Note: My real name is NOT Hideaki Anno. I do not own Gainax or any of its
creations, let alone Neon Genesis: Evangelion. Locations, characters,
ideas and themes present in this fan fic are used without permission from
Mr. Anno or Gainax.
Last time on The Last Gift She Expected... The Three Stooges come up with the idea of a surprise birthday party for Asuka, only to find that they are beaten to the punch by Rei, who has Misato and Commander Ikari planning a party in NERV headquarters! Also, Shinji makes the world-shattering discovery that Ritsuko is in fact a lesbian! Meanwhile, Asuka performs poorly during a sync test. Ritsuko, trying to keep the surprise under wraps, takes a lie too far by threatening Asuka with her position as an Eva pilot!
And without further ado... The Last Gift She Expected, Chapter 2: Pizza, the Matrix and Afterwards
------------
Shinji put down the phone. He ticked off the last name on the list. [That'll be interesting, seeing Misato and Kaji together again.] There. Now every name was accounted for. Misato had called and told him Gendo was coming, but Fuyutski wasn't. Shinji hid the list in one of his drawers, and walked out of his "lovely suite". All of a sudden, the front door burst open, and Asuka ran into her room, crying her heart out. Shinji watched in astonishment as Asuka slammed her door after her.
[What happened to her? First Rei kissing and now this...] Shinji's sense of comradeship forced him to try and comfort Asuka. He walked slowly to Asuka's door.
"Are you alright in there?" Shinji asked.
Nothing but sobbing. Clearly she wasn't alright. "Uh, can I come in?"
Amongst the sobbing, Shinji heard a "mm-hmm". Shinji gently pushed open the door, and saw Asuka slumped over the futon, hiding her face. Shinji walked over to her, and knelt down.
"What's the matter, Asuka? Did...something happen during the sync test?" Shinji asked.
"Rit..suko...she left me in the plug...I got a 0.3..."
Shinji knew how low 0.3% was. [I didn't even think a score like that was possible...]
Asuka continued. "She said...that...that they...THEY'RE GONNA FIRE ME!!!" Asuka wailed, like a wounded child.
Even Shinji found this difficult to comprehend. Why would Ritsuko threaten to fire Asuka over one bad sync ratio test?
"It's alright, it's alright..." Shinji found his hand on Asuka's back, rubbing up and down. "They've giving you a second chance, aren't they...? They've got to..."
Asuka lifted her head. Tears were streaming down her cheek. The sobbing slowed down a little.
"Ritsuko said...that they'll retest me Saturday night...then the Commander will tell me what'll happen...after that..."
Shinji wondered what this all meant. Then it clicked.
"Mein gott..." Shinji uttered. Misato told him earlier that day, 'We just tell Asuka that the Commander wants to see her. She won't expect a thing!'
[Ritsuko Akagi! Koitsu! How could she!?] Shinji's blood boiled over. He wasn't going to stand for this. A new wave of resolve swept over him, something he had felt only a few times before...courage.
Asuka was still considerably upset, but was slightly confused by Shinji's use of German. "Huh...?"
"Don't worry..." Shinji said, surprising even himself with his boldness. "You sit here...I'll take care of it." He reached his arm around, and gave Asuka a firm, supporting hug. Then he stood up, and left the room. Asuka, through tears, was stunned by Shinji's newfound strength.
----------
Shinji left the house, and reached for his mobile. Walking towards the lift, he pushed "Memory". Scrolling back a couple of calls calls, he found Ritsuko's home number.
After a few rings, he got the answering machine. "Hi, you've reached Ritsuko Akagi. I'm not home right now, but if it's an emergency, my mobile is..."
Bingo! Shinji made memory of the number. Walking back to the apartment door, he punched the number in. He waited for Ritsuko to answer her mobile. Finally, the dial tone stopped.
"Ritsuko here," she answered.
"HOW THE HELL COULD YOU DO THAT!" Shinji screamed.
