Pain. It tore through Shinji’s head and exploded out the back of his skull, pounding uncontrollably and it seemed so damn real. But it wasn’t real and Shinji tried to tell himself that, even if he could still feel it, and refused to call Kippei and Rien for help with something that wasn’t real. Instead, [...]

It was getting late when Shinji finally demolished a bowl of ice cream, laughing and joking, feeling relatively at ease with Rien’s parents, desperate to marry Rien as quickly as possible so Kimiko would really be his mum. Not that he didn’t love and adore his own mother, but it was nice having that same [...]

Shinji had, perhaps, gotten too much sleep. He set the table nervously, flittering around and watching Kippei and Rien in the kitchen, thinking they looked hot and sexy and wanting to go in and join them but pretty sure he would get in the way. But that left him the dubious task of cleaning everything. [...]

“I don’t really understand, Shinji. You rang me, at six in the morning, and I’ve been here twenty minutes now and you haven’t said anything. I’m afraid I can’t read minds…if there’s something you need help with, you’re going to have to tell me what it is.” Naota watched him, a little exasperated.

Shinji deliberately slept all afternoon so he would be awake that night. He crawled out of bed and into the bathroom, having a hot shower to wake up and washing his hair, feeling clean and refreshed and just better all around. Then he wandered around the bedroom in a towel, hunting through the bags of [...]

When Shinji woke, it was to warm skin and plush blankets and soft pillows and none of the scents or sounds he had become accustomed to over three years. It was odd, and extremely disorienting. He sat bolt upright, breathing erratic as he scanned the room, trying to figure out where the hell he was, [...]

Rien’s arms were full of bags and packages when he finally got home, and there were more things in the car. He awkwardly shifted things, trying to get a grip on the doorknob, and finally gave up and just kicked it several times with the toe of his boot, a makeshift knocking. Someone would hear [...]

The cab pulled up but Shinji didn’t move. He felt frozen to the seat, unable even to turn his head and look, and see what it was like, the home he had only dreamt of for months now, and suddenly every fear he ever had was back. That it was too small, that there was [...]

Glaring was fun, Shinji had decided. It did of course depend on what exactly you were staring at..or who, but it was fun. Especially when it was Naota. He particularly liked seeing how long he could go without blinking, just glaring, before Naota rolled his eyes, or sighed, or gave any one of those tiny [...]

When he woke again, Shinji found himself back in the recovery unit, not really sure how he had got there, but not caring either, sighing in relief and then smiling when he remembered he only had to stay here a week. Get a little bit better and then Kippei and Rien would take him home [...]