Be Still My Beating Heart

The wind rushed through the surrounding trees. Leaves shivered as branches swayed to the invisible force. The cicadas droned on endlessly. They were like a thousand small air conditioning units. The technological world could be escaped physically, perhaps not mentally.

The two boys lay in sleeping bags beside a dying fire. Both pair of eyes were fixated on the onyx sky. Silence had taken capture of them since they finished cleaning camp after dinner. Finally Kensuke turned and addressed a topic that had earlier plagued them with silence.

"I just fail to see in the objective you were trying to meet." "Oh shut up, Mr. Commando. I was just..." "Doing him a favor? I'm sure he's real thankful for that." "What...? You think I shouldn't have?" "I'm just saying, you should let Ikari come out on his own terms." "I'm sure that will be sometime soon." "...That's true, Touji."

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Sleep came easy to them, as their day had been quite active. Touji's father dropped the two off at the head of the trail around noon. They hiked the path up the steep mountain and into a large green valley. The sun was shielded by overcast, making the day hot and humid. Dew droplets still clung to the high grass. A small forest was scattered over the center of the field and the surrounding hilltops.

After marching down into the forest, the boys hastily set up camp. Touji glanced at his watch.

"It's already Three..." He said in calm disbelief. "That seems about right... It usually takes me about four hours do this hike." Kensuke said while nailing the last stake in the ground. He stood back, eyeing their work with content appreciation.

"Yeah well, I didn't let your lazy ass take a break." Touji grinned and walked over to one of their packs. He took out a large, transparent container with a bright red cap. A small white spout was fitted into the top of the twist off covering.

"Why don't you let me get that? I know exactly where the spring is." Kensuke grabbed it before Touji could object. "Start a fire!" Yelled the boy as he disappeared into the dense vegetation.

They had picked a nice place to camp. A small break in the wood, plus level ground decided it. Touji looked up at the foreboding clouds. 'It's not going to rain... But there's always the threat.' Today, for once, he wasn't dressed in his usual sweat suit. Instead he wore a sleeveless green 'tee' and a pair of baggy khaki cargo pants. Kensuke was wearing his usual, what Touji deemed 'stupid', fatigues.

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Dinner was simple. A few pieces of meat and some freeze-dried noodles that Kensuke had brought. They both gobbled them down hungrily. When finished, neither was particularly satisfied. But complaining about it was futile amidst their surroundings.

"...I can't believe you'd actually did that.. talk about a covert operation." The large water jug was tied to a tree. Kensuke was crouched under it, cleaning the small tin bowls and mugs with a rag. The water ran cold, making his fingertips numb. He couldn't believe his friend... Even if he had learned to expect the unexpected.

"...Why do you think this is some sort of crime? ...I'm doing him a favor! You've seen the way he looks at Rei." Touji finished rolling the two sleeping bags out. They decided that the tent was not needed, even if Japan was notorious for spastic showers.

"You're completely ignorant to how insensitive you are. If Shinji-kun wanted Rei to know he liked her, which I'm not sure if he even does, I think he could handle it on his own. He's a pilot after all..." '...Love and war.' Touji was apparently offended by the comments. He sauntered over to his sleeping bag and collapsed on top of it. He spent the rest of the evening throwing a ball in the air to himself while Kensuke carved a small stick into a spear with his pocket knife.

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The perpetual clanks of heavy machinery echoed in the background. A thick cloud of limestone residue passed the window. It appeared pink in the setting sun.. Maybe even red. The occupants of the buildings adjacent to the construction were asked to vacate for the day. The blue haired pilot did not obey the simple request.

She sat on her bed, if it could be called a 'bed'. In reality it was just one step above a cot. Regardless, she lay they, staring about at the ceiling. Three words repeated endlessly in her head.

Questions, however, soon arose.

'Like?' What does he mean by 'like'? He could just mean as a 'friend'. But... Why would he write me a note? ...Could he mean more... intimate? ...No.

The feelings were completely foreign to her. She knew not the general contexts of love. Sex was just means of continuing humanity. Love was not part of her childhood, and therefore was absent from her current self.

The note's pencil mark's had faded slightly from the girl running her finger tips endlessly over each character. Currently it was resting, maybe by coincidence, over her left breast. It was slightly wrinkled. It had been folded once for her to place it in it's new home. Yes, it was now kept with elder Ikari's glasses. She let out a sigh... The sky no longer contained the red she despised so much.

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Shinji sat nibbling at a small piece of toast. He wasn't hungry. He was tired and miserable. The air conditioning in their apartment had fused out.. and they were left in searing heat. Fans with small plates of ice before them littered the apartment. It didn't help must. So the A/C was out, and last night, for Shinji, was a night of horrible turning fits. He couldn't stay cool, and neither could he find a comfortable sleeping position.

"Where'd you get all those fans...?" Shinji asked Misato, who was nursing a beer on the other side of the small table. Shinji rolled his eyes slightly. "And why do they all have the NERV insignia on them?"

"...Uh... well... You see. You, Asuka, and I are in very important positions. We need rest to fulfill our duties... And since temperature control affects one's ability to maintain a restful state... I saw 'borrowing' the fans perfectly acceptable." She explained with a slightly nervous smile, choosing her words carefully.

"Well, I wish you had 'borrowed' them sooner. I couldn't sleep at all." Shinji sighed and pushed his small plate away. Both slices of bread were intact, with the exception of a corner missing.

"Aww... Poor Third child sleepy?" Asuka smirked, seating her self down on one of the table's ends.

Shinji sighed and rolled his eyes, and was about to say something back to the redhead when Misato interrupted.

"You two hurry and get ready. We have to report to HQ for some simple tests." There was nothing ever simple about the tests at NERV. But the lie, or at least interpretation of the obvious, was meant to comfort them.

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Shinji clicked the small button at his wrist. The plug suit fit his lanky form perfect. It embarrassed him to let people see how skinny he was... 'At least it's not in public... Just a few... But your body will mature. Don't stress over it.' The inner voice that usually fed him small tidbits of fear had switched to self confidence and reassurance. However small the amount.

He stepped out of the locker room, only to find Rei waiting for him. His eyes opened slightly wider and his mouth was agape. 'She's smiling.' He quickly regained composure, putting on his goofiest smile.

"Hello, Shinji-kun.."

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Asuka gave her hair a tuft and proceeded to walk through the locker room Rei had just vacated. She walked past her fellow female pilot's locker, and came to a quick halt.

'Well... Looks like someone forgot to shut her locker...'

The German girl grinned and swung the door open. Her eyes were glowing with delight.

'Incriminating evidence, perhaps?' She cackled to herself and proceeded to trifle through Rei's belongings.

'UGH! All she has in here is an extra plug suit and her uniform... what's that in the back?' She slowly reached into the locker and extracted a small case. The hinge groaned softly as she opened it. She examined the pair of glasses, commenting to herself that only 'wonder girl' would carry such junk around with her... And then unfolded the small piece of worn paper.

'I like you

Ikari'

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Author's Note

^.^; I bet you guys thought this fic was dead. Well, it's not. This chapter had been floating around in my head for a while. The next chapter may be the last. I'd really like to starting working on a few more Eva fics and non-Eva as well. But this one has really captured my thoughts. How do you like it? Glad to have this next chapter? Any ideas of what might happen? Come on! Review! Tell me! Remember, if you read it, even if you disliked it, please review it. Until next time... And I promise it won't take three months for the next chapter. ^^

Einzeln