"Oh, Shinji," Dr. Akagi said dully, not realising how livid the Third Child was. "It's only you."
"WHAT DO YOU FUCKING MEAN IT'S ONLY ME!? YOU THINK I'M ANY LESS PISSED OFF!?" Shinji's voice got lower.
"Listen, I know-"
"NO, YOU LISTEN! YOU KNOW WHAT ASUKA'S LIKE! YOU'VE DESTROYED HER! YOU BROUGHT HER TO TEARS! I HOPE YOU'RE HAPPY! YOU'RE LUCKY YOU'RE NOT HERE RIGHT NOW, YOU PUSSY-LICKING OLD BITCH, COZ IF YOU WERE, I'D RIP YOU A NEW FRIGGIN ASSHOLE!"
Ritsuko was shocked. "What...did you call me?"
"You heard me, you fucking bimbo, you may as well tell her she's gonna die Saturday! Unless you didn't notice, Asuka's sole reason for living is being an Eva pilot!"
"But Shinji, it-"
"IT-WHAT?! It was all you could come up with? All you could think of? You had to have thought of it, I know for a fact that Misato can't be that...VILE!"
"GOD-DAMMIT, SHINJI...!"
"YOU SHUT THE FUCK UP! You have no right to be angry!"
Little did Shinji know that Asuka had emerged from her room, and was standing just behind the door.
"HOW CAN YOU DO THIS TO HER!? IT WAS ONLY ONE GOD-DAMNED SYNC TEST! YOU CAN'T FIRE SOMEONE AFTER ONE BAD TEST! I BET YOU DIDN'T EVEN CHECK THE SENSORS! HOW DO YOU KNOW THEY WERE EVEN ATTACHED!? HUH?! COME ON DR. DICK-FOR-BRAINS! ANSWER ME!!!" Shinji thundered.
"I'M SORRY! ALRIGHT!?" Ritsuko was in tears now. Shinji heard a click.
Asuka was standing there, mouth wide open. [THAT was Shinji!? Mein gott...all that...for me?]
Shinji stood there, mobile still against his face. [THAT was me!? My God...all that...for her?]
The door opened behind him. He turned around. Asuka was there. They looked at each other for what seemed an eternity. Asuka's face was covered in salty residue. Her face was still in a kind of half-cringe. Shinji's face was flushed with anger, but it quickly faded. Asuka's twisted face slowly reformed into a loving smile.
"Oh, Shinji!" Asuka half ran, half fell into Shinji, her arms shooting round his waist, her head flopping over his shoulder. Shinji placed one arm around her back, and closed tightly. They stood there, outside their apartment, each relaxing in the other's embrace. They held each other for a longer eternity. Finally, Shinji twisted, resulting in both of them facing the door, one arm around the other's back.
"C'mon," Shinji said, as they walked in, "I'll fix you up something to eat."
-----------
Ritsuko closed her phone. Slowly putting it back in her pocket, she didn't know what was more surprising: Shinji standing up to her like that, or Shinji standing up to her like that for Asuka. Ritsuko was stunned by the sheer intimidation Shinji displayed, even over a phone. She felt tears spring to her eyes. [My God...he really has changed...he finally got some balls...] Ritsuko sat there for ages, shocked at how much Shinji had grown to be like his father...
-----------
Asuka had just cleaned her face in the bathroom. Shinji was in the kitchen, getting all kinds of ingredients out, under the assumption that Asuka wanted her favourite from back home, apple strudel. Asuka looked at the ingredients, and shook her head.
"No thanks, Shinji," Asuka said half-heartedly.
"No, go ahead, Asuka. My treat, on the house."
Asuka's brain ticked over. "Why are you doing all this?"
Shinji stopped and turned around. "What do you mean, why am I doing this?"
He walked over to Asuka, placing a hand on her shoulder. "I'm doing this because I care for you. What Ritsuko did was wrong. I don't know if she realised it, but she took the one thing you care most about, and threatened to take it away from you, for absolutely nothing. You've got no idea how out of line that is."
