For those of you who were looking forward to an update on tRE, sorry! But I REALLY wanted to write this one-shot first! The next chapter for that will come soon though, I promise! (It's not like I have much else to do during the summer, anyway...)

At any rate, here's my first Ranma fic! I tried my hardest to keep everyone in character, but at a few points they may seem a bit OOC...well, I'll let you guys be the judges of that. I had originally intended this to be a songfic for "Alone" by Celine Dion, but somewhere along the way that just kinda dissolved. There still is a loose connection, though, so do look up the lyrics! I had found that they seemed to fit Akane quite well. ...So, now that I've sufficiently delayed the actual story, enjoy!

Alone
by pikacutie25

Tick, tock.

On normal nights, the rhythmic ticking of the clock in her room served as a nice metronome for Akane to fall asleep to. There was, after all, something comforting in the presence of something so consistent and reliable. Tonight, however, it only served as a constant indication of a certain painful fact as she lay alone in her dark room.

Tick, tock.

No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't stop thinking about him and where he could possibly be at this moment, and as a result she found it increasingly difficult to fall asleep the later it became. She had seemed to be operating under the impression that regardless of what mental state a person was in, she would be able to fall asleep if she was tired enough. Well, Akane certainly felt exhausted, but for once, it wasn't because of physical exertion. She was utterly worn out…emotionally. And anyone who had even a remote grasp of what her life was like could easily guess who was to blame for that.

Tick, tock.

How had it started? Oh, well, that's an easy one, Akane thought to herself bitterly. 99% of the time, it was because of one or more of Ranma's other "fiancées." This time was no different. Except…well, it hadn't ended like it usually did.

They had been peacefully walking along when Shampoo made her usual entrance: crushing Ranma underneath her bike and announcing, "Ni hao, airen!" After managing to get back on his feet, he had muttered something about how he didn't appreciate being run over by a bike every other day. Presenting him with a sizable container, she had continued, "Shampoo have yummy lunch for Ranma!"

Reasonably suspicious of the lunch, Ranma had replied, "Uh…sorry Shampoo, but we—"

"And just what do you think you're doing right outside my restaurant?" Another fiancée had gracefully made her appearance, brandishing her trademark giant spatula. "If Ran-chan's going to be eating anyone's food, it'll be mine!" Ukyo threatened. If my suspicions are correct, Akane had thought gloomily, then…3, 2, 1—

"Ohohoho!" The familiar, irritating laugh had resounded right on cue.

"It's like they all have this weird connection or something, I swear," Akane had remarked to Ranma. He'd nodded in agreement, seeming still in disbelief of what was happening.

"We all know that the only food my darling Ranma-sama should eat is none other than that of Kodachi, the Black Rose!" Kodachi had stepped up, joining the brewing fight that currently consisted only of a three-way glaring contest.

Oh boy, here we go again… Akane had face palmed. "Wait, everyone," she had interceded tactfully, trying to spare the city block of any unnecessary damage, "there's no point to this fight. Ranma and I have already—" The sudden shift of three death glares onto her had instantly weakened her resolve. "…eaten…" she had finished weakly, suddenly terrified.

"You mean to tell me, darling Ranma-sama…" Kodachi had begun menacingly.

"…that you already ate…" Ukyo continued, in the same tone.

"…deadly food from girl who can't cook!?" Shampoo had finished, seeming very upset now. It figured that the one time they could agree on something was when they were bashing Akane.

"Ah, no, I—" Ranma had begun, but Akane, angered by the insult, had cut him off.

"Hey! Whoever said I can't cook!?" Akane had shot back, having unintentionally joined the fight.

"Oh, please!" Kodachi had said dramatically, "I wouldn't eat your cooking if it was the last food on Earth! Ohohoho!"

"Well, who cares what you think!" Akane had huffed angrily. At least I try my best…

"Kodachi girl right, though," Shampoo had continued tauntingly, "only crazy person would ever eat food you make!" By now, a sizable crowd of spectators had gathered, attracted by the unusual scene before them.

"T-that's not true!" Akane had defended herself, with less fire now. I'm getting ganged up on…Ranma, say something!

"Sorry, Akane-chan," Ukyo had joined in solemnly, "but it's true. Anyone who eats your food is signing his death certificate." By this point, Akane had been too thoroughly bashed on all sides to even respond.

"Akane," Ranma had remarked seriously, placing a hand on her shoulder. Ranma? Are you…actually going to defend me…? He paused for a while, putting everyone present in suspense. "…It's no secret to the world that your cooking is as inedible as toxic waste!" He had finished with an idiotic expression on his face.

That had done it. Akane, already hurt from the other insults, crumbled under the weight of the insult from the one person she had expected to defend her. She had hung her head, then managed to say with perfect control, "I see." That was all she could manage before the tears started falling.

