The Wish
By Mark Ferrer
A familiar blue sports car finally came to a gentle stop, that
action being a large contrast to how hard the car had been pushed
previously. In the year 2015, replacing your brake pads still cost a
fortune, but many just chalked it up to yet another scam the world was
under.
"I know you've been worked pretty hard the last week so here's my
surprise." said Misato, climbing out of the car.
"A crummy fair! We're off saving the world and we get to go to a
fair?!" whined Asuka. "When are you taking us to Tokyo Disneyland?"
Misato's eyebrow twitched but she said nothing.
"Actually, it's kinda nice." said Shinji. "It's kinda nice to be
away from all the high-tech stuff."
"A little low-tech fun alright." said Misato, glad to have someone
on her side.
"What about you Wondergirl? Anything to add?"
"This place looks interesting. I do not mind being here." Rei said,
calmly of course.
"Hey Shinji!" called Kensuke, running towards the pilots and their
guardian. Touji followed with Hikari by her side, carrying a large
stuffed cabbit.
"Oh brother. That makes a full stooge compliment." Asuka muttered
under her breath.
After a brief meeting, the Larry and Moe managed to drag Curly
away. Asuka dragged Hikari to the nearest fast ride, Rei following out
of curiousity.
The smell of alcohol called to Misato and she finally left to enjoy
the fair.
* * *
"Wow! Cool! How retro!" exclaimed Kensuke, pouring over the old
video games the arcade had.
Touji merely smirked. A loud ding called to his attention. "Hey!
It's one of those hammer thingys. I'll be right back."
Shinji spent the next hour alternating between Kensuke play and
Touji hammer the bell into submission.
After getting a sore neck from watching as Kensuke battled a
4-armed boss, Shinji looked around to see if there were any other games
worth playing. One game stood out.
A lone machine, away from the flashing lights and noises the other
games made. One with a weathered wood finish instead of shiny plastic
and laminated wood.
Thinking back to english class, he tried pronouncing the name,
"Zoltar?"
From the instructions on the machine, it seemed to be a mechanical
wishing machine. Simply aim the coin ramp at the wishing genie's mouth
and you get your wish.
He fished out a coin from his pocket and put it in the coin slot.
Nothing happened. "Don't tell me it's broken." he said to himself. He
started pounding on the coin receptacle when the lights flashed on and
the wishing machine's genie started opening and closing it's mouth, no
doubt an attempt to make the wish harder to get.
A message flashed that read, "Make your wish. Then press the red
button."
Shinji closed his eyes and mouthed the wish. Eyes still closed, he
pressed the button.
There was no sound of the coin missing. It sounded as if it had
gone into the genie's mouth. He mentally kicked himself for not keeping
his eyes open.
Suddenly, all the machine's actions stopped. It looked as if the
wishing machine broke. Shinji was about to step away but a bell rang and
a card appeared in a card catch beside the dial.
Thinking nothing of it, he took the card. One blank side but the
other said, "Your wish is granted."
Shinji smiled and said, "Yeah, right."
He said he didn't believe it but he still placed the card in his
back pocket. He walked away and stepped on something. Looking back, it
was a electrical plug. He traced the cord to where it lead and found
that it went to the wishing machine. Unplugged yet the machine still
operated.
In a world where Angels and giant robots made to battle them
existed, this wasn't so out of the ordinary.
* * *
Shinji awoke, still groggy from the previous day's activities. As
if Misato's driving wasn't bad enough sober, he and Asuka weren't taking
any chances of her driving back home. He and Asuka declined offers from
Hikari, Touji and Kensuke's parents to drive them home due to the
embarrassment of a guardian who drunk to excess. Luckily, the cellphones
they had hailed a cab that got them home in the not-most direct manner.
Shinji had made the mistake of flashing Misato's NERV credit card to the
cab driver.
Shinji sat up, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. He didn't notice
that his feet hung over the end of his bed. A slow, staggering walk to
the bathroom didn't do a bit to wake him up. A splash of water in his
face finally revealed the morning to his eyes.
