Nabiki walked nervously arm-in-arm with Ranma to Ukyo's restaurant door. Not that anyone would know she was nervous if they looked at her. She had her professional mask up and firmly in place. As far as most people were concerned, the Ice Queen was alive and well, and to be feared.
They paused for a moment before they went in. The smells coming from the restaurant were heavenly. She could smell frying dough, sweet ginger, tangy onion, and grilling meats. She hadn't even been hungry, but she was now. Ranma looked over at her, and she smiled and nodded. He nodded back and led the way into the restaurant. As he did so, he slid his arm out of hers discreetly as they ducked under Ukyo's Noren curtains. It didn't surprise her that he did it, but she still didn't like it.
"Welcome, come'on i— Ranma-honey, hello!" Ukyo interrupted her standard customer greeting when she realized who it was as they entered the much warmer interior of the restaurant, compared with the windy streets.
She nodded to Ukyo by way of a silent greeting. Ukyo's eyes met hers briefly, and the young chef gave a micro-nod in her direction, then resumed her attention on Ranma.
Well, we're off to a wonderful start. She thought sarcastically.
Ranma walked over to the counter casually and sat down. She was sure it was second nature to him by now. She trailed behind him and watched Ukyo's reactions to him. The young chef's eyes lit up when looking at him. Her body language was open and inviting as she immediately began making him one of his favorite recipes.
She sat down on his left and watched quietly as the little ritual between them played out as she settled into the comfortable padding of the stool. She had seen it before, of course, back when he was engaged to Akane. She understood a little better now how annoyed Akane had been by it. Ukyo was obviously enamored with him. The young chef said it with every motion of her head, every gesture with her hands, and with the shy longing in her voice. How could someone who was engaged to him look at the interaction between them and not feel jealous? She could feel a bit of jealousy burning in her chest, but she ignored it.
Intellectually she knew that Ranma wasn't romantically interested in Ukyo. He was interested in her as the friend he'd had when he was a kid, and as a chef who made amazing food he loved. In a lot of ways, Ukyo was perfect for him. The only problem with their potential romance was that Ranma had Ukyo fixed firmly in his mind as his childhood friend. His male childhood friend. She was sure he knew intellectually that Ukyo was female, and that his childhood friend was romantically interested in him. But force of habit and nostalgia could be powerful forces. Given that Ranma wasn't romantically interested in Ukyo, it was easy to see how he could gravitate to her anyway. Ukyo was a taste of home, both literally and figuratively.
Ukyo's cooking used the same recipes he remembered from when he was very little. And Ukyo was the person he had been friends with back then as well. They had a shared history, a connection that nobody else could have with him, like she had with Riko.
Ranma had grown up on the road, away from his mother, away from friends, away from regular schooling. All he'd had was his father and the constant training. Ukyo was one of the only anchors left to him from his past and his childhood. He had his father as well, but that was small comfort.
She watched the two of them together, and sighed. It was sad and pathetic in a lot of ways, and it was also very sweet, and very heart rending. She could tell from Ranma's relaxed body language, his easy tone and his happy smile and appreciative eating noises, that the small taste of home, family, and childhood that Ukyo represented, was a welcome break for him. If she wasn't already fully committed to the plan that was already in motion, she would have hesitated on executing it. But she was committed. She had to destroy Ukyo's link with him, and Shampoo's, and Akane's, if she was to have any hope at all of getting him to fully commit to her. I really can be the Ice Queen sometimes. I'm not even sorry. She thought sadly to herself.
Ukyo had done absolutely nothing wrong. Her only crime was loving Ranma. While the plan was, in a lot of ways, something that could end up being really great for Ukyo, it would still have the end result of removing Ukyo from Ranma's life. Ukyo would have to choose between continuing to chase after him, and taking the new path that was going to be laid out for her.
