EVANGELION: A SWIMMING LESSON
Chapter Four: My Turn, Wondergirl!
Disclaimer: Neon Genesis Evangelion and its characters are property of GAINAX and ADV Films. I don't own them, nor do I intend to utilize them for any profitable purposes. Simply the purpose of writing entertainment.
Pre-Chapter Author's Notes: Well, now that I've gotten over that enormous hurdle that I call Chapter Three, perhaps things will go a bit more smoothly. Also, I appreciate all the positive feedback I've been receiving thus far. Collecting the entire series on DVD seems to have helped me at least in this endeavor, as I personally prefer to have a good amount of background information before writing fics that base themselves off of previously established things, since then you know what you can mess around with during the writing process. Besides, the series and its two-part finale rocked anyway! And as for anyone who is upset that I didn't write out the fight between Rei and Asuka, don't worry. I'll get around to -action- writing later. ;-)
Now, last time we left our happy-go-lucky Shinji, he had found out that Asuka was to teach him in Rei's place on Monday. Let the story commence, says I.....

Just a reminder...

"Spoken Dialogue"

'Character Thought'

Written Material
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Slumber. Rest. A still calm.

Sleep is often meant to be a time of peace, as well as a time of reflection and contemplation of one's thoughts, ideas, and beliefs, all melted into one, with meaning often hard to find, and remembering such mixings of subconscious energies all the more difficult.

Such was not the case for the Third Child as the shrill sound of a whistle caused his body to spasm a bit before waking up in a panic, eyes widened in shock and throat uttering a cry as he fell out of his bed and landed on the hard floor.

"Gyah!" Shinji yelped as he picked himself up off of the rough carpeting and untangled his feet from the bed sheet. This, of course, was before turning around and seeing Asuka right up in his face, a whistle on a string around her neck. "What the hell..?"

"Rise and shine, Third Child!" Asuka exclaimed, fully dressed in her school clothes and a determined look upon her face. "It's Monday morning, and do you know what that means?"

Blinking his eyes a few times to orient himself, Shinji shook his head while staring blankly.

"Ugh! Moron, did you forget that I get to teach you today!?!" Asuka yelled at the dazed boy. "And in this girl's school of hard knocks, I don't go easy on anybody! Now, get your ass dressed and moving!" she finished, pointing to the dressers.

Shinji couldn't help but worry as he began to put on his uniform. 'Maybe this isn't going to work...it hasn't even been 3 minutes and already she's scolding me...' He then threw a quick look at the Second Child. "Do you mind?"

Asuka's only response was to give him a disgusted sneer and rush out of the room, almost forgetting to shut the door behind her.

Ikari sighed. Today was going to be a long day. A really long day.
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Meanwhile, Misato was seated in a chair at the kitchen, having herself one final beer before going to bed. After dropping off the two pilots at home the previous night, she had been called in to do some explaining to Commander Ikari about the physical engagement that had occurred between Asuka and Rei. Needless to say, it had been tiring as well as lengthy, and she was feeling thrilled to have this last drink before regaining her strength.

Unfortunately for the Major, her senses were assaulted after Asuka moved into the kitchen to eat breakfast, ranting like an asylum inmate while her mouth was full.

"Stupid dork Shinji! I can't believe I'm teaching that idiot today instead of Wondergirl! I feel like a fucking substitute. Then again, I did kinda make this deal with her, didn't I? Oooh, she gets on my damn nerves. Sheist! Is he ever going to get out here? I'm gonna nail him a good one when he does, and-"

"Asuka..." Misato finally managed to say.

The Second Child stopped her constant flow of sentences and faced the guardian. "Wha?" Only then did she notice the lavender-haired female's exhausted look.

"I'm...tired. Please...keep it down..." With that, Misato stood and proceeded to slowly stumble her way to her room, collapsing immediately upon her mat, after which began some gentle snoring.

Asuka sighed, having observed all this. "Drunk and tired! She isn't exactly the world's greatest example to live up to...." Then her mind refocused on her agenda for today. "Hey, Shinji, get a move on!" she yelled.

Quickly did the Third Child arrive into the kitchen, struggling to put on his shirt and yawning in the process. "I'm coming, jeez...."

After tucking his shirt in, Shinji proceed to prepare his breakfast while Asuka snatched up the phone and dialed hurriedly.

"Hello?" Hikari's voice answered over the phone.

"Hey, Hikari!" Asuka called to the rep. "I'm gonna be leaving earlier than usual, so I was wondering, did you want to walk to school together?" The redhead then removed her ear and mouth from the phone momentarily to yell at Shinji, "Hey, don't forget to make our lunches, idiot!"

Hikari couldn't help but laugh a little, knowing that that beyond their respective reputations, they were well-known for arguing a lot, despite Shinji's obvious reluctance for being a part of such conflicts. "Alright. I'll leave in a few."

"See you soon!" Asuka said in a cheery voice, then hung up. Immediately did the venom return to her voice as her attention came back to the young Ikari, who was calmly preparing their lunches for the day.

"Hurry up, dork, and get my lunch ready!" she yelled to Shinji as her feet struggled to slip into her shoes.

"Ok, ok!" Ikari called back, whipping together the Second Child's lunch at the expense of his own, for the moment. He then quickly moved out to hand off the lunch to the impatient girl.

"About time!" Asuka stated, twirling on a foot to head for the door as soon as her food was received. Before leaving, though, she stopped at the door. "I'm taking off early to walk with Hikari. Don't be far behind."

"Of course," Shinji replied. He wasn't insane enough to skip school when in a sane, rational state of mind.

"Oh, and make sure you jog your ass to school, Third Child. If I'm going to teach you today, I want you to be in decent shape."

"Umm, alright," Shinji replied, figuring that this request wasn't all that unusual, given Asuka's aggressive nature. But such thoughts took a backseat in his mind as he redoubled his efforts to get his own meal ready before the arrival of the other two Stooges.

Fortunately, the well-experienced hands of Shinji were hasty, but masterful in completing his lunch and tucking it away into his pack. Unfortunately, it was only his body at work, as his mind had drifted off, in thinking about Rei, hoping she would be alright after the day had finished.
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In a place far from the eyes and ears of the NERV pilots and personnel, an exchange of words was taking place within the dead silence of Commander Ikari's dark office, as both Gendo and Fuyutsuki sat as his table, with the former with his elbows propped up and his hands interlocked in their usual position, while the elder man held a cup of coffee in one resting hand and read from a newspaper in the other.

"So, the First and Second Children engaged in a fight, huh?" Fuyutsuki asked, only having been slightly informed of this matter through Ritsuko on his way to this meeting.

"Yes," the Commander replied. "Fortunately, the potential for damage was minimized by our security agents noticing this and subsequently separating the two."

"Potential?" Fuyutsuki inquired. "You mean there was actual damage."

"Correct," Gendo said in response. "The Second Child sustained negligible wounds."

The former Professor wasn't all that surprised, given some understanding enough about the German girl's toughness. "And as for Ayanami?"

"The First Child's injuries required medical attention, though they are not severe. She will be released today," Commander Ikari answered.

'-Released- indeed, after she checks back in,' he though to himself after the fact.

"So, what was this incident about?" Kouzou questioned before sipping on his coffee.

"Personal differences. It is irrelevant, unless this occurs again."