Asuka looked into Shinji's eyes. "And another thing," Shinji continued. "They screwed up. They're supposed to attach electrical sensors to you to measure your heartbeat, remember? 0.3% is impossible. Twenty, maybe, but not under one percent."
Asuka cheered up. "You're right. Thanks, Shinji..."
Shinji smiled warmly, then went back to the cooking.
"Hey Shinji."
Shinji turned around, about to dump a cup of flour into a bowl.
"How about I show you how to cook pizza?"
Shinji almost laughed. "Peetzah!? What on earth is that!?"
Asuka smiled broadly. "Gott! Sixteen years of age and you haven't heard of pizza!"
Silence prevailed until Asuka said, "Well are you gonna let me show you?"
Shinji stepped back. "Be my guest!" he said light-heartedly.
Asuka walked into the preparation area, reshelving some of the ingredients, and pulling out the entire vegetable drawer of the fridge. Dumping it on the table, she took the bag of flour, emptied it into the bowl, and mixed in a bit of water.
"This...isn't German?"
"Are you kidding? You seriously haven't heard of pizza before? It was all the rage pre-Second Impact...Anyway, it started in Italy."
"Italy?"
"Now it's part of the European Alliance. Most of it's underwater now. It was that funny shaped country in the south shaped like a boot."
"....oh."
Asuka now proceeded to knead the dough. "Here, Shinji, you can do this," she said, taking her hands out of the dough. "Just make sure that there aren't any pockets of flour."
Sounds easy enough. Shinji put his hands in and squashed the dough about. Meanwhile, Asuka cut up some of the vegetables. "Shinji, do you know where the cheese is?"
"In the fridge door."
"How about the ketchup?"
"Third shelf in the cupboard."
"Thanks."
Before long, Asuka had a nice little collection of diced vegies on the bench. "How's that dough coming along?"
Shinji took out his hands, peeling off some excess dough. "Looks good. Give it here."
Shinji handed the bowl to Asuka. Asuka emptied the bowl into her hands, streched the dough out in a rough circle, and twisted it into the air. The dough spiralled, twisting out further, and landing in Asuka's outstretched hand, an almost perfect circlular patch of dough.
Shinji had never seen Asuka cook before. She seemed so confident in the kitchen.
Asuka was still throwing the dough into the air. "It's not that hard, really. The technique is all in the wrist. You just need practice..."
Asuka went for another fling into the air, but this time, her arm caught on her ribcage, throwing the dough off target. Asuka shouted in surprise as the dough flew straight into Shinji's face. Asuka laughed uncontrollably as Shinji stumbled blindly into the table, tripping over a chair and landing on the ground. Shinji sat up, flopping the dough into his open hands. Asuka was hysterical, doubled over laughing. Shinji didn't last much longer, as he chuckled, then laughed, then split his sides laughing. After a while, Shinji went to get up again, slipped on some spilled water, falling forward, pushing the flour over the far edge and down a bent over Asuka's front. Asuka was stunned by the recent turn of events, and fell victim to another fit of giggles. Shinji found this quite amusing, and tried to ask if Asuka was alright through laughing. By some act of God the pizza base had landed perfectly in the round tray.
A few minutes of laughing later, and Misato arrived home.
"I'm home! Get ready for the best tasting curry of yo......" Misato was confronted by a kitchen covered in flour, Shinji and Asuka even more so, holding themselves upright, with great big grins on their faces.
Misato tried hard to stop from laughing. She tried to think of her favourite soapie, a couple of the Angels, of Kaji, anything to stop from laughing. It didn't work.
Misato burst out laughing. "Who hit our humble abode with an N2 flour bomb!?"
Shinji and Asuka calmed down, as Misato left, hysterical, tears springing from her eyes.
"So, is making a peetzah always this funny?" Shinji asked.
"Only when you stuff up..." Asuka giggled softly.