She decided to go ahead and order something to eat while she waited for the time to start the plan. She tried to catch Ukyo's eye so she could order, but Ukyo had eyes only for Ranma at the moment. So she resorted to waving to get her attention. Ukyo sighed and looked at her.
"Can I get the small mixed-grilled okonomiyaki, please?"
"Only Ranma eats for free here."
"Don't worry, I can pay." She said sweetly. They both knew she had more than one Thousand Yen note in her possession that had come from Ukyo.
Ukyo shrugged and nodded and set to work preparing her order. Despite everything else, Ukyo was first and foremost a consummate and professional chef.
As Ukyo worked to prepare her order, she noticed that while the young chef was making a great effort to maintain her bubbly and cheerful demeanor for Ranma, there was fear in Ukyo's eyes whenever her gaze rested on herself. Ranma seemed to be oblivious to it. He was mostly busy eating what Ukyo had served him, although he did look up and smile at Ukyo occasionally.
After a few moments, Ukyo announced something in a voice she could tell the young chef was trying to keep casual to hide nervousness.
"So ... Ranma-honey ... I ran into Shampoo today..." Ukyo said in a small voice.
"You did?" He answered in a tone she couldn't read.
"Yeah ... she seemed .... upset..." Ukyo said in an even smaller voice. She watched Ukyo carefully and saw that while her attention was on Ranma, her eyes darted in her own direction once.
Oh, well that's just perfect. OF COURSE she talked to Shampoo, why WOULDN'T she talk to Shampoo? It's not like they have been fighting each other almost the entire time they've known each other. She thought to herself somewhat bitterly. She watched Ukyo even more carefully and picked out some very subtle tells in her body language. Ukyo was letting her gaze hang on him a little too long. Her hands were fumbling a bit as she worked. Her voice was shaking just a little bit when she spoke.
She knows. She thought nervously. And it is too late for me to abort the plan. She thought as she glanced quickly at her watch. When she looked back up, she found Ukyo's eyes on her for a moment. The young chef stared at her briefly, then went back to working to prepare the food.
She decided to try to strike up conversation both to help pass the time, and to try to distract her. She just needed to buy a little bit more time before the plan started. "Tell me, Ukyo ... how did you manage to open a restaurant at your age? It is a very impressive accomplishment." She asked.
Ukyo didn't look up from her work as she answered. "My family put up the money to send me to school here in Tokyo, and to open the restaurant." Ukyo said quietly.
"That was very nice of them." She said in a sincere tone.
"And yes, it was a loan, if that's what yer wonderin'. We didn't have as much left in reserve after Genma ran off with the family's okonomiyaki cart." Ukyo said in a defensive voice. She saw Ranma look up with a bit of alarm at Ukyo's tone.
She tried to side step the topic as fast as she could. "Well, I am sure you'll be able to pay off that loan very fast. After all, your cooking is some of the most popular in this town." She said in a forced cheerful tone. Ranma nodded eagerly in agreement. She smiled a tight smile at that. It was very cute how surface-level he was. She was sure he had no idea that Ukyo was on to them, and that she and Ukyo were basically fighting.
"I'm not worried about payin' off the loan. When Ranma-honey marries me, I'll have all the help I'll need to set things right." Ukyo said in a quiet but determined voice.
She locked eyes with Ukyo for a moment and didn't blink. Not only did Ukyo know, it was clear Ukyo was ready for a fight. Well ... that's just wonderful. She thought with a sigh. Ukyo looked away first, when the cooking needed tending to.
Ranma had retreated back to his eating. She was glad that he hadn't jumped in to argue Ukyo's stated intention to marry him. He was leaving it to her and her plan, as she had asked. She looked at her watch again nervously. She wanted to bounce her leg up and down nervously on her stool, and had to stop herself from doing it with pure force of will. She just had to stall Ukyo a little longer before the plan should kick in. So she decided to engage with Ukyo a bit more, and to feel her out.
"And what will you do with Ranma once your debts are paid off? What's the big plan?" She asked.