"A-Akane?" Ranma had inquired, seeming worried. Is he actually trying to sound like he cares after pulling a stunt like that!?

Completely losing it, Akane had shouted, "Well, if my cooking is so inedible, then you can just go ahead and marry someone who can cook, for all I care! I hate you!" And with that, she had taken off down the street, trying to be anywhere but where Ranma was. She could have sworn she'd heard Ranma calling after her, but she didn't care. Not then.

Now, though… Akane sighed to herself.

After she had run off, she had decided to stay away from home for a while, trying desperately to avoid Ranma. When she finally had returned, he was nowhere to be found. No one in the family knew if he had returned home at some point, as somehow everyone had something to do that day and the house was left unoccupied. She had tried looking for him at all his usual spots, but he seemed to have vanished off the face of the earth.

So that was it. The last she saw of Ranma had been during an argument, and the last thing she had said…"I hate you."

Tick, tock.

Looking back on the day's events, she realized that maybe she overreacted just a tiny bit. What he said was no different from what he usually said, but it was the combination of all the insults thrown her way—and while an entire crowd of people was watching, no less—that had really thrown her over the edge. And all that after what started as a nice day…

Tick, tock.

Ever since the incident at Jusendou, the relationship between the two of them had greatly improved. Sure, they still hadn't completed a successful wedding, and sure, Ranma still denied his feelings for her, but the average number of fights in a week had significantly decreased, and that counted for something, right? They even agreed to go on occasional not-dates together! In fact, that had been how their day had started…

Tick, tock.

They had gone out to a restaurant together for lunch—which their fathers had been more than ecstatic about—and they had honestly enjoyed themselves. The teasing had been kept to a minimum, and it had even felt like…a normal date. Neither had admitted it, of course, but the feeling had still been there. At one point, as they were walking back home, it had almost seemed like something special was about to happen, that one of them was going to say something important, but then…

Tick, tock.

Suddenly feeling irritated, she threw one of her pillows at the unsuspecting clock, effectively knocking it to the other side of the room. Usually, the clock was a welcome, familiar sound, but now it only served as an indication of the ever-increasing time she and Ranma were apart. Before he came into her life, she had always gotten by on her own, somehow making it through daily challenges on nothing but her own strength and willpower. She had never cared for guys—especially the ones who constantly pushed themselves on her—and she had even begun to despise them. That is, until a certain someone entered the picture…

Tick, tock.

Even from the other side of the room, it seemed she could still hear it clearly. It faithfully continued to tick away the time, much to her annoyance at its persistence. It reminded her too much of...

Tick, tock.

…Ranma. At that moment, all the memories came flooding back to her. The day he arrived…yes, the arrival of a gender-changing fiancée had come as more than a surprise to her, and at first, it had indeed been an unwelcome one. Soon, however, it seemed her whole world had flipped upside-down. She suddenly found herself in all kinds of situations—some good, some bad, some just plain weird—and found Ranma to be a central part of it all. She slowly found herself depending on him more and more, especially when she was in a spot of trouble. Normally, she would have told herself to shape up and make herself more self-dependable. But strangely enough, since it was Ranma, she found herself okay with it. He had, after all, become a constant in her life…

Tick, tock.

…as constant as the ticking of that clock…

Tick, tock.

…and only now, while she lay alone in her dark room, did it hit her: she needed him. She…loved him. Suddenly, she wanted to tell him the truth, to tell him how she feels, how she has always felt, regardless of how many times they fought or made fun of each other or made each other's lives more difficult. How he has become such a central part of her life, and how she always wants it to stay that way.

Tick, tock.

…but now she wouldn't get the chance to. With no one to keep her company aside from the ever-ticking clock, she now wished more than ever that she could take back those three ugly words that she had said.

Tick, tock.

Ranma, please come back to me…

Tick, tock.

I can't let it end this way…

Tick, tock.

I need to tell you how I feel…

Knock, knock.

For a moment, Akane thought she had only imagined the soft knocking on the door just now. But when she heard it again—slightly louder this time, and accompanied by a soft, familiar voice speaking her name—she immediately jumped out of bed and dashed to the door. Reaching out to open it, however, she hesitated. What if what I said really hurt him? What if he doesn't want me anymore? What if he only came back to tell me that he's finally decided to be with someone else? What if—

"Akane," Ranma spoke through the door again, interrupting that unpleasant train of thought. With his hearing, he undoubtedly heard her get out of bed and rush to the door. Akane simply remained silent, waiting for him to say what she dreaded he would. "I know what I said today was thoughtless and wrong, and I should have never hurt you like that. I know I can't take back what I said, but I at least want to apologize for it and make it up to you. Please, Akane, open the door," he pleaded.

