- Location
- Ireland
Huh, didn't think Shinji had the guts to even shout at his Father, never mind grab him by the throat. Then again, he is his parents son...
Ignis Aurum Probat [Neon Genesis Evangelion]
- Thread starter shadenight123
- Start date
Huh, didn't think Shinji had the guts to even shout at his Father, never mind grab him by the throat. Then again, he is his parents son...
- Location
- Philippines
SpiritualSlacker
Nurse God of Mischief
- Location
- Grandma's attic
Asuka is pretty forceful in trying to get into Shinji's pants closer to Shinji, perhaps unhealthily so, and I'm okay with that. And I am not okay with that.
- Location
- Inside My Thoughts
It just goes to showing how lonely it is to be an immortal.
Mizu
Software Developer
- Location
- Victoria, Australia
An interesting rationalization for why Lilith isn't being revealed to the world. Why don't NERV just toss the spear out and give it to the invading Angel, though, if they're after it? Adam isn't on the planet, right?
Been a while since I've seen EVA, so could be wrong.
Been a while since I've seen EVA, so could be wrong.
In the original anime, Adam was on the planet. Gendo put him into his own hand.
- Location
- National Capital Region, USA
I love this Asuka. 
Ok, yes, she's covering deep fear and pain by a cheery front, but that's par for the course with our favorite redhead. It's just different in the details than 14 year old Asuka.
That having been said, she might mess up her own chances by pushing too fast and scaring him off. You've got time, Asuka, relax.
And hahah, Shinji just doesn't buy it even when his father tells the truth. That's your credibility shot, Gendo.
Ok, yes, she's covering deep fear and pain by a cheery front, but that's par for the course with our favorite redhead. It's just different in the details than 14 year old Asuka.
That having been said, she might mess up her own chances by pushing too fast and scaring him off. You've got time, Asuka, relax.
And hahah, Shinji just doesn't buy it even when his father tells the truth. That's your credibility shot, Gendo.
Iuvenal
Desperanda tibi salua concordia socru
- Location
- Terrace IV
I really appreciated the parts of the last couple of chapters where Asuka's blossoming talent for innuendo was revealed:
I almost fear for Shinji walking into the lion's den as it were - he might pass out from her next comment.
And of course, if Shinji passes out...
(although she was polite and hospitable when he was drunk)
Also, I hope there's a scene depicting the penguin date.
I almost fear for Shinji walking into the lion's den as it were - he might pass out from her next comment.
SHINJI: Asuka, can you help me get the house slippers back off? They're just too snug.
ASUKA: They're not the only thing I've got that's a real tight fit
Shinji facevaults
LATER
ASUKA: I forgot to mention, that suit is very becoming on you.
SHINJI: Why thank you, Asuka, that's ve-
ASUKA: Hopefully I will too later tonight
Shinji falls backwards
LATER
SHINJI (looking under the bathroom sink after washing his hands): You know Asuka, you've got a drip under your sink here. If you have a wrench I can try to fix it -
ASUKA: Go ahead, I was hoping you'd lay some pipe tonight
Shinji bolts upright, banging his head on the pipe in question and falling unconscious
ASUKA: They're not the only thing I've got that's a real tight fit
Shinji facevaults
LATER
ASUKA: I forgot to mention, that suit is very becoming on you.
SHINJI: Why thank you, Asuka, that's ve-
ASUKA: Hopefully I will too later tonight
Shinji falls backwards
LATER
SHINJI (looking under the bathroom sink after washing his hands): You know Asuka, you've got a drip under your sink here. If you have a wrench I can try to fix it -
ASUKA: Go ahead, I was hoping you'd lay some pipe tonight
Shinji bolts upright, banging his head on the pipe in question and falling unconscious
LATER
SHINJI (sitting at the table): Well thanks for a great evening, Asuka.
ASUKA: It was my pleasure. Neither of us is good to drive though, you should probably sleep over.
SHINJI: Uh....
ASUKA: I promise I won't try anything too funny.
SHINJI: Alright, that sounds wonderful then. I don't recall where I slept last time, though.
ASUKA: My couch pulls out -
SHINJI: Okay, thanks.
