"I am so late!" Akane fretted as she ran down once familiar streets. Her feet padded lightly on the pavement as she expertly maneuvered around barriers and road blocks without ever letting up on her pace, occasionally bouncing off a wall or leaping to a fence momentarily in order to keep from slowing for the general congestion one found at street intersections. The odd looks that the occasional roaming pedestrians gave her only served to remind her that she was far from home. She wasn't so far away that she actually had to leave the city limits, but being on the opposite end of town from her own home, she was just far enough away that the people residing in the general area were unfamiliar with the unusual antics of Ranma and the typical crazies that flitted around him like moths to a flame. It was for this reason that Akane with her typically mundane feats of athleticism was finding herself the center of some rather unfamiliar attention.

"It's not like I'm running along fences or rooftops," she mumbled to herself as she passed a young boy who giggled and beamed up at her, while his embarrassed mother tried in vain to redirect him from the rudeness of pointing. Sure, she could if she wanted to. She did know how. She wasn't as quick or as poised as Ranma, and even she had to admit that she was prone to a certain degree of clumsiness that made such methods of travel somewhat risky. But that wasn't the real reason why she avoided such actions. Unlike Ranma with his bright exotic Chinese clothing, that screamed out like his equally boisterous and obnoxious personality for attention, Akane preferred to be quiet and understated, a conduct that circumstances rarely allowed her to maintain.

She had never tried to be the center of attention. She'd never really enjoyed it either. She didn't want to be the only nail sticking out, destined to be hammered down. Yet there were certain traits she possessed that made her certain to stand out. She had a knack for leadership, much like her sister Nabiki, yet she preferred to use that particular talent to help others, rather than manipulate and con them out of their life savings. She also found it difficult to look the other way when someone was in trouble or upset, something that was slightly unusual amongst her peers. Even those she fought with regularly, she would stand up to defend if circumstances called for her to do so. Plus, her athletic prowess earned her a great deal of popularity in school. But that had all been manageable before Ranma. Before Ranma she had stood out in these ways, yet at the same time she had somehow managed to blend in. She had normal friends in junior high, and had spent many carefree days with them shopping, reading magazines full of fashion articles and giggling and gossiping in hushed tones about the boys that they liked and the relationships that their classmates had formed. It had been in a word, wonderful.

More than Ranma, Kuno had been responsible for shattering that carefree, peaceful existence. His proclamation that anyone who wanted to date her had to first defeat her in combat had ruined any chances she'd ever had for a normal high school career or relationship. She couldn't very well blend and pretend that she wasn't a Martial Artist when numerous boys were fighting her on a daily basis. It wasn't that she wanted to hide that fact about her. Martial Arts were a huge part of who she was, but it didn't make up her entire being. She wanted to be more than that. She wanted something in her unique life to be... Normal.

Then came Ranma, with all the commotion, adventure and general bad luck that surrounded him. She couldn't say that she minded too much. His attention grabbing persona that screamed 'Look at me, look at me,' and oozed confidence and determination was strangely attractive and inviting. It was one of the things that she lo… liked about him. And she was grateful that somehow amidst his chaos she was able to blend once again. Amidst his cloud of pandemonium her mask of normalcy had been free to slip completely, and she found herself falling more and more into her true identity. It had been so strangely comforting.

Yet that night, she found herself torn. Around Ranma, she was considered normal by contrast, but the moment she stepped outside of his range of influence, she found herself standing out once again. And having grown so comfortable with her new-found identity, she found it awkward slipping back into the mask and costume of an average schoolgirl. Yet at the same time, it was comforting, like slipping into cool waters, (shallow waters of course, she wouldn't want to drown). It reminded her of simpler days. Days when she didn't have to worry about being ambushed at the next corner by potential suitors or rivals. Days when she didn't have to fight for her life. Days that she didn't have to fight for the man that she lo… Was engaged to. Days when there was no Ranma.

