It was eight o' clock, and Shinji was readying his bag for school the next morning. He always prepped the night before so he could wake up a little later, with no need to scramble for his stuff.
Oddly though, he couldn't find his pen. Usually in this case, someone would just grab a few from wherever in their house, packing them in. But Shinji couldn't replace this one so easily.
It was a Platinum #3776 Century. He had gotten it as a gift a few years before, and had always held onto it. Refills were expensive most of the time, but he was so used to writing with it, the cost didn't bother him.
Where the heck did I put it? He combed through his bag for the second time, expecting it to be sitting in one of the folds it usually did. But the pen was nowhere to be found. Pausing, he tried to remember the last time he used it.
I wrote that quiz with it in last period on Friday, right? He was certain. But what did he do with it next? He rubbed his temples. It was on my desk after I turned in the quiz, and then… Asuka!
He remembered then. Asuka had come up to him, asking for something to write down a new friend's phone number with. She didn't want to wait for him to find another, so she had taken the fountain pen off of his desk.
She must still have it, then. He got up, leaving his sleeping area to go find Asuka. Misato was having a drink, watching television on the couch, but the other girl was nowhere in sight. "Oi, Shinji. What's up?"
"Do you know where Asuka is?" "She's having a shower. You need something?" He frowned, realizing the white noise he had heard was the water running. "Oh. No, thanks." The girl loved to take ridiculously long showers, and Shinji didn't want to wait half an hour to finish packing his bag, so he decided to go find the pen himself.
If she found out he was going through her room, he'd get his ass kicked. So Shinji had to be quick and quiet. He found Asuka's bookbag, quickly opening it. Wow, she's unorganized. Assignments from the previous days were shoved inside, not collated to any specific classes or dates.
He dug through the level of paper, finding a few pens, none of them his. So he zipped another side pocket open. Oh, geez. This one was filled with tampons, wipes, and other toiletries. He opted to only go through this one as a last resort.
Flipping the bag around, he opened the last zipper, revealing a collection of junk. There was a swiss army knife, a lighter, some napkins from a fast food place, a plastic fork… He dug past it all, seeing the maroon outline of his prized pen.
Yanking it out, he was relieved to see the ink reservoir hadn't been forced open by all the garbage in the pocket. Just before he closed the bag, he saw something that caught his eye, which seemed strange among the other items.
It was a polaroid photograph. He pulled it up, having to move the fork out of the way because it was pinching it. His mouth opened as he saw what it was. W-what? Why would Asuka have one of these?
The picture was like the ones Aida had showed him the week before. It featured Rei stripping in the locker room, taken from a conspicuous angle. He sat still, trying to figure out why it was Asuka had one.
He ran through the possibilities best he could. Did she buy this? It seemed unlikely. Why would Asuka want a sensitive photo of Rei, unless she was… He was pulled away from his thoughts as he heard the water turn off.
Quickly, he shoved it back in the pocket he had found it in, and set Asuka's bag up to look untouched, before he left the room with his pen. I-Is she really into girls? Dammit, why did it have to be Ayanami?
The boy remained distracted for the rest of the night. When it came time to fall asleep, he laid awake. His little crush was already difficult enough. And growing closer to Rei, while Asuka tried to at the same time, would be a nightmare. He asked himself the same question again. Why did it have to be Ayanami…
He awoke Monday morning to Asuka standing directly over him. It was an intimidating sight. Shinji braced himself, fearing she had somehow found out he went through her bag.
"Shinji!" "Y-yeah?" She inhaled. "Why the hell aren't you up yet? It's almost eight!" Stepping back, Asuka let him scramble to his feet. "Oh, what? I must've forgotten to set my alarm…"
"Well, get yourself ready. I'm leaving in five minutes, and I'm not waiting up for you." She left the room, and he quickly changed into his school attire. It wasn't how he anticipated starting the morning, but at least she didn't know he saw the photo.
He finished up his routine in a few minutes, grabbing a granola bar off of the counter to eat. Asuka was waiting for him with her arms crossed, "Tsk, tsk. You're so slow." "S-sorry." They pair left, the girl with a spring in her step and the boy rather tired.
Shinji still wanted to confirm why Asuka had the photograph, and so he decided to prompt her. "Hey, you heard about Ayanami getting creeped on in the locker room, right?" Her face grew red. "C-creeped on? You mean the photos?"
Nodding, he slowed his walk. She's definitely uncomfortable. "Yeah, I did. It, erm, sucks. I told her I was gonna help her track the pictures down, though." Shinji relaxed then. Oh, so that's why she was holding onto it…
"That's nice of you. I gave the one I, uh, found to Rei, too." "Huh? You had one, Shinji?" Asuka tugged on his arm, stopping him in place. "Y-yeah…" "Where did you get it?" With her tone and grip, it became clear she was very passionate.
