Neon Genesis Evangelion Fan Fiction ❯ Changing Seasons ❯ Changing Seasons 13 ( Chapter 13 )
[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]
By: JErosion 
Anime/Manga: Neon Genesis Evangelion Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Drama / Hentai / Romance | Type: Divergence | Uploaded On: 07.21.2006 | Updated On: 07.21.2006 | Pages: 4 | Words: 4.6K | Visits: 1.4K | Status: Work In Progress
Anime/Manga: Neon Genesis Evangelion Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Drama / Hentai / Romance | Type: Divergence | Uploaded On: 07.21.2006 | Updated On: 07.21.2006 | Pages: 4 | Words: 4.6K | Visits: 1.4K | Status: Work In Progress
Disclaimer: The following is a non-profit work of fan fiction based on the anime and manga Neon Genesis Evangelion by Hideaki Anno and Yoshiyuki Sadamoto and Studio Gainax. Remember. No matter where you go, there you are.
Changing Seasons
by: JErosion
He couldn't believe he had to do this... again. Three pilots and they had to pick him. At least they had a towel and a robe waiting for him once the test was over. He had always had thought highly of Doctor Akagi. But come on! Did he have to suffer though the indignity of Naked-Sync-Test part 2.
Nobody had made any comments during the test. But he couldn't have done too well. His thougts were just a jumbled mess anyway. His mind cept cycling through all sorts of things. Kissing Hikari. Asuka flashing him. Being naked in an entry plug. Misato telling Mister Kaji he can take the little present he got her and shove up a very unflattering place. Touching Hikari. The date marked on the calender. The sad and uncomfortable look on Rei's face. Kaji trying to be sincere. Hikari's labored and frantic breaths.
He sighed. There was just some things he just could not get out of his head. Hikari was cheif amongst them. The date they went on about two weeks ago was another. He wanted to see her again. Which was sort of strange to say, since he saw her at school the day before. But it was more than that. He wanted to see her again, outside of school. And because of the recent changes in the sync test schedule, had made it rather difficult for him to see her in a more casual setting. And this coming weekend wasn't looking too good either. It was... the anniversary. He needed to talk to his father about that. Or at least try to.
Damn, too many distractions.
Also bright lights sat high of his list of things he did want to have to deal with at the moment. His eye still hurt. When the recovery teams had finally picked them up they had given them blankets to cover themselves with. However at the first chance she got Asuka suddenly came charging at him. She flew into the air delivering a flying kick aimed at his head. Now with all of the movements that were necessary to deliver such an attack, it would have been easy to dodge. But...
The thing was they were just given blankets to cover up with. And when Asuka attacked, the blanket she was draped in billowed out. And apparently getting a crotch shot from an angry redhead can do alot to hamper the reaction time of a guy. It was enough of a distraction that he forgot that her foot would make contact with his head first. At least the rescue teams were able to give him a cold pack, to keep the swelling down. He was luck his eye didn't swell up and turn black. But still he was left with an bruise, that was an ugly yellow.
"That quiet the shiner you got there."
"huh, What?!" Shinji whipped his head around in the direction of the voice, being suprised by the sudden statment. He found himself looking at one of the maintenance engineers that worked on the evangelions.
"Your eye. I looks like someone clocked you good."
"Yeah.... I guess." Shinji said nervously. This was the first time anyone with the maintenance crew had spoken to him before.
"Mind talking with me for a bit?"
"um,.... Sir? I'm sorry,... but I don't know who..... you are."
Shinji mouth went dry as the man just smiled and began to tap the tag that was sewn onto his worksuit.
HORAKI. Y.
"Come on son, step into my office." he jestured towards a railed walkway that went off from the main gang plank.
Shinji swallowed. This man, he was... Hikari and her sisters had talked about him. But in the few times he had visited the their home he had never seen him there. As it was, this man only bore a passing resemblance to the man he saw in the wedding photograph they had on the wall. He looked withered, or prehaps it would be better to say he looked thinned out. But cautiously he followed the man.
"You know, I don't get home much these days." the man started without looking his way. He cast his gaze in the direction of Unit-01.
"But the truth is I could get away if I need to. But.... I rarely do so... It's sad to say, but I don't think my girls really need me anymore. Actually they haven't needed me for a long time. Kodama is an adult now, and she already does her own thing. Hikari is more capable and responsible than some people twice her age. And Nozomi might have the others watching over her, but she won't need them for long herself. Really the only thing I really seem to do is pay the bills." he chuckled slightly and turned to Shinji with a sad smile.
"The happiness of my daughters is what's important to me. And it seems like the less I interfere the better off they are. And that leads me to you."
"m-Me?"
The man nodded.
"i-I..."
