Asuka's Visit
by: Oyuki
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Asuka stopped by on Saturday.
Touji was suprised because Shinji wasn't with her. Not that
he was implying anything, of course. Shinji and Asuka just happened
to spend a lot of time together, what with their jobs and living
situation and all. And Touji didn't think Asuka would feel all that
comfortable visiting him by herself, what with their mutual disgust
of each other.
But she was there, carrying her school satchel with her. She
was wearing her uniform, too. It was easy to assume she had come
straight from school. But when Touji stopped to think about it, he
realized that there was no way she could have made it so quickly.
He regarded her with suspicion as she walked through the door,
a slight smile on her face.
"Hey Suzuhara," she greeted, hefting her bag over her
shoulder.
"Devil-girl," he greeted in reply.
Her smile widened, "I'm glad you didn't lose that sense of
humour o' yours. That'd be a shame."
"Did you want something?" He asked curtly. He wasn't in the
mood for her sick games. He knew she was evil, but was she actually
making fun of him in his current condition?
"I was going to ask you that same question," She retorted,
pulling up the chair next to his bed, "I figure I could be nice to
you, if even for a little while."
He scowled, "Well aren't you a saint?"
She ignored him, much to his suprise. He didn't think Asuka
was physically capable of letting an insult slide. But, he reminded
himself, Asuka was a girl just full of suprises. He'd known it since
the first day they had met, and he still knew it now. Whether or not
that was a good thing was still a subject being left under
consideration...
"I brought you something," she said, reaching for the buckle
of her satchel, "Wanna' know what it is?"
"I don't care," He replied, coldly. But really, he was a great
deal curious about what it could be. Even if it was a bad thing, he
still wanted to know. But she was obviously going to show it to him
anyway, so what was the use of letting her know that he was
interested?
"Oh, don't be that way," She admonished, playfully. From her
bag she produced several bags of chips, candy, and other assorted
junk food.
Touji's eyes went wide. She had chosen all the really good
flavours too! He had to admit, as bitchy and as conceited as Asuka
was, she had good taste. Much better than Ayanami and Shinji,
anyway. She ate a lot of meat, and stuffed her face with greasy and
sugary crap all the time. She was living it up.
He had to ask, though, inspite of himself, "What'd ya' bring
all this stuff for?"
Asuka gave him a coy smile, "Aww Touji, I've been in a
hospital before. I know how shitty the food is. That's why I brought
you this nice selection of artery cloggers." She leaned forward, and
brought her voice to a whisper, "Hikari told me that they wouldn't
let her bring in her obento, so I decided to stow away this stuff."
Touji was still suspicious, but he couldn't help it. He was
damned hungry. He'd been craving something sweet that wasn't jell-o
for a long, long time. He started to reach for a bag of chips when
he remembered.
Right. Can't open a bag with only one arm. He stared at it,
too proud to ask the great Asuka Langley Sohryuu for help. He'd
rather go hungry...
Luckily, he didn't have to. Asuka caught on quick, and ripped
the top of the bag open for him. She took a chip and held it in
front of his face.
He ate it, wordlessly. This continued on, until the bag was
completely empty (well, save the crumbs).
There was an uncomfortable silence. Touji couldn't think of a
thing to say. Asuka could, it was just that she would rather not say
them out loud.
"Did you go to school today?" Touji asked, suddenly, trying to
make conversation so they wouldn't have to sit in akward silence...
Hah. He'd just used Asuka and silence in the same sentence
together... Funny that.
Asuka was so absorbed in her thoughts, she almost didn't hear
him, "Wha? Oh, no, actually. How'd you guess?"
"Well, you got here right after school ended. There was no way
you could have made it that fast. And your schoolbag is filled with
junkfood and not books or homework." He said, pointedly.
Asuka looked impressed, something near short of a miracle,
"Perceptive, Suzuhara. I thought I was pretty slick, considering the
nurses didn't catch me."
He shrugged, "So how'd you get out of school today, anyway?
Misato's cool and all, I just never thought she was the type to let
chicks like you run around and do whatever you want."
"I told Misato that I wanted to go for a check-up since I got
kinda' banged up from being booted out of the last fight. She said
it was a good idea," Asuka laughed, suddenly, "But it's obvious she
knew why I was really coming down here... She did give me money and
all. She never gives me money. Especially since she knows I have
it."
Touji was only half listening to her. She had been denied to
fight that time? He remembered hearing about both Rei and Shinji's
Eva attacking him, but he heard nothing about Asuka's... At the
time, he hadn't payed it any mind.
"Why weren't you allowed to fight?" He asked.