"I ... I don't ... there is no ..." Ukyo replied quietly.
"Are you going to be happy in this little restaurant forever?" She pressed.
"Little?" Ukyo said with a note of anger creeping into her voice.
"Well, you have to admit, compared to some of the larger okonomiyaki places in Tokyo or Osaka, yours is on the smaller side." She said.
Ranma's hand flashed out in front of her face and caught something that impacted his hand hard enough to move it back a millimeter and touch her nose. It was an okonomiyaki. She narrowed her eyes.
"Oops, silly me. Sorry about that. You know how it is in these small places, sometimes things just get away from you." Ukyo said in a sweet voice.
Ranma lowered his hand and dropped the okonomiyaki back on to the grill. "Play nice." He growled.
Ukyo smiled radiantly at him. "I always do, Ran-chan."
She glared at Ukyo. Then she forced a smile on her face and pressed onward. On one level, she actually respected Ukyo for fighting so hard. She didn't really approve of the attempts at physical violence, but she respected Ukyo's fighting spirit. She glanced at her watch again, and suppressed her reaction. The plan would start at any moment.
Ukyo slid a plate with her okonomiyaki on it in front of her, along with various condiments. She glanced down at the grill and saw the one Ranma had caught was still sitting there simmering away where he'd dropped it. At least Ukyo hadn't tried to serve her that one. She also respected that. Even with someone who was basically her enemy, Ukyo was professional about the food she served to her customers. She smiled and slid a Thousand Yen note across the counter to Ukyo, who pocketed it.
Ukyo Withdrew a couple of smaller notes and slid them under her plate for change. She might have been willing to leave the change as a peace offering for all the money she had gotten out of Ukyo. But Ukyo had just tried to fling food in her face. So she absently tucked them into her pocket as she ate. Her focus immediately moved to the food. Ukyo's cooking was, as always, excellent. Her okonomiyaki was savory with a hint of sweet. It was cooked well, and had good texture, and the ingredients were fresh and complemented everything. The sauces were obviously homemade, and they were wonderful. She savored every bite of her savory-sweet meal and almost forgot where she was, and why she was there while she ate.
Ukyo went back to ignoring her as she moved over in front of Ranma at the counter and made a show of cleaning the grill, but in reality she was mostly just staring at him. She sighed. This was just ... not going to be pleasant. Ukyo was—
Her thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of a young man in a black suit who entered the restaurant. Ukyo tore her eyes off Ranma and called out her usual greeting. The young man bowed politely and remained standing. He looked around with obvious approval at Ukyo's restaurant and breathed in deeply the aromas from Ukyo's cooking. Ukyo eyed him out of the corner of her eye for a while, and eventually turned and faced him and indicated a seat at the bar.
"Please, have a seat, and let me know when you're ready to order, honey." She said in her usual professionally sweet voice.
The young man smiled faintly and stepped forward and took the seat Ukyo had indicated at the end of the bar. He set his briefcase down on the counter and looked over at the menu on the wall. He smiled and placed his order. "One large Osaka-Dotonbori okonomiyaki, please."
Ukyo smiled at the order, and nodded. "Comin' right up, I love making that one. You want a soda or something, honey?" Ukyo asked as she began preparing the order.
"Of course. It wouldn't be Osaka style without a beer or a soda, now would it?" The man said cheerfully.
Ukyo beamed at him. "It sure wouldn't!"
She smiled softly to herself, then quickly hid it as Ukyo busied herself at the grill and the young man sat and watched her work with a critical eye.
Ranma had finished eating already, and was eying the grill hungrily. She knew he could happily sit at the bar for the rest of the afternoon and eat Ukyo's cooking. She was still working on her own order. She wouldn't be able to finish it. It was far too much rich food for her to eat in a single sitting. She eventually laid her chopsticks down in their rest and gave up after only finishing about a third of it. Ranma looked over at her and she grinned and nodded as she pushed her plate over to him. He beamed and immediately began attacking the food. She smiled at how happy he was. It did not escape her notice that Ukyo scowled at him briefly at his display of being willing to share food with her. It wasn't something people who weren't close did, especially not in public.