"Ahhhhh... AAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!"
Thoughts flashed fast as he stared at his now older face. There was
a striking resemblance to his father, softened by the features of his
mother.
"That wishing machine!" he said aloud. "It actually worked."
The mirror informed him of his now undersized shirt that had torn
and was barely on. He removed the now useless piece of clothing. He
sighed as he looked down. It was a good thing he decided to change his
baggiest shorts the previous night. They were still tight though.
"Shinji! What happened?" asked Asuka from beyond the door.
"Nothing hap-" was all Shinji said before he clamped his hand over
his own mouth. His voice was now a lower octave.
"You getting a cold?" Asuka asked, in a rare display of care for
the Third Child.
Shinji tried to talk in his highest falsetto. "I think I might be."
"It's just a cold Shinji-baka. No need to scream." said Asuka. "I
thought there was an intruder or something."
Shinji smiled. Of course she jumped to conclusions.
"I thought I'd have a chance to try out my new bat." said Asuka.
Sounds of wooden bat clapping on a hand made Shinji shiver.
"Hey, you coming out yet? It's your turn to cook."
"I- I'll be right out." Shinji said, still in his highest voice,
which was still lower than his normal one.
He waited a few seconds before cracking the door open. Coast clear.
He hadn't taken even three steps before Asuka came back out.
A strange man who was topless and in rather tight shorts was
standing in the middle of the living room.
"MISATO, THERE'S AN INTRUDER IN HERE!" she called over her
shoulder. She addressed the boy turned man, "I don't know how you got in
here, but it's batting practice."
She hefted her bat and swung at her fellow pilot.
"Asuka! I can explain!" said Shinji desperately.
"Explain this!" shouted Asuka, taking another swing.
The self-preservation instinct kicked in and Shinji ducked out of
the way. Unfortunately, drywall doesn't have that particular instinct
and crumbled under the power of an angry redhead. Misato came onto the
scene as Asuka forgot about the 'three strikes you're out' rule as
Shinji amazingly dodged most of her attacks. She rushed back into her
room a retrieved the gun she kept.
"STOP!"
Both Asuka and Shinji did so.
Misato leveled her gun at the intruder.
"I don't know who you are but you've got some explaining to do."
"Misato, it's me! Shinji!" Shinji said, raising his arms.
Not taking her gun off the grown man, she glanced into Shinji's
empty room and cocked her gun. "Yeah, and I'm Sailor Moon. If you don't
tell me where Shinji is-"
"I'm right here Misato! I made a wish on a wishing machine and it
came true, I'm older." Shinji pleaded.
"Yeah right. If that's true, tell me something only Shinji would
know."
Shinji's thoughts flashed but stopped on one thing. "Toothpicks."
"What the hell does toothpicks have to do with anything?" asked
Asuka.
Misato blushed, "That was Shinji's first night here. I guess you'll
need something more than toothpicks now, huh?"
Shinji blushed too. Why was that the first thing he thought of?
* * *
After a quick search for clothes that fit him, the 2015 version of
Three's Company made their way to Nerv HQ, with a slight detour to drive
Asuka to school.
"I can't believe it worked." Shinji said, using the vanity mirror
on the passenger side. The differences from a child and a man were
becoming more apparent to him.
"So, all you did was wish on a video game?" asked Asuka, wondering
what a grown up version of herself would look like.
"It's not a video game." Shinji said rather forcefully. <It sure is
easier to shout as an adult.> "It's some kind of old fashioned wishing
machine. It was at the arcade at the fair."
"Misato, when this is all over, can we swing by that fair again?"
asked Asuka.
The question finally snapped Misato out of her daze. "That fair
goes from city to city. I don't have any idea where it's going now."
<Ah well. This wish is good enough for now.> thought Shinji.
<There goes my chance with Kaji.> thought Asuka.
All three passengers lurched forward as Misato came abruptly to a
stop at the front of the school.
"You know the drill Asuka."