Asuka's countenance darkened, and he could have sworn that the
temperature in the room had just dropped a good fourty degrees or
so. "I was about to tell Shinji that you were the fourth children,
and that bastard father of his thought it would only cause trouble.
I was ejected out of the entry plug."
Touji didn't know what to say. The thought of Shinji's father
made his entire being flare up with anger. Wasn't he the reason he
was crippled now? Didn't he use Touji's sister to bribe him to
pilot? And now Shinji was filled with self-hate because his Eva had
ruined Touji's life.
Asuka seemed to sense the hatred brewing inside of the boy on
the bed. The more she looked at him, the more he reminded her of
herself... So full of hate, so full of rage. She wondered if he was
going to keep it all in. She hoped not. Then he'd turn into her. All
bitter and full of pain...
Asuka shifted in the chair, uncomfortably. It seemed to be
just what was needed to break Touji from his spell. He glanced at
her.
"What?" He questioned.
"S'nothin." She muttered, "I just don't like hospitals and
all. They make me feel cold."
He raised an eyebrow in suprise, "Really? Why is that?
Hospitals are supposed to make ya' feel warm, and safe, and
protected..." His lips curved into a smirk, as he figured it out the
answer himself "I know what Shinji's is... What's /your/ childhood
trauma?"
She looked genuinely annoyed, but she didn't hit him or yell
at him like she ususally did when she felt that way, "My mother went
insane and hung herself from the ceiling..." She said softly,
rubbing her arms to generate heat. Apparently hospitals /did/ make
feel her cold.
As soon as the words left her mouth, she regretted them. She'd
just said it... So easily... She couldn't even tell Shinji, because
she knew he'd be giving her those pitying looks for weeks and weeks.
But she'd just told that irritating Suzuhara.
Her mother was the one thing she hated talking about, she
never wanted to admit that there had even been a mother to ruin her
life in the first place. She'd /cautiously/ asked Misato if she
knew... Just in case Misato /didn't/ know, and asking her would
spark her interests.
Misato ended up knowing after all, and tried not to make a big
deal out of it.
She was glad. Misato understood, and never mentioned it. She
never tried to treat her differently, never looked at her with pity.
That scar across Misato's chest had something to do with it, Asuka
was sure.
Learn from experience, ya' know.
Touji stared at Asuka. Words escaped him. That had never
happened before. He /always/ knew what to say to Asuka. Most of the
time it was an insult, more recently (with her bond with Shinji
deepening) it had been innuendo. But he'd always had something to
snap back at her, something he could say without really having to
think about it.
"I..."
He chose not to say anything.
Looking at Asuka now, her face emotionless, and her eyes hard,
Touji finally realized that he didn't really know the girl sitting
next to him at all.
Sure, there were times when he had accurately predicted her
actions or her words. But to truly know Asuka, he had to understand
/why/ she felt so compelled to do the things she did. And that was
something he didn't know, because he didn't know /her/.
He didn't know about the poor, dead mother swinging from a
ceiling. He didn't know about the little girl who had no doubt cried
herself into hysterics when she learned about that mother.
He wondered who had it worse, Shinji or Asuka? At least Asuka
knew what happened to her mother. Shinji probably spent sleepless
nights, wondering what had caused the death of his.
"Don't feel sorry for me, Suzuhara." Asuka said, shaking him
from his thoughts.
He stared up at her. Her face was still stoic. "I don't feel
sorry for you... Why would you think that?"
"Everyone else does. They think of me as poor, poor Asuka."
She rose from her seat, her fists clenching tightly, "I hate pity,
don't you?"
"Sure I do," he responded, chuckling bitterly, "And that's all
I get now a days."
Another silence.
"Shinji, and Hikari... They don't..." She trailed off, and
Touji smiled and nodded knowingly at her. "And Kensuke... He doesn't
have anyone else to feel sorry for but himself."
"What about Ayanami?"
"Ayanami doesn't feel /anything/. That's all."
He laughed, and turned to her, getting serious very quickly,
"What about you? Do /you/ feel sorry for me?"
By that time, Asuka had settled back down to the seat next to
Touji's bed. She was staring ahead, at some unknown point of
interest. For a moment he didn't think she had even heard him. But
she spoke up before he could repeat himself.
"Ritsuko-sensei... She told me what you did. How you agreed to
become an Eva pilot so your sister could be transferred here."
Asuka leaned on the back of the chair, "And when Shinji and I were
civil we'd talk about stuff. He told me you beat him shitless
because his piloting skills were careless."
Touji stared at her.
