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Blind Date	By : PurseMonger Category: +M to R > Ranma ½ Views: 8563 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Ranma 1/2 or the characters from it. I make no money on from the writing of this story.

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For lunch, the group decided to walk along the boardwalk and buy food from the various street vendors instead of going to a sit down restaurant. Akane and Ukyo had just gotten some orders of takoyaki and were leaning against the railing of the pier so they watched the ocean. Figuring it was a good time as any, the chef decided to finally ask her best-friend about her obvious feelings for the pig-tailed man.

“So, what’s up with you and Ranma?”

Having just taken a bite, Akane almost chocked in surprise at the sudden question. The chef patted her on the back a couple times and she chewed quickly before swallowing her food.

“We’re friends.”

“Yeah, yeah, but you’re into him, right?”

“Umm…”

“Come on, if you can’t tell me the truth, then who can you tell?”

“You know it really doesn’t matter how I feel,” Akane said evasively.

“Of course it matters!”

“Not when he’s not attracted to me.” She put up a hand to stop her friend from interrupting. “And even if he was, it would be awkward. I really like Ranko, she’s my friend and I don’t want to make it weird by dating her brother.”

“Oh, don’t let me stop you,” came a familiar voice from behind.

Akane jumped in surprise, sending her takoyaki stick flying in the air. She tried to grab for it, and managed to grab onto the stick briefly before she fumbled and dropped her snack into the water. She pouted and put her hand to her still rapidly beating heart. Where her friends trying to give her a heart attack?

“Ranko! How long have you been standing there?”

“Long enough.”

“Oh, so you heard…”

“Yup. Look, I appreciate that you’re concerned about my feelings but I don’t want that to stop you from dating my brother if you like him.”

“But wouldn’t it be weird for you?”

“No. not really. We haven’t known each other that long and since we’ve met, I’ve kind of got used to thinking of you as a couple. I think the two of you would be great together. You wouldn’t take his crap and would force him to act like a grown up. And he’d…” The redhead trailed off and scratched her head in thought before shrugging her shoulder. “Frankly, I don’t really know what you see in him,” she said with a grin.

“You’re really not helping our cause here with comments like those,” Ukyo said dryly.

“Hmm. I guess you’re right,” Ranko said seriously. She tapped her chin in a contemplative manner and screwed her face up to look like she was thinking really hard before she sighed and shrugged her shoulders. “Yeah, sorry, I still got nothing.”

Akane and Ukyo laughed at her joke. The blue-haired girl was happy to see her two friends getting along so well.

“Thanks, but your brother isn’t into me like that. He made that pretty clear when we went out the first time.”

“Sugar, that was then. I mean, I don’t know him very well but it seems pretty obvious that he likes you.”

“I do know him that well and he’s definitely into you. Look if it doesn’t work out between you two, we’ll still be friends. And if it does, we could be sisters!” Ranko added excitedly. “That alone should be reason enough to give him another shot,” the redhead added with a wink.

Akane smiled at her enthusiasm. The blue-haired girl bit her lip as she thought over the information. It was nice to have her friends’ opinion that that she wasn’t the only one feeling this attraction but she still wasn’t convinced.

Knowing Akane needed some time to think it over, Ukyo said, “Why don’t you just think it over okay, sugar?”

“Okay. Anyone want another takoyaki? I kinda dropped mine,” the youngest Tendo said sheepishly.

They walked a few steps before Ranko spoke again.

“Just promise me one thing?” the redhead added in a serious tone.

Akane paused and looked at her friend, a little concerned. “Of course, what is it?”

“I don’t want to hear about any of the kinky stuff you let my brother do to you, okay?” she said with a grin before she started laughing.

Ukyo who had heard the story before understood the reference immediately and giggled. Their laughter only increased in volume as the two watched the blue-haired girl turn red in embarrassment.