ASUKA (under her breath): But hopefully you don't!
Shinji's flips the table, advances on Asuka, then puts his hands around her neck and lifts her off the ground. Asuka raises a hand to his face, stroking his cheek tenderly, and he lets her down.
ASUKA (blushing): I don't know how you figured out my choking fetish, but we have to set a safe word before we explore it...
Shinji cries.
SHINJI (sitting at the table): Well thanks for a great evening, Asuka.
ASUKA: It was my pleasure. Neither of us is good to drive though, you should probably sleep over.
SHINJI: Uh....
ASUKA: I promise I won't try anything too funny.
SHINJI: Alright, that sounds wonderful then. I don't recall where I slept last time, though.
ASUKA: My couch pulls out -
SHINJI: Okay, thanks.
ASUKA (under her breath): But hopefully you don't!
Shinji's flips the table, advances on Asuka, then puts his hands around her neck and lifts her off the ground. Asuka raises a hand to his face, stroking his cheek tenderly, and he lets her down.
ASUKA (blushing): I don't know how you figured out my choking fetish, but we have to set a safe word before we explore it...
Shinji cries.
And of course, if Shinji passes out...
(although she was polite and hospitable when he was drunk)
Also, I hope there's a scene depicting the penguin date.
- Location
- National Capital Region, USA
I should hope so. As desperately lonely as she is, that still feels like a line Asuka would never even go near, let alone cross. She's more than smart enough to know that's a fast way to make sure no one trusts her to be alone with them ever again, and it would seem to trip her own issues with consent and agency.
Iuvenal
Desperanda tibi salua concordia socru
- Location
- Terrace IV
While I would similarly hope Asuka wouldn't resort to cavewoman tactics, I feel this scenario isn't out of the question
Snuggling wouldn't be blatantly out of character in that situation either, but that's been done a bazillion times.
Snuggling wouldn't be blatantly out of character in that situation either, but that's been done a bazillion times.
- Location
- USA
Just found this, and watched like hell. Like, I wish I had more eyeballs to watch this with. This is legitimately unique among Evangelion fics I've read, which I didn't think was even possible anymore.
I wonder if Asuka's hymen regenerates; I hope not, for her sake. That would just be the cherry on top of a shit Sunday. Poor Asuka
I wonder if Asuka's hymen regenerates; I hope not, for her sake. That would just be the cherry on top of a shit Sunday. Poor Asuka
- Location
- https://discord.gg/z9tBvbh
It's not that they're dead, but...
Hearts of Iron IV.
The FF7 SI.
It's University Exams time, and this means that I get phone calls from people who are desperate to pass exams, and so they phone me for some hours of tutoring.
Also, the heat and the humidity.
It ruins my fingers.
TimeLordLucario
The Oncoming Aura Storm
- Location
- Australia
Always Late
Lacking in coffee, sleep, and brains
- Location
- Ohio
No anti-necro rules on SV. Common enough misunderstanding.
So I guess "Shinji getting called by desperate students in the middle of the night" came from personal experience?
Chapter Twenty-Six: "Amor Fati"
- Location
- https://discord.gg/z9tBvbh
Chapter Twenty-Six: "Amor Fati"
Shinji's expression did not falter when he came face to face with Asuka that night. His skin had goosebumps, because apparently Asuka had turned on the air conditioning to full force, and at the lowest possible setting. She was also wearing something that seemed to scream of 'homely', her red hair tied in a single ponytail, a pair of thin black-rimmed glassed on her face and a purple wool pullover with an embroidered golden 'A' on it.
Had he been warned, he would have come with a jacket or something. Instead he had been welcomed by a gust of cold, arctic-like wind the moment Asuka had opened the door and pulled him inside, closing it behind her with a coughing fit on her part that had eerily managed to half-drown out the 'click' of the door's lock.
As Shinji took in the 'glory' that was her kitchen room, his eyes returned to Asuka's attire. She wore long, baggy trousers, and held a cup of hot chocolate in her hands, which steamed due to the difference in temperature. She also looked positively warm and glowing, while he, on the other hand, was starting to freeze to his death. Perhaps not, but he definitely twitched in an effort to keep himself warm.
