The second bento was stacked on top of her own as Hikari stared at the ensemble with a dull expression. She was so close, but not close enough, to getting Toji's attention. At the time she had been sure this would bridge the gap and get him to talk to her… see her as more than just the class rep. But the boy didn't pick up on the hint. He never had, in the times she had handed over his free lunch.

She had gradually tapered off these gifts, being twice a week instead of everyday, but even this he didn't pick up on the hint. What was it about boys not noticing things?

Before class started, as Hikari was handing Toji the lunch she had prepared, a spike of drive hit her. "Suzuhara…"

Toji turned his head back. "Yeah?"

Hikari had startled herself once she realized what she did. Taking a breath she tried to steady her feelings and navigate putting herself in this position. "H-how are you… doing with your paper?"

"Fine." Toji replied flippantly, averting his eyes from her. "Just fine."

Hikari picked up his impulse to escape the conversation. She wondered why… was he having difficulty with the assignment and covering it up? "Are you sure, I could-"

"Yeah I'm fine." Toji waved off.

Hikari let her class rep concern speak. "Suzuhara, if youre struggling then you need-"

Toji crossed his arms indignantly, still refusing to look at her. "I told you, im fine. Lay off!"

"Okay." Hikari replied, "I expect a top paper from you then!" she whirled away from him and walked to her desk. Anyone watching her would have noticed her pace slow as she reached it, and how heavily she dropped into her seat when she did.

She blew it. Her compassionate outreach turned into another shouting match. No wonder she wasnt getting anywhere with Suzuhara.

Kensuke, interrupting his study of a book on Antarctica, said to Toji, "You know, getting help from the class rep would be a surefire way to bring up your grades."

Toji sighed and further leaned into his chair. "I can't take the time off." He rubbed his nose and uttered, "My sister's getting worse. Besides, the last thing I need is the class rep knowing I'm falling behind." His eyes hardened, "I don't need her pity, too."

Kensuke eyed Toji for a moment then sighed over Toji's macho attitude. Kensuke went back to reading about alleged sightings of ships around the continent prior to the second impact.

Shinji came in just then, glancing about the classroom. His eyes snagged on Hikari's face and the girl's hazel eyes found his. Both remembered today was a tutoring day. Hikari, out of habit, was the one to smile first. Shinji reciprocated by reflex as he made his way to his desk.

Toji called to him, "Devil stay home today?"

Shinji halted on his way into the chair and looked around. To Toji he said, "She left before I did. She's not here?"

Asuka entered the room just then, stopping just before the row to her desk when she realized eyes were in her. "What are you staring at?" She demanded.

While Shinji dropped his gaze and Kensuke returned to his book, Toji said, "You left before Shinji but arrived after. Where did you go off to?"

"Since when is it your business, monkey boy?" The redhead replied as she dropped to her desk and faced away from the stooges. Shinji was already in desk, looking around and noticing Rei was absent again today.

Asuka glanced over at Shinji, then scowled as she saw his head aimed in the direction of Ayanami's seat. Her book bag with the added library books banged on the ground.

When class ended Hikari was at the far side of the room organizing papers. She stared as Toji left, and sighed to herself over how she blew another chance with him.

Shinji approached from her edge of vision and she slipped into her pleasant class rep mask. "Ikari! Are you ready for our next session?"

Shinji nodded with a small smirk. "Yep!"

Hikari smiled back. "Today we are going to the public library to collect research on our topics. Is that okay?"

"Uh, sure." Shinji replied.

"Okay. Let me talk to Yuna first, then we'll go." Hikari walked to another girl waiting after class, the one who was assigned class cleanup, and then departed with Shinji.

They walked in silence at first, trailing the stream of students headed down the main road further into town.

Hikari remembered to ask Shinji about Toji, but dipped her head over remembering how today went. She didnt feel particularly good thinking about Toji just now.

Still she had to try, or she had to decide to give up on this plan. Her hand squeezed the handle. "Um…Ikari, h-has Suzuhara talked to you about his project?"

