Chapter Two: Beautiful Things
The last time the pilot of Unit 01 had woken to an unfamiliar ceiling was when he was in the NERV Headquarters' Hospital. However, by a quick scan of the ceiling, walls, and later of the person in his arms, Shinji Ikari could readily tell that he was not in the hospital. And after a few seconds to recollect the events that had happened the previous night he could also tell that he was in big time trouble when he would have to go home and confront his guardian. However, all these thoughts quickly flooded out of his mind as his eyes once again fell upon the sleeping beauty that he had his arms cradled around.
Shinji had never had slept with another person in his entire life with his parents being the only exception. However, even THAT had been over a decade ago and he no longer remembered the warmth and comfort that it held. He smiled as he gazed at her calm and innocent face, her pale face and light blue hair matched perfectly. However, what had first caught his attention were her crimson eyes. Those beautiful deep red eyes that he could stare into for eternity and not even for a moment grow bored of. How she had red eyes and blue hair, he honestly did not know. It would be something that he would have to ask his (beloved) father about.
He gently slid out from underneath her, cautious not to awake her and started to stretch. It felt like years since he had last moved but as he stole a glance at the small clock that she had in her room he could tell that it had only been a few hours. He was about to go to the washroom to wash him face when he heard Rei Ayanami behind him starting to stir from her sleep.
"Morning Rei-chan" he whispered softly to her as she slowly blinked her eyes to see if she was dreaming.
^ Why is Ikari-kun in my apartment? ^ She thought before last night's events finally dawned upon her.
"Good morning Shinji-kun" she replied as she favored him a smile small. She slowly got up and went into the washroom to take a shower.
"I'll be out in a few minutes" she said quietly before she disappeared behind the door to her washroom.
Shinji nodded and sat down on her bed. There was still an hour left until school started so that gave him an hour to get something to eat, go home and get changed and get to school, but he didn't feel like leaving without Rei so he decided that he would go grab something to eat first. He went over to her fridge and looked at the contents inside.
And found nothing.
Nothing besides bread, jam, and a few bottles of water.
As he struggled over the selections of peach, raspberry, and grape jam he began to realize how the girl was so skinny and light. She HAD to be suffering from malnutrition. This could hardly even be considered real food if it was the only thing that she ever ate for breakfast, lunch, AND dinner. He then looked around at the rest of the kitchen and it didn't take long for him to figure out that she would have to take a tour in his kitchen to see what a proper kitchen looked like. Her 'kitchen' consisted of the small fridge that he was looking in, a sink, and small stove, and what seemed like a kettle.
^ Another one of my father's great works ^ he thought disgustedly as he took out the bread and the jam. He quickly made a peach jam sandwich for her breakfast as he wasn't hungry but didn't make one for lunch. He could get her a way better lunch than this.
He heard the washroom door open and was greeted by quite a nude Rei. She was dressed the exact same way she was the first time he had entered her apartment. In other words, she had on nothing except for a brown towel, and her black slippers. Shinji flushed a deep red that could match Rei's eyes and then quickly turned a 180 degree twist before she could see his developing nose bleed.
"What are you doing Ika... Shinji-kun" she inquired. Making a mental note to herself that he was 'Shinji-kun' not 'Ikari-kun'.
^ Strange ^ she thought to herself. ^ I did not make that mistake this morning... why am I making it now? ^
As she moved closer to him she could see that he had a wad of tissue stuck against his nose. He apparently seemed to be suffering from a nosebleed.
"Rei-chan... would you please dress yourself before you come out of the bathroom next time?"
"I am always like this when I am here"
"Yes... but when someone else is in your presence it would be a good idea to BE dressed" replied the stuttering Shinji.
"I understand" she replied in her infamous monotone voice.
Shinji stood perfectly still as he heard the ruffling of what sounded like someone getting dressed. When it all ended he turned around and this time was greeted by a Rei Ayanami in her school uniform. He smiled and gestured towards the sandwich in the kitchen.
"I made your breakfast for you" he commented as he turned to leave. "I'm going to go home and get changed, and then go to school. I suggest you go too after you finish you breakfast"
She nodded as he gave her a smile and exited her apartment building. Thankfully, the weather outside was quite warm and it complimented nicely the shorts and t-shirt that he was wearing. He quickly jogged back to his own apartment wondering how many times he had traveled this path in the past two days. As he got to his apartment a sense of dread filled him. Yes, Misato worked late, but NEVER late enough to be not there when he awoke in the morning when he went to school. Especially when it was not her day off. And luck had it; she had to go to work today. He slowly turned the doorknob and froze in shock.
It was locked.
He fumbled around his shorts looking for his keys and froze in shock again.
These shorts had no pockets.
Sighing in defeat he rung the doorbell and waited for hell to unleash. He wasn't disappointed in the least bit. The door was flung open to reveal a very devilish looking Misato who took one glance at him and roughly dragged him through the door. After seating him on one side of the table, she popped open her morning can of beer and sat on the other side of the table. After one long drink from the can she slammed it down on the table and glared at him. For a full 5 minutes.
"Talk" she commanded in a dangerously low voice after the silence had passed.
"I... I... went out last night" he answered truthfully with innocence spread all over his face.
"Tell me something I don't know Shinji Ikari" she growled menacingly at him.
"I... was at a friend's house... " he admitted glumly.
"And WHICH friend did you grace with your presence the ENTIRE night??" she screeched slamming the table again.
"Rei-chan's" he whispered as quiet as he could.
Apparently, it wasn't quiet enough.
Misato just stared at him, the words 'shock' and 'flabbergasted' written all over her face.
"Come again?"
"I was at Rei-chan's apartment last night... " he said slowly and after seeing her furious glare quickly added "I swear... we didn't do anything except talk last night!"
Misato who was still fuming as she realized that they were already on a first name basis slowly softened her glare. It wasn't as if she had any choice but to believe him. She sighed and nodded her head.
"Go get ready for school alright?"
He smiled gratefully, jumped up, and ran to his room to get changed. However, before he could reach his door he was shot with a cool statement.
"If Shinji Ikari, I even SUSPECT that there is something more going on between you and the first child I WILL report this to the commander" ^ That is... if he doesn't already know ^ she mentally added.
He nodded quickly and disappeared into his humble "abode". Inside, he breathed a sigh of relief as he collapsed onto his bed thanking God that he had escaped Misato's wrath unscathed. ^ Must be that time of the month ^ he mentally thought to himself as he quickly pulled on his school clothes and grabbed his wallet. He paused for a moment and opened his wallet to be greeted by Rei's old NERV pass card. He had secretly picked it up out of a trash bin that he had watched her throw it into after he had handed her the new one. And ever since that incident, he had kept the card in his wallet. Every now and then, he would take it out and admire her in the picture. She really did look like an angel. And he could just spend hours staring into the red eyes on the photo, even though it was just a photo.
However, all thoughts were lost as a beep was heard on his alarm clock and he saw that it was 9 o'clock.
"Crap" he muttered as he gathered his books and high tailed it out of his room and out of the apartment. Simply put, he was late. In other words, he would spend two hours during class time holding water buckets outside of the classroom and then have to clean the classroom as punishment for his tardiness.