"Will it?"

"No. Major Katsuragi is dealing with the situation. She is suitable enough to deal with such insignificant matters."

"They aren't that way to her."

"True. But to our plans is this of no concern."

Fuyutsuki breathed a sigh, took another sip of his coffee and set the cup down upon the table. "Indeed."
-------
At the very same time Ikari and Fuyutsuki's meeting was taking place, Rei was alone, regenerating far below in the safety of an orange tube filled with LCL. Silence was dominant in the lonely chamber as the First Child's thoughts once again began to wander.

'The regenerative process. A method to eliminate my wounds. Wounds sustained in a fight outside of Unit 00. A type of fight I am unfamiliar with in participating.'

'Why did Pilot Sohryu and I fight? Many reasons exist for this....'

'Was it because that we both feel a connection to Shinji? This is possible.'

'Would it be from an unintentional rivalry as pilots? Perhaps it indeed stems from her desire to be superior to Ikari and myself.'

'Does she hate me? I do not believe to have given her a reason for this.'

'Is she jealous? Jealous at what? I am treated no different than her.'

'Being called a doll? Yes, this is a factor, for I do not see myself as one, though she seems to think so, based on how I talk and act.'

'I am to return to the hospital once my injuries are gone. Will I see Shinji there? I am certain he will show, and I would hope as such. Shinji always seems...happy...to see me. Why is this?'

'Is it gratitude, for my choice to instruct him in something he was afraid of?'

'Is it a bond that stems from out relationship as pilots and classmates...'

'....or is it something more?'

'What is it that I feel for him? Friendship?'

'Affection..?'

'Perhaps....could it be....'

Suddenly, a low-pitched beep sounded, disrupting the First Child's thoughts and alerting her to the fact that her body was completely healed. Slowly did the LCL drain from the tube before the glass was raised, allowing the blue-haired girl to step out and stand still for a few minutes as the excess fluid dripped off of her bare body.

As Rei dressed into her clothes and prepared to inform Commander Ikari that she was ready to check back in to her hospital room, she made a mental note to find a quieter place next time she let her thoughts go adrift.
-------
Not long after Asuka's departure did Toji and Kensuke arrive in predictable fashion, though, of course, they were disappointed to only be greeted by Shinji and not the now loudly snoring Misato. And, true to the Second Child's request, Shinji jogged during the trip to school, and although this bothered the other two boys a bit, they nevertheless kept even pace with him.

"Jeez, this feels like early gym class!" Kensuke called, a step or two behind the jock and the pilot, slightly out of breath. "But adding in baggage, and subtracting the girls to look at."

"It isn't that bad," replied Toji, easily keeping up with the Third Child without breaking a sweat. "But...exactly why are you doing this, anyway?"

"Rei won't be at school today," Shinji replied while keeping an even breathing rhythm, "so Asuka's taking over for her."

This produced an outburst of laughter from Toji and Kensuke, which caused them to stop in their tracks. "That's a good one, Shinji!" Ida said, his stance a bit hunched over with his hands on his knees to maintain some balance. Personally, the voyeur was grateful he had his camera tucked away this time, to prevent dropping it and causing some major damage.

However, as the two Stooges looked at the young Ikari, they quickly noticed that he didn't look like he was bluffing. Suzuhara decided to tread on this thin ice by asking, "You're serious, aren't you?"

The Third Child nodded.

"But...why her?" was Toji's response. "And while we're at it, exactly where is Ayanami?"

"Rei's in the hospital," Shinji answered. "She and Asuka...had a fight..."

"Ooh, a fight?" his two friends asked in perfect unison. "What kind of fight? A pillow fight with some hot, steamy lesbian action? That'd be just perfect for you, Shinji, wouldn't it?"

Shinji shook his head. "More like the first time we -met-, Toji."

The jock couldn't help but wince a little from that comment. He could never forget about that incident, especially now that he felt a bit worse about it, namely due to Shinji's reluctance to fight back.

"...only worse," the young Ikari finished.

"How worse?" Kensuke inquired.

"Well, Asuka was fine. The worst she received was a black eye," Shinji began.

"Hah!" Toji exclaimed, feeling a slight amount of satisfaction that she had finally been repaid, if only a little, for all the torment she had given the three of them in the past. "She probably deserved it."

Shinji paid the remark no heed and continued. "But Rei's injuries were worse, including bruised ribs. She's been in the hospital recuperating all weekend, and I plan on meeting up with her once she's been released later today."

"Assuming you get through today's lesson first," Kensuke pointed out. "And it doesn't take a genius to see that Asuka's going to make it rough on you."

Shinji sighed. It never was easy trying to convince these two that Asuka wasn't necessarily all that bad. Misunderstood, perhaps, but definitely with a good heart beneath that fiery exterior. "Maybe, but this in the interest of teaching me. I don't think she'll try anything."

"Well, alright, Shinji," Toji stated, "go ahead and have your lesson with Asuka. If she's too much to handle, let us know, and we'll see what we can do to help, alright?"

That comment caused the Third Child to crack a bit of a smile. "Thanks, guys," he said as he suddenly remembered their situation and started jogging for the school again. "Come on, or we'll be late!" Shinji called out.

Having caught their breath, Toji and Kensuke were able to keep pace again, though they remained a few steps behind.

"You have to admit, Toji, at least that girl's got the right idea about helping him, as hostile as she is," Kensuke pointed out.

"I hope you're right, Kensuke. I seriously hope you're right. Otherwise, who knows what's in store for him?"
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Time passed on in the school's usual fashion, that being dull classes and a sensei who could talk an asylum inmate asleep with boring lectures, though the class rep paid perfect attention to every word, trying to be an example for the other students. Unfortunately, it wasn't working very well, as most of the students were engaged in gossip.

Shinji, true to his recent behavior, had his gaze over at Rei's desk, despite the obvious fact that she wasn't here today. Toji was sound asleep at his desk, while Kensuke was quite busy checking his video discs. As for Asuka, she maintained some kind of odd balance between paying attention, occasional messaging to Hikari via the laptop, and keeping a wary eye on the Third Child.

Thankfully, the class didn't last forever, and soon enough, the bell rang for the lunch break.

"Yahoo! Lunch time, munch time!" Toji yelled out as he immediately dove into his oversized lunch, gobbling like a starving homeless person receiving their first real meal in weeks. This action didn't really surprise anyone, given the jock's reputation for a huge appetite.

"So, does Asuka have you completely on a leash, Shinji," Kensuke inquired as he laid back in his seat and opened up his plastic lunch sack, "or can you actually eat with us for once?"

Shinji laughed a bit at that, though he had to admit, he had been spending more time with Rei than them lately. "Sure thing, guys. I'll stay here for lunch today."

"Well, who can blame you?" Toji noted while stuffing his mouth. "Better than the redheaded devil, isn't it?"

"She isn't that bad, you know," Ikari replied while organizing his lunch upon the desk top. "I mean, she's got her good points at times."

"Good points?" Kensuke questioned as he drank his juice. "Her? No way."

"Well, actually," Toji thought aloud, "you have to be able to get along with her in some capacity, right? You live with her, so it's got to happen."

"Yeah, it does," Shinji said. Then, as an afterthought, he added, "I mean, if it hadn't, we wouldn't have been able to temporarily live in sync."

