"Idiot?" Rei Ayanami tilted her head, looking at Asuka in confusion.
"I mean Shinji, that idiot Child of God!" Asuka closed her eyes and gritted her teeth.
"Mr. Ikari?" Rei Ayanami finally understood what Asuka meant. She turned to look at Asuka, who had turned back toward her as well.
"Well?"
Originally, Asuka had only wanted to change the subject by bringing up someone other than the two of them, but once she asked, she couldn't help taking the question a little seriously.
The elevator fell silent again. Their wordless exchange of looks lasted only a few seconds, yet it felt as distant as living through the entire history of human evolution all over again.
"I... am not sure," Rei Ayanami said after a moment of serious thought.
Another vague answer. She was so straightforward about everything else, yet whenever that idiot Child of God came up, she became evasive.
Asuka straightened up from where she had been leaning against the elevator doors and glared at Rei Ayanami, who hadn't moved.
"This is why I don't get people from Japan. I can tell you care about him, so spell it out for me!"
"I am not sure. I just feel warm when I am with Mr. Ikari, and I want him to feel that way too."
Rei Ayanami broke their sustained eye contact and lowered her eyes to the floor, showing a smile Asuka had never seen before.
"I want him to feel warm when he is with me too."
"I get it. You really are a colossal idiot. After all that, aren't you just saying you like him?" Asuka gritted her teeth and turned her back on Rei Ayanami.
"So this is what liking someone means... thank you."
The corner of Asuka's eye twitched. This was clearly a provocation.