"Yeah, yeah. 'Shinji's not here because he's in for more testing'."
Asuka sighed.
"See you later Asuka." said Shinji, enjoying the look she gave her
as Misato gunned the engine.
* * *
Ritsuko frowned as she watched a familiar looking man walking
beside Misato. <A replacement for Kaji?> "Your boyfriend can wait
somewhere else. Where's Shinji?"
The man flashed Shinji's passcard. "I'm Shinji."
Misato nodded, "This is the emergency. Shinji's aged. Test him to
make sure he can still synchronize."
"You're serious about this aren't you? This is really Shinji."
Ritsuko smirked. "You're lucky we kept the plugsuits from the first
activation test. C'mon Shinji, I'll take you to the storage room."
"Major." said an ominous voice from behind her.
<Damn. Not a single break.> "Good morning Commander. There's been a
problem, as you might have heard."
"Yes. Do you know how it happened?"
Misato summed up the situation with, "Shinji wished on some kind of
wishing machine and his wish came true." <Though I don't know why he'd
wish to get older.> she thought.
<Interesting.>
* * *
Ritsuko handed a cup of coffee to her best friend. "I guess you
still have a job."
"Thanks." Misato said before taking a sip. "For some reason, I
think Shinji was completely confident that he'd still be able to
synchronize with Unit 1."
"A 5 point increase to boot." Ritsuko paused. "So, what happens
now?"
"What do you mean?"
"Shinji is technically 32 years old. He no longer needs a
guardian."
Misato grew quiet for a while before saying, "I guess it's his
choice. On one hand, it would be nice to just be us girls, but on the
other hand, I've grown to think of Shinji as the little brother I never
had. Now-" Misato broke into a grin "-he's the older brother I never
had."
"I guess. But haven't you wondered why he wished himself to be
older?"
"Maybe to stand up to his father? Or maybe Asuka? Be able to skip
school? I don't know. Teenagers can be so unpredictable."
Ritsuko was about to ask another question but the object of their
conversation came into the room. Misato noticed Ritsuko's surprised look
and turned to see Shinji in the uniform of NERV personnel.
"What happened to you?" Misato asked.
"I'm officially a NERV employee." said Shinji, tugging at his
collar. "I've got an apartment and everything. And this." he handed
Misato an envelope.
Misato turned it over and saw the perforations. "They're paying you
now?" she looked at the amount and did a double take. Ritsuko glanced
over her shoulder. "It seems that you're getting danger pay in addition
to the normal amount."
"Uh, yeah. And there's something else." Shinji said hesitantly.
<If they gave him a gun...>
"They've assigned me to an apartment-" Shinji started "-on the
other side of the city." and he gave the letter to Misato.
<It's almost as if they planned for this contingency.> thought
Misato. "You don't have to go. Me and Asuka would miss you."
Shinji dug his toe into the ground. "I can still stay?"
"Why not?"
<I can think of a few.> thought Ritsuko.
"C'mon, let's tell the Commander about the change in plans."
* * *
Gendo eyed the pair suspiciously, "Do you really want to stay
Shinji?"
"Y-yes." said Shinji, unused to his grave looking father looking up
at him.
"Very well. The Third Child can remain where he currently resides."
Their business done, Shinji and Misato left.
When they were out of earshot, Fuyutsuki asked, "Are you sure this
is wise?"
Gendo smiled underneath his steepled fingers, "This... growth spurt
was unexpected but doesn't deviate from the plans at all."
* * *
Misato sped past the checkpoint to take advantage of the ramp that
sent her sports car airborne. "Yeehaa! I can't believe it worked."
"Yeah. For a second there, I thought he would say no."
"Me too. C'mon, let's have a party."
"What for?"
Misato bit her lower lip in thought. "A 'Shinji's-isn't-leaving'
party."
A sweatdrop formed on Shinji's head. "It's kinda sudden isn't it?"
Misato shook her head. "Nah. It'll just be you me and Asuka.
Nothing major."