"You see I know a few people over at Section-2. And some of us get together for a poker game every couple of weeks or so. Usually I do pretty well, I have a good eye for reading when someone is bluffing or when they've got a good hand. So it's not too uncommon for me to walk away with several thousand yen. So this one fellow starts talking during the game and tells me that one of that my Hikari has been obsevered spending alot of time around one of pilots. Now I already know about that little redheaded girl. So naturally I assume he was talking about her. So I tried to prepare myself mentally for whatever he might say. It wasn't the first time this particular man had tried something like that, you know to throw me off my game. But instead of tellin gme anything specific, he was silent. It's wasn't until a considerablly large pot was on the table, that he brought up the subject again. And I have to admit I was caught off guard when I was told it was you, that she had been seen with.
"That little chunk of information messed my game up for the rest of the night. And to tell you the truth I couldn't concentrate for the rest of the night. I even phoned home to ask Kodama if it was true. So the way I see it, you now owe me about 23,000 yen."
Shinji went slack-jawed. Subconsciously he took a step back.
"Back before Second Imapct in Yokohama it was customary to give someone about twenty-four hours to pay you back. But seeing as I'm low on lunch money, and this ain't Yokohama I'll give you until six tonight to pay me back. Now if you don't wan't to pay up, we can get the formalities out of the way and I can break both your legs now and toss you off into the coolant here." He flicked his thumb out towards the pool or purple-pink fluid that surrounded them.
"i-I... that's...." Shinji started to panick. When you got down to it, he didn't know alot about Hikari's parents. And could it be that before Second Impact, her father a yakuza enforcer? Maybe that was why thet didn't speak of him much.
However just as unexpected as the threat that man gave him was, so was the crooked smile that crossed his features. And even worst he started to laugh and shake his head.
"I'm joking. I can't very well bring harm to one of the people who has been keeping all of us alive. And as I told you ealier.... the happiness of my daughters is very important to me. And from what I understand, you are important to Hikari."
Shinji felt the heat rise up in his cheeks. This was rather awkward. He didn't like the idea of being scutinized by the father of the girl he was seeing. But in the silence that followed. Shinji got the feeling that maybe he wanted him to say something. But what? Did he want his assurances the he felt the same for Hikari? Or if he loved her?
And what about that? It was something the he had not even asked himself yet. But could he give a straight forward, Yes or No answer? Probably not. Was she important to him? Yes, he could readily agree to that. Because... She was the most genuine. Of all the people in his life Hikari's feelings were the most unambiguous. She had nothing to gain by being with him. If anything she had more to lose by getting close to him. He couldn't say the same about his father, or even Misato. And when it came to Asuka... He felt... uncomfortable. Yes, she was beautiful. Yes, her accomplishments were impressive. And the way she had been acting... she kept giving him the impression that she wanted him. But underlying everything, it seemed to be like a great big lie. Was she looking for sex? Was she looking for more? Either way he had no idea.
Yet with Hikari... she was in his thoughts often. And it would be more than safe to say, that he looked forward to spending time with her. So did he love her? Well... the more he thought about it the more certain he was that.....
"Well....," he man said, unknowingly interrupting his thoughts. "I can't tell you what you can or what you can not do around my daughter. My wife's father tried that with me and it didn't do a damn bit of good. Really the only thing I can ask you is to treat her right. And...." he sighed turning to look back out at the pool of coolant. "....don't do anything stupid. Like getting yourself killed.
"Hikari is a strong girl,... but I don't know if she could stand losing someone again. When her mother died, she didn't cry once. Not when doctor told us after comign out of the emergency room. Nor did she during the funeral. It wasn't until later... One night I was about to walk into the kitchen, and she was at the sink, washing dishes. And she was standing there quietly crying to herself. She didn't see me there. In fact I don't think she would have allowed herself to.
"It's funny... She'll cry for little things,.... the same way I guess all girls do. But for the lose of a mother.... she wouldn't allow anyone to see her."
He turned back to face Shinji. Giving him yet another appraising glance. Shinji couldn't help but do the same. He had no real father figure in his life. So it was very strange to be spoken to in such a manner. But in a way he, appreciated it greatly.
"You probably asking yourself why I am telling you this. And to tell you the truth, there is no real reason why. I'm doing it, just because."
"Well it looks like I am overdue to return to my department." the Horaki Patriarch muttered. As he walked past the boy he put a hand on his shoulder. "I'll be seeing you around, kiddo."
Shinji turned and watched the man slowly make his way to the exit.
"Um, Sir!... Mister Horaki!"
The man in the red uniform stopped and made a half turn, looking at him from over his shoulder.
"I.... er,... I'll do my best... to make her happy."
The man smiled once more, which Shinji happily returned.