Ukyo sighed and finished up the order for the young man and served it to him with her usual flourish. The man grinned and dove into his food with almost as much enthusiasm as Ranma had. Ukyo smiled at the obvious appreciation for her cooking as she wandered back up the grill to be closer to Ranma. She saw Ukyo absently begin fixing another of Ranma's favorites. She was sure Ukyo would continue to feed him as long as he was willing to stay and spend time with her. Poor Ukyo.
Things settled into a comfortable silence after that. The young man in the suit ate enthusiastically, as did Ranma. Ukyo continued to feed him, and she watched it all with the patience of someone who routinely had to play the long game in her life.
Eventually, the young man in the suit slid his empty plate back towards the grill with several Yen notes tucked under it and announced that it had been excellent. He stood up and beamed at Ukyo and bowed politely to her again. Ukyo smiled and bowed back.
"Thank you so much. Please tell your friends about me. Most of my business is by word of mouth." Ukyo said what she assumed was the young chef's standard goodbye to new customers.
"Would you like that to change?" The young man in the suit asked with a wide smile on his face.
"What do ya mean, honey?" Ukyo asked as she leaned against the counter and watched him with an amused smile on her face.
"I mean, I'm a talent scout for Chibo International, the largest okonomiyaki chain in Japan, now with several locations worldwide." He said with a large smile.
"Wait, what?" Ukyo said in a less amused tone.
"You will find my card with the payment for my most excellent meal." The young man said confidently.
Ukyo walked over to the man's plate with a look of mild curiosity on her face. Ukyo probably figured the man was joking with her.
She watched the young chef slide the man's plate to the side and pick up the small stack of Yen notes and pocket them. But her right hand slid something off the top of the stack first. It was indeed a business card.
"Mr. Yamashida, Chibo International..." Ukyo read off the card in a voice that shook with disbelief.
"That's me." The young man said.
"Chibo..." Ukyo said in a shocked voice.
"Surely you've heard of us? I can tell from the way you cook, and your accent, you're Osakan. We're headquartered there after all."
"Osakan, born and raised." Ukyo confirmed as she pocketed the card and stared hard at the man before she continued. "Which is why I know Chibo doesn't hire chefs who are still in high school. Who put you up to this? What's the joke?" Ukyo asked in a voice that was turning frosty. She saw Ukyo's eyes dart to her briefly.
"Oh, this is no joke, Miss Kuonji. And you're correct, Chibo doesn't normally hire chefs as young as you are. But we've received a lot of reports about you, Miss Kuonji ... you wouldn't be related to Hirohito Kuonji, would you, by chance?"
"He was ... my Grandfather." Ukyo whispered.
"He was a gifted chef. One of the best. I had the honor to have some of his cooking when I was very little." The young man said.
Ukyo waved her hand in front of her face like she was trying to wave away his words. "Yeah, yeah, yeah, all right so my name is linked to a famous okonomiyaki chef. That isn't exactly hard ta figure out, sugar. But I still don't believe you. Chibo doesn't hire chefs as young as me." Ukyo said in a more confrontational tone.
She watched Ukyo square off with with young man in the suit, almost like she was getting ready to fight him. She widened her eyes at that. It would be ... bad ... if Ukyo attacked him.
The young man simply smiled at Ukyo and shook his head. "Oh no, you misunderstand, Miss Kuonji. Chibo is not interested in you as a simple line-chef. We want you, the whole package, we want the Ukyo Kuonji brand. We would like to buy out your restaurant, and bring you on as the head chef at the Chibo Ebisu Garden Place Branch in Tokyo to start out. You would be given complete freedom to run the kitchen as you saw fit. You would set the menu, and hire the line-chefs to work under you, and to train them to cook to your specification. Once you have done that, we will take you national, and eventually, international. We would like you and your cooking to be the new face of Chibo. Your style and your brand of okonomiyaki, along with our classic style. We want you to lead our charge to capture the next generation of diners. Will you do it, Miss Kuonji?"
