"W-What?..." Shinji stammered as he looked up at the blonde doctor.

"I'm sorry, Shinji," the doctor said, her voice shaking with emotion.

The boy's eyes filled with tears as the doctor herself began to cry, her makeup starting to run down her face. Misato was not faring any better. Her face was already soaked with tears, and she was on the brink of breaking down completely.

Shinji's body began to shake as he hyperventilated, not wanting to accept his fate.

He had fought and survived so much, and now it seemed to be for nothing. Tears streamed down his face as he struggled to deny the harsh truth that was presented to him.

He was going to die.

Misato tried to go over and give him a hug, but he pushed her away.

"Don't fucking touch me!"

He snapped, his voice breaking.

The situation was grim, and the mood was sorrowful as they all struggled to come to terms with the devastating news.

"I DON'T WANT TO DIE, MISATO!"

Shinji cried out, tears streaming down his face. His voice was filled with desperation and fear. At this moment, he seemed completely overwhelmed by the situation.

Misato and Ritsuko quickly sprang into action and rushed to his side as he collapsed to the floor, clutching his head in pain.

"Shinji, we understand that this is difficult, but it's important that you try to stay calm,"

Ritsuko said, her voice filled with concern.

"Getting worked up will only make things worse for your brain."

"We're here for you, Shinji," Misato added, placing a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"We'll do everything in our power to help you. NERV has the resources and expertise to find a solution. I promise we'll do everything we can to make things normal again."

Shinji looked up at them with pleading eyes, searching for reassurance.

"Promise me?" he asked in a weak voice.

Misato and Ritsuko exchanged a worried look, but they both nodded in agreement.

"We promise, Shinji. We'll do everything in our power to help you."

Month 2 out of 5

Stage 3

Classroom 2-A

"Shinji," Hikari began, her tone filled with concern as she approached him. She noticed a look of confusion on his face, so she repeated her question. "Did you turn in your take-home assignment today? I heard it was due today."

Shinji rubbed his forehead, looking momentarily puzzled. "I didn't realize it was due today. Sorry about that."

Hikari could sense that there was more to the story, so she probed further.

"Is everything okay? It seems like there's something going on that's affecting your work."

Shinji sighed deeply and cast his gaze downward.

"Yeah, things have been pretty tough lately. I've been dealing with some… some… stuff…"

Hikari's eyes widened in surprise. "What kind of health issues?" she asked, her voice filled with concern.

"It's a chronic condition, it will be with me forever…"

Shinji admitted, sounding defeated.

"But it's not infectious… Just to let you know."

Hikari's expression softened. "I'm so sorry, Shinji. Is there anything I can do to help?"

Shinji shook his head. "Thanks, but I just need to get through this on my own."

Hikari nodded understandingly, feeling a wave of empathy for her friend.

She could tell that this was a serious and ongoing issue, but she also knew that Shinji was a strong and resilient person who would get through this difficult time, but something seemed very wrong here.

Turning to Asuka who was next to him, Hikari saw a despondent look on her face. This was affecting her too it seems.

"I'll uh… talk to the teacher about this… Maybe we can work things out while you focus on helping yourself…"

Ritsuko's office

A frustrated groan emanated from the blonde doctor as she slammed down a notepad full of scientific data.

She had ran the simulations over and over on the MAGI, most of them resulting in either Shinji dying or going into a vegetative state.

While she wasn't particularly too close to Shinji, she did care for him a lot. She would do anything to save him, even if it meant using all of NERV'S resources.

She had told his father the news, and as usual he showed no emotion, but she knew he was just putting up a facade. He was worried for his son and it was obvious. Gendo hadn't come out of his office for hours at a time, not even coming out to eat.

He was hurting.

They all were hurting.

Rei didn't know how to take the news. She had essentially clammed up even more, no longer speaking much other than:

Yes.

No.

I don't know.

As for Asuka, she was explosive but soon lost all that energy as she saw him getting worse.

Ritsuko was trying here. She was essentially focusing all of the biological research department to stop his progression. They could try and regrow those pathways but it could possibly damage his personality.

It was a race against time.

A useless race at that.

Misato hadn't shown up to work at all, instead staying home to spend time with Shinji and Asuka.

She however, was drinking more and more when they weren't home. She looked like a mess and tried to hide it from the two, but it was an obvious sight.

Ritsuko soon knew that Shinji could soon no longer attend school, as he would just be confused, lost and scared as the decay went on.

The angel won't come back. They didn't need to focus on defending humanity anymore. They only needed to save a young boy's life.

Ritsuko clutched her pencil before throwing it and a clipboard at the wall in pure frustration.

Her makeup dripped down as the tears fell down her face.

Her mind was filling up with one thing. One thing that all the money in the world couldn't do…

Cheat death.