Chapter 25: Was This What We Wanted?

Once again Gendo Ikari found himself in the dark room surrounded by the SEELE monoliths. While news of the outside world remained a secondary issue to him, answering the call of the organization he worked for was integral to making sure he could keep NERV functioning. This time however, he would take the initiative and make sure his superiors would hear his recent developments.

After accounting what had happened earlier in the day, the 01 Monolith asked, "You are finally willing to relinquish the contents of the Book of Shemaiah after so long?"

Gendo confirmed, "One of your agents has seen to it that I do so. Far be it from me to deny such a crucial demand. Especially to ensure our plans are realized."

At that reveal came something Gendo witnessed among the SEELE monoliths only a few times before. Simply remaining in place exchanging no words between one another. He had come to suspect long ago they were not looking on in disbelief but was still left to speculate just how he was going to be viewed by the gathering.

The silence finally broke as the 05 Monolith demanded, "Tell us what you are implying Ikari. If the book has such an important detail then do not hide it."

Gendo remained collected and explained, "The final Angel listed in the book is a foe unlike any we have faced before. A monster we have never imagined. Simply known as Maelstrom."

The 11 Monolith voiced its skepticism asking, "You have confirmed that this is an Angel and not an event?"

Gendo kept his focus forward to the 01 Monolith answering, "There is little that we can deny now. You may review the contents if you wish but you will find little that has gone against our estimates."

The 09 Monolith knew it could not utilize Gendo's lack of respect for authority against him but took the chance to point out, "You have been fortunate so far but you have yet to present an idea of what this foe will be."

Relying on the idea that he was not wrong before gave Gendo the room to warn, "If our translation is accurate, we have determined it will be so great of an obstacle that it may be able to overwhelm NERV with little effort."

The 15 Monolith admitted the ground Gendo had to work with by warning, "Your desire for assistance is clear Commander Ikari. Presumptuous but a case founded in reason if true."

The 14 Monolith took a chance to voice its concern, "There is much we do not yet understand but we have reason to believe this may become a dire obstacle to our plans."

The 01 Monolith spoke, "You are fortunate to be where you are Commander Ikari. Any other area would have left you on your own. We shall approach this scenario when the time has come but do not anticipate any time sooner."

As the only other authority figure Gendo had any interest in hearing from, he dropped his hands to accept, "I hoped for nothing more. It is only vital that you remember what is at stake and what we risk to lose."

The 02 Monolith was eager to reestablish the authority SEELE had over his demands by reminding, "There is little we can do now. We anticipate your further cooperation Commander."

The 01 Monolith prepared to conclude the meeting announcing, "We have come this far. Our vision will be realized."

With no further words to exchange, the plans in motion within SEELE were left to continue uninterrupted. It was only headed down a slightly longer path than anticipated but with the anticipated end in sight. The tension that remained between Gendo and the SEELE council however was as cryptic as it had ever been despite the shared goal being so close to realize at this point. Who stood to achieve the most however was a situation anyone could guess.

Stepping away from the door, Gendo accounted, "Those fools understand how serious our situation has become."

Fuyutsuki remained skeptic of the evaluation as he asked, "And you believe they will answer in the end?"

What sense of boasting Gendo might have had was present in his words as he reminded, "They will not risk everything we have built towards if they comprehend the scale of this one."

Deciding there was little else he could have prepared himself for, Fuyutsuki pointed out, "I am honestly more concerned what they will do if they discover an inconsistency with what occurs before or after the projected arrival."

Gendo remained assured of his place in the plan as he pointed out, "If there is, we will still have more opportunities than they could hope to have themselves. They are still limited in what they can achieve. They know how valuable we are, especially after coming so far."

Content with hearing his superior's dedication, Fuyutsuki followed alongside Gendo acknowledging, "If we are fortunate, you will be right Ikari."

Within the same alley he stood in days ago, Mitsuru followed Koji as they searched for the first sign of their coconspirator. Much like their previous meeting they had to ensure they would not be found by onlookers or potential spies attempting to capture them. It was a short while before they were face to face with the man who instructed them to meet.

Kyoya stepped out of the shadows congratulating, "Well done Mitsuru. We can finally decipher the Book of Shemaiah ourselves."

The praise did little to uplift Mitsuru as he told him, "I don't know what the commander must be thinking. It seemed too easy of a bluff on my part."

He felt relief when he heard Kyoya agree, "That much is certain. I've had Porter and Hawk look over this briefly. Apparently, the text trails off at the end. A mention of this Maelstrom event but nothing afterwards."