She turned another corner and glanced down at the unfamiliar loose piece of jewelry hanging around her wrist. Even that pleasing, simple adornment, a silver banded wrist watch that her best friends had bought her as a gift for her 16th birthday, had been locked away in a dark jewelry box. Jewelry only got in the way of someone who constantly had to fight and exchange blows amidst every day interactions, and something that precious, with the three friends' initials engraved on the back was too sentimental to lose. That night she could wear it though. It went well with her tired, dusty mask and costume of Akane Tendo, the normal high school student of slumber parties and girlish ideals.

As she ran along she strained to read the face of the watch as it jiggled around with her movements and let out a long sigh. "I am so late," she whined once more. She had tried so hard to be on time, but just getting out the door had been practically impossible. She was quick to discover that Nabiki had sold the address of Yuka's house to Happosai for a considerable profit and he was preparing to crash her poor friend's slumber party. She would never have discovered this if it wasn't for the fact that the perverted old man had done something rather unusual. He had stolen almost all of her pajamas. Well, that part wasn't so strange, but the fact that he had taken all her perfectly modest and decent ones, leaving only the few skimpy ones given to her as gifts by meddlesome friends and family that she had never actually worn was unusual. A fight had ensued where she had attempted to retrieve the slip of paper with directions to Yuka's house, and a halfway decent pair of her pajamas. She'd chased the small freak around the house for several minutes and had come up with nothing, until Ranma had thankfully stepped in distracting the old man with his normal tactics long enough so Akane could pummel him and retrieve her belongings.

Akane smiled unconsciously at the thought. Ranma... Her knight in... Not so shining armor. He was far too rough around the edges and his metaphorical armor could use some polishing, but whether he ever smoothed out those edges and polished his coat of armor or not she would be happy to take him just the way he was. Her smile wavered slightly as she fully acknowledged that thought. When had she come to prefer a life with him to the normalcy she was currently running towards?

She slowed, as she reached her destination and glanced in the window where she could make out the figures of her friends giggling cheerfully as they sat in the living room, talking, fixing each other's hair, applying makeup and finger nail polish... She sighed, a strange feeling of loss overtaking her. That had been her life once. The life of a carefree teenager that didn't have to worry about fighting, marriage and that heavy word 'forever.' It wasn't necessarily a better life, or one she would trade for her current life, but it had been a good one. She lingered for a moment, standing in the pale light reflected from the window and watched in silence, knowing that even if she entered the house she would still be an outsider looking in on their festivities. She was too detached. She had very little in common with those carefree girls anymore. Yet she could pretend, put up a good act, and she would gladly do just that. After all, it could very well be her last chance to live the life of a normal high schooler.

She'd almost married him, would have married him. She knew far too well what that would've meant. She'd considered it very carefully. She knew she'd be giving up on the life she was now peering at forever, never to return to it again. And yet she'd made that step anyway, without regrets, without any uncertainties. But then there she was again, ready to embrace that life once more, if only for one night. Once she was married there would be no more slumber parties. There'd be a lot of things to give up if she were to say 'I do.'

"Maybe I did decide a little too hastily. Guess Ranma saved me even from that," she sighed, ignoring emotions that were an uncomfortable mixture of disappointment and relief. She chose not to think about it further. After all, that was the very reason she had been looking forward to the evening so much. It was a welcome distraction from the complications of her life.

Deciding against stalling any longer she quietly stepped through the front gate and ran up the cement steps to her friend Yuka's front door. She rapped on the door smartly while simultaneously adjusting her yellow overnight bag so it fell comfortably on her shoulder.

"Coming!" called a voice inside the house, the sound of footsteps growing louder as the owner of the voice grew closer. The door swung open and Akane flinched slightly as the rectangle of light flooded out from the frame, blinding her eyes that had already adjusted to the evening darkness. "Akane!" came Yuka's singsong voice once more as she sauntered outside and draped her arms around the dark haired girl. She giggled gleefully the whole time and Akane found herself slightly bewildered by the sudden hug.

"Happy Birthday!" Yuka giggled.

