"Thy soul shall find itself alone..."

Several minutes had passed, during which Shinji had been forced to bear the uncomfortable scrutiny of his father, who had said nothing further after ordering him to sit down. Shinji felt no need to break the nasty silence that now lay between them, for the very good reason that he might upset Gendo, who looked agitated enough as it was. The tension only grew thicker with each passing minute, jarring his already frayed nerves.

Losing control, however, was the last thing he intended to do in this situation. If he let slip and showed any weakness, his father would immediately know and use it to his advantage. Gendo excelled at sensing emotions, and had no qualms about using them to play with Shinji's already tormented mind. Not if by doing so he could get what he wanted.

"Do you know why I've called you here?" First move was his father's.

"No, sir." His father never had contact with him at school. It was one of the few things he was grateful for.

"So you have no idea as to why you're here?" A hint of irritation now.

"No, sir." Where was this going?

"I see. You know, I would have thought that you of all people, Shinji, would have realized by now that it's pointless trying to deceive me." His father got up.

"What?" Shinji was becoming alarmed. His father had already gotten around the desk and was moving toward him.

"Come now, don't act so surprised. You knew you were going to get caught sooner or later, it was simply a matter of time." The white gloves were slowly being stripped off.

"I really don't know what you're talking abo..." Shinji's response was cut off in mid-sentence by the swift overturning of his chair, his head landing on the rough surface of the floor. His father loomed above him.

"Shut up." The chair was kicked aside, leaving the way clear for Gendo to come down hard upon Shinji's stomach, his shoe biting into the flimsy cloth of the uniform.

"F-Father, please..." His stomach had always been a sensitive area, the result being that the pain coming from the leather sole was excruciating.

"I thought I told you to shut up." Gendo's free shoe found its way to Shinji's face.

Shinji whimpered, but said nothing. His father smirked and relaxed his hold, leaving Shinji gasping.

"Now then, shall I tell you why you're here?" Shinji slowly nodded, desperately trying not to show fear.

"Very well. Several weeks ago, some very interesting news was brought to my attention, interesting in that it concerned you. At the time, I placed little importance on it, believing it to be an isolated incident and nothing more. Imagine my surprise, then, when I found out that what had transpired was occurring daily, and indeed, seemed to be happening with greater and greater frequency. Do you know what I'm referring to, Shinji?"

A pause. Then a slight shaking of the head.

"Really. Tell me, Shinji, who is Nagisa Kaworu?"

Shinji's eyes widened in horror. How...!

"I seem to have struck a nerve."

With that said, Gendo promptly reached into his back pocket and drew out a small switchblade, its gleaming surface apparent from where even Shinji lay. He bent down closer so as to be only inches away from Shinji's terrified face.

"Would you care to explain now?" His tone was mocking, cruel amusement pervading every word. The time had come for Shinji to crack.

"My...friend...He's my friend..." The mixture of pain and terror were making it very hard for him not to lose consciousness. His eyes lay focused on the blade, watching its slow descent. It kept getting closer...

"Liar." The tip of the blade was now touching his cheek, its coldness burning against flushed skin.

"But I'm not..." Once again he was cut off, though this time the pain was greater. His father had suddenly slashed across his face, leaving a long, narrow wound upon his cheek. He could smell the blood already.

"Don't try my patience. Nagisa is an upperclassman, and, from what I understand, extremely popular among the students. So why does he always spend so much time with you? You two seem to have gotten rather close over recent weeks. It's an unexpected and rather sudden move on Nagisa's part, which leads me to suspect that something occurred between the two of you. What happened, Shinji?"

Silent tears streamed down Shinji's face, water mixing with blood.

"Do you know what I think happened, Shinji? I think you let Nagisa have his way with you. Yes, he fucked you good, didn't he? I guess Nagisa knows a good thing when he sees it because he hasn't left your side for weeks, apparently enjoying the "pleasure" of your company. And being what you are, I'm sure you enjoyed every minute of it, you filthy little whore."

"Do you still love me, Mother?'"

"Get up." Gendo grabbed his collar and raised him off the floor. He barely had time to stand on his shaky legs when his face was slammed into the wall, the blood of his wound smearing across it.

"Listen to me." His father's voice lay very close to his ear. "If I catch you anywhere near Nagisa from now on, this will seem positively tame compared to what I'll do. Do you understand?"

"Y-Yes..."

"Good. Now get out."

Slowly, painfully, Shinji made his way to the door, his vision blurred by tears. His exit was interrupted however, when his father spoke again.

"And tell Rei she can come inside now." The unstained gloves were being put back into place.

He nodded, and opened the door onto a painfully bright hall, his eyes having been weakened by the unlit office. Ayanami stood quietly a few steps away, her red eyes turning their gaze upon him. Had she heard?

Too exhausted for words, Shinji weakly motioned towards the door. Catching on, Ayanami swept by him without a word and shut the door, leaving him alone once again.

Rest. He had to get home so that he could rest. But how was he to get there in his condition? Night was already falling, andthe smell of rain was in the air.But he had no choice in the matter. Gritting his teeth, Shinji slowly made his way to the gates, brushing past them onto the dark streets. In this bleak andbitter landscape, Kaworu's smile seemed so very far away.