"You know, with how Earth has consistent good weather all year round, one needs to make up their own winter months," with that said, she offered the cup of hot chocolate to Shinji. "And since we're going to be eating warm food, I thought-well, if the night's chilly, then he'll have no choice but to warm up right next to me," with what looked like the grin of a shark, she gestured to a table that was, at a second glance, covered on all sides by a thick cloth and beneath which an electric brazier was running without noise.
It was an oasis of warmth in an otherwise frozen tundra, and Shinji gladly threw himself towards it. Even though he realized the ploy at hand, it didn't matter in face of the cold.
"So," Asuka said, "While we wait for everything to finish cooking," she gestured at the oven, and at the electric burners upon which pots of various shapes resided, "I've got a confession to make."
Shinji blearily took a sip of his hot chocolate, and then furrowed his brows. "Is this about the attempt to freeze me to death?"
"I can warm you up with a tight embrace whenever you say the word," Asuka replied shamelessly, her smile never leaving her face. So she had planned this pretty well, Shinji had to give her that. It was cunning to use the natural instinct of humans to seek warm places whenever they were cold, and her pullover did look quite inviting -if it weren't for the 'Kotatsu' that was warming up his lower body.
At the same time, it left his upper one freezing, and unfortunately the laws of 'in average' couldn't apply. If your legs are warm, but your head frozen, you aren't 'in average' at a comfortable temperature. You're just freezing your top.
"It's not even a love confession," Asuka continued, "I learned that it's best to keep those to, like, the twentieth or thirtieth date-otherwise they run away. Men, women, they just up and run not ready for commitment," she shook her head.
"Women?" Shinji's eyebrows both rose.
"Men," Asuka snorted, rolling her eyes and sticking her tongue out. "So...my confession-I'm a pretty decent cook, like, really good. On the other hand..." she fidgeted, "I couldn't find anything at the market!" she all but blurted out, "I'm a failure of a housewife, husband dear!" and then she bowed, both hands clutching on tightly to her pullover.
"B-Bwah!?" that was, most aptly, all that Shinji could manage to blurt out. A few seconds later, and the reason became apparent.
For when the timers rang off, the pots revealed their contents. Instant cup ramen, instant cup rice, instant-pretty much everything that could have been found on a shelf of a convenience store had been put together, and mixed in something that while definitely eatable, could perhaps also lead someone to death by excessive salt intake.
"But...the hot chocolate-" Shinji muttered, "And this-"
"Well," Asuka said as she plopped down right next to him, "Chocolate's ramen a thing for Valentine day-but I do have a few bottles of wine if you prefer that." She split her chopsticks, saying the traditional 'let's eat'. "Or perhaps...you'd like to move on to the dessert?" she wriggled her eyebrows as she said the last word.
Shinji calmly shook his head once, and then began to grab the ramen from the hot pot. "No, no, it's fine-I am hungry." He hesitated. "Are you normally this pushy?"
"Please," Asuka said with a scoff, "You haven't yet seen me pushy." She pushed her glasses further up the bridge of her nose, and then smiled warmly. "But I am upping my game, yes. So nice of you to notice."
Shinji sighed, massaging his brows as he tried to make sense of it all. "Might I know why?"
Asuka shrugged, "Mostly because I forgot how 'lethal' the job is. Not that I ever had to sortie to stop an Angel or something, but you really might die next week or the one after that, so...why not? Life's short, you should live it to the fullest while you still have one!"
"Oh," Shinji mumbled. "You...are worried?"
"Duh," she snorted, "I'm not made of marble-course I'd be worried if my only ticket out of a lifetime of solitude kicked the bucket." She smiled softly, "Well-my thoughts are a bit less cynic and a bit more actual concern though. What kind of girl do you take me for? It's not like I'm trying to score points or anything like that," she huffed, "Now eat, or it will get cold and then I'll have to warm it up again."
Shinji split his own chopsticks, and then proceeded to take his portion from the various pots. It was sort of bizzarre, having a buffet made of different pots with different instant ramen inside, but it was kind of new -and out of the comfort zone he had to go, for going out of it was the wise counsel of his psychiatrist.
