Danya's breath shortened. He was at a loss for words. He wasn't sure if he was hallucinating.

"Mariya Bogoroditsa..." He silently uttered.

Shinji had definitely been impacted by the events caused... caused by him... His usual neat white shirt had stains and were roughed up. His white shoes looked almost black from the mud on them. His hair is slightly longer and unkept. Although his appearance was roughed up, he didn't show much expression other than interest in the item he had found...

A can of small sausages which was definitely not enough to feed him for a week but it was something. As he turned to put the can in his green bag, he noticed Danya and recoiled slightly in surprise. Last time he saw someone staring at him he got beat into the ground... Most people associate him as the motherfucker that practically killed all of humanity.

"Um- C-Can I help you?-" Shinji said nervously as he turned his body to Danya but hid his back behind himself. He didn't want his stuff to potentially get stolen by him and so kept some slight distance. The person in front of him took up most of his attention so he wouldn't notice Asuka just yet.

She barely manages to step in and look around before noticing...

". . . Shinji."

She said, her voice filled with spite and anger. Despite her thoughts about hypocrisy earlier, she couldn't help but feel an intense rage boiling up within herself. Shinji... Shinji. She took a step forward, suddenly being in front of Danya and directly in front of Shinji, her azure blue eye staring down at Shinji. She was taller than him- by a few inches, too.

She wanted to hurt him- to just knock his perverted ass to the floor and then walk out. But for some reason, she didn't. Managing to come to her senses slightly, she thought about how hypocritical it would be to hit him... if she could forgive herself, then why couldn't she forgive Shinji? Both of them were equally terrible if she thought about it.

So, instead of snapping, she just stepped to the side of Shinji and began walking to the front of the store to trade her scrap in. She drops the heavy bag on the counter, breathing heavily as she did.

Danya couldn't help but feel triggered at this moment. Images of his little brother Nikolai flashed before him in his mind. He could no longer contain himself. In an instant, he virtually flung his arms around Shinji as a gesture of affection and desperation. Seeing him for who he was, roughed up, tormented, and bearing false guilt, it tugged at his heartstrings. He sobbed silently, knowing everything he knew thus far, and how the world virtually abandoned him.

"Nikolay... prosti menya... pozhaluysta... prosti menya..." He stuttered in Russian, as his tears virtually began to drop down from his eyes and onto Shinji's shoulders. He just wanted to feel the warmth of his little brother again, the one he swore to protect, the one who he felt he failed. Anything just to feel the bond he lost.

"A-Asuka?-" Shinji stared at her... it felt surreal to see her again after all this time. Well, he had been looking for her but at some point he slightly internalized that he wouldn't meet her again so soon. Nevertheless, it was wonderful to see her again. He wanted to run to her and hug her, to embrace one of his closest friends that he hadn't seen in so long... But his body held him back from doing it.

He didn't know what it was, but something about Asuka's glance... it made his body freeze... That's it... hate. She had hate in her eyes. Shinji knew that better than anyone. After all, why wouldn't she hate him...? Just like everyone else, he had forced her to join instrumentality. He had practically violated her body in the hospital. And on top of all that strangled her... He didn't deserve her forgiveness and much less her acceptance.

Shinji's face had nothing but plead, showing his real emotions as he tried to convince himself that she was right to hate him. In the end, he doesn't say anything. He's instead met with the embrace of a total stranger as his-... Asuka... left him behind... again...

His focus turned to Danya as he turned his head away from him. "Ack- Err- Y-You have the wrong person- Um-..." This was definitely a strange situation that he didn't know how to respond to as he held his arms on his bag still just in case he was trying to pickpocket him. His pleading stare had turned to complete confusion as he looked around for help, his eyes landing on Asuka but quickly turning away. Should he even say anything at this point?-

Looking back at Shinji, she noticed something... his eyes. They were pleading desperately... Asuka hunches over a bit, memories of her face as she desperately pleads to her mother rushing through her mind... ugh. Continuing to look at Shinji, she sighed, still conflicted... maybe she deserved what happened to her. She'd been such an ass to everybody- it was only right that karma would return to her. Hesitantly, she walked back to where Danya and Shinji were, peeling Danya from Shinji and looking at the two, at a loss for words on what to say.