Koji tried to understand the situation, "Is this supposed to be another biblical disaster like some of the other ones?"

Kyoya reminded them of the premise, "The book is a detailing of the wars between Rehoboam and Jeroboam. In an ideal scenario this would be deciphered as a manifestation of the downfall of both of their kingdoms. If it is another Angel however, it may be one of the most dangerous we have seen yet."

Hoping he could remain on the subject, Mitsuru pointed out, "We haven't faced an Angel we could not handle before. This has to be another one we can deal with."

Kyoya sighed before telling him. "I hope that is the case. Otherwise, we may be facing a greater challenge than we would prefer to face."

Unable to make sense of the order otherwise, Mitsuru decided, "I guess it must make sense. If anything is controlling the Angels, they probably would send their strongest as a last resort."

Seeing an opportunity at the premise made Koji point out, "So if you can find the outgoing message to SEELE, that must mean you're able to track them down."

Kyoya shot down any sense of hope explaining, "We might be able to at some point. Right now we have no means of discerning their location. All we know now is that we will have at least a partial outline of where we are headed."

While he kept himself from sounding too hopeful, Koji rubbed his hands together pointing out, "At that point we'll be able to send in the military to occupy NERV because we'll have the evidence necessary to point out the abuse of the pilots. There should be nothing stopping us at that point right?"

Kyoya admitted, "We have a little confirmation of what the upper personnel is doing right now, but incriminating them right after the last Angel is defeated will be the perfect time to reveal the motivations behind Gendo and how superiors. Either case will be ideal for us."

"We have abuse already."

Kyoya and Koji turned to Mitsuru when they heard him interject. Koji shot down where the possibilities were headed as he told him, "No matter what you did to Ayanami, they are going to trail back to you. I'm sorry to say that your actions aren't enough. Don't let what you did get to you now."

Mitsuru shook his head, "No. It's someone else."

Kyoya flinched as soon as he heard that and asked, "Who is it? It's one of the pilots, isn't it?"

The fear he had of what Mitsuru discovered was realized as soon as Kyoya heard him answer, "It's Shinji Ikari. He is being taken advantage of by Major Katsuragi."

Koji snapped his head as he turned to Mitsuru demanding clarification, "The Major is doing that?"

Kyoya shook his head in desperation to appear unfazed by the reveal before explaining, "No Koji. It's another matter entirely."

Caught in further disbelief by Kyoya's dismissal, Koji made his way up to him pointing out, "I don't understand. There's no way the opposite could be true. If she is the one inflicting harm then we have to make this public."

Kyoya went further with his dismissal by explaining, "There is nothing to be gained from this. The law will only see them as having mutual consent with one another."

Unsure how to accept this idea, Koji asked, "And how do you know this?"

The question made Kyoya breathe heavily before explaining, "I have seen their relationship develop. It is not what you fear it might be."

While Koji stepped back with a sense of disbelief from what was revealed, Mitsuru pressed forward with his initial point, "Kyoya you can't be serious! We're doing this for the sake of the pilots! What good is it if we ignore even one?"

Kyoya denied the accusation by explaining, "This developed out of mutual desire for one another. Manipulation was not involved."

Koji was not completely at ease with the answer but forced himself to go along with the explanation by observing, "So you're saying that the pilot of Unit-01 is not one of the pilots at victim of being mistreated?"

Kyoya confirmed, "Whatever assistance either of them may require will be beyond what we are trying to achieve. We have a mission to handle within NERV already."

Hearing such a dismissal made Mitsuru raise his hands and emphasize, "That's still not an excuse! We're talking about a minor being violated by an adult!"

Kyoya turned to him while Koji asked, "Mitsuru, why are you set on this? We have a more important mission right now."

Despite his intention to keep Mitsuru calm, Koji found himself being asked, "Are you seriously on Kyoya's side with this? This is what the Major was trying to hide with that rumor about me and her! If this isn't criminal, I don't know what is!"

Koji denied the accusation reminding, "I don't understand it either. We have not seen what they went through, but the Major is not part of SEELE as far as we know."

Hoping he could end the confusion, Kyoya asked, "Who did you hear this from? Are they reliable?"

Mitsuru shook his head as he explained, "Kaede came to me about this. I don't know how she found out but she wants to make sure Shinji can come out of this fine."

Attempting to sound dismissive, Kyoya reminded, "There is nothing for us to address. This relationship is their business, not a concern for us. Humanity has to survive first."

