Disclaimer: see part 1
Chain of Command
Part 5
Regret
By Random1377
Click
Ryouji Kaji froze. "Only three people have put a gun to my head and lived," he mused, "one of them became my wife…"
The person holding the pistol made no reply.
Kaji closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, a faint smile appearing on his lips, "And unless you're raiding her perfume drawer…"
"You're slipping, honey," Misato's voice came from behind him as the gun was removed, "I watched you for forty seconds before making my move."
He shrugged, turning to face her with a grin, "I'm not a spy anymore… Koko could sneak up on me."
She smiled as she holstered her gun. "Hate to break it to you, baby," she said, "but Daddy's little girl couldn't sneak up on a bowl of soup."
"There's an interesting image," he laughed, putting his arms around her and giving her a kiss, "so what brings you to the depths of Dogma?"
"Needed to talk to you," she said, trying to sound casual, "Reiko said you were talking to Rei yesterday."
"And I… shouldn't talk to my superior?" he inquired, amusement creeping into his voice.
"What did you talk about?" Misato asked, determined not to be sidetracked.
He shrugged, "Work stuff," he said absently, "this and that."
"Reiko said you were talking about angels…" she said, narrowing her eyes, "now tell me."
"And that's a surprise?" he asked, raising his eyebrows, "That's why NERV exists – of course I'm going to talk-"
"Don't play me for a fool!" the purple-haired woman snapped, "We don't hear anything from the angels for five and a half years, and then you're talking to Rei about them – from home – the day one attacks!" She narrowed her eyes, "Did you know this was going to happen? Does Rei have some way of-"
"Whoa! Whoa!" he said, raising his hands defensively, "Slow down, babe…" He sighed, "No… we didn't know it was going to happen today."
"But you did know it was going to happen?" she pressed.
"Of course we knew it was going to happen," he said with a shrug, "you know just as well as I do how many angels there are."
"And what about the girl that won't talk when you're around?" Misato inquired, feeling as if she had already lost.
"Xiang Lee," he replied without so much as a hesitation, "you know how quiet she is. I was just talking to Rei about ways to make her more outgoing. I said, 'If we can get that girl to talk more, I'll bet we can do anything – even stopping the angels.'"
"You're lying to me," Misato said softly, averting her eyes, "I'm your wife… shouldn't I know what's going on?"
"If there was anything to know," he said soothingly, "I would fill you in immediately."
"You said we'd find the truth together…" she whispered, turning away from him.
"And we will," he said firmly, putting his arms around her, "you have to trust me, honey… you have to believe in me."
She took a deep breath. "Alright…" she said quietly, letting him sway her, "but if I find out you're lying to me…"
"I'm not," he said gently, kissing the back of her head, "you know I would never deceive you."
After a moment, she nodded.
"Where's Koko?" he asked tightening his grip, "Do you have… a little time."
She grinned. "No… you sicko, I don't have time for that right now – and I wouldn't do that here anyway."
"Aww," he said, disappointed, "why not? No one's watching."
"This isn't college," she said, turning her head to kiss him briefly before stepping away from him, "but if you play your cards right, and come home at a reasonable hour… maybe Reiko'll be visiting her friend…"
"Tease…" he muttered, running an appreciative hand over her hip.
"Teases never deliver…" she whispered with a wink, "be home by eight…"
He sighed as she headed towards the door, wondering if she would ever forgive him if she found out the truth.
Knowing she would not…
**
"That was your mom," Nozomi said as she hung up the phone, "I'm going to drop you off at Yurika's house at five. She'll pick you up there."
Reiko looked up from the bowl she was mixing and shrugged. "Ok," she said absently.
Nozomi poured herself a glass of water and took over the mixing.
"I got a letter from Aunt Kodama," she said with a sigh, "she has a boyfriend now." She paused to take a drink of her water, wondering when it would be her turn to make that announcement.
Reiko shrugged. Kodama Horaki was not a strong influence in the little girl's life.
Kodama had been away at college just about all of Reiko's life, pursuing her doctorate, and when she came back to visit she was generally too wrapped up in visiting her friends and family to say more than four words to the little Kaji girl.
Not that this particularly bothered the purple-haired girl… but it didn't exactly endear the eldest Horaki to her, either.
"Aunt Nozomi," she asked after a moment, "when can I meet your boyfriend?"
The other girl choked on her drink.
"W-What?" Nozomi coughed, totally caught off guard.
"Well," Reiko said, completely oblivious to her babysitter's agitation, "Shinji is Aunt Asuka's boyfriend… and Uncle Touji is Aunt Hikari's boyfriend… so where's your boyfriend?"
"I… I don't have one," the older girl mumbled.
"Why not?" Reiko asked curiously.
"Because I'm ugly…" Nozomi whispered miserably, "no boy would give me the time of day."
Reiko looked her up and down, frowning slightly, "You're pretty," she pointed out, "not ugly."
"Sure," her babysitter laughed bitterly, "so pretty." She sighed, "You know, when Hikari was my age, she was already a C-cup… and she and Touji had been going out for a year…"
"What's a C-cup?" Reiko inquired, titling her head to the side.