A light-bulb turned on in Shinji's head. He took out the NERV
credit card from his wallet. "Misato, let's go out to eat."
Shinji received a pat on the back. "Great idea! Saves us the
trouble of having to hear Asuka whine about always eating the same old
food."
* * *
School let out, a flood of students rushing out to leave the
premises as soon as possible.
"Hey look! It's Shinji's other roommate!"
"That babe, Misato Katsuragi."
"I wish she was my guardian."
The multiple fanboy drooling stopped when the grown up Shinji got
out of the car and leaned on it beside the object of many people's
obsession.
"Who the hell's that?"
"She's got a date?!"
"He better be just a security guard or something..."
Hikari and Asuka had come out of the school in the middle of the
talkative crowd and was able to hear most of the comments.
"Who is that guy anyway?" asked Hikari.
Asuka's lie of, "I don't know" only helped to churn the rumor mill.
"Well, see you tomorrow Hikari. Bye."
"Bye Asuka."
* * *
"So Shinji, what's with the uniform?" Asuka asked when she got into
the car.
"I'm a NERV employee now. Paycheck and everything." bragged Shinji.
"Thanks to him, we're going out for dinner." said Misato.
"Where to?" Asuka asked.
"Pierre's." said Shinji.
Both women stared at him. "Hey, I wanna try french food." he
explained.
"French it is." said Misato, pushing the accelerator past 80. (kph)
* * *
The maitre'd sized up his latest batch of customers. Two NERV
employees and a teenager.
"Ah. Bonsoir. Welcome to Pierre's. Table for 3?" he gave the
slightest of pauses and resumed, "please follow me."
"Hmm. Never heard Japanese spoken with a French accent before."
commented Misato.
They were lead to an out of the way booth that had that atmosphere
that both men and women looked for in their choice of restaurants.
The maitre'd snuck in a comment to the adults. "I guess you
couldn't find a babysitter?" with that, he left the menus on the table.
Asuka frowned at the two laughing adults. "What's so funny?"
Shinji recovered first and said, "He thought you were our child or
something." This sent he and Misato into another giggle fit.
Asuka looked at the two and said, "As if."
* * *
<This is just too weird for me.> thought Shinji. In his arms lay
Asuka, sleeping like the angels of halos and feather wings. Beside him
strode Misato, carrying Asuka's bookbag and a bottle of wine that she
had started at Pierre's and drank by herself. Even as an adult, Shinji
was adamant about not drinking.
Shinji decided to break the quiet moment by saying, "Asuka would
kill me if I tried this with my old body."
"No offense but I don't think you actually had the strength enough
to carry her before."
"True." said Shinj, almost unconsciously flexing his muscles. "I
don't think I'd ever want my old body back."
"Well, I might want to use that machine if I find it again. I know
a couple things that I want to change."
Shinji smiled and said, "Like getting rid of the Angels? Or maybe
being able to read someone else's thoughts? The power of flight sounds
pretty good too."
"Or never having to be pulled over for speeding. Being able to
change decisions in the past." Misato said, unconsciously feeling her
cross. "I've been meaning to ask, why did you wish to be bigger?" she
asked, finally remembering the question that had been in the back of her
mind.
"I don't really know." <I think.> "Now that I look back on it, I
should have wished for something else but," Shinji tried to better put
his feelings into words, "that one wish came out over the others. Maybe
it was a subconscious wish. Different parts of me wanting the same thing
but something had more of a pull than the others and I made my wish."
Misato thought of herself in that position. Having an infinite
possibility and one somehow surfacing to your mind without any reason of
it being a better choice than the others. "Do you think you wasted your
wish?"
Shinji thought about his first day as an adult, "I don't think so.
Not yet. I haven't lived enough to decide."
"Are you going to tell others about your growth spurt? Those two
friends of yours?" Misato asked.
"I don't really know. Maybe I'll start a new life. Take an alias
and start fresh."
Misato couldn't help but add the condition of, "After you defeat
all the Angels, right?"