"Um, it's your birthday, Yuka," Akane responded cautiously.

"It is? Well what do you know! Happy Birthday to me! I should celebrate with a drink."

Akane cocked an eyebrow and started walking inside with her friend. "I think you may have done that already."

"Really? You think so?" Akane giggled softly as she and Yuka made their way into the living room where the rest of the girls were already camped out. "Hey everybody! Look! It's Akane!"

The girls muttered a chorus of hellos, and Akane responded kindly before turning back to her dizzy friend. "Happy 17th, Yuka, I'm sorry I'm so late, but I... Huh?" It was then she noticed that Yuka had already sauntered off and was currently sitting with another friend marveling over the colors in the necklace she was beading.

"No need to worry about that," Sayuri giggled, suddenly appearing beside Akane. "Yuka's so trashed she hardly knows what day it is, let alone the time."

"I've never seen her like this before," Akane mused curiously.

Sayuri frowned and whispered towards her. "It's that no good boyfriend of hers. Or I should say ex-boyfriend. Yamata-san gave her a birthday card saying that although he liked her he thought that maybe they should see other people for a while."

"He broke up with her with a birthday card?" Akane asked incredulously, a little louder than she had intended. She noticed too late her mistake as she heard Yuka burst into a fit of tears.

"Wah! He doesn't love me anymore," Yuka blubbered and Akane flinched quickly making her way to her friend's side.

"Hey, it's okay Yuka! Who needs him anyway?"

"Yeah," Sayuri chimed in. "You can definitely do so much better!"

"Really?"

"Of course!" Both girls insisted.

"And who needs guys anyway," Sayuri continued. "They're all jerks! Right Akane?"

"Huh? Oh, well um... Yeah they... Can be..." she ended lamely.

Sayuri looked at her suspiciously but was interrupted from her thoughts as Yuka began to giggle. "They really can be can't they? And Yamata could be such an idiot too! The other day, when we were on a date, I asked for tea with lemon and he got me lemonade! Can you imagine? I mean it's as if he doesn't listen to me at all!"

Sayuri and the other girls giggled. Akane looked confused. "What's the big deal with that?" she wondered. It was an honest mistake. Over time she'd learned to be patient with little things like that in her own relationship, if she could call it that, with Ranma. Obviously Yuka and the rest of the girls hadn't been in relationships long enough to know that. But then Akane knew Ranma would never be insensitive enough to break up with her through a birthday card. He could be rather dense at times, but she was sure he wouldn't do that.

"But there are good things about guys too," Yuka continued in a dreamy tone. This caused several girls to nod emphatically. "Last week, we went to this movie together, and he paid for my ticket AND some popcorn!"

"Aah, that's so nice. I'm lucky if my boyfriend pays his own way on our dates! He really doesn't have much spending money," a girl that Akane recognized from their class muttered.

Another girl with long curly hair smiled confidently. "Last month, Honda-san bought me roses for our 3 month anniversary."

Several of the other girls squealed in excitement. Akane merely watched their exchanges, unsure of what to say or do.

"Oh that reminds me," Sayuri asked the girl with the curly hair. "Mika-chan, I've been meaning to ask, how did you and Honda-san get together anyway?"

The girl, Mika, wasn't in their class, and Akane didn't recognize her from school, so Akane was surprised that her friend Sayuri seemed to be on pretty good terms with her to ask such a personal question. She frowned to herself, realizing that her friends must have made a lot of new acquaintances in her absence. She hadn't been around much.

Mika was blushing as she told the story of how she had made her boyfriend a special chocolate for Valentine's Day and confessed and how he had agreed to be her boyfriend. A chorus of 'Ahs' filled the room and Akane listened absently to the conversations the girls shared as she settled on the floor against a couch, content to flip through an old photo album of Yuka's with many tiny colorful purikura sticker pictures filling up each page. She remembered the countless hours and yen they would spend back in previous years posing for the silly photos and decorating them with the programmed borders and images the machine offered before printing out the tiny stickers that they would split amongst themselves. She flipped another page to find a full length picture of Yuka, Sayuri and a long haired girl she vaguely recognized as herself.

