DISCLAIMER - I'm not sure why I even need to do this. It's pretty obvious that I don't own Neon Genesis Evangelion or any of the characters portrayed within my little fanfiction here. If I did, you'd all be watching this on the television instead of reading it on your PCs.
Coming Closer. A Neon Genesis Evangelion fanfiction by Richard Abraham
Chapter 2 - New feelings
Consciousness was, at least for this morning, a hard fought for prize, with Shinji only gradually rousing from his slumber. As he started his ascent from unconsciousness, his physical senses started coming online one by one.
His taste buds were screaming that he had a terrible case of morning breath.
His sense of smell agreed with this and added that he reeked of dried perspiration.
His sense of touch informed him of several aches and pains that seemed to have been brought about by his uncomfortable sleeping position. Also, his arm was numb from having a weight of some sort lying over it, and there was a tingling sensation caused by someone's breath washing over his face.
The morning start-up routine was abruptly cancelled as the brain finally processed the last lot of information. Suspicions forming in his mind, Shinji slowly opened his eyes. Recognition dawned and he had to choke down a scream as he tried to scramble out of the futon.
The escape attempt was doomed to failure given that his right arm was firmly pinned underneath the sleeping mass of his bed-partner.
Not five inches in front of his face was the vision of a sleeping Misato Katsuragi. For a frantic moment, Shinji desperately tried to kick-start his brain into remembering the events of the previous night. Thankfully, it only took a moment for the memories to surface.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shinji was guiding a physically and emotionally exhausted Misato towards her room. It was becoming increasingly difficult for the youth to support her, as she seemed to be drifting further and further into unconsciousness as they walked.
By the time Shinji had manoeuvred her into her room, she was virtually asleep on her feet. This, of course, meant that she was a dead weight in his arms, making movement awkward for Shinji. He tried to gently lay his guardian on her futon, however, it proved to be too awkward and he ended up slipping, falling on the futon himself and bringing Misato down with him.
Shinji, having deemed his task complete (despite the less than graceful ending), and being exhausted himself from the effort of carrying Misato, decided to retreat back to his own bedroom. Unfortunately, with his right arm currently trapped beneath her body, and his guardian refusing to shift her position, it would have proven impossible to escape without disturbing Misato. Resignedly, Shinji succumbed to the realm of unconsciousness.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shinji pondered over these memories, and the memories of the incident leading to them. There was a sick knot of tension in Shinji's gut as a suspicion solidified in his mind that would explain what had happened to upset Misato so badly. He wondered if he should get Misato to talk about it. He rejected the notion, for the moment. After all, they say ignorance is bliss, and if she didn't say it, maybe Shinji was wrong.
All of these thoughts were pushed aside however, when his attention was drawn to the firm and gradually increasing pressure in his bladder.
Okay! Time to go!
Shinji managed to carefully wriggle his arm free from the prison of Misato's weight without disturbing her. Upon standing up, he dashed to the bathroom somewhat more hastily than could be deemed dignified had anyone seen him. Not that this would have been of any concern for the boy.
After relieving himself, then bathing, Shinji noticed that the morning was getting on a bit. His stomach noticed too and decided it was time to remind Shinji of its currently empty status.
Shinji didn't mind cooking. In fact, he quite enjoyed it. So it was with a content smile that Shinji set about preparing a simple breakfast for himself and his guardian.
Guardian. After last night, that term seemed to be a little lacking. Last night had been a turning point in the relationship between the two. Shinji was pretty nervous about it. After all, he had never been as close to any one as he was with Misato. Not since his mother's death.
He was just starting to get wrapped up in thoughts over the exact nature of his relationship with Misato, when the aforementioned woman shambled into the kitchen. Shinji immediately noticed her arrival and turned round to greet her:
"Hello Misato." A short hesitation, "Are... are you feeling any better?"
Misato paused in her tracks and looked into her young charge's eyes. She saw concern for her there, and sympathy, and something else that her sleep addled brain couldn't recognise:
"Yeah. A little." She smiled. A tiny, fragile, yet sincere smile that Shinji had never seen before, "Thank you Shinji."
Shinji returned her smile with more joy and less restraint, which meant that it spread over his entire face. He put their breakfasts on the table and the two of them ate in companionable silence.
Misato had had to leave for her work shift soon after breakfast had been finished. Shinji had suggested that she should take the day off but, while she had hesitated for a few seconds, Misato eventually said that she had something important to do. Thus Shinji had spent the afternoon either catching up on the vast volumes of homework he had accrued, or watching nature documentaries on the TV with Pen Pen.
Around 5 p.m., Shinji heard the main door open and shut, shortly followed by the sound of footsteps approaching the living room. Thinking that it was Misato returning slightly early from her shift, Shinji called out a greeting as he turned to face the door:
"Welcome home Misato!"
"Wrong dumkopf!"
Uh oh. Asuka sounded as if she was still angry with him. Apparently, Asuka hadn't taken her defeat by the fourteenth angel very well. As usual, it was Shinji that she vented her frustrations on.
