A/N: To all those who made reviews i thank you severly for your thoughts. I greatly enjoyed reading them. Now this chapter I will tell you I am not happy about AT ALL! The only reason I'm posting this chapter is because it's the first chapter (I think) from ANY of my stories that is written in the first person. More notably from Shinji's. I just wanted to try my hand at first person so go easy if it's not that enjoyable. Let me know what you think. P.S. I pray that I made their relationship a bit more attractive.

Now It's My turn

I can feel the sun beaming from the window and hitting my face. I can feel its heat and for the first time I enjoyed the feeling of it. At first I thought I was living a dream. That I would wake up a normal person in my room in Japan. No Evangelions, no Nerv. Just a normal person, then I felt the comfort of the cotton sheets touch my skin and it soon knocked me back into reality. Despite my bed being the most comfortable thing I ever felt the sinking feeling of my obligations as a Eva pilot trickled into my head. I shook it off quick. I just wanted to enjoy my surroundings just this once. I just wanted to savor the moment of being content.

I stir.

I feel something in my hand. I pry open an eyelid and to my stunned realization I see someone's fingers interlaced with my own. I slowly sit up and there is Asuka. She was sitting on the floor leaning against the head of my bed with her hand holding my own. To no surprise to you I'm completely confused. The last thing I remember was hugging her and after that we retreated to our own beds. We didn't go to sleep immediately despite both of us being tired. We just talked. We talked for hours actually. It wasn't about anything serious. We talked about life, nature, former celebrities and other meaningless things. I remember this because it was a conversation I found incredibly enjoyable but I don't remember where it ended. It was as if the conversation never ended and I slowly crept within the boundaries of sleep. When did she get out of bed? I must have been in a deep sleep if I didn't feel her grab my hand.

I leaned over and sure enough she was still fast asleep. She was cute I had to admit. I'm so used to her angry face that it's rather rare that I see her so serene. Kinda creepy too. I slowly slide my fingers from hers and I gently lower it to her lap. I didn't want to wake her. I quietly toss the sheets from my legs and stand. I look at the door and thought to leave but my eyes found their way down to her. I couldn't leave her on the floor. This was going to be tough.

I bend own and slowly slide my arm under the hinge of her legs. I then slide my other arm around her shoulders so I cradle her head. With some strength from my legs I bring her up and gently place her on my bed. Let me tell you something. Trying to lift a girl without making a noise is fricken difficult. I literally had to hold my breath while I did it and I could faintly hear my lungs screaming for a reason for my madness but I managed to do it.

I left the room and traveled down the hall and the moment I did so the aroma of something sweet struck my nose. I never smelled anything so heavenly and the closer I came to the source the stronger it became. By the time I entered the kitchen my mouth was sweating. I could see Nana cooking. She was a rather big woman now that I see her... and short. I didn't know my own grandparents and I began to wonder if they ever looked like that.

Nana must have sonic hearing because the moment my foot touched the kitchen interior she glanced at me.

"Ah, you're awake." she said cheerfully, "I made something I think you will enjoy. Where's your girlfriend?"

The word "girlfriend" perked my ears. I haven't even thought of such a scenario.

"No, she's not my girlfriend. We're just friends." I answer.

"You sure about that honey? That's not what it sounded like to me when we were talking." she says. I was halfway pulling out one of the table chairs when my heart jumped to my throat. Something about that sentence made me wonder.

"You and Asuka talked last night?" I asked. Nana nods at me as she pulls a plate to where I had begun to sit. My curiosity increased ten fold and right when I was about to ask about what Nana shook her head.

"Unfortunately I can't tell you. It's girl talk. You understand right?" she said coyly. My spirits actually fell when I heard this. Something in me wanted to know. I sat down when Nana said, "But I will say this. You two have much in common."

Tell me something I don't know, I thought. I look down at the plate in front of me and I can feel my lips form into a smile. It was a banquet and I loved it.

"Hey, Nana. What time is it?" I ask.

"It's nearly noon."

Noon? I slept until noon? Never done that before.

"Cider?"

"Yes, please."

She handed me a tall mug of the stuff and I immediately start indulging in its sweetness. As I drink another question pops into my head.

"Do you know when that lady is supposed to get back?"

"You mean Lilith? She said it would take her a few days to range for supplies. Oh. I'm glad you brought that up actually. Where are you headed after here anyway?" she asked.

"Well, I'm an Eva pilot."

I could have sworn I saw fumble with a dish from the corner of my eye.