As he ran towards the gates of the school however, he could see something oddly familiar in the distance. As he neared it, he recognized that it was Rei.
He smiled and broke into a slow jog as he finally reached her. She was standing under one of the biggest trees that their school had. It was the exact same tree that Shinji ate lunch at with Touji and Kensuke every day at lunch.
"Why are you inside Rei?" he questioned curiously as he approached her.
"I noticed that you were not here yet, so I decided to wait for you, but it seems that you are late" she responded coolly.
"If you knew I was going to be late then why didn't you go in first? You are going to get punished for being late... "
"I wanted to wait for you before I went in" she replied simply.
He shook his head, walked over to her and took her free hand into his. She waited for him with interest as he held her hand close to his face as if examining it. Finally he brought her hand down although he did not let it go and began leading her back out the school gates.
"Shinji-kun, where are you taking me" she inquired.
He flashed her a quick grin as they walked on. "Your hands are too delicate to hold water buckets Rei-chan. I'll tell the sensei tomorrow that we had synch tests and couldn't come"
She was mildly shocked by the way he was behaving. She had always thought of him as the type to go to school everyday like a good boy. It turned out that this was a side of him that even maybe his closest friends (Touji and Kensuke) didn't know about.
"Where are we going Shinji-kun?"
"I'm going to take you to a place that you might like to see, Rei-chan. It's a bit far, but it should only take a couple hours to get there and then a couple more to get back. And by that time, it will be ready for our synch tests later on this evening."
She blushed a bit when he gave her hand a slight squeeze as he smiled at her.
^ Warmth ^ she thought.
They walked silently hand in hand through the city. Since Rei had rarely gone anywhere that wasn't the NERV headquarters, her school, and her apartment, each place that he took her to was unfamiliar. As the day went on, they were still walking. Fortunately for perhaps both Shinji and Rei, they grew tired and spotted an ice cream shop. Shinji grinned and brought Rei into the little store where there were many flavors of ice cream to choose from. Shinji took a quick glance at the options and quickly chose a tropical mango flavor and stood quietly as he watched Rei contemplate on which flavor she should choose. The truth was, Rei had never eaten anything that came close to a desert before, the commander saw it as unnecessary and fattening, even with the amounts of exercise that Rei had from swimming he still thought it was unwise to introduce anything to her that might affect her fitness and piloting abilities in the slightness.
After what seemed like hours to Shinji she finally pointed towards the vanilla. Shinji blinked in surprise.
^ It takes her forever to choose a flavor and she chooses vanilla?? ^
Now it might have seemed surprising and strange to other people but to Rei, it looked the most ordinary. A innocent and clean white in contrast to some of the multicolored flavors that were in the shop. Shinji insisted on paying for both of them as he later realized that this was in fact her first time in an ice cream shop.
After they exited, he spotted a bench not far away and led her to the bench to sit on. The direction they were facing provided them a beautiful view of the ocean which glittered as the sun shone brightly over the gentle tides of sea water.
"This is your first time seeing the ocean while you weren't in your Eva isn't it" he asked Rei out of pure curiosity.
"Yes" she replied calmly.
^ Thought so... ^ he silently said to himself in his mind. ^ My father would never take her to come see a place like this. Hell, even when mother was alive, he hardly ever took me to the ocean. Said he didn't like it. ^
"Rei-chan"
"Yes Shinji-kun?"
"How about one day... I take you to a beach, where we can go swimming together in the ocean?" he asked hopefully.
"I'm not sure... " she replied softly.
"Huh? Not sure about what? I thought you liked swimming"
"I do, but not when there are crowds of people there also. You do not know how much dirt and bacteria there are in those waters. That is why whenever at school when we are swimming, I sit by the fence and wait until it is over instead of swimming with the others. It is also the reason why I frequently use the pool at NERV where nobody else besides pilots can use it"
^ Damn... ^ he cursed inwardly as his plan was shot, chewed, and then spit back out. He had been hoping that by taking Rei to places where there were more people she would learn to take off her mask around others and eventually become friends with people either than him. Although he wasn't exactly complaining about the fact that he was the only person she saw as a friend. It meant that whenever she was lonely, she would be with him. ^ No ^ he thought happily. He didn't mind it in the least bit.
"If it pleases you, we can go swimming at NERV after our synch tests today Shinji-kun"
He smiled at her as a touch of pink appeared on her cheeks.
"I would like that a lot Rei-chan"
She gave him a small smile as she turned her attention back to the glistening water in front of them. However, as nice as it looked, this was not the place that Shinji had wanted to take his friend. After they had finished their cones Shinji took her hand again and they started their trek across the city again.
"Where are you taking me, Shinji-kun?"
"I'm taking you to where Misato-san first brought me when I first came to Tokyo 3" he replied with a grin on his face. He still remembered the shock that had ran through his body as he saw the awesome sight of the city rising above the ground and shape into the outer skirts of the city that they knew of Tokyo 3.
As they finally reached his destination, he chose a spot underneath a large tree to sit on and invited her to sit beside him under the shade of the tree. She obliged as sat closely next to him enjoying the warmth that shivered through her body when he took her hand into both of his.
"Is this what you wanted to show me" she asked gesturing to the city in front of them with mild interest.
He shook his head negatively as he stole a quick glance at his watch. He knew exactly the time that the buildings would come out of the steel ground. And it would be in exactly five minutes.
"Just wait a few minutes, it'll appear soon" he said smiling at her while letting go of her hand so that he could lie down and look at the horizon in the sky. It was beautiful, almost as beautiful as the girl sitting beside him. Almost, but not quite. The sun had fallen behind the mountains now and the sky had a mix of red pink and purple far in the distance. The clouds surrounding it were also a tinge of pink and purple.
However, just then at that second, his watch beeped.
He smiled and stood up, he motioned for Rei to join him and she followed suit. At first, nothing could be seen or heard, but a few seconds later, the faint sounds of heavy machinery could be heard as if it was far in the distance. This was complimented by the opening of the steel floors of the city, allowing the tall buildings to slowly rise all together as one. Shinji had seen it many times after the first time Misato had taken him there so he had no troubles taking his eyes off of it, but as he turned to his side, he could see Rei staring with her eyes widened slightly at the magnificent sight of the rising city.
Rei knew that at about this time, the floors would open and the buildings would come out, she had even seen some of them rise before when she was under the city and at the NERV Headquarters, but she had never seen them rise out so perfectly as one like this before.
When it was all finally over she was left speechless. She looked over to Shinji to find him smiling at her. "Did you like it Rei?"
"Shinji-kun... it was BEAUTIFUL!!!" she exclaimed, her mask long forgotten.
"Yes I know" he smirked. "That's why I wanted you to come see it"
"Thank you Shinji-kun"
"It's no problem Rei, I wanted to share this with someone and I couldn't think of anyone I would rather share this with except you"
Rei blushed.