The noodles turned out to be all right, even if they were saltier than Shinji had anticipated -but a bottle of wine solved the problem, and warmed him up without having to rely on any 'snuggles' from the teenager-sized girl by his side. During dinner, Asuka remained strangely quiet, concentrating on taking bites at the noodles, and otherwise remaining in a sort of complacent silence that, coupled with the warmth of the kotatsu and the cold of the air conditioning, made it feel homely.
The glasses gave her a mature-look, and the pullover covered most of her forms, making the curves softer and giving an appearance of 'more' thoroughly spread out across her frame.
"You are using human nature and psychological tricks," Shinji said suddenly, "This-you're trying to seduce me."
"Is it working?" Asuka replied primly, placing the bowl down on the table, and plopping her chin on her open palm, giving him a teasing smile in the meantime. "If it's not, give me pointers on what does, sensei~"
Honestly, Shinji knew he was losing ground rapidly. Perhaps it was because it was the first time someone was coming 'on to him' in such a bold and forward way -and also the first time, at least that he had memory of. On the other hand...was this really what he wanted? Perhaps he was being too 'modest' or too 'slow' -the youngsters these days were quick to reach third base, at least hearing some of the random talk in the classrooms whenever he gave them a break.
On the other hand, Asuka wasn't a youngster, but a twenty-six years old woman trapped in the body of a thirteen years old. His skin shuddered slightly. It was the cold perhaps that made him seek out a source of warmth, and Asuka, with her warm-looking pullover, was closer than anything else -at least for his arms, since his legs were safely bundled beneath the kotatsu.
This was a trap. This had been a honeyed trap since the beginning, and he had fallen for it. This was like a trap sprung by a Dionaea muscipula, and he was the insect that had fallen into its folds. Asuka pursed her lips together, a smudge of hot chocolate clearly left on purpose on her upper lips, if the way she licked it away was of any indication.
Shinji Ikari was thus sorry.
He was sorry to his pride. He was sorry to his psychiatrist. He was sorry to a lot of things, nonetheless his self-esteem and his pride, but this was something completely new, something that he had no idea how to handle, and unfortunately, in a fight or flight situation, he still needed time to not choose the option most comfortable with him.
Thus Shinji bolted.
"W-Where's the bathroom?" he hastily stood up as he asked that, his face red enough that he would put a bonfire to shame.
"Down the hallway to the right," Asuka said from the table, not bothering to stand up, but smiling like a cat that had just eaten a whole turkey, and then found some space to eat an entire coop of chickens. With a nod, Shinji headed just that way and closed the door behind him.
Away from the warm table, the rest of the house was a freezing landscape. Small clouds of vapor left his mouth as he hastily opened up the tap water and turned it all the way to the hottest temperature possible. With a gasp as he plunged his fingers into the stream, he realized that it was still icy cold.
This really wasn't going as he expected. He still slapped his face with his wet hands, taking deep breaths as he held back a scream in the back of his throat. He was panicking, wasn't he? Yes, yes, he was panicking. His psychiatrist was needed. Thankfully, his phone was never so far away from him, so-
"Shinji?" the voice on the other side seemed kind of sleepy. Perhaps he had just woken him up, but-"What can I do for you?"
"D-Doctor," he swallowed. "I-I'm trying to run away." He looked around. "I'm in a bathroom, I think fifth or sixth floor. I guess I could vault over the window-make my way to the nearby balcony and get down one-"
"Are you escaping the police?" his therapist asked quite dutifully, "because in that case, I would think they have...helicopters, would they not?"
"It's-It's a woman," Shinji said. "She's-"
There was a knock by the bathroom door, "Shinji? Was your 'bathroom' break a quick one, or was it a number two? I mean-I'm really fine if it's a number two since it means we're getting closer, but if that's the case, know that the air freshener is in the second cupboard to the right." Asuka's voice was quite the teasing thing from beyond the door, and yet all that Shinji could see and feel was that sort of scene from that old movie, 'The Shining', where only an ax and a smile and a gap in the door were all that was missing to complete it. "I'll start preparing the dessert!" she then said, walking away from the door.