Shinji glanced at her. "No, why?" Looking ahead, he asked, "is he failing too?"

"Well, no…" Hikari said, uncertain how she wanted to proceed.

Shinji hesitated, then asked, "is he… in trouble?"

Hikari shook her head. "No… I just worry about him sometimes. He's often visiting his sister, and his assignments are late occasionally."

They walked for a few more paces before Shinji said, "I think Kensuke helps him with his homework. They go over to each other's houses sometimes."

Hikari turned her head. "You don't go too?"

"No." Shinji replied.

Hikari side-eyed him thoughtfully. She had assumed he did, it was one avenue she wanted to use to get more information. "Is it… because you pilot the eva?"

"No." Shinji replied.

Hikari blinked, then asked, "Do they not even ask you?"

"Well… um… they come to Misato's house whenever I'm hanging out with them. I've never hung out with them at their places."

"They never invited you over?"

"No."

"Oh." Hikari replied sadly since that dredged up an uncomfortable thought she had for a while. She had heard Toji speaking of Miss Misato before in very animated terms. After meeting the woman personally it was hard for Hikari not to compare herself to the older, carefree, sexier woman. How could Hikari Horaki, mundane class representative, possibly compete against her? It was hard enough to feel attractive next to Asuka, the red headed foreigner, who literally seized everyones attention on her arrival.

They walked for a few paces more. Hikari was trying to overcome her depressing thinking when Shinji spoke, "Um… how is… your paper going?"

"Oh!' Hikari replied, the change in subject shifting her back to the present. "Well…. I haven't done much work yet myself. I've been busy with class duties…" she smiled, "Going with you today is the first time I'll be able to work on it."

"Oh…so, this trip helps both of us then?" He asked, looking at her.

"Mmh!" Hikari agreed with a nod.

Shinji returned his eyes to the pavement with a slight smirk on his face, feeling good. This venture wasn't just for him; she would benefit too. She wouldn't just be wasting her time on him.

Shinji had never encountered a place so hushed like this before. At his mother's grave there was solemn silence, in his Sensei's place it was the silence of respect. Here, though, the silence felt different. It felt… like concentration. Focus.

As they walked the long hallway just out of the lobby, Hikari asked him quietly, "Do you have a library card?" When he shook his head, she nodded and said, "Let's get you a card. You won't be able to check out anything without one."

Shinji followed the instructions from the librarian to get registered into the system. He glanced at Hikari once and the girl smiled back. As the librarian handed Shinji his card, he said, "Now you and your girlfriend can explore our collection together!"

Both of them blushed. Shinji offered the correction first, "Oh! No, she's just tutoring me. We're not… uh.. dating."

"My mistake." The librarian corrected. "Have a nice day."

Shinji turned around to Hikari, who blinked and came back to the present with a smile. "Lets find a quiet place to sit." She said.

"Sure!" Shinji replied.

As they walked Hikari started to zone out again, examining a feeling she just had. When the librarian confused them as a couple, Hikari wasn't repulsed by the idea. In fact, for a brief second she imagined her and Shinji in each other's personal space and wasn't grossed out. The opposite, in fact.

Why?

She glanced at Shinji as he was looking for a table and compared him to Toji. While the jock was strong, confident and compassionate… Shinji was quiet, solitary, and if Asuka was to be believed- pathetic. So… why did she feel that way just now? Was she just lonely?

They took seats at a table beside a window looking into the mountains in the west. It would be picturesque if the view wasn't so common. They got a look at one of the Tokyo-3 thoroughfares from here, giving the pair something to look at.

Hikari set her things down but watched Ikari as he also sat down in the chair. She didn't feel anything then, and was able to brush aside the distracting thought and return to being a class rep. "Once you're settled, we'll begin our research."

"Okay." Shinji replied.

A quick search in the catalogue brought both of them to the same section. It wasn't a surprise to Hikari that all books pertaining to the second impact were in a section specifically about the second impact. The shelf was long on both sides.