"Of course, of course. Business before pleasure and all that."
They now stood at the foot of the door, tension somehow cutting
into a previously relaxed conversation.
Misato dug her keys out of her purse and opened the door. <This
feels almost like a->
Shinji stepped into the landing and said, "I'm home."
"Welcome home adult Shinji Ikari." said Misato, heading to her
room.
* * *
Shinji gently placed Asuka on her bed. He couldn't help but imagine
her grown up. <She'll be a knockout.> he thought to himself. He took a
final glance at what was usually considered no-man's land and left for
his own room.
* * *
His unkempt bed lay ready for him. He looked through the set of
spare clothes he'd been given at NERV, he found a t-shirt and shorts
that he would wear to bed. It lay as it was after he'd left that morning
and discovered the latest change to his life. He brushed away the shreds
of the shirt he had grown out of during the previous night's sleep.
<An unfamiliar feeling... I've got to get a new bed.>
He grappled with his now inadequate blanket and the shortness of
bed that allowed his feet to hang over the edge.
Part 2
The smell of sizzling bacon awoke the women of the Katsuragi
household. Asuka woke first and savoured the smell of the food that
wafted through the apartment.
"This is your one redeeming quality Shinji." muttered Asuka. She
came into the kitchen and saw the now grown Shinji. She reflexively took
a step back due to the fact that from behind, Shinji looked exactly his
father. She recovered and smirked at the idea of Gendo Ikari wearing a
frilly pink apron.
"Geez Shinji, you take up a lot of space, dontcha?" she said.
Shinji replied with an instinctive, "I'm sorry."
"Would you stop doing that?"
Shinji thought about his response. "I apologize for taking up more
space." With that, he placed the bacon on the serving plate beside the
scrambled eggs and placed the pan into the sink.
Asuka took a portion and started eating. Shinji did the same and
silence ruled for a moment.
"So, how are we going to explain this at school? I don't think the
officials there will buy your wishing genie idea." asked Asuka.
"I'm not going. At all." replied Shinji.
"So you grow up and you don't have to go to school anymore?"
Asuka's voice raising in volume. "Hell, I've gone to college and I still
have to go to school. What kind of idiot decided that?"
"This idiot." said Misato, walking in with her usual risque
outfits. She opened the fridge and bent down to peruse her selection of
alcoholic beverages.
<This body... has some... different reactions.> thought Shinji,
several parts of the female anatomy drawing his attention. Thankfully,
neither of his roommates noticed his wandering eyes.
"So Misato, what's Shinji going to be doing? He hasn't exactly
gotten a diploma to work in the real world. Or has NERV already dealt
with that problem?" asked Asuka, not caring if she sounded as if she was
whining.
"Funny thing really. No one really knows what to do with you,
Shinji. Ritsuko's tests are just to be sure and they won't take all day
so I don't really know what to do with you for the rest of the day."
said Misato, starting her breakfast.
"So he can just laze around all day doing nothing? He can do that
at school. Just say an Angel affected his hormones and he's bigger now."
Asuka stormed.
Misato shook her head. "Even if Shinji has to resort to doing
janitorial work, we'll find something for him to do there. Commander
Ikari says that since he's an adult, he will stay at NERV, that way
we'll always have a ready pilot."
<Custodial duty? The place is always so clean, why would they need
another janitor?> thought Shinji, trying to ease his mind.
"Well I still say the whole thing sucks." Asuka said to Misato. She
turns and addresses Shinji, "So, you're absolutely sure that game's name
is 'Zoltar'?"
"Give me a second." Shinji got up and went to his room. He came
back to the table with the card he received from the machine. "Yeah,
it's Zoltar. You can take the card if you want."
"Are you actually going to look for that contraption?" asked
Misato.
"Of course I am. Having an infinite source of wishes would be
something only idiots pass up." Asuka smirked. "Take Shinji for example.
