2023-11-24: Rejected Order
- Log: Rejected Order
- Cast: Naoko Suzuki, Shinji Ikari, Anita Rosetta
- Where: Mess Hall, Ra Mari II
- OOC - IC Date: 0097-11-24
- Summary: Cuisine Connoisseuse Naoko Suzuki has a very specific craving, and believes Career Chef-in-training Shinji Ikari may be just the one to fulfill it. This goes exceptionally well, and they absolutely don't need Responsible Adult Anita Rosetta to step in or anything.
<Pose Tracker> Naoko Suzuki has posed.
Naoko Suzuki's usual daily routine tends to take her between three places: her quarters, the hangar, and the mess hall. Being on her own schedule means she doesn't have to be at any of the places at any particular time, but she likes to keep her hands busy. For the past few days, she's mostly been keeping to her quarters, as the task at hand involves data analysis, running simulations, and all sorts of deep dives into code and numbers that she would claim is fascinating, where most others would probably wonder what is any of this. It's generally difficult to make total sense of the things Nova Stellar puts together.
That name still tends to be what she's called most often, as it's what she was originally known by. These days, her real name is more and more common knowledge, but it's not something she feels needs correcting. She likes the alias, for more complex reasons than most may know. Besides, it's normal for a pilot to have a callsign. And she is a registered pilot, even if she's not a registered crew member. It's complicated. If only because she made it complicated.
In any case, no matter what activity one is working on, the mess hall would have to be a place one eventually returns to. Unless you have one of the fancier quarters with its own kitchen, perhaps, but even then, it's a convenient alternative. Nova, to go with the more commonly heard name, frequently settles for quick vending machine snacks and drops by less often than most, but she's certainly not an unknown face. Though since she's not particularly social most of the time, she may still be a relative unknown to, say, Shinji Ikari. He may have seen more of her during, say Ruri's birthday (at which she was also not particularly social, but at least a visible presence) than around the ship, with how quick she tends to retreat back to whatever she'd been working on.
Today is a sudden exception. One of the senior staff members at the mess hall approaches Shinji to inform him there's someone who asked specifically for him waiting at the counter. There, the purple-haired girl with braids, wearing a casual hoodie rather than a crew uniform, will be waiting for him, smiling and waving once she sees him. It wasn't specified what exactly she wanted. What could this be about...?
<Pose Tracker> Shinji Ikari has posed.
When one of the senior chefs informs him someone's at the counter asking to see him, and doesn't specify a name, Shinji assumes it's Kikka. She came by asking for him before; it makes sense that she'd come back again. Shinji thus doesn't question it, only nodding and setting aside his knife from the vegetable-chopping he'd been doing. He leaves Bud at the station, assuming this will be quick, and that even if it isn't, he's comfortable enough with Kikka to not need his Haro, which is there just to help him out in the kitchen, honest.
So when Shinji arrives at the counter in his now-usual garb--black-and-white moon-themed hoodie, T-shirt, jeans, sneakers, with an apron on and a headkerchief on his head instead of his usual cap--and he doesn't see Kikka, he's momentarily confused. Did she sit down somewhere in the mess hall? He glances around, but he doesn't see her. He just sees a different girl in purple braids who he doesn't really know but whose face he's seen around on the Ra Mari II, who's smiling and waving at him.
He doesn't smile back, though he does at least give her a nod of greeting. Then he goes back to looking around the mess hall for Kikka, eyebrows furrowing. He didn't take that long to head over here... Where did she go?
...Looks like Nova will have to clue him in.
<Pose Tracker> Anita Rosetta has posed.
Indeed, the mess hall is a common place of meeting. Anita's shared quarters with Rena does have its own kitchen... but Anita's not one to cook for herself when there's other alternatives that take less effort and Rena's otherwise occupied, which means - the mess hall it is!
And that's where she happens to be, currently staring intently at one of the vending machines as she prepares to make a life or death decision.
...Does she go with sub-par vending machine chicken sandwich, of which she had a fondness for, or does she go get some real food? She's currently leaning the former... but as she looks up from her thoughts, she sees a scenario play out. Naoko, smiling and waving at Shinji... who gives her a nod before looking elsewhere.
It's not too hard for her to put two and two together... and so, Anita steps away from the vending machine and approaches both of them, offering them both a wave and a casual smile.
"Hey Shinji, Nova. What's up'?" Anita greets. ...She figures this is probably the easiest way to bring them together while causing the least amount of awkwardness.