Afterwards came a fit of laughter from all three boys, knowing how weird it had been for the shy Third Child and the extrovert Second Child to move, work, and talk as thought they were one, if nothing else, to produce efficient results in defeating the Seventh Angel, as per Kaji Ryoji's proposed plan back then. And though the two pilots had reservations about the whole thing, they nevertheless tried it out and were successful in their endeavor.

"It's been a while since then, hasn't it?" Kensuke inquired once the outbreak had died down.

"Yeah," was Shinji's reply.

The Stooges ate in complete silence for the rest of the lunch break afterward.
-------
At the same time that Shinji, Toji, and Kensuke were munching on their food, Hikari and Asuka had taken to eating on the roof. Though the class rep initially had an objection to the idea, but was quickly reassured by the Second Child that Rei wouldn't be around, which she more or less knew to be a fact.

However, as opposed to Shinji's times up here, when he would lean over the rail in talking with Kensuke or sit against it when eating with the First Child, Hikari and Asuka took a different approach, simply laying back on the roof and taking in the sun, almost as if they were out on the beach, taking bites of their food every now and then, with the occasional complaint by Asuka about how Ikari had messed up preparing her meal in one form or another.

Hikari couldn't help but giggle after the Second Child's seventeenth complaint in the past ten minutes.

"Hey, what's so funny?" Asuka asked with a snarl on her face, feeling a bit upset at being laughed at.

"Oh, nothing," the rep answered, "just counting how many times you talk about Shinji."

"Well, I have to live with the dork, don't I?" the redhead countered.

"Yeah, but you really shouldn't put him down so much," Hikari pointed out. Asuka couldn't help but smirk at that, knowing quite well about how she constantly noted Shinji's faults and took pride it, as well as her self-proclaimed outstanding piloting skill.

"It's not like the idiot can't take it." Asuka stated as she sat up to stretch her back. "Besides, he'll need it if he's going to learn anything today."

That prompted the class rep to look at her friend in a confused manner. "What do you mean?"

Sohryu grinned. "Since Wondergirl isn't around, for today, I get to play teacher with Shinji's sorry ass at the pool."

The almond-haired girl looked shocked, but she did her best to remain calm, not wanting to give away what she knew. "I didn't realize Shinji was being tutored."

"Neither did I, until I took a guess and did some investigating on the matter," Asuka proclaimed with a proud look. "And I got proof of the dork and the First Child getting rather close in the process."

Hikari blushed a bit as the impact of the redheaded girl's statement hit her. "Shinji and Rei are..."

"Hah!" Sohryu exclaimed. "Not if I have anything to say about it."

"You...don't like them being together?" Horaki inquired. "I don't understand."

"Exactly what's not to understand, Hikari?"

"Well, is it because you don't like Rei....or that you do like Shinji?"

Asuka's face showed a bit of despair as she looked down at the floor of the roof. "Even if that were in some improbable way true, it's not like he ever notices. He's too dense to see anything unless it's right in front of his face! Ugh! And he asks the stupidest questions, too."

"He doesn't seem like the type to."

"Fine, if you don't believe me, I'll give you an example, though I'm not supposed to say anything about this sort of thing, since it's -classified-."

Hikari nodded and sat up, keeping her eyes fixated on Asuka as the German girl continued.

"This little story happens during one a period of time before we engage in an Angel battle. That's what the creatures that we fight are called. Anyway, we're crawling through some ducts, because the power at NERV HQ is out and Shinji has the lack of brains to ask why we fight something called Angels, since they're supposed to be messengers of God and all. So, I answer back that it's just plain idiotic to not fight back when you're being attacked. Sometimes I just don't understand how he can be the Commander's son...." Having finished, Asuka sighed and took a drink of her soda.

"Asuka, you live with Shinji, right?"

"Of course! Though I wonder why Misato hasn't thrown him out yet."

"So...you probably would know him better than me...but..."

The Second Child gave her friend an odd look. "But what?"

"To my knowledge, Shinji...well..."

"What is it, Hikari? Spill!"

"Well, something happened a short while before you arrived here to. An incident involving Shinji. You know the two Stooges he hangs out with?"

"Yeah, what about those losers?"

"Well, they weren't always friends with Shinji. In fact, Toji hated his guts. Worse than you."

"Wow!" Asuka responded in surprise. "Didn't think a jock like that would give a damn about him."

"In any case, once Shinji admitted to being the pilot of that Eva robot not long after this city's first conflict, Suzuhara beat him up after school that day. You see, in the city's first battle involving, his little sister was injured, and he felt that it was necessary to take out that anger on the poor boy."

The Second Child's eyes were wide, both liking and despising this story, but wanting to hear more. "And how did it go? Who won?"

"Well....erm....technically, Toji won. It was a one-sided fight, because Shinji didn't hit back."

"Did he even defend himself?"

"No. I'm not sure, but I think that Shinji felt he deserved it. Plus, he always seems so passive. It doesn't seem like fighting is in his nature."

'Tell me about it,' Asuka thought, 'but you'd never know from his piloting.'
Hikari, uninterrupted, kept telling the tale. "And then, from what Suzuhara's friend Kensuke told me once, apparently during another fight before your arrival, the two of them were outside when they were nearly killed due to being outside of the shelter. I thought they were up to something that day."

"How do you know all this?"

Hikari giggled. "Kensuke is quite the chatterbox, no matter who's listening."

"Can't say I'm surprised. So, what happened?"

"I don't know. He didn't say much about what happened after that point. All he would tell me was that they somehow got involved in Shinji's battle, and only then did Suzuhara see how emotionally unstable he had become, and they both figured it had to be from the fistfight. They believed it so adamantly that Toji once actually asked to be punched back, just to give him peace of mind. From what I hear, Shinji gave him, in his own words, a hell of a shot." Hikari nearly had difficulty saying the last part, as she didn't prefer to engage in speaking profanity.

By now, Asuka's look was somewhat grim. "So the idiot's a wimp and a pacifist...."

"I don't necessarily think it's like that. The way he behaves, it's almost as though he doesn't ever enjoy conflict. And yet, he has no choice when it comes to you, because you do that with him every day."

"That's really deep, Hikari..." Asuka began, but she suddenly has a thought and looked at her watch. "Sheist! We have to get back to class before we're late!"

The brown-haired rep nodded in complete agreement as the two girls gathered their things and hurried back to the classroom, each girl in a vast ocean of their own thoughts.
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A few hours passed, and the bell signaled for school being over. Hikari, in her usual fashion, rose and gave the "stand, bow, dismissed" commands to the students before rushing off for home following a hasty goodbye to Asuka.

"Alright!" Toji yelled with joy. "School day's over!"

"Damn right it is," Kensuke said in agreement. "You want to stop by my place and play video games for a while?"

"You bet!" the jock answered with a grin, before noticing Shinji's odd expression aimed at both of them. "Hey, what's wrong?"

"Oh, n-nothing," the young Ikari replied, scratching his head in embarrassed confusion. "I just didn't know you were into that sort of thing, that's all."

"Well, I'd invite you to join us, but you have other things you have to do, don't you?" Kensuke noted.

"Yeah, I do," Shinji stated, "so I'll see you guys later."