What kind of idiot wishes to get bigger? He could have wished to get rid
of the Angels, be rich, be anything at all but no. He wishes to grow
up." she paused, knowing she now had a captive audience. "Or maybe he's
just compensating for something..."
Misato coughed up some of her drink and blushed. Neither child
seemed to notice her.
Shinji retaliated with, "Hey, how was I supposed to know it was
real? Then I would have wished for..." Shinji stopped himself at the
realization. <I would have still wished for the same thing. Why do I
want to get bigger?>
"For what? What would you have wished for Third rate Child?"
taunted Asuka.
"Okay okay. Stop this now you two. Asuka, shouldn't you be getting
ready now?" said Misato, gesturing to the wall clock.
Asuka cursed and ran off to her room.
Misato turned to Shinji and said, "You should be getting ready too
Shinji."
Shinji left without a word and walked to his room.
The kitchen remained quiet as Misato finished breakfast and checked
on Pen-Pen.
* * *
The drive to NERV headquarters was at Misato's leisurely pace, that
is to say, twenty points higher than any posted speed limit. It was
during this experience that Shinji asked, "Do you think it would be okay
for me to drive? I mean, now that I'm able to reach the foot pedals
easily and I look old enough, it's time isn't it?"
Misato imagined Shinji's style of driving. A press of his horn not
beeping but saying, "I'm sorry."
"I don't see why not. I can imagine that we can pull the strings
enough to let them forget about your birth records." she said, wondering
if Shinji had the stamina to wait in the DMV.
"That way, Asuka and I won't have to always pester you to take us
around." said Shinji.
"With all that money you've got, you can buy a brand new car."
suggested Misato.
"Have you got one in mind for me already?" asked Shinji.
Misato's mouth quirked into a grin, "Hmm, maybe. Just be sure to
bring me when you start going to dealerships."
* * *
Ritsuko tore her eyes from the latest set of computer printouts to
see Shinji and Misato walking down together. What's strange is that they
were laughing up a storm.
"Oh c'mon. Okay, how about that new BMW?" asked Shinji.
Misato giggled and took a step back looked Shinji over. "James Bond
would never wear a uniform like that."
Shinji tried to speak over his laughter, "How about a motorcycle?
Wind in my hair, my leather jacket flying in the breeze..."
"Helmet head." laughed Misato.
"Good morning you two." said Ritsuko, a tone of amusement in her
voice. "Shinji, catch."
Shinji reflexively caught the thrown object. "A motorcycle helmet?"
This threw Misato into another fit of giggles.
Ritsuko ignored her superior officer and said, "The entry plug is
quite a tight fit for an adult and your head is quite close to the
canopy. We'll be doing agility tests to see how well that things absorbs
the impact and how it works with the LCL and other systems."
"I'll go suit up then." said Shinji, walking off.
"I'll try to see if I can find a leather jacket for you to wear."
called Misato.
* * *
Misato and Ritsuko sat back, drinking coffee as they observed
Shinji running through the simulated city. The various rolls, flips and
attacks Shinji was going through was meant to test for fit, comfort,
shock dissipation and other factors that Ritsuko didn't want to
elaborate on.
"Who choreographed these moves?" asked Misato.
"I forget his name but one of the techs has extensive experience on
the many movements that robotics can do." explained Ritsuko.
"Meaning you asked Makoto everything he knew about anime mecha."
smirked Misato.
Ritsuko leaned forward onto the console and depressed a button.
"Shinji, how's it going?"
"The extra weight feels weird. The display on the visor's okay but
it fades in and out sometimes." Shinji paused to complete a complex
maneouver, giving time for Ritsuko to write down his comments on paper.
"And I think I'm starting to dent the plug with combination 23."
Misato came close to Ritsuko and whispered, "Is that even
possible?"
"I don't think so Shinji. The distortion's probably due to the plug
display panels not being able to handle the stress. We'll install the
stronger display plates when you unplug." said Ritsuko. "And how's the
restraint system holding up?"
Shinji looked down to the metallic arm that had always been his
restraint. "It's fine, it doesn't pinch at all. The absence of the
displays is kinda weird though."