"You hate Nerv," she stated, instead of asking, "But you
agreed to work for them because you love your sister so much. Touji,
how could I possibly feel sorry for you?" She looked him in the eye,
her intense azure orbs burning passionatley into his, "Don't you go
crying' it out to the world, man, but you have nothing but my
respect."
Their eyes continued to stare into each other, until Asuka
blushed and looked away, realizing that she had just said a mouth
full. Touji was still watching her, carefully, still trying to
figure out whether or not he'd just imagined that little scene that
took place.
After a moment, he realized that it had... And it made Asuka
feel very uncomfortable.
He smirked, "Tch, Sohryuu, why don't ya' save it for a
hallmark?"
She gave him a puzzled look, a look that almost said 'didn't
you hear me pour my heart out to you?'. But then she realized what
he was doing. The look washed away, replaced by a faux insulted one.
"Anta Baka? You dare speak to the beautiful Asuka Langley
Sohryuu-sama that way?"
They laughed and argued until the nurse came in and told Asuka
that she was being a disturbance. Asuka left her satchel, and was
dragged away from Touji's room, complaining and screeching.
He sat there for a moment, staring at the wall in reflective
silence. He thought about what he said and what Asuka said, he
thought about what he'd learned...
... And he picked up a bag of chips, and ripped the top off
with his teeth. He fed himself. Afterall, he needed to get used to
this.
He didn't want anyone feeling sorry for him, did he?
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
NOTES: Gomen ne! This is really short! Or maybe that's better,
because you don't have to sit through this crap if it's faster to
finish. ^_^
Asuka's a little OOC because if she acted like she normally did,
well, then someone would have to boot her in the face. I think this
is how she would have acted if she had gone to see Touji. I doubt
she'd talk so much, but I had to put in a lot of dialouge. And it's
not like they really hate each other that much.
As for the 'school on Saturday' thing, I heard somewhere that in
Japan, some schools make the kids go to school on Saturday. I'm
probably wrong, but I won't correct it, 'cause maybe things are
different in the year 2015! And maybe I don't want to change it. ^_^
Aa, hospital food ain't that bad... It is if you're a patient, of
course. The cafeteria food is pretty good, actually.
I don't know what the children call Ritsuko, so I just put,
"Ritsuko-sensei". They almost always disregard "Mr" or "Mrs" in the
AD Vision subtitled version.
by: Oyuki
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Asuka stopped by on Saturday.
Touji was suprised because Shinji wasn't with her. Not that
he was implying anything, of course. Shinji and Asuka just happened
to spend a lot of time together, what with their jobs and living
situation and all. And Touji didn't think Asuka would feel all that
comfortable visiting him by herself, what with their mutual disgust
of each other.
But she was there, carrying her school satchel with her. She
was wearing her uniform, too. It was easy to assume she had come
straight from school. But when Touji stopped to think about it, he
realized that there was no way she could have made it so quickly.
He regarded her with suspicion as she walked through the door,
a slight smile on her face.
"Hey Suzuhara," she greeted, hefting her bag over her
shoulder.
"Devil-girl," he greeted in reply.
Her smile widened, "I'm glad you didn't lose that sense of
humour o' yours. That'd be a shame."
"Did you want something?" He asked curtly. He wasn't in the
mood for her sick games. He knew she was evil, but was she actually
making fun of him in his current condition?
"I was going to ask you that same question," She retorted,
pulling up the chair next to his bed, "I figure I could be nice to
you, if even for a little while."
He scowled, "Well aren't you a saint?"
She ignored him, much to his suprise. He didn't think Asuka
was physically capable of letting an insult slide. But, he reminded
himself, Asuka was a girl just full of suprises. He'd known it since
the first day they had met, and he still knew it now. Whether or not
that was a good thing was still a subject being left under
consideration...
"I brought you something," she said, reaching for the buckle
of her satchel, "Wanna' know what it is?"
"I don't care," He replied, coldly. But really, he was a great
deal curious about what it could be. Even if it was a bad thing, he
still wanted to know. But she was obviously going to show it to him
anyway, so what was the use of letting her know that he was
interested?
"Oh, don't be that way," She admonished, playfully. From her
bag she produced several bags of chips, candy, and other assorted
junk food.
Touji's eyes went wide. She had chosen all the really good
flavours too! He had to admit, as bitchy and as conceited as Asuka
was, she had good taste. Much better than Ayanami and Shinji,
anyway. She ate a lot of meat, and stuffed her face with greasy and
sugary crap all the time. She was living it up.
He had to ask, though, inspite of himself, "What'd ya' bring
all this stuff for?"
