Chapter 7 – The Edge of the Water
Mana walked into the office precisely at 4:00 PM, May 23 2018. As she did, the middle-aged man who had been reading a cheap-looking paperback threw open one of the drawers of his wooden desk and threw the book in before sitting up in his leather chair and threading his fingers expectantly. But Mana wasn't looking at him. She stopped just inside the doorway and examined the room – like so many others she had been in, it had the various knick-knacks (a model wooden frigate, an outdated globe, a bookcase filled with important-looking titles) and other accoutrements she had come to expect.
At the man's cough, she finally turned her eyes to him. Balding, but with the remnants of his hair combed over (a dull red plastic comb sticks out of his breast pocket), glasses she could tell he didn't actually need, and on his face all she could see was a fake smile. Great. He stood up from his chair.
"Ahh, Miss Kirishima, it's good to, ahh, meet you." He extended his hand, but Mana walked past it and sat down in the massive padded chair in front of his desk. He ran with it, and sat back down.
"I am, ahh, Dr. Kouda," Mana folded her arms across her chest, but was silent.
"I understand that, ahh," he checked the manila folder he had neglected earlier, "you've had some, ahh, difficulties, with respect to some past psychologists and counselors." He looked back up at Mana, but still she said nothing.
"Well, I hope we are able to, you know, make a good working relationship here. I did, ahh, look through your file before, but I tend to let my patients, ahh you know, start off the exchange," he made a few hand gestures to try and clarify, "to start, ahh, with any outstanding issues or concerns you might have at this present time. But just, ahh, start wherever you'd like." With that he leaned forward, resting his elbows on the desk.
Mana stared at him with practiced indifference. She saw him pull out a small pad and began jotting notes on it. For a few minutes, nothing changed. But after a while Mana could see Kouda's eyes narrow behind his glasses. The air in the room would flutter through Kouda's wispy strands of gray hair.
She kept silent. He wrote down more. Every so often he would take his comb and put it back into position, for the air conditioning to blow it around again.
After nearly an hour, she could tell he was flabbergasted. Mana checked her watch, and stood up from the chair quickly.
"Ahh, Miss-" Kouda was cut off by Mana.
"I have been ordered to come here for an hour each week by my commanding officer. I will do that, and no more. I do not need your help, I do not need your analysis. I know what's wrong with me, and I've spent my life with it all, not you. Now goodbye." He stared at her with his mouth slightly open as she turned around and opened the door. But before she left she ducked her head back in and yelled.
"And combs are for people with hair!"
With that she slammed the door shut.
Mana walked out of the building into the afternoon air, a marked change from the air conditioning inside. Louder, too. A decent crowd of people swirled around her in downtown Tokyo-3. She cursed her outburst. She had done so well keeping herself composed until then, why did it have to slip at the very tail end?
She was about to start walking towards the train station when she heard her name called. She looked ahead of her and saw Shinji's face bobbing up and down as he weaved through the crowd towards her. As he got to her she raised an eyebrow.
"I thought you were going to go home?" she asked. He put a finger up as he caught his breath. She grabbed his hand and they walked down a few side streets to get away from the crowds. She stopped and spun around to face him.
"Well," Shinji said, "I thought I would do that, but then I thought I should, uhm, stick around to, see how it..." Mana could see he was realizing what he was saying, but couldn't find a way out, "...you know, went."
Mana swallowed. "It- it was..."
'It was fine,' was what she wanted to say, so they could both forget about it and have a semi-decent evening together. If she could just put it behind her, she could focus on Shinji, not-
"It went pretty bad," Mana said. She screwed her eyes shut, immensely glad they had gotten away from other people.
"Mana," she heard him say, "you've already been to two others in 6 months-"
"I know, Shinji!" she yelled, finally opening her eyes. "I know how many damn psychs I've been to!" That was a mistake. She stared in his eyes, expecting him to be scared away. Instead, he grabbed her hands and pulled her close.
"Sorry," he said to her left ear, "I know it's been stressful." He stroked his thumbs up and down the tops of her hands. Mana slowly felt the tension drop off of her shoulders.
"I'm just so sick of all the bullshit," Mana said quietly.
"I know you are."
The two stood there for a few minutes, until both heard Shinji's stomach growl. Mana pulled back and smiled. "How 'bout we get some dinner?" In her mind she had her heart set on a small ramen place she had found a few weeks earlier. She could almost taste the broth-boiled egg.
"How about I make some dinner?" Shinji countered.