"You'll get used to it. We had to remove the holo emitters since we
had to make room for your legs and your more leaned back position.
Besides, the risk of you slamming into the displays is too great, that's
the second reason for the helmet." Ritsuko paused to see how well Shinji
was doing in the many readouts. "Okay, that's enough for today. Unplug."
* * *
The careful process of ejecting the plug was made harder with
Shinji's larger form. A little twisting finally got him through the plug
door.
"I'm sorry Shinji but I don't think we can modify the plug hatch
size." said Ritsuko.
"It's fine. Just as long as I don't have to get out in a hurry."
said Shinji. He placed his hands on the sides of the helmet in an
attempt to yank it off his head. Instead, the LCL lubricated the process
and his hands slipped right off the shiny plastic.
"I think we've found another problem." commented Misato. She
started trying to help Shinji out of his helmet. Ritsuko held a bemused
look as she watched the two try to get the headgear off.
"Shinji, bend down." commanded Misato. Her charge did as told.
Misato then placed her foot against Shinji's thigh in an attempt to gain
more leverage. Shinji in turn tried to push against the bottom of the
helmet. A couple more grunts and exertions and Misato accidentally
snapped off the helmet's visor.
"Oh. I'm so sorry Ritsuko. You had to redesign the thing anyways
right?" asked Misato shamefully.
Ritsuko smiled and said, "It's worth it to see the show."
Misato visibly fumed and said, "Think of something!"
"I'm thinking, I'm thinking." said Ritsuko, though her expression
said otherwise.
In the end, Shinji was finally freed of his confinement by
centrifugal force. Meaning he was strapped to a rolling chair and spun
around by a group of men until his head was yanked out. The LCL &
suction effect of the helmet gave Shinji what can be considered the
'hedgehog' look.
* * *
"This is so embarrassing." said Shinji's muffled voice from the
pilot changing area.
"You mean to tell me the gel had no affect?" Misato asked.
"It helped a little bit. But there's still a lot of cowlicks all
over the place."
Misato leaned on the door and said, "Well, look on the bright side,
your hair is short enough that it doesn't look too silly."
It was at that moment Shinji chose to show his new hairstyle to the
world. Misato started falling backwards but was caught by Shinji. She
looked up at the hair of her saviour and broke into a sly grin. "What's
this, you going for the Astroboy look?"
"Who's Astroboy?" asked Shinji. Misato walked around him looking at
his hair from all sides. Sure enough, the gel he'd used plastered down
all his hair except for a large tuft in the back and front.
Misato sighed, "Before your time. Let's go."
Shinji grabbed his uniform jacket and followed after her. "Where
are we going?"
"You'll see."
* * *
Asuka glanced at them from the corner of her eye. Once again, they
were drawing straws to see who had the privilege of asking her out on a
date first. <Why does this always happen when Shini's not here?> she
asked herself.
Finally, a short boy jumped in excitement and started towards her
desk. Suddenly, he took a detour and was out of sight.
<What could have scared him off?> thought Asuka.
"Okay Red. What did you do to Shinji?" asked Toji, crossing his
arms in front of him. Kensuke stood beside him, ready to record what he
hoped to be epic filmmaking.
"Nothing. He did it to himse-" Asuka shut her mouth shut. <I almost
blew the secret.> she looked up at the confused faces of the remaining
Stooges. <Well that just opened up a new can of worms.>
"What? Did Shinji try driving you and Misato home that night?"
asked Kensuke.
Toji smiled and said, "Or maybe you and Misato were too much for
him."
Asuka reflexively kicked Toji in the shin, her seated position
allowing for the attack. "Shinji's doing some testing at NERV. That's
all."
Kensuke seemed to be disappointed at the lack of action. He turned
off his camera and put it in his side holster. "You know, government
cover ups aren't always 100% you know. One day, I'll find out all of
NERV's secrets."