"Later, Ikari!" the two boys called in unison as they were almost out the classroom door. "And good luck with Asuka. You'll need it!" After that, they shared a bit of a snickering and hurried off for Kensuke's place.

The Third Child sighed. He really was wondering if having Asuka do this instead of Rei was any sort of a good idea. His resolve didn't fail him, though, as he headed for the pool area, wondering exactly what kind of instructor this girl was. After all, knowing that the First Child was a calm, patient teacher, and it was safe to assume that the Second Child would more or less be on the opposite side of that coin, given her short fuse and swelled sense of pride.

He decided to try and put the debate out of his head for the moment, especially since he knew that the German girl had the potential to let down her guard. Maybe she would be this was as an instructor, maybe not. Shinji decided not to jump to any conclusions until he observed her methods.

Fortunately, the trip took little time now that Shinji had traveled to the swim area a few times. However, after several tense-filled moments in the locker room during the Third Child's changing and subsequent walk out to the pool where he set out his towel to dry off on later, he quickly noticed that Asuka wasn't there.

'This is unusual,' he thought while setting his pack on a nearby table. 'But, then again, this is Asuka we're talking about, not Rei.'

And yet, as the young Ikari sat on his towel and waited, more time passed. How much, he didn't know. The fact remained, though, that Rei's substitute still hadn't made her appearance to aid the boy, and this was making him worry a bit. But that worry quickly passed as Shinji laid back upon his towel and closed his eyes, deciding to take a small rest and lose himself in the recesses of his mind while patiently awaiting the Second Child's arrival.

'Perhaps she forgot? That doesn't seem like Asuka. She probably has a reason, though she might blame me for it. And even if she gets here, will it be worth it, to endure more of her for the purpose of learning to swim?'

'Rei Ayanami....I plan on seeing her after my lesson today. I hope she's recovered. But am I eager to meet her, or possibly frightened? I don't know. I'm not sure I understand how I feel about this situation...about her. Do I feel some sort of....closeness to her? Attachment? Affection?'

'Why do both girls puzzle me? In some ways, I feel close to each of them, and yet, I feel distant from them in different aspects as well. Rei is often in her own world, but seems to act in certain ways around me that she would never be like around anyone else. Her smiles always bring me joy. On the other hand, Asuka keeps everyone beyond arm's length with her boasting, hostile remarks, and accusations of me being a pervert. However, she also has her times when she's civil and even...perhaps...nice. I did feel grateful about the compliment she gave me about my ability with the cello.'

'Still no Angel attacks as of late. I suppose I should be grateful for this period of peace, though I keep worrying that it will be over soon, because of the never-ending barrage of harmonics and synch tests we endure for when the next one appears.'

'I hope Misato isn't worried about me. She's always so nice to me as my guardian, but as my superior, it's as if she's a completely different person altogether. If I didn't know her as well as I do, I'd never believe her to be a drinker, with the way she always seems so determined and unshakable during Angel fights.'

'Father....how would he, of all people, think about how I feel about Rei? Would he approve, or keep her away from me? Does he even know, or care? I can't be sure. He does seemingly talk with her more than he has with me, but how much does he know about her as opposed to what I know?'

'Toji, Kensuke...you two seem to be all for this when Rei teaches me, but tease me about it with Asuka substituting. Why is that? Do you want to know about them, but are afraid to approach? Or are you hoping that things really do turn out well for me? This is all so confusing...'

'I feel so lost...what should I do-'

A sensation of rather cold water overwhelmed the boy's senses and shocked him out of his nap, causing him to yelp, sit up in fright, and look upward into Asuka's smirking face, causing a realization that she had no doubt awakened him.

"Enjoy you nap, Shinji?" the Second Child asked in a sarcastic tone.

Shinji did little more than shiver while rising to his feet. As he looked the redhead over, he saw that she was once again wearing her two-piece red and white-striped swimsuit.

"I'm sorry..." he began, but Asuka immediately clamped her hand over his mouth, glaring at him.

"Don't be starting in on that shit today, Third Child. My being late had nothing to do with you, got it?"

Shinji nodded, partially frozen in fear as well as in shock. The girl, satisfied with his response, removed her hand from his mouth, though feeling a bit irritated by the air being exhaled out of his nose, like she had once noticed before when they shared a rather odd kind of kiss, which had involved the fiery redhead holding the young Ikari's nose shut, forcing him to hold his breath during the lip lock.

'Not that that had been fun anyway', Sohryu recalled, remembering how she whined right after that kiss never to do it again simply for the purpose of killing time. No longer did she want to be bored to the point of kissing the wimpy Shinji Ikari.

"So.." the Third Child pondered, "...just why are you late?" Knowing she'd probably get angry with him, he then added, "I-If it's okay to ask, of course.."

"Hmph! Well, if you absolutely must know, idiot, I forgot my swimsuit. Those stupid generic ones they have for school don't do my fabulous self justice!" With that, Asuka struck a bit of a pose, both looking and feeling proud to be able to show herself off in some fashion. Then she couldn't help but laugh a bit, realizing that Shinji was wearing that very brand she had just talked about.

Shinji, meanwhile, thought that Asuka's boasting, combined with her posing, made her look a bit humorous. Not that he dared laugh, preferring to have his current instructor in as much of a light-hearted mood as possible.

'Maybe this won't be as horrible as I keep thinking it would,' the Third Child mused.
-------
Far from the roommate pilots, a pair of grown women were sitting at a table deep inside NERV HQ, a pair of coffee cups being the only similar thing between them, despite their somewhat lengthy friendship. While one just patiently sipped on her drink and occasionally ran a finger or two through her violet hair, the other looked purely methodical and determined while reading a report in front of her, oblivious to everything else around her.

No response was made by either female for several minutes. That is, until Misato laughed a little.

Ritsuko couldn't help but stop for a moment and look up at her friend. "And just what do you find so funny, hmm?" she asked, her voice possessing a light tone of humor.
"Oh, nothing," Misato responded, looking the blondie in the eye as she smirked, "just the way you sit still for so long without a word."

"Something on your mind, I assume?" Dr. Akagi inquired.

The Major sat back, propping her feet up on the table and sighing. "Actually, no. the city's been quiet lately. Sometimes too quiet."

"Are you complaining, Misato?"

"No, not at all. I guess I'm just bored. At least the children don't feel that way."

"Really? What is Shinji up to nowadays? I haven't exactly been able to converse with him that much lately, at least not a personal kind of level."

Misato giggled, knowing full well what Shinji was doing, and also believing how embarrassed he might be to discuss it. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"Try me," the blonde-haired scientist challenged. "After all, how many people in this city would believe at least half of all the classified information we possess?"

That brought a grin to the Major's face. "You're right about that."

"So, what's going on with Shinji, then?"

"Well, he's learning how to swim."

Ritsuko frowned. "Odd. I thought he would have that ability at his age."

"Well, apparently, he never knew, and now the girls are instructing him."

"Asuka and Rei?" Dr. Akagi wondered, while thinking, 'Asuka I don't care about, but Rei teaching Shinji? Now she has the attention of both the Commander and his only son, the little bitch!'

"Exactly. Well, Asuka's teaching him today, anyway. It was originally Rei's idea, but Asuka sort of...persuaded...Rei to allow her to aid in the endeavor as well."
"I see. And how long has this been all happening?"

