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 in The Last Gift She Expected... Asuka is incredibly distraught over her bad sync test, partly because of Ritsuko's terrible lie. Shinji is the only one available to comfort her. After dinner and a movie, their outlook on each other is tipped on their respective heads. Taking comfort in each other's arms, they confess their love for each other. Surprise, surprise...
And without further ado...
The Last Gift She Expected, Chapter 3: Sohryu-Sensei//Laughter at the Mall
The next morning, Asuka was first to wake up. She became aware of a pair of arms around her waist. This at first shocked her, until she realised they were Shinji's. Asuka rolled over, ending up facing Shinji in his embrace. Asuka slid her arms around Shinji's back, and closed her eyes, drifting to sleep again.
Shinji felt a sharp pain in the back of his head. He ignored it, only for it to happen again. He turned over, flipping Asuka with him. He saw PenPen, lookng at him, then Asuka, then him again, his feelings clear.
"It's alright, PenPen," Shinji whispered, "She meant to this time..."
PenPen's small eyes widened. He left the room, hoping to bring this to Misato's attention. Shinji turned back around, looking at Asuka. Her eyes still closed, he went back to sleep...
--------------
A few minutes later, Asuka awoke, and held Shinji. Giving him a quick peck on the cheek, Asuka woke Shinji. "Hey, Shinji..."
Shinji opened his eyes. "Mmm...good morning, Asuka."
They sat up, rubbing their eyes, then looking across at each other.
Asuka rubbed her eyes, trying to get a focus. Shinji was sitting up, rubbing the beck of his neck.
[Damn, these futons are lumpy...] Asuka went to stand up. Shinji looked across at Asuka for a split second. He gasped in surprise, and jerked his head away. Asuka wondered why he reacted so, or at least until she looked down.
"Gaah!" She dived back under the covers. Damn! Why did I kick off my panties last night?
Asuka's face turned red. Shinji's head was still turned away. She leaned over and pecked Shinji on the cheek.
"It's alright, Shinji," Asuka said, reassuringly, "I always kick them off in my sleep. You didn't..."
Colour returned to Shinji's face. "Oh, what a relief..."
"Plus, nothing you haven't seen before, right?" Asuka remembered their first meeting, back in the middle of the Pacific.
Shinji laughed. "Yeah, you're right. I also remember you saying I 'wasn't much to look at'..."
Asuka laughed. "Ha ha! Yeah, I remember that...Shinji, do you mind getting up first? Just so I can..."
"Oh, yes, of course..." Shinji got out of bed. Leaving the room, he closed the door behind him. Asuka stood up, and immediately went across the room to her drawers. Slipping on a fresh pair of panties, she dove into her wardrobe, looking for something to wear.
The toaster popped. Shinji took out the toast, buttered it and sat down to eat. On the floor, PenPen started to chow down on his breakfast pilchards. Asuka sat down next to Shinji with a bowl of Coco Bubbles.
Shinji started to chuckle to himself inexplicably. Asuka turned to him "What's so funny, Shinji?" "Have you ever seen Misato in the morning?" Shinji asked.
"Hmm...come to think of it, no..." Asuka replied, "I've never been up early enough."
"You're in for a surprise..." Shinji said. Almost instantly, Misato's door sprung open.
A bedraggled mess of purple hair and pyjamas walked into the kitchen. "G'morning, Shinji," Misato yawned.
Asuka was speechless. Her image of Misato as an organised, intrepid leader of NERV was shattered forever.
Misato went to the fridge and fished out a can of Yebisu. Flipping the top, she sculled it, and whooped when she was done. "Ahhh! I needed that! What a way to start the day!"
Asuka was shocked, slowly smiling. "Misato!?"
Misato opened her eyes. "Asuka!? What are you doing up so early!?"
"You know, Misato, beer so early in the morning can't be too healthy..."
"You gotta problem with tradition, Asuka? Don't you know that the traditional Japanese breakfast used to be steamed rice, miso soup and a little sake?"
Asuka laughed. "Yeah. A little sake. Not a whole can of beer."
Shinji chuckled to himself. Misato was left fuming, as she had done after the argument with Shinji on the same matter. Misato stormed off to the shower. Asuka was laughing.
Shinji put a hand on Asuka's back. "Welcome to the family, Asuka..."
"Huh?"
"Long story. Anyway, what are you doing today?"
"Well, I'm going to go to the mall to look at what I'll buy with all of my birthday money..."
"Hmm...you don't sound too happy."
"Well, back home, someone's birthday was a big event. Over here, no one makes any big deal about it. It just feels wrong..."
Just then, the phone rang. Asuka leant over the table to pick it up. "Alo?" she answered.
It was Ritsuko. "Oh, Asuka. I just called to say sorry, about yesterday. I was a little stressed, and you didn't have the sensors on anyway. I'm sorry I went off at you."
Asuka smiled. "That's okay, Doctor. I'm fine now."
"That's good to hear. You're still coming in for the retest though."
"Oh, okay. Thanks, Ritsuko."
"No problem. Is Shinji there?"
"Yeah, I'll get him." Asuka handed the phone to Shinji. "It's Ritsuko." She then walked off to the toilet.
Shinji took the phone. "Hey Ritsuko."
"Shinji, I just apologized for yesterday afternoon. I only realised what I'd done when I turned on the video feed from Asuka's plug. I didn't mean to hurt her like that. I did take it too far, and I'm sorry."
"That's okay, Ritsuko. And yesterday morning's safe with me."
"Good. Listen, Shinji. Tonight, we're gonna need a little more time after Asuka's sync test. The caterers won't be in until 19:00."
"How much do you need?"
"About two hours."
"Jeez, that's a bit hard...I'll try, but no guarantees."
"Thanks, Shinji. Bye!"
"See you later." Shinj put down the phone. Asuka walked out and stretched her arms into the air. "So, what do you have planned for today, Shinji?"
"Well, uh...I don't know yet... How about I take you shopping for your birthday present?"
Asuka cheered. "Yay! Sounds good!"
Shinji smiled. [Maybe keeping her busy for a couple of hours might not be so hard after all...]