“How many times do I have to tell you, I picked that book out by accident!”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Over at the end of the pier, Ryoga took a deep breath and sighed. It was a good as a time as any to talk to Ranma. Ukyo had suggested – very firmly – that he broach the subject with his friend. And he was only doing it because he happened to agree with her. Ranma and Akane would make a good couple. He was definitely not doing it because he was a little scared of his girlfriend when she got mad.

And he definitely wasn’t doing it because he was pussy-whipped like Ranma kept saying.

Because he wasn’t. The fanged man smirked as he figured a way to make Ukyo happy and get a little revenge on his friend too. But first thing first, he needed to make sure that Ranma was interested in Akane for more than just her body.

“So, when are you gonna finally ask Akane out?”

“Hurnh?” Ranma responded around a mouth full of chicken yakitori. “What you talking about?” he asked after he swallowed his food.

“You and Akane. You like her.”

Ranma shrugged casually. “Yeah, I think she’s cool.”

Ryoga sighed. He knew this wasn’t going to be easy. Getting Ranma to talk about ‘feelings’ was like pulling teeth.

“I mean you’re into her.”

“We’re friends, that’s all.”

“Let me tell you something, friends don’t look at each other the way you do her.”

“Okay, maybe I check her out a little. But come on, you gotta admit she’s fucking hot. Who wouldn’t look?”

“A little? If you stared at her anymore, she could take out a restraining order against your stalker ass.”

Ranma only rolled his eyes at the comment.

“I just want to know if you’re only interested in her looks.”

“What are you talking about?”

Frustrated, Ryoga said bluntly, “I’m trying to figure out if you are really interested in her or if you wanna just bang her.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“That you’re a slut. Don’t deny it, we both know it’s true.” When Ranma only crossed his arms over his chest and didn’t object, Ryoga continued. “Akane aint’ like your other girls, she’s not the type of girl you fuck and just roll off of on your way home.”

“Hey, I might sleep around but I don’t treat girls like that and you know it,” the pig-tailed man said defensively.

“Fine. But my point is the same. Akane is sweet and smart. She’s Ranko’s friend and Ukyo’s bestfriend. You can’t just screw her and go on your merry way.”

“I’m not an idiot, you don’t think I know that?” Realizing that Ryoga wasn’t going to let the topic go until he got an answer, he finally admitted how he felt. “I like her, okay? She’s…different. Special. Are you happy now?”

In fact, he was. Ryoga nodded his head in what looked to be understanding. “I get it.”

“Get what?”

“Why you won’t make a move.” Smiling broadly now, he added casually, “I don’t blame you for being scared of asking her out though, I mean not with the way she rejected you on your first date.”

“I told you the reason for that,” Ranma said tightly.

The fanged man continued as if he didn’t hear the comment, “I mean it was bound to happen. You just finally met a woman smart enough to know you’re a bad bet. Your streak with women had to end somewhere. Don’t let it get you down.”

“Why the hell are you suddenly so interested in who I date, anyway?” Ranma asked angrily.

Ryoga let out an amused chuckle.

“I’m not. I just find it funny. Here I am with a smart, funny, hot girlfriend having the best sex of my life and you’re…well…being single isn’t so bad,” he said patronizingly.

Standing up, Ryoga stretched as he eyed Ranma who looked as if he had just sucked on a lemon. He patted his best-friend on the back.

“You’ll get used to it. At least, you know your right hand will treat you well.”

Putting his hands in his pockets, he was about to walk away when he decided he needed to give his friend some real advice.

“You know, if you don’t ask her out soon, you’re gonna find yourself stuck in a place you aren’t gonna like,” Ryoga said seriously.

“Yeah, and where is that?”

“The Friend Zone.”

Ranma shuddered at the thought and Ryoga walked away with a wide grin on his face, knowing his work was done.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The group walked back towards their spot when Ukyo and Akane became distracted by a two on two beach volleyball game. They both walked closer so they could watch the match.

“What’s going on?” Ryoga asked the two as he walked up to them with the Saotome siblings in tow.

