Rivalitas
Prologue: And then?
Shinji looked out at all of them, smiling at his good fortune. 'Today,' he thought, 'I have really started to grow up.'
Around him his friends and family congratulated him on accomplishing instrumentality. He shook hands, was patted on the back, and said thank you a million times over. Slowly Shinji came to the realization that this was the happiest day of his entire life.
He finally reached the far side of the room. Shinji turned back to look at everyone, smile upon his face. He looked them all over, as if truly seeing them for the first time. 'I wonder,' he thought, 'whose acceptance I enjoy the most.'
Shinji left the room and headed back to Misato's apartment. Instrumentality had exhausted nearly every nerve in his body. It was time to get some rest.
Back in the room they watched him go with happy eyes. Not a person was unhappy for Shinji right then. Even Rei felt something.
But without the rope that connected them they all broke apart. Shinji kept them together, even if nearly every one of them wouldn't admit it. It was when he was hurt that spirits sunk the lowest, when he was happy that they were at the highest. Without him though…
Shinji left the next day. He told Misato that he was going to go back up to his teacher's for a few days. Just to see him, to talk to him, and for some free time. His days hadn't exactly been packed since K… the last Angels death. Misato decided he could use a weekend to himself, especially instrumentalized as he was.
Asuka would never have admitted it. At least, not at this point.
Shinji boarded a bus and waved to them, with a smile on his face, as he left. Misato waved goodbye cheerfully. Asuka shouted after him, "Goodbye baka!" Eventually he was out of sight.
"Should we go to the car?" asked Asuka.
Misato paused for a moment. "Yeah," she said, "Let's go to the car."
Shinji finished unpacking in his old room and lay down on the bed. 'Alright,' he thought, 'what now? I'm at my teacher's for a brief vacation, what to do?'
He headed out for a walk. The cool night air felt relaxing and he enjoyed the feeling of just walking, knowing he wasn't running away from anything. The trail was not paved, which meant it was also relaxing on his feet.
He walked for what seemed like an hour, just rethinking on his time at NERV. It seemed like he'd been doing a lot of that lately. What with instrumentality bringing up every action he'd made at NERV. It was starting to get a little repetitive, at least it seemed that way to Shinji.
Finally the path ended at a lake. The moon was out now, and it cast a reflective light over the whole area. 'Wow,' Shinji thought, 'this is… nice.'
Shinji, in a rare moment of impulse, decided to stay the night out at the lake. He lay down to gaze up at the stars and think about what he wanted to do with his life.
Asuka slammed the receiver down in frustration. "Stupid baka," she said, "can't answer the phone."
"What's wrong Asuka?" Misato teased, "Miss Shinji already? It's only been one night!"
Asuka scowled and fumed at the jab. Then she straightened and closed her eyes, assuming an explanatory position. "No," she said, "I'm just bored."
Misato's eyes bugged out. She'd heard stories from Shinji….
"Well…" Misato said, glancing at an imaginary watch on her hand, "I think its time for bed." She dashed off for her room, slamming and bolting her door.
Now that just pissed Asuka off more. But eventually she couldn't keep it in. She let out a sigh and plopped down in front of the television. She began flipping channels in boredom.
When she caught what was on one of the news channels she began trying to knock Misato's door down.
Shinji woke up early. 'One shouldn't expect to be able to sleep late when you're sleeping outside,' he decided when he was roused by a series of bird calls. He yawned, stood, and began the long hike back to his teacher's house.
When he finally did enter the house he found a paper waiting for him on the kitchen table. One glance at the title was all it took for him to flip out. He began frantically trying to call Misato.
This is a different kind of fic then my last one. Don't expect the real romance to start for at least another chapter. When it does kick off, don't expect it to be great. The thing I like most about this fic is the idea I came up with. You'll find out more next update.