Disclaimer: I do not own Evangelion. Enjoy the story!

"The world is a tragedy to those who feel, but a comedy to those who think."

-Horace Walpole

Prologue: A joke, A laugh, An Unrelenting Truth

Humor became a necessity in his life. When the ever growing conveyor belt of mundane days dragged on, a good joke could always lighten the mood. Regardless, he never laughed much anymore.

Before high school let out for the day, he stood at the lockers with Toji. A hand clamped down on both of their shoulders.

The two turned around to a grinning Takeda, "Boys! Have I got a good joke for you!"

"Not in the mood, man," Toji growled, shoving Takeda's hand off his shoulder.

"What's wrong? Hikari got you all worked up today?" Takeda turned, "What about you, Shinji? Want to hear a joke?"

Shinji, who had been idly observing the two, shrugged. A joke couldn't hurt.

"Why are guys in bed like microwave food?" He exclaimed, "They're done in thirty seconds!"

Takeda laughed. Toji tried to stay annoyed, but couldn't. Shinji chuckled out of politeness.

"One of these days I'll get you to really laugh, Shinji," Takeda said, "One of these days."

The boys said their goodbyes and were off. Shinji passed by the daily electronic jumbotron on one of the central buildings of The Hub. An add for winter coats of a foreign brand flashed on the screen.

"The eternal winter is here and so are the new line of jackets from…" The cheery voice of the women in the add droned on. It was always like this. Everyday after school he'd hear that annoying, cheery voice, always excited and happy about something he never knew of. Maybe that was just the face the person had to put on for the recording. If so, why couldn't he do that? He wished he knew how to conjure up a happy facade.

Shinji continued walking, shivering under the icy air. Passing by the newspaper stand he looked at the headlines, "Foregin Ministry: International Tensions Reaching An All Time High."

He shook his head. Nearly Two years since that day. The day he crept out of the ocean onto that beach. The day of Third Impact. As if the weekly tests weren't already enough to remind him of that. Damnit. Now his mind lingered too much on it. He felt creeping insecurity prick down his spine. Maybe just the cold. He turned the corner, setting eyes on the local supermarket. A few people in orange scarves walked in and out, the fringes flowing like red hair in the wind. He winced.

Inside he mused over vegetables and other supplies. Misato would probably want chicken or maybe beef. It didn't matter. He cooked and she ate- simple as that. Nonetheless, he was grateful for it. At least he had some semblance of a home without feeling like he was totally leeching.

Shinji pushed his shopping cart along looking down the aisle at the frozen produce. He jolted forward as the front of the cart collided with something.

"I'm sorry," Shinji said, looking up. He froze.

There was red hair everywhere in his vision- a large mane trailing up half the back of a slender body. It couldn't be…

His voice got caught in his throat and he made a pathetic croak. She turned around and looked at him. It was her all right. The hard blue eyes, the soft rosy pink lips.

Shinji gawked, utterly speechless. Her eyes squinted in contempt. She turned around and started walking away. She was leaving, again.

Without thinking he blurted, "Asuka!"

She paused, standing in place, seemingly thinking whether to turn around and face him or continue forward. It gave him enough time to move towards her.

He went to her side, "Asuka…"

What should he say? What could he say?

Instead of turning to face him, she continued moving forward, further from him, as though he didn't exist. Daggers stabbed his chest. His breathing became fast.

"Wait! Asuka!" He dashed after her, putting his hand on her shoulder. Big mistake. An elbow came flying black. Falling to the ground, he gripped his cheek where the hit collided. Time stopped in the store. All the eyes were on him. He could feel them staring, judging. He might have been layered in winter clothing, but he felt like a newborn child, naked and covered in vernix.

A worker in the store walked up to Asuka, "Mam, is this man bothering you?"

Shinji didn't hear her response. He was already out the door, running home, his school bag flailing behind him. When he reached the apartment door, he swiped his keycard on the entry slot and entered. After staying in the main hallway for a few minutes, hands on his knees and panting, Shinji removed his shoes and stumbled off to his bedroom. He threw his jacket onto the chair and buried his face in his pillow. Absently, he reached towards his nightstand, knocking over objects in search for the one thing he needed. Two plugs- one in each ear. He clicked the button and the music started playing. Exhaustion lifted him off to a dreamless slumber.

There was a knock on his door. Shinji peaked his groggy eyes open, "Come in."

His bedroom door slipped open to a red jacket and long strands of purple hair. He sighed.

"You didn't cook?" Misato asked.

"No."

"That's okay. We'll order out. Alright?"

"Okay."

Shinji turned over on his side to face the wall and felt her linger for a few more moments. He heard a soft sigh and the door closed.

The next day was even colder. It was that awful kind of cold where snow didn't fall, and overcast skies howled with nipping winds. Shinji's breath appeared in front of him as he tugged the shoulder strap on his bag tighter.

In class he saw Rei. Her tests were over from the day prior. Not much had changed about her- she sat in her patented gloomy state of otherworldly pondering, her chin resting on her palm, eyes glued to the window. Maybe he should have lunch with her. Then again, maybe not.

The day slogged on through lectures about Shakespeare and other meaningless classes. Shinji always found Shakespeare to be a rather lousy comic. What was the point of a joke if he couldn't even understand the language used? He always thought jokes were funny because he could relate to them. Then again, maybe it was his fault, he was always somewhat lackluster at understanding things.

The locker screeched it's metallic clang as Shinji slammed it shut.

"See you on Monday, Toji," He said.

"Yeah, see you Shinji."

"Wait!" Takeda called out, "I got another one! I promise this will be a really good one."

Shinji checked his watch. He could hear one joke. He nodded his head for Takeda to start.

"Okay so get this. There's this kid and he sees this girl he liked for a long time and decides, 'I want to impress her'. The Halloween party is coming up so he makes his move. He asks her, 'What could I dress up as to get you to hang out with me'? She says, 'Well, I always loved cranes'. He nods his head and waits for the day. He heads to the party, his costume making it an arduous task. He sees her, but when he goes up to her she gives him this weird look. So he sits in the corner the rest of the party sad and dejected. At the very end he sees her leaving and calls out to her, 'I dressed up like you asked me! What happened to us hanging out?' She shakes her head, 'I meant the bird you idiot!'"

A long pause. Toji scoffed. Takeda started laughing. Slowly, Shinji chuckled, a low growl emanating from his stomach. He kept chuckling, picking up pace. Eventually, he laughed and walked towards the door. The joke was too true, wasn't it? He tried to push open the door, but found all his strength leaving him as his laughs turned bitter. There was wetness around his eyes, trailing down his cheeks. He buried his face in his hands and cried.

To the beginning...