Ukyo's jaw went slack, and she staggered back like she had been wounded to rest her palms up against the rear wall, like she needed to hold on to something real to keep herself grounded in reality. She could see that Ukyo's legs were shaking.
"You what? You want me to what?" Ukyo asked in a tone that was a mix of utter disbelief coupled with abject shock.
She risked a quick glance away from Ukyo to check out Ranma's reaction. As she had hoped, he was grinning happily for Ukyo. She darted her eyes back to Ukyo and continued to watch nervously as she chewed on her lower lip.
"We want to bring you on as the new head chef at the Chibo Ebisu Garden Place Branch in Tokyo, and eventually have you help shape the menu, taste, experience and everything else at Chibo International." The young man in the suit said with a smile.
"I ... I don't ... this is everything I ever ... this can't be real." Ukyo whispered.
"Oh, it's very real. If you'd like to verify I am who I say I am, and that the offer is real, please, call our headquarters tomorrow morning. Here's their number." The young man said as he handed her another card.
Ukyo pocketed it in a numb silence. Then the young chef grinned, and stared hard at him. "Of course! It's an old Osaka game to mess with people by giving them fake business cards ... is that what this is?"
The young man grinned back. "Feel free to get the number from any source you like and call it, Miss Kuonji. I am not playing with you. You're a fellow Osakan, after all." He said sincerely.
Ukyo shook her head back and forth, like she was in denial. Her chest was puffing up with pride though. The young man in the suit was getting through to her. "This can't ... this can't be real. Your offer would be amazing, but..." Ukyo looked over at Ranma, and deflated.
The young chef kept her eyes fixed on Ranma and after a moment spoke again to the young man in the suit. "If I take your offer, and you buy me out and move me into downtown Tokyo ... will I have time to make it back into Nerima for personal reasons?" She asked softly, still with her eyes locked on Ranma.
The young man shook his head softly. "I'm sorry, but no. We need you to start immediately. You'll be working very long hours for at least the first few months. We'll need you to train the new chefs, plan the menu, teach our procurement people how to order the proper ingredients for your recipes, help plan the decor, and many other things. Once that's done, you'll be needed to oversee the restaurant and to help run it daily. After all of that is done, we will be moving you to our original location in Osaka, and you'll be repeating the process there. And then on to the next major location, and on and on and on. We will have you booked solid in Japan for at least a few years, and then you will be needed to visit some of our international locations as well. Eventually, if all goes according to plan, we could free up your schedule and let you pick the restaurant of your choice to run and manage for your day to day operations. Then you will be able to enjoy the perks of your salary and your well earned free time again." The young man said with a soft smile.
"I ... I see." Ukyo said in a small voice, still with her eyes locked on to Ranma.
"Is ... is that a problem, Miss Kuonji? The contract would be a fairly standard head chef contract, and the working conditions will probably be about the same as what you are doing now here as a sole proprietor. Once you work your way up to the national level, we will renegotiate your contract to make you part-owner, and eventually you will be able to join the Board of Directors."
"That's ... amazing." Ukyo said in a voice that was excited but soft. "Could ... could I bring someone with me? Would there be living accommodations for two?" Ukyo asked in a weak voice as she stared at Ranma. Ranma was gazing back at his oldest friend with a kind smile on his face. He seemed to be genuinely happy for her.
"I'm afraid not. Initially you'll be placed in the women's dorms with the rest of the chefs for the Tokyo area while we finalize your contract and get everything setup. Then we'll place you in company housing. I'm afraid it's single occupancy only, for right now. Once you finish the training and setup part of your contract, and pick the restaurant of your choice to run and manage for your day to day operations, you would be provided with housing large enough for a family if you like. That would be in several years, though. I am afraid that is the standard offer from the company. You could try to negotiate it, if you like, but I have very rarely seen the company be willing to renegotiate on standard terms like that. " The young man in the suit said kindly.
