Ayanami Rei felt that she did not belong. She was so different from everyone else; a young girl with the inability to properly emote. She was conditioned to follow orders with amazing efficiency, but had trouble making friends. No one felt truly able to connect with her on an interpersonal level, and her own introspection brought her nothing but confusion.
One day, during a synchronization test, Rei sat leaned back on the seat of Unit 00's entry plug, wondering what was happening as lights of various hues began to encircle her. She stayed still, waiting for the phenomenon to end. This was not in her memory; she did not know how to react. After about ten minutes and no sign of end, Rei decided to force eject the plug. She pulled a handle, and the top of the plug shot out.
She stood up, emerging from the plug and coughing LCL out of her lungs for a minute before her vision was no longer compromised by the fear of drowning. She looked around, and saw the entry plug was in the middle of a crowded street. Cars drove by and people walked merrily past, chatting amongst themselves. No one seemed to notice the large cylindrical object, or the strange girl poking out of it. She watched the pedestrians walking in pairs and groups, smiling and having a good time. This was…foreign to her. She watched for a little longer, then dropped back into the plug. The LCL filled her lungs, and she relaxed as the lid closed again. This was not where she belonged.
The strange lights returned, and Rei waited about five minutes before releasing the hatch. She stood up, coughing the LCL out, then became familiar with her surroundings. The hatch of the plug hinged from the floor of a carpeted room, with a bed and dresser in it. Rei stood there as the door opened, and a couple rushed in. The man locked the door as the woman laid down on the bed, and began to unbutton her blouse. Rei watched this from only a few feet away, unnoticed. She observed, but was not affected in any significant way. She was only observing an act to which she could not relate. It had no intimate meaning to her; it was a natural occurrence, and nothing more. Leaving the bedroom behind, she submerged herself in the thick orange staff of life. This was not where she belonged, either.
Little light flowed in when Rei opened the hatch the next time. After being able to breathe air again, she looked around. It was nighttime; the moon, low in the sky, appeared huge compared to other nights. Bright moonlight illuminated the surrounding field, and there was not a living soul to be seen. Rei finally felt comfortable enough to leave the plug. She stepped out, and walked forward into the bright night. She sat against a stone, and looked up into the moon.
After an hour or so, Rei laid down at the foot of the stone to sleep. As she drifted off, she reached up and ran her fingers over the Eulogy on the flat stone, mouthing it to herself over and over again until she finally fell asleep. This was a peaceful place; a place she could belong.