----------
"Hey, Asuka, this peetzah stuff is good!" Shinji was enjoying a fat ol' slice of pizza.
"Heh, I thought you'd like it, Shinji,"
Misato had already enjoyed half of the pizza and took off for work, leaving the two pilots with the rest, minus one slice for PenPen.
"I suppose you learned to cook like this in Germany?"
"Yeah. I can cook this, apple strudel, much better than yours by the way, and I do a good flake 'n' chips..."
"Wow...Japan really is different to Europe..."
"Tell me about it. Back home we sleep in beds."
"You mean off the ground? Wierd..."
Shinji and Asuka sat back in front of the TV, watching some vintage movie called Matrix Reloaded. The plot was a tad weak, but the special effects were okay. The main guy, Neo, was bashing the crap out of about sixty black suits when Asuka spoke to Shinji.
"Uh, Shinji..."
"Yes?"
"About this afternoon...I...never knew you cared so much for me...it really...touched me..." Asuka's head dropped down.
"It's alright, Asuka..."
"No, let me finish. Ever since I came here, I've made life hard for you, I've been a constant bitch, I know. But you...you still came to my aid."
"Like I said before, it's..."
"And...well...to be honest, that was the nicest, most beautiful thing anyone has ever done for me..."
"Oh, gee, Asuka...I only did what I thought was right..."
"Well...it meant a lot to me...thanks, Shinji..."
"Uh, don't mention it..."
Asuka's eyes went back to the TV. The camera was twisting around some guy dodging bullets. A pretty dodgy special effect, really. After a few minutes:
"There's something else I've got to tell you..."
Shinji turned away from the screen. Asuka was getting nervous, for some reason.
"I..." Her face was going red. How was she going to say this? [I know exactly how to say it. I - love - you. There. Three simple friggin words. Why are they so hard to say?] It's been in the back of her mind ever since they defeated the 7th Angel, that bastard who split into two seperate Angels. That was what brought them together in the first place. Being tied together for almost a week straight will do that to two people. But since then, Shinji was becoming more and more...likeable.
"Asuka?"
"I...love...you...Shinji..."
Shinji's heart jumped. That...was a little unexpected. Not that he didn't feel the same way. They'd both saved each other's asses multiple times, and he had begun to...like...Asuka's bubbly personality. In fact, it had begun to rub off on her. It was as if he had a piece of Asuka in him, in his soul...in his heart...
"I...love you too, Asuka..."
Their eyes met. Asuka's deep blue eyes were admittedly more beautiful than Rei's penetrating blood-red ones. They stood up as one. Walking towards each other, Shinji and Asuka embraced. Their eyes still locked, their stomach slowly filling with butterflies, they each leaned closer, craning their necks. Closer and closer, finally their lips met, and they kissed. Each closed their eyes, and leant closer, passionately kissing. Both of the lovers were surprised how...right this felt. They continued to show their love for a while. When they had had enough, the credits for Matrix Reloaded were rolling. They sat down beside each other, moving the table that usually seperates them aside.
----------
At about 02:00, Misato got home from NERV HQ. Misato was surprised to see that her TV table was a mere couple of feet away from the wall. Shinji's and Asuka's cushions were right next to each other. What the!? Misato moved quietly to Shinji's Lovely Suite. Slowly creaking open the door, Misato peeked inside. His bed was empty. Moving back to Asuka's room, Misato opened the door even more slowly. Sure enough, Shinji and Asuka were lying with each other atop Asuka's futon. Misato smiled, and closed the door.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------------
Shinji and Asuka!? What would the rest of the Stooges say? What would Asuka's friends say? How many self-respecting fan fiction fans didn't see this coming?!? Don't miss the next exciting chapter of The Last Gift She Expected!
Note: My real name is NOT Hideaki Anno. I do not own Gainax or any of its creations let alone Neon Genesis: Evangelion. Locations, characters, ideas and themes present in this fan fic are used without permission from Mr. Anno or Gainax.
