "Akane! Why did yo-" He slapped his mouth shut, and Akane looked at him with a tilted head.
"You know me?"
"Uhhh, yeah! We go to Furinkan, I'm in your homeroom!" She examined this mysterious character carefully.
"You must be one of Ranma's other friends, you don't look like Daisuke or Hiroshi." He couldn't formulate a lie fast enough, so he simply bowed and moved on, but his toupee fell off, causing Akane to look up. In a split reaction, he slammed her face into the soup, put his hat back on, and bolted, causing a scene. "What the?! Hey!" Her hair was now drenched in sauce, dripping onto her pretty blouse.
Ryoga retreated to the bathroom, donning his date attire. As he was walking out, he saw Akane fuming right outside of the door. "W-What's wrong, Akane?" He stammered stupidly.
"Th-This!" The disgruntled teen gestured towards her hair, angrily puffing and shouting. "A guy ran in there and this to me! I'm waiting for him to come out, and then I'm giving him a piece of my mind!" Ryoga set a gentle hand on Akane's shoulder.
"I got this." He waltzed back into the bathroom and locked the door behind himself. "Hey, what did you do to Akane out there?!" He spoke animatedly, hoping she could hear him through the door.
"*Deepens voice* I'm sorry, sir, I didn't know what came over me!"
"That's right! Now give Akane a fresh batch of noodles, and apologize to her personally!" 'WHAT AM I SAYING?!'
"No way! She can do it herself, she's gross and ugly and unattractive, just like Ranma told me!" Akane blushed angrily and crossed her arms as she heard that remark.
"You leave me no choice! Bakusai Tenketsu!" A small explosion could be heard from outside the men's bathroom. Out came the "chef" with a black eye, making his way to Akane and bowing, making sure to keep hold of his hat. "I'm sorry, ma'am, I'll make sure to get your food and not on your face this time."
Ryoga didn't fail to notice the smug look plastered on her face, with a grin so cocky it could rival Ranma's. Ryoga went into the kitchen to make the shabbiest noodles he could muster and sat them down at the table. Akane seated herself and stuck her tongue out at him. With a sigh and an icy glare beating him down, he put on his regular date attire and waltzed out of the bathroom, seating himself next to the beautiful Akane Tendo.
"Wow, Ryoga..." She cooed, "What you did was so sweet, you avenged me!" Ryoga had a faint smile, despite the throbbing pain of his self-inflicted black eye. "It looks like he hit you pretty hard..." Akane grimaced, rubbing the hair away from Ryoga's eye to get a closer look at it. "...Are you okay?" She asked, realizing the sudden breach of personal space she was committing.
His blush went away as he sighed longly, looking into her soft, mocha eyes. "I'll live another day, just as long as you're alright, Akane." 'I nearly killed myself for just a sentence of praise?' He started grinning like an idiot, imagining wedding bells blaring in the background, 'So worth it!'
.o.o.o.
Things got back on track, which made Ryoga immensely happy. Their idle chat was back to normal, and Akane hadn't questioned why Ryoga was in the bathroom for so long, thank god. But as Akane started talking about her social life, Ryoga didn't fail to notice her hesitation in mentioning Ranma's name, he paid special attention to this topic. "I don't know...R-Ranma's just been so dodgy lately, and every time I try to talk to him, he's so dismissive." Ryoga hummed to himself, slightly happy for Ranma's incompetence in conveying his feelings—ironic. Though he could feel his smile fade, as he saw Akane's expression darken, to that of sadness, "I've just been worried about the engagement," she continues, playing with the ribbons in her noodle-scented hair. "N-Not like I care about it or anything!" She added quickly, a cherry-red blush creeping onto her face. "I just want to make Daddy proud, but he's been even more immature lately, and hasn't considered my feelings." There was a drawn-out sigh as she remembered the fight they had last week, "Sometimes it ends with either him being flung out of the window, or me crying my eyes out." 'Or in last week's case...both.' Ryoga attempted to say something to console her, but nothing came out but an exhale he didn't know he was holding. "The fights have been getting really bad and..." She fiddles with her fingers. 'I was thinking of breaking off the engagement...' her mind filled in for her, but her mouth couldn't. The words didn't feel right to say.
"Don't worry, Akane, you always know that I'm here to support you, no matter what happens." For possibly the first time in his life, Ryoga said the right thing. He held her hand softly in his and glanced at her lovingly, earning a warm smile and blush from Akane. Even if she was too stubborn to admit it to anybody, that made her heart flutter in a way she hadn't felt in a long time, she felt somewhat ashamed. Ryoga's love was slightly immature in the sense of having more of an infatuation with Akane than a genuine, long-lasting love, but he knew that what he said was the truth. Akane could fall into Jusenkyo and become an abomination worse than Pantyhose Taro, and he'd still welcome her with open arms.