Looking at the collected titles Shinji found himself awed by the density of information in these stacks. It was something that wouldn't have occurred to him if he wasn't here with the class rep.

They both were scanning the shelves seeking books either of them may want for their topics. Hikari was ahead of Shinji.

He noticed that he was taller than her when one of her arms swung up to a book to pull it from the shelf. Spinning the book in hand she looked at the back, and seeing her from that angle did something for him. He ended up having to blink and return to the present when she turned to give the book to him. She said as she came over, "You might find this useful."

Shinji looked at it. It was a softcover book with a flimsy cardboard cover. The title read "Society in crisis: socio-economic changes of the second impact."

"Why would I want this?" Shinji asked, "this doesn't seem related to my topic."

Hikari smiled. "It sounds really broad, doesn't it?"

"Yeah."

Hikari smiled. "Something I learned from my sister is when you look at books like this, the bibliography might have more specific books that help your topic."

"What's a bibliography?"

Hikari stepped up beside to him and opened the book to the back. As she gently exhaled, Shinji found himself blushing while she stood close to him. He blinked as she showed him the back and pointed with a finger. "See? It's all the reference material the author used when writing this book. It helps narrow down sources."

She handed the book to Shinji, who took it and scanned the page before looking at her. "Uhh… thanks." He said.

"Of course!" Hikari replied, then she started looking at the shelves again.

Shinji looked at the bibliography, then at Hikari again and closed the book. He was thinking over what he felt just now, being close to her. It called to mind all the moments he was close to Asuka too, and the guilt he felt in those moments from the subtle peeks and unnoticed stares from him without their knowing.

He sighed and followed Hikari through the shelves.

Some time later both of them were back at the table. With their books, Hikari advised researching and collecting notes and interesting information to relay in the paper. She added, "Gathering this information might help you define your topic better."

Shinji felt like he was meandering, though.

Fortunately it wasn't for lack of materials. He had two books on the subject of psychological effects of the second impact on people- one even containing information specifically on family dynamics. His problem though, was over what he wanted his paper to say about all of this.

He tapped his pencil on his notes. He didn't want to abandon the subject, but he felt like his purpose for the paper was behind a closed door. He was close, but he didn't know how to get through it to gain insight.

Like the door between himself and his father.

He glanced up to see Hikari looking at him. She realized she was staring and shook her head. "Im sorry," she said, "I was just thinking. Um, how's it going?"

Shinji tapped the pencil against his book again and caught himself before he answered. Why was it easier to talk to her, than to Asuka or Rei? He decided to continue before he left her hanging, "I.. Uh… im having a problem."

Hikari leaned a little closer. "Whats wrong?"

"Well… um… im not sure what to say."

Hikari scooted her chair closer. "What do you have so far?"

Shinji pulled the second textbook closer and opened it to the page where he jammed in some old notes as a bookmark. He pointed to the highlighted section. "Well… this has been the most helpful so far. It talks about how stress along generational lines increased after the second impact. Adults were worried about the future, and children were confused about the present."

Hikari blinked her eyes wide. "That's a neat thing to say."

"I thought so too." Shinji said with a nod and tapped the pencil on the paper, "but… im not sure that's what I want to focus on."

Hikari glanced at the textbook, then across Shinji's arm before looking back up to his face. "Do you… suppose because whats here doesnt match your experiences?"

Shinji looked at her and was momentarily startled by Hikari's expression. Was she… afraid? He looked at his paper to recover and went on, "Um… I…" then he recalled what she said. "Maybe? I don't… I don't know."

Hikari backed off a little, and eased out the breath she found she had been holding. Why? "Well," she said, collecting her thoughts as her eyes swept the table. Then they jumped to Shinji. "You could ask yourself if you would want to talk about your personal experience."

Shinji remembered what Asuka had said about airing dirty laundry to the class. He wondered if he would want to put that out there, and then crunched inward when he worried how people would judge him. "I don't know." Shinji replied and bowed his head a little.

