Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction ❯ School Days ❯ Blind Date...Sort Of ( Chapter 4 )

SCHOOL DAYS

A Ranma fan fiction

By Mitsukai Ashi

 

Summary: Ranma Saotome is a teenaged martial artist attending his third and final year at Furinkan High School. Tall, strong and totally hot, all the girls are in love with him…and he milks it for all it's worth.

Enter Akane Tendo, the new transfer student. Ranma sets his sights on her, but for the first time in his life, he's rejected! Will he ever win over this stubborn girl?

 

Disclaimer: I don't own Ranma, Rumiko Takahashi does and all credits for the existence of Ranma shall go to her. I just write stories about her characters. ^_^

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER FOUR

 

Blind Date…Sort Of

 

 

 

 

Ukyo was wrong. Ranma wasn't able to hold his head up for two weeks, and even then, everyone still had to giggle as he passed by them. And not only had he had his nose broken by a girl, which was shame enough for him, but all the other girls finally began getting over him as well.

“She ruined my reputation!” grumbled Ranma to Ryoga one day about three weeks after the incident. “None of the girls will even look at me anymore, except to make fun of me!”

“So you've given up on Akane?” asked Ryoga.

“Did I ever say that?” said Ranma. “No girl says no to Ranma Saotome like that and gets away with it.”

“You're going to take revenge on her?” asked Ryoga. “That's like asking for a death sentence. She's already broken your nose, why keep after her? Shouldn't you be more worried about finding another girl anyway?”

“No, this is even more important,” said Ranma, and Ryoga gaped at him. Did he just say that going after Akane was more important than finding a new girl? He looked Ranma straight in the eyes scrutinizingly.

“What?”

“Who are you and what have you done with Ranma?” asked Ryoga.

“Lay off, Ryoga,” muttered Ranma. “My pride comes first.”

“But you have less than a year left—”

“Don't you think I know that?!” snapped Ranma. “I'm the one who needs to find a fiancée, Ryoga, not you! So just back off, I know what I'm doing.”

I don't think you do, Ranma, smirked Ryoga silently. I don't think you realize you're falling in love with this girl any more than you realized that she was PMSing that day…

 

* * *

 

Akane, on her part, was feeling a little guilty about the whole thing. She saw Ranma starting to be cast out of the social standing because of what she had done to him and felt terrible.

“Why should it bother you, Akane?” asked Ukyo as they walked to class one morning. “He was asking for it.”

“Well…I mean, it wasn't his fault that I was already in a bad mood that day,” said Akane. “And…well, I just feel bad about it, you know?”

Ukyo stared at Akane. There was no way…

“Akane, do you like him?” she asked.

Akane stared at her friend incredulously. “W-what are you talking about, Ukyo?” she asked. “Of course I don't like Ranma! After everything he's done, and probably will do? Why in hell's name would you think I liked him? That's impossible!”

“A simple `no' would have sufficed,” said Ukyo with a sly grin. “You do like him, don't you?”

“No, I don't!”

You never were able to lie to me sufficiently, Akane, thought Ukyo, but she let the topic drop. Akane would admit it eventually, and then Ukyo would have the gloating of her life.

As they entered the classroom, Ukyo glanced over at Ryoga. She knew he was Ranma's best friend, and the one Ranma would go to about such things. She excused herself from Akane's presence and marched over to the directionless teen.

“I want to talk to you at lunch, Ryoga,” said Ukyo.

“What about?” he asked cautiously.

“Akane and Ranma,” she said bluntly. “Meet me and Shampoo on the…come with us to the roof during lunch,” she said quickly, remembering that he usually got lost on the way to the bathroom, which was right across the hall from their classroom. “Bring Mousse, too.”

He watched her for a moment, as though seizing her up, then nodded in silent agreement. Ukyo smiled as she crossed the room to her seat. She had to confirm this suspicion of hers, but to do so, she would need their help as well.

 

* * *

 

That afternoon when lunched rolled around, Ukyo and Shampoo dashed out of the room before Akane could call to them, quickly followed by Ryoga and Mousse before Ranma noticed. They met up on the roof and sat down in a circle with their lunches.

“So what's this about, Ukyo?” asked Ryoga. “What about Ranma and Akane?”

“Just a few questions,” said Ukyo. “Does Ranma really actually care about Akane? He seems a little more persistent than usual this time.”