Mitsuru raised his head to Kyoya before asking, "What is it going to take then? The other children are important, I get that! But we can't leave Shinji out of this!"

Intent to quell the controversy building in his head, Kyoya pointed his gun to Mitsuru as he demanded, "Whatever Kaede told you, it is only going to be a distraction. Now stop it."

Seeing the gun, Mitsuru stepped back but warned, "I understand... Don't assume I won't let this go quietly."

Kyoya met Mitsuru's threat by placing his gun packet in his jacket, "Try it. Bring it to any authorities and you will be dealt with. This operation is a delicate one. We cannot have anything go wrong."

Mitsuru looked to Koji for support only to hear him remind, "I know you care about this. But it is not for us to interfere. We have bigger matters to handle right now."

Realizing he would not be able to change the mind of either of his conspirators made Mitsuru finally relent, "Fine then. We just wait for the Maelstrom event to pass and then we begin the occupation of NERV?"

Kyoya confirmed, "If we have anything irrefutable that can confirm it is necessary. From what has been deciphered, it seems like it could have the potential to reveal everything."

Accepting he would have to go along with the plan for now, Mitsuru asked, "Do we have a time frame for how long it will be before it arrives?"

As much as Kyoya did not want to leave his allies in the dark about what could happen, the truth needed to be revealed as he answered, "There are still Angels that will appear before it. Much like the Dead Sea scrolls however, their frame of time is abstract at best."

Little had changed at NERV that could be seen from the outside. There was a long wait in the air as the human race prepared for another battle against the Angels. The pilots tasked with preparing for that day were still stuck with their emotions in flux.

Shinji ran a hand over his face as he wiped out what remained in his eyes. Even after a week of adjusting to what his life had become, he struggled to force himself to accept what happened to him. He could say that he had become acclimated to staying in NERV's headquarters but was further from happiness than he could remember.

Marching down the halls he found his anxiety interrupted the moment Kaworu greeted, "You still have trouble sleeping?"

Shinji raised his head as he answered, "The beds are a bit different is all."

Kaworu cut directly to what he knew was truly affecting him as he sympathized, "I understand how it is Shinji. She must have meant much to you."

Remembering that he still kept his relationship a secret around Kaworu, Shinji struggled to find a way to hide what was once the truth by admitting, "I never even thought about it that way..."

Emphasizing what he saw as a discrepancy, Kaworu pointed out, "I must say it is fascinating to me to see Asuka remain as she has afterwards."

While he was thankful Kaworu did not press any further on his ex-girlfriend's identity, Shinji still found it difficult to play along with the lie. Asuka did not change much since she made NERV her new residence but then again, neither did Misato. There was increasingly little he could differentiate between the two as potential relationships only now that one wanted to throw herself upon him and the other attempting to act as though he was just another member of NERV.

Shinji sighed before admitting, "There was a time I wished Asuka would change. I never thought it would turn out worse."

Kaworu placed a hand on Shinji's shoulder as he reminded, "Humans can only affect so much in the course of change Shinji. There are more people in your life than just Asuka."

Shinji remembered hearing those sorts of words before. There might have been people who had relationships before who experienced what he was going through but it was not any easier for him. He could not tell how much worse hearing it from Kaworu was, but it was not something he even wanted to hear in the first place.

Doing his best to sound receptive to his advice, Shinji asked, "Is this really what a breakup is supposed to be like? I don't know how to live with it."

The sadness Shinji exhibited was clearer by the second for Kaworu but pressed on with his initial advice, "I only know that possibilities exist. Despite what you might think, happiness is still out there for you to take."

Hearing this was enough to make Shinji cross his arms in his best attempt to recoil before he determined, "If it's like what I went through, I don't think I want to try again."

Removing his hand and nodding in acceptance, Kaworu reminded, "That is a choice you must decide for yourself, Shinji. Only understand there will come a time where you will be unable to take back what you have chosen."

Shinji watched Kaworu walk away as he allowed the words to linger. After so long he still could not say what he thought of Kaworu even with the supposed rumor about him. Remembering that rumor made him think of everything else that was behind NERV and its existence before wondering what he was supposed to think beyond that.

The arrival of new Angels was a constant threat against humanity, but the more sinister intentions weighed on Shinji's mind the most. The knowledge of Instrumentality, what would occur to the human race when it warded off the last remaining Angel. Most harrowing of all how his father was supposed to be at the center of it all.

