Ray's Note: This story is going to contain stuff about underaged smoking, drinking, etc. Edited, I apologise for the initial spelling/grammar errors or sloppy style because I was desperate to share this idea ASAP and didn't proofread it a final time! :(
TIMELINE:
Takes place after Tadashi and Hiro's night at the holding cell, after their encounter with Yama. But Hiro doesn't immediately attempt to go bot-fighting after being bailed out by Aunt Cass. He finds Tadashi's GPS tracking device instead... And gets really REALLY angry.
I know some of you guys really can't stand OCs, but I assure you these are of the non Mary-Sue variety, and actually contribute to the overall plot.
Enjoy!
Bad Habits
Chapter One
It was another night in San Fransokyo, and the usual in one of its less than... family-friendly streets.
Graffiti covered the walls of Kabuki-cho, and though most of the shops were closed for the night, a few people staggered along the cement pavements, drunk and laughing. The steady beat of DJ Magika's new single could be heard from Club Sokyo a few buildings down towards a dirty alley, littered with broken beer bottles and cigarette stubs.
The neon lights flickered as a young teenager walked quickly through the street. He was looked terribly out of place, with short, messy black hair and adorably big and innocent dark eyes, looking around cautiously, the unfriendly atmosphere keeping him on edge. An odd little robot was held in his hand, a goofy yellow face painted on its head.
Despite his nerves, he felt rather sated after leaving a bot-fight, unharmed and loaded with cash. It turned out the West Side bot-fighters weren't sore losers... unlike those from the East Side... namely Yama.
Hiro still remembered the way it hurt when the larger man had flung him against the wall, after Hiro tore 'Little Yama' apart (what an ironic name). The teen slid the night's earnings out of his pocket, allowing himself a little peek.
Good harvest, he thought smugly to himself as he slid them swiftly back into the pocket of his jacket.
His new jacket.
Why yes, he'd actually went and got himself an article of clothing without Aunt Cass.
Why?
'Cuz Tadashi was a stupid, over-protective brother who lied.
He'd figured out how Tadashi always managed to track him down!
That jerk had sewn a tracking device his hoodie! He had found out after shaking the dust off it after that night in the holding cell... and felt an odd little bump in the collar. He never would have found it if he hadn't used a pen-knife to very carefully unstitch the almost invisible thread Tadashi had used to seal the opening. It was the same size as a microchip, a silver, circular shape.
He had been (and still was) FURIOUS!
Hiro sighed angrily as he remembered the fierce argument they had upon its discovery.
"I'm only doing this for your own good! You're wasting your life on illegal bot-fighting. You're going to get thrown in jail someday— Heck, you'd have been sent to a boys' home by now if I hadn't saved you all those times."
The younger Hamada finally snapped.
"I THOUGHT YOU TRUSTED ME!" He screamed, angry tears escaping his eyes.
"You're always breathing down my neck about quitting bot-fighting and joining your stupid nerd school! Why can't you just accept that I DON'T WANT TO GO TO COLLEGE, and stop telling me what to do?!"
Tadashi's paused, his eyes filled with hurt. Did his little brother really feel that way? Hiro looked angry- and for the first time in his life... Tadashi knew this wasn't like one of their normal fights. No, this time it was different. His baby brother was finally growing independent from him, no longer looked to him to guide him in life. It hurt... he always knew this day would come, just not like this.
There was an awkward silence as Hiro struggled to decipher what his brother was thinking.
Tadashi sighed, causing Hiro to flinch, and massaged the bridge of his nose. He looked tired, Hiro noticed. The eye bags, the unshaved jaw, the resigned expression on his face when he looked at him. Hiro felt a stab of guilt. Was all this because Tadashi worried about him?
It lasted only a few seconds... before Hiro remembered why exactly he was angry, and reverted back to stubborn exterior. He frowned and crossed his arms, turning away from his brother, not wanting to let himself be tricked into feeling guilty.
"Hiro?" Tadashi asked, slowly.
The younger refused to answer.
"Hiro... please. You're being childish."