As she looked at Shinji, her eyes were still sharp as daggers, though they were filled with emotion- she looked spiteful and sorrowful at the same time. Her gaze eventually dulled a bit as she looked at the two. Danya was breaking down, and Shinji looked like he'd been through a fucking war. She didn't know how to really help the two, so she just kind of stood there, glancing at the two.

As Danya got his act back together after several moments of being a nervous wreck, he slowly pulled himself away from Shinji, just so he could get a good look at him, and assure himself that his eyes did not deceive him. His breathing was shallow, and a half-insane smile showed upon his face. "Shinji...it's you...it's really you..."

All this time he wanted to tell him as much of him he knew, as well as his sense of protection for him. Immediately, he grabbed his bag and exchanged his collected scrap for rations. "Follow us, there's so much I wish to say." He said as he started to make his way south back to the bus near the baseball field up the hill.

Shinji sighed with relief as Asuka peeled off the stranger from him, his expression turning softer as a result. He turned back to the can of sausages he had picked up, taking it out of his bag to inspect it again. He still needed to pay for them and that's what he was going to do. Although, he also didn't quite want to go back to some base with a guy he just "met"... But Asuka was with him... He wanted to talk with her again... And if she's with this guy then he should also follow along. "Okay. Let me pay for this first."

It didn't take long for Shinji to give the clerk his scrap to exchange it with the canned sausage. After he did so he met with the two outside and walked with them to wherever they were going. He kept quiet and walked behind them with his head slightly faced down to the ground. As he walked, he held onto the strap on his green bag and kept a steady pace. He wanted to ask some questions... but would prefer to ask them when they were alone.

For the moment, Danya was far enough ahead of the two for Shinji to catch up to Asuka and have a talk with her, and for once, not crash and burn.

—

EVANGELION: WESTSIDE STORY

Episode 3:

"The Man Who Sold the World."

—

As they began getting closer to the bus, Asuka stayed silent, mostly except for the sound of her breathing. They eventually made it to the bus pretty quickly, and she just leaned against the bus' side after putting the groceries inside. She didn't really care about the groceries, she was just still conflicted about Shinji... she stared out at the looming head of Lilith, large enough to be seen all the way from California. Asuka huffed, still conflicted on the whole situation. Dark clouds began to swirl in, so if Shinji wanted to talk with Asuka, now would be the chance.

Shinji let them both get settled into their areas as they arrived at their bus. He looked to Asuka as she stood next to the bus and leaned on it. Well, it was now or never, I guess. He adjusted the strap of his bag and held tightly onto it as if to calm his nerves however he could. After taking a deep breath, he walks up to Asuka and stands next to her, looking at Rei's giant face as well... creepily overlooking the horizon.

It hurt him to look at it since it reminded him of how he failed everyone... He turns his gaze to the ground as he tries talking to Asuka.

"Um... Asuka-... I-... ... ...I'm sorry... for everything... I destroyed everything... all for my own selfish desire... ... ...I'm sorry... I wish I could go back and fix it all... or... to just... stop existing..."

His bangs were long enough to overshadow his eyes as he gazed down at the ground, covering most of his expression... The expression of utter regret and loneliness…

Meanwhile, Danya was getting supper ready for the both of them. Today was spent collecting scrap and exchanging it for rations. Personally, he was looking forward to getting to know more about him. Ironically, it wasn't because he genuinely cared, but because of his unbridled obsession. To him, being a savior justified his existence. It was all he saw himself good for.