It was one of those things. That instinctual feeling that tells you when someone is staring at you. She smiled. The list of people it could be was fairly short. The first, was the one had she secretly hoped would come but knew that he wouldn't. No, in a single breath made it clear that their relationship was over, and also what she should do about her situation. No, it would never be him. The second possibility, was that twitchy little brunette with the staring habit, it couldn't be her either. Not with all the work she had unloaded on her. And besides the person that was behind her was a man. His cologne gave that away. A wonderful little fragrance that mixed too well with his own body chemistry, making him more than capable of raising heart rates and parting the legs of the women he got close to.
And with smooth and gental motions he took hold of her head. His well manicured fingers slid wonderfully across her cheeks and then her neck. Effectly craddling her in a manner that she was all too willing to submit to. It was nice to be touched like this. It was something that Gendo never did. She reopened her eyes and leaned her head back to look at him.
"Hello Kaji."
"And hello to you green eyes."
"My, my... Your going to make me blush..."
"And what's this? You seem to be letting your original color grow out."
"I think I'm in need of a change."
"hmmm,... Well, that's good I always like your orginal hair color better."
"It's a shame then... since I bleached it, it'll never go back to the same color."
"It's a shame..."
"So tell me Kaji,... how may I help you today?"
He leans in a little closer, wearing that signature smile of his. At his angle he could see down her blouse, but that was ok. It was Kaji, after all. And she was a little preoccupied with the scent of his cologne. And it served to remind her that she hadn't had sex in nearly four months. Which was about three months and three weeks too long. And Kaji.... Well, she hadn't really thought about what it would be like to be with him. Well.... she hadn't done that for a long time. Back when they were all in college together, the thought did cross her mind on more than one occasion. How could it not? Misato was a screamer. But when both he and Misato fell apart, she seriously considered going to him. To offer him herselft, in an effort to console him. Back then, she could never be so bold. She had doubts she could be that way now.
"hmmm,... Well I just so happen to have a gift for you. But now that you mention it... there is something that only you... could help me with."
Such a sooth talker.
"If you keep propositioning me like this... I might actually have to say yes."
He chuckled softly. His thumb moved in a soft circle against her left cheek and his other hand slid back, his fingers combing though her hair.
"Well if that was all it would have taken... I would have done this sooner."
It was all a game. A game where you didn't know how serious the player were. Flirting and acting coy, until ultimately you are left with only two options. End the conversation with a soft smile and a gental nod. Or put your money on the table, closing and locking your office door. To tell you the truth she was leaning towards the later. But alais they weren't alone. It was one of those things. That instinctual feeling that tells you when someone is staring at you, with their arms crossed and foot tapping angerly on the floor.
"Yeah, and you would have given her your cooties alot early as well."
"Ah,.. Misato!"
Kaji quickly pulled his hands away from Ritsuko. The doctor turned in her chair. He was about to offer the Major one of his usual greating but this was Misato. She was highly susceptible to him. But her anger and distrust were greater. Thus she was immune, at least as long as her hatred held. She held up a hand, silencing him.
"Don't start with me."
He held up his hands defensively, and then leaned back against a nearby cabinet.
"Well Misato what brings you down here?"
"I was just going to ask you how Shinji did."
"Pretty much the same as he was did the first test."
"Oh?"
She nodded her head.
"Both he and Asuka pulled lower numbers, though Shinji was worst off. I just needed to confirm the data."
"And what about Rei?"
"The effect it had on her was negligible."
"So I guess we won't be sending them to fight angels that way."
"Mostly likely not. Where is Shinji anyway?"
"I think he's still in the locker room."
She started to leave, but stopped short.
"By the way Ritsu. Your going to that wedding on Saturday, aren't you?"
She sighed. She hated when she called her that.
"I'm afraid so."
"I know what you mean, that's like the fifth one this year."
"It's all this end of the world stuff." She waved her hand in a circle. Coaxing a small laugh from the major.
"Well since all of us are going to be there," voiced Kaji. "Prehaps we should all go some place afterwards."
"WHAT! How did you get invited!"
He just shrugged his shoulders.
"I got my invitation over a month ago."
"Figures." Misato said in a huff.
"Oh, come on Katsuragi, there's no need to be so negative. I even know a nice bar we can go to... And I tell you what, I'll even pick up the tab."
Ritsuko saw the corners of Misato's mouth twitch. The woman had never been able to resist that sort of offer. Because when you get down to it, nothing makes alcohol taste better than not having to pay for it.
"What about you Ritsuko?"
She would hate to disappoint him, but she really had no choice. Kaji had been trying for months now get back with Misato. Even though he would not admit it, that was his goal. Misato had been effectively dodging his advances at every turn. And dispite the lure of free drinks, chances are she would never allow herself to get comfortable around him. What a silly girl.
"I'm afraid I'll have to decline."