---------------------
Misato had dropped around to the Suzuhara residence. She pressed the buzzer, to attract some attention inside the house. A middle aged woman opened the door. "Hello?"
"Hello, Ms. Suzuhara?" Misato beamed. "I am Major Misato Katsuragi, and..."
"Oh, you're the one who Toji and Kensuke are always bringing pictures and home videos home of..."
Misato felt a flush of embarrassment. "Well, I hope not..." letting out a nervous chuckle.
"Anyway, may I ask why you're here?"
"Oh, of course. I need to see Toji and Kensuke quickly."
"Sure, I'll get them. Come in if you want." Ms. Suzuhara went inside, and Misato followed.
Toji and Kensuke were taking turns playing Grand Theft Auto: Tokyo-2 on the Suzuhara family's ancient PlayStation3.
"Boys, someone from NERV wants to talk to you. Ms Katsuragi?"
Toji almost instantly shot his head away from the game and turned to the Major.
"Ms Katsuragi! What a pleasant surprise!"
Kensuke pushed Toji out of the way, aiming a camcorder at Misato. "Why're you here, Misato?" Misato fished around in her pockets. She pulled out a pair of cards.
"Here are your ID cards, boys," she said, handing Kensuke and Toji their cards. "You'll need them to get into the building tonight. Now, Asuka's robably going to leave after her sync test at about 18:00, so be careful not to get caught."
Kensuke jerked his hand. Looking down, "Oops. I dropped my card."
Misato smiled. [Friggin' perverts.] "Oh, I'm sorry, I'll get that." Misato knelt down, making sure not to show Kensuke any cleavage. Kensuke whined quietly to himself. The boys thanked Misato for the cards. Misato turned for the exit. "Well, I've gotta go back to the office. I'll see you two later, then."
Misato left. Ms. Suzuhara turned to Kensuke. "Give me that camera."
"Aw, cmon, Ms Suzuhara..."
"Don't 'cmon' me, young man," she scolded Kensuke, "Now gimme the camera."
Kensuke handed over the camera. Suzuhara pulled open the camera, and took out the disk. Handing back the camera, she snapped the disk in half. Kensuke choked back a cry of disapproval.
"Women are not objects, Kensuke," Ms Suzuhara finished.
--------------------
Ritsuko was on the bridge, in the Control center, supervising Maya and Hyuga putting up balloons.
"A little to the left...no, your other left..."
Misato walked in. Ritsuko greeted her.
"Hi, Misato. Did you get back in touch with the caterers?"
"Uh, yeah. The cake will get here at 18:10. Asuka should be in her plug by then. They're bringing in all of the snacks and drinks in about two hours."
"15:30!? Isn't that a bit early?"
"You can't have them bring it all in while Asuka's in the plug! There's just too much food."
"Okay, fair enough. Just crank up the air conditioning." Ritsuko looked back up at Maya and Hyuga's balloons. "Perfect!" she said, giving a thumbs up.
"So, what are we getting Asuka?" Misato asked.
"Well, we were thinking of..." Ritsuko leant in and whispered into Misato's ear.
"Hmm, that's a pretty good idea, Ritsuko," Misato commended her.
"Yeah, I figured she would like something like that."
"So, when's she due to turn up for her sync test?"
"18:00. I've already organised Shinji to keep her busy for two hours after that. We should have plenty of time."
"Just remember to attach the sensors this time." Misato shot Ritsuko a furtive look.
Ritsuko laughed. "Ha. Yeah, I better remember this time."
----------------
Asuka clung to Shinji's arm as they walked through the mall.
"Thanks for taking me shopping, Shinji." Asuka gushed.
"Aww, it's nothing," Shinji replied. Lucky I hardly ever use my credit card. It'll probably be maxed out by the end of the day...
"So, what do you want for your birthday, anyway, Asuka?"
Asuka inhaled heavily. "Swimwear!" she squealed as she ran into the MegaMart right in front of them. Shinji was pulled behind Asuka towards the Swimwear section. While being pulled through most of the two floor complex, Shinji caught a glimpse of a blue haired girl in the Confectionaries department. Asuka finally stopped when she had reached her destination. She immediately rummaged through the racks, looking for the latest two pieces and bikinis. Shinji turned back the way he came, and ran into Rei.
"Hi, Rei," he said.
"Hello, Ikari," Rei said. "I suppose you are buying Pilot Sohryu a present?"
"Yeah," he said, as he nodded his head in the Swimwear direction. A head with red hair was going through a rack labelled "New Fashions".
"I see. I do not know what to get her yet."
"Nor did I. She took me here."
Rei nodded. "I will see you later, Ikari."
Shinji waved. As Rei turned around, Asuka had walked up behind Shinji with a mountain of material in her arms.
"Hey Shinji," Asuka asked, "Do you know where the fitting rooms are? I might try some of this on..."
Shinji looked around. "I think they're back near the entrance..."
Asuka smiled. "Well, come on!" Grabbing Shinji with her arm, she walked briskly to the fitting rooms. Shinji looked across at the Confectionary section again. Rei was there again, moving away towards the checkout. Shinji felt a sharp jerk in another direction. Asuka's grasp slipped, and Shinji slowed down. Asuka continued her fast pace toward the fitting rooms. Shinji followed at a less frantic pace. Asuka obtained a pass from the person manning the stalls, and went to the first empty one she could find. Shinji walked up and sat in front of it. [It shouldn't be too bad, Shinji thought to himself, I mean every single payment from NERV's in there. I haven't spent much...]
"Shinji? Are you there?" Asuka called out from inside the booth.
Shinji replied. "Uh, yes, I'm here," he called out.
"I'm throwing over my clothes. There's not much room in here..."
Shinji's face flushed. "Uh, okay, throw them over..."
Asuka's dress was lobbed over the top of the cubicle door. Shinji was there to recieve. Shinji bundled it up and placed it on the seat next to him. He heard shuffling behind the door, and then it swung open. Asuka was standing there, wearing a blue floral two-piece.
"Wow," Shinji said, "That looks really good on you. It brings out the color of your eyes..."
