AUTHOR NOTES:

This chapter contains minor spoilers for the Studio Ghibli anime film Laputa: Castle in the Sky. Watching the film before reading is not necessary, but recommended for additional context. Of course, it's still an excellent watch that you should check out anyway. If you wish to do so, it can be found on the Internet Archive and viewed for free. With that said, enjoy the chapter.

Chapter 7.5: Does she feel the same way? Part 2 (Floating)

Monday, August 24, 2015

The day started as would any typical school day. For now, we were back to the usual morning routine, complete with Misato groggily waking up from bed after having had too much to drink last night. I've seen it plenty of times by now, but it's still frustrating to watch. At least she's starting to cut back on it a little? I think? I hope so. Sometimes I worry what'll happen to her down the line if she keeps drinking so much.

School itself went normally too. Before leaving, I checked with Rei one last time to confirm she was onboard for dinner and a movie tonight, which she was. Good. Then, at home, I did some last-minute cleaning as I waited for Misato to come back from work. When the two of us were ready, we picked up Rei from her place, went to the grocery store for stir-fry stuff and the video rental store for the movie, and returned home.

Rei had pretty high praise for our home from the get-go, noting how much bigger and more inviting it felt in comparison to hers. Misato gave her a tour as I got started on the stir fry, though we had to remind her to take her shoes off so she didn't get the floor dirty. She asked lots of questions about our appliances, from our TV to our much bigger fridge(s) and our microwave. And, of course, she got to meet Pen-Pen, whom she quickly took a liking to. I guess it just goes to show that you don't know what you have until it's gone. Or you meet someone who's never had any of these things herself.

I had been concentrating so much on the food that I didn't even notice when Rei started to watch me, and I got startled when I realized it. She had been flipping through the TV channels for a bit, but I guess she lost interest in that once she smelled my cooking. She was totally engrossed in my movements, even though this wasn't a particularly difficult recipe. And when we actually got to eat, she told me it was the best meal she'd ever had. She had no clue simple vegetables could be made to taste so good, and could tell that the food had a lot of care put into it compared to what she ate whenever she was with Father. It was nothing really. Food is fuel for your body, so I just feel you should try to put good things in it when you can.

Finally, after we ate, we sat down and watched the movie we rented. On Misato's recommendation, we had chosen Laputa: Castle in the Sky, since it was one of her childhood favorites and Rei had also not even seen an animated movie or TV show before. And I have to say, she made a pretty good call. There was a lot to like about the movie, from the story to the hair-raising action and especially the jaw-dropping visuals on display. Rei was especially captivated with it. She got very attached to Pazu and Sheeta, the two lead characters, and there were even a few moments when she clung onto me as the two found themselves in perilous situations. The only parts we didn't like were more awkward and badly aged than anything else; early on in the movie, Pazu compared Sheeta to "an angel falling from the sky", and much later, the giant Etherium crystal looked exactly like Ramiel. But other than that, we all loved it and would totally watch it again.

Once the movie was over, it was time for Rei to leave. She was pretty sad about it, as she was really enjoying her stay. It was then that Misato offered to try and convince Father to let her move into the apartment next to us. For one thing, I could more easily teach her to cook and take better care of herself and her home; her current apartment was a lost cause at this point. There were also practical benefits; our apartment complex wasn't going to be demolished anytime soon, and as head of Tactical Operations, Misato would have an easier time checking on her and keeping her safe from unnecessary harm. And if we couldn't get her moved out of the Cemetery or near us, she was always welcome to visit whenever we were all mutually available. With all this in mind, she eagerly gave us her blessings before we drove her back home.

On the way back home, Misato commented on how up close and personal Rei was getting to me during the movie. She thought it was evidence that maybe Rei liked me back the way I liked her. I still wasn't sure; it might've been that, or she might've just been scared and needed my comfort. I was glad to give it to her either way. She's a good girl who deserves better out of life.

At the end of the day, I think our plan was a success. I've done all I can now, though. All that's left for me is to hope and wish that Misato can convince Father to let Rei go.

Rei stared at Misato's Alpine as it drove away, out of her view. Once it was gone, she returned inside to her familiar surroundings. Something was different, though. Although everything was as she left it, she couldn't help a distinct feeling of insecurity coming over her. As she mused over her kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom, she grew more and more distressed over the increasingly real possibilities that the commander was not only hiding something from her, but actively swindling her in the process.

She lay in bed and stared at the ceiling, longing for someone to help her. She longed for someone who could truly care for her and in turn accept her own care, just as Pazu did for Sheeta. Most of all, she longed for the warmth Shinji gave her during the movie as he sat with her, and before that too when he fed her, and when he saved her from Ramiel…

"Are you certain this is a wise decision?"