"Ooh," Mana purred, her interest quickly shifting, "does Shinji want to get lucky tonight?" She danced her fingers along his shoulders. He just smiled back. He took her by the hand and they walked to the train.
A few hours later, the two lay on the couch in Misato's apartment, not watching the late-night news.
"Shinji?" Mana said. She felt him shuffle behind her.
"Yeah?"
Mana paused for a few seconds. "Why are you so good to me?"
Mana felt him chuckle in confusion. "I- I guess... that's just how I am," he said. She felt him kiss the top of her head.
It wasn't the right answer, but Mana tried to ignore that. She took some slow, deep breaths, and turned around on the couch with a wicked smile.
"So, does my Shinji still want to get lucky?"
Mana followed Shinji's car as it led back towards Tokyo-3 from the cemetery. She was lucky, Shinji stayed on the outskirts of the city as he went to the cafe, avoiding the horrific traffic Mana had seen in the downtown area. Instead she found herself going down quiet suburban streets, with groups of schoolkids wandering home from their clubs occasionally getting in her way.
After about 20 minutes, she saw him slow down and stop his car on the opposite side of the street of a small storefront. There was the place. Mana stopped her car behind his and got out and crossed the street. She could see a staircase on the side of the building leading to the second floor. Shinji walked up to her, but she was looking at the banner hanging from the balcony railing.
"That looks professional," she said, pointing out the hand-drawn kanji proclaiming "The Amazing Lakeside Cafe!" Shinji laughed.
"Yeah, I was a little apprehensive when I saw it first as well. But I swear, it's actually pretty good once you get inside. They got some fine curry."
Mana looked at him. "I suppose I'll take your word on that, Master Chef. And you said Hikari found this place?"
Shinji took off his coat, and Mana was tempted to do the same. The heat was getting a bit much.
"Yep, she lives around here now. With Touji. But I think you got that already."
Mana snorted. "Please, even I could tell those two were just killing time before they could tie the knot at a respectable age. But what's she doing out in the 'burbs?"
"She's actually the principal of the local high school here-" he was interrupted when the door swung open and a young woman with black hair poked her head out.
"Are you two going to stand out there all day! Or are you coming in?" she yelled at Mana & Shinji. The two looked at each other, a pall of silence falling on them. Mana thought she heard someone mutter "Oh Lord" from behind the girl.
"Er, yes," Mana said. The girl instantly beamed a smile at the two.
"Great! Please, come inside!" she said as she backed into the building and opened the door. Mana went in with Shinji following. The interior was a little cooler, but the humidity still sat heavily on Mana's chest as she breathed. The restaurant had a series of booths along the left wall, and a wooden bar on the right surrounding the doors to the kitchen & pantry. Behind the bar was an old woman, currently with her head in her hands muttering "Hitomi," in a pained voice, being comforted by another young woman.
The girl, who Mana could see was wearing a simple blue uniform, turned around sharply. Mana stopped dead in her tracks, and felt Shinji run into her back.
"Welcome to the Amazing Lakeside Cafe! Please take a seat!" she gave a victory sign, then stood there with her hands on her hips.
Mana stared at her, but decided against saying anything. She sank into one of the upholstered booths, and Shinji took the other side. The other girl, with short, bleached blonde hair, came up to the booth.
"Ah, my name is Kazue. Is there anything I can get you to start with?"
Mana looked at Shinji. "Any suggestions?" she asked.
He thought about it for a moment. "I do like the coffee they make here."
Mana looked back at Kazue, "I'll take some coffee." She looked back at Shinji, "Now what about food?"
"Well, the others'll show up later, so I think we can get some dinner first."
Back to Kazue. "I'll get a plate of curry with beef," Mana said.
"How spicy would you like it?" Kazue asked.
Mana was about to answer when she saw Shinji smiling. "What are you so smug about?" she said.
"Oh! Nothing, nothing. I just think you should get the non-spicy version. It's pretty hot as it is."
Mana raised an eyebrow. "Is that a challenge, Shinji?"
"Maybe it is, maybe it isn't."
Mana shot back to Kazue. "As spicy as you can make it," she clipped out. She turned back to Shinji, narrowed her eyes, and smiled.
"I'll have the same," he said to the girl. He smiled back at Mana.
"Right, thank you," Kazue said, "your coffee will be ready soon." But neither really heard her, as they were busy staring the other down.
"Think you've got what it takes to keep up with me, Ikari?" Mana said, leaning her right elbow on the table.
"I still remember you guzzling a liter of water after having some of that Indian food at Nerv way back when."
