“Y’know. From this angle, the Fifth isn’t so bad.”

Showing remarkable intelligence and my usual razor sharp mind, I answered;

“Huh?”

“Weird personality. But a nice body,” she smirked at me. “I wonder if that’s how boys see Rei?”

“I’ll take your word for it,” I demurred, trying to hide a big fat lump of hate filled revulsion wrapped in vengeance and spiced with naked spite rising up the back of throat. She was wrong anyway.

“I am not like him,” Rei reminded us of her presence. And that she was at least bilingual.

“You are what I say you are,” Asuka sneered at her.

If I had to pin Rei’s expression, it was somewhere between ‘Why did I even bother speaking?’ and ‘Not this shit again’.

“I think she’s right,” I said, tentatively testing the ground. “Kaworu is like a serial killer. Rei....” I pondered for a moment. “She’s just shy and sheltered.” Enough that she seemed completely unbothered by us talking about her. “It’s not really a sexual thing. She just acts like she needs protecting. It feeds the big brother instinct and the desire to care for a younger sister. They want to matter to someone.”

She blinked. Her eyes narrowed. “Whatever.... boys are weird.”

I don’t know. They made perfect sense to me. Then again, I did have certain advantages

“So. Gun to your head. You have to choose one of them, which would you choose to spend the night with, for the good of the human race,”

“Ikari,” I answered. I didn’t even hesitate.

“Huh?” he glanced back at me, hearing his name.

“Nothing,” we harmonised.

“And you? Which would you?”

She grinned at me. “I’d rather take the bullet.”

As if that was the only noble option.

I pouted to hide my smile. “You never told me that was an option.”

“When it comes to preserving myself, taking the bullet is always an option.”  She continued with her haughty posturing. Her body was as pure as spring water, reserved especially for one person. Her eyes glimmered as she thought of something funny

 “What about you First?”

I caught the sneer in her voice as she asked.

“Ikari,” Rei answered. Straight off the cuff.

Asuka made a show of shrugging her shoulders. “Well I guess you two will have to share then. I’m sure the pervert won’t be picky.”

I didn’t take the bait.

I placed a finger to my lips. “Hmm.... that might even be kinda fun.”

A moment later I found myself agreeing with myself. It would be interesting. My insides squirmed at the thought.

“No,” Rei said, simply.

Both of us looked at her. Her expression was as impassive as ever. Those red eyes regarded us with their same quiet curiousity they always did.

“First doesn’t like to share, does she?” she groused.

“No,” Rei repeated.