When she got home, Rei worked another full hour to get the glue out of her skirt. It was easily the most tedious thing she had done. Even after stroking as hard as she could with a brush and stain remover, there was still a thin film covering the front.
Frustrated, she got up off her floor, moving over to the washing machine she knew wasn't functional. Even so, she tried it anyway, pulling on the dial with her fingers crossed. It didn't spin, of course. Just another reminder of the decrepit state her home was in.
Despite it being Friday night, one of the few times Rei could normally relax, she had to leave in search of a laundromat where she could wash the last bits of glue out of her uniform. The sun had began to set when she left, and the air grew cold.
Regardless of how annoying it was to clean, there was not a chance in hell she'd go back to school on Monday wearing it like this. All the repetitive comments she received earlier that day comparing the glue to a sex stain had made her head hurt.
The more she thought about it, the clearer it became that Asuka must've taken the photos of her. After all, the only person who would've snapped pictures like those, just to distribute them publicly, would have to really dislike her. Asuka was the only girl she knew of that she didn't get along with.
Sure, there were others that thought she was strange, quiet, and even mute; no one else hated her, though. And once again, Rei questioned why it was Asuka did. Was it really because I wasn't friendly to begin with? That can't be it…
She dwelled on it for the rest of her walk, until she arrived at the laundromat. It hadn't taken as long as she expected. As far as she could remember, it was actually the first time she had ever been in such a business.
Rei was one of the only people there. In the far corner, there was a man, fast asleep, probably waiting on a load to be washed. To her right, there were a few women, all of which seemed to be busy with their clothes.
It wasn't until she approached the machine, glued up skirt in hand, that she realized she had forgotten her purse. Inside was her wallet, so she had no money whatsoever; no coins or bills.
Sighing, she realized that if she wanted to wash her clothes that night, she'd need to walk twenty minutes back to collect her money, and then another twenty minutes return to get to the laundromat again.
I don't know why she did that. Rei kept repeating the words in her head. Often, things had an explanation. If she knew what triggered Asuka to act this way, she'd be able to prevent it in the future. But she had no idea. I don't know why she did that. I don't know why she did that.
She hated the logic. The more she thought about it, the worse it became. If Asuka did it arbitrarily, that would mean that no matter how Rei acted, she could do it again. For all she knew, she'd be coming back to this laundromat every night to wash glue off her clothes.
Things weren't that simple, of course. It was unlikely Asuka would do the same thing to her just to be spiteful. But it was how Rei's brain worked. With the information she had, she predicted the best she could. And her predictions were making her anxious.
Suddenly, a voice snapped her back to reality. She stopped staring at the empty washing machine, and turned around. "Ayanami! I knew I recognized that hair." Misato Katsuragi stood in front of her, hands on her hips, with a friendly smile.
"Oh, hi Misato." "What are you doing here, Rei? It's too late for a girl like you to be out all on her own." Rei blinked at her, wondering what she had meant. "I came to wash my uniform, but I forgot my change."
"You mean you don't have any money for the machine?" Rei nodded. "I'm leaving to go get some." Misato frowned at her. "Rei, you live a while away. Here, give it." She reached for the school uniform the other girl was clutching. "I'll throw it in with our stuff."
"Oh, that's not necessary." She felt very awkward. It seemed strange to have her uniform washed in the same cycle as Asuka's. "Nonsense! Give it to me. We're basically family, after all." Snatching it from Rei, Misato walked back a few steps and stuffed it into the machine.
Family? The term puzzled her. Sure, Misato was friendly to her, and the other children. She was their captain. But it felt weird to be treated like a family member. If she's my family, wouldn't that mean Asuka and I are like sisters? That doesn't seem right at all.
After dialing in the machine, the taller woman grabbed her hand. "Well, it'll be at least a half hour. Have you had dinner yet?" Misato was so pleasant. Rei wanted to lie, and avoid the interaction, but she smiled instead, saying she hadn't.
The two walked for a bit, eventually settling on a ramen bar. Rei got hers plain, and Misato went for a rich bowl with a good bit of meat. She scarfed it down with her chopsticks as the Eva pilot watched, only hesitantly poking at hers.
"So," she spoke between mouthfuls, "how're you getting along with Asuka?" Rei felt her appetite fade away as Asuka's name was spoken, and she quieted up. Misato had to prod her again. "I was just wondering, since she's the new kid on the block and all."
Knowing her job was hard enough as it is, Rei decided not to force Misato to be a councilor. "Fine." "Just fine?" They met eyes again. "Is that not sufficient?" "Oh, no, I'm glad. It's just, Asuka's been talking about you non-stop for the past day. I thought you too must've gotten close."
Talking about me? Huh? "W-what do you mean?" It wasn't difficult for the older woman to notice the tone shift in Rei's voice. "She's asked me a lot about you. Your background, you and Unit 00's statistics, and…" She was cut off. "What have you told her?!"
