Chapter 11

"Hi, Mom. We’re back." Ranma kissed his mother on the cheek while she stirred some soup in a large pot on the stove.

"How did it go with Ukyo today?" she asked, continuing her stirring.

"Fine, Shay-chan helped her find a good computer for a reasonable amount of money, set it up for her and taught her the basics." Ranma leaned over the pot and inhaled deeply. "Mmm, that smells really good." He reached for a spoon and was about to sample some but got a sharp rap on the knuckles for his trouble.

"Akane called while you were out."

"She did? What did she say?" Ranma said with a casualness he did not feel.

"She wanted to make sure you’d arrived safely and if she could come to see you tomorrow." Nodoka calmly tasted the soup and added a pinch more salt.

See her tomorrow. Ranma hadn’t seen his former fiancée in over a year now and wasn’t sure how he felt about seeing her again. Sure, he was planning on going to the wedding, but there would be a lot of people there, various aunts, uncles, cousins and friends. That would be a different Akane, grown up, not the girl he used to love. But to see her tomorrow, before the wedding, would be different somehow. "I guess I’d better give her a call back."

He left the kitchen and went into the living room, where the phone was. Shayla was sitting next to his dad, trying to make sense out of a Japanese show where it looked like two chefs were locked in mortal cooking combat. "What’s up?" she asked when she heard him come in the room.

"Mom said Akane called. She wants to get together tomorrow. Would you mind?"

"No, I guess not. Depends on what you’re getting together to do and if I’m invited," she smiled.

"Hm. You’ll be invited, don’t worry," Ranma smiled back. He quickly dialed the Tendo’s number and listened to the ring.

"Hello, Tendo residence," came a voice. Kasumi’s voice.

"Kasumi!"

"Ranma? Hello, how are you? It’s so good to hear you!" Kasumi exclaimed.

"I’m fine, how are you? Your dad?"

"We’re all fine!" Kasumi asked him how he liked America and how his studies were going and other small things, which he patiently answered before asking if Akane were available. "Hold on a moment, I will get her for you. So good to hear you again, Ranma!"

He heard the phone being put down and some sounds of voices he couldn’t quite make out. In another moment, the sound of the phone being picked up and Akane’s voice. "Ranma?"

**

She’d sounded exactly the same as the last time they’d exchanged words, on the day she told him she was ending the engagement to continue her relationship with Shinnosuke. Ranma turned over restlessly in his futon and rested his chin on his hands. They’d agreed to meet for lunch tomorrow and she stressed that Shayla was invited, but Ranma was still nervous about meeting his former fiancée.

They had talked of inconsequential things over the phone, he told her a little bit about school in the United States, she told him about the university courses she was taking, news about former classmates and teachers, but neither one of them mentioned Shinnosuke, the curse, or the upcoming wedding. Shayla had seemed to have no problem with the lunch date and was delighted to be asked along, asking lots of questions about the place they were going to. Dinner had been quiet, Ranma was still distracted about the next day and Nodoka had scowled his father into submission after Genma made a play for his pickle. Afterwards, Ranma had given Shayla a few more Japanese lessons and, having had a busy day, she went to bed soon after.

Now he was alone with his thoughts on the futon he’d set up in the living room. He’d found out that once you get used to sleeping with someone, sleeping alone is hard to get used to. He heard Genma’s loud snore from down the hall and decided, ‘What the hell, they’re asleep, I’ll get up early, no one will find out.’ He quietly got up and padded down the hall to his old room, quietly opening the door.

Shayla was fast asleep, burrowed under the thick quilts Nodoka had piled on top of her and Ranma slipped quietly in, chilled from the short trip from his futon to hers. Almost instinctively, Shayla turned to face him, mumbling quietly. "Sshh, Shay-chan, it’s just me," he whispered in response, wrapping his arms around her. Soon, they were both asleep, Ranma’s thoughts leaving him alone for the moment.

Rising early as was her habit, Nodoka quietly opened the door to look in on their guest. Not surprised to see not one but two heads above the quilt, she smiled and closed the door. No, Shayla was not Japanese, but maybe she was just right for her son.

**

Ranma looked around at the faces in the crowded restaurant, trying to find Akane, wondering if he would recognize her. "Maybe she’s not here yet," Shayla ventured at his side.