Shinji smiled but it quickly faded as he looked as his watch. The time read six twelve. They had their synch tests at eight o'clock sharp. He remembered being late for one test and both Misato and Dr. Akagi had chewed him out for at least two hours after the tests were over. He reached into his wallet to see how much money there was left, before remembering he wouldn't need one as he had a NERV card on him. Taking a taxi wouldn't be a problem, the problem was that he wouldn't be able to walk back together with Rei and spend some time with her. However, time was against them and they were forced to catch a taxi.
As they rode in silence, Shinji was staring out of the window. This sight was quite disturbing to Rei as she felt that her role had been taken. She was about to ask him what he was looking at when he raised a finger and pointed at the sky. Rei however, could not see anything new or interesting in the sky. She simply remained silent until she decided to ask.
"What is in the sky that is so fascinating Shinji-kun?"
"Look at the horizon Rei"
"What about it Shinji-kun? It is the line where the sky and the earth intersect. Certainly you must have seen it many times before, why is this time any different?"
"I know you've seen the horizon before Rei, but have you ever stopped to look at it and completely appreciate its beauty??"
Now that Rei thought of it, she had never considered the horizon to be anything special at all. She had seen it, and then dismissed it from her mind. Only now, after Shinji pointed it out to her, could she see that it WAS in fact quite beautiful. The intense colors that the setting sun gave to the skies and the clouds were both mystifying and glorious. It was funny how she had never noticed it.
"No Shinji-kun, I have not. But now that you mention it, I do see the beauty of the horizon. Thank you again for showing me something so beautiful"
"It was my pleasure Rei; however, I'll show you something even more beautiful later on after our synch tests ok?"
"That is fine Shinji-kun, but were we not going to go swimming after the synch tests?"
"Yes, we are Rei, and I will show you while we swim"
He smiled as he saw Rei's confused face. Yes, he had shown her some of the most beautiful things that he had ever saw in his life, but what he was going to show her later was true beauty. A beauty that nothing on earth could never compare with. He smiled as he thought of what her reaction would be when he revealed it to her.
The taxi stopped and after Shinji showed the driver his NERV card, the driver nodded and they left the vehicle. Shinji took another glance at his watch, seven twenty six. Approximately half an hour to get down to the changing rooms and then to the test area. They should have plenty of time to get that all done. As they traveled down the long escalator, Shinji decided to ask the blue haired girl about her experiences as an Eva pilot.
"So Rei, when did you first start piloting Unit 00?"
"I have been training since I was eight" she replied truthfully. "But I was not able to actually start moving the Eva until a year ago. Just before you came"
"You had your accident just a short while before I came to Tokyo 3?"
"Yes, as a matter of fact, you came a week after I had then accident with Unit 00"
He nodded sullenly. He wasn't happy at all at the fact that Rei had been hurt in the accident. In fact, he somewhat blamed his father for everything bad that had befallen on the blue haired angel. However, even though he cursed his father every opportunity that he had, he was secretly glad that Rei had been hurt on that one particular test. If she hadn't been bleeding near death when he saw her on the trolley, he was sure that he would have ran away, from Tokyo 3, from NERV, from his father, from all the people that lived here, and most importantly, he would have never met and become friends with the celestial angel by the name of Ayanami Rei. That was perhaps the only thing that he was grateful for from his father, but either than that, he hated the cold bastard.
"Shinji-kun?"
"Yes Rei"
"Why did you fight the third angel even though you had no experience piloting an Eva before in your entire life?"
"I thought I told you think already" he mumbled "I piloted because you were hurt and I didn't want you to get even more hurt. If you piloted and died I would never forgive myself. And later, when I had you in my arms and you were in pain, I mentally promised myself that I would protect you."
"Why was that Shinji-kun" she asked with an innocent look plastered over her face.
"You're doing this on purpose aren't you Rei" he said feigning anger. "I wanted to protect you because I cared for you, I told you all this last night"
"Yes you did Shinji-kun, but when you told me of this you were crying and relating it to me at a very quick pace. Furthermore, I enjoy hearing someone say that they care for me. Did you not know that you were the first person to tell me this Shinji?"
"Actually, I thought that maybe my father had said something like that to you before" he admitted.
"He raised me and taught me and sometimes even acted like a father would towards a daughter, but he never stated that he cared for me. That is why I feel happy each time you repeat those words to me Shinji-kun. Thank you"
Shinji blushed as he had never realized the full impact that those simple three words had on her, he would have never guessed himself. However, he was saved from further embarrassment as they neared the bottom and swiped their NERV cards into the sensors to gain access to the Headquarters. They walked into the locker room and silently began to change into their respective plugsuits. Rei, into her white suit, and Shinji, into his white, black, and blue suit.
"How long do you think the test will last this long Rei?"
She thought about the question for a while before responding to him. "It could take anywhere from half an hour to three hours" depending on how the results go.
Shinji nodded glumly, the worst case scenario would be it lasting for as long as three hours making it past eleven o'clock by the time they were done. And at that time, chances would be slim that they would be able to swim together in the pool. He sighed as he finished changing into his plugsuit. He flipped the switch on his wrist and it immediately tightened around his body, the feeling was actually quite comfortable. Contrary to popular belief, the plugsuits were not intolerably uncomfortable. True, it was practically skin tight, but the material was quite flexible and it was soft. The LCL could not penetrate the plugsuit but that didn't stop it from getting the stench it held on them.
They exited the changing room together and went to the testing area. There he could see Misato, Dr. Akagi, and her three assistants. Mr. Hyuga, Mr. Aoba, and Mrs. Ibuki. He did not know any of the three technicians very well but he could tell that they were nice people from the few times that he did manage to talk to them. He and Rei entered the two tubes waiting for them and patiently waited for the LCL to fill up and surround them.
~*~*~ Three Hours Later ~*~*~
Shinji tumbled out of the test tube, readily exhausted. Rei followed in a similar manner although much more graceful, she too was greatly exhausted and was not sure she could keep their plans on swimming together. She wanted nothing more than to go home, and get some much needed rest.
The two pilots exited the testing area, and entered the changing room again. Shinji took a shower first in a vain attempt to get rid of the LCL stench that clung to him, although after he showered it was still there, it could only be detected if you went in close for a sniff. However, after he put on his cologne (CK if you must ask) it was practically non existent.
Rei then showered after him. She had now turned from using cold water while showering, to a slightly warmer temperature of water. It still wasn't considered hot, but there was a major difference between the water she used now and the water she used a couple days ago. She smiled softly as the warm water bounced off her delicate flesh, it felt nice and somewhat warm. But it wasn't the same warm that Shinji made her feel, this was external warmth. The warmth that he gave her was from inside, she still didn't know how to explain this mysterious feeling but she took it as something good. It felt much nicer than the coldness that had always inhabited her before she had met Shinji. As she stepped out of the shower she was surprised to still see Shinji there leaning against the wall, apparently waiting for her. He smiled at her but quickly turned around as he tried to hide his blush.
She looked down as she remembered their morning's conversation about her not being properly dressed around people. The corners of her mouth curved slightly upwards as she saw him visibly shaking and she quickly got changed to spare him from any further and unnecessary embarrassment. When she had finished she slowly walked behind him and tapped him on the shoulder. He turned around and a look of relief etched his face as he saw that she was properly dressed in her school uniform. She began to exit the room and motioned for him to follow.
