In a certain Japanese town, Third New Tokyo City, middle schooler Shinji Ikari wakes up to find things a little strange. After all, the comrades he fought alongside to save the world last year are all living peacefully in his neighborhood.
First, red-haired Asuka barges into Shinji's room in the morning, yelling 'Are you still sleeping?!' It seems she's ended up living with him. Shinji's father, Gendo Ikari, while saying 'Everything is going according to plan,' is baking sweets in the kitchen w
Nerv's Shinji-kun, Awaiting Retorts Today Too - The Visitor at Dawn — Misato's Gamble and Shinji's Resolve
Bzzz, bzzz, bzzz.
Shinji's phone, clutched in his hands as he hugged his knees in the corner of the room, vibrated again and again.
In the darkness, the light of the LCD screen was painfully bright. Incoming call. Misato. Voicemail. Another call. Misato. Bzzz, bzzz, bzzz.
"[whispers]...So noisy."
He moved to turn it off, but his hand stopped.
A short message remained on the screen.
*'Waiting on the rooftop. If you run, I'm failing you.'*
(*Failing me...*)
His grip tightened on the phone.
Credits. Graduation. An ordinary daily life. All of it was bound by a single word from Misato. There was no escape. Maybe there never had been, from the very beginning.
Shinji stood up.
He put on his sneakers. Left the apartment. The fluorescent lights in the hallway hummed and trembled. From the next room—Asuka's room—he heard no sound at all. Her crying from the night before had stopped.
(*It's still four in the morning.*)
He went down the stairs. Stepped outside.
The sound of cicadas reached him from afar. The usual summer. A world that should have been unchanging. But—inside Shinji's heart, it felt like it was still raining.
The pre-dawn air was cold on his skin.
Ten minutes to the school. The usual route. But walking it alone, it felt terribly long.
He passed through the school gate and into the entrance hall.
Shoe lockers. He changed into his indoor shoes. An empty hallway. Only his own footsteps echoed, clip-clop, clip-clop.
He climbed the stairs.
The rooftop door came into view.
He opened it.
A cold wind.
The sky was still wrapped in a deep blue. Only the edge of the eastern sky was faintly bright. A single star lingered, not yet faded.
"[gentle]You came after all."
A voice.
Leaning against the fence, Misato stood there. Her hair wasn't neatly tied up; it swayed in loose strands around her shoulders. In her right hand, a can of beer. In her left, another one.
"[serious]...Were you serious about failing me?"
"[laughing]Who knows."
Misato laughed and tossed the can.
Shinji caught it in a fluster. It was cold. Juice. Canned coffee.
"[gentle]It'll warm you up."
"[sad]...Calling me out this late at night, what did you want to talk about?"
"[serious]About how you keep running away."
Shinji clenched the can.
(*Running away...*)
He couldn't argue back.
Misato pulled the tab on her can. The *psht* of the opening echoed across the quiet rooftop. She took a sip of beer. Then, she gazed into the distance.
"[serious]Did you know? I used to be at Nerv. You know that, right. An organization where crazy people from all over the world gathered to fight those things called Angels. I was one of them."
Shinji said nothing and opened his can of coffee.
It was bitter.
"[gentle]You see... I lost my father in the Second Impact."
Her voice changed, just a little.
It wasn't her usual brightness. It was a voice looking at something much, much farther away.
"There was a huge explosion. Half the world died. My father was at the center of it. I survived, all alone. For years... for years, I couldn't speak. I even wanted to forget my own name."
The wind blew.
"[serious]After that—I hated. The thing that killed my father. This world. Everything that lived. I didn't join Nerv to protect the world. It was for revenge. Against who? Against what? I didn't know. But I couldn't keep living without hating something."
Shinji stared at his coffee can.
Misato's voice was matter-of-fact. As if she were reading from a textbook. But—each and every word fell heavily onto Shinji's heart.