When he had first arrived back at the apartment after his month long absence, she had barely waited until the front door had closed before cornering him.
As usual, it had started off with a couple of caustic comments. Before Shinji could even get a word in, it quickly became an all out 'Shinji bashing', only one step away from physical violence. Unfortunately for Shinji, Misato had only stuck around to drop him off before heading back to NERV. With no one to intervene, the argument between the two lasted almost fifteen minutes before Asuka's voice grew hoarse and she stormed off to her room. Since then, she had spent quite a bit of time at Hikari's house.
Judging by the current look on his roommate's face, tonight was going to go much the same way:
"Uh. Hi Asuka. Sorry about that."
Asuka snorted disgustedly at the display of weakness from the boy:
"Still snivelling, eh Third Child?"
"What? No!"
"Please." Asuka's voice was full of scorn and she wrinkled up her nose in an exaggerated display of disgust, "I can't believe that the invincible Shinji Ikari is such a spineless wimp."
"Stop it Asuka. Why are you doing this?" Shinji was confused and growing more upset at Asuka's behaviour by the second.
"Tell me Shinji. If you hate piloting so much, why did you come back to save the day, hmm?"
Asuka's voice was dangerously saccharine, the tone dripping with poisoned honey. Shinji recognised this on some level, but was too flustered to even attempt to dodge the loaded question:
"I... I saw you and Rei. I thought you were hurt and... I, uh... I couldn't just watch it destroy everything. And then... when I was in the Eva. I remembered what it did to you, and I knew I had to kill it. I had to ..."
Asuka's face darkened with rage:
"So the hero rushes in to save his helpless little women?"
"What? N..."
Suddenly, Shinji was off the couch and flat on his back on the floor. Asuka's face hovered just above his own, the expression promising death should he open his mouth:
"Let me make this clear to you Third Child. I don't need or want help from a spineless little twerp who can't even control his own Eva. And I don't want your goddamn pity!"
Asuka glared right into Shinji's eyes, her breath ragged from her outburst and throat hurting from the volume she had demanded from her voice box. She again snorted in disgust, stood up and stomped out of the room.
Shinji just lay there on the floor. Asuka had touched a nerve. She had virtually called him useless. Tears burned at the corners of Shinji's eyes. Whispering softly, a broken boy confesses:
"I just wanted to protect you."
-Fin-
Authors notes
I'm not sure if it's just the exhaustion catching up with me, but I couldn't find as many errors to correct on this chapter.
Although I've almost finished the next (and last) chapter, I'm not very confidant of its quality.
Thanks for your time.
Richard.
Coming Closer. A Neon Genesis Evangelion fanfiction by Richard Abraham
Chapter 2 - New feelings
Consciousness was, at least for this morning, a hard fought for prize, with Shinji only gradually rousing from his slumber. As he started his ascent from unconsciousness, his physical senses started coming online one by one.
His taste buds were screaming that he had a terrible case of morning breath.
His sense of smell agreed with this and added that he reeked of dried perspiration.
His sense of touch informed him of several aches and pains that seemed to have been brought about by his uncomfortable sleeping position. Also, his arm was numb from having a weight of some sort lying over it, and there was a tingling sensation caused by someone's breath washing over his face.
The morning start-up routine was abruptly cancelled as the brain finally processed the last lot of information. Suspicions forming in his mind, Shinji slowly opened his eyes. Recognition dawned and he had to choke down a scream as he tried to scramble out of the futon.
The escape attempt was doomed to failure given that his right arm was firmly pinned underneath the sleeping mass of his bed-partner.
Not five inches in front of his face was the vision of a sleeping Misato Katsuragi. For a frantic moment, Shinji desperately tried to kick-start his brain into remembering the events of the previous night. Thankfully, it only took a moment for the memories to surface.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shinji was guiding a physically and emotionally exhausted Misato towards her room. It was becoming increasingly difficult for the youth to support her, as she seemed to be drifting further and further into unconsciousness as they walked.
By the time Shinji had manoeuvred her into her room, she was virtually asleep on her feet. This, of course, meant that she was a dead weight in his arms, making movement awkward for Shinji. He tried to gently lay his guardian on her futon, however, it proved to be too awkward and he ended up slipping, falling on the futon himself and bringing Misato down with him.
Shinji, having deemed his task complete (despite the less than graceful ending), and being exhausted himself from the effort of carrying Misato, decided to retreat back to his own bedroom. Unfortunately, with his right arm currently trapped beneath her body, and his guardian refusing to shift her position, it would have proven impossible to escape without disturbing Misato. Resignedly, Shinji succumbed to the realm of unconsciousness.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shinji pondered over these memories, and the memories of the incident leading to them. There was a sick knot of tension in Shinji's gut as a suspicion solidified in his mind that would explain what had happened to upset Misato so badly. He wondered if he should get Misato to talk about it. He rejected the notion, for the moment. After all, they say ignorance is bliss, and if she didn't say it, maybe Shinji was wrong.