Asuka did a small pirouette. "Really? You think so? I kinda like it as well. Well, this is going on the Keep pile, then."
Asuka shut the door again. Shinji tried to remember exactly how many sets Asuka took in there. He also tried to remember exactly how much money was in his bank account...
It wasn't much longer when Asuka opened the cubicle again. This time she was trying out a plain yellow bikini. Shinji approved. "Nice, nice," Shinji smiled. "Er, I mean, it looks good on you."
Asuka giggled. [Ah, that's the kind of response I want...not from the mind, from the body...]
Asuka turned around, looking behind her at Shinji teasingly. She shut the door.
Shinji got to thinking. I wonder what Misato and Ritsuko and them are doing with NERV Central. That place has about as much party appeal as a graveyard. I wonder how they're gonna make it look...fun...
His thoughts were interrupted by the door opening again. Shinji looked up, and was shocked. Asuka was beaming as she spun around in a pink and red floral pattern string bikini. Shinji gaped at Asuka, and felt a trickle of blood from his nose, and more blood rushing elsewhere...
[Bingo!] Asuka found the reaction she was looking for. "Ah, I think I'm done looking. Gimme back my dress and we can go pay for this stuff."
"Uh, um, oh, yeah, sure," Shinji stuttered. Throwing Asuka back her clothes, she retreated to the cubicle again. Shinji felt an irregular bulge in his netheregions. [Thermal expansion...how embarrassing,] he though while he readjusted himself.
--------------------
Rei was walking out of the shopping center when spotted Hikari walking in. Rei decided that it would be polite to say hello. Rei walked over to her. "Horaki?"
Hikari turned. "Oh, hey Rei," she said, nervous for some reason, "Didn't see you there..."
"You are getting a present for Asuka as well?"
"Well, yeah, I am. I'm thinking about getting her a new pair of shoes..."
"If it helps, she likes red heels."
"Oh, thank you, Rei..." Hikari smiled nervously. "Well, I better go. Not much time left now, eh?"
"No...bye..." Rei said as Hikari walked off. Rei wondered why everyone was so nervous around her. Was it due to her appearance? Was she intimidating? Rei looked across at a polished steel panel, displaying her reflection. She saw a fourteen year old girl with pale blue hair and blood red eyes. She looked back across at Hikari, who had run into Toji. She smiled warmly as Toji greeted her. Rei looked at Hikari's smile, turned to the panel, and tried to emulate it. Rei was surprised by the result. She seemed more...like everyone else...more human... [All I must do to become more human is to smile?] Rei looked back at Hikari. Hikari was laughing now, probably at a joke.
"Hee...hee...hee..." Rei tried to mimic Hikari once more. "Hee...heh...ha...ha ha...ha ha ha ha hah..."
Many other patrons of the mall began to take notice of this young girl laughing for no apparent reason. Rei stopped laughing and looked around. The eyes of almost every person in the vicinity were locked on her. She felt a rush of blood to her cheeks. A strange fluttering in her stomach forced her to sit down, quickly. [Is this...embarrassment?] Rei chuckled to herself. [This is easier than I thought...]
------------------
"Dammit, not again!" Misato growled at her computer, angry at what it displayed. The cold, dark office she was given at NERV Central didn't help the mood either. A game of chess was displayed onscreen, and the white king (Misato's) was trapped between a black bishop, a black queen, and five or so of her own pawns. "CHECKMATE PLAYER 2" flashed across the bottom of the screen. A scoreline at the top of the screen said it all: 32-0 in Player 2's advantage.
"If I ever find out who Player 2 is, I'll strangle him!!!" Misato was furious.
Meanwhile, above NERV Central, in an abandoned building, Rei Ayanami sat at her laptop, with a similar screen, only hers read an opposite scoreline. "Amateurs," she smiled, as she asked Player 1 for another match.
Misato, meanwhile, had emptied a shell into her monitor. At about this time, her fax buzzed and bleeped. A sheet of paper crawled out of the fax machine, and Misato picked it up to read it.
"...Pilot Ikari...limousine...Mt. Asama...Pilot Sohryu..." Misato gave a wry smile.
[Shinji looking for some private time with Asuka, huh?] Misato signed the clearance form, and faxed it back to the lobby. Kicking the deaded monitor off of the table, she walked to the closet, opened it and grabbed another monitor. Setting it up where her old monitor was, she clicked on the "Accept" button, eager to teach Player 2 a lesson. Just then, Ritsuko walked in.
"Hey, Misato," she said, looking down at the monitor, "losing at chess again?"
"OH, SHUT UP!" Misato snapped.
Ritsuko laughed. "Listen, Maya's had a brilliant idea. You got some pictures of Asuka?"
"Uh-huh."
"Any, uh...incriminating pictures?"
Misato smiled. "I'm listening..."
------------------
"So, what now?" Shinji asked his red-headed hottie.
"How about we show these new threads off, hmm?"
"Show them off where?"
"At the pool, you stupid baka!" What used to be an insult had become an affectionate nickname.
Shinji's heart sank. "The pool? Why do you want to go there?"
"Why not?" Asuka turned around. Shinji seemed nervous at the mention of the pool. "Oh, I remember..."
Asuka remembered how pathetic a swimmer Shinji was. Shinji nodded ashamedly.
Asuka's face brightened. "Alright, then, I've got a better idea!"
Shinji looked up. "What?"
"I can teach you how to swim!"
Shinji's heart skipped a beat. "You...teach me...how to swim?"
Asuka's face gained a altogether more familiar, superior tone. "What? Don't think I can handle it?"
"No, it's not that...you...you know what, why not? We've got use of the NERV limo. Let's go!"