"Afraid you'll hammered and wind up stripping on a table?" Misato laughed. She just had to bring up that incident.
"No it's nothing like that. It's just that it's not such a good of an idea, since I'm pregnant."
And then there was silence.
"Um,... What did you just say?" Misato asked, her eyebrows were arched in such a way to suggest that she was thinking that she may have mis-heard the statement. The look on Kaji's face however did not bare even the slightest hint of suprise. If anything he smiled softly.
"I said... I am pregnant."
"w-What? When?... How!?"
"Well,... Let's see I'm going to had a baby. And I'd say I'm in my fifteenth week or so. And as for the how part, I'm sure you could use you imagenation to figure that part out."
Misato held up both of her hands. Ignoring the woman's sarcasm completely.
"Whoa! Whoa! Your pregnant!"
"Nothing gets past you Misato."
"b-But... w-who's the father?!"
Ritsuko just shook her head. She had anticipating this conversation. Including Misato's reaction. Kaji's however looked amused. So did he already know?
"I'm sorry Misato, but I can't tell you that."
"But?!..."
"No. I can't.... I'm in sort of an agreement... not to declare who the father is."
"But... then that would mean...."
She nodded her head.
"We are no longer seeing each other."
At this point Misato shuffled over to an empty office chair and sat down. Kaji continued to lean up against a cabinet. But his expression had changed slightly. Not quite neutral, and not quite a frown. The only thing that was certian was that the atmosphere of the room had become rather uncomfortable. Misato kept looking as though she wanted to say something but at this point what could she say? It was prehaps with good fortune that a fourth person had stepped into her office.
"um, Misato? I'm.... ready," he blinked a bit looking at the adults in the room. "um, Is something wrong?"
Ritsuko was about to speak when Misato jumped up from her chair.
"No, no! Nothing to worry about." She immediatly began to heard him back out of the office. Only giving the boy a change to give questioning glance to the other adults in the room. Ritsuko took no action but Kaji did give him a smile and a wave. After a moment or two they heard the sound of Misato and Shinji's protesting voice disappear down the hall.
"Well that was interesting," Kaji said turnign back to her.
"Yes," Ritsuko agreed, with a firm nod. "So how long have you known?"
He smiled brightly.
"I only suspected, but I wasn't sure yet."
"Oh, and what gave it away?"
"Well the last few months I noticed how sick you were during the mornings, and also how much you've started to eat." Ritsuko glaced over at the styrofoam containers that lay nearly empty at the end of her desk. "Also you've stopped smoking,.... and you seem a little fuller." He nodded to her.
Of coarse he would notice that.
"Nice to know your keeping an eye on me."
"Well somebody should." He pushed himself off of the cabinet and walked back over to her. His hand slipped into his pocket and he pulled out a small dark green box that was tied with a gold ribbon. "I found this during my trip to Kyoto last week."
She smiled taking the gift from him.
"A little something for the woman who can defeat an Angel single handedly and without the use of an Evangelion.... And you now, if it means anything,.... you were too good for him anyways."
He stepped away from her.
"Anyway, I'll be see you at the wedding this weekend."
He started to leave. Her grip tightened on the little package, and tensed up in her seat.
"Kaji!" He stopped and turned towards her.
"i-If... if going for drinks with Misato doesn't work out,.... you can always stop by at my place."
He quirked an eyebrow at that. Then after a moments consideration he nodded his head and left her alone. She fell back into her chair.
She couldn't believe that she just said that. And to the former lover of a friend. What was she thinking? Oh yeah that's right, you haven't had sex in about four months. And after four months... your more willing to break those taboos. It came down to need. At certain point you tell yourself that you do without love. That you don't mind not have someone in your life. Or the need for physical intimacy. But ultimately you can't escape the yearnings of one's own body. You can't ignore that little empty spot that's deep inside you.
Her thumb slid across the little box, pushing aside the ribbon. And a second later the lid came off. Inside wraped in a dark colored tissue paper, was a small figurine of a cat. She turned it over in her hands. It was made of a white stone? No, it was too light. And it wasn't quite white either. It's color and tone varied from point to point, going from a pearly white to a very soft yellow. And even it even bore some translucencies in some areas. It was ivory.
Where did he find such a thing? This was very old. An antique. Most tusk bearing animals were now extinct. But this? She took a deep breath. She slowly rewraped the figure and slid it back into the box. She wasn't sure what to think of it. Now she did collect these things from time to time. But she had never found anything like this. She smiled a little. And then she sent it next to her computer monitor. That way she wouldn't for get to take with her later that night. And that reminded her she had work to do. And she had things to think about. And what would she do if he were to actually show up?