She stared in amazement, finding it unbelievable that the girl she was staring at differed so much from the girl she was now. It wasn't just that she was wearing a junior high school uniform as opposed to her normal blue Furinkan jumper. Nor was it the fact that her hair was long and tied with a yellow ribbon. There was something different in the eyes. She saw in those carefree, vacant eyes nothing of the experience and knowledge life had taught her of over the past year. Instead of the strong, opinionated, determined woman she considered herself now, she saw a naive, childish girl that thought of nothing but Martial Arts and shopping excursions. There was no hint of a thought regarding life, death, or love.

"What about you Akane?"

"Huh?" Akane stuttered looking up suddenly. "What's up?"

The girls giggled at her, surprised to catch her off guard. "You and Ranma. Surely you have some juicy stories to tell?"

"Yeah! You two are engaged, right?"

Akane frowned. She'd really hoped she'd be able to avoid talking and thinking about Ranma, at least for one night. "It's... Complicated," she muttered hoping that statement would be the last on the subject.

"Oh come on! Surely you two have been on quite a few dates, right?"

Akane winced, the question hitting a sore spot within her. "It's... Complicated," she muttered again unable to think of much else to say on the subject.

"But you've kissed right?"

She blushed frantically, and began to stammer yet another answer to an awkward imposing question. "Well... Like I said, it's... Complicated."

Suddenly laughter filled the air and Akane looked at the curly haired girl, Mika. "You mean to tell us that you're almost seventeen, living with a boy that you're engaged to and yet you still have never kissed a single guy? We assumed you'd be farther along than all of us Akane. And yet it appears you're the late bloomer of the group."

A few more snickers filled the room. Akane's eyes narrowed and her lips pursed into a thin line. She decided she really didn't like the new girl, Mika. After all, they were complete strangers, and the girl was already talking down to her, and passing judgment on her relationship with Ranma. She received enough lip about her relationship with him from other people in her life; she didn't feel the need to hear opinions from a perfect stranger. She was about to give the girl a piece of her mind, but unfortunately the other girls were too caught up in the current gossip pertaining to Akane's love life to let her get a word of her own in on the subject.

"You really haven't kissed him yet, Akane?" Yuka asked in disbelief.

"And you were about ready to marry him? Oh Akane!" Sayuri giggled. "You have such a long way to go."

Akane stared at her friends, chuckling harshly and felt her temper begin to flare. "Now hold on just a minute! So what if we haven't kissed? There's a lot more to a relationship than those kinds of things!" Akane defended heatedly.

"Uh huh, sure Akane," Yuka giggled, tears streaming from her eyes in her mirth. "Whatever you say!"

"It's true!" Akane continued. "What about mutual interests, and respect, and friendship!"

The girls looked at each other with knowing grins. "Those things are all nice too, but..."

"I mean sure you get guys to treat you to sweets and hold your hand and be all mushy with you but you've got a lot to learn if you think that's a relationship! Would any of your guys go way out of their way to retrieve something you'd lost, or eat your cooking knowing it was going to be really bad? Would they still stick around, even after seeing you on your worst day? Would they forgive you for doing something stupid? Would they apologize for doing something stupid themselves and go to great lengths to get you to forgive them? Would your relationships even be able to withstand a real fight? Or would they fight to protect you? Would they kill for you? Would they die for you?"

The girls looked around at each other nervously, but Akane paid them no mind, continuing on her tirade instead. "I mean sure, Ranma and I may not have the perfect relationship, but at least we've been through enough to know what being in a real relationship means. It's not just about kissing and dating and whatever gifts he might give you. It's about being there for each other, and putting the other person's feelings before your own, and trusting in each other and working together as a team!"

Silence filled the room and Akane almost smiled at the pensive looks the girls all seemed to share. Akane began to feel rather proud of herself for getting through to them. But that was the point when the annoying curly haired Mika decided to speak up again.

