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[One minute after midnight. Asuka's nothing if not precise.]

Happy birthday.

[But that's not enough, of course. She wouldn't leave it there even if she didn't have a present. Last year she'd mulled and dredged over her options until the last minute-- this year, she's made her decision earlier, but she's no less uncertain on how he'll receive it.]

I've got something for you after.

Edited 2018-06-07 03:10 (UTC)

[That's pretty punctual. Shinji shouldn't be surprised by that, but he's always surprised whenever anybody is considerate of him. His birthday was never anything special before he joined up with the Fleet.]

Thank you, Asuka.

You didn't have to get me anything, you know. But I'm looking forward to it. Definitely looking forward to whatever you want to show me, whenever you want to. Thank you, again.

[He doesn't deserve any of it, but, well...]

I did. I wanted it to be special.

[Really special. Sometimes, she feels like she's endlessly trying to make up for lost time with him. Always too far ahead and too far behind simultaneously. They never shared a birthday celebration before the Fleet. Never even gave each other obligatory chocolate for Valentine's and White Day.]

[What she's giving him won't make up for that loss. But maybe it'll offer something new.]

It's your day. You tell me.

[Shinji has told Asuka over and over again that she doesn't have to try so hard, that she's fine just the way she is, but the message never seems to get through to her. Not entirely. But it is what it is, he thinks. There's a small but growing part of him that wants to be indulged, anyway. It's a little shameful that he's starting to look forward to holidays for their presents, and for the regard shown to him. He's getting to get a little too greedy about such things.]

You've made it special already.

[He had been planning to go to bed pretty soon, but he doesn't want to keep Asuka waiting for the reveal.]

Right now? If that's okay?

[Asuka wouldn't mind greediness on his part, even if she made a show over complaining about it. It'd give her something to work towards. Sometimes Shinji's wants and needs feel so nebulous, leaving her uncertain and frustrated and, tonight, stupidly nervous, even as she fidgets with the barrettes in her hair and straightens the bow on one of his packages for the tenth time in twenty minutes.]

Right now is good.

I'll be over soon.

Edited 2018-06-11 02:08 (UTC)

See you then.

[With a jolt, Shinji realizes he should probably find something nicer to wear than some stupid polka dot pajamas. He goes digging through his clothes locker, and he pulls out a few things he made for himself recently: a black button-down shirt with white buttons, and white pants in an alien material that's similar to khaki from back on Earth. He brushes out his hair, too, before deciding to put it up in a ponytail, then taking it back down, then putting it up again...

He doesn't want to keep Asuka waiting forever, but he doesn't want to look like a slob, either. There are still days when it's hard for him to be okay with being himself.]

Ah, sorry!

[That's the first thing he says after he nearly runs into Asuka in the corridor outside the Heron's shuttle bay.]

I was just getting dressed, or trying to, and... uhhh, here, let me carry that stuff for you... [Huh. Wait a minute.] Are all of these for me? [Multiple packages, as far as he can tell. He's a little flabbergasted already.]

No, they're for my other-- [Asuka grumbles out, then stops herself, feeling her face go warm. All this time and she can't just go for it. Damn it.] They're all yours.

[He looks good. He didn't have to dress up for her, not at midnight like this. She wouldn't have teased him too much on his birthday if he'd showed up in pajamas. But it's nice that he didn't. It shows he's still trying to impress her. Still caught off guard, Asuka hands over the gifts-- five rather cumbersome packages' worth, all wrapped as neatly as she could manage, given the contents-- pretty unceremoniously.]

Come on. Let's get to your room.

[Five packages, huh. Shinji doesn't know if he's impressed, or a little scared, or maybe it's both of those things. He arranges all five of Asuka's packages in his arms, careful not to drop a single one, then takes a step back down the hallway. Even one gift would've been really generous... For Asuka's next birthday, he's going to have to step it up a bit...

His room is looking more and more like a storage room with all the boxes and bins he's shoved in here. Though he tried to cull his belongings, there are still sewing supplies, and gardening supplies, and cooking supplies, and souvenirs from various planets, and then the tools and utensils for his budding interest in painting. (When he's less charitable with himself, he wonders if collecting all this stuff is just his way of plugging the holes in his heart.) But there's enough room to place the packages at the foot of his bed, and then he sits down beside them, poking at the top of the pile.

More hesitant than not:] Am I supposed to open them in any particular order, or...?

No. Whatever order you want.