"Well, it only started last week, so Shinji's probably still trying to get the hang of the water."

"Indeed. Attempting submersion in water like one does with LCL would prove to be quite uncomfortable and fatal."

"Yeah. But at least he seems better now." After that statement, Misato took another sip in what had seemed to be a long few minutes.

"That could certainly life some spirits around here," Risuko said, looking at her watch and getting to her feet afterward. "Well, I have to get back. Maya needs a little more training in speed typing, and she only looks to me for help."

Misato nodded. "Well, she is the best around here, save for you. See you later."
"Oh, by the way," the Doctor added, "I'm scheduling a synch test in a week, so pleas be sure to inform the pilots for me, would you?"

The Major finished drinking her coffee and set her cup down. "Sure thing, Ritsuko." But now being alone, she decided to move her ass out of the chair and get some work done, seeing as how she had only been on a small break. Just because the attacks had temporarily ceased didn't mean everyone could sit back and be lazy, after all.
-------
"Push, idiot! Push!!!"

Such were the screams of Asuka. At the same time, Shinji felt sweat gathering upon his forehead as well as a lingering burn within his muscles as his arms forced themselves into doing the often simple, yet thoroughly tiring exercise known as push-ups.

This had been going on for about an hour now. First, there had been the stretching of his arms, legs, chest, and back, to avoid potential damage later on. Second was a lengthy period of jumping jacks. In both of those situations had the German girl participated with him, so her motivational words had been more encouraging, seeing as how she didn't necessarily have the energy to both work out and yell at him simultaneously.

After that, though, her methods had become similar to that of a military drill instructor, namely the yelling and staying in his face as the boy engaged in a long series of sit-ups and now push-ups. There wasn't exactly any decent equipment around for a full training routine, but even Asuka knew that it wasn't the Third Child's goal. Not that it stopped her from getting tough with the boy every chance she got.

As for Shinji, though he was sweating from the workout, moaning once in a while from pain, and having an extreme urge to collapse from fatigue and rest, not once did he utter a single word of complaint. Asuka would normally be impressed by such a quality from anyone else. But this was Shinji, so she simply chalked it up to his usual reaction of mindlessly following whatever he was told to do. To the Second Child, it was both admirable and disgusting at the same time.

All of a sudden, a shrill ringing noise interrupted both pilot's concentration, causing Asuka's eyes to widen in both shock and embarrassment while Shinji's hands slipped, causing him to collapse onto the tile floor.

"Sheist!" the redhead cursed while scrambling to her feet and marching off to the source of the noise. Moving swiftly with just a slight amount of caution, Asuka reached her backpack in little time and snatched up the source of the noise, that being her cell phone. Though thankful that Misato had bought one for her like she had with Shinji, at times it could be an inconvenience, like now.

"Hallo?" Asuka called.

"Asuka, it's me." It was Hikari's voice.

"Hold on a sec, could you?" the German female replied. Immediately, she called to Shinji, "Hey, Third Child, take a quick break while I'm on the phone!" Then, she devoted her attention back to her friend. "Ok, I'm back."

"Is it going well?" Hikari asked. "The lesson, I mean."

"Huh? Well, not as great as I thought," Asuka answered. Her next response involved her tone becoming a bit grim. "I was rather late."

"How did that happen?"

"Forgot my swimsuit. And I don't know about you, but I don't feel like tolerating those bland school suits."

Hikari giggled. Asuka was always full of flair like that. "And is Shinji doing well?"

"Hey, who made you my interrogator!?!"

"N-no one. It's just..."

"Just what?"

"...it's just that there's no one to keep an eye out for you. You know, in case something happens."

Asuka grinned, knowing that wasn't exactly true. "Don't worry, Shinji and I can take care of ourselves."

"Of course."

"Hey, listen, I have to get going. Don't want him sitting on his ass forever, after all. Can I call you back later?"

"Sure! That would be great!"

"Alright, talk to you later then."

"You, too. Bye!" With that, Asuka hit a button on the phone to disconnect the line, then turned her attention back to the Third Child, who had sat up and was breathing in a steady rhythm now, having attained sufficient resting time.

"Up and off your back, Shinji!" she yelled , pointing a finger to the still waters. "Hit the waves while I go get a drink."

"Alright..." the young Ikari said between deep breaths before slowly getting to his feet and entering the pool, doing his best not to shiver too much from the lower temperature of the liquid.

As Asuka headed off into the locker room, muttering to herself all the while, Shinji felt an odd form of freedom as he laid back and floated along the top of the water, from the tips of his toes all the way up to the hair now being drenched in the chlorinated water.

'Blue...the color of water,' he noted as he drifted within the pool. 'It reminds me of Rei. I can't wait to see her at the hospital today. And yet, another part of me doesn't want this to end, for some reason. Asuka's method are exhausting, but maybe it'll be worth it. I just hope I don't screw this up.'

Thankfully for the boy, only a few minutes passed this time before his teacher came back, slipping in silently and splashing him in the face to get his attention.

This, naturally, caused Shinji to freak out, making him flail a bit before he saw the redhead giggling like mad, with water dripping all over his face. With an exasperated look on his face, Shinji then asked, "Wh-what was that for?"

"You looked like you were slacking off, that's why!"

"Asuka, how can I be...slacking? I don't exactly know how to do this yet."

"Well, duh, Third Child. Wondergirl didn't exactly show you how to move around in here yet. That's where I come in."

"Where you come in..?"

"Exactly? But I can't really tell you how you do it. So, I'll do it, and I want you to watch me for a while and then try to follow me lead, okay?" Surprisingly, the Second Child's tone wasn't hostile at all.

Ikari nodded, feeling a bit more confident about the whole thing. "Okay...I'll try...."
-------
While most patients were usually excited in some way about being in a hospital, Rei found herself thoroughly bored in her room.

'I do not understand,' she thought as her eyes found themselves once again affixed to the clock not far from her door. And just like the few times she had looked earlier, the clock's hands refused to lie in showing that it was several minutes past the hour in which Shinji was supposed to be done.

'Why is he not here yet? Did something happen to him? To Pilot Sohryu? Both, perhaps? This worries me.'

Just these thoughts alone gave her an odd feeling in her body, one she quickly associated as being negative. As if her feeling was correct, though it didn't feel as urgent as an Angel battle might, which allowed her to believe that, somehow, Shinji Ikari would still keep his promise. He obeyed and followed as much as she did, after all, so it seemed quite natural to the blue-haired girl that her student would make an appearance here to see her out.

After looking at the clock a bit more, the First Child decided it was time to wait in a more visible area. She quickly dressed into her uniform and gathered her things, giving the room one last look as she prepared to wait in the hallway.

'Shinji will be here. I am certain of it.'
-------
Back at the school, as could have been expected, Shinji wasn't exactly doing well in understanding the motions yet. Of course, Asuka pointed out each time he messed up, as per her antagonistic nature when dealing with him a good portion the time. Often, the case seemed to be Shinji's lack of understanding when to hold in his breath and when to intake another as his face dipped in and out of the water.

"Can't you get it straight, stupid!?!"

Having finished another try to get at least a fourth of the way across the pool without messing, Shinji couldn't help but choke on a little water as he responded, "I'm sorry..."

"There you go yet again!" Asuka cried disgustedly as she took a seat at the edge of the pool and wrung her hair out with a towel. "Can't you kick that habit?"