The apology was sincere enough to Akane (even if he seemed to have struggled through it), but she still wasn't sure what he was going to say next. Saying sorry might only be a prelude to something more serious, after all…but there's no use delaying the inevitable, she decided. Bracing herself, she tentatively opened the door to find herself face-to-face with a worried-looking Ranma who was holding something fairly sizable. Through the dim lighting, she perceived a beautiful bouquet of flowers, giving her temporary hope. However, when she looked more closely at the flowers, she realized that she should feel the exact opposite.

"I-I got these flowers for you. I had to search a hundred different flower shops, but I finally found these, um…what are these called again?"

"Sweet peas," Akane supplied morosely.

"Oh yeah, that's it!" Ranma replied sheepishly. "I know how different flowers have different meanings and all, so I wanted to make sure they were the right ones. They…are the right ones, right?"

"I…guess so, Ranma."

"Hey," he asked, sensing her depression, "what's wrong?"

"N-nothing," she lied. "It's just…well, I didn't think it would end this way. I wouldn't have thought you the type of person to go out of your way and get flowers for an occasion like this, but I guess I was wrong. I suppose I'm partially to blame for this whole thing, for never having said what was always on my mind, but it's too late for that now. I don't blame you for choosing the way you did, so you can leave with no worries."

"Huh? Leave? What are you talking about?" Ranma seemed horribly confused.

Akane, equally confused by his reaction, clarified, "Aren't you leaving? Those sweet peas…they mean goodbye, don't you know…?"

Judging by the way Ranma's jaw dropped to the floor at that moment, she could probably safely assume that wasn't his intention after all. "G-goodbye!? But Uk-chan said they—" he instantly stopped in his tracks, realizing his error. Facepalming, he muttered, "Uk-chan, you…"

"Looks like she told you the wrong meaning for these flowers," Akane stated simply with a sly smile. The look Ranma gave her just then was so priceless, she couldn't help chuckling. "So? What were they supposed to mean?"

"Ah, um…" Ranma struggled to compose himself again. After a bit of a struggle, he finally managed, "Sorry. They mean…'I'm sorry.'" He paused, seeming to think of something to add, then continued, "And…I hope you can forgive me, because…I don't want to see you sad or upset anymore. I'd much rather see you smile any day of the week. Y-you're, um…m-much cuter that way." By now a noticeable blush had formed on his face, which felt just as well-duplicated on her own.

"R-really? The flowers mean all that?" Akane asked shyly. She looked away, unable to meet Ranma's gaze.

"I mean all that." The force of this statement instantly drew her attention back to Ranma, who now had a look of utmost seriousness which was only slightly ruined by the furious blush he still had. Could it be…? "I-I also mean it when I say that no matter how many times we, er…fight, o-or make fun of each other, or make each other's lives more difficult, I still—" he stopped suddenly, apparently just now realizing what he was about to say. "…um. I-I s-still, ah…I still l…lo…GAH! Why can't I say it!?" He never could get past this part…

…so is this it? Are we always going to fall short right here? Right where it counts, right where a single extra word can permanently change things for us? As Akane looked at Ranma who currently appeared to be mentally beating himself up over his cowardice, she made up her mind. No. I won't let it end here, not again! He may have started this, but I'm gonna finish it! In a sudden burst of courage, she took his face in her hands and began closing the distance between them. Seeing the sudden look of shock on his face, her resolve faltered, but before she could change her mind, she closed her eyes and finished what she started.

It didn't last long, and the flowers he still held got in the way a bit, but it was wonderful for their first real kiss. Pulling back, Akane said the words that would seal the deal: "I love you, Ranma."

Encouraged by Akane's words and the kiss they just shared, Ranma finally admitted, without hesitation, "I love you too, Akane." His gaze then fell to the flowers he was still holding, which had somehow stayed perfectly intact after all that. "So, uh, about these flowers…you said they meant goodbye, right?"

"Y-yes…?" Where is he going with this…?

"Well, um, in that case…maybe they mean a…a goodbye to our old, um…status?" Ranma seemed just as confused by what he was saying as Akane was. At the same time though, he seemed hopeful and eager for something. Status…?

…Oh, I see what he's saying. Akane then smiled in comprehension. He was asking for a move forward with their relationship. She didn't even need to think about the answer; she had known it for a long time. She nodded, then said simply, "If that's what you want. Just…don't leave me alone again, okay?"

"Never."

Author's Note: Yay they finally said it! Hopefully that wasn't too sudden, though. I never realized how hard it was to write romance scenes... ._.

In case anybody was confused by the whole flower meaning thing, it's an actual thing in Japan too, just like it is in most of the world. In Japan, it's called "hanakotoba," which basically just means the language of flowers. Several sources I looked up said sweet peas meant goodbye, so that's what I went with!

So anyways, on a final note, this is fully intended to be a one-shot. However, if there is enough demand for a sequel, I could try to flesh this out and make it a multi-chapter story...let me know what you think in a REVIEW!