Disclaimer: The characters of Evangelion do not belong to me, they belong to Gainax.
Author's Pre-notes: I know, I know. I'm not done with Genetic Lessons yet, but I just can't get any sleep unless I get these ideas out of my head before it explodes, OK? This is going to be a seven-part series, which makes sense because it takes place during one week. Anyway, I would just like to make a few things clear: there will be none of the following in this fic:
- Angel attacks
- Third Impact(s)
- ACC's
- UN invasions
- Suicides
- Homicides
- Sex scenes (if you think that there's going to be, think again, hentai!)
- Big Purple Dinosaurs that came from Hell
- Yellow, electrical rats that also came from Hell
- Judeo-Christian blabbering about Who and What the Angels "really are"
- Excessive gore (such as squeezing peoples' heads off with massive, biomechanical war machines)
I would just like to point out that this is a fic, and my first romantic one at that. If you have a problem with a fic that gives you that WAFFy feeling, you can press that little "X" at the top right corner of this window at any time you want. (I assume you are all intelligent people and are using some version of Windows OS)
Now, as to who Shinji ends up with in the end, I am afraid that I'm going to have to spoil it for you. It's going to be…Rei. No democracy this time, there's just too low of a vote count for that. 20% voter turnout is just not high enough for democracy to be worth it. Therefore, this fanfiction will now be under by totalitarian rule! MWA HA HA!!!…ahem. Sorry, Asuka fans, but there are just not enough pro-Rei fics out there, and I find it more pleasant to write about Rei, anyway. I write this because whenever I have to write about Asuka, I have to factor in each and every one of Asuka's many, many mental defense mechanisms. Rei, on the other hand, is smooth sailing, for the most part.
BTW, this is from Shinji's POV.
Ahem…if you'll excuse my rambling, I say on with the fic!
One Day in the Life of Shinji Ikari: Prologue, Monday Morning
By Voltaire
The first thing I remember about waking up is that it's either to an alarm clock or a snarling redhead. The former annoys me with its incessant buzzing, while the latter drives me nuts with her unyielding demands. The only good things about waking up are when I'm not waken up by an alarm clock or a redhead too lazy to make her own food. Sometimes, she just makes me so mad that I could throw her out the window, roommate or no roommate.
That isn't the worst part, though. All that she does every day is criticize every little thing I do, be it washing her dishes, cooking her breakfast, lunch and dinner, washing her laundry, carrying her luggage, and cleaning her room. Even all of that I can deal with, just barely. Then, to make matters worse, she pulls the last straw. If I do anything right, all she does is say it was "luck", "Wonder Boy does it again", or "Invincible Shinji comes to the rescue!". Why can't she ever just thank me for all of the things I do for her, or at least treat me with some degree of respect? Is it really that hard for her to swallow her pride for one second? Must I always be held in contempt for the deeds that I do, the tasks that I perform, all at my own pathetic desire to see her smile? I don't mean that twisted, sardonic smile either; I just want to see a genuine, caring, pure Asuka-smile.
Will that damn buzzing ever stop? Grr…The really terrible thing is that I'll never see it. Never. All of it because of her own goddamn overbloated sense of pride. You know what? Forget Asuka. From now on, I don't care about Asuka. I will never, ever, again, do anything for her. She can try to saddle her own life by herself. I hope she crashes to the ground and…will that infernal buzzing stop?
My hand promptly smashed the alarm clock into utter submission. As if some unspoken command occurred, the buzzing refrained from continuing. I felt so much more peaceful, so much like I felt around…her. I can never describe the feeling when I'm around her…those cool glances, that serene, almost divine aura of tranquility that surrounds her so. Every time I look at her lovely face, I feel as if my entire body will just liquefy into a puddle at her feet. There are times that all I want to do is seize her apon her beautiful, feminine curves and hoist her up into the air with pure, unadulterated joy. I'll be able to do that, as soon as find out how to do one thing.
I have to find out a way to talk to her without stuttering 90% of the sentence. Oh, if I could only talk to Rei…
I sat up in my bed, noticing the dark confines of my room for the first time since I awoke. Looking at the clock, I noticed it was thirty-five minutes past five o'clock in the morning. That's strange…since when did I set my alarm clock for such a bizarre hour? My eye caught the note scribbled on the clock. Reaching out, I gently picked up the piece of thin paper. Turning on my bedside light, I could almost feel the mood of my humble dwelling from dark and forbidding to a peaceful aura, much like Rei Ayanami…I shook my head of the beautiful specter that filled the few pleasant dreams that my subconscious would allow and focused my mind on the not attached to my now-smashed alarm clock. The note was from Asuka; she had altered the constant sound which roused me from my slumber. The note stated that it was because I had not cooked dinner last night.
How dare she
? I almost always cooked the meals around here, and I had covered for both her and Misato dozens apon dozens of times over. Now Asuka had the unbridled arrogance to make even more demands of me! I had half a mind to march into her room right now and slap her face so hard she'll need stitches. Of course, I knew that if I actually considered doing that, I'd chicken out at her door and run back to the sweet, dark oblivion of my room. There was no point in it, really; Asuka would just do something twice as bad anyway.Shifting my thoughts away from the anger that always seems to come whenever I'm thinking of Asuka, I refocused my thoughts to something comforting…like Rei. How her light blue hair always seemed to catch a light zephyr and just to watch it blow in that breeze took my breath away every time. How her angelic body, like the true angels of legend, seemed to glide from Point A to Point B, rather then stay clumsily attached to the ground.