The Matrix: Reloaded used without permission from Warner Brothers.
Last time on The Last Gift She Expected... The Three Stooges come up with the idea of a surprise birthday party for Asuka, only to find that they are beaten to the punch by Rei, who has Misato and Commander Ikari planning a party in NERV headquarters! Also, Shinji makes the world-shattering discovery that Ritsuko is in fact a lesbian! Meanwhile, Asuka performs poorly during a sync test. Ritsuko, trying to keep the surprise under wraps, takes a lie too far by threatening Asuka with her position as an Eva pilot!
And without further ado... The Last Gift She Expected, Chapter 2: Pizza, the Matrix and Afterwards
------------
Shinji put down the phone. He ticked off the last name on the list. [That'll be interesting, seeing Misato and Kaji together again.] There. Now every name was accounted for. Misato had called and told him Gendo was coming, but Fuyutski wasn't. Shinji hid the list in one of his drawers, and walked out of his "lovely suite". All of a sudden, the front door burst open, and Asuka ran into her room, crying her heart out. Shinji watched in astonishment as Asuka slammed her door after her.
[What happened to her? First Rei kissing and now this...] Shinji's sense of comradeship forced him to try and comfort Asuka. He walked slowly to Asuka's door.
"Are you alright in there?" Shinji asked.
Nothing but sobbing. Clearly she wasn't alright. "Uh, can I come in?"
Amongst the sobbing, Shinji heard a "mm-hmm". Shinji gently pushed open the door, and saw Asuka slumped over the futon, hiding her face. Shinji walked over to her, and knelt down.
"What's the matter, Asuka? Did...something happen during the sync test?" Shinji asked.
"Rit..suko...she left me in the plug...I got a 0.3..."
Shinji knew how low 0.3% was. [I didn't even think a score like that was possible...]
Asuka continued. "She said...that...that they...THEY'RE GONNA FIRE ME!!!" Asuka wailed, like a wounded child.
Even Shinji found this difficult to comprehend. Why would Ritsuko threaten to fire Asuka over one bad sync ratio test?
"It's alright, it's alright..." Shinji found his hand on Asuka's back, rubbing up and down. "They've giving you a second chance, aren't they...? They've got to..."
Asuka lifted her head. Tears were streaming down her cheek. The sobbing slowed down a little.
"Ritsuko said...that they'll retest me Saturday night...then the Commander will tell me what'll happen...after that..."
Shinji wondered what this all meant. Then it clicked.
"Mein gott..." Shinji uttered. Misato told him earlier that day, 'We just tell Asuka that the Commander wants to see her. She won't expect a thing!'
[Ritsuko Akagi! Koitsu! How could she!?] Shinji's blood boiled over. He wasn't going to stand for this. A new wave of resolve swept over him, something he had felt only a few times before...courage.
Asuka was still considerably upset, but was slightly confused by Shinji's use of German. "Huh...?"
"Don't worry..." Shinji said, surprising even himself with his boldness. "You sit here...I'll take care of it." He reached his arm around, and gave Asuka a firm, supporting hug. Then he stood up, and left the room. Asuka, through tears, was stunned by Shinji's newfound strength.
----------
Shinji left the house, and reached for his mobile. Walking towards the lift, he pushed "Memory". Scrolling back a couple of calls calls, he found Ritsuko's home number.
After a few rings, he got the answering machine. "Hi, you've reached Ritsuko Akagi. I'm not home right now, but if it's an emergency, my mobile is..."
Bingo! Shinji made memory of the number. Walking back to the apartment door, he punched the number in. He waited for Ritsuko to answer her mobile. Finally, the dial tone stopped.
"Ritsuko here," she answered.
"HOW THE HELL COULD YOU DO THAT!" Shinji screamed.
"Oh, Shinji," Dr. Akagi said dully, not realising how livid the Third Child was. "It's only you."