All of these thoughts were pushed aside however, when his attention was drawn to the firm and gradually increasing pressure in his bladder.
Okay! Time to go!
Shinji managed to carefully wriggle his arm free from the prison of Misato's weight without disturbing her. Upon standing up, he dashed to the bathroom somewhat more hastily than could be deemed dignified had anyone seen him. Not that this would have been of any concern for the boy.
After relieving himself, then bathing, Shinji noticed that the morning was getting on a bit. His stomach noticed too and decided it was time to remind Shinji of its currently empty status.
Shinji didn't mind cooking. In fact, he quite enjoyed it. So it was with a content smile that Shinji set about preparing a simple breakfast for himself and his guardian.
Guardian. After last night, that term seemed to be a little lacking. Last night had been a turning point in the relationship between the two. Shinji was pretty nervous about it. After all, he had never been as close to any one as he was with Misato. Not since his mother's death.
He was just starting to get wrapped up in thoughts over the exact nature of his relationship with Misato, when the aforementioned woman shambled into the kitchen. Shinji immediately noticed her arrival and turned round to greet her:
"Hello Misato." A short hesitation, "Are... are you feeling any better?"
Misato paused in her tracks and looked into her young charge's eyes. She saw concern for her there, and sympathy, and something else that her sleep addled brain couldn't recognise:
"Yeah. A little." She smiled. A tiny, fragile, yet sincere smile that Shinji had never seen before, "Thank you Shinji."
Shinji returned her smile with more joy and less restraint, which meant that it spread over his entire face. He put their breakfasts on the table and the two of them ate in companionable silence.
Misato had had to leave for her work shift soon after breakfast had been finished. Shinji had suggested that she should take the day off but, while she had hesitated for a few seconds, Misato eventually said that she had something important to do. Thus Shinji had spent the afternoon either catching up on the vast volumes of homework he had accrued, or watching nature documentaries on the TV with Pen Pen.
Around 5 p.m., Shinji heard the main door open and shut, shortly followed by the sound of footsteps approaching the living room. Thinking that it was Misato returning slightly early from her shift, Shinji called out a greeting as he turned to face the door:
"Welcome home Misato!"
"Wrong dumkopf!"
Uh oh. Asuka sounded as if she was still angry with him. Apparently, Asuka hadn't taken her defeat by the fourteenth angel very well. As usual, it was Shinji that she vented her frustrations on.
When he had first arrived back at the apartment after his month long absence, she had barely waited until the front door had closed before cornering him.
As usual, it had started off with a couple of caustic comments. Before Shinji could even get a word in, it quickly became an all out 'Shinji bashing', only one step away from physical violence. Unfortunately for Shinji, Misato had only stuck around to drop him off before heading back to NERV. With no one to intervene, the argument between the two lasted almost fifteen minutes before Asuka's voice grew hoarse and she stormed off to her room. Since then, she had spent quite a bit of time at Hikari's house.
Judging by the current look on his roommate's face, tonight was going to go much the same way:
"Uh. Hi Asuka. Sorry about that."
Asuka snorted disgustedly at the display of weakness from the boy:
"Still snivelling, eh Third Child?"
"What? No!"
"Please." Asuka's voice was full of scorn and she wrinkled up her nose in an exaggerated display of disgust, "I can't believe that the invincible Shinji Ikari is such a spineless wimp."
"Stop it Asuka. Why are you doing this?" Shinji was confused and growing more upset at Asuka's behaviour by the second.
"Tell me Shinji. If you hate piloting so much, why did you come back to save the day, hmm?"
Asuka's voice was dangerously saccharine, the tone dripping with poisoned honey. Shinji recognised this on some level, but was too flustered to even attempt to dodge the loaded question:
"I... I saw you and Rei. I thought you were hurt and... I, uh... I couldn't just watch it destroy everything. And then... when I was in the Eva. I remembered what it did to you, and I knew I had to kill it. I had to ..."
Asuka's face darkened with rage:
"So the hero rushes in to save his helpless little women?"
"What? N..."
Suddenly, Shinji was off the couch and flat on his back on the floor. Asuka's face hovered just above his own, the expression promising death should he open his mouth:
"Let me make this clear to you Third Child. I don't need or want help from a spineless little twerp who can't even control his own Eva. And I don't want your goddamn pity!"
Asuka glared right into Shinji's eyes, her breath ragged from her outburst and throat hurting from the volume she had demanded from her voice box. She again snorted in disgust, stood up and stomped out of the room.
Shinji just lay there on the floor. Asuka had touched a nerve. She had virtually called him useless. Tears burned at the corners of Shinji's eyes. Whispering softly, a broken boy confesses:
"I just wanted to protect you."
-Fin-
Authors notes
I'm not sure if it's just the exhaustion catching up with me, but I couldn't find as many errors to correct on this chapter.
Although I've almost finished the next (and last) chapter, I'm not very confidant of its quality.
Thanks for your time.
Richard.