Engaged to Ranma (Ranma x Reader)

22 - Sorting it Out

At the dining table, Ryoga finished brushing his teeth clean of the taste of Akane's last batch of cookies. He rinsed out his mouth and spat it into a bucket beside him. Then, he groaned quietly and put his head on the table.

"What's the matter, Ryoga?" Ranma teased, "All those cookies give you a stomach ache?"

Ryoga weakly reached over and hit Ranma on the head. "Shut up... Ranma... T-there's no--nothing wrong with... Akane's cookies..." He sat up roughly and held up his fist. "There's nothing wrong with them! It's my fault! My stomach is unworthy of such delicacies!"

"Jeez, calm down, Ryoga. She'll get over it if she can't cook, but she may hold it against herself if you end up having to get your stomach pumped."

Just then, Akane came out of the kitchen with another batch of cookies. She sat down in front of Ryoga and slid the plate over to him. "Here. These ought to be better than the last ones."

Ranma propped his head up in his hand as Ryoga grabbed a handful of cookies. "So, where's (Name)? Is she in the kitchen, baking, too?"

Akane glared at him. "Yes, and she said she's not going to come out until she's made the perfect dessert for you. You'd better be grateful!"

"Well, how is it my fault that she's bent on making something good?"

"Because you insulted her! She worked really hard on that Cinnamon Ball, even when Rida was trying to make us feel bad. She powered through, until you embarrassed her in front of everyone like you did."

Ranma's eyes widened a by. He hadn't even thought about how (Name) would feel with the other students there. In all honesty, he didn't pay them any mind; he just focused on (Name). He blushed and turned to the side, crossing his arms.

Akane frowned at him before turning her attention to Ryoga. "Well? How are they? Be honest." Ryoga had his head down again, groaning. "What?!"

Instead of responding, Ryoga picked up a cookie and offered it to her. Akane ate it before her face scrunched up in disgust. "Yuck! Okay, so maybe I shouldn't use pickle juice and onion powder." She picked up the table as she said, "Sorry, Ryoga. I'll try it again."

Ryoga lifted his head as she left for the kitchen. He reached out to her, "A-Akane, wait... Ugh..."

Ranma looked at him with a confused frown. "If you like her enough to kill yourself like this, why don't you just tell her?"

"You're... one to talk... Can't even flatter your fiance... by stomaching her cooking..."

"Well, I'm not gonna lie to her just to make her feel good."

Ryoga looked up at him. "Why not? Doesn't she... deserve it? After all, she puts up with a lot for you..." Ranma looked off to the side, not knowing what to say. 

In the kitchen, Kasumi flipped through a cookbook, looking for the dessert section. "So, (Name), what type of dessert are you hoping to make?"

"Nothing with sugar in it," she spat bitterly, crossing her arms and glaring at the wall.

Kasumi looked up from the book. "What's the matter, (Name)?"

(Name) turned to her eldest sister with a quivering lip. "I have to make something good so that I can be a -- So, I can be a good..." She had almost shouted out that she wanted to be a better fiance. What Rida had said to her in class made her feel that she wasn't a good enough girl, let alone fiance. What kind of girl can't bake?

"Oh, (Name)." Kasumi put the cookbook down on the counter and hugged her little sister. "Whatever's wrong, it's not as bad as all that. You're a wonderful girl, no matter what."