"Yeah, well, that was a long time ago. I've gotten better since then. I think your mouth's writing checks your tongue can't cash."
"We'll find out then, won't we?" he said. After a moment he continued, pointing his finger at Mana, "And you're not allowed to turn off your tongue. That would be cheating."
Mana placed her hand on her chest in mock outrage, "Why, Shinji, how dare you suggest that I might attempt to wholly circumvent any rules! I am always perfectly honorable in any contest." She dared Shinji with her look to contradict her.
He put up his hands with a smile. "We'll see what happens."
"Why don't we sweeten the deal, then?" Mana said, "If I win, you pay for dinner; if you do, I pay."
Shinji stuck out his hand, and Mana grabbed it. "Agreed," he said.
They talked some more, and Mana found herself getting into a comfortable rhythm with Shinji. And the coffee was pretty decent. After a few minutes their food was brought out. Mana stared at the orange-brown concoction, still bubbling ominously. She got a whiff of the curry, and immediately her eyes began to water. She looked up at Shinji, and put her game face on.
"So, still so confident about beating me?" she said. She could see he was wavering in resolve as well. Shinji picked up his spoon, and paused. Mana was ready to declare her preemptive victory when he began digging in. She drew her breath in a hiss. She picked up her spoon and began devouring the meal.
As the first bite hit her tongue, Mana knew that this contest was a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad idea.
Every few bites she would look up at Shinji, who had begun to sweat. He would look up from his food at her, and she would feel the spiciness contract her chest. Both asked for, and got, their own water pitchers, and out of the corner of her eye Mana could see the waitresses watching their battle and- wait, was the black-haired one laying down some cash?
From what she could tell through the haze her vision was becoming, Shinji had seen it too, and was as reluctant as her to be the loser. So both soldiered on.
About halfway through, Mana was beginning to get convinced that her food was going to melt through her stomach.
Three-quarters through, and Mana entertained the thought that she had actually already died, and that this was her personal Hell.
As less and less was left on her plate, time went slower and slower. With a bite Mana could feel each and every spark in the cornucopia of tastes, most of which were pain.
Finally, she dropped her spoon on the empty plate, and heard a similar sound across the table. They had both finished. They watched each other pant heavily.
Mana looked at Shinji, and then started laughing, even as it hurt her stomach. He looked confused for a second, then started laughing as well.
"That was the worst idea we have ever had," Mana eventually got out.
Shinji wiped his forehead with a napkin. "I agree. Tie?"
Mana nodded her head. "Tie." Mana heard a disappointed yell from the left. It was the black-haired girl, whose money was now being counted by the blonde. Mana looked back at Shinji, who just shook his head.
Mana sat back and tried to relax her body after the ordeal she had put herself through. She knew it had been pretty dumb to get riled up like that, but it had been fun. The two sat sedate for a time, talking a little.
But the reverie was broken when Mana saw a woman enter the cafe, followed by Hikari and Touji. She waved at Mana, who slowly raised her own and returned it. Shinji turned around. "Ah, Ichi!"
'Wait, Ichi?'
Mana tried to connect the image of the young woman in front of her, currently hugging Shinji, and the 60-meter tall Unit-01 she had seen a few days ago. The woman sat down in front of Mana.
"Hi there!" she said.
"Hi... Ichi," Mana replied. The girl looked a little confused, but then something seemed to hit her.
"Ah, right. You left before I got this." She pointed to her chest. "This is just like one of the old Avatars I used to have, just... updated." Ichi grabbed Mana's hand and pressed it to her chest. "See, much more lifelike!"
Mana took back her hand. She was about to ask if Ichi had been spending time with Mari, but thought better of it. It still struck her how young she had looked, but she wondered if it would be appropriate for her to ask when she saw her.
"So, how's the giant robot scene been lately?" Mana asked. She could see Shinji talk with Touji over Ichi's shoulder.
"It's been good – I've been spending some time with my nieces in the MP-Evas, and you'd be surprised at how smart they are!"
"I think I can imagine."
"Well, besides that not much. OH, wait! I took Zwei to the Tokyo-2 Dog Show a few months ago, but they disqualified him for some stupid reason. I mean, he's the best dog there is, of course he should be allowed in so everyone can see how cool and awesome he is and- Ooh! can I ask you something?"
Mana tried to process how fast Ichi spoke. "...Sure. What's up?"
"You know how I used to date Theta?"
Mana's lips went to a line. "Yes, even after I explicitly ordered him to stop traveling the world when off-duty."
