So, maybe you can help me understand this. Regarding Kaworu and Shinji in the rebuilds, I don't understand why Kaworu's "happily ever after" is a world where he's with a child version of Shinji. Shinji says that Kaworu needs to learn to love himself without basing his self worth on Shinji's. So why does he get sent to a world with a version of Shinji? It seems contradictory to what Shinji said. Also, the fact that it's a child seems almost cruel, given that Kaworu tended to interact with Shinji in a romantic way.
Hopefully this doesn't come off as too negative! These are just my thoughts when I watched this scene. Also, sorry if you've answered this before
Kaworu's deal isn't so much that he should be without Shinji but that while making someone else happy is good, you should learn to live outside of someone. The image of child Shinji is there to convey that deep down, Shinji wants to get along with people. This doesn't discount the romantic themes throughout the Rebuilds of (Unit-13's bg interface having an infinite symbol and a heart, the Tristan and Ysolde tree, the red string in 3.33's poster for starters). Kaworu states that Shinji and his names are listed next to each other in the book of life, meaning that no matter what timeline they're in, they'll always be together!