"I'm sorry, Asuka.."

"I give up...." Sighing, Asuka looked at a clock far from the pool and decided that it had been enough for today. "Looks like time's up for you anyway, though, so I'm heading home."

"It's been two hours already..?"

The Second Child gave Shinji an odd look. "TWO hours? Try three, you moron! I was an hour late getting here, and Wondergirl told me she ran sessions with you for two."

Ikari went wide-eyed. "Three hours? Oh, my God...." With that, he also lifted himself out and rushed to his changing area. "I can't believe it....I'm going to be late....I hope she's still there..."

Watching the brown-haired boy hustle like that made Asuka laugh a bit, though it also caused her to scowl as soon as he was out of her sight. 'Perfect. He just has to go running off to his precious Wondergirl.....jerk.'

Putting the depressing thoughts out of her mind for the moment, she also quickly dressed, wanting to return Hikari's call soon and let the rep know how it went. In Asuka's own unique way of telling this kind of story, that is.
-------
Hauling ass to an intended destination was one thing. But crossing a street without a white WALK light lit was just plain dumb, even to Shinji, who caught his breath while waiting at an intersection after a mad sprint for a block or two, followed by a slow walk to regain some stamina, after which came some light jogging, similar to what he had done earlier this morning.

Soon enough, the light appeared, and he crossed the street, feeling a bit desperate as he resumed his jog, despite burning pain in the fibers of his muscles. The young Ikari was fatigued, and he knew it. And yet, he dared not give up on his promise to Rei. He simply couldn't, and wouldn't. Not when it came to her.

Fortunately, his sprint, despite having winded him, did save him a few minutes, and eventually did he arrive at the hospital, out of breath as he passed the entry doors full of worry that the First Child had chosen to leave without him.

As he moved inside, he felt his legs give way and his body fall to the floor.

A force stopped him, however, as a pair of arms caught him and trembled in an effort to keep him up. Quickly, Shinji regained his feet and looked up to thank the person for the selfless good deed, only to see the crimson eyes that he had been hoping would be here, waiting for him.

Those same eyes gazed upon his own for a few moments before Rei let go of the boy. Afterward, Shinji's hands went to his knees and he bent over a bit and took heavy, deep breaths, feeling completely burned out.

Slowly, Rei knelt down and looked upward into his eyes again. "You are...tired."

"Yeah.." Shinji coughed out while taking a seat on a nearby bench. "I'm...sorry....I was....late.."

"What happened?" Rei automatically inquired. However, it quickly dawned on her that he needed to regain his breath first, so instead of waiting for an answer, she sat down on the bench next to him and observed his recovery, unaccustomed to ever having been in such a condition herself.

After many minutes passed, Shinji sat up and blinked his eyes a few times in attempting to adjust to the light of the hallway. He then turned his head to Rei and smiled, feeling better just by being around her. "I....I'm fine. I'll be ok now."

Ayanami nodded and stood up. "I am ready to go home now. Will you walk with me?"

The Third Child also got himself upright, though still feeling exhausted. "Of course, Rei."

This prompted the First Child to give him another small smile as they walked out the doors of the hospital, and on towards Rei's home.

Despite initial friendliness when the two pilots had encountered each other, conversation took a backseat to recuperation during the trip, as Shinji mostly concentrated on trying not to complain or cry out in pain, out of simple obligation to escort Rei home. Hence, he offered no resistance when Rei gently grasped his hand in her own and held onto it for a good amount of time, and although he initially felt rather embarrassed at the idea, once they had walked for a long while, it actually made Ikari feel at ease.

A little later, though, Shinji suddenly realized that Rei had asked him something earlier that he had failed to hear due to his fatigued state. "Umm, Rei..."

"What is it?" she replied, facing him without losing stride in their walk.

"Well," Shinji began, "I was just wondering...what did you ask me earlier?"

"I asked what had happened to cause you to arrive when you did."

"Oh!" Now he felt embarrassed and upset at himself. "Well...the lesson still went for two hours, like you would have done, but..."

"What?"

"...well, just like I was late in getting to you, Asuka was late when she met up with me. She forgot her suit."

"I...see."

"I'm terribly sorry, Rei....I didn't mean to be so late..." Shinji felt nearly ready to kick himself again for his tardiness.

"There is no need to apologize. You came, as you said you would."

"I..." Understanding that Rei was indeed correct in her statement, he breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you...for waiting for me."

"No."

Shinji turned his head to look at the First Child. "Huh?"

"I thank you...for walking with me."

"I...err....you're welcome," Shinji acknowledged, feeling his spirits lift just a bit again as he spotted her apartment building not far away from their current location.

"I suppose I should go home now..." Ikari started.

"You wish to separate?" Rei questioned.

"I...well...I don't want to intrude..."

"You have been within my quarters before without prior authorization."

"That was....I...umm..."

"You are welcome in my home, Shinji."

"I am?"

The red-eyed girl looked at him and smiled once more. "Yes."

"I....I feel very honored, Rei," Shinji replied with sincerity. It gave Ayanami a bit of an emotional boost to receive such a polite comment from a boy like the Unit-01 pilot.

Soon enough, the two children arrived at the aforementioned building, feeling anticipation as well as possible dread, knowing that they might have to part ways in a short amount of time.

Thankfully, neither one let go of the other. At least, not until they made their way to the door of the First Child's designated apartment, where Rei gently released her hold on Shinji's hand.

Nervously did the Third Child scratch his head. "I...I suppose I should be going now.."

"What for?"

"We-we're at your home, aren't we?"

"Yes." With that, Rei opened the door to her apartment and moved inside. "Please, enter."

Shinji felt a bit odd about this, as he had never received any sort of invitation in prior visits to her place, but nevertheless went along with it and stepped into the entrance, remembering enough manners to shut the door behind him and slip off his shoes before walking around on the floor.

"Are you not tired from earlier?" Ayanami inquired while removing her socks, revealing bare feet that struck Shinji as cute, though he didn't know why.

"Umm, well, yes..." That fact hadn't really left Shinji at all, as his body constantly reminded him of it through how heavy his lungs felt at the moment. But he had done his best to appear normal instead of fatigued, out of respect for Rei.

"You may rest here, if you like."

Shinji's eyes went wide from this remark. "Huh!?"

"Your body needs to regain its energies," Rei stated in a logical tone while gesturing to her bed. "You may lay here for a while and do so."

"I...I really don't want to intrude on your home, Rei..."

"It is not an intrusion, Shinji." The look in the girl's crimson eyes showed concern. "You must rest, so that your body feels less pain later."

"R-really?" Ikari wondered aloud while carefully approaching her as well as her bed, his cheeks turning red from remembering the first time he was here, and the incident that, to the best of his knowledge, he and Rei had kept between themselves.

'Although...,' he internally admitted to himself, 'it was the first time I'd ever touched a girl...but it was an accident, I swear!'

Though the Third Child's mind was panicking a bit, his body offered little resistance as he slowly laid down upon Rei's small bed. Feeling relief that he had finally accepted her offer, the First Child gave him a reassuring smile.

"I will be cleaning myself. If you need me, just call. In the meanwhile, just rest," Rei told the exhausted Shinji before stepping away to go and make good on her intended action. "I will wake you later."

