Evangelion Days
Tokyo 03. The most advanced city in the world as of 2015. This city is the site of our story. In the story of Neon Genesis Evangelion, we follow the life of an original character named Shu Sazanami who coincidentally attends the same school as Rei Ayanami. The time period in which this story begins is actually before Shinji Ikari arrives in Tokyo 03. The first story arc in Eva Days will revolve mainly around Shu's interactions with Rei Ayanami. Shu, who is a very kind and compassionate person, starts to help Rei develop a better understanding of emotions through his various interactions with her person. In addition, it should be known that at the start of this story it is considered a time of "peace". This is the case because as of the start of this story, the last time there had been an Angel presence on Earth was 2nd Impact...
My name is Shu Sazanami... I am used to not being the center of attention. It's not that I am "unpopular" or "uncool", I just don't stand out like the other kids. I'm not too good at sports, nor am I that smart in academics. I guess it would be sufficient to say that I'm just an average teenage boy growing up in one of the most technologically advanced cities in the world. Tokyo 03. Life in the city is good. The economy is good and people are always out and about. Huh?
"Sazanami-kun..." A soft voice was calling my name. A voice that could belong to an angel.
"Sazanami-kuuun..." The voice spoke again, this time sounding slightly frustrated. I wonder if I did anything to her?
I opened my eyes slowly, squinting. The morning sun light shined brightly into my bedroom. Rubbing them slightly, I opened them fully.
"It's about time, Sazanami-kun! I thought you'd never wake up..."
The girl who was so kind to come to my room and wake me up every single morning was Kokoro Oboro. Kokoro was soft spoken, extremely well mannered, and had a heart larger than anyone I've ever met in my life. We're childhood friends, and have been attending the same schools since as far back as I can remember.
"Oh... Good morning, Kokoro... I'm going back to bed..."
"No, please don't, Sazanami-kun! We're already cutting it super close as is!"
Okay, I was really kidding. I wasn't exactly going to go back to sleep. I mean, if I really did that Kokoro would start to cry. I'd have to be some kind of punk to make a cute girl like her cry, so I decided to get up. Removing the covers from my body, I slid out of my comfortable bed and stood up next to it.
"S-s-s-suzanami-kun?" Kokoro's face was extremely flushed, almost as red as a tomato.
"Is something wrong, Kokoro? Are you feeling sick?" I asked, I mean, it's only polite. She really looked like something was really bothering her.
"...c-clothes..." She managed to squeak a single word from her mouth. She said "Clothes"? Now, before you start accusing me of purposely sleeping naked because I know that Kokoro will wake me up every morning – stop it. I swear, I have no idea why I wasn't wearing any clothes on this particular given morning... so you people thinking I'm some sort of pervert can perish the thought!
"Clothes...? AH!" I screamed, realizing that I was standing in my birthday suit in front of my childhood friend who also happened to be a girl.
After that rather embarrassing situation, I had gotten dressed in my usual school uniform. Wearing a white button up short sleeved shirt and black pants, it was a simple uniform but a uniform all the same. Kokoro wore the matching vest and skirt to go along with a white button up shirt. The girls' uniform each possessed a different color ribbon to identify their current grade. As Kokoro was 8th grade, she wore the red ribbon. I just had a pin that I had to place in my collar to identify my year...at least I didn't have to wear a stupid ribbon...
The routinely route to school was always the same. After leaving my parents house, we would head for the nearest subway terminal. Boarding the subway train, it only took about twelve minutes to reach the closest terminal to Tokyo 03 junior high. From there it was only about a five minute walk to school.
The subway ride was usually without change and what I mean by that was the people boarding the subway train at the same time we were usually consisted of the same people, give or take a few anomalies. It was always interesting to see all the different sorts of people compacted into such a small area. This way, you could learn more about them.
Ok, so I'm a people watcher...sue me... Anyway, there is one person in particular whom interests me like no one else. Coincidentally, this person is also a classmate of mine. Her name was Rei Ayanami. She had shorter blue hair and crimson red eyes. I would guess she was an albino, but her features don't exactly match up one hundred percent.
"The jury is still out on that one...", I muttered softly enough to where I figured no one would overhear...
"Sazanami-kun?"
Damn. She must have overheard me.
"Yeah, Kokoro?"
"You know... How long have we known each other?"
"What the hell?" I remember thinking. I mean, surely she would know just how long we had known each other for...
"Uhh...well it was ever since I came here from Tokyo 02, right?"
"Yeah! I remember you made fun of me too!"
Shit. She still remembers that? I barely even remember anything from those days... Then again... maybe that was for the best... Anyway, I'm not going to talk about my past now even if you beg me so don't even ask!
"Probably... Ten years... I was four or five and I'm fifteen now. So about ten years..."