"It's a… oh never mind," Nozomi said, not up to the task of describing the intricacies of breast support to a four year old, "it just means that she was better…"
Reiko considered this. "I like you better," she said plainly.
"Thanks," the older girl said dryly, "now if you were just thirteen years older and male, I might have a good thing going."
Reiko beamed.
Nozomi sighed and adjusted her glasses. "I doubt you'll ever have problems getting a boyfriend," she said, taking another drink, "your mommy's gorgeous."
The little girl wrinkled her nose. "I don't want one," she said, shaking her head for emphasis, "boy's make your face all scrunchy."
"Scrunchy?" the brown-haired girl said, confused, "What do you mean?"
Reiko shrugged. "Whenever Aunt Asuka talks about something Shinji did, her face gets all scrunchy."
Nozomi laughed. "It does?"
The purple-haired girl nodded, "Uh-huh… and yours did too."
Nozomi's laughter died instantly. "Huh?"
Reiko smiled, "When you said you were ugly and no boys would like you… your face got all scrunchy."
The older girl thought about this for a minute as she resumed stirring the brownie mix. "It's… important to me," she said finally, wondering why she felt like sharing this information with her young charge, "I… don't like being alone. I want someone I can hold hands with… and watch movies… and… never mind, honey…"
Silence descended for a minute as they poured the mix into a pan and placed it in the oven.
"Aunt Nozomi?" Reiko said quietly.
"What is it, honey?" Nozomi replied, carrying the bowl to the sink to rinse it out.
"I can… do those things," the little girl said timidly, "I can hold your hand… and watch movies with you… you don't have to be sad…"
Nozomi opened her mouth to tell the purple-haired girl that she didn't understand, but she found that she couldn't speak… and her eyes were damp.
Slowly, she knelt and hugged Reiko. "Thank you," she said softly, "that's very sweet of you, honey."
Reiko hugged her back, pleased that she had been able to cheer her favorite aunt up.
"Go pick out a movie," Nozomi said, releasing the purple-haired girl and steering her in the direction of the living room, "I'll finish cleaning up."
As Reiko grinned and scampered off, her babysitter wiped her eyes. –Whoever gets that girl is one lucky man,- she thought, unsure if she was proud… or jealous.
Finally, she shook her head and turned for the sink, wiping out the mixing bowl and smiling gently as she imagined herself holding Reiko's hand and walking down the street… and thinking that – even if she never got a boyfriend – she would always have her.
And that was just fine.
**
"There you guys are," Angelica said, standing up and waving as Shinji, Asuka, and Kaworu came into the restaurant, "we've been here for like, fifteen minutes."
"More like five for us," Touji said dryly, "the Ninth has been here for an hour, I'll bet…"
"Only a half," the brunette said defensively, "and a good thing too, because you know what? I asked if there were any reservations under Suzuhara… and there weren't."
"Touji!" Hikari exclaimed, "You said you called!"
"I did!" Touji said, "I… think. This is the Four Corners, right?"
Asuka sighed, taking the seat next to Hikari. "You'll note my lack of surprise that your muscle-head messed up," she said, kissing her friend on the cheek, "six months without my positive influence was bound to wreak havoc on his poor, feeble mind."
"You know what I missed most about you, red?" Touji said, leaning back in his chair, "Nothing."
"Behave…" Hikari said – as much to Asuka as to Touji.
"Nagisa," Angelica said, inclining her head slightly, "missed you at the party."
"My apologies, Miss Bennett," the gray-haired boy replied with a bow, taking the seat next to her, "regrettably, I was on guard duty."
"It's ok… you can tell me about it when you're taking me out on Saturday," Angelica said with a smirk.
"How… forward," the Fifth replied approvingly, "I like that. Very well, I will look forward to it."
Asuka watched the exchange with a bemused expression. She knew that Angelica wasn't one to wait around for guys to make the first move. In fact, the girl was rather headstrong all the way around, when it came right down to it. It had been her that had pursued a relationship with Asuka, deciding at their first meeting that they would be friends.
Asuka couldn't approve of the girl's tastes, however. –I swear he likes Shinji…- she thought as the red-eyed boy smiled at his suitor, -and I'm not just talking like, 'hey, let's go play some ball,'-type like, either…-
"So…" Hikari said after the two pilots had agreed on a time and a place to meet, "how does it feel, Asuka? Two years is a long time."
-What's that look?- Asuka thought as a peculiar expression flashed across her friend's face, -Guilt?- "Feels great," she replied, smiling at her boyfriend, "and I think it'll get better from here on in."
"Any regrets?" Kaworu asked softly, "Anything you would change?"
"Everyone!" Angelica piped up suddenly, "Everyone say something they regret."
"You go first, then," Kaworu said with a faint smile.
"Damn…" the girl muttered, "that backfired… ok… ummm…" she thought about it for a moment, "Ok, I've got it. I regret that I never asked out Tommy Gilespe in the seventh grade."