The half Rei face stared at them over the horizon was a constant reminder of what happens when man tried to play God, and unleashed hell on earth. All things considered, perhaps the Third Impact was inevitable.

He was almost done cooking, now all that was left was for Asuka to tell him how she truly felt.

Asuka looked away... could she forgive him? She couldn't tell. Everything was so unclear. If she could forgive herself, then why couldn't she forgive Shinji? If she were in his position, she probably would've done the exact same things that he did. And besides. It was all just karma biting her back after all the terrible things she did, right? She looked in Shinji's direction, her face mostly neutral as she spoke.

"...It's fine. I'm sorry for what I did to you back then, too."

Despite the bluntness of her sentence, she seemed genuine enough. Her voice was noticeably grungier and deeper than before and her hair was a bit scruffier. Not much you could really do for your hair in the middle of an actual apocalypse. She didn't really blame Shinji for Instrumentality, either. They were just being led along by those bastards at SEELE, anyways... how she wished they'd return from being LCL so she could just kick their shit in.

As Danya finished up cooking inside the bus, he slightly overheard what they said. Reflecting on each of their upbringing, maybe it was neither their faults, albeit indirectly. It was like each and every decision and recruit for NERV was carefully selected from the shadows to set them up to fail; a conspiracy, which given the turn of events, was the most logical cause. The thought of an unqualified alcoholic like Misato overlooking custody over the two nauseated Danya. Why else would she be selected other than to give SEELE more power over their human pawns?

As for Danya, he often questioned if he would ever forgive himself. The hardest thing to accept, was even when he tried his best, it wasn't enough to prevent Nikolai and Adeline from being killed. What good a person is he if he cannot protect his loved ones that he promised to look after?

"Dinner's ready." He said as he dished out the context from the stainless steel pot off the bunsen burner and into bowls. It was sausage with rice and beans. Nothing too complicated. But in the aftermath of such a catastrophe, what was normally a commodity, turned into a blessing. It's ironic how people took these things for granted until the end began.

Shinji stops for a moment... "it's fine" she says... Like it's nothing... He clenches his hands as he stares at the ground. His head slowly turns to Asuka with a somewhat annoyed and confused expression...

"It's fine...? H-How can you just brush this off like that...? Why- Why aren't you angrier about this...?"

The boy was about to practically demand her to just yell at him, to call him a selfish asshole... That's what he deserved after all. Luckily, Danya's call stopped him from continuing. His attention turned to the bus for a moment, calming him down for a moment. He turned his head down for another moment, releasing his clenched hands. Feeling like he should say something else he... ...turns away.

He walks into the bus, feeling better to just run from the conversation rather than make things worse again. Shinji walked in and approached Danya as he was serving the food and looked it over. It had been a while since he cooked himself food... He didn't really have the materials to do so. It was great to finally see some actual cooking. After taking his bowl, he looked over the food and then at Danya.

"Thank you for the meal, sir." He said slightly sheepishly as he turns to walk away.

Why wasn't she angry? She was. Furious. But- she couldn't bring herself to hurt Shinji like she used to. Besides, she deserved everything that happened to her, right? It was only retribution for being so abrasive. And besides, she was just as bad as he was. Being an ass to Shinji would just be hypocritical, right...? Then why did she want to hurt him so badly? Conflicting herself again, she stared down at the ground. Shinji wasn't to be blamed for Instrumentality- or for his actions, really... he was innocent. But then, why did she want to hurt him?

Looking at Shinji again, she examined his face. His annoyed expression, just how she looked all the time. She almost saw herself in him. Maybe that was why she wanted to do harm to him so badly- residual self-hatred. Eventually, Danya calls for dinner and she just walks in, sitting on her raggedy bed and taking her food. This time, she ate slowly and thoughtfully. She occasionally looked at her hands- the same ones she used to attack Shinji all those months ago. Maybe that was why.