"Well, Aida… I bought it off him so he didn't give it to anyone else. He swore he didn't snap them, though. I wonder who did." She sighed. "So he sold the others? Any ideas to who?" Shinji shook his head. "Could be any guy. Why? Are you gonna track them down?" Smiling, she let him go, continuing their walk. "Maybe."
Rei's first period was uneventful. There were still a few aggressive letters in her locker when she checked it in the morning, but no one harassed her directly. It seemed most of the school and forgotten about her pictures.
Except for one student. Asuka came up to her as soon as the lecture was over, leaning over her desk. "Hey, Rei!" "Hi." "How are you today?" "Fine." A little disappointed she didn't reciprocate the question, the redhead kept going.
"Come with me during break. We have to talk to somebody." Rei looked at her strangely. "Who?" "Just, come on." She was still a little suspicious of Asuka, but the girl seemed genuine enough after their last interaction. So she stood up, following her lead.
"They're usually over by the vending machines in A wing." "Who?" "Stop asking! You'll see." As the girls arrived at their destination, Aida and Suzuhara came into view, both leaning next to the pop machine.
Asuka stopped Rei a few feet away. "So, I promised we'd get those pictures back, right?" She nodded. "So, don't freak out when I do what I'm about to do, alright? I'm just fulfilling my promise."
"Asuka, what are you talking about?" She didn't respond to the question, instead stepping into action. She approached the boys, planting herself in front of Aida. "Yo." "Uh, yo, Asuka?" With a little smile, she grabbed the smaller boy by the collar, pinning him up against the wall.
"Where the hell are they, Aida!" "W-what! What are you talking about!?" He was terrified, and Suzuhara next to him didn't have a clue what to do. "A-asuka, what are you…" "Oi, shut it, Tōji! I'm not talking to you!"
She adjusted her arms, pushing Aida against the wall harder. "The pictures, Aida! You know which ones I mean." "W-what?" "The ones of that blue haired babe standing right behind me! Cough 'em up!"
Looking over Asuka's shoulder, Aida saw Rei Ayanami, looking more amused than usual. "C-chill, Asuka! I don't have them anymore!" Growing a little tired, she dropped him, but still kept her grip.
"Who'd you give em to, huh?" She raised a fist like she was gonna hit him, and Aida began to sweat. "S-some upper classmen! I d-d-don't know their names!" "Then you better point them out real quick!"
Leaving Suzuhara, Asuka paraded Aida around the school for most of the period break. Rei followed closely behind, though she just a spectator. Eventually they found the group of boys Aida remembered, on the first floor of the building.
"There! It was two of those guys." "Which ones?" "T-the tall dude, and the one with the curly hair." Finally satisfied, Asuka let him go, not without scaring him one more time. "If I ever see you with pics of girls again, I'm gonna kick your ass, Aida!" "O-of course! I'm so sorry!
She felt a little guilty as he ran off. After all, it was her that stuffed the pictures into Aida's locker, fully aware of what he was going to do with them. But she needed to show off to Rei how sorry she was.
Asuka didn't take a breath before stepping towards the group of older boys. Rei grabbed her arm, stopping her. "They don't look like pushovers, Asuka. I don't… want you to get hurt." She waved her off. "Don't worry. I can handle a few boys."
Rei took a spot behind the corner, hiding as she peered at them. Asuka, confident as ever, walked right up to the group with her hands on her hips. "Oi, can we help you?" She laughed slow and deliberately, as if she was in a movie.
"I believe the two of you gentlemen," she pointed at the boys Aida had noted, "are holding on to some sensitive pictures." "You Ayanami's friend?" The tallest of them stood up. He towered over Asuka by almost two feet, but she didn't waver.
"Mhm." "Why don't you tell her if she wants them, she can come get them herself." The others laughed as he sat back down, expecting Asuka to run off. But she didn't. "Listen carefully, guys." She snapped her fingers.
"The fact is, you're holding onto some real creepy photos taken without her consent. I'm sure administration would love to hear about it. And when they find them, they'll probably think y'all were the photographers."
"Wait, hold on. We didn't take 'em. We just got 'em." "Mhm." Asuka crossed her arms. "Mhm. The principal will totally believe that story." The tall guy scoffed at her, before his friend piped up. "Ey, she's right. Just hand her the pics."
He rolled his eyes, before submitting. Reaching into his back pocket, he slid out two polaroids, handing them to Asuka. "Now take 'em and piss off, Eva girl." Smug, she smiled, before walking back to Rei.
The girl was staring with wide eyes. "See? Told you I could took care of it!" She extended her hand, giving Rei the photos. "That was really cool, Asuka." Wow. High praise coming from her.
"It was my fault to begin with. Least I could do. So, what do you say we burn these, and get to second period?" "Sounds like fun." It was unmistakable; Ayanami was actually happy for once.
They took the nearest exit, getting onto school field, before Asuka went at it with her lighter. She and Rei both burned one of each, stomping them out together. It was the first time she'd ever see Rei enjoy herself. The last remaining photo was still sitting in Asuka's bookbag, though. I think I'll hold onto that one for a little bit longer…