<Pose Tracker> Naoko Suzuki has posed.
Nova is perfectly flummoxed by that one. He saw her, he looked directly at her. How the heck is he not coming over here? It's a good thing she's not the type to immediately assume this means she's dealing with an idiot. She'd have no way of knowing that saying 'baka Shinji' would be just about the worst possible choice of words here.
Not being the best at doing the obvious thing, she just... sort of stands there, until Anita approaches. Someone who has a bit more common sense was sorely needed in this equation.
"Oh, uh... hey Anita," she begins, having had the wind taken out of her sails a bit by the unexpected development. "Nothing much, I'm just... wanting to order some food." She points to Shinji. "From that guy, in particular." Just speaking personally to that guy, in particular, that would have made too much sense.
This should be enough to put two and two together, hopefully, so she can address Shinji directly as she elaborates. "You see... I have a problem." She takes a deep breath, expression and tone suddenly very serious. "I'm dying..."
She pauses for far too long than anybody should on those words before finishing her sentence. "...for some quality miso ramen." That's all?!
Make no mistake, this is no joke, she is very serious about this. Glancing about to make sure none of the other chefs are about, she adds in a hushed tone, "No disrespect, but none of these people know how to properly do Japanese dishes. Incredible really, I didn't even know people could do ramen that wrong." It's enough to make her consider requesting one of those rooms with a kitchen so she can just do it herself! "But, then I figured... there's someone with a Japanese name working here now, isn't there? So, how about it, Shinji? How's your ramen game?"
Straight to first name basis, it seems. Nothing unusual for her, though.
<Pose Tracker> Shinji Ikari has posed.
While Shinji still doesn't spot Kikka, he does see Anita approaching and greeting him and that braided girl. Her he knows somewhat better--well enough to know her name and who she is; they'd both been at the baby shower, and they'd both been at the waiting room while Eight had been giving birth, for example--and he nods greeting to her too.
"Oh, hello," he says, eschewing her name because he's not sure of how he should address her. "Someone I know asked me to meet them at the counter, but I don't see them."
Except then 'Nova' says she's waiting to order food, specifically from him. He blinks over at her with an, "Eh?" Then it clicks--Kikka didn't ask for him, this girl did. "Eh?? Why??"
He's not so good a cook that people should be queueing in line for him! ...Right? His gaze turns uncertain as she starts in on her problem--that she's dying...?!
...for miso ramen.
Which she then requests for by his name, yobisute, even though she's Japanese herself and understands the connotations of that.
Slow your roll, Nova, you're going to give him a heart attack. Shinji expresses this sentiment by gawking at her, then clutching at his chest.
"I, uhhh," he says blankly, his sneakers squeaking subtly as his heel half-turns away. He at least focuses as she leans in and murmurs, listening to what she has to say... but all Naoko gets for her efforts is a chagrined grimace. "I've actually never made ramen from scratch before..." And, because he's Shinji, he adds, "I'm sorry." He pauses, and, already fearing the disappointment from this girl he's just met, "But my miso soup is pretty good, so if you're willing to settle for that...?"
<Pose Tracker> Anita Rosetta has posed.
She nods back at Shinji and Naoko both as they greet her back, and doesn't seem bothered at all by her name being left out. She;s always been pretty relaxed on that front.
"Oh yeah?" Anita acknowledges, as Shinji explains that someone he knows asked to meet him... but isn't here. Which gives Naoko the opportunity to explain that she's here to order food from Shinji. That seems to be enough to clear up the confusion...
...if only to cause a little more.
"So that's what's up..." Anita considers, as Naoko explains what she's after, and her reasoning. She smirks a little at the dramatics, though it's not hard to tell how serious she is about it.
It's a valid concern. Wanting something but having no one around who can make it just right... It sounds like she might have to wait just a little bit longer, though.
"That does sound pretty good." Anita notes of miso soup... though she's curious to see how Naoko reacts to the news.
<Pose Tracker> Naoko Suzuki has posed.
Naoko likes Shinji already, easily flustered and overwhelmed as he seems to be. This is good, makes it easy to keep herself in a position of strength. It's so much easier to talk to people who are lacking in confidence. They're not as likely to call her bluffs, turn things around on her, and discover that she also is not nearly as confident as she tries to present herself. Anita's presence sure helps in that regard, someone who genuinely is as confident as she acts and cool enough not to rat her out is a great supporting element. It's already helped prevent the opening act from being an awkward one.