Clearly this was the wrong thing to say. So, now he was CHILDISH?! Hiro's nostrils flared as he exhaled and he resisted the urge to tackle his brother onto the floor.
The awkward silence continued, Hiro getting more and more irritated by the second. Neither of them was willing to admit defeat. Hiro refused to give his brother the satisfaction of an apology; because that would be admitting that it was okay to put freaking trackers in his clothing, and god knows where else! Tadashi was just... tired. Very tired.
Finally, the sound of Tadashi flinging off his cap and shrugging his jacket onto his bed caused Hiro to turn around, wondering if his brother was ready to call it quits and hug it out. Their fights always ended with a hug, and sometimes a noogie-
"… You know what, Hiro? I'm done. I need a damn break." Tadashi said, his voice as hard as steel.
The door slammed shut, startling the already disgruntled Hiro. His eyes widened.
... Tadashi left?
For once, it had been Tadashi walking away from an argument. It left Hiro feeling rather... shocked. Was Tadashi finally giving up on him going to the San Fransokyo Institute of Technology (aka, nerd school)?
Hiro felt his tense body relax, but for some strange reason he couldn't escape this nagging feeling that this was a bad sign. Something didn't feel right. Half of him wanted Tadashi to come back and nag him more (seriously!) and the other half wanted to just flop onto the bed and fall asleep, maybe continue ignoring his brother because who the hell gave him to right to invade people's privacy?!
The moment of unease was eventually overcome by the urge to go bot-fighting to ease his mind.
Oh, and nevermind Tadashi, his brain supplied. They'd end up making up sooner or later... they always did.
What could possibly change this time?
And now, there would be nobody to interrupt his fun! Though he might need a back-up plan in case he got cornered again like the last time. Maybe make a stun-gun... disguised as a mobile phone! He brightened, immediately thinking up a million and one ideas, his brain ready to get to work.
Oh, but before he got started...
Hiro took the jacket Tadashi had violated and flung it into the trash.
He didn't need it anymore.
"Hey, kid."
Hiro froze, and his body tensed. He clutched Megabot tightly to his chest, while his other hand slipped into his jacket, fondling the mobile stun-gun he'd (thankfully) remembered to bring.
What was it this time?
Another gang of bullies waiting to pick on their next victim?
Hiro was getting tired of these sore losers, he was more than tempted to sic Megabot and the stun-gun-mobile on them...
"Got a light?"
The fourteen-year-old blinked at the unusual question, actually turning around to see who it was.
It was hard to see at first- this particular section of the alleyway was poorly lit. Slowly, his eyes focused.
Leaning against a cracked and spray-painted brick wall, stood a man, probably in his mid-twenties. He was a tall (slightly taller than Tadashi), pale and intimidating with dark-green hair that fell in wavy, layered waves around his face. He was also wearing a shabby looking white shirt printed with celtic hearts and vines, partly hidden by a worn leather jacket.
He knew what Aunt Cass and Mrs. Matsuda called guys like him. Ruffians. Though he had a nagging suspicion Aunt Cass secretly thought they were cool...
And boy, he sure did look like one... what with all those odd holes in his jeans (they seemed rather forced and too organised, almost like he made them himself), the smudged black eye-liner (or was that just his eyelashes?) and sickly-pale complexion, like he was starved of sunlight.
The man didn't appear to be a threat, though you could never be too careful (Tadashi's exact words, much to his chagrin). Hiro decided to just answer him and get it over with quickly, rather than offending him by walking away.
He had gotten chased for it once, when a couple of guys had asked to take a look at Megabot (he knew they were just going to take it, though).
"...A what?" Hiro replied.
"A light. Like… a lighter? With fire." His voice was like a slow and deathly rasp, his tone lazy.
"Don't have one. I don't smoke... sorry!" Hiro said, about to turn away- when the guy offered him a cigarette.
That's right.
Held out the pack and nudged it towards him.
Alarm bells began ringing inside his head.
Was this a joke?
"You look like you need it." The man simply stated, not affected by Hiro's shocked expression.