"There she is," Ranma said moving toward a girl seated at a table by a window. Shayla saw a girl with shoulder length dark hair wearing a yellow sweater layered with a white turtleneck that smiled widely at their approach.

Akane stood up when they came to the table and awkwardly hugged Ranma, who hugged back just as awkwardly. Unsure of what to do, Shayla just kind of waved and said hello before sitting down. Ranma and Akane spoke quickly in Japanese for a moment and Ranma asked, "Do you mind if we speak English? I know you like to practice."

"Of course," Akane said, reaching a hand over the table to shake hands with Shayla. "I’m Akane Tendo, as you’ve probably already guessed," she said with a smile.

"Hi. I’m Shayla Stevens," Shay said, mentally adding the ‘Ranma’s girlfriend' part. They sat quietly for a few moments, adjusting napkins, fingering menus and Shayla was relieved to see the forks and spoons she was used to. She could get food to her mouth with chopsticks, but not as reliably as she’d like.

"So," Ranma began, "you look different. Your hair."

Akane raised her hand self-consciously and touched the black locks. "Yeah. I got tired of the really short hair. Shin likes it longer." Akane paused for a moment before saying, "You look different too. You don’t wear the Chinese clothes anymore."

Ranma looked down at his shirt, another polo and gave a short laugh. "Yeah, that’s what Ukyo said too."

"Ukyo? When did you see her?" Akane asked, eyes narrowing just a bit.

"Yesterday. She came by the house. She wanted Shay-chan to help her buy a computer." Shayla knew of the old rivalry between Akane and Ukyo and hoped Akane was not going to get angry. Ranma had told her a little about how angry Akane could get and Shayla felt she could happily live her life without ever seeing her really pissed. Fortunately, a waiter chose that moment to make an appearance. Caught off guard, they fumbled for their menus and Ranma helped Shayla pick out some tempura chicken and vegetables.

The silence left by the absence of the waiter was unbearable for Shayla and she ran through ways in her mind to break it, ultimately unsuccessful and sat silently with Ranma and Akane. Finally, Ranma spoke up. "So, are you excited about getting married?"

Akane nodded and said, "Yes, I am. I think I’m ready. . . this time."

"I thought you didn’t want to get married until you were finished with school."

"That was a long time ago, Ranma. I’ve changed. I think I’m ready. Shin’s ready. We want to be together." To Shayla it seemed like she was almost pleading with Ranma to believe her, to accept her marriage to another man. And Shayla found she had no problem with that.

"Well, that’s good to hear, I suppose," Ranma smiled and sipped some Coke, lapsing into silence once more. He felt so out of place here and it was making him nervous. He wanted to ask Akane why she invited him to the wedding, why she wanted to go out to this ridiculous lunch with him, why she rejected him, but he could not formulate the words and sat helplessly, almost wishing for Shampoo or Ryoga or Mousse or anyone to descend on him with some ridiculous challenge, just like the old days.

"So, Akane, you guys used to be engaged, right?" he heard Shayla asking and with a morbid fascination, waited for the next question he knew she would ask. It was like waiting for the train to crash. "So if you broke off your engagement, why did you invite him to your wedding?"

Ranma shifted his eyes to Akane’s face, waiting for her response, thinking, ‘Yeah, why?’ She looked completely taken aback and fiddled with her fork before answering.

"I was hoping we could be friends again," she said quietly, looking down at the tablecloth, her index finger tracing little patterns in the weave. To Ranma, she looked so lost, he wasn't sure what he should do, so he just sat there, thinking about what she'd said. She raised her eyes to look at him, and he was reminded of the sixteen-year-old girl who had asked him if he wanted to be friends. Granted, she hadn't known he was a he at the time, but it still reminded him of that time.

He took a deep breath and said, "Akane, I…so much has happened, uh…" He fumbled for more words and found none, but was saved, temporarily, by the waiter bringing their orders. They thanked the waiter and when he was gone, Ranma started again, more confident this time.