The demise of the world itself was gazing back at him in the face and he was being told that happiness was supposed to be in his grasp. Ever since forcing himself out of Misato's life, very little seemed to make sense to Shinji and there seemed to be nothing he could do to change it. He was still stuck in a routine that demanded him to follow a certain purpose while everything around him seemed to point to needing him to sacrifice what humanity he might have to ensure others would survive. Even if they were no longer people he felt he could affiliate with.

What was supposed to be just another breakup turned out to be a heavier burden than Misato could have asked for. Her workdays at NERV had become routine and increasingly found herself led willing to follow the duties she assigned for herself. Even after a few days she found herself having trouble remembering to feed Pen Pen and sent him to live at Hikari's place for his own good.

Her newfound sense of indifference was not caused by the fact she would no longer have Shinji's cooking to look forward to, though it certainly played a factor, but not having anyone else under her roof proved to be a detriment to her mindset. Shinji wanted nothing to do with her anymore and Asuka wanted nothing else other than to be with him. She thought about renting her extra bedroom for potential tenants but realized how the state of her deteriorating surroundings would not attract many savory folks.

Misato managed to continue demonstrating her commanding presence during working hours, but her breaks gave her the opportunity to sit by herself and ponder her situation. It was not as relieving as it could have been however as she found her body still struggled to handle holding caffeine or alcohol. All of it thanks to her choice to allow Shinji to go his own way but not completely cutting off every time to him she had.

She was denied solitude in her moping as Misato heard Ritsuko ask, "You still think you're fit for duty Major?"

Misato continued to look at the ground as she dismissed, "It's just the pregnancy Ritsuko. Nothing serious."

Ritsuko sat next to her correcting, "Bringing life into a world like this is serious Misato. Especially if you aren't going to have the father around."

Even recognizing how serious the situation was, Misato sighed as she pointed out, "You sure know how to be nonchalant about something you don't even want to happen."

The comment made Ritsuko realize what Misato was referring to. Even in the midst of her depression she was still able to recognize what Ritsuko was really trying to accomplish behind the scenes. Her attempts at conversation ever since the reveal of Rei's existence and Misato knowing what SEELE was planning behind the scenes became enough to make her look at her in a very different light.

Deciding there was nothing else she could do to get through to her, Ritsuko stood up as she reminded, "How everything turns out it still up to us humans to decide. It is your choice if you want the Angels to win or not. Or if you will even live to see what happens after."

Misato kept her gaze away from Ritsuko as she revealed more of her ire, "Yeah. Sorry it's hard for me to make it sound like I know you have the best intentions in mind."

Ritsuko managed the only response she could imagine fitting that moment agreeing, "You would be a lost cause if you did trust me."

Walking away and leaving her, Misato could not imagine how Ritsuko still had the willingness to even look her in the eye after such revelations. They were both trapped within their roles at NERV as they continued to defend the human race from destruction. The most upsetting part being Ritsuko's apparent belief that she could not be stopped while so many were manipulating the scenes behind her.

Misato was reminded of her station as soon as she saw Makoto make his way up to her and greet, "Major, we have checked with all bases worldwide. There are no Angels to report."

Misato voiced her indifference, "So another boring day. Got it."

Makoto followed behind her as he asked, "You still feel under the weather Major?"

Hoping she would not have to explain anything else, Misato dismissed his concern, "I'm just moving along land filling time like I'm supposed to. Nothing special from me either."

Misato was disappointed she would not have any time to herself as soon as she saw Satsuki appear in front of her. She added, "You do know that everyone in the base knows about your condition Major. You cannot treat us all like we do not know."

Makoto agreed, "I never thought you knew Mitsuru that well but still going through the pregnancy? It seems like an odd decision."

Resorting to the one dismissal she knew would work, Misato told Makoto, "Back to your station. Another word of this and you'll be on overtime."

Uninterested in anything but avoiding such a threat, Makoto quickly walked away to leave Satsuki with his superior. Misato came to almost immediately regret leaving herself with Satsuki, a feeling she did not expect to feel any time soon. After what had become common knowledge among her and the other MAGI technicians she knew she could not be the same friend she once was.

Satsuki confirmed this change in dynamic as she warned, "You know you can't put this off Misato. You have another month at best. After that you will need to attend a clinic if you're lucky."

Misato groaned before telling her, "I still have the pill. What can I say? I'm hoping... he might come back..."

Satsuki found herself cut from being upset as Misato trailed away from resorting to her old lie. It was still enough for her to condemn, "Are you hoping for a man to come back or a boy you hurt? Because the former is dead and the latter can never be what you need him to be now."