"But Akane, I heard Ranma had three other fiancés. Is that true?"

Akane sighed, and hung her head in defeat. "It's... Complicated..."

"They'll never understand," Akane muttered to herself as she exited the house and made her way out onto the small porch. "Stupid Mika. How's she know so much about my life anyway?"

She flipped open the small photo album clutched in her hand once more. Past the page of the full sized picture of her and her two closest friends, there were more purikura montage pages. At first Akane continued to appear in the majority of them, but then slowly she saw her face in the photos less and less. The pictures turned into photos of Yuka and Sayuri primarily, with the occasional random friend making a cameo appearance. But then there was Mika, standing out as the center of attention in most photos that all appeared to have been taken over the past few months. Akane sighed. "It's not enough she has to know all the details about my current life, she has to take my place in my previous life as well." Laughter echoed inside the house, and Mika's high pitched soprano rose above the giggles as she continued a story she had been relating.

"Guess I'm nothing but the current gossip these days." Akane disdainfully stepped further out onto the porch, distancing herself from her friends even more and took a seat on the front steps, staring out into the night, watching the street for the occasional pedestrian passing by in the late night hours. She felt rather disillusioned in that moment. All she'd wanted was a night away, where she didn't have to fight with anyone, or defend someone's honor or even think of her stupid fiancé. But unfortunately there was just no escaping the influence of Ranma Saotome. Wherever she went some aspect of him followed her, even to girly slumber parties on the opposite end of town where perfect strangers passed a critical eye down on their very relationship.

And the most surprising discovery of all was that she didn't mind at all. Admittedly the teasing and taunting that the girls mercilessly rained down upon her was a little annoying. But the thoughts of Ranma were far from unwelcome. Even before the girls had broached the topic of her fiancé, she'd found her mind constantly drifting to random thoughts about him. What would he be doing that night? Was he thinking about her? Did he miss her? Was he mad at her for sneaking out without saying goodbye? She'd left quietly in order to avoid Happosai, not Ranma, but still, it bothered her that she'd left so abruptly. Did he even care though? Did he even notice she'd gone?

She chewed her lip, awkwardly digesting the realization that she spent a large amount of time thinking about him, often without even realizing it. It was simply natural to her because he was such an integral part of her life. It was hard to find anything in her life that was hers and hers alone. And for reasons she had not fully admitted, even to herself, she didn't want that to change. Ever. The truth was harder to avoid now. She'd worn the frilly white dress, applied her own makeup, put flowers in her hair… She'd wanted to marry him. If she could admit that, then surely she could admit that there was a reason. A reason that they both skirted around on a daily basis but never actually addressed.

Love.

She loved him.

And now, on the eve of what would have been their one month wedding anniversary, half way across town, alone, in the pale moonlight, she realized something else.

She missed him. He was the only one she wanted to be with at that very moment. Because she was sad, and feeling lost, and somehow a part of her knew that he was the only one that could make her feel better. She needed to see him, needed to know that the silly girls in her once best friend's house were wrong. They didn't know anything about love and sacrifice and what it took to make a real relationship. She needed to feel like her relationship with Ranma was unique. Special. Mature. Despite the fact that they were hopelessly immature and unable to be frank and honest about their feelings, there was something more to them. A completeness, a companionship, a feeling of rightness when they were together.

Or maybe she just missed him, because despite all her mature words and belief that she was ready for marriage, there was a part of her that was still just a young girl in love with a crazy crush that made her incapable of spending a day away from the object of her affection without wishing he was near. "But that's just me," she whispered sadly. "I'm being ridiculous. He probably doesn't even care that I'm not around. Still… I wonder what he's doing tonight?"

And then suddenly, quite unexpectedly she found the answer to her question where she least expected. The answer was literally right in front of her. He had appeared, so abruptly and out of nowhere that she considered for a moment the possibility that she had conjured him up out of thin air from her own imagination. But then if she had she wouldn't have seen him in the way he currently appeared.