Seeing no point in falling back asleep with Rei on my mind, I pulled myself upright and let the thin blanket covering me fell quietly to the equally thin mattress set up for my use. Making sure my steps were without noise, I took the familiar route to my bedroom door. Sliding open the door open as smoothly and without haste as I could, I stepped forward out of the portal separating my peaceful room to the harsh reality of the outside world. Then again, nothing in Misato's apartment seemed to operate within the confines of reality, such as her drinking habits. I chuckled at a volume consistent with my other current activities, and stepped into the bathroom. I checked around the area, my eyes darting to any sudden movement that might betray any presence of a certain snobbish wet-water penguin.
My unclothed feet felt cold along the tiled floor, but I paid no heed. My head came up, and I saw what I had always tried to avoid: a coward. Standing there, in front of the mirror, with the darkness of the bathroom engulfing me, I stared at the fool who couldn't take the initiative to even talk to the girl who was his first and last thoughts of the day, and had been so ever since he had met her.
I sneered at the face. The apparition sneered back with equal malice. I noticed the reflection reach to his left as I did so, seeking the bringer of light, even if it was artificial. The lights above my sleep-deprived head flickered, then filled the small room with light. I squinted through habit, and took another look at my own reflection. The reflection stared back at me, then took a towel from the rack to its right. I placed the white towel over the mirror, because I couldn't stand to look at that terrible face.
I felt better after the shower, more at peace. During the shower, I took an oath: I would talk to Rei, and I would not get nervous. Maybe, if things went well, I could walk her home. Then again, what if she rejected me…what if she said…
NO! I would not think like that. If I started to think negatively, then I would never muster up the courage to talk to Rei, much less walk her home. I sighed as I walked out of the bathroom, slowly closing the door behind me. The first rays of sunlight came into the living room from the doors leading onto the balcony. My head turned as I noticed that it had been almost an hour since I had woken up. Had I really spent so much time in the shower? This thought was irrelevant, and I stepped towards the balcony, almost drawn to the growing sunlight. A small breeze blew across Tokyo-3, its light zephyr piercing the thin material of my robe as I stared at the great Fortress City in all of its splendor.
The cool morning reminded me of Rei, and my thoughts shifted back to the wonderful, mysterious woman whom I could not keep out of my thoughts for more then five minutes. I wonder, is this love? Thinking of nothing else then being with the object of every thought that crossed your mind? I shook my head as my body finally registered how cold the wind actually was, and I headed back inside.
Letting the glass door slide quietly behind me, I headed to my room, the soft carpet giving way beneath my bare feet. I stopped outside Asuka's door, and that reminded me of the "prank" she played on me earlier. My blood boiled as I remembered that cruel trick of hers, so alike all the others she so loved to play with me. I suppose some good came out of it, however, because if it weren't for her foolish antic, I wouldn't have made my oath about Rei.
Bending my head in a symbol of mock respect, I closed my eyes and whispered softly, "Thank you, Asuka." It's truly amazing how life seems to have a sense of irony. I thank the most annoying and exasperating person I know for waking me up early just to get even.
"For what, Shinji?"
I froze. I couldn't have heard that right, could I? I didn't just hear Asuka's voice, did I? I dismissed that as impossible, because Asuka would never ask me something in that tone of voice. It was not cynical, insulting, or sarcastic. She was merely asking for information. The Asuka I knew had never asked me for anything without adding 'baka', 'hentai', 'Wonder Boy', 'The Invincible Shinji', or at least putting a sarcastic tone into her voice.
Asuka's cerulean eyes stared at me, as if I was a standing corpse. My eyes examined her facial expression, looking for some hint of the usual apathetic expression that usually greeted me day in and day out. Instead, there was nothing there. Asuka was merely standing there, and in that moment between moments, we shared what could only be described as a perfect instant. I was not cowering before her, and she was not yelling her lungs out. I don't know what happened then, or why. Maybe I wanted to test my courage as a warm-up for my conversation with Rei. Hopefully, a two-way conversation, but one can never be too sure…no! I will not start thinking that way again!
Asuka must have noticed my distracted thoughts, as she quietly placed her hand apon my arm. I froze again. My muscles tensed, but for some strange reason, I did not back down. Asuka began to tighten her grip on my arm, and I began to wonder…
The sting on my left cheek a few moments later answered all of my questions as to why Asuka was acting strangely. A cry of "you hentai" echoed throughout the small apartment, and I fell unceremoniously on my rump. I rubbed my cheek, and felt the sharp, burning sensation of a Grade-A Asuka slap. I snarled as I got back onto my feet.
Damn Asuka. Why would I want to waste any more of my time with her when I could spend it with Rei? For the umpteenth time this morning, the very thought of spending time with Rei melted my heart. My anger faded in the same fashion. I refused to let the incident with Asuka ruin my morning. Nothing would ruin my impending talk with Rei…nothing!
To be continued….
Author's Notes: Well, I think that was a great start. Mail me your reviews, comments, suggestions, death treats, etc. at quanta_masta@hotmail.com
I know Shinji may seem OOC, but we really don't know what's going on in that little head of his (with a few exceptions), do we? Shinji, at least in my opinion, can be a very determined individual if he wants to be. I hope I get some feedback from you guys, because this is my first romance fic, and I would like to know how I'm doing with it.
*Sigh* If only some of my classmates knew that I was writing something like this, they would never, ever believe me. Oh well, such is the life of a writer…
Ja ne!
Voltaire