I sat down and planned out the next couple of chapters. Actually I've outlined the next eight chapters or so. And the next three angels, after that it's up in the air. I'm aiming for something between 25 to 30 chapters, but's it's getting tough. Oh and there will be some more lime and a big lemon coming up at some point but I'm not saying when.
Changing Seasons
by: JErosion
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Chapter 13He couldn't believe he had to do this... again. Three pilots and they had to pick him. At least they had a towel and a robe waiting for him once the test was over. He had always had thought highly of Doctor Akagi. But come on! Did he have to suffer though the indignity of Naked-Sync-Test part 2.
Nobody had made any comments during the test. But he couldn't have done too well. His thougts were just a jumbled mess anyway. His mind cept cycling through all sorts of things. Kissing Hikari. Asuka flashing him. Being naked in an entry plug. Misato telling Mister Kaji he can take the little present he got her and shove up a very unflattering place. Touching Hikari. The date marked on the calender. The sad and uncomfortable look on Rei's face. Kaji trying to be sincere. Hikari's labored and frantic breaths.
He sighed. There was just some things he just could not get out of his head. Hikari was cheif amongst them. The date they went on about two weeks ago was another. He wanted to see her again. Which was sort of strange to say, since he saw her at school the day before. But it was more than that. He wanted to see her again, outside of school. And because of the recent changes in the sync test schedule, had made it rather difficult for him to see her in a more casual setting. And this coming weekend wasn't looking too good either. It was... the anniversary. He needed to talk to his father about that. Or at least try to.
Damn, too many distractions.
Also bright lights sat high of his list of things he did want to have to deal with at the moment. His eye still hurt. When the recovery teams had finally picked them up they had given them blankets to cover themselves with. However at the first chance she got Asuka suddenly came charging at him. She flew into the air delivering a flying kick aimed at his head. Now with all of the movements that were necessary to deliver such an attack, it would have been easy to dodge. But...
The thing was they were just given blankets to cover up with. And when Asuka attacked, the blanket she was draped in billowed out. And apparently getting a crotch shot from an angry redhead can do alot to hamper the reaction time of a guy. It was enough of a distraction that he forgot that her foot would make contact with his head first. At least the rescue teams were able to give him a cold pack, to keep the swelling down. He was luck his eye didn't swell up and turn black. But still he was left with an bruise, that was an ugly yellow.
"That quiet the shiner you got there."
"huh, What?!" Shinji whipped his head around in the direction of the voice, being suprised by the sudden statment. He found himself looking at one of the maintenance engineers that worked on the evangelions.
"Your eye. I looks like someone clocked you good."
"Yeah.... I guess." Shinji said nervously. This was the first time anyone with the maintenance crew had spoken to him before.
"Mind talking with me for a bit?"
"um,.... Sir? I'm sorry,... but I don't know who..... you are."
Shinji mouth went dry as the man just smiled and began to tap the tag that was sewn onto his worksuit.
HORAKI. Y.
"Come on son, step into my office." he jestured towards a railed walkway that went off from the main gang plank.
Shinji swallowed. This man, he was... Hikari and her sisters had talked about him. But in the few times he had visited the their home he had never seen him there. As it was, this man only bore a passing resemblance to the man he saw in the wedding photograph they had on the wall. He looked withered, or prehaps it would be better to say he looked thinned out. But cautiously he followed the man.
"You know, I don't get home much these days." the man started without looking his way. He cast his gaze in the direction of Unit-01.
"But the truth is I could get away if I need to. But.... I rarely do so... It's sad to say, but I don't think my girls really need me anymore. Actually they haven't needed me for a long time. Kodama is an adult now, and she already does her own thing. Hikari is more capable and responsible than some people twice her age. And Nozomi might have the others watching over her, but she won't need them for long herself. Really the only thing I really seem to do is pay the bills." he chuckled slightly and turned to Shinji with a sad smile.
"The happiness of my daughters is what's important to me. And it seems like the less I interfere the better off they are. And that leads me to you."
"m-Me?"
The man nodded.
"i-I..."
"You see I know a few people over at Section-2. And some of us get together for a poker game every couple of weeks or so. Usually I do pretty well, I have a good eye for reading when someone is bluffing or when they've got a good hand. So it's not too uncommon for me to walk away with several thousand yen. So this one fellow starts talking during the game and tells me that one of that my Hikari has been obsevered spending alot of time around one of pilots. Now I already know about that little redheaded girl. So naturally I assume he was talking about her. So I tried to prepare myself mentally for whatever he might say. It wasn't the first time this particular man had tried something like that, you know to throw me off my game. But instead of tellin gme anything specific, he was silent. It's wasn't until a considerablly large pot was on the table, that he brought up the subject again. And I have to admit I was caught off guard when I was told it was you, that she had been seen with.