This was it, the moment of truth. Ukyo had obviously figured out what was going on. The question now was, could Ukyo give up everything in Nerima, to pursue her dream? Ukyo had to know she was being given a once in a lifetime opportunity. It was the kind of opportunity most chefs who dreamed of making it big never got. It was the kind of opportunity that would make Okonomiyaki-Ucchan a household name in Japan. It had also cost her a fortune in favors and cash to make it happen for her. And, even after she had struck the deal, they had still insisted on sending the talent scout to make sure Ukyo could do what she had told them Ukyo could do. Ukyo had had no idea how important the meal she had just served, had been.
All totally worth it though, if she goes for this. She thought to herself as she watched Ukyo carefully, and held her breath.
"I see." Ukyo said in a small voice that shook as the young chef kept her eyes on Ranma. "Can I think about it? When do you need an answer?"
"Tonight if possible. But if you would like to call tomorrow morning and verify everything, that is fine too. But we will need an answer by tomorrow morning, no later than ten."
"That's ... really soon." Ukyo whispered.
"I'm afraid so, Miss Kuonji ... if you can't do it, we at Chibo will be sad to lose you, but we will understand. The position we are looking to fill is a demanding one. Not everyone is ready to step into the role of a head chef." He said softly. That got Ukyo to snap her eyes up from Ranma.
She tensed for a moment and prayed Ukyo wasn't about to attack him. Instead, Ukyo balled her hands up to fists at her sides and almost shouted as she replied. "I'm ready! I am! I've been working my whole life to get where I am, and I can do it, I can be a head chef!" She protested.
"Excellent! That's what we want to hear! Are you ready to sign the contract now? I have a copy with me in my briefcase." The young man said happily as he reached to open it.
Ukyo took a step back and darted her eyes over to Ranma, and shook her head nervously. "N-not ... yet." Was all she said.
The young man in the suit sighed, smiled and nodded. "Of course, of course. You need some time. Well, please do consider our offer, Miss Kuonji, we can only hold the spot open for you until tomorrow morning, then we will have to go with our second choice. We are on a tight schedule. We think you and your skills would be absolutely perfect for the role. We sincerely hope you will accept the offer."
Ukyo just stared at him in slack-jawed shock then nodded once, slowly.
"Here, please take my personal card and call me if you are ready to accept and sign the contract. It has all of the numbers to reach me, at any time of day. I am staying just five minutes away from here, I can be here with the contract on very short notice." He said as he took a step forward and handed Ukyo a card he whipped out from his suit jacket and handed to her with a small bow.
Ukyo nodded again, a little more quickly as she looked at the card and then set it down carefully behind her counter.
The man in the nice suit smiled a kind smile and looked around the restaurant again and breathed the air in again as well as he nodded in approval. "Good day to you, Miss Kuonji. Please do call me." Then he smiled again, and ducked out of the restaurant, and was gone. He'd never once looked at her, or betrayed that he knew of the plan. Because he didn't know. The favors she had called in to make the visit from Chibo happen, had been called in at much higher levels than the on-the-ground talent scout level.
Ukyo stood stock still for several moments and just stared at the doorway with her mouth hanging open. She looked over at Ranma while Ukyo was doing that, and found him looking at herself with wide eyes. She nodded at him a millimeter nod to confirm that that had indeed been the plan. Then she went back to watching Ukyo.
"You set this up, didn't you?" Ukyo finally said in a cold, shaky voice, as she continued to stare at the door. There was no question whom she was speaking to.
"Does it matter?" She asked calmly.
"I don't suppose it does, you have me backed completely into a corner. I don't really have any other options at this point."