As they exited the building they both sighed inwardly as they knew it was too late to go swimming together as they had originally intended. This applied especially to Rei, who now was unable to see what Shinji had been talking about earlier. However, it could not be helped as it was nearly twelve and the two pilots were supposed to be home by then.
Rei had offered to walk with Shinji as it was on the way to her own apartment. At first, they had just walked at a steady pace together, content just to be in each other's presence, but as they grew nearer to Misato's apartment, they had unconsciously, slowed down to a trod. Normally, it would have taken about half an hour to walk from the Headquarters to Misato's apartment, but by the pace they were walking, it took them a full hour and twenty minutes. Shinji glanced at his watch and noticed it was already past twelve thirty. He glanced at Rei, he didn't want a pretty girl like her to walk on the streets alone by herself, even though he was sure she had done it many times before, he still felt uneasy about it.
"Why don't you come up for a while Rei? I'll ask Misato if she can give you a ride to your apartment"
Rei nodded and agreed. Not because she felt unsafe for any reason, but because she wanted to spend as much time as possible with Shinji. It felt... right to do so. As they slowly took the stairs up Shinji couldn't help but keep glancing at the beautiful girl beside him. He had spent the whole day with her! This had been one of the happiest days of his life. However, he couldn't help but feel the sense of loneliness that started to overcome him as they reached the door to Misato's apartment. He took out the keys and unlocked the door, after inviting her in, he followed suit and closed the door behind them.
"Misato-san!" he called but there was no reply. He then went to knock on the door to her room but there was still no reply. He was as equally baffled when he opened the door and found no one inside. He walked back into the living room giving up hope of finding her. ^ Maybe she went to the bar for a drink... ^ he thought to himself.
As he entered the living room however, he was greeted by the sight of Rei holding what looked suspiciously like a letter. She gave it to him and he read it out loud for the both of them.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dear Shinji Sorry for the lack of notice but I was just assigned a task to go to Old Tokyo to participate in a meeting and observe a demonstration of a newly made Evangelion. I would have told you this earlier but the Commander had just ordered me and Ritsuko to go on this business trip an hour ago. I will probably gone for about two to three days but there is more than enough food in the fridge for that time. I trust that you can get to school ok by yourself, and there won't be any synch tests until we get back. Don't miss me too much =) Sincerely: Misato-san
p.s. Don't forget to feed Pen-Pen
As he finished reading, a plan started to form in his mind and he smiled, turning to Rei.
"It looks like Misato-san won't be here to drive you home Rei" he stated happily.
She looked at him with a tinge a curiosity on her face. "Yes I can see that Shinji-kun, but what is it that makes you so happy? Misato-san can not possibly be so bad around that house that her absence makes you happy can it?"
Shinji laughed and slowly shook his head. "No, my Rei-chan that is not it. It means that she cannot drive you home; therefore, I will have to walk you there. Also, since she is not home I would be more than happy to make you here as my guest for a couple days"
She stood there blankly for a few seconds as his words hit her and then the corners of her lips curved upwards. "I would be honored to stay here as your guest Shinji-kun"
He smiled and leaned forward to hug her surprising the both of them. "Thank you, Rei-chan, for deciding to stay with me" he took a deep breath and slowly continued. "Today I was really happy that I was able to spend the entire day with you. I don't remember the last time I have been this happy. No, forget that, I have never been this happy in my entire life, even before my mother died. When I'm with you, it doesn't feel like how it is when I'm with Touji, or Kensuke, or even Misato-san. They are all friends to me. But when I am with you... I... feel more Rei. More than just friendship. Rei... I want you to know that I care for you... because... " he took another deep breathe as he felt his heart beating at approximately 84327 times a minute. "
She waited patiently as he took the time to find the correct words. She could do nothing else. Not even stare at him blankly. She felt her hands tighten around the skirt that belonged to her uniform, although she did not know why.
"Rei... I love you" he finally decided. There were no better words that could describe the way he felt at the moment. Even if he had been given a million years to think of what to say. In the end... he would say those three words.
Tears slowly began to form in Rei's eyes. ^ Why am I crying... it is not because I am sad... it must be because I am happy... Yes... just like last night... I am crying because I am happy ^ she decided.
Ayanami Rei, having not been in many situations in where she did not know how to act, did the same thing the last two times this happened. She smiled, the exact same smile she had given him the last two times. And then out of instinct, closed her eyes.
Taking this as his queue, he leaned forward until their noses were almost touching. Evidently, his talk with Misato that morning had all been but forgotten. He could feel her gentle breathing on his face as he slowly lowered his face to hers. With one hand, he gently tilted her head to the left, and tilted his own head to the right.
"I love you Shinji" she whispered as quiet as could be, but still loud enough for him to hear.
"I love you too Rei" he softly replied as he finally closed the remaining distance between them and their lips touched for the first time.
To Be Continued...
A/N: Ok Ok I'm going to make this short cuz it's pretty late right now at my place and I still have to go to school tomorrow. I understand that the majority of this chapter has been pretty boring and I apologize but I was using it all to build up for the end. I realize that I may still be going OCC for the chars, but it just can't be helped much. I am pretty sure you guys actually want to hear Rei talk instead of just having Shinji TRYING to make her talk. Because that is just boring. If she doesn't open up to him now then why should she open up to him later? It just doesn't make any damn sense to me. Anyways, Gendo's views on the childrens' relationship will come into play in the next chapter. Gendo fans be happy. I will not make him a cold bastwoid like many of the other authors tend to like to do so. I don't think he is given a fair chance in most of the stories out there and I would like to bring into the reader's eyes maybe a new view on how Gendo's thoughts are. Doing this though, I may indeed drastically change the outcome of the ending of the story. I have decided to extend the chapters all the way to EOE. I think that this would be a good opportunity to get some of the misunderstood chars to redeem themselves. I'm not going to say much more on the matter before I reveal too much of the plot. Also, Asuka fans do not despair, I shall bring her into the story next chapter. Or so I think I will. Also, I realize that in the series, Misato was only gone for a day and Shinji ended up helping her stop the Eva too, but in this case, the Eva simply malfunctions and Shinji is not needed for assistance. Also try to note that I am most likely not going to talk about the procedures that the technicians and the doctor and captain (future major) talk about. This is SUPPOSE to be a ROMANCE story... and I fail to see the romance in a bunch of orders to 'eject the entry plug' or 'cut off the powers' and find out that it's not responding. I WILL talk about SOME angel fights if I deem it necessary to further aid the plot in any way or another. So if you are reading this for mech- fights, go somewhere else. Hm... what else... Last but DEFINITELY not least... I want to give a big thank you to everyone who reviewed and please keep the reviews coming. You guys have no idea how much they mean to us authors who pour our blood, flesh, heart, and soul into these stories for your entertainment and hopefully your pleasure.
Till the next chapter! Ja-ne!!