"That little chunk of information messed my game up for the rest of the night. And to tell you the truth I couldn't concentrate for the rest of the night. I even phoned home to ask Kodama if it was true. So the way I see it, you now owe me about 23,000 yen."
Shinji went slack-jawed. Subconsciously he took a step back.
"Back before Second Imapct in Yokohama it was customary to give someone about twenty-four hours to pay you back. But seeing as I'm low on lunch money, and this ain't Yokohama I'll give you until six tonight to pay me back. Now if you don't wan't to pay up, we can get the formalities out of the way and I can break both your legs now and toss you off into the coolant here." He flicked his thumb out towards the pool or purple-pink fluid that surrounded them.
"i-I... that's...." Shinji started to panick. When you got down to it, he didn't know alot about Hikari's parents. And could it be that before Second Impact, her father a yakuza enforcer? Maybe that was why thet didn't speak of him much.
However just as unexpected as the threat that man gave him was, so was the crooked smile that crossed his features. And even worst he started to laugh and shake his head.
"I'm joking. I can't very well bring harm to one of the people who has been keeping all of us alive. And as I told you ealier.... the happiness of my daughters is very important to me. And from what I understand, you are important to Hikari."
Shinji felt the heat rise up in his cheeks. This was rather awkward. He didn't like the idea of being scutinized by the father of the girl he was seeing. But in the silence that followed. Shinji got the feeling that maybe he wanted him to say something. But what? Did he want his assurances the he felt the same for Hikari? Or if he loved her?
And what about that? It was something the he had not even asked himself yet. But could he give a straight forward, Yes or No answer? Probably not. Was she important to him? Yes, he could readily agree to that. Because... She was the most genuine. Of all the people in his life Hikari's feelings were the most unambiguous. She had nothing to gain by being with him. If anything she had more to lose by getting close to him. He couldn't say the same about his father, or even Misato. And when it came to Asuka... He felt... uncomfortable. Yes, she was beautiful. Yes, her accomplishments were impressive. And the way she had been acting... she kept giving him the impression that she wanted him. But underlying everything, it seemed to be like a great big lie. Was she looking for sex? Was she looking for more? Either way he had no idea.
Yet with Hikari... she was in his thoughts often. And it would be more than safe to say, that he looked forward to spending time with her. So did he love her? Well... the more he thought about it the more certain he was that.....
"Well....," he man said, unknowingly interrupting his thoughts. "I can't tell you what you can or what you can not do around my daughter. My wife's father tried that with me and it didn't do a damn bit of good. Really the only thing I can ask you is to treat her right. And...." he sighed turning to look back out at the pool of coolant. "....don't do anything stupid. Like getting yourself killed.
"Hikari is a strong girl,... but I don't know if she could stand losing someone again. When her mother died, she didn't cry once. Not when doctor told us after comign out of the emergency room. Nor did she during the funeral. It wasn't until later... One night I was about to walk into the kitchen, and she was at the sink, washing dishes. And she was standing there quietly crying to herself. She didn't see me there. In fact I don't think she would have allowed herself to.
"It's funny... She'll cry for little things,.... the same way I guess all girls do. But for the lose of a mother.... she wouldn't allow anyone to see her."
He turned back to face Shinji. Giving him yet another appraising glance. Shinji couldn't help but do the same. He had no real father figure in his life. So it was very strange to be spoken to in such a manner. But in a way he, appreciated it greatly.
"You probably asking yourself why I am telling you this. And to tell you the truth, there is no real reason why. I'm doing it, just because."
"Well it looks like I am overdue to return to my department." the Horaki Patriarch muttered. As he walked past the boy he put a hand on his shoulder. "I'll be seeing you around, kiddo."
Shinji turned and watched the man slowly make his way to the exit.
"Um, Sir!... Mister Horaki!"
The man in the red uniform stopped and made a half turn, looking at him from over his shoulder.
"I.... er,... I'll do my best... to make her happy."
The man smiled once more, which Shinji happily returned.
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She pulled off her glasses and began to rub the bridge of her nose. Her eyes were hurting her a bit. Probably since she had been staring at computer screens all day. But as she leaned back in her chair, something occured to her. She was no longer alone.It was one of those things. That instinctual feeling that tells you when someone is staring at you. She smiled. The list of people it could be was fairly short. The first, was the one had she secretly hoped would come but knew that he wouldn't. No, in a single breath made it clear that their relationship was over, and also what she should do about her situation. No, it would never be him. The second possibility, was that twitchy little brunette with the staring habit, it couldn't be her either. Not with all the work she had unloaded on her. And besides the person that was behind her was a man. His cologne gave that away. A wonderful little fragrance that mixed too well with his own body chemistry, making him more than capable of raising heart rates and parting the legs of the women he got close to.