"[gentle]The fighting ended. The Angels were gone. The sky turned blue. 'That's great, it's peace now'—they told me that, but I was empty inside. Because the target of my hatred was gone."
"[sad]That's... that's just like..."
"[gentle]Yes. It was as if my reason for living had vanished."
Silence.
Misato looked up at the sky.
"[serious]And then, you know. I realized. There's no place in this world where you can live without getting hurt. Nowhere in this world is there such a convenient place. But—maybe I could make a place where we could laugh together."
"[surprised]...The Yuru-Chara Contest?"
"[laughing]Yeah. Sounds stupid, right?"
Misato laughed. But her eyes weren't laughing.
"Former Nerv people making costumes, falling on stage, the audience laughing. There's no fighting anywhere anymore. All that's left is a stupid, everyday life. That's fine. That's—that's exactly what I wanted to prove was the thing I wanted to protect."
She crushed the can in her hand.
The aluminum made a crumpling, crunching sound.
"[serious]Shinji."
"...Yes."
"[serious]Being too scared of getting hurt to do anything at all—that's a far greater sin."
Shinji's chest tightened sharply.
"[serious]Asuka, you see, she failed on stage. She was humiliated. Laughed at. But—even so, she tried harder than anyone. You, of all people, know best how much she practiced, don't you?"
(*I know.*)
The home-ec room at night. Fingers covered in band-aids. The sight of her gripping a needle while crying.
"[angry]And yet, what were you doing? Hugging your knees alone, not taking anyone's side, not getting hurt yourself—and thinking you understood everything?"
"[crying]...That's not..."
"[serious]Yes, it is."
Misato looked straight at Shinji.
"[serious]What you should be doing isn't refusing to take anyone's side. If you can't choose whose side to be on—at the very least, you should keep waiting in front of the door."
"[surprised]...Huh?"
"[gentle]Sit down in front of Asuka's room, and stay there. It's okay if you can't do anything. It's okay if you can't find the words. Even so, just be there. That's the only thing you can do. But—that alone is enough."
(*It's okay if I can't do anything.*)
(*That alone is enough.*)
A heat rose behind Shinji's eyes.
The one who had avoided getting hurt more than anyone by doing nothing—was himself.
He'd thought that by not taking anyone's side, he could avoid being disliked by anyone.
But the one who was hurt most by that...
(*Was Asuka.*)
"[crying]...Misato-san."
"[gentle]What is it?"
"[crying]Thank you... very much."
Tears spilled over.
His voice trembled. But—he couldn't stop it anymore.
"[sad]I... I was scared for so long... I hated the thought of being disliked... so I couldn't say anything..."
"[gentle]I know."
"[crying]But, Asuka... Asuka was trying so hard... and I... I didn't do anything..."
"[gentle]So, you just have to start now."
Misato gave Shinji a light pat on the shoulder.
Her hand was warm.
"[gentle]Go. There's still time before dawn."
The eastern sky was just beginning to brighten.
A single star faded.
"[serious]...I'm going."
Shinji broke into a run.
He opened the rooftop door. Raced down the stairs.
(*To Asuka.*)
Still in his indoor shoes, he burst out of the school gate.
The sky was slowly beginning to turn white.
He ran to Comfort 17. He was out of breath. His legs tangled. Even so, he didn't stop.
He climbed the stairs. The fifth floor.
In front of Asuka's room.
There were shoes.
Sneakers, kicked off in the same spot as yesterday.
Shinji sat down in front of the door.
He caught his breath.
(*What should I say...*)
His heart was loud. It wasn't just from running. He was scared. Scared of being rejected. But—more than that.
"[whispers]...Asuka."
His voice was trembling.
"[sad]Are you awake...?"
There was no answer.
But he felt like the air inside the room changed, just a little.
"[sad]I... I couldn't do anything, this whole time."
He hugged his knees.