He was on the sidewalk, not a fence, and he appeared so lost and out of place that for a moment she hadn't recognized him. He was definitely out of his element, a man on an awkward mission, walking down an unfamiliar street, a scrap of paper in his hands that he kept turning over and squinting at. "I think this is the right house," he muttered under his breath as he stared at the paper and then glanced to the house in front of him. She watched as he hesitated, looked left and right guiltily, then when he was sure no one was looking trudged up to the house, only to stop halfway up the path and just as suddenly turn around and walk back out the front gate with quick, determined steps.

"Forget this! I…" He had already gotten a few houses away before he stopped again. He breathed out and in, straightened his shoulders, turned and marched up to the gate of the same house… Then veered to the side and continued walking past the house, pretending as if he had no intention of heading towards it.

"This is stupid, if anyone were to see me, I'd look like a complete idiot…" he muttered, before looking back at the house. "Maybe I can just leave it on the doorstep and have Kasumi call or something…"

He nodded, clearly deciding upon that course of action and crept up to the house, this time making it all the way to the steps before Akane's laughter interrupted him.

"What are you doing?" she asked in a jovial tone.

His head shot up and he spun to look at her, leaning over the porch railing of the house next to the one he stood in front of. He sheepishly looked back to the paper, then to the address on the door. "1326. Isn't this your friend's house?" he asked pointing at the door.

"No," Akane giggled. "Nabiki's eights sometimes look like sixes. It's 1328. Over here," she gestured with a jerk of her head.

"Ah," he said simply with a nod. He slipped the paper in his pocket, and then turned. A hop, step and a jump and he landed expertly crouched on the railing of Yuka's porch, facing Akane. "Hey," he said simply.

"Hi," she smiled. She was doing a lot of that, and couldn't quite figure out why. Maybe it was the fact that he had appeared right when she wanted him to, as if he had somehow known she missed him. Or maybe it was because she had witnessed something he hadn't wanted her to see. She had caught him off guard, which was a rare accomplishment. Before she voiced her presence, he had seemed hesitant to knock on the door, which was consequently the wrong door. For a moment he had been the awkward clumsy one, but upon being discovered he'd suddenly started acting like his usual confident, cool self. It was almost as if he was trying to make himself look good in her eyes. That somehow amused her.

"So…" she began slowly. "What are you doing here?"

"I uh... Kasumi asked me to bring you your toothbrush," he said producing a miniature plastic overnight bag that she recognized as the one she had packed her toothbrush and toothpaste in along with a few other things she thought she would have needed for the slumber party. "It must've fallen out of your bag earlier before with the commotion and all..."

Ranma trailed off feeling silly with his explanation. However, he was rather pleased that he hadn't rambled off some excuse about how she was forgetful and klutzy or that she had left the small bag on purpose so he'd have to come after her. Actually he secretly wished the last was true although he knew perfectly well it wasn't. Akane had never been one for such games.

Akane looked down at the small bag he held and took it from him gently her eyes searching for his in bewilderment. "You... You came all the way out here to bring me... My toothbrush?" She asked in an awed voice. To her it was so incredibly touching and sweet and un-Ranma-like.

"I wanted to see you," he answered in his mind alone. Ever since Jusendo he found he grew apprehensive whenever she was away for very long. He told himself it was just because he was worried about her safety. Her almost dying had scared the heck out of him and to his extreme horror he found that sometimes when he looked at her reality would shift and grow bleak. To him she would appear pale, and her eyes would be closed and she wouldn't be breathing and he had to shake himself to dispel the horrible image of her lifeless. He'd told himself he grew anxious when she was away for that reason alone. It was because he feared for her safety and was haunted until he could see her and prove to his panicked brain that she was okay. But the truth was... He missed her. He didn't like being away from her, even if it was just for one night. He didn't like that she had run off and left him to be with her friends. He especially didn't like that she had seemed to do so in order to get a break from him and the craziness that surrounded their life together. Actually, he couldn't blame her for wanting a little peace and quiet and a brief moment of normalcy. He just wished she didn't have to be away from him to get it. He wished that he could somehow be a part of that moment. That being with him and him alone would bring her some happiness rather than apprehension.