...For her. Shinji is still plenty awkward. He downright looks unwell for a bit there, prompting a look of concern. She's not trying to give him an actual heart attack here, she's just... being herself. Or, rather, acting the way she would like to be. She'll have to make sure to let him know how appreciative she is once he gets her what she wants.
Except... bitter disappointment. The real Naoko comes out for a moment with that pained look of someone who really, really got their hopes up, only for them to be dashed. Miso soup, well, yes, it does sound good... but it isn't what she wanted. Would she be willing to settle for that? She lowers her head for a moment...
And starts to chuckle, as she raises it back up. "Heh. Heh heh heh. Who do you think I am? Nova Stellar doesn't 'settle' for things!"
With an exaggerated flourish, she takes a datapad out from her pocket, quickly swiping to the relevant section, before placing it down on the counter. "Lucky for you - or rather, me - I didn't come unprepared. Allow me to present you with... my personal recipe."
Lifting her hand of the the device, she reveals the list of ingredients, followed by step-by-step instructions, for a one-person serving of miso ramen, to her personal taste. In other words, including an excessive amount of brown sugar and honey to sweeten the dish. The pad is actually full of various recipes, but that's neither here nor there.
"Don't worry if you've never done it before, my instructions are fool-proof. Even a child could do it!" She should know. She wrote all this down when her age was a single digit. "All you need is the ingredients, so on that note..."
Out of the other pocket of her hoodie, she withdraws a jar, placing that on the counter as well. She actually brought her own pickled menma. "For some reason they never stock the perfect topping for this stuff, so!" She's just doing what makes sense here. She looks over to Anita. "If you like miso soup, I'm sure you'd love this miso ramen. You want some too, right?" Back her up here. Back him into a corner.
But no, that's not really what she's after. She knows what it's like to lack confidence. So she does leave him an 'out'. She's gone this far, might as well go all the way. "Though, if you really don't think you can do it, I could show you how?"
<Pose Tracker> Shinji Ikari has posed.
It is a good thing Anita was here to help clear up the confusion. Nova and Shinji would've figured it out sooner or later, no doubt, but Anita helped keep it smoother than it likely otherwise would have been. It helps, too, that Shinji knows her a bit better than he does Naoko. He doesn't need to feel... well, as cornered about it, now that he knows what she actually wants.
Case in point, Shinji shoots Anita a pleading look for help--what kind of help, even he doesn't know--when Naoko gives him that crushed-puppy look. It's not like he wanted to ruin her dreams...!
But then Nova starts to laugh and whips out a datapad with a flourish to show him her personal recipe. Shinji leans in to read it over. When he's done, one can imagine that there are blue lines smearing down his head. "...why are there so many sweeteners...?"
She's even brought her own pickled menma. Shinji stares at it, then at her, then, again pleadingly, at Anita. "I, uh..." He looks back at Nova. "You might be better off asking one of the senior chefs, if you're just going to teach someone how to make the kind of ramen you like..."
This is a weak excuse. Even Shinji knows they're too busy for that kind of thing. That's why assistant cooks like him are here in the first place.
<Pose Tracker> Anita Rosetta has posed.
Disappointment crosses Naoko's face for a moment, and Anita meets Shinji's look. In response... she offers him a small smile. It's fine, she thinks - Naoko will recover from it. And she does - with quite a bit more exuberance than Anita expected.
Naoko really came prepared, huh... a recipe, and ingredients. She guesses that makes sense - if she didn't have much faith in the cooks being able to prepare it properly, she wouldn't expect them to have all the right stuff, either...
...Though it sounds like Naoko's definitely made her own addition to the recipe...
She looks between the two of them again... and when Shinji once again looks to her for help, she offers him another smile. It's fine - she doesn't intend to back him into a corner. ...But she's still going to help in her own way.
"Sounds like a good opportunity to learn. D'you think you feel up to it?" Anita asks. "You can always say 'no' if it seems like too much."
<Pose Tracker> Naoko Suzuki has posed.
Anita has the right of it - those who know Nova Stellar, especially when she's making a point of referring to herself by that name, know that she lives for moments like this. Moments where just when it looked as if all was lost, she, personally, works a miracle to turn it all around. It really doesn't matter whether it's about a fight, or a food. ...though, if she's honest, in this case she would have preferred to be pleasantly surprised by the lack of need to go that far. Ah well, having to improvise is nothing new.