"Oh? Interesting." was all that she said. I then heard a set of footsteps from down the hall. I look over and see Asuka coming towards the kitchen, her face plain and her movements sluggish. She must still be tired.

"Aw, honey, you look dreadful! Why don't you go back to sleep and I'll wake you later on? I'll even safe some breakfast for you." said Nana as she began pouring foodstuffs into a transparent container. Asuka shook her head.

"No, I'm fine. Just not a morning person." she yawned. At this point I can feel a different vibe radiating off of her. There was no hostility like there was before. Just calmness. She came around the table and instead of sitting on the opposite end of the table where she usually sits when we are eating at the same time she sat beside me. I glance at her face and she seems totally unaware... either that or she's really good at hiding her intentions. Nana seemed to notice as she gathered Asuka's plate. She could only smile as she handed it to her and I just found it odd. I was already half done with my plate when Nana sat down across from us holding a mug of coffee.

As I continued to eat I could feel the old woman staring. I didn't mind it at first and I assumed neither did Asuka because she didn't say a word. Then suddenly... Nana started to laugh.

I looked up and immediately my gaze met Asuka's as we mentally tried to figure out the reason for the sudden laughter.

"Oh my! You two remind me of my late husband and I when we were young." she said as she took in a breath to laugh once more. Asuka and I looked at each other again seemingly unable to make the connection.

"You two look so serious. Lighten up, you look like old people." she said with a grand smile. Asuka let out a chuckle. I couldn't help but smirk.

About twenty minutes later when both Asuka and I were well fed Nana came to us and asked us to head north to collect some wood for her stove. This was the first time I realized that her stove ran on wood. Then again, the many candles she had should have given it away. Asuka and I got dressed but we were confused by the clothes Nana handed to us. They were thick. A sweater? A scarf? What for? When I asked her about this she merely told me to go outside. I did so but the moment I did a chilling wind struck a patch of exposed flesh and I immediately jump back into the house. Embarrassment revealed on my face.

"I tol' you." she laughed, "It gets pretty cold up here."

After we dressed, Asuka and I headed out. I hadn't noticed the temperature change. As we headed north (or whatever direction Nana pointed out to us) I began to notice the colors. The trees were tall but everything was red, light brown and yellow. I never seen so many colors. I look over to Asuka and she too was mesmerized by the sheer brightness of these colors. Even though the sky was at overcast I still felt a sense of joy seeing all of it.

"Shinji?" I hear Asuka say. I look over to her.

"Isn't it pretty?" she stated. I nod my head.

"It is."

As we venture deeper into the forest the ground began to be covered with the bright colored leaves. The silence of the forest was peaceful and the only thing I could hear was the crunching of leaves under our feet.

"Think fast." I heard Asuka say. I turn and suddenly I see a layer of leaves being tossed into my face. It catches me off guard and all I fall backward but thankfully the leaves that were already on the ground were thick enough to suffer the fall. I blink and smile as I see Asuka running away with her tongue sticking out towards me. She wasn't going to get away with that.

I start the chase.

We run.

Trees whip past me. The sound of leaves crunching underneath our hurried footsteps is all I can hear... that... and Asuka's laughter. I go into a sprint and so does she. I can feel a cool wind fill my cheeks as I run and the fresh scent of pine made my heart feel free. She's pretty fast, I thought.

"Catch me, Shinji!" she calls back in a playful tone. An even bigger smile spreads across my lips and I force myself to run faster. I wasn't going to let her get away.

I have no idea how long we ran for but that didn't matter to me. I just kept my eye on her and once she began to turn around a tree I saw my chance. Instead of following her I cut through several bushes. I guess she thought she lost me because when I emerged from the other side she didn't see me and inevitably collided with me.

Then we fell.

We tumbled down the side of a hill, multicolored leaves being kicked up into the air and the sound of us laughing as we took turns rolling over each other. It was like we were children having fun without a care in the world. I never felt this in my life. I was having fun... with Asuka. Moments later after the momentum of the fall had left us I found myself on my back and Asuka on top of me. Wait... she was on top of me?

I look up and our eyes meet. Her light blue eyes staring innocently into my own. Was she going to say anything?

She laughs.

She laughs so hard that tears began to form at the base of her eyes and trust me... laughing is contagious. I start to laugh and that only exacerbates our laughter. In seconds, Asuka and I are laughing hysterically. We laugh so hard that we didn't realize we had our hands around each other in a slight embrace.

