Disclaimer: I do not own Evangelion or its characters.

Warnings: For now this is just rated T for mentions of adult themes, but will bump up to M later on, depending on how many readers I get.

Summary: Kaworu Nagisa is a part-time worker at the local library and aspiring novelist. With no inspiration to write the novels he needs to pursue his dream career, he figures his life is going nowhere. That is until a bakery opens next door, and the owner's son catches his eye.

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Half-passed nine, that's what Kaworu's watch told him.

The library was to close at exactly ten at night, and some ninth grader was still trying to find the answers for his upcoming exam, which he was convinced could all be found in a single book here. Kaworu had told him a few hours earlier that they're closing up at ten, and didn't have the heart to tell the teen he has to leave so he can close up. He stretched his arms high above his head, popping his sore muscles from being slouched over all day. Kaworu was fairly tall (and, admittedly, pretty lanky), and the librarian's desk was made under the impression some little old lady would be sitting here.

Kaworu had seen a job opening for a librarian, and he needed the money if he wanted to pay his rent. The little old lady that had been working at the desk prior had to go home earlier than because of her failing health, and Kaworu had to take over for the nights. He'd also help sort through the returned books and put them back onto the shelves, along with reorganize the mess the high-school students would always leave behind after picking up books and throwing them back into incorrect spaces nonchalantly. He'd lost his cool once, when the library was already crowded before the teenagers came in to skip school. They threw the books and even busted open two of the beanbag chairs, and Kaworu raised his voice and put on his best irritated tone at them. He scolded them for at least half an hour, going on about responsibility and nagging them for skipping, "like some pissed-off old lady", he heard them say on their way out.

It takes a lot to make Kaworu snap in such a way, being such a painfully patient person.

Kaworu Nagisa had just moved into this small town after hearing of all the part-time jobs available. He'd only scored with landing one as a librarian, but he was okay with that. He'd always had a love for literature, especially poetry, mystery, and romance novels. Being a librarian gave him access to read any books on the shelves, but they still weren't enough to him. He wanted to write as a living, creating his own characters and giving them their own stories… just being able to let his inner thoughts flow out of his mind and into a book. The only problem was that being secluded in a little town miles away from a city with no inspiration prevented him from getting any ideas and producing any content. He'd tried looking around the town inside and out, but there just wasn't anything interesting enough to put down on paper.

The idea of being a famous writer, with his stories being made into big Hollywood blockbuster had him wanting that as his career ever since he was little. He could only dream.

The sound of hard-cover books falling over brought Kaworu back to the present, and he snapped his gaze to the corner to see that the kid had pulled am encyclopedia out from the bottom of a pile of them. The kid apologized several times nervously, seemingly intimidated by the 6 foot albino young adult at the front desk. Kaworu wasn't self-conscious of his height, but offered a gentle smile in return so improve his image. He glanced down at his watch.

Three minutes to ten. He ought to tell this kid to go home, politely, of course. He raised his head and the teen was still flipping through the massive book, and Kaworu sighed, feeling a little bad to interrupt the boy.

"I'm sorry, but we're closing pretty soon," he called over him, to which the kid snapped his head up, obviously surprised from hearing Kaworu speak for once. Kaworu glanced down at the math book, his gaze returning back to the kid's face, who was scrambling to gather his things after seeing the clock and panicking. "You can check that book if you want, just bring it up here with your ID."

Relief swept over the boy's face for just a second at hearing the words, now grabbing the book along with his belongings and making his way to the desk.

While Kaworu was busying himself with scanning the bar code on the back of the book, the teenager caught him off guard.

"Why do you work here? You look sorta young, and there's other jobs around here. Being a librarian's for old ladies, not 20-somethings. This one friend of mine got a job a the gas station, and that probably pays more than this. Plus, she got to see a ton of fights there," he said in an incredibly rude tone, but he was a teenager, so it was to be expected. Kaworu visibly tensed at the unintentionally harsh words, feeling insulted on his job choice.

Kaworu didn't want to be kept at the library when he could be home, cozily reading a book in bed, so he decided to come up with a short answer that wouldn't lead to the kid taunting him for being a geek and keeping both of them here any longer.

"It's easy and pays pretty well." Both of them feeling satisfied by the answer, they both went on with their own business.

A wind blew harshly at Kaworu as he locked up for the night, causing him to shiver as he gripped his windbreaker. He glanced around his surroundings, and saw something he hadn't really expected. The vacant store that hadn't been used in at least 10 years since before he'd come here had a bright sign hung above the doorway.

He stepped closer to the building, squinting in the darkness to read the words across it.

"Ikari's," he read aloud. Must be someone's name, Kaworu thought. He glanced through a window in the front, seeing that apparently whoever is planning on using the building already moved in some tables and set up the counter. The name sounded like it'd be a family business, and he had hopes they would be at least a little interesting and bring some color to this boring town.

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Thanks for reading! Reviews are always welcome.