"She's-She's moving too fast," Shinji squeaked in the cellphone, his heart drumming a thousand miles per hours. "She's-she's...she invited me for dinner and now she's sitting next to me, her house's freezing cold and she's wearing warm clothes and she has a kotatsu and I'm sitting next to her and there's hot chocolate, and-"
"Shinji, Shinji, breathe," his therapist said calmly. "Has she been violent?"
"What? N-No," Shinji stammered out. "I mean-no, not really, I'm-well, I'm bigger than her and-"
"Then if she is forcing herself on you, what you need is communication," his therapist spoke clearly, "Communicate with her. Tell her what makes you uncomfortable. She cannot read your mind. She invited you over for dinner, and she does not want to scare you, or hurt you. She might simply be thinking you'd be happy about this sort of thing. Being lavished with attentions-isn't that what every hot blooded male would 'normally' want? So-Shinji, take a deep breath, count to ten and repeat the sentence I taught you, and then go."
Shinji swallowed, nodded to his reflection in the mirror and took deep breath. "I am human. I have free will. None can take that away from me. My no is no. My yes is yes. What I do, I do because I want. What I refuse to do, I will not do. I will accept my consequences, and I must size the future brought up by my choices, for it is what I live for."
"Very well, Shinji," his therapist said gingerly. "Now...off you go."
Shinji nodded, swallowing one last time before closing the cellphone and squaring his jaw. He pinched the sides of his shirt, and took a final deep breath. Boundaries. He could do boundaries.
"For dessert," Asuka said as he stepped back in the kitchen, "We have a moist chocolate cake that is positively delicious-I did have the ingredients for that one-"
"Asuka," Shinji said firmly, his fists slightly clenched. "Could you please open the windows and turn off the air conditioning?"
Asuka blinked, and cocked her head to the side. "Oh," she said. "Well, I guess-sure," she nodded.
"Also..." Shinji pushed a hand through his hair, "I'm not really accustomed to this...'speed', could you cut me some slack? I'm not asking for much-just, I'd rather have weeks rather than days..."
Asuka had moved towards the air conditioning's commands, but even as she changed them, she swiftly turned her head to look back at Shinji as he spoke. "So-it's not a 'no'?" Asuka asked.
"It's more of a 'later' thing," Shinji acquiesced.
"Then it's best if I go change," Asuka said with a nod, carefully walking out of the kitchen with a light gait on her step, "Though you should know you missed on the second part of the night-Summer-time with cream and cake!"
Shinji blinked, and didn't understand.
It was only when she returned with a normal shirt and a pair of shorts, the windows already open and letting the lukewarm air in and the freezing one out, that he saw the underlines of a swimsuit beneath the cloth.
Shinji swallowed, and honestly was glad he had spoken to his therapist.
Asuka simply smiled, like the cat reeling in the fish.
In the far off distance, a lone entity rose and split apart.
And then, it split apart once more.
Shinji's expression did not falter when he came face to face with Asuka that night. His skin had goosebumps, because apparently Asuka had turned on the air conditioning to full force, and at the lowest possible setting. She was also wearing something that seemed to scream of 'homely', her red hair tied in a single ponytail, a pair of thin black-rimmed glassed on her face and a purple wool pullover with an embroidered golden 'A' on it.
Had he been warned, he would have come with a jacket or something. Instead he had been welcomed by a gust of cold, arctic-like wind the moment Asuka had opened the door and pulled him inside, closing it behind her with a coughing fit on her part that had eerily managed to half-drown out the 'click' of the door's lock.
As Shinji took in the 'glory' that was her kitchen room, his eyes returned to Asuka's attire. She wore long, baggy trousers, and held a cup of hot chocolate in her hands, which steamed due to the difference in temperature. She also looked positively warm and glowing, while he, on the other hand, was starting to freeze to his death. Perhaps not, but he definitely twitched in an effort to keep himself warm.
"You know, with how Earth has consistent good weather all year round, one needs to make up their own winter months," with that said, she offered the cup of hot chocolate to Shinji. "And since we're going to be eating warm food, I thought-well, if the night's chilly, then he'll have no choice but to warm up right next to me," with what looked like the grin of a shark, she gestured to a table that was, at a second glance, covered on all sides by a thick cloth and beneath which an electric brazier was running without noise.