But he was sure it didn't, and that was why she had left him. Even though it concerned him, he knew he had no right to object. He couldn't keep her always. She wasn't his.

"At least not yet..."

"Dang," he muttered in his thoughts. "I should've married her..."

She still looked at him, a touched and hopeful soft expression in her eyes and he wished he could hold her in his arms as he whispered those untold truths to her. For a second he swayed, leaning towards her ever so slightly and for a moment he swore he saw her eyes fixating on his lips before closing halfway. But fear and habit kept him back and instead he shrugged, moving away once again.

"Nothing better to do. Besides, I wanted to make sure Happosai hadn't found his way here to bother your friends."

He thought she looked briefly disappointed for some odd reason, but then she smiled again at his words. "You were worried about me?"

"You? No, of course not. I was worried about him terrorizing your friends." He bit his tongue, wishing he could take the statement back. Things had after all been going well up until that moment.

Fortunately she only gave a little short laugh and smiled at him. "Thank you Ranma," she said in a soft, genuine voice. "It was very thoughtful of you to come."

He swallowed and his face began to flush slightly. It was back. That weird awkward tension between them. They'd moved into a state of limbo. They didn't hate each other anymore, that was for sure, and they both knew that there was something between them, but so far no one had made a move to admit to it. They were friends and fiancés and something in the middle of those two definitions, and at the same time something more. Their relationship was one that was undefined, and in a word, 'complicated.' Perhaps that was what truly made it awkward. They couldn't go back, but neither was sure how to move forward and make the first move into the unknown. It made every moment they spent together tense and he felt that around her his senses were always on high alert, because he knew that any moment could be the moment that things changed… Forever.

He wasn't sure he was ready for that. But he wanted to be. Because there was something there between them. He knew it, she knew it, most of Nerima knew it. And he also knew that at some point he was going to have to do something about it. He stared at her face drenched in the moonlight and swallowed hard.

He was definitely going to have to do something about it…

But not that night.

He stepped back with more than a fair share of reluctance. Maybe that night was not the right night after all.

"Yeah well ok then," he said in a miserable tone. "I'm gonna go. Have fun…" As soon as the words had left his mouth he leapt off the railing and swiftly began walking away not even waiting for her reply.

She watched him for a moment, the smile not leaving her lips as she thought of the simple yet unbelievably touching gesture he had made. "Yep," she sighed pleasantly. "There's definitely something special there. I bet Mika's boyfriend wouldn't come all the way out here to bring her a toothbrush!" she giggled ruefully at the thought of making the curly haired girl jealous.

Still, she felt a bit of disappointment and frustration at seeing him go. She knew it too. There was a palpable hesitancy between them, as if they were always daring the other to make the first move. They were always on edge knowing that it could happen at any moment, and then things would be different forever. And yet they were both too stubborn to make the first move and instead were always waiting for the other person to do it. She sighed. "I wish things weren't so complicated."

But then as she watched him go, a thought occurred to her, and as she listened to the girls giggling inside the house. A part of her envied them and their simple uncomplicated relationships. "I wonder…" she whispered out loud, a sudden wave of curiosity overtaking her. "Maybe things don't have to be so 'complicated' after all?"

After all, it was true what she had said to the girls before. There was more to a relationship than flirting, and dating and… Kissing…

Akane suddenly perked up in realization. "Wait a minute! Kissing…" A thoughtful expression suddenly crossed her face as she glanced towards Ranma's diminishing figure. "Did he almost…" she trailed off, a strange feeling of confusion overwhelming her. She'd never really given much thought to those kinds of things. She'd looked down on her friends for obsessing over them. But for a moment she'd thought he was about to kiss her, and she realized then that she had wanted him to. The giggles from within the house caught her attention once more, and Akane suddenly decided that it was about time she figured out what it was they were always fussing about. A sudden wave of curiosity had overtaken her, and she chewed her lip indecisively for only a moment. "I wonder… Maybe things don't have to be so 'complicated' after all?"