Still facing the consequences of her deception, Misato agreed, "I can stand here all day thinking about what I should have done. Everything I do afterwards just makes me feel like I could be headed somewhere even worse."

The reflection earned little sympathy from Satsuki as she reminded, "Every choice you do not make could harm you as well. Just further down the line. I honestly believed you were better than this. That you were capable of making proper judgments."

Misato could not bring herself to defend how she was acting as she admitted, "Showing it only when I need to. Shows what I know about being stable, doesn't it?"

The question made Satsuki turn away from Misato. She did not have a chance to see her expression but had a feeling it did not take much to know what she was thinking about a situation such as this. She also knew that no one ever had a happy smile to share as they crossed their arms to hold back anything else.

As a final display of contempt, Satsuki left Misato to herself emphasizing, "We always knew you had the mannerisms of a child Misato. We never thought you would be so desperate to allow yourself to seek one out. Think before you try to bring one into the world."

Having lost the interest of someone she once thought she could rely on, Misato watched Satsuki leave as she asked under her breath, "That's how you always thought about me, didn't you?"

There was little keeping Misato within NERV as the final hours of the workday came to a close. The more the week progressed however the more she wanted to try and remain standing in her position of overseeing the command center where she felt like she had some kind of purpose. Even after a whole week of trying to get used to her new position she could not bring herself to want to be anywhere outside her work life. Even in a situation such as now she could not help but feel she was wandering without a purpose.

It became less bearable for her to consider as she saw Shinji walking her way down the hallways. At this point she knew he was headed to his personal quarters while she was expected to return home by now. Every time they crossed paths however, she felt hope well up inside her as she hoped he would even acknowledge her.

He looked to her briefly but quickly turned away as he continued his way down the halls. Misato frowned knowing this was what she should have expected by now but still did not find living with the idea to be any easier. She should have felt ashamed for admitting she had become so attached to someone she should have only cared for platonically but her grief at her current situation had become too much for her to even think about anything else.

As she made her way to an elevator, she saw Mitsuru nearby waiting as he asked, "Are you headed anywhere Major?"

Misato answered, "Parking. I'm heading out. You doing anything tonight?"

There was a sudden change in Mitsuru's tone as he told her, "If you're trying to invite me, you should know I can't play along now."

What sounded like a sudden turn was an allusion Misato immediately recognized. In the eyes of at least a few people, Mitsuru included, she had just become a monster they did not even want to look at. Even with the question of the law being at best a gray area, most people around her would not see her taking a child as a lover as something she should have even thought of let alone go forward with. Mitsuru knew everything that was causing her to feel this grief and she was not going to walk away easily after this conversation.

The two made their way into the elevator as they began their descent. Forcing herself to answer the denial, Misato asked, "So you did hear about that lie I started huh?"

Mitsuru crossed his arms as he looked down and confirmed, "Kaede told me everything. I don't know how you thought you could have kept it hidden."

Misato could not even look at Mitsuru as she acknowledged his observation, "You have every right to be mad at me for dragging you into this."

"You've been with Shinji for so long and you decided that using him would be the best option for you. I understand losing Kaji was hard, but we all saw you as being stronger than that."

"There's nobody here who would have been okay with it. I should have been able to tell."

"Despite what you might think Major, there are people who care about what happens to the children here. Their deaths are one thing but you destroyed what little opportunity Shinji had left to be a normal human being."

"If I was just able to find out what sort of place NERV was earlier, we probably wouldn't even be having this conversation."

"NERV won't remain the way it is Misato. I know you think you're better than most of us but the Angels are not the only thing we have to deal with. If we don't have to worry about what you stand for, everyone will judge you for what sort of woman you are."

The back and forth of placing blame upon her finally came to a close as the elevator doors opened and realized Mitsuru's evaluation of her. "So that's all I am to you. Just a weak woman who took advantage of a kid. I wouldn't be happy with what I did either if I knew ahead of time."

Mitsuru walked ahead of Misato as he told her, "You make those choices Misato. Everyone else will have to hear it from you."

It was another series of harsh words that Misato knew she at minimum deserved to be placed upon her. There seemed to be no one left in all of NERV who did not know what she had done but was still left in a state of uncertainty when it came to what she was even supposed to do with herself. These thoughts were so great they left her to look down and hesitate to make any progress in leaving the building. The only person she thought she could have found any solace from or tried to form a real relationship with was not even willing to take her seriously considering what happened.