"You're welcome, Shinji. You're always welcome." He said as he carefully observed the interaction between the two wounded souls. As he ate, he reflected on how drastically different their most recent interaction was with one another. And yet, it seems they've only just begun to change for the better. Even still, they bore a burden on their shoulders; regret. Danya knew the feeling all too well. He had a feeling that even with Instrumentality, it would be a long and winding road to navigate.

The borderless world of Instrumentality gave them the ability to peer into their souls and examine their memories. Danya himself was trying to come to terms with the Third Impact. It was as if humanity had been doomed since the Second. Even in the best case scenario, perhaps it only would've been a matter of time.l.

After he ate, he put his hands together and began to pray in thanks for the meal. His faith in his religion, was as of this moment, the only thing that kept his sanity afloat, albeit barely.

"Shinji, wait." He said to him, "Stay for a while. I've always wanted to meet you."

As he ate he couldn't help but think to himself and ponder on his decisions... He hated how he acted... It was impulsive and emotional and stupid-... I ruined this world... Everyone knows it... I can't run anymore. If I had known... I wouldn't have-

Shinji finished eating his food and put the bowl to the side as he kept his head down. His thoughts kept attacking him... He thought that denying Instrumentality would return everything to normal again but he couldn't have been more wrong. Everyone hated him. The world was in ruins. Where before he could've met people... now he definitely can't. He stares at the palm of his hand before putting it over his face. "-I'm a mess...-" He mumbles to himself.

He stands up, about to walk off, but is stopped by Danya's plea. Why was he so obsessed with Shinji? Being curious about why a total stranger was so affectionate with him and what he possibly wanted from him he sits down again.

"Okay... I don't think you've told me your name..." The boy asks as he looks over to Danya.

"My name is Danya Aloyoshenka. I'm from Khabarovsk, Russia, "he explained.

Danya wanted to know more about Shinji, how he truly felt, and how his train of thought worked. In the brief moment he glanced at his memories during instrumentality, he gained a slight understanding of the immense trauma that the child was forced to undergo. "I saw everything. Well…almost everything." He said to him, When unmentionable pain goes unchecked and unfiltered, catastrophe is bound to happen.

"There was no way you could've known. I'm sure they would've found a way regardless." In all likelihood, there was little else the pilots could've done to prevent mankind from destroying itself. If anyone was responsible, it was those in power.

Shinji was slightly surprised that some random person had decided that he needed to hear that... Was he really this blatantly pathetic? Although those words would've meant a lot more from someone close to him, they still felt nice nonetheless that he had at least one person in his corner. His glance turns to Asuka... It's a shame that their relationship isn't going to get much better than what it is now.

He turns back to Danya with a small forced smile, trying to seem at ease from his words. "Thank you... It's good to know someone is still on my side... Even if it's out of pity..." Shinji's gaze turns back down to the ground as he tried to think about what to do next.

Asuka eventually finishes her food, cleaning off the plate and the utensils used to eat the food, then putting them next to the rest of the dishes and sitting back down on her bed. She leaned back, turning around and looking out the window- at Lilith's head. That and the red stained sea was a permanent reminder of what had transpired just weeks ago.

She glared at Shinji. Her eyes seemed almost blank- emotionless before her eyes moved back and focused on the outside... She didn't know what to do. Should she even forgive Shinji, and herself? A deep, scathing frown formed on her features, her brows furrowing as she looked outside. Conflicting thoughts rush through her head- what to do... she remained silent, though.

Talk about awkwardness.

Danya didn't think Shinji was pathetic at all, considering everything he went through. He wondered if there was any chance for him and for Asuka to mend their dysfunction.

"You remind me a lot of myself, more than you might realize...and of my little brother." He revealed it to him. He figured what they ought to do next is spend their time recuperating from the events that have rattled them to the core.

"Thanks for cleaning Asuka." He said to her, trying to show her he was grateful for her willingness to stick around.

"Your brother...?"