Ranma kicked at a pebble in agitation as he trudged down the street. "Feh! Well that sure was a waste of time. All the way out here to see that un-cute tomboy and all I get is a stupid thank yo-"

As if on cue he heard rapid footsteps pounding on the pavement behind him. "Ranma!" Akane shouted, and he flinched involuntarily in response.

"Uh oh. Must have heard me," he thought as he spun back around and prepared to face her and defend himself. "Look Akane I just meant that I..."

He blinked in surprise, stunned to find a girl suddenly in his arms. After he left she'd run after him only to end her sprint by flinging her arms around his neck. He stumbled backwards slightly by the force of the impact and his arms automatically went up to hold her loosely, if only to brace her weight against him. But a moment later he knew it was more than that, and he felt his arms wrapping around her back and waist in response, his defenses momentarily forgotten. There was something about the other side of town. No pushy fathers, no crazy suitors or rivals, just him and the girl he lo…

Well, whatever it was, he didn't feel the need to maintain that wall around him that warded off any advances of any kind from the crazy tomboy. Not that she made advances, but there were a few times before, where they had been close, and something was about to happen and one of them had ruined it out of sheer awkwardness or fear. Or it was someone else that had come along to interrupt them. That happened more often than not. But at that particular moment the closest would be interferer was more than a half a mile away. It was only the two of them… And he had no intention of ruining the rare opportunity that had presented itself.

His grip around her tightened slightly at the thought, and she tilted her head back, their eyes meeting briefly before both pairs fluttered shut and Akane's lips brushed his own in a short, chaste, world altering kiss that left his mind foggy and useless to any thoughts not relating to the girl in his arms.

It surprised them both how natural and simple it seemed, and neither could remember why they had ever waited so long. Now that the first move had been made and was over and done with, it seemed so silly, their reasons for not doing it before.

Eventually Akane loosened her arms and slid them from around his neck to rest lightly on his shoulders as she pulled away and slowly raised her eyes to meet his own hesitantly. Uncertain, embarrassed soft caramel met stunned electrifying blue, and they held each other's gaze for a moment until his mouth, slightly agape in his surprise slid into a goofy dazed grin. In response her cheeks took on an attractive rosy hue and her embarrassment suddenly too much to bear she turned and ran back to the house calling back at him with a short wave. "Goodnight Ranma!"

He mechanically lifted a hand to wave back at her in response, and he smiled. "Night Akane," he whispered. She entered the house and leaned up against the door after closing it, grinning like a maniac, as she brushed a finger against her lips. Her friends giggled about something in the next room and she smiled genuinely. She suddenly felt as if she had something in common with them after all, and she had to admit, they'd been right. There definitely was something wonderful about kissing the boy that she… Loved.

And as Ranma watched her disappear into the house, he couldn't help thinking that he'd been wrong. The trip hadn't been a waste of time after all.

~ Owari ~

A/N: Yet another oneshot. Seems like this is all I want to write lately. I should really try and work on some of my chapter stories, but it seems like overall my oneshots get more reviews! So hey, if you want more of these please review this one! And if you'd rather I update my chapter stories, go review those! :-p I also have a poll going on my profile regarding which story you all want me to work on the most. Please consider voting! Doing more oneshots is an option!

Anyway, I've had this story mostly completed for way over a month, but I kept going back and tweaking little things about it here and there. I'm kind of tired of the routine and the story to be honest, so I figured I should just post it and be done with it. I like it, or at least I used to like it, but overall I spent way too much time on it I think. Oh well. Please let me know your thoughts! I love reviews!

Thanks for reading! If you like this story, try some of my other ones. I suggest Missing You (which is complete) since it has a similar feel and in a lot of ways is much better and more satisfying. If you like cheesy romance stories that is.

~ C ~