"Take the offer, Ukyo. It sounds like a good deal, and it could make you famous as the best okonomiyaki chef in Japan, and rightly so. You could get everything you've ever worked for." She said.
"Almost everything." Ukyo countered bitterly.
"Every deal has a price, Ukyo." She said.
Ukyo fixed Ranma with a stare that was verging on tears. "Well, aren't you going to say anything?"
He smiled at her. "I think it's great, Ucchan! You've always talked about wantin' ta be famous and to become the best okonomiyaki chef in the world. It sounds like you're gonna make it, Ucchan, like I always knew you would." He said warmly.
"Don't you care? Don't you understand what it means if I take the offer?" Ukyo asked in a wounded tone as she rounded on him and stared at him. She could see now that Ukyo's hands were clenched into fists at her sides again, and they were shaking.
He swallowed nervously and looked away from Ukyo. He avoided eye contact with herself too. Ukyo stared at him for a few more moments, then prompted him again. "Ran-chan ... do you think I should take the offer? Do you think I should leave and do it?" Ukyo whispered to him.
He looked up at her then and nodded a very small nod, then smiled nervously. "C'mon, Ucchan, how can you pass it up? This is what you've been trainin' for your whole life." He said in his usual confident way.
Ukyo looked away from him as she took a step back, like she had been slapped. She could see that, more than anything else, Ranma's refusal to ask her to stay, hurt Ukyo the most. Ukyo stepped back even further from him and looked down at her grill as she brought her hands up to clasp them tightly in front of herself. The shaking stopped.
"The worst part is ... the worst part is ... Nabiki's right, it is a good deal, and I would be a fool to pass it up..." Ukyo whispered as she stared at her grill. Neither she nor Ranma moved or made a sound as they waited for Ukyo to finish speaking. "Your new fiancée is as clever as they come, Ranma. Be careful with her. She may be too clever for you too. She's manipulatin' you, ya know? What happens if, after she's gotten you to throw everyone away who's ever loved you ... she throws you away too, after she's bored with you? What happens then? Where will you and your father go with no Tendo Dojo to inherit? What will you do then? Think carefully about that. You still have time ... you still have time to ... at least until ... at least until tomorrow morning." Ukyo whispered to him in a heartbroken voice, in the suddenly painfully quiet restaurant.
She found herself looking down at the counter top. She didn't like watching people suffering, and Ukyo was suffering. Ranma didn't seem to understand how much Ukyo was hurting, but she did. She'd gone through the process of trying to give him up, and then thinking she had lost him. She knew exactly how it felt, and it was awful. She clenched her own hand into a fist, under the counter, and told herself to just hang on. She couldn't let Ukyo's misery sway her. I knew walking in here that this was the likely outcome. It's her or me, there's no other choice! She berated herself.
"Come on, Ucchan! It's not like that! Honest." Ranma protested as he hopped down off his stool like he was going to go over to her, but Ukyo fixed him in place with an angry glare. Then the young chef turned her gaze to herself for a moment, in silence, and ignored him. She returned the stare calmly.
Ukyo looked away from both of them then, and stared at the floor. "I hope to God she's worth it, you jackass. Get out." Ukyo said in a voice shaking with emotion.
Ranma opened his mouth like he was going to say something, but she shook her head urgently at him and tilted her head at the door. He closed his mouth slowly, and nodded once, with sad eyes. They hurried out of Ukyo's restaurant and were out on the chilly street again a moment later.
As soon as they had cleared the Noren curtains, they both heard Ukyo start to sob.
He looked at her sharply, with disappointment clouding his eyes. She immediately felt like the ground was dropping out from under her, as a feeling of helplessness rose up in her, cold and tight, and centered in her chest. The cold sensation spread out to her arms, and froze her breath as her heart struggled against it. The weight of his disappointment in her was ... palpable.
"You said you wouldn't hurt her." He said quietly, with betrayal in his eyes.