-----------------
Misato knelt in front of her bedside dresser, pulling an old shoe box out of the bottom drawer. Opening it revealed a bundle of embarrassing photographs of most of her friends and acquaintances. Looking through them, she giggled. Among the handful of photos was a picture of Asuka and Shinji, both in red Unit 02 plug suits, Shinji trying to hide his endowments after their fight against the 6th Angel while aboard the Over The Rainbow; a picture of Asuka in her less than figure flattering heat resistant plug suit, before her fight against Angel No. 8 inside Mt. Asaga; a still shot from video footage of Asuka and Shinji in perfect synchronisation defeating the 7th Angel, a couple of the publicity shots of all three pilots, and a few assorted snaps of the pilots going about their everyday lives. She smiled, grasping all of the photoes and putting them in a bag. Maya was planning to have a montage board put up over the Magi, showing the pilot's fond memories. Misato hurriedly left the room before Shinji or Asuka got back. Now that shw was safely out of her room, she went to the lounge room, kicked back on the couch, and began an afternoon of channel surfing...
Shinji was lucky that he suspected that a day near water was on the cards, and packed a pair of swimmers into his backpack. It had been about three months since his last trip to Mt. Asama, for Misato's birthday, and before that the last time was right after the 8th Angel. Now, he stood at the first step, waiting for Asuka to change into her choice of the twelve sets ([Twelve sets! I hope my bank account isn't too depleted. I still want to get her something else...]) of bathers, bikinis and other assorted swimwear. Almost as soon as the thought left his mind, Asuka walked from the female changerooms, in the blue floral two-piece, the one that brought out her eyes.
"Hey, Shinji," Asuka said, almost seductively, "Ready for your first lesson?"
"Ready as I'll ever be," Shinji said, "Lead, the way, Asuka."
The short walk down the steps led to a pool, heated by the nearby volcano. Asuka stepped into the water first, briefly shocked by the temperature, then walking out deeper. Shinji followed her.
"The most important thing to remember is that, in most cases, the human body floats in water. Try just floating on your back for a second."
Shinji nodded, and lay back. Surprising to him, he didn't sink.
"See?" Asuka quickly moved on. "Now, this is pretty tricky for a beginner, but you can give it a shot. You have to try and breathe out. This will make you sink a bit, but you should have plenty of time to breathe in again and float back up again. Just remember that water is a little thinner than LCL, so you'll sink a bit quicker in it."
"Okay..." Shinji said, breathing out steadily. He noticed that he was sinking a bit, so he quickly breathed in again, floating back to the top just as Asuka said.
"Hmm, this is easier than I thought..." Shinji didn't get a response. Shinji sat up in the water. "Asuka?"
Suddenly, a figure jumped out of the water right in front of him, pushing him back into the shallow area. Shinji and Asuka both fell backwards, Shinji shouting in surprise, Asuka laughing at her prank.
"Asuka!" Shinji half-growled, half-laughed. Asuka giggled. "At least you're able to float properly now."
Shinji smiled. "So, what next, sensei?"
"Sensei!? Ha! Good one. Well, we could work on your underwater skills." Asuka retreated to the deep end.
Shinji waded back out.
"Okay," Asuka instructed, "On the count of three, we both put our heads under the water. I'll hold up some fingers under the water, and you tell me how many I'm holding up."
"Okay..." Shinji seemed a little nervous, but put his head under anyway. Asuka put her head down at the same time. Shinji opened his eyes underwater. It felt a little straining on the eyes, but he soon got used to it. He looked ahead and saw Asuka, giving him a V sign with her fingers. Shinji nodded and stood up.
Asuka stood up as well. "Well?" she asked.
"Two?"
"That's right!" Asuka smiled. "We'll give it a few more goes to make sure it wasn't a fluke."
"Okay." Shinji went under again, Asuka not far behind. This time, Asuka showed her left hand, holding back only her thumb. They resurfaced.
"Four?"
"Correct! Just one more time..." Asuka smirked before she went under.
Shinji caught the smirk, and was sent into paranoia. [What was that all about?] Shinji shrugged and put his head under one last time.
Underwater, Asuka put her hands behind her instead of in front of her. This confused Shinji for a little while, until he realised tht Asuka was undoing her top half. Shinji gasped, big bubbles of air escaping from his mouth. He immediately went up for air. Asuka was hysterical when she surfaced.
"Aww, poor Shinji got embarrassed, huh?" Asuka taunted him, top off, but her assets lingering below (albeit dangerously close to) the waterline.
Shinji felt the usual trickle of blood in his nostril. "Asuka!"
Asuka laughed, and spear tackled Shinji into the water. They spent the next few minutes frolicking in the deep end, while the blue floral top half floated toward the shallow end.
-------------
Shinji huffed and puffed as he carried Asuka through the door. She had fallen asleep in the private NERV limousine back from the hot springs in Mt. Asama. Kicking open the door to Asuka's room, Shinji carried her to her futon, laying her on it. Shinji gave Asuka a small kiss, stood up and shut the door. Shinji turned around, and Misato was there, arms crossed. "Where have you been?" Misato questioned Shinji.
"Me? Well I took Asuka shopping for a birthday present..."
Misato took one look at Shinji's face, dripping with sweat. "Oh, sure..."
"It's the truth!" Shinji insisted.
"Seriously," Misato said, "You don't have to lie about it. It's none of my business, what you two do..."
Shinji's face flushed. "What!? No! She's asleep..."
Misato gave a devilish smile. "Oh, I wonder why, Shinji?"
Shinji's nose began to bleed. "No!" he whispered, "Stop it! We went to Mt. Asama for the day..."
"To the hot springs?" Misato grinned.
"Gaah! Stop making everything I do sound so dirty!"
"No, don't worry, Shinji," Misato smiled, "I believe you. I mean, I did have to clear the paperwork for the limo anyway."
Shinji breathed a slight sigh of relief. "So, what are you doing back here? Shouldn't you be organising the..."
"Maya wants some photos to put up on a montage board. I just came back to pick some up." "Really, what photos?"
Misato glanced into her bag, then slowly panned back to Shinji. "What, photos, Misato?" Shinji said it slower this time.
Misato's smile broadened. Shinji grasped for the bag, but Misato twisted away, running out the door. "See you tonight, Shinji!"
Shinji chased Misato out the door. "That better not be me in Asuka's suit!" he yelled after her.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------------
Will Rei be able to do the impossible and become more human before the party? Will Shinji beat his problem with a certain rule of physics? Will Misato finally beat Rei at chess? All these questions answered, and more, in the next installment 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.