Ayanami wasn't sure why, she just knew that the feeling of regenerating in a tube was highly different to that of a shower. Perhaps it was the fact that it was her home, or maybe the use of different chemicals. Either way, the shower, for some unnamed reason, felt more invigorating and pleasant.

Meanwhile, as Shinji laid his head down upon Rei's pillow, he tried to think of a way to fall asleep quickly, so he wouldn't toss and turn and possibly mess up the First Child's bed. His body, however, had other ideas, as he ended up out faster than a light in a few seconds, completely still.
-------
Night often took time to fall upon a city , but when it did, it showed no mercy in reducing visibility on the streets, save for artificial sources such as lamp posts, traffic lights, and whatever buildings had their internal lights still on at the time.

The idea gave Misato little comfort as she stepped out of an elevator and towards her apartment, one arm holding a 12-pack of beer. Truth be told, there had been little necessity for the drinks, her true desire being to avoid being caught in the middle of any conflicts with her two charges tonight, as she was feeling beat already, though she'd undoubtedly stay up for a few more hours to chug some of this alcohol, if nothing else.

Unsure of what might commence after, but deciding to suck it up and keep a cheery demeanor, the Major stepped inside, shut the door, and called, "Helloo-oo!"

She got no response, and as Misato headed inside and to the kitchen to drop off her drinks, she found out why, namely Asuka laying on the floor on her stomach, arms propping her up at the shoulders and her face aimed straight at the floor.

Misato set the 12-pack down and looked a bit closer. Normally, she might have believed Asuka to be sleeping in that position somehow, but the posture seemed too controlled. Closing in, she soon noticed also that the Second Child's eyes weren't closed at all, just blinking and with a definite emotion burning inside. What it was, Misato had no idea, but her caring instincts took over as she slowly placed a hand upon the redhead's shoulder and inquired, "Is everything okay?"

"No," Asuka spat out while keeping her eyes fixed to the carpeting, "everything isn't okay."

"Weren't you with Shinji today?" Misato wondered while caressing the girl's shoulder to try and comfort her, but she scoffed in disgust and shrugged the hand away.

"Was. Until that idiot ran off to see his precious Wondergirl. Bitch..." Needless to say, the anger in her voice was not only apparent, but greater than usual.

Figuring this was to take a while, Misato sat down next to the angry girl, slipping her jacket off and keeping her voice in as much of a friendly tone as possible.
"Why do you hate her so much, Asuka?"

The Second Child chose not to respond.

Misato continued her questions. "Is it because of how different she is in contrast to you?"

"She's just a doll that lacks a personality. And yet Shinji's with her...he always is with her instead of me..."

"You know that isn't true, Asuka. He does live here, right?"

"What does it matter? He only wants to see her anyway....jerk..."

Only then did a realization strike Misato, one that she should've seen earlier. "Asuka..." she asked in a curious voice, "...do you have feelings for Shinji?"

Asuka's immediate response was to push herself up, worry as well as a touch of hatred in her eyes. "Y-yes....no...I don't know, dammit...Misato, why do I feel like this?" As an afterthought, she added, "....I'm so disgusted with myself."

"You know you really don't mean that," Misato stated, "and there's nothing wrong with feeling the way you do."

"What do you mean there's nothing wrong with it!?! I shouldn't like a wimpy idiot like him..." Asuka complained.

The Major decided to try a different idea. "But you do. And that alone says that you know there's more than what you don't like about him. You see something that draws you to him. Why beat yourself up about it?" Of course, she somewhat regretted herself for saying this, in knowing she was being just a bit hypocritical, because she often kept Kaji at a distance for similar reasons, though also drastically different.

This, however, still failed to stop the German girl from sulking. "It's not like I have a chance anyway."

Now Misato's voice took on a more determined tone. "And just what makes you say that?"

"You've seen how he is. I'm always second string compared to Wondergirl! He probably doesn't even care what I think."

"You're wrong, Asuka. I'm certain that he does care about you. How, I don't know. But if you don't tell him, you might never know if he feels the same way."

"How could he ever feel the same way?" Asuka demanded, looking right into her superior's eyes. "I treat him like dirt."

"You can change that."

"He'd wonder what was wrong with me, and you know it."

Misato again tried to place her hand on the girl's shoulder and got a more positive response when she offered no resistance. "Please, just give it a shot. Speak from your heart. Ok?"

The Second Child sighed a bit with both anguish and relief. "Fine, I'll.......try." She then rolled onto her side, going back to zoning out with a blank stare.

That, at least, gave Misato some hope as she stood up, picked up the 12-pack and prepared to drink a couple in the kitchen. And although she was worried about Shinji, she had a feeling he would be home this evening.

After sitting at the table and opening the first can, the Major raised it as if toasting to herself. 'Here's to luck, love, and everything else that makes living great,' she thought to herself as she took her first gulp.

Once a short amount of time had passed, unknown to the purple-haired woman, Asuka found herself dazed and walking in a bit of a stupor towards her room.

'Idiot...even if I do feel that way,' she pondered while fighting off an urge to punch a wall, 'where the hell do I begin?'

It was then that the flame-haired girl stopped, seeing a sign on a door. The kanji called the room beyond the sliding door "Shinji's Lovely Suite". Oddly enough, she was rather curious about his room, so she opened the door as quietly as possible and stepped in.

Though she had occasionally been in here before, the Second Child never really had taken a good look. However, the result wasn't all that surprising. Aside from clothes, school supplies, and the SDAT on his bed, the room was devoid of personal objects. Of course, she knew the SDAT was his only true possession, seeing as how everything else was simply a necessity.

If nothing else, that music player was one of the few things that could tell her anything about him that she didn't already know, which helped her in deciding her course of action as she inserted herself under the sheets and slipped the earphones onto her ears, wondering how Shinji would react. In fact, Sohryu actually hoped that the boy would get pissed and yell at her. It would at least prove the existence of a backbone within his body.

'If I sleep like he does,' she deduced, 'maybe I can figure out something about how he works.'

Of course, Asuka's thoughts soon had little substance as she hit the play button on the SDAT and closed her eyes, falling asleep not long after the music began.
-------
Lost in darkness was the Third Child as he quietly slept, his thoughts filled with mixed feelings about both girls. On one hand, Rei Ayanami, oftentimes emotionless and silent, had shown at times an uncanny closeness to him that no one could match in hugging him and giving him the occasional smile, things she did with no other person. On the other hand, there was Asuka Langley Sohryu. Full of pride and what often seemed to be anger, yet also had a tender heart that was rarely seen by anyone but Shinji. In truth, he felt very lucky to be able to experience sides of both of them that no one else ever knew existed.

Unfortunately, this stream of thoughts dissipated and physical awareness took over, informing Shinji that he was being jostled on the shoulder. Quickly did his eyes open, blinking a few times to re-orient his vision as he slowly sat up, noticing how unusually darkened the room was. The second thing his eyes fell on was Rei, though his eyes immediately averted themselves from her once he noticed she was only clad in her usual white bra and panties. Had he not takes his gaze away, both pilots would have realized how red each others' cheeks were.

Shaking his head to try and clear some mental cobwebs, Ikari finally managed to get out, "It's dark in here."

"Yes, it is." The reply seemed rather flat.