Shinji obviously has no siblings and doesn't even know what a bond between two is like... The closest thing he had to that was Asuka... And he already knew how that went. He looks up at him again, deciding to ask about that. Maybe there was something he could do to come to good terms with Asuka.

"What is it like to have a sibling?"

Danya couldn't help but give a small chuckle. He thought back to the days when they were still together, carefree and blissful. Whatever they had, they shared. Whatever they felt, they shared.

"It's a tremendous feeling, a gift and a responsibility, to look after your family. When you're with them, it feels like you can take on the world together. When you lose them..." He paused. Ever since that fateful day, Danya had crossed the threshold into depression.

"We were living in an orphanage in Khabarovsk after our parents went missing in the Moscow Blackout. The economy had plummeted. The orphanage barely had enough to go around, sometimes we had to fight to survive."

"We were bullied constantly. But I promised to look after him. One day those bastards went too far. Nikolai was never the same. And one day..." He swallowed hard, and lowered his gaze into the ground, his hands trembling slightly as his breath became shallow. To think back on the moment he saw his organs scattered across the room haunted him. "He shot himself..."

Shinji simply listened to his story closely. He tried comparing his explanation of what a sibling is to his own life to see if he had anyone like that. The only time it felt like that was during the time Shinji and Asuka were synchronizing perfectly. Throughout the entire time they spent preparing he really felt like they were forming a tight bond and that the Angel stood no chance against the two of them. He tilted his head down again as he smiled in reminiscence.

His smile faded as Danya started to re-tale the events he had to endure. A rough upbringing in an orphanage with his little brother... Who eventually killed himself. To be in the depths of despair at the point of taking his own life... Shinji's thought about just disappearing sometimes but killing himself was... scary. He never followed up on those thoughts... It disgusted him. Shinji looks back to Danya who was pretty shaken up by all the memories. He puts his hand on his back to try and calm him down.

"...I'm sorry for your loss... I won't try to pretend like I know what it feels like but I know it hurts... I'm sorry."

Her mind was racing to different places all at once. She basically entirely tuned out Danya's story as well as Shinji. She continued to think about herself, Shinji, everything, being basically completely silent except for her breathing. If she should forgive herself, then why shouldn't she forgive Shinji? They had both done pretty horrid things to each other... it'd be as if a criminal were to shame someone for robbing a bank.

As she turns around, away from the window, she suddenly gets a really sharp pain in her eye. She groans a bit, hunching over slightly and holding her eye. The pain begins to intensify quickly and begin moving down to her chest and left arm (the one that's exposed, not in her plugsuit). Her right arm moves from clutching her eye to clutching her arm. Memories of the chaos that had happened while she piloted an Eva flash through her mind and she hunches over further, clutching her arm so tightly that it was probably losing circulation at this point. The pain eventually just dies down a bit and she puts her hand on her eye. Her entire body felt like that static-y feeling when you sleep on your arm weird.

"Ngh..."

She looked up to see if she'd brought any attention to herself. She didn't really want to since it was pretty clear that Danya and Shinji were having a moment. She eventually sits up straight again, breathing in through clenched teeth and letting out a deep sigh. God, that hurt...

That was the reason why Danya felt disgusted by Asuka when they first met. Her antics reminded him of that awful place with those heartless people. But he often had to remind himself that none of it was her fault, especially since she was nowhere near as cruel as they. It was just how his trauma affected him.

That day, Danya was reading some Dostoyevsky in a corner when he heard a scream coming from the hall. He witnessed Nikolai; his little brother, running from out of the shower stalls completely nude. The bullies followed behind as Nikolai told him they were trying to assault him. Danya protected him by getting into a fistfight. Even though he received plenty of lacerations, the bullies lied to the Headmistress, saying that Danya was attempting to have intercourse with Nikolai, and thus, received a harsh punishment by being locked away in solitary confinement for a week...