“Oh, we’re just watchin’ the game,” Ukyo replied distractedly.

“Are you watching the match or the guys? ‘Cuz damn!” Ranko said as she admired the four spectacularly fit men in front of them.

“The game. They’re pretty good,” Akane said her eyes riveted to the action on the court.

Ranma walked up until he stood next to her. As he thought back to what Ryoga said, his already bruised ego rankled at the idea that the blue-haired girl was checking out other guys.

Was he already stuck in The Friend Zone?

Was this what his future had in store? Standing next to the girl he wanted while she checked out other guys.

What next? Was she going to start telling him which one she thought was hotter?

Then what? She’d cry on his shoulder over some guy all the while telling him what a good ‘friend’ he was, telling him how she wished she could find someone as nice as him, while treating him like a eunuch?

Fuck that bullshit.

“Feh, they’re not that great,” Ranma said offhandedly as he eyed the guys playing.

“Yeah, they don’t look that tough,” Ryoga added gruffly, jealous that his girlfriend was paying more attention to them than him.

“Oh, do you guys play volleyball?” Akane asked curiously.

“No, but it’s not that tough a sport,” the fanged man said dismissively. “I’m sure if we tried, we could totally crush those guys.”

“Well, it does look like a fun,” Ukyo said sweetly. “How about we play a game?”

“Sure why not?” Ryoga said with a shoulder shrug. Ranma only nodded his head to show his agreement.

“Akane, are you in?” Ukyo asked.

“Sure! Sounds like fun. How are we gonna split up the team? Girls versus boys?”

“Well, that doesn’t sound very fair,” Ranma said.

“You’re right, there are three of us and only two of you. Ranko, would you mind sitting out?”

“Hmm?” the redhead said as she was still staring at the four sweaty men. “No, I don’t mind, I’ll just watch.”

“Okay, great!” Akane said with a smile.

“But will this be unfair for you two? Wouldn’t you prefer mixed teams?” Ranma asked since Akane had completely misunderstood his earlier comment.

“No, Sugar, we’ll be fine,” Ukyo said interrupting them. “Let’s make it interesting, losing team has to buy the winning team and Ranko dessert?”

“Oh, free dessert? Yay!” the redhead said enthusiastically now that she was going to get a free dessert regardless of who won.

“Okay but just to make it fair, we’ll give you guys a three point lead okay?” Ryoga asked.

“Sure. Now we have to just find a ball,” Akane said.

There was already three nets and courts set up side by side. The current match was being held on the one closest to them and the other two were open but no one in their group brought a ball.

“Oh, let me handle that,” Ranko said with a smile.

She finger combed her hair to give it more body and walked towards the other group with an exaggerated sway to her hips. If things went as planned she could borrow their extra ball and get to flirt with some cute guys too.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

“How about we let you girls go first?” Ranma said, handing the ball to Akane as they reached the court.

“Aww, such gentlemen,” she said with a bat of her eyelashes.

The blue haired girl took the ball and walked to her side of the court. She and Ukyo stretched slightly as they had a short huddle. When they were done, she picked up the ball and walked to the edge of the court.

The boys smiled and exchanged an amused look as they watched; both men thought it cute that the girls needed a plan to discuss their strategy and that they bothered to stretch.

“Zero-Zero,” Ukyo called out before she tossed the ball into the air then jumped up and hit the ball with her right hand while still in the midair. The ball soared over the net and hit the sand before the two men could close their gaping mouths.

“Nice serve!” Akane exclaimed before she gave her teammate a high five.

The men turned to look at each other questioningly, surprised that she could serve like that after implying she had never played before. Ryoga went to pick up the ball and rolled it under the net to Ukyo, who picked it up deftly.

“Oh, did I mention that I played varsity volleyball all three years of high school?” the chef said with a grin, the ball resting on her hip in cocky stance.