"Akane, you were once the most important thing in the world to me," he began, looking straight at her, not letting her break his gaze. "When you broke off the engagement, I wanted to die." He glanced at Shayla and saw she was sitting quietly, watching him, but not offering any help. He turned back to Akane and she was still looking at him. Ranma could see she was not glowing, so he took that as a good thing. "But now I have a new life, new friends and Shay-chan." He reached for her hand under the table and squeezed, smiling a little at the answering squeeze. "Seeing you again is something I never thought I'd do, but here I am, having lunch in this restaurant." He paused for a moment and went on, "Akane, I think we can start to be friends, finally."

Akane smiled, more relieved than she wanted to admit. "Ranma, we have totally different lives now, we're different people." She looked down, finding his gaze a little disconcerting now that she was on the spot. She'd forgotten how blue his eyes could be. "I've moved on now, I'm hoping you can too." Akane smiled a little tentatively, and was glad to see a small smile back from Ranma.

**

Walking back to the Saotome house, Ranma was quiet and a bit withdrawn. They had just seen Akane off at the train station. She was going to meet Shinnosuke in another part of town, something to do with the wedding, she'd explained. Shayla glanced over at Ranma as they walked. His head was down and his hands were jammed deep n the pockets of his jacket. "Well," Shayla spoke, "I think that went well."

"Mm," Ranma grunted, not looking up.

"What's wrong with you?" Shay asked, slowing down a little. Ranma continued to walk at the same pace, not noticing that she'd slowed. "Hey!" she shouted, causing a few people to look strangely at her. When they realized she was American, they seemed to shrug and go about their business, figuring all Americans shouted in the street.

Ranma's head snapped up and he turned around when he noticed Shay was no longer next to him. "What are you doing back there?" he asked.

"Trying to get your attention. What's wrong with you? You've been like this ever since we left Akane at the station."

"Like what?" Ranma walked back toward Shay and tried to take her hands, but she crossed her arms.

"I've been trying to talk to you, but all you do is grunt or mumble. You hardly talked to me during lunch and now when I've got you to myself, all you think of is her!"

Comprehension began to dawn in Ranma's eyes and he moved to hug her. "No, no, I'm sorry." He looked down at Shayla and saw tears in her eyes. "Hey, why are you crying?"

"I'm not crying," Shay said obstinately, sniffling as she did so.

Ranma put his finger under her chin, drawing her brown eyes up to his blue ones. "Listen to me. Akane was a part of my life a long time ago. She chose to no longer be a part of that life, so I made my own. You are part of that life, Shay-chan. I love you, not Akane. Okay?"

Shayla nodded and uncrossed her arms to hold Ranma tightly to her, listening to Ranma whispering in her ear, "You know what else? Guess whose futon I'm going to be warming tonight?"

**

The wedding day, for Ranma, was surreal at best. There was Akane, walking down the aisle in her white western-style dress, but by the priest, instead of him, there was Shinnosuke, looking like he was going to be very very ill. Ranma supposed he would look ill, considering the amount of sake he had drunk at his bachelor party last night. Ranma had debated whether or not he should package him up and send him to Alaska. He figured if he did that though, Akane would mallet him to Alaska and he and Shinnosuke could keep each other warm and decided against it.

For a reality check, he glanced at Shay sitting next to him and smiled as she squeezed his hand. Last night, unable to sleep, he'd reached for her and they'd made quiet, careful love. He slept much better afterwards.

The moment Akane and Shinnosuke were pronounced man and wife, Ranma took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, feeling a small part of him slip away. He saw Soun a few rows up, bawling like a child who'd just lost his favorite toy and was grateful he wasn't making such a spectacle of himself. He glanced at Shayla as Shinnosuke and Akane made their recessional and saw tears standing in her eyes. She caught his eye and smiled sheepishly, swiping at her eyes.

As they walked toward the beautifully decorated dojo, Ranma saw the newly married couple standing by the entrance, greeting their guests. Shayla bowed and shook hands with Shinnosuke, and then bowed to Akane, pulling her close in a hug and whispering something that made Akane giggle. When it was Ranma's turn, he bowed very respectfully to Shinnosuke and then to Akane, surprised when she touched his shoulder as he moved away. He turned to her, eyes questioning and was surprised again when she wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug, whispering in his ear, "I'm so glad you came. Take care of her and be happy."