Title: Sick Day
Author: Neoluchs
Rating: G
Warning: OOC, intended shoujo-ai
Notes: Flames are tolerated but not appreciated. All I ask is that you take heed of the warnings before flaming. Con crit is greatly encouraged.
I wrote this a long, long time ago (sometime in summer) when I was sick. This would never ever happen, and Asuka's reactions near the end are very OOC.
Summary: Asuka is sick at home with a cold, and dreams of clouds. A very unexpected (but slightly premonated) visitor drops by.
-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-
Asuka sneezed for the billionth time that day, snuggling deeper into her blanket cocoon with a loud and whiny moan. Her sniffles were audible through the thick sheets.
They were all there; the symptoms of a head cold gone awry. Congested head, stuffy nose, hacking coughs, constant moans, groans, whining and whimpers. She felt –and looked– like she had been hit by a truck. Some random semi would be lying in a ditch somewhere, mangled and thoroughly deranged, if she didn't already know how she had gotten sick, or more importantly, who had gotten her sick in the first place. The redhead practically growled at the memory.
Sohryu Asuka Langley was just minding her own business, walking across the schoolyard in hunt of her best friend, Hikari, when a pair of random hands suddenly wrapped themselves around her wrists and jerked her backwards. She was about to squawk at the audacity of whoever it was who dared put their unworthy hands of her pristine skin when a football whizzed by right in front of her, barely clipping the tip of her nose. That had shut her up right quick… until she came to her sense and realized that she had just been rescued from a potentially mortifying experience. Her head snapped back to thank her savior (hoping it was a really cute guy). Again, and in such a short amount of time, the boisterous German girl was struck dumb.
You would never guess whose hands those were. Slowly, Asuka looked up from those pale, feminine hands to the pale, slender arms, and upwards, to the face of one Rei Ayanami.
Rei Ayanami just saved me from complete and utter humiliation, was the thought that raced through Asuka's mind. Followed by a What the hell is the world coming to? And She looks really pretty today (which earned her mind a mental slap).
You have to admit, she was shocked. So shocked and temporarily out of it that she was almost about to thank her when the other girl sneezed. Sneezed! Not once, but twice, three, four. Four times! Rei was undergoing a sneezing fit –while she was still holding onto Asuka's arm. Rei was sneezing all over her.
"Ew!" Asuka shrieked and pulled her arm back, shoved the girl away, and stomped away in disgust. She didn't even bother to look and see if anyone was staring.
And that is how she ended up where she was now –sick in bed on a school day. Now that she looked back on it, she was kind of harsh. After all, she was missing school for this.
Luckily, she wasn't the only one home sick. She had managed to infect another member of the household, and was rather pleased with herself about it. "Shinji…" she croaked. Just as she expected, there was no answer. The boy was probably being smart for once and sleeping. She should probably be doing the same thing. Just as she finished that thought, her eyes drooped shut and she felt herself loose her grip on her ill reality.
Just as black had managed to encompass her vision, there were clouds in it's wake, and then the black rushed blue. Clouds, and they were everywhere, about as far as the eye could see, and the bright blue was always with them, hanging behind for the background. She was dreaming, she could tell. No real place would have this many clouds, especially if she was standing and floating on and above them. A large and yellow sun hung above her, showering down with warm rays of light. There was no one but her; she was completely alone. She spread her legs and arms and fell backwards, her body cushioned and enveloped in clouds, and she just lied there, in peace, watching the clouds make funny shapes above her. It was so warm and soft, much better than being sick, she could just lie there like that forever.
Then a soft knocking sounded throughout the cloud wonderland. Slowly and hesitantly, Asuka raised her head and looked around. No one was there and she raised her body further until she was on her feet, spinning around, trying to find the source, but there was no one to be found. The knocking sounded again, and this time, as she turned around, there was: a naked angel, smiling… down on her. Shining red eyes, pale blue hair flowing around the angel's head from the imaginary breeze, and there were long, long spider like wings sprouting from the back of the angel's female preteen body. The angel looked thoroughly happy by the fact that Asuka was there, and the angel started to move.
The knocking resounded again and everything started to fade: the blue rushed to black, and the clouds disappeared two by two. The cloud wonderland had been replaced with a familiar bedroom with a familiar ceiling. It was her room.
Knock. Knock.
"What!" Asuka snapped, leaning up on her elbows to give her voice more projection. She liked that dream…
The door creaked open and a slender form stepped in.
"Wondergirl!" Asuka sniffled in surprise.
"Pilot Sohryu." Rei nodded in recognition.
Okay, what was Rei doing in her house, in her room? She voiced her thoughts aloud. "Wha- what are you doing here?"
The other girl took a white paper bag, which she had been holding since she walked in, and placed it on a small table near the bed.
"Major Katsuragi asked that I come by and check on Ikari." That would make sense. If she wasn't mistaken, today was scheduled for a sync test. Wait… only to check on Shinji? Gott! Was she not important anymore? Rei continued on. "I stopped on the way and picked up some soup for you two, if you want any at all."
Asuka glanced at the paper bag, and reached out to unfold the top. Inside was a Styrofoam bowl that radiated warmth; she could see that it was full of hot chicken noodle soup. It really was delicious once she managed to find the plastic spoon, and was gone within a matter of minutes.
When she looked back up, Rei was still there… did she need something else? As if on cue- "Did you like it?"
Asuka blinked. Before she could stop herself, her eyes narrowed and her words were spoken in a scathing tone. "I don't know. Did Shinji like his?"
The albino looked taken aback and her eyes flashed before returning to their normal red. "I… I didn't think to ask." Rei averted her eyes to the floor and a faint pink blushed across her cheeks.
Rei thought of her… before Shinji! Wow… didn't Rei practically worship the third child? In Rei's eyes, did Asuka… hold more value than Shinji?
"Rei," Asuka began, ignoring that her previous words were even uttered. The albino lifted her head in surprise. "Do you think that someone who's recently been sick can get sick again within only a few days?"
"It's not likely," was Wondergirl's usual precise and short answer.
Asuka didn't waste any time. "Come over here real quick."
The girl only looked at her quizzically.
"Just c'mere."
Rei silently obeyed and walked over to the bed laid out on the floor. Asuka pulled back the many layers of blankets and scooted over to the side and patting her recently vacated spot. Nodding in understanding, Rei sat like a stone in Asuka's previous arrangement.
It took some remarkable effort, but the German girl resisted any frustrated outburst. Instead, she placed her hand on Rei's chest and pushed, forcing her to relax and lie down on her back. "There," Asuka smiled in triumph and proceeded to mimic the albino's position.
Rei turned her head on the pillow to face Asuka. She didn't say anything, but her face spoke 'What the hell are you doing?' in volumes.
Asuka just smiled and curled her arm around Rei's shoulder, snuggling up to her fellow EVA pilot. "Just," Asuka sighed in contempt. "Stay with me." As nice as being alone in the dream was, she didn't want to be right now, not when the angel (her angel?) was lying right next to her.
Rei smiled, her eyes burning with what could be happiness or more. She readjusted their positions slightly –arms still wrapped around the other– benefiting both of them in soft comfort, with Asuka snuggling into Rei's chin, wrapped in warm arms. Later, if she woke up and hated herself for this, she would just blame it on the sickness making her delusional (which was probably what it actually was), but for some reason deep down, she highly doubted that.
Asuka felt a million times better, even on a day when she was normally and perfectly healthy.