The two boys glanced at one another then back at Ukyo and Shampoo. “Why do you need to know that?”

“Why won't you answer?” countered Ukyo.

“Ranma's our friend, Ukyo,” said Mousse. “We're not going to talk about something like that without a good reason.”

Shampoo and Ukyo looked at one another this time, communicating quickly and silently through their looks, then turned back to the boys.

“We think Akane may like Ranma,” admitted Ukyo. “But the thing is she's too damn stubborn to admit it to even us, her best friends. Hell, she may not even admit it to herself. We think it'd be good for her to finally have a boyfriend, and Ranma seems determined to date her.”

“He is,” blurted out Mousse. “If anything, he's desperate to date her. Ranma's never been so bent on one girl.”

“We just don't understand why,” sighed Ryoga. “I think he really does like her…but you've seen how Ranma can be.”

“Is there reason why Ranma need date so much?” asked Shampoo suddenly. Ukyo, Ryoga, and Mousse all looked at her, surprised.

“Shampoo…?” asked Ukyo.

“What makes you say that?” asked Ryoga.

“During Ranma and Akane match, he say he no able to stop dating,” said Shampoo. “As if he need to date lots. Shampoo wanna know why, in case it jeopardize Akane.”

The boys watched Shampoo calculatingly, wondering what they should say. Ryoga finally sighed.

“We…can't tell you that,” said Ryoga. “Ranma swore us to secrecy.”

“But there is a reason behind it?” asked Ukyo.

“Yes,” admitted Mousse. “But it won't bring any harm to Akane, so long as she doesn't find out. If he chooses to tell her, then…well, let's just say Ranma will stop dating altogether.”

The girls exchanged surprised looks, wondering just what it was Ranma was hiding from everyone.

“That aside,” continued Ryoga, “so our best friends may like each other. But what does that matter?”

“Because we're going to set them up for a date,” said Ukyo. “Assuming you guys are willing to cooperate. Are you?”

They hesitated for a moment, Ukyo and Shampoo watching them in anticipation. Ryoga turned to Mousse and they whispered together for a moment, leaving the girls with worry gnawing at the corners of their minds. Then they finally turned back and Mousse said, “Alright, we agree…but only because we know you'd try without our help anyway, and you're going to need it.”

“Great,” said Ukyo. “Now listen up…”

 

* * *

 

Akane walked into a little café later that day, wondering where Ukyo and Shampoo were. They had promised to meet her here, but they were nowhere to be found.

“Akane? Is that you?”

She turned at the sound of the familiar voice and blinked in surprise to find Ranma sitting a couple tables away from where she stood, a cup of coffee in his hands. He didn't seem like a café-type person.

“Ranma…what are you doing here?” she asked, walking over to him but not sitting.

“Ryoga and Mousse were supposed to meet me here, but they aren't here yet,” explained Ranma, looking just as confused as she was. “Were you supposed to meet someone here too?”

“Yeah, Shampoo and Ukyo were supposed to be here…I wonder if this was supposed to be some sort of meeting with all of us or something?” wondered Akane aloud. “They were all gone during lunch today…”

Ranma furrowed his brow and pulled out a slip of paper from his pocket. “They told me to open this when I saw someone I knew,” he said. “Did they give you something like this, too?”

“Yeah, and they said the exact same thing,” said Akane, frowning and pulling out a similar slip of paper. “Should we look?”

“Might as well.”

She unfolded the note, as did he. On both slips of paper was a note, reading:

 

HA HA! HAVE FUN, YOU GUYS!!!

 

Akane stared at her note, rage building up in her stomach. Those little…! They had planned this! They weren't going to get away with it!

“Ranma, tell me something…what does your note say?”

Judging by the fact that his expression was pretty infuriated, she guessed it said the same thing, and sure enough, when he showed her, it did.

“What is this, some sort of blind date or something?” snapped Akane. “When I find those four, I'm gonna…” Too angry to continue, she snatched up her school bag and made to storm out of the door. Ranma, however, reached up and grabbed her arm.

“Wait, Akane!”

She paused, and he said sheepishly, “Why…why don't we? You know, just this once?”

She stared at him. “Me, date with you?” she asked. “Did you not get the message last time?”