The matter of sweeteners has an easy answer, of course. "Because it tastes best that way." Honestly Shinji, what did you expect from someone who chose to have the words 'CANDY FIEND' be prominently displayed on her chest? Nova knows what she's about, and she'll freely tell you all about it.
And yet, even with all that, he's still so hesitant, trying to foist off the task to someone else. Naoko purses her lips. This lack of confidence, to the point of self-sabotage. It's familiar. She hates to see it. It's like looking in a mirror, and seeing her not much younger self. She glances at Anita, who makes it clear that she won't reinforce taking the easy way out. Naoko, too, is not about to sugarcoat anything (except her food).
"...Shinji, come on," she begins, still not batting an eye regarding the lack of suffix usage. "You're making excuses. You want to be a professional chef, right? But right now, you're realizing that there's someone standing in front of you who may be a better chef than you are."
For once, it's not an idle boast. She's confident in her ability in the kitchen. Completely self-taught, too. Just because she wanted to eat food she likes, and no one else was going to make it for her.
Naoko spreads her arms wide, as if inviting him to come at her. "Doesn't it make you mad? Doesn't it make you want to prove your skill? Your honor as a chef demands you face this challenge!" Lowering her arms, she adds in a calmer tone, "...Why won't you believe in yourself?"
<Pose Tracker> Shinji Ikari has posed.
Right. Of course someone with the words CANDY FIEND emblazoned on their chest would like their food sweet. Why didn't Shinji think of that before? Nonetheless, that answer prompts him to make a face.
He's about to cave at Anita's suggestion; as uncertain as he is about Nova's recipe, maybe she at least has the fundamentals down and she could teach him something? He could always compare it against a different recipe later. "Mmm..." And Anita can see him start to nod--
But then Nova makes a whole lot of assumptions about him that rub him the wrong way--possibly on purpose, though that doesn't occur to him--and he scowls at her.
"I never said I wanted to be a professional chef. But even if I did, if this is the kind of recipe you're following, I really doubt you're better than me," he says curtly, too irritated to be polite. "If you really want this ramen so badly, make it yourself. I have work to do."
He's in the middle of turning away to head back to the kitchen when one question hits him like a sledgehammer from behind:
Why won't you believe in yourself?
"Why won't you leave me alone?! It's none of your business!" he snaps, shoulders bunching up as he clenches his fists. "I don't even know you, so stop trying to shove yourself into my life and boss me around and manipulate me into doing what you want! I'm sick of it!"
Congratulations, Nova: it definitely made him mad!
<Pose Tracker> Anita Rosetta has posed.
Anita watches Shinji, and she can see him start to consider it. She smiles. This is a good start - but then she meets Naoko's look. Naoko continues... and Anita isn't sure where she's going with it at first, but as she works herself up... Anita winces.
"Hey, Nova..." Anita starts cautiously, taking a step forward - but at this point, it's too late to stop it. She makes assumptions - or maybe she's just goading him intentionally.
...And then she says something that really seems to set Shinji off. Anita winces again. With a frown she looks between the two of them.
...At this point, though, it's probably better if she doesn't intervene - not just yet, at least. If a fight breaks out, or is about to... she'll stop it, but she hopes it doesn't come to that.
This risks boiling out of control later if she doesn't let them handle it now, though.
<Pose Tracker> Naoko Suzuki has posed.
Whoa. Naoko definitely wasn't expecting that reaction. She just thought those assumptions made sense. Why would anybody be working as a cook if that's not what they wanted to be, professionally? The concept of doing a part-time job just to get by is completely foreign to her. Even if her claims of having had a relatively easy life are omitting a lot of important aspects that aught to be considered, they're not for no reason.
She is completely stunned when he doesn't just insult her recipe, but completely refuses to, well, do what she thought was the thing he most liked doing. A chef is someone who wants to make people happy with the food they make, right? She thought he'd be delighted for any chance to prove himself, much like how she grasps any opportunity to do so. She'd want people to challenge her, the way she just challenged him. She just thought she was helping.
She... doesn't have the first idea about Shinji's feelings or circumstances. Anita would have needed to give her a much more overt hint for her to get the message. As it is, she's just overwhelmed, trying to figure out in vain where she went wrong. That is, until he gets mad at her, when she was just trying to help. To that, she can only react the way she'd react to any direct challenge. Answer in kind.