Ichi laughed awkwardly. "Well, when will I get to meet the new guys? The ones who'll be in the 3-series?"
Mana leaned forward, and Ichi mirrored her action. "Ichi... I'm afraid I'm going to have to shoot you down here."
Ichi flopped back onto the seat. "Awww, that's no fun. It's hard finding actual sapients who aren't somehow related to me." She shot back to lean forward over the table. "How come?"
"Ichi, I can't tell you why. That's classified."
"I'll keep it a secret!"
Mana sighed. "Look, Ichi," she said as she put the fingers of her left hand to her forehead, "it's not that I don't want you to meet the new guys, it's that there aren't any new guys in the 3's."
Ichi tilted her head. "But Theta likes being in the 2-series, he told me it feels like home."
Mana was getting frustrated. "We're not moving Theta and the others. There just... won't be sapients in the 3-series. Ok?"
Ichi let it sink in. "Ohhhh, I get it now." But before she could keep going Hikari and Touji sat down in the booth as well. Mana could see Shinji greet Mari at the door. Hikari threw her arms around Mana in an awkward sideways hug.
"I have to say, I've gotten more hugs in the past week then in the past few years," Mana said.
"That's because we've missed you!" Hikari said.
"But then if I was here regularly my absence wouldn't be felt as much and thus, fewer hugs." Mana pointed her finger as she made her point.
Hikari glared at Mana, then embraced her again. Behind Mari, Uriel entered with Annette, who were then followed by Kei and Kaworu. The group sat down in the booth behind Mana.
When the the black-haired waitress came to take their order, Hikari snapped to look her over.
"Hitomi," she drew out the syllables in the girl's name, "I trust you've been keeping yourself out of trouble lately?" Holding the drink tray in front of her like a shield and turning her face away, expecting more from Hikari, Hitomi slowly opened one eye.
"A... ha. Ha. Yeah. I've been keeping out of trouble," she shouted back to behind the counter, "isn't that right, Granny!"
A non-committal grunt was heard, and Hitomi smiled gamely at Hikari.
Hikari studied the girls face for a few more tense seconds, then settled back down into her seat. "Alright then, I'll have a cream pastry, my husband will have the rice & steamed vegetables," at which Touji let out an old sigh, "Ichi," who waved at Hitomi, "will have an octopus platter, and Mana what do you want?"
"Ah, me and Shinji already ate."
"Right, nothing for her now, and we'll all have some coffee," Hikari finished by slamming shut her menu, collecting the others and presenting them to Hitomi, who was still struggling to write the orders down. After putting the finishing touches on the order sheet, Hitomi took the menus and ran to the back.
Mana looked over at Hikari. "She's a good girl, at heart," Hikari said, "and she's getting to be a fairly decent chef, she just has some discipline problems I've had to deal with at school."
"I'm sure it can't be worse than anything I pulled off. I think it took 3 weeks to fix the yard after mine and Go-kun's little scrap."
Hikari opened her mouth to respond and stopped. "Ah – well, at least you had an excuse when you missed classes. But enough about that!"
For the next half hour, Mana was grilled by Hikari about everything and anything Mrs. Suzuhara thought was important. From how Mana was eating (Sioux Falls steak company did not rate highly in her view), to what she did to occupy her mind (and organizing a military regiment and contacts between two chains of command didn't count).
Before Hikari could begin inquiring into Mana's love life (or lack of one), Mana noticed Mari get up and walk outside. Nobody seemed perturbed, but after a few minutes Mana decided to follow her. Opening the door, Mana was struck by the hot and humid twilight. Mari was smoking about 15 feet away from the entrance.
"Hey there," Mana said, "long time no see." Mari blew some smoke up and away from Mana. From what Mana could see, Mari hadn't aged a day since she had last seen her.
"Hey," Mari responded.
Mana waited for her to say something more, but there was nothing. Wanting to break through the awkwardness, Mana took a few steps and leaned against the wall next to Mari.
"It's a nice night out, isn't it?" Mana said.
"Better when you can see the stars," Mari replied, looking at one of the streetlights. In the distance cicadas trilled.
"I'll agree with you there. You get out of the city much?"
Mari took another drag. "Not as much as I'd like. I spend a lot of time in the Geofront."
"Doing anything in particular?"
Mari chuckled. "Here and there. I keep company with Junior. He wouldn't tell you, but the guy gets really lonely sometimes. And until Lilly gets older it's pretty much just us. The Israfim aren't really the same, and they can be dicks sometimes."
Mana laughed. "That's your objection to them?"