TrentNight liquid_vivi@hotmail.com
The last time the pilot of Unit 01 had woken to an unfamiliar ceiling was when he was in the NERV Headquarters' Hospital. However, by a quick scan of the ceiling, walls, and later of the person in his arms, Shinji Ikari could readily tell that he was not in the hospital. And after a few seconds to recollect the events that had happened the previous night he could also tell that he was in big time trouble when he would have to go home and confront his guardian. However, all these thoughts quickly flooded out of his mind as his eyes once again fell upon the sleeping beauty that he had his arms cradled around.
Shinji had never had slept with another person in his entire life with his parents being the only exception. However, even THAT had been over a decade ago and he no longer remembered the warmth and comfort that it held. He smiled as he gazed at her calm and innocent face, her pale face and light blue hair matched perfectly. However, what had first caught his attention were her crimson eyes. Those beautiful deep red eyes that he could stare into for eternity and not even for a moment grow bored of. How she had red eyes and blue hair, he honestly did not know. It would be something that he would have to ask his (beloved) father about.
He gently slid out from underneath her, cautious not to awake her and started to stretch. It felt like years since he had last moved but as he stole a glance at the small clock that she had in her room he could tell that it had only been a few hours. He was about to go to the washroom to wash him face when he heard Rei Ayanami behind him starting to stir from her sleep.
"Morning Rei-chan" he whispered softly to her as she slowly blinked her eyes to see if she was dreaming.
^ Why is Ikari-kun in my apartment? ^ She thought before last night's events finally dawned upon her.
"Good morning Shinji-kun" she replied as she favored him a smile small. She slowly got up and went into the washroom to take a shower.
"I'll be out in a few minutes" she said quietly before she disappeared behind the door to her washroom.
Shinji nodded and sat down on her bed. There was still an hour left until school started so that gave him an hour to get something to eat, go home and get changed and get to school, but he didn't feel like leaving without Rei so he decided that he would go grab something to eat first. He went over to her fridge and looked at the contents inside.
And found nothing.
Nothing besides bread, jam, and a few bottles of water.
As he struggled over the selections of peach, raspberry, and grape jam he began to realize how the girl was so skinny and light. She HAD to be suffering from malnutrition. This could hardly even be considered real food if it was the only thing that she ever ate for breakfast, lunch, AND dinner. He then looked around at the rest of the kitchen and it didn't take long for him to figure out that she would have to take a tour in his kitchen to see what a proper kitchen looked like. Her 'kitchen' consisted of the small fridge that he was looking in, a sink, and small stove, and what seemed like a kettle.
^ Another one of my father's great works ^ he thought disgustedly as he took out the bread and the jam. He quickly made a peach jam sandwich for her breakfast as he wasn't hungry but didn't make one for lunch. He could get her a way better lunch than this.
He heard the washroom door open and was greeted by quite a nude Rei. She was dressed the exact same way she was the first time he had entered her apartment. In other words, she had on nothing except for a brown towel, and her black slippers. Shinji flushed a deep red that could match Rei's eyes and then quickly turned a 180 degree twist before she could see his developing nose bleed.
"What are you doing Ika... Shinji-kun" she inquired. Making a mental note to herself that he was 'Shinji-kun' not 'Ikari-kun'.
^ Strange ^ she thought to herself. ^ I did not make that mistake this morning... why am I making it now? ^
As she moved closer to him she could see that he had a wad of tissue stuck against his nose. He apparently seemed to be suffering from a nosebleed.
"Rei-chan... would you please dress yourself before you come out of the bathroom next time?"
"I am always like this when I am here"
"Yes... but when someone else is in your presence it would be a good idea to BE dressed" replied the stuttering Shinji.
"I understand" she replied in her infamous monotone voice.
Shinji stood perfectly still as he heard the ruffling of what sounded like someone getting dressed. When it all ended he turned around and this time was greeted by a Rei Ayanami in her school uniform. He smiled and gestured towards the sandwich in the kitchen.
"I made your breakfast for you" he commented as he turned to leave. "I'm going to go home and get changed, and then go to school. I suggest you go too after you finish you breakfast"
She nodded as he gave her a smile and exited her apartment building. Thankfully, the weather outside was quite warm and it complimented nicely the shorts and t-shirt that he was wearing. He quickly jogged back to his own apartment wondering how many times he had traveled this path in the past two days. As he got to his apartment a sense of dread filled him. Yes, Misato worked late, but NEVER late enough to be not there when he awoke in the morning when he went to school. Especially when it was not her day off. And luck had it; she had to go to work today. He slowly turned the doorknob and froze in shock.
It was locked.
He fumbled around his shorts looking for his keys and froze in shock again.
These shorts had no pockets.
Sighing in defeat he rung the doorbell and waited for hell to unleash. He wasn't disappointed in the least bit. The door was flung open to reveal a very devilish looking Misato who took one glance at him and roughly dragged him through the door. After seating him on one side of the table, she popped open her morning can of beer and sat on the other side of the table. After one long drink from the can she slammed it down on the table and glared at him. For a full 5 minutes.
"Talk" she commanded in a dangerously low voice after the silence had passed.
"I... I... went out last night" he answered truthfully with innocence spread all over his face.
"Tell me something I don't know Shinji Ikari" she growled menacingly at him.
"I... was at a friend's house... " he admitted glumly.
"And WHICH friend did you grace with your presence the ENTIRE night??" she screeched slamming the table again.
"Rei-chan's" he whispered as quiet as he could.
Apparently, it wasn't quiet enough.
Misato just stared at him, the words 'shock' and 'flabbergasted' written all over her face.
"Come again?"
"I was at Rei-chan's apartment last night... " he said slowly and after seeing her furious glare quickly added "I swear... we didn't do anything except talk last night!"
Misato who was still fuming as she realized that they were already on a first name basis slowly softened her glare. It wasn't as if she had any choice but to believe him. She sighed and nodded her head.
"Go get ready for school alright?"
He smiled gratefully, jumped up, and ran to his room to get changed. However, before he could reach his door he was shot with a cool statement.
"If Shinji Ikari, I even SUSPECT that there is something more going on between you and the first child I WILL report this to the commander" ^ That is... if he doesn't already know ^ she mentally added.
He nodded quickly and disappeared into his humble "abode". Inside, he breathed a sigh of relief as he collapsed onto his bed thanking God that he had escaped Misato's wrath unscathed. ^ Must be that time of the month ^ he mentally thought to himself as he quickly pulled on his school clothes and grabbed his wallet. He paused for a moment and opened his wallet to be greeted by Rei's old NERV pass card. He had secretly picked it up out of a trash bin that he had watched her throw it into after he had handed her the new one. And ever since that incident, he had kept the card in his wallet. Every now and then, he would take it out and admire her in the picture. She really did look like an angel. And he could just spend hours staring into the red eyes on the photo, even though it was just a photo.
However, all thoughts were lost as a beep was heard on his alarm clock and he saw that it was 9 o'clock.
"Crap" he muttered as he gathered his books and high tailed it out of his room and out of the apartment. Simply put, he was late. In other words, he would spend two hours during class time holding water buckets outside of the classroom and then have to clean the classroom as punishment for his tardiness.