"Well excuse me for assuming that a chef would enjoy cooking, how was I supposed to know you're doing something you don't even want to be doing?! You're the one who aren't making any sense! Now I really can't leave you alone, because you're obviously not okay! It doesn't matter whether I know you or not, I don't need to know you to care! What happened to you?!"
She may be yelling it, but it's a genuine outpouring of concern, and an equally genuine wish to understand. This is someone who's hurting, far more than she ever would have guessed. How does somebody end up like this? And what can she do to make it better?
<Pose Tracker> Shinji Ikari has posed.
Anita's not wrong. Shinji's been dealing with a lot of pent-up anger since he left NERV, and he hasn't let himself let it out. A lot of people have expressed concern and asked him what happened to him, but... it's just something that's been too painful for him to talk about for the most part. Nova prodding him in a wound she didn't realize existed, and him turning around and snapping his teeth at her, is a way for him to vent that anger.
But until then, it's only going to get worse. Anita will have to judge for herself when to step in as Nova, in her bewilderment, reflects that anger right back at him.
It isn't that Shinji doesn't enjoy cooking, either. Quite the opposite. He's had it suggested to him that he might be a professional chef in the future, and he isn't against the idea, but he's still... trying to figure himself out, and what he's even going to do with himself. As it stands, he's just trying to get by, by doing the one thing he considers himself halfway good at doing. Anita's soft approach would have gotten him to agree, but having Nova come at him hard like that...
It's a little too familiar in a certain way to a certain someone. And that, in itself, is causing him pain--enough pain that he only hears the shouting, not the real concern that underlies it.
"Stop making assumptions about me!! Stop putting words in my mouth!! It's none of your business what happened to me! Just LEAVE ME ALONE!!" he yells, voice cracking near the end. He flushes in anger and embarrassment in its wake. It doesn't help that people are starting to turn and stare. He hunches further in on himself and moves to flee back into the kitchen.
She won't follow him in there, right? He'll be safe there, right?
<Pose Tracker> Anita Rosetta has posed.
In reaction to his anger, Naoko snaps back. She's yelling - but Anita can tell she's legitimately trying to understand. Still... right now, her methods seem too much for him. He yells back and turns to leave... and Anita steps forward, resting a hand on Naoko's shoulder - partially to limit her ability to immediately chase after him, and partially to comfort. She shakes her head.
"...Might be a good idea to give him a little space right now." She suggests. "I don't know the full story and it ain't my place to put words in his mouth... but he's been through a lot."
She offers a small smile.
"I know you're tryin' to help... but you might've come on a little strong, there." She advises gently. ...Sometimes, that's just how it goes, even if you're not trying to do wrong.
<Pose Tracker> Naoko Suzuki has posed.
Nova doesn't at all think that she's taking the entirely wrong approach with Shinji. If there's a problem, whatever it is, confront it head-on and make a miracle happen to overcome it. That's how Nova Stellar deals with problems, so it should be how everyone deals with problems.
It's not how Naoko Suzuki deals with problems. Who would have thought that acting like more of a big shot than she is could ever cause more problems than it solves? If she'd approached this from an angle that would be a more honest representation of her deeper feelings, this may have gone a little better. Unfortunately...
Her loud demand to tell her what's the matter only provoke greater resistance. Well, that's fine. She'll yell as much as is necessary to get through to him. Surely she can make him see how much she's trying to help by basically calling his way of dealing with his problems invalid, that's bound to go over super well.
Lucky for everybody, she doesn't get the chance to say anything more before Shinji retreats to the staff-only area. "Hey! Don't run away from me!" she calls after him, which would be absolutely correct to interpret as an intention to follow him back there, staff-only or not. But then, a hand lands on her shoulder.
Naoko freezes, looking up to Anita with brief confusion. But it hits her right away, just from that action. There's something she's missing here, causing her to make a wrong decision. It's the sort of warning her Friends often had to provide, in the past. But now that they remain silent when other people are around, for fear of being discovered... well, it's a good thing Anita was there.
"I was... I didn't mean anything by it..." She's a lot more quiet, now, her earlier confidence melting away as she's feeling the lack of a basis of it. She still doesn't fully understand how it could be wrong to aggressively insist that people let themselves be helped, when they so clearly need it. If people had done that for her, if they hadn't forced her to handle everything all alone...
She looks down. "I guess... I don't understand how he feels as well as I thought I did." It feels sad, but... she silently pockets her belongings, trying to ignore the people she's only now noticing were staring in her direction. Looks like it'll be vending machine sandwiches for today...