"WHAT DO YOU FUCKING MEAN IT'S ONLY ME!? YOU THINK I'M ANY LESS PISSED OFF!?" Shinji's voice got lower.
"Listen, I know-"
"NO, YOU LISTEN! YOU KNOW WHAT ASUKA'S LIKE! YOU'VE DESTROYED HER! YOU BROUGHT HER TO TEARS! I HOPE YOU'RE HAPPY! YOU'RE LUCKY YOU'RE NOT HERE RIGHT NOW, YOU PUSSY-LICKING OLD BITCH, COZ IF YOU WERE, I'D RIP YOU A NEW FRIGGIN ASSHOLE!"
Ritsuko was shocked. "What...did you call me?"
"You heard me, you fucking bimbo, you may as well tell her she's gonna die Saturday! Unless you didn't notice, Asuka's sole reason for living is being an Eva pilot!"
"But Shinji, it-"
"IT-WHAT?! It was all you could come up with? All you could think of? You had to have thought of it, I know for a fact that Misato can't be that...VILE!"
"GOD-DAMMIT, SHINJI...!"
"YOU SHUT THE FUCK UP! You have no right to be angry!"
Little did Shinji know that Asuka had emerged from her room, and was standing just behind the door.
"HOW CAN YOU DO THIS TO HER!? IT WAS ONLY ONE GOD-DAMNED SYNC TEST! YOU CAN'T FIRE SOMEONE AFTER ONE BAD TEST! I BET YOU DIDN'T EVEN CHECK THE SENSORS! HOW DO YOU KNOW THEY WERE EVEN ATTACHED!? HUH?! COME ON DR. DICK-FOR-BRAINS! ANSWER ME!!!" Shinji thundered.
"I'M SORRY! ALRIGHT!?" Ritsuko was in tears now. Shinji heard a click.
Asuka was standing there, mouth wide open. [THAT was Shinji!? Mein gott...all that...for me?]
Shinji stood there, mobile still against his face. [THAT was me!? My God...all that...for her?]
The door opened behind him. He turned around. Asuka was there. They looked at each other for what seemed an eternity. Asuka's face was covered in salty residue. Her face was still in a kind of half-cringe. Shinji's face was flushed with anger, but it quickly faded. Asuka's twisted face slowly reformed into a loving smile.
"Oh, Shinji!" Asuka half ran, half fell into Shinji, her arms shooting round his waist, her head flopping over his shoulder. Shinji placed one arm around her back, and closed tightly. They stood there, outside their apartment, each relaxing in the other's embrace. They held each other for a longer eternity. Finally, Shinji twisted, resulting in both of them facing the door, one arm around the other's back.
"C'mon," Shinji said, as they walked in, "I'll fix you up something to eat."
-----------
Ritsuko closed her phone. Slowly putting it back in her pocket, she didn't know what was more surprising: Shinji standing up to her like that, or Shinji standing up to her like that for Asuka. Ritsuko was stunned by the sheer intimidation Shinji displayed, even over a phone. She felt tears spring to her eyes. [My God...he really has changed...he finally got some balls...] Ritsuko sat there for ages, shocked at how much Shinji had grown to be like his father...
-----------
Asuka had just cleaned her face in the bathroom. Shinji was in the kitchen, getting all kinds of ingredients out, under the assumption that Asuka wanted her favourite from back home, apple strudel. Asuka looked at the ingredients, and shook her head.
"No thanks, Shinji," Asuka said half-heartedly.
"No, go ahead, Asuka. My treat, on the house."
Asuka's brain ticked over. "Why are you doing all this?"
Shinji stopped and turned around. "What do you mean, why am I doing this?"
He walked over to Asuka, placing a hand on her shoulder. "I'm doing this because I care for you. What Ritsuko did was wrong. I don't know if she realised it, but she took the one thing you care most about, and threatened to take it away from you, for absolutely nothing. You've got no idea how out of line that is."