It was an oasis of warmth in an otherwise frozen tundra, and Shinji gladly threw himself towards it. Even though he realized the ploy at hand, it didn't matter in face of the cold.
"So," Asuka said, "While we wait for everything to finish cooking," she gestured at the oven, and at the electric burners upon which pots of various shapes resided, "I've got a confession to make."
Shinji blearily took a sip of his hot chocolate, and then furrowed his brows. "Is this about the attempt to freeze me to death?"
"I can warm you up with a tight embrace whenever you say the word," Asuka replied shamelessly, her smile never leaving her face. So she had planned this pretty well, Shinji had to give her that. It was cunning to use the natural instinct of humans to seek warm places whenever they were cold, and her pullover did look quite inviting -if it weren't for the 'Kotatsu' that was warming up his lower body.
At the same time, it left his upper one freezing, and unfortunately the laws of 'in average' couldn't apply. If your legs are warm, but your head frozen, you aren't 'in average' at a comfortable temperature. You're just freezing your top.
"It's not even a love confession," Asuka continued, "I learned that it's best to keep those to, like, the twentieth or thirtieth date-otherwise they run away. Men, women, they just up and run not ready for commitment," she shook her head.
"Women?" Shinji's eyebrows both rose.
"Men," Asuka snorted, rolling her eyes and sticking her tongue out. "So...my confession-I'm a pretty decent cook, like, really good. On the other hand..." she fidgeted, "I couldn't find anything at the market!" she all but blurted out, "I'm a failure of a housewife, husband dear!" and then she bowed, both hands clutching on tightly to her pullover.
"B-Bwah!?" that was, most aptly, all that Shinji could manage to blurt out. A few seconds later, and the reason became apparent.
For when the timers rang off, the pots revealed their contents. Instant cup ramen, instant cup rice, instant-pretty much everything that could have been found on a shelf of a convenience store had been put together, and mixed in something that while definitely eatable, could perhaps also lead someone to death by excessive salt intake.
"But...the hot chocolate-" Shinji muttered, "And this-"
"Well," Asuka said as she plopped down right next to him, "Chocolate's ramen a thing for Valentine day-but I do have a few bottles of wine if you prefer that." She split her chopsticks, saying the traditional 'let's eat'. "Or perhaps...you'd like to move on to the dessert?" she wriggled her eyebrows as she said the last word.
Shinji calmly shook his head once, and then began to grab the ramen from the hot pot. "No, no, it's fine-I am hungry." He hesitated. "Are you normally this pushy?"
"Please," Asuka said with a scoff, "You haven't yet seen me pushy." She pushed her glasses further up the bridge of her nose, and then smiled warmly. "But I am upping my game, yes. So nice of you to notice."
Shinji sighed, massaging his brows as he tried to make sense of it all. "Might I know why?"
Asuka shrugged, "Mostly because I forgot how 'lethal' the job is. Not that I ever had to sortie to stop an Angel or something, but you really might die next week or the one after that, so...why not? Life's short, you should live it to the fullest while you still have one!"
"Oh," Shinji mumbled. "You...are worried?"
"Duh," she snorted, "I'm not made of marble-course I'd be worried if my only ticket out of a lifetime of solitude kicked the bucket." She smiled softly, "Well-my thoughts are a bit less cynic and a bit more actual concern though. What kind of girl do you take me for? It's not like I'm trying to score points or anything like that," she huffed, "Now eat, or it will get cold and then I'll have to warm it up again."
Shinji split his own chopsticks, and then proceeded to take his portion from the various pots. It was sort of bizzarre, having a buffet made of different pots with different instant ramen inside, but it was kind of new -and out of the comfort zone he had to go, for going out of it was the wise counsel of his psychiatrist.
The noodles turned out to be all right, even if they were saltier than Shinji had anticipated -but a bottle of wine solved the problem, and warmed him up without having to rely on any 'snuggles' from the teenager-sized girl by his side. During dinner, Asuka remained strangely quiet, concentrating on taking bites at the noodles, and otherwise remaining in a sort of complacent silence that, coupled with the warmth of the kotatsu and the cold of the air conditioning, made it feel homely.