As he ran towards the gates of the school however, he could see something oddly familiar in the distance. As he neared it, he recognized that it was Rei.
He smiled and broke into a slow jog as he finally reached her. She was standing under one of the biggest trees that their school had. It was the exact same tree that Shinji ate lunch at with Touji and Kensuke every day at lunch.
"Why are you inside Rei?" he questioned curiously as he approached her.
"I noticed that you were not here yet, so I decided to wait for you, but it seems that you are late" she responded coolly.
"If you knew I was going to be late then why didn't you go in first? You are going to get punished for being late... "
"I wanted to wait for you before I went in" she replied simply.
He shook his head, walked over to her and took her free hand into his. She waited for him with interest as he held her hand close to his face as if examining it. Finally he brought her hand down although he did not let it go and began leading her back out the school gates.
"Shinji-kun, where are you taking me" she inquired.
He flashed her a quick grin as they walked on. "Your hands are too delicate to hold water buckets Rei-chan. I'll tell the sensei tomorrow that we had synch tests and couldn't come"
She was mildly shocked by the way he was behaving. She had always thought of him as the type to go to school everyday like a good boy. It turned out that this was a side of him that even maybe his closest friends (Touji and Kensuke) didn't know about.
"Where are we going Shinji-kun?"
"I'm going to take you to a place that you might like to see, Rei-chan. It's a bit far, but it should only take a couple hours to get there and then a couple more to get back. And by that time, it will be ready for our synch tests later on this evening."
She blushed a bit when he gave her hand a slight squeeze as he smiled at her.
^ Warmth ^ she thought.
They walked silently hand in hand through the city. Since Rei had rarely gone anywhere that wasn't the NERV headquarters, her school, and her apartment, each place that he took her to was unfamiliar. As the day went on, they were still walking. Fortunately for perhaps both Shinji and Rei, they grew tired and spotted an ice cream shop. Shinji grinned and brought Rei into the little store where there were many flavors of ice cream to choose from. Shinji took a quick glance at the options and quickly chose a tropical mango flavor and stood quietly as he watched Rei contemplate on which flavor she should choose. The truth was, Rei had never eaten anything that came close to a desert before, the commander saw it as unnecessary and fattening, even with the amounts of exercise that Rei had from swimming he still thought it was unwise to introduce anything to her that might affect her fitness and piloting abilities in the slightness.
After what seemed like hours to Shinji she finally pointed towards the vanilla. Shinji blinked in surprise.
^ It takes her forever to choose a flavor and she chooses vanilla?? ^
Now it might have seemed surprising and strange to other people but to Rei, it looked the most ordinary. A innocent and clean white in contrast to some of the multicolored flavors that were in the shop. Shinji insisted on paying for both of them as he later realized that this was in fact her first time in an ice cream shop.
After they exited, he spotted a bench not far away and led her to the bench to sit on. The direction they were facing provided them a beautiful view of the ocean which glittered as the sun shone brightly over the gentle tides of sea water.
"This is your first time seeing the ocean while you weren't in your Eva isn't it" he asked Rei out of pure curiosity.
"Yes" she replied calmly.
^ Thought so... ^ he silently said to himself in his mind. ^ My father would never take her to come see a place like this. Hell, even when mother was alive, he hardly ever took me to the ocean. Said he didn't like it. ^
"Rei-chan"
"Yes Shinji-kun?"
"How about one day... I take you to a beach, where we can go swimming together in the ocean?" he asked hopefully.
"I'm not sure... " she replied softly.
"Huh? Not sure about what? I thought you liked swimming"
"I do, but not when there are crowds of people there also. You do not know how much dirt and bacteria there are in those waters. That is why whenever at school when we are swimming, I sit by the fence and wait until it is over instead of swimming with the others. It is also the reason why I frequently use the pool at NERV where nobody else besides pilots can use it"
^ Damn... ^ he cursed inwardly as his plan was shot, chewed, and then spit back out. He had been hoping that by taking Rei to places where there were more people she would learn to take off her mask around others and eventually become friends with people either than him. Although he wasn't exactly complaining about the fact that he was the only person she saw as a friend. It meant that whenever she was lonely, she would be with him. ^ No ^ he thought happily. He didn't mind it in the least bit.
"If it pleases you, we can go swimming at NERV after our synch tests today Shinji-kun"
He smiled at her as a touch of pink appeared on her cheeks.
"I would like that a lot Rei-chan"
She gave him a small smile as she turned her attention back to the glistening water in front of them. However, as nice as it looked, this was not the place that Shinji had wanted to take his friend. After they had finished their cones Shinji took her hand again and they started their trek across the city again.
"Where are you taking me, Shinji-kun?"
"I'm taking you to where Misato-san first brought me when I first came to Tokyo 3" he replied with a grin on his face. He still remembered the shock that had ran through his body as he saw the awesome sight of the city rising above the ground and shape into the outer skirts of the city that they knew of Tokyo 3.
As they finally reached his destination, he chose a spot underneath a large tree to sit on and invited her to sit beside him under the shade of the tree. She obliged as sat closely next to him enjoying the warmth that shivered through her body when he took her hand into both of his.
"Is this what you wanted to show me" she asked gesturing to the city in front of them with mild interest.
He shook his head negatively as he stole a quick glance at his watch. He knew exactly the time that the buildings would come out of the steel ground. And it would be in exactly five minutes.
"Just wait a few minutes, it'll appear soon" he said smiling at her while letting go of her hand so that he could lie down and look at the horizon in the sky. It was beautiful, almost as beautiful as the girl sitting beside him. Almost, but not quite. The sun had fallen behind the mountains now and the sky had a mix of red pink and purple far in the distance. The clouds surrounding it were also a tinge of pink and purple.
However, just then at that second, his watch beeped.
He smiled and stood up, he motioned for Rei to join him and she followed suit. At first, nothing could be seen or heard, but a few seconds later, the faint sounds of heavy machinery could be heard as if it was far in the distance. This was complimented by the opening of the steel floors of the city, allowing the tall buildings to slowly rise all together as one. Shinji had seen it many times after the first time Misato had taken him there so he had no troubles taking his eyes off of it, but as he turned to his side, he could see Rei staring with her eyes widened slightly at the magnificent sight of the rising city.
Rei knew that at about this time, the floors would open and the buildings would come out, she had even seen some of them rise before when she was under the city and at the NERV Headquarters, but she had never seen them rise out so perfectly as one like this before.
When it was all finally over she was left speechless. She looked over to Shinji to find him smiling at her. "Did you like it Rei?"
"Shinji-kun... it was BEAUTIFUL!!!" she exclaimed, her mask long forgotten.
"Yes I know" he smirked. "That's why I wanted you to come see it"
"Thank you Shinji-kun"
"It's no problem Rei, I wanted to share this with someone and I couldn't think of anyone I would rather share this with except you"
Rei blushed.