Asuka looked into Shinji's eyes. "And another thing," Shinji continued. "They screwed up. They're supposed to attach electrical sensors to you to measure your heartbeat, remember? 0.3% is impossible. Twenty, maybe, but not under one percent."
Asuka cheered up. "You're right. Thanks, Shinji..."
Shinji smiled warmly, then went back to the cooking.
"Hey Shinji."
Shinji turned around, about to dump a cup of flour into a bowl.
"How about I show you how to cook pizza?"
Shinji almost laughed. "Peetzah!? What on earth is that!?"
Asuka smiled broadly. "Gott! Sixteen years of age and you haven't heard of pizza!"
Silence prevailed until Asuka said, "Well are you gonna let me show you?"
Shinji stepped back. "Be my guest!" he said light-heartedly.
Asuka walked into the preparation area, reshelving some of the ingredients, and pulling out the entire vegetable drawer of the fridge. Dumping it on the table, she took the bag of flour, emptied it into the bowl, and mixed in a bit of water.
"This...isn't German?"
"Are you kidding? You seriously haven't heard of pizza before? It was all the rage pre-Second Impact...Anyway, it started in Italy."
"Italy?"
"Now it's part of the European Alliance. Most of it's underwater now. It was that funny shaped country in the south shaped like a boot."
"....oh."
Asuka now proceeded to knead the dough. "Here, Shinji, you can do this," she said, taking her hands out of the dough. "Just make sure that there aren't any pockets of flour."
Sounds easy enough. Shinji put his hands in and squashed the dough about. Meanwhile, Asuka cut up some of the vegetables. "Shinji, do you know where the cheese is?"
"In the fridge door."
"How about the ketchup?"
"Third shelf in the cupboard."
"Thanks."
Before long, Asuka had a nice little collection of diced vegies on the bench. "How's that dough coming along?"
Shinji took out his hands, peeling off some excess dough. "Looks good. Give it here."
Shinji handed the bowl to Asuka. Asuka emptied the bowl into her hands, streched the dough out in a rough circle, and twisted it into the air. The dough spiralled, twisting out further, and landing in Asuka's outstretched hand, an almost perfect circlular patch of dough.
Shinji had never seen Asuka cook before. She seemed so confident in the kitchen.
Asuka was still throwing the dough into the air. "It's not that hard, really. The technique is all in the wrist. You just need practice..."
Asuka went for another fling into the air, but this time, her arm caught on her ribcage, throwing the dough off target. Asuka shouted in surprise as the dough flew straight into Shinji's face. Asuka laughed uncontrollably as Shinji stumbled blindly into the table, tripping over a chair and landing on the ground. Shinji sat up, flopping the dough into his open hands. Asuka was hysterical, doubled over laughing. Shinji didn't last much longer, as he chuckled, then laughed, then split his sides laughing. After a while, Shinji went to get up again, slipped on some spilled water, falling forward, pushing the flour over the far edge and down a bent over Asuka's front. Asuka was stunned by the recent turn of events, and fell victim to another fit of giggles. Shinji found this quite amusing, and tried to ask if Asuka was alright through laughing. By some act of God the pizza base had landed perfectly in the round tray.
A few minutes of laughing later, and Misato arrived home.
"I'm home! Get ready for the best tasting curry of yo......" Misato was confronted by a kitchen covered in flour, Shinji and Asuka even more so, holding themselves upright, with great big grins on their faces.
Misato tried hard to stop from laughing. She tried to think of her favourite soapie, a couple of the Angels, of Kaji, anything to stop from laughing. It didn't work.
Misato burst out laughing. "Who hit our humble abode with an N2 flour bomb!?"
Shinji and Asuka calmed down, as Misato left, hysterical, tears springing from her eyes.
"So, is making a peetzah always this funny?" Shinji asked.
"Only when you stuff up..." Asuka giggled softly.
----------
"Hey, Asuka, this peetzah stuff is good!" Shinji was enjoying a fat ol' slice of pizza.