The glasses gave her a mature-look, and the pullover covered most of her forms, making the curves softer and giving an appearance of 'more' thoroughly spread out across her frame.
"You are using human nature and psychological tricks," Shinji said suddenly, "This-you're trying to seduce me."
"Is it working?" Asuka replied primly, placing the bowl down on the table, and plopping her chin on her open palm, giving him a teasing smile in the meantime. "If it's not, give me pointers on what does, sensei~"
Honestly, Shinji knew he was losing ground rapidly. Perhaps it was because it was the first time someone was coming 'on to him' in such a bold and forward way -and also the first time, at least that he had memory of. On the other hand...was this really what he wanted? Perhaps he was being too 'modest' or too 'slow' -the youngsters these days were quick to reach third base, at least hearing some of the random talk in the classrooms whenever he gave them a break.
On the other hand, Asuka wasn't a youngster, but a twenty-six years old woman trapped in the body of a thirteen years old. His skin shuddered slightly. It was the cold perhaps that made him seek out a source of warmth, and Asuka, with her warm-looking pullover, was closer than anything else -at least for his arms, since his legs were safely bundled beneath the kotatsu.
This was a trap. This had been a honeyed trap since the beginning, and he had fallen for it. This was like a trap sprung by a Dionaea muscipula, and he was the insect that had fallen into its folds. Asuka pursed her lips together, a smudge of hot chocolate clearly left on purpose on her upper lips, if the way she licked it away was of any indication.
Shinji Ikari was thus sorry.
He was sorry to his pride. He was sorry to his psychiatrist. He was sorry to a lot of things, nonetheless his self-esteem and his pride, but this was something completely new, something that he had no idea how to handle, and unfortunately, in a fight or flight situation, he still needed time to not choose the option most comfortable with him.
Thus Shinji bolted.
"W-Where's the bathroom?" he hastily stood up as he asked that, his face red enough that he would put a bonfire to shame.
"Down the hallway to the right," Asuka said from the table, not bothering to stand up, but smiling like a cat that had just eaten a whole turkey, and then found some space to eat an entire coop of chickens. With a nod, Shinji headed just that way and closed the door behind him.
Away from the warm table, the rest of the house was a freezing landscape. Small clouds of vapor left his mouth as he hastily opened up the tap water and turned it all the way to the hottest temperature possible. With a gasp as he plunged his fingers into the stream, he realized that it was still icy cold.
This really wasn't going as he expected. He still slapped his face with his wet hands, taking deep breaths as he held back a scream in the back of his throat. He was panicking, wasn't he? Yes, yes, he was panicking. His psychiatrist was needed. Thankfully, his phone was never so far away from him, so-
"Shinji?" the voice on the other side seemed kind of sleepy. Perhaps he had just woken him up, but-"What can I do for you?"
"D-Doctor," he swallowed. "I-I'm trying to run away." He looked around. "I'm in a bathroom, I think fifth or sixth floor. I guess I could vault over the window-make my way to the nearby balcony and get down one-"
"Are you escaping the police?" his therapist asked quite dutifully, "because in that case, I would think they have...helicopters, would they not?"
"It's-It's a woman," Shinji said. "She's-"
There was a knock by the bathroom door, "Shinji? Was your 'bathroom' break a quick one, or was it a number two? I mean-I'm really fine if it's a number two since it means we're getting closer, but if that's the case, know that the air freshener is in the second cupboard to the right." Asuka's voice was quite the teasing thing from beyond the door, and yet all that Shinji could see and feel was that sort of scene from that old movie, 'The Shining', where only an ax and a smile and a gap in the door were all that was missing to complete it. "I'll start preparing the dessert!" she then said, walking away from the door.
"She's-She's moving too fast," Shinji squeaked in the cellphone, his heart drumming a thousand miles per hours. "She's-she's...she invited me for dinner and now she's sitting next to me, her house's freezing cold and she's wearing warm clothes and she has a kotatsu and I'm sitting next to her and there's hot chocolate, and-"
"Shinji, Shinji, breathe," his therapist said calmly. "Has she been violent?"