Shinji smiled but it quickly faded as he looked as his watch. The time read six twelve. They had their synch tests at eight o'clock sharp. He remembered being late for one test and both Misato and Dr. Akagi had chewed him out for at least two hours after the tests were over. He reached into his wallet to see how much money there was left, before remembering he wouldn't need one as he had a NERV card on him. Taking a taxi wouldn't be a problem, the problem was that he wouldn't be able to walk back together with Rei and spend some time with her. However, time was against them and they were forced to catch a taxi.
As they rode in silence, Shinji was staring out of the window. This sight was quite disturbing to Rei as she felt that her role had been taken. She was about to ask him what he was looking at when he raised a finger and pointed at the sky. Rei however, could not see anything new or interesting in the sky. She simply remained silent until she decided to ask.
"What is in the sky that is so fascinating Shinji-kun?"
"Look at the horizon Rei"
"What about it Shinji-kun? It is the line where the sky and the earth intersect. Certainly you must have seen it many times before, why is this time any different?"
"I know you've seen the horizon before Rei, but have you ever stopped to look at it and completely appreciate its beauty??"
Now that Rei thought of it, she had never considered the horizon to be anything special at all. She had seen it, and then dismissed it from her mind. Only now, after Shinji pointed it out to her, could she see that it WAS in fact quite beautiful. The intense colors that the setting sun gave to the skies and the clouds were both mystifying and glorious. It was funny how she had never noticed it.
"No Shinji-kun, I have not. But now that you mention it, I do see the beauty of the horizon. Thank you again for showing me something so beautiful"
"It was my pleasure Rei; however, I'll show you something even more beautiful later on after our synch tests ok?"
"That is fine Shinji-kun, but were we not going to go swimming after the synch tests?"
"Yes, we are Rei, and I will show you while we swim"
He smiled as he saw Rei's confused face. Yes, he had shown her some of the most beautiful things that he had ever saw in his life, but what he was going to show her later was true beauty. A beauty that nothing on earth could never compare with. He smiled as he thought of what her reaction would be when he revealed it to her.
The taxi stopped and after Shinji showed the driver his NERV card, the driver nodded and they left the vehicle. Shinji took another glance at his watch, seven twenty six. Approximately half an hour to get down to the changing rooms and then to the test area. They should have plenty of time to get that all done. As they traveled down the long escalator, Shinji decided to ask the blue haired girl about her experiences as an Eva pilot.
"So Rei, when did you first start piloting Unit 00?"
"I have been training since I was eight" she replied truthfully. "But I was not able to actually start moving the Eva until a year ago. Just before you came"
"You had your accident just a short while before I came to Tokyo 3?"
"Yes, as a matter of fact, you came a week after I had then accident with Unit 00"
He nodded sullenly. He wasn't happy at all at the fact that Rei had been hurt in the accident. In fact, he somewhat blamed his father for everything bad that had befallen on the blue haired angel. However, even though he cursed his father every opportunity that he had, he was secretly glad that Rei had been hurt on that one particular test. If she hadn't been bleeding near death when he saw her on the trolley, he was sure that he would have ran away, from Tokyo 3, from NERV, from his father, from all the people that lived here, and most importantly, he would have never met and become friends with the celestial angel by the name of Ayanami Rei. That was perhaps the only thing that he was grateful for from his father, but either than that, he hated the cold bastard.
"Shinji-kun?"
"Yes Rei"
"Why did you fight the third angel even though you had no experience piloting an Eva before in your entire life?"
"I thought I told you think already" he mumbled "I piloted because you were hurt and I didn't want you to get even more hurt. If you piloted and died I would never forgive myself. And later, when I had you in my arms and you were in pain, I mentally promised myself that I would protect you."
"Why was that Shinji-kun" she asked with an innocent look plastered over her face.
"You're doing this on purpose aren't you Rei" he said feigning anger. "I wanted to protect you because I cared for you, I told you all this last night"
"Yes you did Shinji-kun, but when you told me of this you were crying and relating it to me at a very quick pace. Furthermore, I enjoy hearing someone say that they care for me. Did you not know that you were the first person to tell me this Shinji?"
"Actually, I thought that maybe my father had said something like that to you before" he admitted.
"He raised me and taught me and sometimes even acted like a father would towards a daughter, but he never stated that he cared for me. That is why I feel happy each time you repeat those words to me Shinji-kun. Thank you"
Shinji blushed as he had never realized the full impact that those simple three words had on her, he would have never guessed himself. However, he was saved from further embarrassment as they neared the bottom and swiped their NERV cards into the sensors to gain access to the Headquarters. They walked into the locker room and silently began to change into their respective plugsuits. Rei, into her white suit, and Shinji, into his white, black, and blue suit.
"How long do you think the test will last this long Rei?"
She thought about the question for a while before responding to him. "It could take anywhere from half an hour to three hours" depending on how the results go.
Shinji nodded glumly, the worst case scenario would be it lasting for as long as three hours making it past eleven o'clock by the time they were done. And at that time, chances would be slim that they would be able to swim together in the pool. He sighed as he finished changing into his plugsuit. He flipped the switch on his wrist and it immediately tightened around his body, the feeling was actually quite comfortable. Contrary to popular belief, the plugsuits were not intolerably uncomfortable. True, it was practically skin tight, but the material was quite flexible and it was soft. The LCL could not penetrate the plugsuit but that didn't stop it from getting the stench it held on them.
They exited the changing room together and went to the testing area. There he could see Misato, Dr. Akagi, and her three assistants. Mr. Hyuga, Mr. Aoba, and Mrs. Ibuki. He did not know any of the three technicians very well but he could tell that they were nice people from the few times that he did manage to talk to them. He and Rei entered the two tubes waiting for them and patiently waited for the LCL to fill up and surround them.
~*~*~ Three Hours Later ~*~*~
Shinji tumbled out of the test tube, readily exhausted. Rei followed in a similar manner although much more graceful, she too was greatly exhausted and was not sure she could keep their plans on swimming together. She wanted nothing more than to go home, and get some much needed rest.
The two pilots exited the testing area, and entered the changing room again. Shinji took a shower first in a vain attempt to get rid of the LCL stench that clung to him, although after he showered it was still there, it could only be detected if you went in close for a sniff. However, after he put on his cologne (CK if you must ask) it was practically non existent.
Rei then showered after him. She had now turned from using cold water while showering, to a slightly warmer temperature of water. It still wasn't considered hot, but there was a major difference between the water she used now and the water she used a couple days ago. She smiled softly as the warm water bounced off her delicate flesh, it felt nice and somewhat warm. But it wasn't the same warm that Shinji made her feel, this was external warmth. The warmth that he gave her was from inside, she still didn't know how to explain this mysterious feeling but she took it as something good. It felt much nicer than the coldness that had always inhabited her before she had met Shinji. As she stepped out of the shower she was surprised to still see Shinji there leaning against the wall, apparently waiting for her. He smiled at her but quickly turned around as he tried to hide his blush.
She looked down as she remembered their morning's conversation about her not being properly dressed around people. The corners of her mouth curved slightly upwards as she saw him visibly shaking and she quickly got changed to spare him from any further and unnecessary embarrassment. When she had finished she slowly walked behind him and tapped him on the shoulder. He turned around and a look of relief etched his face as he saw that she was properly dressed in her school uniform. She began to exit the room and motioned for him to follow.
