EVA: Shinji Ikari Returns from the Dragon Clan

Chapter 182 180. Don’t be shy, you just did something wrong
When he woke up, the wind blew in through the ward window and he felt his lips were a little wet.

Outside, the sky was gloomy, the breeze was gentle, and it was even a little cool. But it was pretty good weather for hot Tokyo. Ikari Shinji carefully buttoned up the two messed-up buttons of his shirt while lying on the bed. I wondered which unskilled nurse could get the buttons wrong when changing a patient's clothes.

It's the hospital again.

He was very familiar with this place, even the smell of disinfectant was accustomed to him. Fortunately, there was a fellow patient this time. Looking at the bed next to him, he could see the girl sleeping soundly under the quilt, but she obviously didn't sleep well in her dream, and her beautiful eyebrows twitched from time to time because of the pain.

It's Asuka.

...In the same ward with her?
Generally speaking, one person per ward? Ikari Shinji turned this question over in his mind, but he didn't dwell on it too much. The most serious injury to the pilot was phantom limb pain, and every late night in the hospital, he would be awakened by the pain that penetrated deep into his bones, but unless he was completely unconscious, it seemed that they would not be able to be admitted to the intensive care unit.

“Hehe——”

Yawning and stretching, Shinji Ikari got up from the hospital bed and prepared to go to the bathroom to wash up.

But as soon as he put on his hospital shoes, he stopped.

…Why do I feel like someone is staring at me?

This is the intuition of a hybrid.

Shinji Ikari always believed in his instincts, so even though it was broad daylight, he felt himself starting to sweat. There was no one else in the ward except Asuka and him. Was it a ghost? He pretended to glance in the direction of the eyes, but could only see Asuka sleeping with her eyes closed... It seemed to be a female ghost, whose lips were trembling slightly.

Asuka must have woken up.

Shinji Ikari thought about it and felt that washing up was more important.

He went into the bathroom, where there were several sets of colored contact lenses. His right hand was in pain, so he used his left hand to wash himself and put on the contact lenses. It took him more than ten minutes to come out.

Wait until he comes out.

Sure enough, Asuka was already stretching. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, looking sleepy.

Why did you pretend to sleep just now? Ikari Shinji wisely didn't ask the girl this question. Maybe she was embarrassed because he was there. It's understandable. Asuka didn't seem to notice him as a fellow patient. When he came out of the bathroom, she showed a surprised expression as if she had just discovered that he was there.

"Ah Shinji, why are you here too?"

Ikari Shinji: ...

It would be too much to pretend again.

"I don't know either. Maybe the hospital made a mistake in the arrangement." He pretended not to know that she was pretending to sleep, and said in a speculative tone, and then kindly said: "There are disposable toiletries in the bathroom, Asuka, you should go and wash up too."

"……Um."

I thought she would dwell on this issue, but Asuka nodded, which was unusual for her. She didn't even raise her head, as if she was being submissive because she had done something wrong.

"What's wrong with you?" he couldn't help asking.

"what?"

"No, nothing," he said.

Asuka rolled her eyes at him, and this time she seemed like her normal self. Ikari Shinji finally breathed a sigh of relief. Good, he didn't inexplicably enter the world line of Asuka, the bullied girl.

She stood up to wash up, but immediately stumbled.
"It feels like my head is not on my neck..."

She said with difficulty, twisting her neck.

Shinji Ikari looked away guiltily. Sure enough, Asuka had also synced with the Angel's nerves. The injuries on Unit 03 were extremely tragic. The girl had to bear the consequences. He would probably be hospitalized for two or three days for observation before going home, but it was hard to say what would happen to Asuka.

"Do you need help?"

When I asked this question, Ikari Shinji had already come closer.

Asuka subconsciously wanted to push him away, but she had no strength at all. After waking up, the pain was like a maggot attached to the bone, and even the bones were screaming and wailing. Even though she was once an ace of the European Air Force and had undergone rigorous training, she could not bear such pain. Besides, she was not in training now, but in the hospital.

It’s okay to be a little vulnerable.

She frowned and was helped into the bathroom reluctantly.

Shinji Ikari left with great fortitude. He didn't need to do the washing and brushing. But soon he was troubled by his hearing because he could clearly hear the sound of water flowing in the bathroom, the sound of the faucet being turned on, the toilet... So who arranged the same ward for them? There wasn't even a nurse to take care of them!
Asuka took a long time to wash.

During this time, there was no comic plot where he fell down in the bathroom and then rushed into the bathroom and was called a pervert by a girl. Ikari Shinji lay safely on his hospital bed. After Asuka finished washing up, he helped his only patient back to the bed next to him.

Logically speaking, since both drivers have woken up, a doctor or nurse should come and check on them.

Said that Cao Cao Cao Cao arrived.