* * *
Once again, rumors flew as to who the new man was in Asuka's
guardian's life. Asuka brushed off the many rumors with rather obvious
threats of bodily harm.
"Asuka, who is he anyway?" asked Hikari, her curiousity finally
getting the best of her. "Is she Ms. Katsuragi's new boyfriend or
something?"
Asuka looked at the two waiting for her. Shinji and Misato leaned
against the car with apparently brand new clothes. The sports car's
small trunk being inadequate and many boxes of clothes could be seen
from the rear window. "They do look like a couple don't they?" she said
quietly. <And why is Shinji wearing a cowboy hat?>
Hikari looked over to the two and agreed, "Yeah, they do. So does
that mean they aren't?"
"No. Not really." said Asuka. "He's new to NERV and he by some roll
of luck got an apartment close to ours and we're just helping him
adjust."
"There must be some new changes to NERV regulations." commented
Kensuke. He had tagged along with Toji, who in turn wanted to make sure
Hikari wasn't taken by the man who had apparently gotten very close to
his fantasy woman.
"I can always blow the whistle on the person who spends the most
time trying to hack into the MAGI." said Asuka, turning on the
bespectacled boy.
"You can't prove anything Asuka." said Kensuke. <Unless it's that
"kaRit" person. I better be laying low for a while.>
Shinji looked at his usual group of friends and couldn't help but
feel left out. He couldn't help but stir the pot even more by yelling,
"Hey Asuka! Hurry up! I can't wait to go home to try something out on
you."
Misato leaned closer to Shinji and said, "Do you have any idea how
perverted that sounds?"
Shinji realized his grave mistake just in time to see the fuming
Asuka storming towards him at breakneck speed. He held out his arms in
attempt to ward the girl off. Funny thing is, given their positions,
depending on where you were, it looked as if Asuka was about to jump
into her lover's outstretched arms.
"What did that guy say?" asked Toji.
Hikari blushed and said, "I didn't quite catch all of it."
Kensuke rewound his disc recorder and played it back, increasing
the volume. "I can't wait to go home to try something out on you." said
the machine. Unfortunately, the volume was loud enough for most people
in close proximity to hear clearly. "Well, Asuka did like that Kaji guy.
I guess she only goes for older men."
Asuka saw red and swung her bookbag at the source of her torment.
Shinji's longer reach allowed him to block that attack but the punch to
the gut went undefended. "Do you have any idea what you just said?"
asked Asuka, her voice dangerously low.
"I'm sorry, it just came out." Shinji apologized. His voice seemed
surprisingly unchanged by the blow to the mid-section.
Asuka looked back to see the various expressions on people's faces.
"Look, let's just get out of here. I'll deal with it tomorrow."
Misato jumped over the hood of the car to her door and swung
inside. Shinji paused before entering to allow Asuka to squeeze into the
backseat. With a decisive stab to the ignition and then a solid stomp on
the gas, the blue streak left the scene with the smell of burning
rubber.
"Kensuke?" asked Toji. "You got that all in the can right?"
"Of course. I'm not that big a screw up." answered his friend.
The wind blew, having no affect on the shell shocked teenagers. A
lone person unaffected wove through the many human statues littering the
school grounds. "So that's what has happened to Ikari."
* * *
Asuka continually kicked Shinji's front seat. He tried to shut it
out of his mind but finally it got to him. "Look, I said I'm sorry.
Besides, you took it like it was nothing."
"It might not matter to you anymore but my school reputation has
just been tarnished by this- this-" <What can I insult Shinji about?>
"Gendo look-alike."
Misato looked over to Shinji and said, "Nah, it's easy to tell them
apart. This Gendo's much better."
"Uh thanks Misato." said Shinji, blushing slightly.
"So, what were you going to try out on me? It better not be as
perverted as how you said it." said Asuka, finally stopping her stomping
on Shinji's seat.
"Ah, just wait till you get home." Misato said and winked at
Shinji. "You'll love this surprise."
Asuka looked between the two: the adult that acted childish and the
child that became an adult. <This can't be good.>