Foreword: Okay, this will be two (or three, maybe four if I want to add in some comedy) chapters… Or, if the people so choose, I might have to actually make it longer, as in, a whole story instead of just a short story.
Disclaimer: I don't own Evangelion, or it's characters. I do not own the 69 Eyes, or their song 'Beneath the Blue' despite how badass the band is.
"…" denotes dialogue.
'…' denotes thinking.
Shinji had just gotten out of bed and had slipped under the warming water of the shower.
Of course, like usual, he had made sure that absolutely nobody was in the apartment. For what he was about to do, he needed complete privacy.
Asuka left a note saying that she would probably be out until noon, although Shinji had absolutely no idea on what she could possibly be doing… and then he saw the ads for a sale at the mall. Thankfully, it was only nine, and she wouldn't be back for a long time.
Misato got stuck in a meeting at work, after pulling the late shift, so she would most definitely not be back until later.
If somebody were to walk in on him while he was doing his usual thing in the shower, he would be so incredibly embarrassed… especially if it was Asuka who walked in on him.
He grunted and rubbed at his throat, preparing his voice. His finger reached out of the shower and hit a button on a CD player perched on the sink top. He quickly hit a few more buttons, turning it to song number eight.
"Well, eight is my lucky number, and it's a good song… I guess that must be why I like it so much… I just hope my singing doesn't butcher it…" Shinji's mind brought up a picture of Asuka smiling at him, 'Hmm… Maybe there's another reason that I like this song…'
He waited for the intro to the song to finish playing, and he prepared to begin his singing.
(------------------------)
Asuka sighed and threw her purse onto the island right next to her note. "How could I get the date wrong! That was stupid! I should've been more careful, I guess. It's probably that idiot's fault… somehow."
She trekked over to the bathroom and sighed again, "Oh, I need a shower… something to relax- what? What is that?"
The redhead pressed her ear up to the door, in order to hear better.
A voice deeper than any she had heard within the house came wafting through the door.
"Some were born to light,
Some into the endless night, baby.
Every man's got to find
What's there behind
The silver side, now baby."
"Would you take me tonight,
Back into the garden of delight?
Don't let the promise in your eyes
Ever stop burning so bright."
"Mein Gott! Is that Shinji singing! … he has a nice voice… I just didn't think he could sing, more or less at that low of a pitch." She stayed pressed against the door, listening intently.
"Sunlight in your hair,
Those who live are those who dare."
"I'm coming back, for you,
Beneath the blue.
I'm coming back, for you.
Beneath the blue."
She pressed a hand to her heart and sighed, "I wish I caught him like this more often… I wish somebody would sing like this for me." Again, she waited for him to continue.
"Some hearts are born to cry,
Some endless lies, baby.
Every man's got to find
What's there behind
The lonely side, now baby."
"Would you take me tonight,
Back into the gentle grace of your light?
Don't let the story in your eyes,
Ever stop burning up so bright."
"Waaait a second… Why is this hitting home with me? He's just singing… It's not like he's singing for me or anything…" Asuka mumbled the end of her sentence, "Even if I wanted him to…"
"Sunlight in your hair,
Those who live are those who dare."
"I'm coming back, for you,
Beneath the blue.
I'm coming back, for you,
Beneath the blue."
"Why the hell doesn't this kid sing more? I didn't think somebody like Shinji could ever be this good… I bet he looks cute when he sings… err… I…" Asuka felt her cheeks heating up and she felt a silly grin creeping up on her lips. "It just dawned on me now, but…"
She left her sentence unvocalized, and instead left her mind to finish it. 'I'm in love with that boy. Shinji may not be super strong or anything but… I just do. I never thought it would ever happen… I always figured he was just a pampered, shy, little boy.'
The shower shut off, and Shinji's usual voice filtered through the door, "Well, at least I didn't embarrass myself too badly on that song… Oh man, if Asuka ever found out I was singing songs like this and thinking about her in the same thought, she'd kill me."
Asuka pulled a 'deer in the headlights' and just froze completely. As much as she wanted to move, she found that her body would just not comply with her brain.
The door slid open, and Asuka, who was still pressed against said door, tumbled in, taking to the ground and landing on top of Shinji Ikari.
A look of sheer horror spread across Shinji's face as he realized what she had been doing. 'Oh my God! She… She heard me singing! She's going to slay me!'
Asuka was almost blood red when she stood up. 'At least he has a towel on…' She looked at him, and saw his face, "Relax, Idiot, I'm not going to hurt you this time, because, for once, it was my fault."