Hikari looked from him to her own notes for a moment, then said, "I'm… having the same problem, if it helps."

"Over what you want your paper to say?" Shinji replied.

Hikari shook her head. "Over how personal I should be with it. I'm… i'm the class rep. I'm supposed to be strong… would…" she blinked as she wondered if she should continue. Something told her to pass that limit. "Would… people… think less of me if I talk about my personal experiences??"

Shinji blinked as the rare moment of empathy dawned on him. "I… uh, I don't know." Shinji replied.

Hikari stared at her paper. She had almost evoked Suzuharas name, worried about his opinion about her, but at the last moment pulled back. It would be all right to ask Suzuhara's friend about Suzuhara himself, right? But then that would be an obvious tell that she liked him… and perhaps she wasn't sure Shinji would relay that question to Toji. Though, perhaps, maybe that was good? But she also didn't want to reveal that info specifically to Shinji for some reason.

Shinji, meanwhile, was basking in his first experience feeling empathy. It had been the first time since coming here that someone professed to sharing an experience he was having. Someone could understand him, even in a small way. He couldnt even find it with the other Eva pilots after months of somehow managing to stay as one.

Hikari stared at her paper and collected her thoughts. "On the other hand, though, I'm writing this paper more for myself than anyone, even if it's an assignment. Maybe…" she winced, "Maybe if I speak from my experience, people could understand me better. I wouldn't just be the class rep."

That idea felt good to Shinji, and his eyes slid down to his paper again. Maybe this wasn't airing dirty laundry… maybe this was a way to explain his background to others. A way to tell people about himself with the cintext to make it make sense. Maybe by being more personal it would help him reach his father.

A moment of insight hit him and he stared at his paper. What if he gave this paper to his father when it was done? "I think…" he said, "I like that."

Hikari snapped out of her thinking and looked at Shinji. He spoke, "It feels better if I write… from my perspective. I think I want to do it."

Hikari looked down at her own paper, then made a flippant decision. "All right," she said, "If you're going to do it, so will I."

"Class rep?" Shinji asked as he looked at her.

She smiled back and said, "A lot of the time, hard things are easier when you're doing it together with someone."

Shinji stared at her little grin as their gazes lingered. Then both of them realized it and turned away, Hikari coughing. Then she glanced at the clock. "Oh! Um… our tutoring time is done! By a half hour!"

Shinji also glanced at the clock and sighed. "Oh… so it is."

Hikari was gathering up her notes. "We need to check these books out before we go… I'm already behind my schedule." Jamming her notes into her bag, she scooped up her books and said offhandedly, "I have to go grocery shopping after this, dinner is going to be late…"

Shinji blinked, paising in his own packing. "I've got to go shopping too… where do you go?"

"The U." Hikari replied as she clutched her books. "My dad gets coupons from a subscription service there."

Shinji thought about it. "I've never been there."

"Do you want to come with me?" Hikari blurted without thinking.

Shinji put a modest hand behind his neck. "Uh… I don't want to be a bother…" he was conflicted between not wanting to take up more of Hikari's time and fulfilling the need to get groceries for the apartment.

"Not at all!" Hikari piped, "Actually, I would appreciate the company. It can make the trip go faster."

Shinji glanced up at the ceiling to think for a moment over what he was willing to do. If he was helpful to Hikari and he needed to do it anyway- why not? Besides, he found the idea unusually compelling. "Okay, I'll come too."

"Great!" Hikari said, and led the way away from the table to the checkout desk. She caught herself blushing a little, with an elevated breath. She glanced around conspiratorially, before her eyes rested on Shinji's back as he stepped ahead to check out his books. She swallowed.

a/n: into the brambles is going to be a little of a slow burn because it needs some buildup. Unlike other relationships Shinji has theres no onn-screen foundation to launch from. I think they can make a good couple if they had more interaction, so some deeper interaction needs to be made and argumentsxpresented before we get to the consequences of this pairing.

im still driven to make this work a more complete case for Hikashin, so sray tuned.