She served again, but this time the boys were prepared and Ranma managed to reach the ball before it reached the sand. His save was a little sloppy though and the ball went wide to the left. Ryoga ran and just managed to hit the ball with his left fist sending it over the net.

Akane was in position and bumped the ball smoothly towards the net, where Ukyo was already standing, using two hands to set the ball perfectly. The blue haired girl took two wide steps towards the middle of the net and jumped up, spiking the ball over the net, where it landed between the two men who had run into each other in their attempts to hit it.

“What the hell? I said I got it,” they screamed in unison once they got off the ground.

The men glowered at each other and Ryoga picked up the ball again. He turned around to see Ukyo standing with her arm slung on Akane’s shoulder, while the blue-haired girl had her arm around the chef’s waist.

“Oh, and Akane? She was Captain of the team for the last two years, when we became divisional champions. She was voted MVP both years,” the chef said with a grin.

Both men groaned as they figured out they had been had.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

What followed was the most one-sided, brutal game that Ranko had ever seen. The girls completely trashed the boys, showing them no mercy.

The redhead was grinning ear to ear.

That should teach those morons about underestimating their opponents just because they were women.

Now she had a yummy dessert to look forward to, a story to tease her brother mercilessly about for the rest of her life, and she got the number from one of the cute guys who were playing volleyball earlier. In fact, Sato and his friends were so impressed by Ukyo and Akane that when the foursome finished their game they sat with Ranko and watched the blood bath. After the girls won, the four men had invited them to play a game with them.

Ranko was currently sitting between a sulking Ranma and Ryoga as they watched the mixed three on three match.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

“Thanks for the sundae!” Akane said with a smile.

“No problem, you deserve it,” Ranma said as he placed one in front of her. “You? Not so much,” he said to his sister as he placed another sundae in front of her.

“Thanks, bro!” she said, too happy with her dessert to give his comment another thought.

“So, you’re pretty good.”

“Thanks,” Akane said with a blush.

She only felt a tiny bit guilty for conning them but their comments about volleyball being such an easy sport really rubbed her the wrong way. She was glad that they weren’t being sore losers about it though. She knew that some guys were really prickly when it came to losing to girls.

Ranma had a very short sulk about losing to the girls but since he knew that they were clearly superior players, he got over it quickly.

He actually spent more of his time brooding over the idea that he would only ever be Akane’s friend. The thought left a sour taste in his mouth and a bad feeling in his stomach. He did his best to shake off his sudden mood, not wanting to take it out on the blue-haired girl, who, while being the source of his uncharacteristic insecurity, had done nothing to deserve his ire.

Plus, he knew that it wouldn’t help his chances with her if he acted like a little bitch over something like a casual volleyball game. Besides, he had been rather impressed at how well the two worked together, both on and off the court. They were able to coordinate their plan quickly and easily with no discussion beforehand. He had to remember to keep on his toes around those two.

Grabbing his own dessert Ranma joined the two at their table while Ryoga and Ukyo took a short walk with theirs.

“So, what other sports do you play? I want to make sure I don’t get suckered again,” he asked with a grin.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The rest of the afternoon passed quickly as the group went back into the water to swim, where Ranko taught Akane about boogie boarding before the group decided to build a sand castle. What it lacked in beauty and grace the castle sure made up for in size. For dinner the group decided to sit down at one of the more casual restaurants. Afterwards the group put on some warmer clothes and sat back down on the beach to watch the sunset. The horizon was a beautiful blaze of red, orange, and yellow hues.

Akane had a lot of time to think over her friends’ comments as the sun set into the earth. She wanted to believe that Ranma was interested in her but she knew she had always been a terrible judge about such things. Unless a guy was obviously hitting on her, like when they went to a club, she was never able to pick up on the subtle hints from guys that showed they liked her. It always surprised her when a ‘friend’ suddenly asked her out. But when she looked at a situation after the fact it seemed kind of obvious. Not for the first time, she wished she was better at these things. Especially now, when it mattered.