Shinji stood up and made sure that his towel was wrapped around him as tightly as possible. "Uh… Um… E-Excuse me, Asuka."
Asuka grinned slyly and let him scurry into his room, closing and locking the door behind him. She followed him, and leaned against his door, "So Shinji…"
He moaned and sighed quietly within his room, 'Oh great… What does she want now? Ugh… I hope it's not something too taxing… although I wouldn't mind spending a little more time with Asuka.'
Asuka had her hand on his door handle and called out, "Shinji! Are you dressed yet!"
The young man nodded inside his room and replied to her, "Y-Yes."
Asuka opened his door and leaned against the door frame, with a feral grin plastered to her face, "You know,Shinji…"
The boy swallowed the lump in his throat and prepared for bad news.
"You're a pretty good singer." She examined a fingernail and said, "Do we want to keep this little secret to ourselves, or should we have you demonstrate for Misato?"
Again, horror filled Shinji's eyes as he began to beg Asuka, "Please don't do that! I'll… I'll do anything! Come on, Asuka! I-I'm horrible at singing! I didn't want anybody to hear me! It's embarrassing! A-Anything, Asuka! Anything!"
The redhead grinned even wider, giving her smile the same sinister quality of the Cheshire Cat's smile. "Anything,you say?"
"W-Well… Anything within r-reason, that is." Shinji was cringing under her devious smirk, and slowly tried to inch away from her.
The girl lunged forward and grabbed hold of his arm, "And just where do you think you're going? You still owe me something."
After pausing for a few moments, Asuka's massive and devious grin seemed to turn into a more genuine smile. She made sure to keep the fire in her voice as she addressed Shinji, so that he would not suspect anything was odd. "Well, Shinji… There's this movie I've been wanting to see…"
Shinji sighed internally, 'She's going to make me give her money and then just leave me here. It'll most likely be exactly like that…'
"And I don't really have anybody to go with, so you're taking me. We're going to the 7 o'clock showing downtown, alright?" Asuka folded her arms with an expectant look on her face.
The young man's jaw dropped as he thought over what she said. "Wh-What? You want me, of all people, to go with you? You're the most popular person at school, you could get anyone to-"
"Well I chose you, Idiot." The redhead paused, with her smirk fading into the makings of a fiery pout and examined Shinji, as she smoothed out her shirt. "What? Are you doubting my choice!"
"N-No, I just- Well, er- I meant that- I can't- Um… When did you say it was?" the brown haired boy stammered, sputtering out every excuse, or at least the beginning of them, in order to curb her wrath.
Regaining her smile, Asuka chuckled, "Now, that's what I wanted to hear in the first place, Shinji."
"Is this one of those deals where I'm not allowed to tell anybody about this… er… date?" Shinji cautiously breached the subject that was foremost on his mind. 'How do I know if she's toying with me or not? I… I can't believe the girl I've had my eye on this whole time actually likes me enough to go somewhere with me.'
Asuka rolled her eyes and grinned, "Nah, go ahead and tell anybody you want, but also tell them that they'll get a beating if they give either of us crap for it." Her expression turned grave and she continued, "EXCEPT for Misato. Do NOT let that woman know about this. We'll never hear the end of it from her, Shinji. Come on, she already teases us enough as it is, right?"
Gulping, Shinji nodded, and said, "Um, Asuka? I… I don't even think we'll get past dinner without Misato knowing… She's pretty perceptive, you know? It's sorta her job to be… but I agree, she'll never stop teasing us if she figures this out."
The girl nodded, and silence fell between them. Eventually, the silence got to Shinji, and he shuffled and asked, "S-So what now?"
"I dunno, God. You're the boy, you should know what to do! Let's watch TV or something…" Asuka said as she yawned and scratched at her scalp. The redhead grabbed his hand and brought him to the couch, where they both sat down and turned on the television.
Shinji Ikari looked down at his hand, which Asuka was still holding captive. 'Uh… She's…'
Nodding towards their interlocked appendages, the German girl raised an eyebrow as she said, "You don't mind if I keep your hand like this, do you?" 'He better not, or I'll hit him. Hard.' Her fist clenched a little, preparing herself to hit Shinji were he to deny her.
He hadn't even noticed her fist, but he was still wary of what she might do. "W-Well, actually, I… … … No… i-it's fine." Shinji smiled at Asuka, and for once, it was a genuine smile… one that he didn't need to hide. 'I guess all I can do is wait…'
Author's Notes: Yep, done with this chapter. Give me feedback on whether or not it should be longer or not. Thank you all.