As they exited the building they both sighed inwardly as they knew it was too late to go swimming together as they had originally intended. This applied especially to Rei, who now was unable to see what Shinji had been talking about earlier. However, it could not be helped as it was nearly twelve and the two pilots were supposed to be home by then.
Rei had offered to walk with Shinji as it was on the way to her own apartment. At first, they had just walked at a steady pace together, content just to be in each other's presence, but as they grew nearer to Misato's apartment, they had unconsciously, slowed down to a trod. Normally, it would have taken about half an hour to walk from the Headquarters to Misato's apartment, but by the pace they were walking, it took them a full hour and twenty minutes. Shinji glanced at his watch and noticed it was already past twelve thirty. He glanced at Rei, he didn't want a pretty girl like her to walk on the streets alone by herself, even though he was sure she had done it many times before, he still felt uneasy about it.
"Why don't you come up for a while Rei? I'll ask Misato if she can give you a ride to your apartment"
Rei nodded and agreed. Not because she felt unsafe for any reason, but because she wanted to spend as much time as possible with Shinji. It felt... right to do so. As they slowly took the stairs up Shinji couldn't help but keep glancing at the beautiful girl beside him. He had spent the whole day with her! This had been one of the happiest days of his life. However, he couldn't help but feel the sense of loneliness that started to overcome him as they reached the door to Misato's apartment. He took out the keys and unlocked the door, after inviting her in, he followed suit and closed the door behind them.
"Misato-san!" he called but there was no reply. He then went to knock on the door to her room but there was still no reply. He was as equally baffled when he opened the door and found no one inside. He walked back into the living room giving up hope of finding her. ^ Maybe she went to the bar for a drink... ^ he thought to himself.
As he entered the living room however, he was greeted by the sight of Rei holding what looked suspiciously like a letter. She gave it to him and he read it out loud for the both of them.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dear Shinji Sorry for the lack of notice but I was just assigned a task to go to Old Tokyo to participate in a meeting and observe a demonstration of a newly made Evangelion. I would have told you this earlier but the Commander had just ordered me and Ritsuko to go on this business trip an hour ago. I will probably gone for about two to three days but there is more than enough food in the fridge for that time. I trust that you can get to school ok by yourself, and there won't be any synch tests until we get back. Don't miss me too much =) Sincerely: Misato-san
p.s. Don't forget to feed Pen-Pen
As he finished reading, a plan started to form in his mind and he smiled, turning to Rei.
"It looks like Misato-san won't be here to drive you home Rei" he stated happily.
She looked at him with a tinge a curiosity on her face. "Yes I can see that Shinji-kun, but what is it that makes you so happy? Misato-san can not possibly be so bad around that house that her absence makes you happy can it?"
Shinji laughed and slowly shook his head. "No, my Rei-chan that is not it. It means that she cannot drive you home; therefore, I will have to walk you there. Also, since she is not home I would be more than happy to make you here as my guest for a couple days"
She stood there blankly for a few seconds as his words hit her and then the corners of her lips curved upwards. "I would be honored to stay here as your guest Shinji-kun"
He smiled and leaned forward to hug her surprising the both of them. "Thank you, Rei-chan, for deciding to stay with me" he took a deep breath and slowly continued. "Today I was really happy that I was able to spend the entire day with you. I don't remember the last time I have been this happy. No, forget that, I have never been this happy in my entire life, even before my mother died. When I'm with you, it doesn't feel like how it is when I'm with Touji, or Kensuke, or even Misato-san. They are all friends to me. But when I am with you... I... feel more Rei. More than just friendship. Rei... I want you to know that I care for you... because... " he took another deep breathe as he felt his heart beating at approximately 84327 times a minute. "
She waited patiently as he took the time to find the correct words. She could do nothing else. Not even stare at him blankly. She felt her hands tighten around the skirt that belonged to her uniform, although she did not know why.
"Rei... I love you" he finally decided. There were no better words that could describe the way he felt at the moment. Even if he had been given a million years to think of what to say. In the end... he would say those three words.
Tears slowly began to form in Rei's eyes. ^ Why am I crying... it is not because I am sad... it must be because I am happy... Yes... just like last night... I am crying because I am happy ^ she decided.
Ayanami Rei, having not been in many situations in where she did not know how to act, did the same thing the last two times this happened. She smiled, the exact same smile she had given him the last two times. And then out of instinct, closed her eyes.
Taking this as his queue, he leaned forward until their noses were almost touching. Evidently, his talk with Misato that morning had all been but forgotten. He could feel her gentle breathing on his face as he slowly lowered his face to hers. With one hand, he gently tilted her head to the left, and tilted his own head to the right.
"I love you Shinji" she whispered as quiet as could be, but still loud enough for him to hear.
"I love you too Rei" he softly replied as he finally closed the remaining distance between them and their lips touched for the first time.
To Be Continued...
A/N: Ok Ok I'm going to make this short cuz it's pretty late right now at my place and I still have to go to school tomorrow. I understand that the majority of this chapter has been pretty boring and I apologize but I was using it all to build up for the end. I realize that I may still be going OCC for the chars, but it just can't be helped much. I am pretty sure you guys actually want to hear Rei talk instead of just having Shinji TRYING to make her talk. Because that is just boring. If she doesn't open up to him now then why should she open up to him later? It just doesn't make any damn sense to me. Anyways, Gendo's views on the childrens' relationship will come into play in the next chapter. Gendo fans be happy. I will not make him a cold bastwoid like many of the other authors tend to like to do so. I don't think he is given a fair chance in most of the stories out there and I would like to bring into the reader's eyes maybe a new view on how Gendo's thoughts are. Doing this though, I may indeed drastically change the outcome of the ending of the story. I have decided to extend the chapters all the way to EOE. I think that this would be a good opportunity to get some of the misunderstood chars to redeem themselves. I'm not going to say much more on the matter before I reveal too much of the plot. Also, Asuka fans do not despair, I shall bring her into the story next chapter. Or so I think I will. Also, I realize that in the series, Misato was only gone for a day and Shinji ended up helping her stop the Eva too, but in this case, the Eva simply malfunctions and Shinji is not needed for assistance. Also try to note that I am most likely not going to talk about the procedures that the technicians and the doctor and captain (future major) talk about. This is SUPPOSE to be a ROMANCE story... and I fail to see the romance in a bunch of orders to 'eject the entry plug' or 'cut off the powers' and find out that it's not responding. I WILL talk about SOME angel fights if I deem it necessary to further aid the plot in any way or another. So if you are reading this for mech- fights, go somewhere else. Hm... what else... Last but DEFINITELY not least... I want to give a big thank you to everyone who reviewed and please keep the reviews coming. You guys have no idea how much they mean to us authors who pour our blood, flesh, heart, and soul into these stories for your entertainment and hopefully your pleasure.
Till the next chapter! Ja-ne!!
TrentNight liquid_vivi@hotmail.com