And with smooth and gental motions he took hold of her head. His well manicured fingers slid wonderfully across her cheeks and then her neck. Effectly craddling her in a manner that she was all too willing to submit to. It was nice to be touched like this. It was something that Gendo never did. She reopened her eyes and leaned her head back to look at him.
"Hello Kaji."
"And hello to you green eyes."
"My, my... Your going to make me blush..."
"And what's this? You seem to be letting your original color grow out."
"I think I'm in need of a change."
"hmmm,... Well, that's good I always like your orginal hair color better."
"It's a shame then... since I bleached it, it'll never go back to the same color."
"It's a shame..."
"So tell me Kaji,... how may I help you today?"
He leans in a little closer, wearing that signature smile of his. At his angle he could see down her blouse, but that was ok. It was Kaji, after all. And she was a little preoccupied with the scent of his cologne. And it served to remind her that she hadn't had sex in nearly four months. Which was about three months and three weeks too long. And Kaji.... Well, she hadn't really thought about what it would be like to be with him. Well.... she hadn't done that for a long time. Back when they were all in college together, the thought did cross her mind on more than one occasion. How could it not? Misato was a screamer. But when both he and Misato fell apart, she seriously considered going to him. To offer him herselft, in an effort to console him. Back then, she could never be so bold. She had doubts she could be that way now.
"hmmm,... Well I just so happen to have a gift for you. But now that you mention it... there is something that only you... could help me with."
Such a sooth talker.
"If you keep propositioning me like this... I might actually have to say yes."
He chuckled softly. His thumb moved in a soft circle against her left cheek and his other hand slid back, his fingers combing though her hair.
"Well if that was all it would have taken... I would have done this sooner."
It was all a game. A game where you didn't know how serious the player were. Flirting and acting coy, until ultimately you are left with only two options. End the conversation with a soft smile and a gental nod. Or put your money on the table, closing and locking your office door. To tell you the truth she was leaning towards the later. But alais they weren't alone. It was one of those things. That instinctual feeling that tells you when someone is staring at you, with their arms crossed and foot tapping angerly on the floor.
"Yeah, and you would have given her your cooties alot early as well."
"Ah,.. Misato!"
Kaji quickly pulled his hands away from Ritsuko. The doctor turned in her chair. He was about to offer the Major one of his usual greating but this was Misato. She was highly susceptible to him. But her anger and distrust were greater. Thus she was immune, at least as long as her hatred held. She held up a hand, silencing him.
"Don't start with me."
He held up his hands defensively, and then leaned back against a nearby cabinet.
"Well Misato what brings you down here?"
"I was just going to ask you how Shinji did."
"Pretty much the same as he was did the first test."
"Oh?"
She nodded her head.
"Both he and Asuka pulled lower numbers, though Shinji was worst off. I just needed to confirm the data."
"And what about Rei?"
"The effect it had on her was negligible."
"So I guess we won't be sending them to fight angels that way."
"Mostly likely not. Where is Shinji anyway?"
"I think he's still in the locker room."
She started to leave, but stopped short.
"By the way Ritsu. Your going to that wedding on Saturday, aren't you?"
She sighed. She hated when she called her that.
"I'm afraid so."
"I know what you mean, that's like the fifth one this year."
"It's all this end of the world stuff." She waved her hand in a circle. Coaxing a small laugh from the major.
"Well since all of us are going to be there," voiced Kaji. "Prehaps we should all go some place afterwards."
"WHAT! How did you get invited!"
He just shrugged his shoulders.
"I got my invitation over a month ago."
"Figures." Misato said in a huff.
"Oh, come on Katsuragi, there's no need to be so negative. I even know a nice bar we can go to... And I tell you what, I'll even pick up the tab."
Ritsuko saw the corners of Misato's mouth twitch. The woman had never been able to resist that sort of offer. Because when you get down to it, nothing makes alcohol taste better than not having to pay for it.
"What about you Ritsuko?"
She would hate to disappoint him, but she really had no choice. Kaji had been trying for months now get back with Misato. Even though he would not admit it, that was his goal. Misato had been effectively dodging his advances at every turn. And dispite the lure of free drinks, chances are she would never allow herself to get comfortable around him. What a silly girl.
"I'm afraid I'll have to decline."
"Afraid you'll hammered and wind up stripping on a table?" Misato laughed. She just had to bring up that incident.
"No it's nothing like that. It's just that it's not such a good of an idea, since I'm pregnant."
And then there was silence.
"Um,... What did you just say?" Misato asked, her eyebrows were arched in such a way to suggest that she was thinking that she may have mis-heard the statement. The look on Kaji's face however did not bare even the slightest hint of suprise. If anything he smiled softly.
"I said... I am pregnant."
"w-What? When?... How!?"