It infuriated him how that drove Nikolai over the edge, and at the same time Danya felt greatly devastated. He forced a half smile as soon as he felt Shinji's hand upon his back. Asuka's nerve pain episode drew his attention to her. It made him think. Maybe he too was somewhat of a hypocrite. "I don't want to lose either of you, the same way I lost him."

His attention was slightly shifted as Asuka grunted in pain and discomfort. He took note of her clenching herself down to try and stop her pain. Was this his own fault? The one who caused Asuka's pain? Probably... Maybe that's truly why she was so distant now... He half expected to be talking to the same Asuka who called him an idiot. The same one that groaned at weird habits. The one who thought herself as larger than life... This one just seemed beaten and pushed around too much to the point of just laying in the mud instead of fighting back.

Shinji had overstayed his stare and she definitely notices him staring. As soon as he realizes their gaze met, he turns away to hide his gaze from Asuka. At this point it didn't seem all too good to turn back to her. He hears her shifting around, likely sitting up, and then a sigh. Was she sighing at his reaction to her? Did he want to look back to confirm this? Maybe he's just overthinking it and should just leave her be. That's most likely the true reality...

I'm just a burden to them. They're still working things out on their own... I'm in the way. I should just leave. He thinks to himself for a few moments as his eyes look up to the exit. His hand leaves Danya's back as he starts to mentally prepare to leave.

"...I'm sorry... I know I'm a burden to you two. I'll leave."

After he says this, he grabs his bag and stands up, putting his bag sling over his shoulder. Running away... Just like always... how pathetic.

She can't really do much as Shinji gets up and begins to leave. Her whole body felt hard to move- as if she was paralyzed. She managed to shift her arm to move forward, clenching the ragged cloth blanket in front of her; she then proceeded to pull herself forward and off of the side of the bus, her body unfreezing itself. She looked at Shinji again as he grabbed his bag. She considered her options; she COULD just let Shinji go and he'd just be... gone. She could just leave him to his own devices and just not worry about him again, but that was just terrible to do... especially to someone as already mentally broken as Shinji was. She got up, standing behind him.

. . .shit. What should she even say? Should she just try and sort things out between the two-? No, that was complicated... It'd probably be better to talk privately with him about that, right? Fumbling over herself mentally, she eventually began to speak and hopefully get him to stay.

". . .You haven't really been a burden to either of us. And besides, three people are better than two."

She said. A quick intrusive thought just sweeps across her mind... what if she just choked the fucker out? Revenge for what the bastard did to her. She quickly ejects that thought from her mind on account of it being far too brutal- and it'd also probably permanently split the two apart. Her exposed arm did twitch slightly though.

Although what Shinji did to Asuka could be considered a felonious violation, it wasn't without a motive; of which Shinji had every right to feel frustrated and upset about in the wake of his grief for Kaworu. Danya believed that every emotion, every feeling, was ultimately justified. What really matters is how one would express themselves. Given the fact Shinji was never raised right, and the circumstances that he was forced to kill the only one who he saw as a true friend...something was bound to happen.

Danya didn't want Shinji to leave. His greatest insecurity, his greatest fear, was failing to protect a loved one, much less a person who reminded him of himself the most. Shinji was like a twisted broken reflection of Danya, of which he yearned to mend. More than anything, he just wanted him to be happy, even at the expense of his own well being.

His savior complex did more harm to him than good, as he saw himself as a Martyr. Oftentimes, he questioned whether or not he was capable of saving himself, as he had tried and failed before, so he'd usually try and save others from suffering the same fate as he did whenever possible. Although it didn't show, it was taking a toll on him.

"Don't be so hard on yourself, Shinji." Danya said as he stood up and approached him. As a token of friendship, he offered to have him and Asuka listen to his own Walkman, which held a cassette of The Beatles Greatest Hits. The song on track was 'Hey Jude', which was a song about a boy who was afraid of letting a girl into his life out of fear he'd hurt her.