“I know, but I…well…”

Then she remembered the last time, how she had broken his nose, how she had felt bad about it ever since. Maybe she did owe him this, if nothing else.

“O…kay,” she said slowly. “I'll…go out with you today. But this is the last time, you got that?”

He looked positively elated, and she actually almost smiled. He released her arm and she lowered himself into the seat opposite his as he ordered another coffee for her.

“So, um…anything you want to talk about?” asked Akane after she was brought her coffee. She cursed herself for not being good at small talk, though judging from what she knew about him, he wasn't either.

“Well, um…” he said slowly, staring down into his cup, “how…how long have you been studying kenpo?”

She relaxed slightly. If it was about martial arts, she could handle anything.

“Since birth, almost,” she said. “Neither of my sisters are interested in inheriting the dojo, but I am, so I've been training as long as I can remember.”

“So you actually enjoy kenpo?” asked Ranma.

“To no end,” she said. “What about you?”

Ranma glanced down. “I love martial arts,” he said. “I'm willing to throw my life away to learn everything I can about it. The thing is, I had no choice in the matter. I would've wanted to anyway, but I'm an only child, so I was automatically assigned to take it over when I graduate.”

“That soon?” asked Akane, surprised. “Why?”

He shrugged, but inside, he was rejoicing. He would have to remember to thank Ryoga and Mousse and the others later. His plan was working!

“My father says it's because they need someone young and strong. My old man isn't nearly as strong as he used to be…and he never really was in the first place,” he realized.

“Does your family have any tradition you have to undergo before you inherit the dojo?” she asked, resting her chin on her hands. “I know some families do…I actually have one as well.”

He swallowed. “Well, uh…yes, I do,” he admitted. “But I can't give away that information to anyone. It's a family secret.”

She nodded in understanding. Many families liked to keep such ceremonies from one another, so she didn't pursue the topic. They continued talking, and Akane was surprised as she began to get to know him. She learned that they had the same favorite color (red); he could actually cook (as opposed to her, who had just recently mastered boiling water without burning herself in the process); his father had taken him on a training trip for 16 years and had to be home-schooled along with it; his favorite food was ramen; and, (though it was quite by accident that she found this out,) he was afraid of cats. She discovered this as they left the café together and as he began walking her home, a cute little kitten had wandered toward them. Akane picked it up and showed it to Ranma, who took off down the street, screaming, “CAT! CAT! CAT! IT'S A SCARY, SCARY CAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT!”

“I'm sorry, Ranma, I didn't realize you were ailurophobic,” she said after finally catching up to him and finding him clinging to a light post in fear.

“I-is it g-gone?” he asked nervously. “P-please say it's g-gone!”

“Don't worry, it's gone,” she said soothingly, holding her hand up to help him down. “I let it go. There's no cat around here, don't worry.”

He relaxed slightly at her gentleness and took her hand, and she helped him down. She quickly released his hand, though, and returned to holding her bag with both hands. He looked down in embarrassment, putting his own hands in his pockets.

“I, uh…I didn't mean for you to see that,” he muttered. “Please, don't tell anyone. If word got out that I'm afraid of cats, my life may as well be over.”

“Don't worry, Ranma,” she said. “I won't tell. It's the warrior's code, right?”

He watched her as she turned and began walking back the way they had come, a warm, light feeling fluttering in his chest. Had she been anyone else, they would have used that secret to their advantage, or told everyone else without a moment's hesitation. But she was willing to keep it secret for him.

Once again, Ranma felt a pang of guilt as he remembered just what it was that he was trying to do. He tried to shake it off; after all, as a martial artist, this was his duty. It didn't matter whether or not he was willing to do this; he had to, no matter what.

“Ranma, you coming?”

He snapped back to reality as she looked back and called to him.

“Yeah, wait up, I'm coming.”

He ran to catch up to her, smiling a little to himself. He was really going to enjoy courting this girl.

In a nearby alley, four students exchanged satisfied looks as Ranma and Akane continued walking together.

 

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(A/N)

 

Alight, sorry for the delay everyone. I lost my writing spirit for a while…everyone seems to hate this story…or rather, the way I write it. And as you could probably tell, I have writer's block at the moment. I hope I get over it soon…I decided to finish this before school starts again, and that doesn't leave much time.

 

As always, no flames please. Just nice reviews.