"What? N-No," Shinji stammered out. "I mean-no, not really, I'm-well, I'm bigger than her and-"
"Then if she is forcing herself on you, what you need is communication," his therapist spoke clearly, "Communicate with her. Tell her what makes you uncomfortable. She cannot read your mind. She invited you over for dinner, and she does not want to scare you, or hurt you. She might simply be thinking you'd be happy about this sort of thing. Being lavished with attentions-isn't that what every hot blooded male would 'normally' want? So-Shinji, take a deep breath, count to ten and repeat the sentence I taught you, and then go."
Shinji swallowed, nodded to his reflection in the mirror and took deep breath. "I am human. I have free will. None can take that away from me. My no is no. My yes is yes. What I do, I do because I want. What I refuse to do, I will not do. I will accept my consequences, and I must size the future brought up by my choices, for it is what I live for."
"Very well, Shinji," his therapist said gingerly. "Now...off you go."
Shinji nodded, swallowing one last time before closing the cellphone and squaring his jaw. He pinched the sides of his shirt, and took a final deep breath. Boundaries. He could do boundaries.
"For dessert," Asuka said as he stepped back in the kitchen, "We have a moist chocolate cake that is positively delicious-I did have the ingredients for that one-"
"Asuka," Shinji said firmly, his fists slightly clenched. "Could you please open the windows and turn off the air conditioning?"
Asuka blinked, and cocked her head to the side. "Oh," she said. "Well, I guess-sure," she nodded.
"Also..." Shinji pushed a hand through his hair, "I'm not really accustomed to this...'speed', could you cut me some slack? I'm not asking for much-just, I'd rather have weeks rather than days..."
Asuka had moved towards the air conditioning's commands, but even as she changed them, she swiftly turned her head to look back at Shinji as he spoke. "So-it's not a 'no'?" Asuka asked.
"It's more of a 'later' thing," Shinji acquiesced.
"Then it's best if I go change," Asuka said with a nod, carefully walking out of the kitchen with a light gait on her step, "Though you should know you missed on the second part of the night-Summer-time with cream and cake!"
Shinji blinked, and didn't understand.
It was only when she returned with a normal shirt and a pair of shorts, the windows already open and letting the lukewarm air in and the freezing one out, that he saw the underlines of a swimsuit beneath the cloth.
Shinji swallowed, and honestly was glad he had spoken to his therapist.
Asuka simply smiled, like the cat reeling in the fish.
In the far off distance, a lone entity rose and split apart.
And then, it split apart once more.
Always Late
Lacking in coffee, sleep, and brains
- Location
- Ohio
Shameless. That's a central concept of this Asuka's character apparently.
Took the words right out of my mouth.
... Misato did your shopping, didn't she?
A shameless girl who hides her isolation and self-image issues in plain sight while acting in no small way like the 13 year old you claim not to be.
And that's setting off every relationship alarm bell.
Frankly, I think he's justified.
Mr. Therapist, sir? You don't know Asuka Langey Soryu. You might want to get touch with her therapist, go over patient notes with each other.
Human Instrumentality Committee: "we beg to differ."
Aaaand Shinji's request for slowing down is for Asuka to ramp up to...
... skimpy clothing. If she's holding a can of whipped cream in one hand and a strawberries in the other, then Shinji needs to vault out the window right the hell now, damn the consequences.
Interesting chapter. Asuka is... how to put this without going from voicing analysis of her personality and psyche into calling her a slut... eh, I'll just use what I used before and hope for the best. Asuka is pretty shameless, yet the lonely need is also plain to see. Am I making sense?
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- Location
- National Capital Region, USA
I continue to like this Asuka. She's managing to put a somewhat more confident and aggressively seductive mask on her fears, but it's still her. And she's smart enough to back off when Shinji starts to panic.
'Chocolate's ramen a thing'? Er...? That sentence doesn't seem to read right.
I think you mean 'homey', unless you mean to imply it looks ugly or....ahhh, British meaning. "(of a place or surroundings) simple but cosy and comfortable, as in one's own home." US English has dropped that meaning for 'plain and unattracive'. Homey is the US equivalent.
She's doing a great job of hiding how worried she is about the answer to that. I hope you can give her a hug soon, Shinji. She needs it.
...For a moment I thought that was a scarlet letter 'A'...