[Walking in, Asuka's almost disgusted with herself for not giving his gifts even more thought. He has so much stuff-- a really far cry from his room at Misato's'-- further still from the bereft Wunder. As she sits down beside him, she's certain she did this all wrong, as usual. Shouldn't have just added on. Should have been more discriminating.]

[Still, she'd picked out every yard of fabric carefully as they'd gone from planet to planet to station. Enough of each to complete a project. No mere fat quarters or half-yards in the mix. There's a good variety of colors and textures and materials, from a pale blue fabric that's similar to silk, but even lighter weight, to a weirdly fuzzy bit of yardage that might be good for coats (the vendor had been vague as to its origins).]

[There aren't a lot of prints-- Asuka hadn't wanted him to think she was gifting him fabric with herself in mind-- the colors, for the most part, more subdued and cool. Attached to most of the fabrics with a pin and some tape is at least one spool of matching thread. By the time Shinji had started painting, she'd been well on her way buying the fabric, but the box at the bottom still includes some thick paper for sketching, mini-canvases, a brush set, and iridescent paints. Asuka chews her lip.]

I know you have a lot of this kind of stuff.

Edited 2018-06-26 02:05 (UTC)

[If Shinji had to guess, he would've said Asuka would get him things related to sewing, since that's what he spends most of his free time on. It's the most soothing thing he's found out of all the different things he's tried for staying preoccupied. Being right gives him some satisfaction, and then a lot of wonder, clear and keen, as the fabric unfurls in his cautious hands. He doesn't consider himself a creative person, not at all, not by a long shot, but he's already imagining the attire he could create as he inspects the yards of colors and textures. This fuzzier stuff would make a nice coat for colder weather, which they're bound to run into again, sooner or later... Or maybe just several pairs of socks, at least... If he has the fabric to spare, he could even make a cute little sweater for Kaworu's cute little lizard...

Shinji is so engrossed with his birthday gifts that he doesn't say anything at first. He opens one package, then another, and another one after that, before he reaches the final one and now he's really surprised with its contents. The row of iridescent paints is the first thing to catch his eye; actually, it makes him wonder if he should try painting on the fabric itself sometime. Not that he has any idea how to do it properly. Going to take some trial and error--mostly error--before he gets anywhere.]

Jeez, what're you talking about... [He looks up at Asuka, then, holding a tube of the iridescent red paint in both of his hands. If he concentrates some, he can see tropical blossoms spilling over her shoulders, set against a peaceful yellow sky of a dress. His smile is softer for its tender disbelief.] I don't have anything like this at all. I'm gonna be able to do a heck of a lot with this. Thank you, Asuka. Thank you very much.

Edited 2018-06-29 07:58 (UTC)

[He's excited. Asuka can tell because he gets all quiet, looking at the different presents. Shinji always seems like he's considering things carefully, taking stock of all his options (it used to frustrate her) (sometimes, it still does). When he starts looking at the paints, though-- that's when she knew she picked right. They reminded her of sunsets and oil spills and pearls all at once. Colorful and amazing.]

You're welcome.

[Sometimes she thinks she'd probably drip away like candle wax just to see him smile like that, for her, because of her. It'd scare him if he knew how much stock she put in him, how much his opinion of her mattered. It really would.]

One more. [Asuka tugs a small white box out of her pocket, pink beginning to tinge her cheeks. She holds it out to him, trying to swallow any muddled explanations. When he opens it, he'll understand. Probably he'll understand. The gold necklace inside, with a small sun, moon, and star dangling from it-- isn't just a pretty piece of jewelry at all.]

Edited 2018-07-02 00:06 (UTC)

[One more, then. One more undeserved kindness. Shinji would've guessed that this last one is jewelry, just by the size of the box he's given, but he really isn't prepared for the sort of jewelry it is. It's beautiful. It's delicate, and it's beautiful, and maybe he would've rejected it, once upon a time, for being so delicate and beautiful. For being a necklace that a typical girl would wear. Now, though, after everything he's been through, Shinji doesn't feel self-conscious or ashamed of himself for thinking it's beautiful. He touches a fingertip first to the sun, then the moon, and finally the star, especially gentle about it. He might be counting them. One, two, three... It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out this necklace represents more than a handful of heavenly bodies.

Still as gentle as a sigh, he removes the necklace from its tiny velvet pillow, and he figures out how to undo the clasp, with only a little bit of lip-biting fumbling on his part. Then he looks up at Asuka, and he asks her,] Could you help me put this on? [He hasn't thanked her yet, and he hasn't commented on how nice it looks, either, but the shine of his eyes should reveal all of that. His eyes are brighter than a reflection of stars within water, and he has to blink a few times to keep that water in.]

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