Then the laughter fades and all that is left is our smiles. Our eyes meet again. I can feel her rushing heartbeat on my chest. I can feel her breathing. Then something comes over me. My mind is no longer telling me what to do. As of now I could only watch. I saw my hand slowly reach up to the side of her face. My fingers touch lightly against her pale cheek and I can see her eyes looking to where my hand is. I thought for a moment that she would hit me but that moment never came. Her eyelids lower slightly and then I felt her own fingers caress my cheek. We don't say a word.

She examines my face. I can tell by the way her eyes our darting around my features. She must have been thinking about something. I do the same but I'm not thinking. I'm merely enjoying this moment, that is until, I saw something white float onto her nose. We both sit up and she quickly wipes the flake off only to have it melt in her hand. Then another flake of white fell. Then another... then another... and another.

We both look up.

The sky was full of the white flakes.

"What's happening?" I whisper. At this point Asuka is smiling as she wipes a cluster of white flakes from her brow. She looks at me. She is beautiful.

"It's snowing." she tells me. I look up and lift my hands to catch the cold flakes. So this was snow? I never seen anything like it. It was like a whole new world. White began to blanket the leaves erasing the colors. It was like it was erasing the past. It was like a new beginning.

I feel a pair of hands wrapping themselves around me from behind. I look over my shoulder and there is Asuka. Her head on my shoulder. I sit completely still afraid that if I move I might somehow betray her trust. It's still snowing.

"Shinji?" I hear her say.

"Yeah, Asuka?" I whisper. I feel her squeeze.

"You and I are in this together, right?" she said. I nod but then I feel her squeeze harder before she says, "I want you to say it."

"We are in this together." I say.

"Do you think we're going to die?" she says. I look up into the air and let snowflakes land on my lips. I couldn't find myself to give her an answer. How do you answer a question like that?

"Answer me..." she softly demands.

"I don't know Asuka."

"You never know do you?" she asks.

"I just don't want to lie to you." I say.

"Why not? You won't even do it just to make me feel better?"

"Make you feel better? What do you mean?" I ask. She doesn't say anything at first but then she gives my torso a light squeeze and finally says, "I'm scared."

I'm scarred too. I don't know what's going to happen days from now, weeks from now or maybe even months. We could die. We might live. I don't know. But I had her. I had Asuka and if I had her by my side it really didn't matter to me if I did die. At least I would go knowing I had someone at my side at the end.

"Shinji, look at me." I hear her say. I do. I turn to her. Snow still falling around us. She looks down at her lap and then at me. A face looks at me. A face that I never have seen. It was a face of understanding.

"No more fighting." she says.

''Huh?"

"I will not fight with you anymore. We can't spend our time arguing."

"I know."

"But you have to be strong. You can't keep acting like your a wimp." she also added.

I only nod my head.

"Shinji, am I a bad person?"

"No, Asuka. You're not."

"Then it's agreed. We finish it. The angels. When we get back to our Eva's, we fight." she said.

"Yeah, I won't run away."

"You'll fight with me?"

"Yeah, I will fight with you." I say.

"... till the end?" she whispers.

Snow continues to fall.

"I'll fight with you to the end, Asuka."

"You mean it?"

"I mean it."

"Do... do you have feelings for me?"

I look at her. My heart begins to race. Despite the question being almost from left field I knew she was asking this to validate my trust in her.

"Asuka," I begin with a sigh, "You are someone... someone that I wanted to be for so long. You are everything I'm not and I always admired that. We've been together for so long. You and I both know I don't have to answer that question because you know my answer."

"Close your eyes, Shinji." she tells me, her tone firm. Soon enough I can feel her breath on my lips and then I feel, her lips, on mine.

To feel her lips on mine was like an experience no other. I felt loved. I felt safe. I felt her hands close around my face and she deepened the connection. My legs... they feel weak.

This told me everything. I learned on that day. On that fateful day that Asuka and I had no more barriers. We had nothing to hide. I couldn't tell the feeling that this was love. I never really felt this passionate towards another person before.

I wrap my hands around her waist and I felt her shiver under my touch.

The snow was falling harder now.

The forest was silent.

Our lips intertwined.

She mumbles something to me.

And I mumble it back.

I didn't know it then.

But whenever I remember that moment and I know I heard her say...

I love you.

A/N: Well like i said im not happy with this chapter. Maybe because I'm not very experienced writing in the first person but I tried right :) ? Anyway tell me if you think I should bring more first person views into the story because I know from first hand writing in the third person could sometimes be bland right? Alright see ya latr!