Last Time in The Last Gift She Expected... Asuka is incredibly distraught over her bad sync test, partly because of Ritsuko's terrible lie. Shinji is the only one available to comfort her. After dinner and a movie, their outlook on each other is tipped on their respective heads. Taking comfort in each other's arms, they confess their love for each other. Surprise, surprise...
And without further ado...
The Last Gift She Expected, Chapter 3: Sohryu-Sensei//Laughter at the Mall
The next morning, Asuka was first to wake up. She became aware of a pair of arms around her waist. This at first shocked her, until she realised they were Shinji's. Asuka rolled over, ending up facing Shinji in his embrace. Asuka slid her arms around Shinji's back, and closed her eyes, drifting to sleep again.
Shinji felt a sharp pain in the back of his head. He ignored it, only for it to happen again. He turned over, flipping Asuka with him. He saw PenPen, lookng at him, then Asuka, then him again, his feelings clear.
"It's alright, PenPen," Shinji whispered, "She meant to this time..."
PenPen's small eyes widened. He left the room, hoping to bring this to Misato's attention. Shinji turned back around, looking at Asuka. Her eyes still closed, he went back to sleep...
--------------
A few minutes later, Asuka awoke, and held Shinji. Giving him a quick peck on the cheek, Asuka woke Shinji. "Hey, Shinji..."
Shinji opened his eyes. "Mmm...good morning, Asuka."
They sat up, rubbing their eyes, then looking across at each other.
Asuka rubbed her eyes, trying to get a focus. Shinji was sitting up, rubbing the beck of his neck.
[Damn, these futons are lumpy...] Asuka went to stand up. Shinji looked across at Asuka for a split second. He gasped in surprise, and jerked his head away. Asuka wondered why he reacted so, or at least until she looked down.
"Gaah!" She dived back under the covers. Damn! Why did I kick off my panties last night?
Asuka's face turned red. Shinji's head was still turned away. She leaned over and pecked Shinji on the cheek.
"It's alright, Shinji," Asuka said, reassuringly, "I always kick them off in my sleep. You didn't..."
Colour returned to Shinji's face. "Oh, what a relief..."
"Plus, nothing you haven't seen before, right?" Asuka remembered their first meeting, back in the middle of the Pacific.
Shinji laughed. "Yeah, you're right. I also remember you saying I 'wasn't much to look at'..."
Asuka laughed. "Ha ha! Yeah, I remember that...Shinji, do you mind getting up first? Just so I can..."
"Oh, yes, of course..." Shinji got out of bed. Leaving the room, he closed the door behind him. Asuka stood up, and immediately went across the room to her drawers. Slipping on a fresh pair of panties, she dove into her wardrobe, looking for something to wear.
The toaster popped. Shinji took out the toast, buttered it and sat down to eat. On the floor, PenPen started to chow down on his breakfast pilchards. Asuka sat down next to Shinji with a bowl of Coco Bubbles.
Shinji started to chuckle to himself inexplicably. Asuka turned to him "What's so funny, Shinji?" "Have you ever seen Misato in the morning?" Shinji asked.
"Hmm...come to think of it, no..." Asuka replied, "I've never been up early enough."
"You're in for a surprise..." Shinji said. Almost instantly, Misato's door sprung open.
A bedraggled mess of purple hair and pyjamas walked into the kitchen. "G'morning, Shinji," Misato yawned.
Asuka was speechless. Her image of Misato as an organised, intrepid leader of NERV was shattered forever.
Misato went to the fridge and fished out a can of Yebisu. Flipping the top, she sculled it, and whooped when she was done. "Ahhh! I needed that! What a way to start the day!"
Asuka was shocked, slowly smiling. "Misato!?"
Misato opened her eyes. "Asuka!? What are you doing up so early!?"
"You know, Misato, beer so early in the morning can't be too healthy..."
"You gotta problem with tradition, Asuka? Don't you know that the traditional Japanese breakfast used to be steamed rice, miso soup and a little sake?"
Asuka laughed. "Yeah. A little sake. Not a whole can of beer."
Shinji chuckled to himself. Misato was left fuming, as she had done after the argument with Shinji on the same matter. Misato stormed off to the shower. Asuka was laughing.
Shinji put a hand on Asuka's back. "Welcome to the family, Asuka..."
"Huh?"
"Long story. Anyway, what are you doing today?"
"Well, I'm going to go to the mall to look at what I'll buy with all of my birthday money..."
"Hmm...you don't sound too happy."
"Well, back home, someone's birthday was a big event. Over here, no one makes any big deal about it. It just feels wrong..."
Just then, the phone rang. Asuka leant over the table to pick it up. "Alo?" she answered.
It was Ritsuko. "Oh, Asuka. I just called to say sorry, about yesterday. I was a little stressed, and you didn't have the sensors on anyway. I'm sorry I went off at you."
Asuka smiled. "That's okay, Doctor. I'm fine now."
"That's good to hear. You're still coming in for the retest though."
"Oh, okay. Thanks, Ritsuko."
"No problem. Is Shinji there?"
"Yeah, I'll get him." Asuka handed the phone to Shinji. "It's Ritsuko." She then walked off to the toilet.
Shinji took the phone. "Hey Ritsuko."
"Shinji, I just apologized for yesterday afternoon. I only realised what I'd done when I turned on the video feed from Asuka's plug. I didn't mean to hurt her like that. I did take it too far, and I'm sorry."
"That's okay, Ritsuko. And yesterday morning's safe with me."
"Good. Listen, Shinji. Tonight, we're gonna need a little more time after Asuka's sync test. The caterers won't be in until 19:00."
"How much do you need?"
"About two hours."
"Jeez, that's a bit hard...I'll try, but no guarantees."
"Thanks, Shinji. Bye!"
"See you later." Shinj put down the phone. Asuka walked out and stretched her arms into the air. "So, what do you have planned for today, Shinji?"
"Well, uh...I don't know yet... How about I take you shopping for your birthday present?"
Asuka cheered. "Yay! Sounds good!"
Shinji smiled. [Maybe keeping her busy for a couple of hours might not be so hard after all...]