Shinji stopped as Asuka tried to talk him into staying. I guess having mixed signals was a part of her she couldn't quite get rid of. Shinji didn't quite know if she really did want him to stay or if she wanted to do something to him later on... He wouldn't blame her for wanting to kill him. Many others wanted to do so as well. But at least she had a better reason other than just starting 3rd impact...

He turns his head slightly to look at Asuka but says nothing, rather just trying to see if she was genuine... Before he can make a proper judgment on her, Danya steps forwards. He faces the other and pays attention to the song Danya presented. It has quite the repetitive lyrics but aside from that he enjoys the song and takes note of the themes of it. In a sense, this Jude person was in a similar situation but not quite... At this point he's giving up on chasing a romantic relationship with Asuka. She hated him and he knew it. Was it really worth the effort?

"Thank you but I'm not sure... I don't think I'll be much use anyway. And I know Asuka and I will never be friends like we used to be. It's just not possible."

Shinji looks down for a moment in thought... It was time for a proper goodbye and a simple bow didn't seem perfect. Maybe something more universal would be best. He extends his hand out to Danya for a handshake as a goodbye.

Asuka looked at Shinji as he spoke; he was right. They would never be friends like before... after everything. She... wished she could go back to when her and Shinji were in perfect sync. Though, she should probably focus on reality. She looked at Shinji solemnly; he was the only person who knew her that had returned from Instrumentality. Ritsuko, Misato, Kaji, Toji- none of them were even alive to her knowledge.

She still looked at Shinji. She'd done things that were comparable to what he did... she forgave herself, so... why couldn't she forgive Shinji? She felt pity and anger for him both at the same time... she didn't know what to say. Should she just ask him to stay? She simultaneously wanted to make things up and had the slight urge to just leave him to his own devices again... slowly, she sat down on her bed, close to Shinji, contemplating her words... should she just be blunt-? What if something went wrong? How would she even word it?

"... Shinji..."

She mumbled, loud enough for him to hear.

Shinji had a point. After everything that's happened, no matter how much they wished for it, things would never go back to the way they used to be. This was something that Danya deeply regretted; not being able to do better. He wanted to right the wrongs he'd done, but one can only do so much.

"Maybe you won't be. But that doesn't mean it'll never happen." Danya wondered. Perhaps it was a good thing that they would never be friends like they used to. "My old man once said to me, no man is a failure, who has friends." Danya said to Shinji. He wanted him to know that he truly wasn't alone in the world.

If Shinji was truly to leave, then he hoped it wouldn't be forever, nor would he stray far from the bus.

"Danya... I'm sorry. I just don't feel like I should stay. I'm sorry... I'll return some time in the future, I promise. Goodbye..."

He had to bring back his hand since just holding it there felt a little odd. Whatever, he'll just revert to the default. Shinji bows to Danya and turns to leave the bus. Before leaving though, he looks back to Asuka and stares at her for a moment. He could feel his heart twist as he thought of what he was going to say. To leave her behind... potentially forever... it hurts so much... Shinji steels himself though and takes a deep breath.

"...I'll miss you, Asuka... I'm sorry... Goodbye."

The boy closes his eyes and turns away from the two. Before they properly say goodbye, Shinji already started leaving. He walks down the steps of the bus and starts to walk east, in the direction of Rei's head over the horizon... He has no idea where to go but maybe Lilith would guide him somewhere... Either way, there was no home for him here.

She doesn't really know what to say so she just allows Shinji to leave, watching as he walks out of the bus and begins east. She just gets up, standing idly for a moment before just moving to the back of the bus, putting some distance between herself and Danya. She just sits down, not really knowing what to even do at this point. The static feeling in her body began to get more and more prominent; Asuka just stared ahead.

...What now? Would she ever even be able to patch things up with Shinji again and express her forgiveness? She just stared ahead blankly, her face slightly scrunching up... maybe she should just focus on surviving.