Soon a doctor and nurses came into the ward.

After asking about the two pilots' conditions and prescribing some medicines, the doctors and nurses left after a vigorous examination, and the ward finally became quiet. The next step was the process of recuperation. As expected, he would be hospitalized for three days, and Asuka would be hospitalized for half a month, much longer than him. When Shinji Ikari thought about staying in this ward for several days in boredom, he sighed in his heart.

"Hey Shinji."

"What's wrong?" "I'm so bored, let's chat." Asuka pursed her lips and said while looking at the ceiling.

Use chatting to distract yourself and relieve the pain in your body? Ikari Shinji was about to nod his head in agreement when the door of the ward suddenly opened and the familiar girl's body fragrance came in.

Someone walked in quietly.

It's Rei Ayanami.

The girl was wearing a school uniform that she was already used to seeing, and her pretty face was very calm. She was holding a packed lunch box, and she had an inexplicably virtuous temperament. When Asuka saw Rei Ayanami push the door in, she suddenly fell silent, but Shinji Ikari smiled at her, because he knew that this girl would definitely come.

"Ayanami, I'm sorry to bother you again."

"It's no trouble, Ikari-kun."

Rei Ayanami handed him a bento from her bag, which was filled with his favorite dishes. Shinji Ikari was about to say thank you, but she took out another bento from her bag.

Can I have two?

It’s not impossible. Shinji Ikari feels that his appetite is still good.

But he immediately realized that something was wrong. This portion was not for him. Ayanami Rei had already handed the lunch box to Asuka.

"W-what are you doing, honor student?"

Asuka looked frightened.

What a hell, is it the end of the world? Have the apostles destroyed the world? Am I in a hallucination before death? When did an excellent student prepare a lunch box for me? Uh... the dinner party at her house a long time ago doesn't count. In short, if someone is too nice to you, he is either a traitor or a thief! What are you plotting? Asuka stared at her with suspicion, but Rei Ayanami didn't care about her vigilance at all and started chatting with Shinji Ikari over there.

Seeing this, Asuka, who was not taken seriously, could only look at the exquisite meal.

After sleeping for so long, even a beautiful girl who doesn't care about worldly things needs to eat. She feels hungry. But this is given by the top student, should she eat it?
How about pressing the call bell and asking the nurse to bring over a hospital meal?
"What happened next?"

Over there, Shinji Ikari was asking about the situation.

"Unit 03 was destroyed by the Angels and cannot be repaired. Your Unit 01 has been sent back for repairs, Ikari-kun." Seeing him open his lunch box and start eating, Rei Ayanami lifted her short hair that covered her ears, and then she said word by word, "It was just repaired today."

Is it scrapped?

Hearing this expected news, Asuka next to her suddenly became absent-minded.

Shinji Ikari eats very quickly and finishes his lunch box in no time. If he and Rei Ayanami were alone, they couldn't just eat like this. They would have to do something weird, because there was Asuka, right? He couldn't show affection in front of his fellow patients. Shinji Ikari was about to wash his lunch box, but Rei Ayanami took the empty lunch box.

She glanced at the ward door, indicating that she was about to leave.

"Aren't you going to stay?" he asked in surprise.

"Well, there's still training to complete, so I didn't ask for leave."

Rei Ayanami said.

Shinji Ikari felt strange about this.

In the past, when he was hospitalized, the girl would take leave to accompany him. Isn't it natural for a girlfriend to take leave to accompany her boyfriend when he is injured?
Why are you not playing by the rules this time?
But Rei Ayanami had no intention of explaining. In response to Shinji Ikari's puzzled expression, she gave an embarrassed smile and then secretly glanced at Asuka who was sulking next to her.

After packing up her lunch box, she left.

Shinji Ikari watched her leave, thought for a moment, and became thoughtful. Could it be that this silly girl saw Asuka here and wanted to make trouble again?
Really... I'll teach her a lesson when I get back.

After Rei Ayanami left, the ward fell into silence.

Asuka stared at the bento in a daze, but her attention was not on the food. If Unit 3 was scrapped, she would have to go back to driving Unit 2, but her synchronization rate with Unit 2 was getting lower and lower, and the last time she couldn't even match the top student.

When Asuka thought of this, she inexplicably felt a sense of panic.

…Does she have any way out now?

squeak-

The sound of the door being pushed open interrupted the worried girl's thoughts, and she and Shinji Ikari looked over together.

Is the top student back?

Is Ayanami back?
"Hey, Shinji-kun, why do you look so disappointed?"

The person who came was Akagi Ritsuko, wearing her signature white coat, which made her look like a doctor rather than a researcher in the hospital. She smiled when she saw the undisguised expression on Shinji Ikari's face.

"How is it, are you two getting along well in the ward?"

Shinji Ikari locked onto the culprit.

(End of this chapter)