Neon Genesis Evangelion Fan Fiction ❯ Practice ❯ A Date he Will Never Forget ( Chapter 12 )

Shinji and Motowa walked in relative silence for a while. “Nervous?” Motowa asked.

Shinji didn't immediately hear her, having had a deep unease take up residence in his mind almost immediately after they started walking to the bungalow. Mustn't run away... mustn't run away... mustn't run away... “Yes, a little.”

“Don't worry, mom's just like me. Really.”

That did a little to assuage Shinji's fears, but not enough to make him completely at ease as he walked with Motowa. He focused on the pleasant sensation of holding Motowa's hand to calm himself down. This is nice. He thought, trying to push the irrational fear he was experiencing away and being mostly successful. “That's good to hear.”

---

Asuka slammed the phone down after listening to Shinji tell her that she would be alone tonight. “Wunderkind Shinji is out on a date and I have to stay in?”

Asuka picked up the phone and dialed. I'm sure Hikari wouldn't mind some companionship today. “Hi, this is the Horaki family residence.” Hikari's voice said in a tinny recording that was nonetheless very cheerful, making Asuka growl with annoyance. “We can't come to the phone right now, so please leave a message and we'll get back to you!”

Asuka hit the button to close the connection and slammed the phone back down in his holster. “Fine, I don't need anyone to have a good time!” Asuka said.

Grabbing a piece of paper and a pen, she hastily scribbled down a note that she was out, even though she knew she would probably be back before everyone else. Not wanting to waste another second, she slipped her shoes on and left the apartment.

---

“Tadaima!” I say as I walk in the door, Shinji in tow.

“Hi, Motowa!” Mom says from the kitchen.

After a second, she appears from the doorway, and Shinji's eyes go wide. “Something the matter, Shinji?” Mom asks, upon noticing Shinji's expression.

“Um, no, not really... you look exactly like my guardian, Misato.”

“Really? I've always wanted to have a long-lost sister.”

Shinji laughed. “Please forgive mom's sense of humour, it's a lot weirder than most people's.” I say in a mock-respectful tone.

“Nah, it's not that weird.”

“So, you're Shinji, are you?” Mom says. “I've heard a lot about your father.”

“You have?”

“Sure. Roka worked quite closely with Gendo before the Second Impact. He was very hard-working, if a bit hard-lined.”

Shinji nodded. “He hasn't changed a bit.” For worse or better, I can almost hear Shinji thinking as an aside to himself.

“That's good to hear.” Mom says, walking back into the kitchen.

“So, shall I give you the grand tour?” I ask Shinji.

“Sure.” Shinji says, turning left and following me into the living room.

“This the living room... couch, TV, everything...” I sweep my arm across the room, as if it was anything of great importance. “And if you'll follow me, I'll show you my room, `cause that's where I'm going.”

“Lead on.” Shinji says, following me through to the back of the house. “Wow, it's much cooler back here.”

“Yeah, that tends to happen for some reason, whether someone's cooking in the kitchen or not.” I say, sliding my door open and walking through it. “Forgive the minor mess, I wasn't expecting company.”

“No, no, it's fine... I have to deal with Misato-san's legendary lack of cleaning skills.”

“Ah, so you're the maid of the family, are you?”

“I wouldn't call it a family, really. More... an arrangement. Asuka, Misato and I aren't related.”

“Call it a clan, call it a tribe, call it a family. Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one.”

“I suppose that's true... you know a lot of quotes.”

“I read a lot. Have to keep the mind sharp, you know.”

“I do.”

I walk over to my futon and pick up the remote that was on it. “What do you want to hear?” I motion to my stereo.

“Huh? Oh... um, what's in there now?”

“Mezzanine, by Massive Attack. It's that psychedelic rock band I bought with Planets.”

“I don't mind listening to that.”

I turn on the stereo and it whirrs to life, clicking and sputtering as it gets ready to play. Suddenly, a song cuts in somewhere towards the middle. “--know we sever lines...” a lyric comes in on the speakers.

“Whoops.” I say, pressing a button. “Didn't rewind it. Ah well, I'll just restart from the beginning of this track.”

“...You can do that with SDAT tapes?” Shinji asks.

“This is one of the newer-model stereos. It looks for the silence in-between tracks and guesses where to make the splits. It's good when there isn't any lead-ins between tracks on its own, and you can also set splits in tracks yourself.”

The tape finishes rewinding and the player clicks into play mode. What sounds like wolves howling fades in for a second before a bassline starts up.

“Did I miss anything in P.E. today?” Shinji asks suddenly.

“Not a lot... just the usual running and the like.”

“Oh, ok.”

The somewhat weak attempt at small talk fades into a semi-comfortable silence as the lyrics come in on the song. “I see you go down to a cold mirror... It was never clearer in my error, so...” The lead sings.

I close my eyes and nod to the beat, my body swaying side-to-side. This song, Risingson, is one of the best songs on the album, and it always seems to put me into a trance as I listen to it.

The silence between me and Shinji persists for about thirty seconds before I feel his hand come up to trace the outline of my jaw. I open my eyes to look at him, and see nothing but love in his eyes. “You're beautiful, you know that?” He says softly.

“I'm sure you'll remind me often enough.” I reply as he moves forward.

His lips meet mine seemingly in time with the song, and sparks shoot through me, like they always do when he kisses me. His arms slide around my waist, and mine come up to cross at the back of his neck, resting on his shoulders. We stand there and kiss for what seems like forever, through the current song and the next, nearly completely oblivious to our surroundings.

...That is, until a knock on the door makes us both freeze in our tracks. We finally break free of our embrace. “Yes, mom?” I call out.

Mom slides open the door, a sad expression on her face. “Shinji? You have a roommate named Asuka, don't you?”

Shinji blinks at the mention of the name. “Yes...” he replies slowly. “Why?”

“I just got a call from your workplace, NERV. Asuka's been in an accident. They say she's got a severe head injury and possibly a broken neck.”

I watch all the color drain from Shinji's face almost instantly. “What...?”

“They said they were sending someone to pick you up as soon as they can.”

“O-ok...” Shinji replies, and I can start to see the emotion bubble up inside him.

“Shinji?” I ask. “Are you going to be alright?”

“I don't think it's me you have to be worried about...”

---

I can't believe I'm doing this... welcome to the Butterfly Effect, ladies and gentlemen.

Half of the reason that I took so long to update was because I was warring against myself about how to continue everything along. Now that I've committed to this storyline, I expect to have a new chapter out fairly soon.