"Why is it so dark...?" Shinji inquired as he did his best to adjust to the lack of any natural or artificial illumination.

Rei's only action was to look at the window and say, "Because night has fallen."

At that point, Shinji became alert quickly, scrambled out of the aqua-haired girl's bed and examined outside her window for himself. True to her word, the curtain of darkness had fallen upon Tokyo-3, and it made him panic a bit as he suddenly moved quickly towards his shoes.

"I'm sorry, Rei....I didn't mean to sleep for so long...Misato will be worried about me!"

Again, she gave a blank stare, but her response possessed a caring tone to it. "It is fine. She knows you are not in any danger."

"H-how can you be so certain?"

"Even when we are alone, we are watched over, to insure that we remain unharmed."

"NERV...my father...?"

"To protect out well-being as Eva pilots."

'It figures,' Shinji thought in a moment of depression. 'After all, he only said that he had called me because he had a use for me....'

Rei decided to take this opportunity to say something she believed might be hard. In fact, she had been debating it for the past few minutes before shaking him awake. But she also believed that she just couldn't let him leave without knowing, so she went right ahead and said it. "You look very peaceful when you are sleeping."

The remark halted Shinji in his tracks as a new feeling of warmth flooded his cheeks and fought a small, yet strong urge to cry. "What...?"

"No one's ever given me a compliment like that before. Thank you."

"You are welcome," Rei replied while giving him another smile.

The Third Child then slipped on his shoes and obtained his bag. In polite fashion, Ayanami accompanied him as he opened the door and took one last look at her. "Will I see you tomorrow?"

Rei then gave him a hug and kissed his cheek, despite how embarrassed Shinji was from it as she could easily tell from the incredible warmth she felt as her lips pursed upon his soft skin for but a moment or two before pulling back and looking into his eyes. She then nodded, an answer to soothe his mind, and blushed a bit more. "Goodbye, Shinji."

The brown-haired pilot smiled at her for once. "Farewell, Rei...."

Afterward, Shinji got moving, hoping that it wasn't late enough to the point where he'd lose any sleep or be late for school in the morning.
-------
Darkness often involved silence, because noise within an area where one could not see often provoked fear. Tonight was of little exception as Misato found herself still in a chair, staring at the lone beer can that had been opened. Unsure she was in regard to why she had failed to drink more than a single gulp since her talk with Asuka. Though, if her ears hadn't failed her not long after that gulp, she'd be thankful her instincts made her act accordingly.

Nor could she know how much time had passed since Asuka had left the living room, having kept her eyes on the beer and worrying about Shinji.

'I pray he's alright,' she hoped, knowing that she wouldn't rest until she knew the Third Child was either at home or somewhere safe. Indeed, she knew all too well that NERV security would keep an eye on him to make sure he stayed as alive and healthy as possible. But she also knew that being physically okay wasn't the whole deal, as one's mental well-being was also essential, and this was what worried her, since Shinji did have a lot of issues. As soon as she heard the entry door opening, though, her doubts slipped away, replaced by relief.

Shortly thereafter, her eyes noticed Ikari going past her towards his bedroom, apparently having failed to see her. "Shinji!" she called in a voice barely above a whisper.

It caught the Third Child's attention as he halted in his tracks and finally noticed his guardian at the table, slowly approaching her. "Is....everything alright, Misato?" he asked, also at a lowered volume, noting the 12-pack and the single opened beer.

"Yeah, I'm fine," the Major replied while sitting back in her chair, a bit of a change after having been hunched over staring at the beer for a long time, "just thinking."

"I'm headed for bed, then. Good night."

"Of course," Misato said as Shinji then walked away a bit. She then added, "You can always use the couch if you don't want to sleep in your room, you know?"

That remark struck the brown-haired boy as odd. "Umm, alright, but why do you say that?"

"Just thought I'd let you know. Remember what I told you before about this place?"

"I remember," Shinji replied. Indeed, he had thought her to be crazy when she had told him that he could take advantage of anything in the apartment (save for the Major, and now, he assumed, Asuka and her things), but he came to realize that it had been her way of starting a bond of trust and care between the two of them. If nothing else, Misato Katsuragi at least had always made him feel welcome at home, and he appreciated her for it.

"Have a restful evening," Misato offered before slowly taking the beer and beginning a long guzzle.

"You, too," the young Ikari responded before turning and leaving the kitchen.

Approaching his room, Shinji quietly slid his door panel open and moved as silently as possible, setting his bag down and nearing the bed, ready to just crash and get whatever sleep he possibly could.

As he prepared to law down upon it, the little bit of dull light coming in through his window caught his eye as it dimly became distorted, namely because there was already something, or in this case, someone in his bed. And it only took a few more seconds of looking with his night-adjusted eyes to know that it was Asuka, covered in his sheets, his earphones on her ears, snoozing soundly.

The sight made Shinji freeze up for several seconds as mixed emotions ran through his mind. Fear...curiosity...anguish...wonder...all these things presented themselves in the blink of an eye and faded away just as immediately as the Third Child took careful steps backward, closed his door, and moved in a bit of a stupor from the shock of his observation to the living room.

Upon making his way to the couch, Shinji felt glad in retrospect that Misato had somehow known about it, now seeing her pillow as well as her sheet laid out for him.

'I should really thank Misato for giving these up for me,' Ikari thought while feeling both gratefulness and guilt simultaneously. As he slid underneath the cover and positioned himself to lay on his back, the Unit-01 pilot could do little more than decide not to worry about what he had just seen and try to rest.

Fortunately, sleep for the boy came very quickly. Unfortunately, the erotic dreams he had been experiencing for the past few days were not there. In its place was a messed-up nightmare of thoughts, feelings, self-loathing, and self-doubt as his body tossed and thrashed about.

Somewhere deep down in Shinji Ikari's mind, a part of him prayed for a solution to resolve all this chaos. Only time would tell if such a solution would occur.
-------End of Chapter Four
Post-Chapter Author's Notes: Yeah, this one took even longer in time. Probably length, too. Each posting seems to have this habit. Writer's block, GTA: Vice City, Duel Monsters, and Kingdom Hearts are all to blame this time. I just have so many things I do so late at night! :-D

And, yes, it might possibly seem that Rei and Shinji's relationship may be developing a little too quickly but, then again, they did know each other to a decent extent before the story takes place. Plus, let's not forget that Rei eventually does wish to "become one with Ikari", as more or less shown when she says as much before making her noble sacrifice in destroying the 16th Angel.

Finally did I insert Commander Ikari in this story. I had to. You usually can't have any story where Rei deviates from her usual mannerisms and not have him notice or get involved in some way. Don't worry, he'll probably put in another appearance or two as I go.
Now, for some thoughts into the future...
-How will the mentally unstable Third Child react to the new development of Asuka Langley Sohryu sleeping in his bed?

-What exactly are the desires of each girl after Shinji's heart?

-Is the world meant to end soon, the first sign being Major Misato Katsuragi drinking only ONE beer?
More to occur in the next chapter: A Time For Faith

P.S.: I didn't know exactly what the tube was for in the series, though I'm guessing the liquid is LCL. I can only assume it was to aid in Rei's healing process. Hence, improvisation. Ain't it great?

P.P.S.: If I start in on the ranting now, I'll never get any sleep! ;-P