Asuka gave him a coy smile, "Aww Touji, I've been in a
hospital before. I know how shitty the food is. That's why I brought
you this nice selection of artery cloggers." She leaned forward, and
brought her voice to a whisper, "Hikari told me that they wouldn't
let her bring in her obento, so I decided to stow away this stuff."
Touji was still suspicious, but he couldn't help it. He was
damned hungry. He'd been craving something sweet that wasn't jell-o
for a long, long time. He started to reach for a bag of chips when
he remembered.
Right. Can't open a bag with only one arm. He stared at it,
too proud to ask the great Asuka Langley Sohryuu for help. He'd
rather go hungry...
Luckily, he didn't have to. Asuka caught on quick, and ripped
the top of the bag open for him. She took a chip and held it in
front of his face.
He ate it, wordlessly. This continued on, until the bag was
completely empty (well, save the crumbs).
There was an uncomfortable silence. Touji couldn't think of a
thing to say. Asuka could, it was just that she would rather not say
them out loud.
"Did you go to school today?" Touji asked, suddenly, trying to
make conversation so they wouldn't have to sit in akward silence...
Hah. He'd just used Asuka and silence in the same sentence
together... Funny that.
Asuka was so absorbed in her thoughts, she almost didn't hear
him, "Wha? Oh, no, actually. How'd you guess?"
"Well, you got here right after school ended. There was no way
you could have made it that fast. And your schoolbag is filled with
junkfood and not books or homework." He said, pointedly.
Asuka looked impressed, something near short of a miracle,
"Perceptive, Suzuhara. I thought I was pretty slick, considering the
nurses didn't catch me."
He shrugged, "So how'd you get out of school today, anyway?
Misato's cool and all, I just never thought she was the type to let
chicks like you run around and do whatever you want."
"I told Misato that I wanted to go for a check-up since I got
kinda' banged up from being booted out of the last fight. She said
it was a good idea," Asuka laughed, suddenly, "But it's obvious she
knew why I was really coming down here... She did give me money and
all. She never gives me money. Especially since she knows I have
it."
Touji was only half listening to her. She had been denied to
fight that time? He remembered hearing about both Rei and Shinji's
Eva attacking him, but he heard nothing about Asuka's... At the
time, he hadn't payed it any mind.
"Why weren't you allowed to fight?" He asked.
Asuka's countenance darkened, and he could have sworn that the
temperature in the room had just dropped a good fourty degrees or
so. "I was about to tell Shinji that you were the fourth children,
and that bastard father of his thought it would only cause trouble.
I was ejected out of the entry plug."
Touji didn't know what to say. The thought of Shinji's father
made his entire being flare up with anger. Wasn't he the reason he
was crippled now? Didn't he use Touji's sister to bribe him to
pilot? And now Shinji was filled with self-hate because his Eva had
ruined Touji's life.
Asuka seemed to sense the hatred brewing inside of the boy on
the bed. The more she looked at him, the more he reminded her of
herself... So full of hate, so full of rage. She wondered if he was
going to keep it all in. She hoped not. Then he'd turn into her. All
bitter and full of pain...
Asuka shifted in the chair, uncomfortably. It seemed to be
just what was needed to break Touji from his spell. He glanced at
her.
"What?" He questioned.
"S'nothin." She muttered, "I just don't like hospitals and
all. They make me feel cold."
He raised an eyebrow in suprise, "Really? Why is that?
Hospitals are supposed to make ya' feel warm, and safe, and
protected..." His lips curved into a smirk, as he figured it out the
answer himself "I know what Shinji's is... What's /your/ childhood
trauma?"
She looked genuinely annoyed, but she didn't hit him or yell
at him like she ususally did when she felt that way, "My mother went
insane and hung herself from the ceiling..." She said softly,
rubbing her arms to generate heat. Apparently hospitals /did/ make
feel her cold.
As soon as the words left her mouth, she regretted them. She'd
just said it... So easily... She couldn't even tell Shinji, because
she knew he'd be giving her those pitying looks for weeks and weeks.
But she'd just told that irritating Suzuhara.
Her mother was the one thing she hated talking about, she
never wanted to admit that there had even been a mother to ruin her
life in the first place. She'd /cautiously/ asked Misato if she
knew... Just in case Misato /didn't/ know, and asking her would
spark her interests.
Misato ended up knowing after all, and tried not to make a big
deal out of it.
She was glad. Misato understood, and never mentioned it. She
never tried to treat her differently, never looked at her with pity.
That scar across Misato's chest had something to do with it, Asuka
was sure.
Learn from experience, ya' know.