"[sad]I knew you were trying so hard. That you were practicing late into the night. That you were sewing while crying. Even though I knew... I couldn't say anything."
His own voice sounded terribly far away.
"[crying]I was scared. Of being disliked. If I took Rei's side, Asuka would hate me. If I took Asuka's side, I'd hurt Rei. I couldn't choose either... and in the end, I couldn't help anyone."
The walls of the apartment complex were thin.
His voice might have been reaching the next room. But he didn't care anymore.
"[crying]But the truth is... the truth is, I wanted to say that I wanted to enter the contest with you."
The tears wouldn't stop.
"[crying]That star-shaped felt you made... when I saw that, I was happy. I was so, so happy. I wanted to watch you, trying so hard, from closer. I wanted to help. But I couldn't say it... I'm sorry."
The words kept overflowing.
"[sad]I... I can't do anything alone. I'm a coward, I get scared right away, I'm always relying on someone else. But—even so, I want to make something together. With you, Asuka, one more time. Until the very end—"
His voice caught.
Silence.
From inside the room, he heard nothing.
(*...I knew it. It's no good.*)
Shinji hung his head.
Just then—
*Click.*
The sound of a lock turning.
The door slowly opened.
Asuka's face, when she appeared, was a mess of tears. The area around her eyes was bright red, her hair was a tangled mess. The pajamas she wore were wrinkled and crumpled.
Even so—those red eyes were staring straight at Shinji.
"[crying]Stupid Shinji..."
Her voice was trembling.
"[crying]Why... why do you show up *now*...?"
"[sad]...I'm sorry."
"[angry]'Sorry' isn't enough! Do you know how long I've been waiting!? I've been waiting... this whole time...!"
Asuka's fist struck Shinji's chest.
It didn't hurt.
"[sad]I... I can't do anything alone. But, even so—"
"[crying]That's obvious!"
Asuka shouted, not even bothering to wipe her tears.
"[crying]If you hadn't come... I would have dragged you out myself! Idiot! You big idiot, Shinji!"
Asuka, angry while crying.
But the corners of her mouth relaxed, just a little.
"[sad]...Let's try it again. One more time."
"[surprised]Huh?"
"[gentle]The contest. Just once more, on the final day. Let's pick up the broken costume pieces... and remake it, together."
Asuka was silent for a moment.
Then, she abruptly turned her face away.
"[tsundere]...Well, I guess I have no choice."
It was a bluff.
But her voice was trembling.
"[gentle]If you're going to go that far, I'll go along with it. But!"
Asuka pointed a finger at Shinji.
"[serious]This time, we'll definitely succeed. I'm more capable than anyone, after all. Naturally!"
"[gentle]...Yeah."
For the first time, Shinji smiled.
Asuka looked toward the corner of the room.
The scattered remains of the Unit-02 costume. Red and orange felt. A torn-off arm. The head, lying on its side. Cotton, completely crumpled.
"[sad]...What a mess."
"[gentle]It's okay. I'll help."
"[sarcastic]You can't sew, can you?"
"[gentle]No. But—I've decided we'll do it together."
Asuka's mouth relaxed again, just a little.
"[gentle]...Idiot."
It was a small voice.
Morning sunlight streamed in through the eastern window.
The long night was about to end.
The cicadas began their song again today, singing of summer in Tokyo-3.
The eternal summer continues.
But—something was different from yesterday.
Shinji gently picked up the head of Unit-02 lying on the floor. He dusted it off.
"[gentle]Let's start here."
"[serious]...Yeah."
The two of them sat down side by side.
They gathered the remains and picked up their needles again.
The sewing machine still didn't work.
The seams would surely come out crooked again.
Even so—
"[serious]We'll definitely make it in time."
"[gentle]Yeah."
A new day had begun.
Novelia is an AI-powered platform to read original light novels and fan fiction, create your own in just a few taps, and chat with the characters. New, illustrated episodes arrive daily — free to start.