"Ten years? So it's our tin anniversary? Oh my God, this is amazing!" She exclaimed with much jubilation, at least, at first... It didn't take long for her to get really quiet. I didn't have to ask why, I mean, to her this was probably really important... yet I wasn't able to remember without really having to dig down to think deeply about it.
"Kokoro?" I figured I would break the uneasy silence.
Kokoro didn't respond with words, but somehow, I figured she was listening to me.
"I'm sorry..." I apologized, albeit a bit embarrassed, scratching the back of my head.
Suddenly, Kokoro broke into laughter. Of course at the time it really threw me off kilter. I couldn't figure her out at this given moment.
"Oh Sazanami-kun, it's okay. I didn't actually expect you to remember anyway!" She replied, sticking her tongue out at me. Thanks for having faith in me, Kokoro...
The remainder of the subway ride was pretty routine. Kokoro and I talked about various random topics until we arrived at the terminal that placed the school only a stones throw away. Once we arrived, we got off the subway at the terminal and footed it to school. I always enjoyed this short walk to school. As Kokoro and I walked side by side talking, in the corner of my eye, I could see Ayanami... Hey, it's not what you're thinking. It's not like I was in love with her or anything... I just... forget it, it's not important. Anyway, this walk to school after departing from the terminal was my favorite thing about the morning on a school day.
The morning that day progressed like any other. Quiet and normal without any problems. However, on that particular day, what the afternoon brought was anything but quiet and normal...
During our lunch session, I was eating lunch with Kokoro as well as a few of her friends. I suppose I should introduce them. Sitting to Kokoro's left was the Class Rep, Hikari Horaki. She never gave me a hard time, but boy did she ever seem to have fits whenever Toji Suzuhara was involved... at the time, I had no idea that it was actually because she was rather quite fond of him. Sitting to my right, across from Hikari, was Midori Shigeru. Midori wore round-framed glasses and enjoyed taking pictures of almost everything. Obviously, photography was her hobby. She was quite good at taking pictures too. Her crush on Kensuke Aida, who's a close friend of Toji's, would've been poetic considering she and Hikari are close friends and Kensuke and Toji are close friends... of course I was would've because...well...why the hell would anyone have a crush on Aida of all people? I just don't get nerdy chicks at all...then or now.
"Hey, Sazanami?" Midori had suddenly started to ask, "I heard the sweetest thing today."
"Yeah?" I replied with feigned interest. Honestly, I really didn't care what she had to say. Most of the time it was something completely ridiculous or utterly unimportant.
"I heard that it's your Tin Anniversary! Congratulations!" Midori congratulated me...of course, with her implication that Kokoro and I had been going out for 10 years now had drew the stares of everyone in the room... Thanks a lot, Midori, I should have broken your stupid camera and snapped your glasses in half...
"Yeah..." I halfheartedly replied. To be honest, Midori had this habit of always pissing me off. It's not like she intentionally tried to get under my skin, it just so happened to be the result of probably ninety percent of anything she said.
"Midoriiii... you promised you wouldn't make a scene of it!" Kokoro cried. It seemed she didn't like to be placed in the hot seat like this either. Because, while Midori sprung the question on me... Kokoro was immediately understood as being together with me as well... we were always together. Heh, yeah, come to think of it, Kokoro and I were always together...
"I'm sorry, Kokoro, but I just couldn't help it! I needed something really juicy to write about for the school paper."
"Oh my God! Midori, tell me you didn't! You didn't write an entire article in the school newspaper about Sazanami-kun and I, did you?"
"Well..." Midori replied with an impish smile. That witch..., I couldn't believe she would actually go to such lengths to publish an article in the school paper. You think she could have picked a more...less embarrassing topic? No, not Midori, she wasn't happy until she pissed off at least a few people...
"Dammit, Midori," I started, "You can't just go playing games like that! You didn't even ask us for permission to publish an article that was completely centered around us. That's gotta be against the law at least somewhere in this world!"
"Hey, now don't be getting all bent out of shape you two! I did it to show just how incredibly cute and beautiful your relationship is! You two should be thanking me!"
Honestly, I didn't think it was possible for a girl to be so damn clueless. But Midori managed to prove to me that it was indeed very much possible. And thanks to her the entire lunch period was filled with jeers and jokes from the remainder of the class directed at Kokoro and I. I swore I would exact my revenge on Midori one day... more on that later.
After school had ended, Kokoro went with Hikari to attend a student council meeting. While she did that, I would always wait around the school for her until the meeting had concluded. Kokoro liked walking home with me, and I didn't exactly mind waiting, so it worked out well. On this particular day, while I was waiting for Kokoro to finish up with her student council meeting, I noticed Rei Ayanami was sitting at her desk looking out the window. She was looking out into the orange colored sky of dawn. A little bored, I decided I'd muster up some courage to talk to her. I won't lie, I was always enraptured by her. There was something enigmatic and mysterious about her that simply captivated me. I wouldn't call it "love" or "lust" or anything like that. I think I was just really intrigued by her.