"Well,... Let's see I'm going to had a baby. And I'd say I'm in my fifteenth week or so. And as for the how part, I'm sure you could use you imagenation to figure that part out."
Misato held up both of her hands. Ignoring the woman's sarcasm completely.
"Whoa! Whoa! Your pregnant!"
"Nothing gets past you Misato."
"b-But... w-who's the father?!"
Ritsuko just shook her head. She had anticipating this conversation. Including Misato's reaction. Kaji's however looked amused. So did he already know?
"I'm sorry Misato, but I can't tell you that."
"But?!..."
"No. I can't.... I'm in sort of an agreement... not to declare who the father is."
"But... then that would mean...."
She nodded her head.
"We are no longer seeing each other."
At this point Misato shuffled over to an empty office chair and sat down. Kaji continued to lean up against a cabinet. But his expression had changed slightly. Not quite neutral, and not quite a frown. The only thing that was certian was that the atmosphere of the room had become rather uncomfortable. Misato kept looking as though she wanted to say something but at this point what could she say? It was prehaps with good fortune that a fourth person had stepped into her office.
"um, Misato? I'm.... ready," he blinked a bit looking at the adults in the room. "um, Is something wrong?"
Ritsuko was about to speak when Misato jumped up from her chair.
"No, no! Nothing to worry about." She immediatly began to heard him back out of the office. Only giving the boy a change to give questioning glance to the other adults in the room. Ritsuko took no action but Kaji did give him a smile and a wave. After a moment or two they heard the sound of Misato and Shinji's protesting voice disappear down the hall.
"Well that was interesting," Kaji said turnign back to her.
"Yes," Ritsuko agreed, with a firm nod. "So how long have you known?"
He smiled brightly.
"I only suspected, but I wasn't sure yet."
"Oh, and what gave it away?"
"Well the last few months I noticed how sick you were during the mornings, and also how much you've started to eat." Ritsuko glaced over at the styrofoam containers that lay nearly empty at the end of her desk. "Also you've stopped smoking,.... and you seem a little fuller." He nodded to her.
Of coarse he would notice that.
"Nice to know your keeping an eye on me."
"Well somebody should." He pushed himself off of the cabinet and walked back over to her. His hand slipped into his pocket and he pulled out a small dark green box that was tied with a gold ribbon. "I found this during my trip to Kyoto last week."
She smiled taking the gift from him.
"A little something for the woman who can defeat an Angel single handedly and without the use of an Evangelion.... And you now, if it means anything,.... you were too good for him anyways."
He stepped away from her.
"Anyway, I'll be see you at the wedding this weekend."
He started to leave. Her grip tightened on the little package, and tensed up in her seat.
"Kaji!" He stopped and turned towards her.
"i-If... if going for drinks with Misato doesn't work out,.... you can always stop by at my place."
He quirked an eyebrow at that. Then after a moments consideration he nodded his head and left her alone. She fell back into her chair.
She couldn't believe that she just said that. And to the former lover of a friend. What was she thinking? Oh yeah that's right, you haven't had sex in about four months. And after four months... your more willing to break those taboos. It came down to need. At certain point you tell yourself that you do without love. That you don't mind not have someone in your life. Or the need for physical intimacy. But ultimately you can't escape the yearnings of one's own body. You can't ignore that little empty spot that's deep inside you.
Her thumb slid across the little box, pushing aside the ribbon. And a second later the lid came off. Inside wraped in a dark colored tissue paper, was a small figurine of a cat. She turned it over in her hands. It was made of a white stone? No, it was too light. And it wasn't quite white either. It's color and tone varied from point to point, going from a pearly white to a very soft yellow. And even it even bore some translucencies in some areas. It was ivory.
Where did he find such a thing? This was very old. An antique. Most tusk bearing animals were now extinct. But this? She took a deep breath. She slowly rewraped the figure and slid it back into the box. She wasn't sure what to think of it. Now she did collect these things from time to time. But she had never found anything like this. She smiled a little. And then she sent it next to her computer monitor. That way she wouldn't for get to take with her later that night. And that reminded her she had work to do. And she had things to think about. And what would she do if he were to actually show up?
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Author's note: I think alot of people may have missed Chapter 10. Since I released it with 11. Most people probably just jumped to it and ignored it. At least thats what the hit counts tell me. Oh well. And I have to say that it's a little more satisfying to write a longer chapter that what I have been putting out. This one went a little slower, but it was a little more serious. I may have to do some humor in the next chapter.I sat down and planned out the next couple of chapters. Actually I've outlined the next eight chapters or so. And the next three angels, after that it's up in the air. I'm aiming for something between 25 to 30 chapters, but's it's getting tough. Oh and there will be some more lime and a big lemon coming up at some point but I'm not saying when.