---------------------
Misato had dropped around to the Suzuhara residence. She pressed the buzzer, to attract some attention inside the house. A middle aged woman opened the door. "Hello?"
"Hello, Ms. Suzuhara?" Misato beamed. "I am Major Misato Katsuragi, and..."
"Oh, you're the one who Toji and Kensuke are always bringing pictures and home videos home of..."
Misato felt a flush of embarrassment. "Well, I hope not..." letting out a nervous chuckle.
"Anyway, may I ask why you're here?"
"Oh, of course. I need to see Toji and Kensuke quickly."
"Sure, I'll get them. Come in if you want." Ms. Suzuhara went inside, and Misato followed.
Toji and Kensuke were taking turns playing Grand Theft Auto: Tokyo-2 on the Suzuhara family's ancient PlayStation3.
"Boys, someone from NERV wants to talk to you. Ms Katsuragi?"
Toji almost instantly shot his head away from the game and turned to the Major.
"Ms Katsuragi! What a pleasant surprise!"
Kensuke pushed Toji out of the way, aiming a camcorder at Misato. "Why're you here, Misato?" Misato fished around in her pockets. She pulled out a pair of cards.
"Here are your ID cards, boys," she said, handing Kensuke and Toji their cards. "You'll need them to get into the building tonight. Now, Asuka's robably going to leave after her sync test at about 18:00, so be careful not to get caught."
Kensuke jerked his hand. Looking down, "Oops. I dropped my card."
Misato smiled. [Friggin' perverts.] "Oh, I'm sorry, I'll get that." Misato knelt down, making sure not to show Kensuke any cleavage. Kensuke whined quietly to himself. The boys thanked Misato for the cards. Misato turned for the exit. "Well, I've gotta go back to the office. I'll see you two later, then."
Misato left. Ms. Suzuhara turned to Kensuke. "Give me that camera."
"Aw, cmon, Ms Suzuhara..."
"Don't 'cmon' me, young man," she scolded Kensuke, "Now gimme the camera."
Kensuke handed over the camera. Suzuhara pulled open the camera, and took out the disk. Handing back the camera, she snapped the disk in half. Kensuke choked back a cry of disapproval.
"Women are not objects, Kensuke," Ms Suzuhara finished.
--------------------
Ritsuko was on the bridge, in the Control center, supervising Maya and Hyuga putting up balloons.
"A little to the left...no, your other left..."
Misato walked in. Ritsuko greeted her.
"Hi, Misato. Did you get back in touch with the caterers?"
"Uh, yeah. The cake will get here at 18:10. Asuka should be in her plug by then. They're bringing in all of the snacks and drinks in about two hours."
"15:30!? Isn't that a bit early?"
"You can't have them bring it all in while Asuka's in the plug! There's just too much food."
"Okay, fair enough. Just crank up the air conditioning." Ritsuko looked back up at Maya and Hyuga's balloons. "Perfect!" she said, giving a thumbs up.
"So, what are we getting Asuka?" Misato asked.
"Well, we were thinking of..." Ritsuko leant in and whispered into Misato's ear.
"Hmm, that's a pretty good idea, Ritsuko," Misato commended her.
"Yeah, I figured she would like something like that."
"So, when's she due to turn up for her sync test?"
"18:00. I've already organised Shinji to keep her busy for two hours after that. We should have plenty of time."
"Just remember to attach the sensors this time." Misato shot Ritsuko a furtive look.
Ritsuko laughed. "Ha. Yeah, I better remember this time."
----------------
Asuka clung to Shinji's arm as they walked through the mall.
"Thanks for taking me shopping, Shinji." Asuka gushed.
"Aww, it's nothing," Shinji replied. Lucky I hardly ever use my credit card. It'll probably be maxed out by the end of the day...
"So, what do you want for your birthday, anyway, Asuka?"
Asuka inhaled heavily. "Swimwear!" she squealed as she ran into the MegaMart right in front of them. Shinji was pulled behind Asuka towards the Swimwear section. While being pulled through most of the two floor complex, Shinji caught a glimpse of a blue haired girl in the Confectionaries department. Asuka finally stopped when she had reached her destination. She immediately rummaged through the racks, looking for the latest two pieces and bikinis. Shinji turned back the way he came, and ran into Rei.
"Hi, Rei," he said.
"Hello, Ikari," Rei said. "I suppose you are buying Pilot Sohryu a present?"
"Yeah," he said, as he nodded his head in the Swimwear direction. A head with red hair was going through a rack labelled "New Fashions".
"I see. I do not know what to get her yet."
"Nor did I. She took me here."
Rei nodded. "I will see you later, Ikari."
Shinji waved. As Rei turned around, Asuka had walked up behind Shinji with a mountain of material in her arms.
"Hey Shinji," Asuka asked, "Do you know where the fitting rooms are? I might try some of this on..."
Shinji looked around. "I think they're back near the entrance..."
Asuka smiled. "Well, come on!" Grabbing Shinji with her arm, she walked briskly to the fitting rooms. Shinji looked across at the Confectionary section again. Rei was there again, moving away towards the checkout. Shinji felt a sharp jerk in another direction. Asuka's grasp slipped, and Shinji slowed down. Asuka continued her fast pace toward the fitting rooms. Shinji followed at a less frantic pace. Asuka obtained a pass from the person manning the stalls, and went to the first empty one she could find. Shinji walked up and sat in front of it. [It shouldn't be too bad, Shinji thought to himself, I mean every single payment from NERV's in there. I haven't spent much...]
"Shinji? Are you there?" Asuka called out from inside the booth.
Shinji replied. "Uh, yes, I'm here," he called out.
"I'm throwing over my clothes. There's not much room in here..."
Shinji's face flushed. "Uh, okay, throw them over..."
Asuka's dress was lobbed over the top of the cubicle door. Shinji was there to recieve. Shinji bundled it up and placed it on the seat next to him. He heard shuffling behind the door, and then it swung open. Asuka was standing there, wearing a blue floral two-piece.
"Wow," Shinji said, "That looks really good on you. It brings out the color of your eyes..."