"Nice day outside, isn't it?"
"..."
Well, ANY reply would've been nice. She didn't exactly have to ignore me... But I was pretty persistent back then, so I tried again.
"You know, while the entire class was ganging up making fun of Kokoro and I, you didn't. Thanks."
"...What are you thanking me for?"
"You know, for not joining in and making things even more difficult for us. I appreciate it."
"...Is that so? In that case, I guess I should say... You're welcome."
I can't say I expected much, but hearing her say such kind words without a hint of emotion just made me feel sad. It was as if she didn't truly understand the meaning of the words she was using. As if she was just reciting the 'correct words', to formulate a response that was most 'befitting' the current situation... so, I persisted to keep on trying to converse with her.
"So... The Yomiuri Giants have a game tonight... Kokoro and I have tickets, a few extra too. You want to come?"
"No," she refused almost immediately. Damn, she could have at least feigned interest for a few moments before turning me down...
"Sorry, but could it be that you don't like me?"
"...It is not that, Sazanami. It is just that I am unable to attend the Yomiuri Giants and Tokyo Yakult Swallows due to obligations that I have to see to after school."
Well, she could have said "Sorry, I have plans" or something normal like that... Then again, Rei Ayanami wasn't exactly your A-typical girl. Seeing as she had plans, I decided not to press her further about hanging out. I smiled as I took a seat at the desk in front of her's and looked out the window as well. The dawn skyline was quite beautiful. The bright yellowish red sky was captivating. Truth be told, I enjoyed this time of day the most. It was still light out, but signs of the days eventual end were also apparent. It's sort of like the end of a cycle. Well, not sort of, it really is. The Sun rises in the daytime and sets in the evening. Despite this being a repeating never ending cycle, it still interests me.
"Ayanami."
"...Yes, Sazanami?"
"...What are you thinking about?"
"..."
I didn't exactly expect her to answer me, it's not exactly like we were on the best of friends terms where I could expect to hear an answer to such a question. Noticing that it was about time for Kokoro to get out of the student council meeting, I slung my school bag over my shoulder and started for the classroom doorway...that was when I heard it.
"Bonds...Sazanami... I am thinking about... Bonds..."
"Bonds?"
"Yes, bonds... Sazanami, do you know what it is like to forge a 'bond' with someone?"
Whoa, this shit was deep. I didn't think for a second that she would actually respond to me, let alone respond with an inquiry regarding what it was she was thinking about. I mean, how would you react when some mysterious girl you barely knew suddenly asked you about forging bonds with someone? One thing was for sure, I had no idea how I was going to answer her. I mean, I barely understood what it meant to forge a bond myself, just how could I answer her question if I myself hardly even knew? I wondered, did she always think about such complicated things? Just what sort of life did she lead out of school? Come to think of it, school and the subway ride there were the only times I was privy to see Rei Ayanami. Other than that... I had no idea what she was like outside of school. I had no idea what it was she enjoyed or what it was that she disliked. Rei Ayanami was truly a mystery to me... a mystery that I really wanted to solve. Come to think of it, aside from Kokoro, I don't think I ever found myself this drawn to someone. At the time I couldn't explain what the feeling was. Like I said, I didn't think it 'love' or anything like that...but then again, at that time, I myself didn't even know what love even was. I didn't tell you, my 'parents' with whom I live are not my real parents. I was adopted when I was about four years old. I didn't remember much about my birth parents, but I did remember times of incomparable sadness when I was with them...they were not good to me, nor did they 'love' me. So how the hell is someone who hasn't even ever experienced love from his birth parents even capable of understanding what it takes to forge a bond with someone...so I didn't bother to even answer. I didn't give a single reply to Rei Ayanami... I simply walked out of the classroom so that I could meet with Kokoro and go on home. Perhaps that wasn't the best thing I could have done and perhaps if I could do things differently, I would've never left like that. But that's not how things are, we have to live with what we have done. So do I, and so do you. I am Shu Sazanami, and this is my story of the times I spent with the people who were responsible for saving the world: Rei Ayanami, Shinji Ikari, Asuka Langley Shikinami, and Mari Makinami...
Next time on Eva Days...
Kokoro and I decided to attend a baseball game. There we met up with some fellow classmates of ours, Toji Suzuhara and Kensuke Aida. Later that night, I decided to follow up on some information I had obtained from the class rep, Hikari Horaki. I decided to see Rei Ayanami at her residence that night. I'll never forget what I had seen that night... nobody should live in the conditions that she did. Just where were her parents? Where were her...things? I hated what I saw... because from that moment onward is when I started involving myself in her life. As to if that was a good or bad thing... I'll leave that for you to decide. Next time on Eva Days... Home is where the Heart is...