Looking down at the floor contemplating her situation, Misato agreed, "That's all I am now, isn't it? Just a coward who can't even be looked in the eye."

No one followed him out of the building, but Mitsuru found himself meeting with Koji. It was a harsh reminder for Mitsuru that he was not alone in making sure the staff would not go through any significant changes. Koji however had less interest in making himself established than others however and stood prepared to confront his friend.

Seeing Mitsuru walk up to him, Koji asked, "How much did you tell Misato?"

Mitsuru pocketed his hands and answered, "What she needed to know."

"So it's just leaving her in the dark then? I never thought you would compromise potential assistance like this. She still has influence in NERV for a reason."

"I'm living with myself after sending fake letters to children and deciding myself to hurt Rei. I would be a hypocrite by now if I did not address Misato this way."

Koji gritted his teeth as he grabbed Mitsuru by the collar and told him, "You don't have the same history as Kaede. There is no reason for you to be this intent."

Mitsuru looked Koji in the eye as he struggled to keep himself stern and told him, "It's your fault if you think letting children be hurt like this is fine."

Koji was not convinced of Mitsuru's intentions as he pointed out, "You admit to hurting Rei yourself and you made two of our pilots question themselves. Don't you realize you are not part of the solution with these children?"

Mitsuru remained focused on Koji's gaze as he answered, "I never told you this before. My uncle raised me on his own. One day I tried to look into one of his hidden cabinets and he forced me away from it the only way he knew how. That's how I broke my leg as a kid."

The recollection made Koji loosen his grip on Mitsuru's collar but remained fixated on him as he asked, "So that's just how you know what keeping people away from being hurt is supposed to work? By beating them and feeding them lies?"

Mitsuru remained unshaken as he explained, "When he fell off the bridge when I was 16, I had a chance to find out why. It was where he kept his blood money. All the jewelry he was cutting off of people he could pawn off others. That's how he made a living."

Koji finally felt his arms lower before telling him, "You're kidding... the story about your uncle doing all of that... it was all real?"

The disbelief made Mitsuru look away as he confirmed, "No one ever believed it could have been the case."

Shaking his head left and right, Koji tried to counter what was happening up to now by reminding, "That still doesn't explain why you think you had to do all of this."

Hanging his head, Mitsuru revealed everything that motivated him, "It does. My uncle tried his best to keep me away from what he was. I came to realize that and I couldn't bring myself to let everyone else find out. The truth is my intention is to keep children away from the worst things they can be asked to face. What NERV is doing now, I'm not happy about what I'm doing but it's better than what could happen to them if we aren't vigilant. If we let even one possible tragedy slip through our fingers."

As the life recollection came to an end, Koji found himself conflicted with how he could have called any of the intentions wrong. At the same time he could not bring himself to accept seeing so many be hurt just because of one individual deciding what was right for others. As much as he wanted to continue with his initial principle, he knew he could not reverse anything that had been done and it was still important to keeping NERV the way it was. The ongoing fight against the Angels was about to continue at some point and that was currently the most important thing they could maintain.

Koji breathed a heavy sigh before reminding, "We still have to hear from Kyoya about what we'll do to prepare ourselves. If we can assist Misato and the others, we have a duty to fulfill."

Accepting the way things were set up, Mitsuru agreed, "I really didn't want to cause all of this, but it really is our best chance to make sure we can save the human race when this is over."

Turning away and making his way out of the parking area, Koji prepared to face what was about to challenge him the next day and many more after. It seemed as though almost everyone he knew was involved in some tangled web of baffling drama that became too much for him to want to think about further. Such challenges were less desirable as he considered the fact that even those he once saw as good friends or confidants seemed to be far less reliable than he hoped.

A/N: So this chapter is a bit of an establishment of the scene and the next one should reveal more of what the fallout should be. The breakup was certainly going to happen although it sure wasn't going to solve all of the problems everyone had in this particular story. For all we know it might be the case in a story like Lifespan of a Love Affair but there is a lot still going on behind the scenes here as you might be able to tell from all the characters that have been set up before.

I also forgot to mention some additional details in the previous chapter on how things have been going into the publication of future chapters. If you notice an uptick in quality, you can thank zlatanbaranovic for volunteering to beta read behind the scenes. It really is great to have a chance at having a second eye on everything and I hope I continue to provide the best experience for everyone because of this. I also want to give thanks to Xavier Rivera 4003 for continuing to review and provide insight as well.

So there's another update, I hope you look forward to seeing where things go from here. I'll make sure to give every update that should be worth knowing. I'll see you all next chapter.