Mari was smiling now, "You try and clean up after a herd of them have overrun the place because you thought they might be more intelligent if in close proximity. If they did it was only about what was best to destroy. Junior didn't talk to me for two weeks after that incident."
Mana laughed at that. "Well, he's always liked having a neat home. How is the big goober, anyway?"
"He's doing alright for himself. He may have started a website to cater to members of our sex with tentacle fantasies and such, but when I bring it up with him he just starts laughing and suggests *I* should do something similar, except for people with sexual attraction to d8's." Mari ground the tip of her nearly-done cigarette on the wall and let it drop, and pulled out another to light up.
"I... I'm not sure I want to know the details, am I?"
"Probably not. But again, I can't figure out if he set it up or if someone's just using some really good CGI."
"Well, is he making money off it?"
Mari's face lit up. "Oh he's been making bank! But apparently that's all from eBay, he says!" Mari let out a sigh. "On some level I wish he'd just tell me the truth, but I think he likes me having to figure out what's happening."
"Does he still have that deerstalker-"
"Yes, he does. At this point all he needs is a cocaine addiction and we'll have a Sandulim Sherlock Holmes on our hands."
Mana let out a laugh at that. The two fell silent, but it was much more comfortable than earlier. The streetlight across the street finally turned on to join its fellows.
"So, what have you been doing with Junior, besides trying to ferret out his hidden plots?" Mana asked.
"Well, we've got a long term project that I'm working with Dr. Ibuki on." Mana raised her eyebrow.
Mari continued. "Using Junior's core, we're going to try and in some way create the rest of the Sandulim. Enough breeding groups with a sufficient genetic diversity that they can be 'let out into the wild.'"
Mana's eyes widened at that. "Woah."
Mari chuckled. "Yeah, it's a big one, and we're not even a tenth of the way to the point of even connecting Junior's core to an S2 engine, but I think we'll make it eventually."
"I just... I mean... wow. That's... pretty incredible right there."
"We've kept it under wraps so far, just so we don't get people screaming 'Junior's going to take over the world!' Which is really funny, because he told me that he'd rather live on Venus if he got a chance."
"And you'll see it?"
Mari's smile faltered a little, and she was quiet for a few moments. "Yeah, probably. I guess you've been wondering about *this* haven't you?" she said as she gestured around her face.
Mana tried to phrase herself delicately. "Mari, you look like you haven't aged at all. What happened?"
Mari smiled at Mana and pointed to her throat. "It's the core. It's changed so much of how my body works that... I'm not on the same timescale as you all anymore. I'm closer to Junior now, but even his species is shorter-lived than I would be. And when I eventually pass Lilly will probably be at a mental age of 16 or so."
"And how long might that be?"
Mari ground the cigarette on the same point of the wall as the first one, and pulled out a third. She offered the pack to Mana, who took one out. Mari lit hers, then Mana's.
"I'll probably live for another 600-700 years. Junior looks like he has another 3-400 in him. And we can't even guess as to how long Lilly'll last."
Mana tried to comprehend that. "That's pretty long," was all she could say.
The two kept smoking as the sky became darker, the sun providing only an orange and pink tint to the western horizon.
"I try not to think about it, most days," Mari said, "it's just not worth it, you know? That was something my dad taught me. 'Better to live in the moment than worry about the future, especially if it might be 200 years off.'"
"So I take it you two don't have yelling matches as much anymore?" Mana asked, but then regretted asking.
Mari looked confused for a moment, then laughed. "Ha! No, I guess we don't. Jeez, those were some stupid fights we had, and in the Geofront as well."
Mana silently thanked God that her question hadn't blown up in her face. "What happened between you two?" she asked, hurriedly adding, "If you want to tell me."
Mana watched Mari think for a few seconds. She had forgotten her own cigarette, and let out a small yell when it burned down to her fingers. Mana dropped the cigarette on the ground and stepped on it, grinding the ball of her foot on top of it.
"You know, I don't think it was just one thing," Mari said, her eyes focused on the few visible stars that were coming into view in the sky. "Even after you left we would just argue over the most ridiculous crap. For a few years I'm not sure we even spoke to each other without some kind of accusation coming up. I think I told him once that he only married Kyoko to make himself feel better about Asuka's death. We - well, I - was pretty vicious."
Mari took a long drag on her cigarette. "I think I was talking to Uri. Must have been twelve, thirteen years ago. And I realized that no matter what I did, my father always saw me as his daughter."
"There were days I thought he would disown you," Mana said.
