Just a cheesy melodrama.  Not my best, but it's short.

Glasses
By: Jeff Rutsch

    They called it the two-step, but they really weren't doing much
more than swaying back and forth, their arms at each other's side.
The music was innocuously laying down a slow, steady beat.

    "So, I guess now I'm supposed to call you brother?"

    "I guess so."

    "That's..." she paused, trying to find the right word.  "That's
hard to believe."

    "You're telling me," he quipped.  She laughed at what he said,
uncomfortably.  They both picked up their pace along with the music

    "I honestly thought you'd never marry her.  Not to be rude, I
mean."

    "You didn't?"

    "I mean...well, don't tell me you knew you'd marry her.  From the
beginning."

    "I think I knew, in the back of my mind.  Even when we were
arguing."

    "You've got to be joking."

    "No, really.  You know how it is?  We wouldn't have argued, but we
didn't know any other way to talk to each other."  There was an
uncomfortable pause before Nabiki continued.

    "It could have been me."

    "Huh?"

    "You weren't betrothed specifically to Akane, just one of us.  I
mean, that it was her was pretty much random.  Father just happened to
choose Akane.  If I had said anything... or Kasumi, for that
matter..."

    "I still would have married Akane."

    "I don't know..."

    "Of course I would have."

    "Of course.  I was just thinking."  The music started to liven up
and break out of the predictable groove it had settled in.  Ranma and
Nabiki danced around it.  Nabiki continued, sadly.

    "Kasumi always told me how much I meant to father."

    "Yeah," said Ranma, eager to change conversational topics.  "You
all mean a great deal to him.  I mean, without a wife and everything.
You were all he had."

    "Kasumi always told me that I was the responsible one, the
daughter who was going to make the family proud, who was going to
support father in his old age."

    "And I'm sure you will.  The University of Tokyo..."

    "That's not the point."

    "No, really.  I'm sure you'll be very successful."

    "I don't care.  I don't care if I'm rich."

    "Don't say that.  I know that's not true.  I mean, sometimes it
seems like that's all you care about."

    "It does, doesn't it?"

    "I mean, well, among other things," Ranma answered, uncomfortably.

    The music again changed tempo, gaining a dissonance and
unpredictability more like a jam session than genteel wedding music.
Nabiki tried to ignore it, tried to make out a predictable beat among
the insane harmonics.  It was discouraging.  Nobody else seemed to be
having any trouble, or even noticed the syncopation.  Nabiki managed
the best she could, and turned up to look at Ranma.

    "Kasumi always told me I couldn't."

    "Couldn't what?"

    "Kasumi always told me I couldn't say anything to you."

    "About what?"

    "I mean...even after you were betrothed to Akane, I wanted to say
something.  To you.  About the betrothal.  But Kasumi told me I
couldn't."

    "Uhmmm..." said Ranma, uncomfortably.

    "I wanted to, but Kasumi always told me how much it meant to
father for me to become rich."

    "It does.  Don't talk like that.  It does."

    "And how sometimes you had to put aside your personal feelings to
accomplish goals.  I wanted to just...to just say something to you.
But Kasumi told me I couldn't.  Oh god.  All I care about is money."

    "You act like that's so bad.  It's normal.  I mean, it's normal,
and you like it, so what's your problem?"

    "No, I didn't...I don't....care about it at all.  But Kasumi told
me I did.  And now it's too late.  Oh god."

    The music came to an end.

    "Maybe I should go now," said Ranma.

    "Ranma?" asked Nabiki.

    "What?"

    "Nev...never mind."

**

Aww well.  It's kinda dumb and the idea is R&N derivative, but I'm a
sucker for melodrama, so I decide to post. If you liked it, I'd appreciate
a reply.

****jdrutsch@ucdavis.edu***********************Jeff Rutsch***************** 
I -I -I-I *"She's a kind hearted woman, she studies evil all the time.
IV-IV-I-I * She's a kind hearted woman, she studies evil all the time.
V -IV-I-I * You well's to kill me, as to have it on your mind."-R. Johnson
**^_^***.daed si luaP**^_^**Bird Lives**^_^**Ranma Loves Akane**^_^****^_^*