For the first time, in a long time, she truly liked someone. Even though he was brash, loud, and a little sexist, she really enjoyed his company. Maybe it was because she knew he used those traits to hide the good person he was inside.

She would forever be grateful to him for teaching her to swim today. She knew that if she expressed those sentiments to him, he would brush of the act saying ‘it was no big deal,’ but to her it was. She had been scared of the water for as long as she could remember and he had somehow not only gotten her over the fear but got her to enjoy being in the ocean. It was something she would never forget.

Or maybe it was because he was so comfortable with who he was, something she really admired in a person. His handsome face and amazing body didn’t hurt either. She didn’t consider herself a shallow person but it was hard not to notice someone that good looking. She had noticed men before but it was rare for her to find a male that she was so physically attracted to.

She just wished she knew what to do about it. She could ask him out herself but she wasn’t used to doing things like that and the thought made her sweat a little. Plus if he said no, it would put them in an awkward position. Their best-friends were dating, which meant they now hung out as group more often than not. Their fathers were best-friends and often decided to do ‘family’ things together. Not to mention she was friends with Ranko and taking cooking lessons with his mom, which meant she would be at the Saotome home a lot. They were connected in multiple ways. If he turned her down, she would feel awkward every time she saw him.

Ultimately, she decided that if he were interested in her, he needed to be the one to make the move. She reasoned that on their first date, he was the one that had made sure that she wasn’t interested in him, so he should be the one to approach her if his feelings changed. And if he did ask her out, there was no question that she would say yes.

Ranma had a lot to think about while he sat next to the blue-haired girl and watched the sun set. As much as he hated to admit it, Ryoga had been right, he was scared to ask Akane out. It had been so long since he had been serious about a girl that he was afraid that she would reject him, especially given their history.

Sure they had gotten to know each other better but did that change her opinion of him enough so that she would be willing to give him another chance? Or did she still think of him as the asshole she originally met?

He wasn’t really sure how she felt so he hadn’t made a move, hoping to buy more time for her to get to know him better first. But that was just a stalling tactic. He’d never know unless he tried.

There was also the possibility that someone else could ask her out before he did. She was an exceedingly attractive woman, who was also smart and funny. It was surprising to him that she wasn’t already in a relationship and he chalked that up to her being picky about who she was with. He probably wasn’t the only one interested in her, he was sure that she had her fair share of admirers. It was a distinct possibility that someone could come along and catch her interest before he made his move.

If he didn’t try soon, he would be stuck only ever being her friend and that was something he couldn’t live with.

Huh. Ryoga being right twice in one day. Miracles could happen. But he reasoned, if a broken clock can be right twice a day, he guessed his dense friend could too.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

On the way back to the car, Ukyo, Ryoga, and Ranko walked ahead leaving the pair to follow them a distance away.

As they walked next to each other in the twilight, Ranma cleared his throat.

“Did you have fun today?”

“Yeah, it was great. I’m so glad I decided to come along and skip school.”

“That’s good.”

God, why was he so nervous?

“So I was wondering, are you busy Saturday?”

“Tomorrow, well…”

“No, sorry, I mean next Saturday.”

She thought over her mental calendar for a moment.

“I’m free that day.”

“Then do you want to go to dinner?

“Yeah, that sounds fun.”

Relief flooded him, she said yes!

“Who else is coming?”

Scratch that. She thought it was another group thing.

“Well, just you and me.”

She faltered in her next step. Was he really asking her out?

“Just you and me? Like a date?” she asked hopefully.

“Yup. A date.” He hesitated for a moment before he added, “I know I screwed up on our first one and I know I don’t deserve it, but do you think you wanna give it a second chance?”

“Yes. I think I do.”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

A/N: I hope that you've enjoyed the second beach episode. After 10 chapters, they are finally going out on another date! But with how the couple started, I hope that it doesn't feel like I dragged it out too long.

Thank you, alwaysZutarian for all your help!
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Blind Date