"Captain Katsuragi's arguments were skilled. We have no way of knowing how long it will take for the remaining Angels to appear. In the event they take too long, the move would be inevitable. Furthermore, halting the demolition now after over half of the buildings have already been destroyed would draw unwanted attention."

"…Which is something we would do well to avoid if we wish to preserve the scenario. I understand, sir."

"Make no mistake, Fuyutsuki, this is a setback. However, it is not irrecoverable. If Rei falls too far out of line, then we will find ways to deal with it. Now is not the time to worry."

Wednesday, August 26, 2015

Rei informed me this morning before class started that Father approved the move, and that she would be fully moved next door to us by the end of the day. That alone kept me excited enough that I could barely think of anything else throughout class. Touji and Kensuke noticed during Phys Ed and started teasing me about it; before we left for the day, I took them somewhere private and explained everything that was going on to the best extent I could, including the fact that I was indeed in love with her. As we spoke, I found myself asking them for advice on when I should tell her my feelings and what I should do if she doesn't feel the same way. They said not to worry about it too much; even if she didn't want to be my girlfriend, we could still just be friends, and whatever happened, I still had the two of them. That gave me the confidence I needed to fully speak my mind. But when to do it, I wondered?

Rei and I walked home together that afternoon, eagerly awaiting what lay in store for her. When we got to her new address, Misato was already there waiting for us. Inside, it kinda looked like our place, except it was a lot emptier, since she barely had any of her own belongings to begin with. Nevertheless, it was a huge improvement over the Cemetery, now that she at least had a bigger fridge, a microwave, and sanitary surfaces to work with.

She thanked Misato for having her moved next to us, who in turn told Rei to thank me for making her aware of the problems. She acknowledged that it wasn't as nice-looking as ours, but hoped that perhaps it would become pleasing enough that she could invite us over to hang out instead.

That was it. That was the moment I was waiting for. When she said those things, I made my move. I told Rei how I truly felt about her. How I wanted us to be together. How beautiful she was. How she gave my life meaning beyond my own personal goals.

She made me happier than I can even describe by telling me that she loved me back. For the first time, she told me, she found value in her life thanks to me. There was so much she wanted to learn about living now, and she wanted me by her side as she did so. She found me quite handsome too, especially when I was wearing my plugsuit. Erm… Okay. That last part was a bit weird, but I appreciated the sentiment.

She continued by asking if we could kiss, now that we were lovers. At first I was nervous; I turned around to face Misato, who then mouthed to me "Go get 'em!" So we did just that. We wrapped our arms around each other and kissed. On the lips. The feeling of our tongues rolling together felt strange at first, but I quickly got accustomed to it. I felt light enough on my feet that I was afraid we'd float up to the ceiling and not come back down. I lost track of time and wasn't sure what to do next until Misato said "Okay, lovebirds, that's enough," at which point we finally broke apart.

We readily accepted her rules for us being lovers, i.e. that she would be watching us closely when she could to make sure we didn't try any business funnier than hugging and kissing. After that, we went back to Misato's place to have dinner again and play video games. Rei was surprisingly good at Vib-Ribbon 2; I've been playing the game for roughly a few weeks now and have gotten pretty skilled at it, but she, a complete newcomer, learned her way around it very quickly and gave me a tough time playing against her even on some of the more challenging songs we owned. The last thing I did for her for the night was play one of Bach's Cello Suites: the first, which I'd played for Mr. Okamoto so many times when I lived with him.

This is another moment that I'm never going to forget. I hope we can last and be stronger together. No matter what happens, I'm going to have Rei's back, and she'll have mine. I won't let anything get between us.

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

*sigh* Yup. I'm really doing this, aren't I? What's a relationship without challenges, though? I'm sure the pair will face some significant ones as the story progresses, …not the least of which will be packing red twintails and an attitude.

Will Shinji and Rei remain together? Will he somehow be driven closer to Asuka instead? Might he even get that elusive Israfel Special? As with the current state of events, it all depends on whichever option feels like the most logical development. As for what that development is, I suppose you'll just have to stay tuned to find out…

Special thanks to Evageeks for help with canon fact-checking (including timeline planning), and to my pre-readers for examining the chapters released so far. Thanks especially to Argent-of-Cintria (Lord-Argent-fourth-of-his-name), whose consulting will prove to be highly useful for the coming chapters, and to the good people over at AsuShincord's fanfic workshop for their advice on making Shinji's writing more believable. If you're looking for some good AsuShin content, please consider checking out his own fic, A Strange Duet.