"There were days where I thought that," Mari said, "that if I just pushed his buttons enough, something might snap, and I wouldn't have to worry about disappointing him anymore, because he wouldn't care about me." Mari smiled warmly, "I guess I should have listened to him when he said I was still his daughter, even with the core."
"Are there any members of your family that aren't stubborn as mules?" Mana asked, rubbing her thumb over the small burn on her middle finger.
"Probably not, but I don't think you're one to talk, Ms. 'Leaves Tokyo-3 and then Doesn't Talk To Anyone Ever.'" Mari said, pulling her glasses down her nose to look over at Mana.
Mana shrugged her shoulders. "It... seemed that was what I needed to do. Let's just say that coming back has thrown me for a loop."
Mari lightly punched her shoulder. "Don't worry about it, I'm almost certain everyone's just happy to see you again. Come on, let's get inside and grab some more food." Mari grabbed Mana's hand and pulled her back into the cafe. When they went in she caught Shinji's eyes, and he smiled at her before continuing his conversation with Uriel.
For the next two hours Mana talked and listened. It turned out that she and Touji had been at the International Baseball Series at Tacoma five years earlier (the Minnesota Twins vs. the Chiba Lotte Marines), which set off a long back and forth between the two of them as to who should have won the title that year. It was a heated discussion, but before Hikari had to step in they both asked who they would root for normally – Mana went for the Red Sox; Touji, the Tokyo-3 Evas. They both laughed at having to cheer on a different team than usual, and began pointing out the problems both teams at the 2033 series had, of which there were so many they wondered how they had even gotten there in the first place.
Every once in a while she would catch Uriel's eye, but she couldn't get herself to speak to him. She wondered what he thought of her now, after what she had said to him those few days ago.
But as the night wore on, people had to head out (especially to the kids). The group got up from their seats and walked out into the night, thanking the waitresses. Shinji was about to pull out his wallet when Mana slammed down a card of her own to pay for her and Shinji.
"It was a tie, though?" he said.
Mana signed the receipt, and gave a nice tip to both waitresses. She looked square at Shinji as they walked out.
"That was repaying you for the breakfast."
The group stood in a clump on the sidewalk, still talking amongst each other. Mana looked at Uriel, and (taking a very deep breath) beckoned him over. He nodded, and the two walked away a few yards, near where Mana and Mari had spoken earlier.
"Look, Uri, I..." Mana started, but didn't know what to say.
Uriel's eyes opened a little, evening out a few of the deep lines on his face. "Mana, it's alright-"
Mana cut him off. "No it's not, Uri. Look," she closed her eyes and let out a breath through her teeth, "look, I'm sorry about what I said to you before. It was stupid and petty of me, and I shouldn't have bit at you for looking out for me."
Uriel was quiet for a few moments. He then pulled Mana into a hug. "Apology accepted. But it was pretty foolish of me to bring up those two."
Mana spoke into his shoulder, "Yeah it was, but that's alright." He let her go. "Thanks, Uri."
Annette called out from behind Mana, "Uri! Athanasius says that Lucas got into the flour at the suite, and Michael seems to have shorted the television."
Uriel sighed, but with a smile in his eyes. "Boys," he said to Mana.
"Go whip 'em into shape, Uri. We'll catch up later," Mana said.
"Well, we need to be off. I told the babysitter we'd be back by 10 PM," said Hikari. She gave one last hug to Mana as she walked back into the dwindling group, said "Keep in touch," and left with Touji.
"Much work to be done tomorrow. Especially on your material," Kei said, pointing at Mana. "Have a good night, sister, brothers, Mana." Kaworu bowed, and the Nagisa's left. Mari left for the nearest underground club with Ichi in tow.
Eventually just Shinji and Mana were left. Behind them Kazue & Hitomi left the cafe for their own homes, and the old proprietress went up the stairs to hers, leaving the cafe dark. Looking up at the streetlight, Mana saw a cloud of tiny insects, and could hear the hum of the lights themselves.
"So, that was fun," Mana said.
Shinji smiled and nodded his head, saying "Yeah."
The two stood outside the cone of light.
"You never told anyone how I punched you before I left, did you?" Mana asked, her voice smaller than usual.
Shinji put his hands into his pants pockets, then took them out. "Nope," he said.
"How come?"
"None of their business," he said.
Mana looked at Shinji, trying to figure out what he was going to say. "How'd you explain the teeth?"
He smiled at Mana, and she found she couldn't tell which teeth were replacements. "You know how clumsy I can be sometimes, Mana."
Mana smiled.
"God, you're an idiot."