Silence.
A comfortable silence.
The young couple were enjoying their food—well, Akane was enjoying her food, as Ryoga was left with scraps—and there wasn't much said between them since that moment. Akane gave Ryoga several cute glances, but Ryoga was too dense to realize the gesture, thinking she was instead looking elsewhere, but even despite his stupidity, he still enjoyed his time with her; they were rarely alone like this, and for this long too. He'd normally be ecstatic with just fifteen minutes with her, but two whole hours is practically heaven.
Akane broke the silence by clearing her throat, "R-Ryoga ,are you finished? I don't want to be out too late, or else Dad might freak out." She chuckled sheepishly, causing Ryoga to nod.
Well, he knows for certain that he won't ever come back to this place again, unless he wants to somehow cause even more property damage.
Much to Ryoga's shock, Akane had led him to the Tendo Dojo and invited him to stay the night. Ranma and Genma were nowhere to be found, and by the time they got back, everyone had retired for the night, except Soun, who was watching Akane like a hawk from the rooftop. But after some time had passed, the dojo really was...just peaceful. Akane went into the kitchen and got a pitcher of tea for the two of them to drink while staring into the moonlight. Ryoga thought he was dreaming, but when he punched himself, he realized that it wasn't a dream, but an amazing reality!
Once Akane sat down with the tea she had prepared, she glanced at Ryoga, who gave her a wild smile. She returned the smile with a little less intensity. "I had fun today," she spoke sweetly as she cupped her mug, her hands getting warmer from the liquid inside.
"Y-Yeah! I did too." He brushed his hair with his hand and gave her the fanged grin she began to associate with him. They stayed like that for a few more minutes; the silence was deafening for Ryoga, but Akane seemed to revel in it. When was the last time she sat with a friend just looking at the sky? 'Something Ranma and I hadn't done in...' her thoughts abruptly stopped, glancing at her tea again as if it had told her to shut up. Ryoga saw her in his peripheral vision; in a weird way, as if he read her mind.
"So, how are you and Ranma?" Something he'd normally never ask, just the thought of the two of them together destroyed his soul, yet something was telling him. Pleading him to ask it. To poke and prod around, just to see what kind of answer he'd get, and he realized he might've struck gold. For the first time since he had even known her, Akane hadn't blushed when the pigtailed boy's name was mentioned. Her nose crinkled in response to the question. "I remember you saying that you and him got into an argument?" Her smile faded immediately, and Ryoga felt her energy shift from mildly cheerful to nearly depressed. 'Woah...' Ryoga had a tendency to sense depressive ki from others, especially since he was always surrounded by it, but to get something so strong, and from Akane, no less? She set the tea down and looked at the moon wistfully.
"Does your eye hurt?" She purposefully dodged the question. Ryoga took the bait and pressed gently on his eye. It did hurt, but it didn't hurt enough to consider making a fuss over it. He nodded silently, and Akane turned towards him, brushing his bangs out of the way, glancing into his eyes. Even if his eye was slightly swollen, they looked pretty, a warm brown that felt like a cozy cabin in the woods, something to go home to, something to breathe in and enjoy the fresh air. Akane never caught herself as she continued to stare into Ryoga's eyes, getting lost in them. Ryoga was originally going to protest, but he felt entranced looking at hers, somewhat unsure of her next actions.
"Akane," He cleared his throat, blushing slightly. Akane snapped out of her stupor and blushed wildly as she realized what the hell she was doing.
"Ryoga!" She jumped back a few feet, knocking over her tea, she sucked her teeth, "Dang it! I'll clean it up!" She hid her face as she went into the kitchen and grabbed a roll of paper towels. "Ugh, I'm such a klutz!" She smiled as she said it, but Ryoga glanced at her eyes and noticed a world of hurt inside of them, despite her expression. "That was pretty unfeminine of me." Ryoga glanced at her weirdly.
"That doesn't matter Akane, it was just an accident, we both know that." Her face didn't change as she wordlessly wiped up the spill from the hardwood floor. After she had done that, she sat back down. She downed the ounce of tea that was left, and she sat there with a blank expression. The expression was unmoving, and Ryoga put a hand on her shoulder, but the second his hand made contact, her eyes were glossy.
"I think we should go to sleep. It's getting late." She already stood up before Ryoga had a chance at a rebuttal. "You can sleep in his room. He's not here right now." Within seconds, she was already making her way to the stairs, but before Ryoga could catch up to her, she had already slammed her door. He was dumbfounded as he continued to stare at the moon, hoping it could answer his question of—
"What just happened?"