Disclaimer: I do not own Ranma½. It belongs to Rumiko Takahashi.

"Would you just listen to me this one time?" asked Ranma. He was getting quite exasperated now.

"I said I'm fine," said Akane. "Now stop talking and start walking."

"You're not fine," stated Ranma. And this time, he was right.

The two of them were walking home from school. In gym class that day Ranma had tried to teach Akane how to swim but to no avail. While the entire class, including Miss Hinako, enjoyed a nice show Akane ended up spending the entire class in the water and now she had a fever. And she was not at all 'fine' as she claimed to be. I mean, the short-haired girl couldn't even walk properly. She had to hold onto Ranma's shirt so as to avoid losing her balance and falling down.

"Is there any problem with me holding on to you for balance?" asked Akane. "Then again, why on earth am I asking such a stupid question? Of course it's a problem! Who would want an uncute girl like me…"

"That's not the point!" shouted Ranma cutting her off.

"Oh come one Ranma. Admit it; if I was Shampoo then you wouldn't have had any objections."

Ranma just stared at her. Even when he was trying to be nice Akane just HAD to start arguing. She always had to start talking about his other fiancées.

"What?" asked Akane. "It's the truth isn't it?"

Ranma sighed. "No it's not the truth Akane. And you holding on to my shirt to keep your balance isn't the problem."

"Then what is the problem?"

"Did I ever say that I had any problem?" asked Ranma. "All I ever said is that it would be better if I gave you a piggyback ride. The only reason I wanted to do that is because it's obvious that you're having a hard time walking. So just quit arguing now and let me carry you home."

"Since when did you become so nice?" asked Akane raising an eyebrow.

"I don't know."

"Well I guess it's okay," said Akane slowly.

"So you finally agreed," said Ranma. He picked her up and jumped onto the fence.

"W-Wait!" said Akane. "Why do you have to be on the fence? If we fall down from here…"

Again Ranma cut her off by saying, "Do you trust me?"

"What?" asked Akane confused.

"Do you?"

"Well, yeah."

"Good," said Ranma. "Then you should know that I'll never let you get hurt."

Akane just looked at him. He smiled and then started running. Akane held onto him tight. Her fever surely made her feel weak and uneasy but she was still enjoying the moment. It was during these few times that she could be so close to him. These few times were when she understood that Ranma cared for her.

She loved him and nothing would ever change that. It was true that Ranma was a jerk with an ego the size of Tokyo but he was her jerk. Wait, her? Akane blushed at the thought. But whatever it was, Akane knew that he loved her too. He was horrible with words and she knew that the fact that he had so many his fiancées wasn't really his fault. But Akane knew for sure that at Jusenkyo, Ranma had said that he loved her. She knew it.

On the day of their failed wedding when Akane had said that she had heard him say that he loved her, Ranma never denied it. What he said was, "I'm sure I didn't say it out loud! I didn't! NO WAY!" So that meant that Ranma was sure that he hadn't said it out loud. In other words, Ranma must have at least thought the words, "I love you."

Akane would wait. When Ranma was ready, he would come to her himself and tell her how he felt. That day would certainly come. Until then, Akane would wait. And then she would tell him that she loved him too.

Author's notes: Well there you go; my first Ranma½ fanfic. It's just a short little story which came to my mind. I hope the characters aren't too OOC, especially Ranma. It's just that I think that the boy can actually be nice when he wants to. Well, at least that's what I think.

Please review. Reviews really make my day.