Asuka did a small pirouette. "Really? You think so? I kinda like it as well. Well, this is going on the Keep pile, then."
Asuka shut the door again. Shinji tried to remember exactly how many sets Asuka took in there. He also tried to remember exactly how much money was in his bank account...
It wasn't much longer when Asuka opened the cubicle again. This time she was trying out a plain yellow bikini. Shinji approved. "Nice, nice," Shinji smiled. "Er, I mean, it looks good on you."
Asuka giggled. [Ah, that's the kind of response I want...not from the mind, from the body...]
Asuka turned around, looking behind her at Shinji teasingly. She shut the door.
Shinji got to thinking. I wonder what Misato and Ritsuko and them are doing with NERV Central. That place has about as much party appeal as a graveyard. I wonder how they're gonna make it look...fun...
His thoughts were interrupted by the door opening again. Shinji looked up, and was shocked. Asuka was beaming as she spun around in a pink and red floral pattern string bikini. Shinji gaped at Asuka, and felt a trickle of blood from his nose, and more blood rushing elsewhere...
[Bingo!] Asuka found the reaction she was looking for. "Ah, I think I'm done looking. Gimme back my dress and we can go pay for this stuff."
"Uh, um, oh, yeah, sure," Shinji stuttered. Throwing Asuka back her clothes, she retreated to the cubicle again. Shinji felt an irregular bulge in his netheregions. [Thermal expansion...how embarrassing,] he though while he readjusted himself.
--------------------
Rei was walking out of the shopping center when spotted Hikari walking in. Rei decided that it would be polite to say hello. Rei walked over to her. "Horaki?"
Hikari turned. "Oh, hey Rei," she said, nervous for some reason, "Didn't see you there..."
"You are getting a present for Asuka as well?"
"Well, yeah, I am. I'm thinking about getting her a new pair of shoes..."
"If it helps, she likes red heels."
"Oh, thank you, Rei..." Hikari smiled nervously. "Well, I better go. Not much time left now, eh?"
"No...bye..." Rei said as Hikari walked off. Rei wondered why everyone was so nervous around her. Was it due to her appearance? Was she intimidating? Rei looked across at a polished steel panel, displaying her reflection. She saw a fourteen year old girl with pale blue hair and blood red eyes. She looked back across at Hikari, who had run into Toji. She smiled warmly as Toji greeted her. Rei looked at Hikari's smile, turned to the panel, and tried to emulate it. Rei was surprised by the result. She seemed more...like everyone else...more human... [All I must do to become more human is to smile?] Rei looked back at Hikari. Hikari was laughing now, probably at a joke.
"Hee...hee...hee..." Rei tried to mimic Hikari once more. "Hee...heh...ha...ha ha...ha ha ha ha hah..."
Many other patrons of the mall began to take notice of this young girl laughing for no apparent reason. Rei stopped laughing and looked around. The eyes of almost every person in the vicinity were locked on her. She felt a rush of blood to her cheeks. A strange fluttering in her stomach forced her to sit down, quickly. [Is this...embarrassment?] Rei chuckled to herself. [This is easier than I thought...]
------------------
"Dammit, not again!" Misato growled at her computer, angry at what it displayed. The cold, dark office she was given at NERV Central didn't help the mood either. A game of chess was displayed onscreen, and the white king (Misato's) was trapped between a black bishop, a black queen, and five or so of her own pawns. "CHECKMATE PLAYER 2" flashed across the bottom of the screen. A scoreline at the top of the screen said it all: 32-0 in Player 2's advantage.
"If I ever find out who Player 2 is, I'll strangle him!!!" Misato was furious.
Meanwhile, above NERV Central, in an abandoned building, Rei Ayanami sat at her laptop, with a similar screen, only hers read an opposite scoreline. "Amateurs," she smiled, as she asked Player 1 for another match.
Misato, meanwhile, had emptied a shell into her monitor. At about this time, her fax buzzed and bleeped. A sheet of paper crawled out of the fax machine, and Misato picked it up to read it.
"...Pilot Ikari...limousine...Mt. Asama...Pilot Sohryu..." Misato gave a wry smile.
[Shinji looking for some private time with Asuka, huh?] Misato signed the clearance form, and faxed it back to the lobby. Kicking the deaded monitor off of the table, she walked to the closet, opened it and grabbed another monitor. Setting it up where her old monitor was, she clicked on the "Accept" button, eager to teach Player 2 a lesson. Just then, Ritsuko walked in.
"Hey, Misato," she said, looking down at the monitor, "losing at chess again?"
"OH, SHUT UP!" Misato snapped.
Ritsuko laughed. "Listen, Maya's had a brilliant idea. You got some pictures of Asuka?"
"Uh-huh."
"Any, uh...incriminating pictures?"
Misato smiled. "I'm listening..."
------------------
"So, what now?" Shinji asked his red-headed hottie.
"How about we show these new threads off, hmm?"
"Show them off where?"
"At the pool, you stupid baka!" What used to be an insult had become an affectionate nickname.
Shinji's heart sank. "The pool? Why do you want to go there?"
"Why not?" Asuka turned around. Shinji seemed nervous at the mention of the pool. "Oh, I remember..."
Asuka remembered how pathetic a swimmer Shinji was. Shinji nodded ashamedly.
Asuka's face brightened. "Alright, then, I've got a better idea!"
Shinji looked up. "What?"
"I can teach you how to swim!"
Shinji's heart skipped a beat. "You...teach me...how to swim?"
Asuka's face gained a altogether more familiar, superior tone. "What? Don't think I can handle it?"
"No, it's not that...you...you know what, why not? We've got use of the NERV limo. Let's go!"