"Don't have that problem anymore, do you?" Asuka chided.
"That's why I don't have that problem," Angelica said proudly, "I swore I would never let another chance slip past me without doing anything about it." She smiled at Kaworu.
"A good philosophy," the Fifth said quietly. He took a breath, "I suppose my only regret is that I did not come to know you all sooner."
"How sweet," Hikari said… but Asuka noticed that she seemed to be growing nervous.
-Like she's building herself up,- the redhead thought as Hikari took a drink of water, chewing the ice unconsciously.
"I regret that it's two years and not four… or six…" Shinji said quietly.
Asuka blinked. –Why is Hikari blushing?- she thought. Dismissing the thought, she turned to Shinji, "Well, we'll just have to keep it going," she said, leaning forward for a kiss.
"Oh God…" Touji muttered, "get a room." He grinned as Asuka glared at him, scratching her cheek with her middle finger. "What about you, Red? What do you regret?"
"I regret that I didn't kill you for kissing me at that party last year," she answered darkly.
"Hey," the Fourth replied, "I was drunk… and the hair clips made me think you were Hikari."
"Whatever," the redhead said, waving a hand, "you knew what you were doing… freak. That's why you got a lap full of ice-water."
"I have one…" Hikari interjected softly.
"Yeah?" Asuka said, leaning forward with great interest… and so missing the tension that instantly filled her companion.
"I regret that I…" Hikari hesitated as she looked at Shinji, and finally she dropped her eyes to the table, finishing weakly, "that I don't see you guys more often…"
"That's so lame," Asuka said with a laugh, "I thought you were going to say you regretted that Stooge-boy is the only guy you've ever slept with."
"I don't regret that anymore…" Hikari whispered, flushing deeply, "will you excuse me?"
As she rose, Asuka frowned. "Geez… it's not that big a deal…"
Touji shrugged, "You know she gets embarrassed easily, Devilgirl," he said, "don't know why you're surprised."
"Oh, shut up stooge," Asuka retorted, "I'm still in shock over her deciding that you were worth more than a five-minute shower fantasy."
Angelica and Kaworu laughed as the Second and Fourth continued to fight.
Shinji… said nothing.
**
Kensuke approached the silently brooding figure in the EVA cages hesitantly.
"Commander?" he began, looking around. "Rei? Are you ok?"
The blue-haired girl looked from Unit 00 to the Section Two agent. "I am… ok, Kensuke. Thank you," she said, turning back to the object of her scrutiny.
He came up beside her. "It's late…" he said, "do you want me to escort you back to your apartment before I go off duty?"
"That won't be necessary," she replied softly, "I have much to do before I may go home…" –So much…-
"Do you… need any help?" he offered, his voice hopeful.
"I do not think you can assist me," she said, a touch of sadness creeping into her voice, "but you are kind to ask."
"Rei…" he said hesitantly, "I…" –Damn…- he thought as he fumbled for words, -why can't I say it?-
He knew why, though. The reasons why he could not reveal his attraction to the blue-haired girl were numerous. Not only was she his commanding officer, she was also a Child... and one of the most beautiful women he had ever seen. How could he ever hope to win her attention?
-He desires to be close to me…- Rei thought, stealing a sidelong glance at the young man from the corner of her eye, -Mister Kaji was correct in that assessment… but can I allow that? With everything that I must do?-
Finally, Kensuke cleared his throat, "Umm… I was wondering if you would…" again he fumbled for words, ultimately losing the fight, "allow me some time off…"
-Do I want him close to me?- she thought. "Of course, Kensuke," she said quietly, closing her eyes, "you have earned it." –It would be… complicated…-
He studied her for a moment, then slowly reached out, his hand trembling.
Finally, he let it fall to his side, unable to touch her. "Goodnight Rei…" he said softly, "is there anything I can do for you before I go?"
She shook her head. –Allowing one close to your heart allows for the risk of being hurt…- she thought, -but could that hurt possibly be worse than the pain of loneliness?-
After a moment of silence, Kensuke sighed and turned for the door.
"Stay…"
He froze as that one word, almost less than a whisper, reached his ears. He turned, but Rei was still facing the blue mecha, her eyes closed. –Did I imagine it?- he thought.
Slowly, he walked back to where she stood.
Saying nothing, he reached out again… this time making contact.
He thought Rei let out a small gasp, or sigh… but he couldn't be sure.
He couldn't tell, because the sound of his heartbeat was too loud in his ears… threatening to deafen him as her hand slowly (so very slowly) clasped his…
Continued…
Author's notes: no, Kensuke getting together with Rei was not just a 'oh, these two are alone, why not slap them together' move – it was actually ((cue sinister music)) the main point of this story!! Hahahahah. Well, no… not really… but it was one of the original plot points when I began. I didn't want to rush it, though, so I tried to build up to it slowly. Hope I did it right. ^_^
Ryoma, Ryoma, he's our man! If he can't pre-read it, umm… well… I'll be screwed. ^_^ Thanks man.
Feedback is always welcome at random1377@yahoo.com