"Relax. Nothing too sensitive." Rei poked at the noodles swimming around her bowl. "Don't look so distressed, Ayanami. She's obviously fond of you." "F-fond of me?" Misato laughed. For whatever reason, Asuka seemed to put Rei on edge.
"Seems that way to me. You should come over more often! It'll give you two more chances to get to know eachother. And Shinji, too." She nodded, trying to work up the nerve to eat her dinner.
"Does Shinji ask about me?" Misato was once again caught with a mouthful of food. "Oh. Um, no, not really." Rei nodded. Why is Asuka asking Misato questions? That doesn't make any sense. If she hates me, why would she care about my background?
Swallowing her last strip of pork, Misato watched as Rei continued to play with her food. "If you're not hungry, I'm sure they'll give us a to-go container." She only nodded in response, and Misato waved her hand, indicating one of the staff members to come over.
Once Rei's practically untouched meal was packed up, they left. It worried Misato that she had gotten so quiet after bringing up Asuka, but hoped it was nothing more than social anxiety. They should get along, right? They're both Eva pilots.
They entered the laundromat to find their clothes finished washing. After moving the load over to a dryer, Misato grabbed one of the female uniforms out of the pile, handing it to Rei along with a few coins.
"Here, set up another dryer. Your uniform won't take very long on its own." She nodded. "Thank you." Rei propped herself up, sitting on the appliance as it spun her uniform around and around. Misato tried making conversation, but didn't have much success.
About twenty minutes later, she pointed towards it. "Go ahead and check it now." Rei did as she was told, and found the uniform to be almost entirely dry. It was still a little damp close to the edges, but the stain was gone, so she was happy to go home.
"Thank you, Misato. I will pay you back as soon as I see you." She gave Rei another warm smile. "Oh, no need! Just glad I could help. Since it's late, do you want me to drive you home?"
"No, that's okay." Rei moved to leave, before she was stopped again. "Hey, don't forget your ramen!" Turning around without another look to Misato, she grabbed the bag of food she had left by the dryer.
It was almost nine o'clock by the time she had gotten home. Glad to finally be able to settle, she examined the uniform once more, ensuring the stain was completely gone.
As expected, there was no sign of it. But something struck her as odd about the garment. The tassels at the sides were looser than she normally left them. Examining them, she realized it was not her that had adjusted her uniform like this.
Did Misato alter my skirt? She spun it around, examining the strange way the strings were tied together. Wait… Guessing what had happened, she grabbed the inside of it. Each student typically wrote their full, or family name, on the tag inside the uniform.
She shut her eyes, hoping she wasn't going to see a name other than hers. When she felt the paper tag slip between her fingers, she looked at it, and to her dismay, it read "Asuka Langley Sohryu."
"Oi, Misato, you're so late! Why force yourself to do laundry on a Friday?" She smiled as Asuka complained for her sake, a large bag of clothes in her hand.
"Eh, NERV let me go early tonight. The day really wouldn't feel complete if I wasn't doing something productive 'till ten." Moving up, Asuka grabbed the laundry from her so Misato could take her jacket and shoes off.
"SHINJI! Where are you?" He came out of the bathroom after being summoned, a toothbrush sticking out of his mouth. "Oi, Misato." "Hi, Shinji." He kept brushing as they greeted eachother, and Asuka narrowed her eyes with an annoyed look on her face.
"I didn't fold them, but they're still warm, so grab your clothes." "Right, thanks." Shinji reached for the bag that was thrown on the table only for Asuka to slap her hand away.
"Shinji, go finish brushing your teeth! Ladies don't need you rummaging through their laundry." He nodded, jogging back to the bathroom. Asuka dumped the clothes out, grabbing what was hers.
"Oh, Asuka, I saw Ayanami at the laundromat." She perked up after hearing Rei's name. "O-oh? What was she doing there?" Her face reddened, remembering how she had nearly destroyed Rei's outfit that morning.
"Take a guess." "R-right." "You should try your best to make friends with her. She doesn't talk to many girls your age." Asuka's face grew redder. "Yeah, you're right..."
After taking the items that were hers, Asuka left the room, moving into her sleeping space with her clothes. She set them down, peering at the photograph of Rei she was still holding onto.
Hmm… I was a real bitch to her. Maybe I should be friendlier. Misato's right, she doesn't really have anyone. Stopping for a moment, she recalled how much she enjoyed making Rei squirm. It was fun, but toxic, too. A childish, unhealthy response for romantic feelings she didn't really know how to handle.
She took a breath, making a new resolution to be nicer to Rei. As weird as she was, she didn't deserve the hate Asuka gave her. Tucking the photo away into her bookbag, she reached for her school uniform, folding it inside out. If she was lucky, she might be able to grow closer with her, if she started treating her properly.
As she moved the fabric over, she thought she saw something strange. Passing it back, she realized the tag had a different name on it. "A-A-Ayanami?!" Having just cracked open a beer, Misato was relaxing for the first time that Friday night, only to hear her name screamed through two walls. "MISATO! WHAT THE HELL IS THIS!?"