"Heh, I thought you'd like it, Shinji,"
Misato had already enjoyed half of the pizza and took off for work, leaving the two pilots with the rest, minus one slice for PenPen.
"I suppose you learned to cook like this in Germany?"
"Yeah. I can cook this, apple strudel, much better than yours by the way, and I do a good flake 'n' chips..."
"Wow...Japan really is different to Europe..."
"Tell me about it. Back home we sleep in beds."
"You mean off the ground? Wierd..."
Shinji and Asuka sat back in front of the TV, watching some vintage movie called Matrix Reloaded. The plot was a tad weak, but the special effects were okay. The main guy, Neo, was bashing the crap out of about sixty black suits when Asuka spoke to Shinji.
"Uh, Shinji..."
"Yes?"
"About this afternoon...I...never knew you cared so much for me...it really...touched me..." Asuka's head dropped down.
"It's alright, Asuka..."
"No, let me finish. Ever since I came here, I've made life hard for you, I've been a constant bitch, I know. But you...you still came to my aid."
"Like I said before, it's..."
"And...well...to be honest, that was the nicest, most beautiful thing anyone has ever done for me..."
"Oh, gee, Asuka...I only did what I thought was right..."
"Well...it meant a lot to me...thanks, Shinji..."
"Uh, don't mention it..."
Asuka's eyes went back to the TV. The camera was twisting around some guy dodging bullets. A pretty dodgy special effect, really. After a few minutes:
"There's something else I've got to tell you..."
Shinji turned away from the screen. Asuka was getting nervous, for some reason.
"I..." Her face was going red. How was she going to say this? [I know exactly how to say it. I - love - you. There. Three simple friggin words. Why are they so hard to say?] It's been in the back of her mind ever since they defeated the 7th Angel, that bastard who split into two seperate Angels. That was what brought them together in the first place. Being tied together for almost a week straight will do that to two people. But since then, Shinji was becoming more and more...likeable.
"Asuka?"
"I...love...you...Shinji..."
Shinji's heart jumped. That...was a little unexpected. Not that he didn't feel the same way. They'd both saved each other's asses multiple times, and he had begun to...like...Asuka's bubbly personality. In fact, it had begun to rub off on her. It was as if he had a piece of Asuka in him, in his soul...in his heart...
"I...love you too, Asuka..."
Their eyes met. Asuka's deep blue eyes were admittedly more beautiful than Rei's penetrating blood-red ones. They stood up as one. Walking towards each other, Shinji and Asuka embraced. Their eyes still locked, their stomach slowly filling with butterflies, they each leaned closer, craning their necks. Closer and closer, finally their lips met, and they kissed. Each closed their eyes, and leant closer, passionately kissing. Both of the lovers were surprised how...right this felt. They continued to show their love for a while. When they had had enough, the credits for Matrix Reloaded were rolling. They sat down beside each other, moving the table that usually seperates them aside.
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At about 02:00, Misato got home from NERV HQ. Misato was surprised to see that her TV table was a mere couple of feet away from the wall. Shinji's and Asuka's cushions were right next to each other. What the!? Misato moved quietly to Shinji's Lovely Suite. Slowly creaking open the door, Misato peeked inside. His bed was empty. Moving back to Asuka's room, Misato opened the door even more slowly. Sure enough, Shinji and Asuka were lying with each other atop Asuka's futon. Misato smiled, and closed the door.
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Shinji and Asuka!? What would the rest of the Stooges say? What would Asuka's friends say? How many self-respecting fan fiction fans didn't see this coming?!? Don't miss the next exciting chapter of The Last Gift She Expected!
Note: My real name is NOT Hideaki Anno. I do not own Gainax or any of its creations let alone Neon Genesis: Evangelion. Locations, characters, ideas and themes present in this fan fic are used without permission from Mr. Anno or Gainax.
The Matrix: Reloaded used without permission from Warner Brothers.