-----------------
Misato knelt in front of her bedside dresser, pulling an old shoe box out of the bottom drawer. Opening it revealed a bundle of embarrassing photographs of most of her friends and acquaintances. Looking through them, she giggled. Among the handful of photos was a picture of Asuka and Shinji, both in red Unit 02 plug suits, Shinji trying to hide his endowments after their fight against the 6th Angel while aboard the Over The Rainbow; a picture of Asuka in her less than figure flattering heat resistant plug suit, before her fight against Angel No. 8 inside Mt. Asaga; a still shot from video footage of Asuka and Shinji in perfect synchronisation defeating the 7th Angel, a couple of the publicity shots of all three pilots, and a few assorted snaps of the pilots going about their everyday lives. She smiled, grasping all of the photoes and putting them in a bag. Maya was planning to have a montage board put up over the Magi, showing the pilot's fond memories. Misato hurriedly left the room before Shinji or Asuka got back. Now that shw was safely out of her room, she went to the lounge room, kicked back on the couch, and began an afternoon of channel surfing...
Shinji was lucky that he suspected that a day near water was on the cards, and packed a pair of swimmers into his backpack. It had been about three months since his last trip to Mt. Asama, for Misato's birthday, and before that the last time was right after the 8th Angel. Now, he stood at the first step, waiting for Asuka to change into her choice of the twelve sets ([Twelve sets! I hope my bank account isn't too depleted. I still want to get her something else...]) of bathers, bikinis and other assorted swimwear. Almost as soon as the thought left his mind, Asuka walked from the female changerooms, in the blue floral two-piece, the one that brought out her eyes.
"Hey, Shinji," Asuka said, almost seductively, "Ready for your first lesson?"
"Ready as I'll ever be," Shinji said, "Lead, the way, Asuka."
The short walk down the steps led to a pool, heated by the nearby volcano. Asuka stepped into the water first, briefly shocked by the temperature, then walking out deeper. Shinji followed her.
"The most important thing to remember is that, in most cases, the human body floats in water. Try just floating on your back for a second."
Shinji nodded, and lay back. Surprising to him, he didn't sink.
"See?" Asuka quickly moved on. "Now, this is pretty tricky for a beginner, but you can give it a shot. You have to try and breathe out. This will make you sink a bit, but you should have plenty of time to breathe in again and float back up again. Just remember that water is a little thinner than LCL, so you'll sink a bit quicker in it."
"Okay..." Shinji said, breathing out steadily. He noticed that he was sinking a bit, so he quickly breathed in again, floating back to the top just as Asuka said.
"Hmm, this is easier than I thought..." Shinji didn't get a response. Shinji sat up in the water. "Asuka?"
Suddenly, a figure jumped out of the water right in front of him, pushing him back into the shallow area. Shinji and Asuka both fell backwards, Shinji shouting in surprise, Asuka laughing at her prank.
"Asuka!" Shinji half-growled, half-laughed. Asuka giggled. "At least you're able to float properly now."
Shinji smiled. "So, what next, sensei?"
"Sensei!? Ha! Good one. Well, we could work on your underwater skills." Asuka retreated to the deep end.
Shinji waded back out.
"Okay," Asuka instructed, "On the count of three, we both put our heads under the water. I'll hold up some fingers under the water, and you tell me how many I'm holding up."
"Okay..." Shinji seemed a little nervous, but put his head under anyway. Asuka put her head down at the same time. Shinji opened his eyes underwater. It felt a little straining on the eyes, but he soon got used to it. He looked ahead and saw Asuka, giving him a V sign with her fingers. Shinji nodded and stood up.
Asuka stood up as well. "Well?" she asked.
"Two?"
"That's right!" Asuka smiled. "We'll give it a few more goes to make sure it wasn't a fluke."
"Okay." Shinji went under again, Asuka not far behind. This time, Asuka showed her left hand, holding back only her thumb. They resurfaced.
"Four?"
"Correct! Just one more time..." Asuka smirked before she went under.
Shinji caught the smirk, and was sent into paranoia. [What was that all about?] Shinji shrugged and put his head under one last time.
Underwater, Asuka put her hands behind her instead of in front of her. This confused Shinji for a little while, until he realised tht Asuka was undoing her top half. Shinji gasped, big bubbles of air escaping from his mouth. He immediately went up for air. Asuka was hysterical when she surfaced.
"Aww, poor Shinji got embarrassed, huh?" Asuka taunted him, top off, but her assets lingering below (albeit dangerously close to) the waterline.
Shinji felt the usual trickle of blood in his nostril. "Asuka!"
Asuka laughed, and spear tackled Shinji into the water. They spent the next few minutes frolicking in the deep end, while the blue floral top half floated toward the shallow end.
-------------
Shinji huffed and puffed as he carried Asuka through the door. She had fallen asleep in the private NERV limousine back from the hot springs in Mt. Asama. Kicking open the door to Asuka's room, Shinji carried her to her futon, laying her on it. Shinji gave Asuka a small kiss, stood up and shut the door. Shinji turned around, and Misato was there, arms crossed. "Where have you been?" Misato questioned Shinji.
"Me? Well I took Asuka shopping for a birthday present..."
Misato took one look at Shinji's face, dripping with sweat. "Oh, sure..."
"It's the truth!" Shinji insisted.
"Seriously," Misato said, "You don't have to lie about it. It's none of my business, what you two do..."
Shinji's face flushed. "What!? No! She's asleep..."
Misato gave a devilish smile. "Oh, I wonder why, Shinji?"
Shinji's nose began to bleed. "No!" he whispered, "Stop it! We went to Mt. Asama for the day..."
"To the hot springs?" Misato grinned.
"Gaah! Stop making everything I do sound so dirty!"
"No, don't worry, Shinji," Misato smiled, "I believe you. I mean, I did have to clear the paperwork for the limo anyway."
Shinji breathed a slight sigh of relief. "So, what are you doing back here? Shouldn't you be organising the..."
"Maya wants some photos to put up on a montage board. I just came back to pick some up." "Really, what photos?"
Misato glanced into her bag, then slowly panned back to Shinji. "What, photos, Misato?" Shinji said it slower this time.
Misato's smile broadened. Shinji grasped for the bag, but Misato twisted away, running out the door. "See you tonight, Shinji!"
Shinji chased Misato out the door. "That better not be me in Asuka's suit!" he yelled after her.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------------
Will Rei be able to do the impossible and become more human before the party? Will Shinji beat his problem with a certain rule of physics? Will Misato finally beat Rei at chess? All these questions answered, and more, in the next installment 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.