Touji stared at Asuka. Words escaped him. That had never
happened before. He /always/ knew what to say to Asuka. Most of the
time it was an insult, more recently (with her bond with Shinji
deepening) it had been innuendo. But he'd always had something to
snap back at her, something he could say without really having to
think about it.
"I..."
He chose not to say anything.
Looking at Asuka now, her face emotionless, and her eyes hard,
Touji finally realized that he didn't really know the girl sitting
next to him at all.
Sure, there were times when he had accurately predicted her
actions or her words. But to truly know Asuka, he had to understand
/why/ she felt so compelled to do the things she did. And that was
something he didn't know, because he didn't know /her/.
He didn't know about the poor, dead mother swinging from a
ceiling. He didn't know about the little girl who had no doubt cried
herself into hysterics when she learned about that mother.
He wondered who had it worse, Shinji or Asuka? At least Asuka
knew what happened to her mother. Shinji probably spent sleepless
nights, wondering what had caused the death of his.
"Don't feel sorry for me, Suzuhara." Asuka said, shaking him
from his thoughts.
He stared up at her. Her face was still stoic. "I don't feel
sorry for you... Why would you think that?"
"Everyone else does. They think of me as poor, poor Asuka."
She rose from her seat, her fists clenching tightly, "I hate pity,
don't you?"
"Sure I do," he responded, chuckling bitterly, "And that's all
I get now a days."
Another silence.
"Shinji, and Hikari... They don't..." She trailed off, and
Touji smiled and nodded knowingly at her. "And Kensuke... He doesn't
have anyone else to feel sorry for but himself."
"What about Ayanami?"
"Ayanami doesn't feel /anything/. That's all."
He laughed, and turned to her, getting serious very quickly,
"What about you? Do /you/ feel sorry for me?"
By that time, Asuka had settled back down to the seat next to
Touji's bed. She was staring ahead, at some unknown point of
interest. For a moment he didn't think she had even heard him. But
she spoke up before he could repeat himself.
"Ritsuko-sensei... She told me what you did. How you agreed to
become an Eva pilot so your sister could be transferred here."
Asuka leaned on the back of the chair, "And when Shinji and I were
civil we'd talk about stuff. He told me you beat him shitless
because his piloting skills were careless."
Touji stared at her.
"You hate Nerv," she stated, instead of asking, "But you
agreed to work for them because you love your sister so much. Touji,
how could I possibly feel sorry for you?" She looked him in the eye,
her intense azure orbs burning passionatley into his, "Don't you go
crying' it out to the world, man, but you have nothing but my
respect."
Their eyes continued to stare into each other, until Asuka
blushed and looked away, realizing that she had just said a mouth
full. Touji was still watching her, carefully, still trying to
figure out whether or not he'd just imagined that little scene that
took place.
After a moment, he realized that it had... And it made Asuka
feel very uncomfortable.
He smirked, "Tch, Sohryuu, why don't ya' save it for a
hallmark?"
She gave him a puzzled look, a look that almost said 'didn't
you hear me pour my heart out to you?'. But then she realized what
he was doing. The look washed away, replaced by a faux insulted one.
"Anta Baka? You dare speak to the beautiful Asuka Langley
Sohryuu-sama that way?"
They laughed and argued until the nurse came in and told Asuka
that she was being a disturbance. Asuka left her satchel, and was
dragged away from Touji's room, complaining and screeching.
He sat there for a moment, staring at the wall in reflective
silence. He thought about what he said and what Asuka said, he
thought about what he'd learned...
... And he picked up a bag of chips, and ripped the top off
with his teeth. He fed himself. Afterall, he needed to get used to
this.
He didn't want anyone feeling sorry for him, did he?
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
NOTES: Gomen ne! This is really short! Or maybe that's better,
because you don't have to sit through this crap if it's faster to
finish. ^_^
Asuka's a little OOC because if she acted like she normally did,
well, then someone would have to boot her in the face. I think this
is how she would have acted if she had gone to see Touji. I doubt
she'd talk so much, but I had to put in a lot of dialouge. And it's
not like they really hate each other that much.
As for the 'school on Saturday' thing, I heard somewhere that in
Japan, some schools make the kids go to school on Saturday. I'm
probably wrong, but I won't correct it, 'cause maybe things are
different in the year 2015! And maybe I don't want to change it. ^_^
Aa, hospital food ain't that bad... It is if you're a patient, of
course. The cafeteria food is pretty good, actually.
I don't know what the children call Ritsuko, so I just put,
"Ritsuko-sensei". They almost always disregard "Mr" or "Mrs" in the
AD Vision subtitled version.