The latter was appalled. Seriously? Didn't this guy know the penalty for offering a minor cigarettes (four months in jail and a heavy fine)? He thought about what Tadashi would say and—
Oh, right.
He was angry at Tadashi, therefore he didn't care about what Tadashi would think! ... Or so he told himself.
Still. He was pretty sure his older brother would explode if he ever caught Hiro smoking at fourteen-years-old. He cringed at the thought of Tadashi and Aunt Cass catching him with a cigarette... the potential outcomes could be disastrous...
... And yet, the more he thought about it, there more he wanted to try.
Why was he still thinking about what Tadashi would do? Tadashi wasn't their Mom! He had no right going around giving him orders, nagging him about curfew and sewing stupid tracking devices (he still couldn't believe it!) into his clothing! Not even Aunt Cass was that strict!
And since Tadashi never thought about his feelings before putting that bug in his hoodie, so why should he give a fuck? It's not like what he was doing would harm Tadashi's precious nerd school.
That's right! Fuck! He said (well thought) 'fuck'! The f-bomb!
FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK!
Wow.
And so, Hiro came to a decision.
He shrugged (in what he hoped was a cool way), reaching out for the cigarette (fingers shaking ever so slightly) and slid it out of the cardboard packet. He noticed the guy giving him an amused smile, like he knew - well, he probably did - that it was his first time.
It felt like... well, paper. What had he expected? It felt very fragile, and easily bendable, with a cancerous, flaky filling. It also had a little leaf symbol printed on the divider between the white and orange-end, where he would hold it.
"It's a menthol. Feels like ice when you smoke it." The guy informed him, noting Hiro's curious expression.
Before he could respond, there was the sound of footsteps (the sharp clak of heels on cement) and high-pitched giggling, accompanied by a lower voice, belonging to a male. Probably some club-goers heading down to the konbini for more alcohol (he knew it was cheaper when you smuggled them from the outside to avoid extra charges).
Their footsteps stopped... right behind him. Hiro gulped.
He slowly turned around- only to come face to face with a pair wild green eyes and a toothy smile.
He jumped, scooting back as he eyed the person before him, her glaringly-white teeth seeming almost... unnatural.
And boy was she was tall. Incredibly tall... It actually hurt his neck to look up at her. Even taller than Tadashi's friend, Honey Lemon (maybe because her heels were higher). How did she balance in those insane shoes?
"Who's this, Toshi? New meat?" The girl asked, her purple eye-shadow sparkling as brightly as her eyes, like a predator examining her next meal. Her choice of words did little to soothe Hiro's nerves (though that was probably the intended effect).
She had dyed ash-purple hair, twisted up into a messy bun with a pair of jewelled, ornamental chopsticks. She allowed a section of hair to cover the left side of her forehead, as a fringe. On her thin, narrow figure, she donned a short red yukata, accompanied by ripped neon-purple stockings and laced, heeled boots. In her right hand, she held a little red embroidered purse, and red paper umbrella was strapped firmly across her back along the obi.
Hiro recognised her as 'Yoko'.
She was one of the fujitas who refereed the bot-fights. The paper umbrella was their trademark symbol.
They were employed by an unknown benefactor, to referee and judge the battles, dishing out the winnings to the victor and collecting a small (10%) interest rate to take back to their boss. They were also the ones who supplied information to the website's programmers on when and where the next bot-fights would take place.
Then Hiro turned his attention to her companion.
It was another teenager (about eighteen?), with blonde hair slicked back and a pair of piercing ice-blue eyes. He was dressed in a black singlet. A tattoo of a snake curled around his left bicep. He had a silver-stud on his eyebrow and another one below his bottom lip. Hiro tried to ignore the menacing way his arms flexed... and tried not to think about how much it would hurt if he ever earned a punch from this particular ruffian.
He was... another familiar face— though Hiro didn't know his name, he recognised this boy as one of the less rowdy spectators who observed the battles.
Toshi's voice drew Hiro back to the situation at hand.
"Nah, just some kid I ran into. He's was all stressed out, so I boned him a stick," Toshi said to Yoko, beckoning her closer. "Give us a light, will ya?"
"What's the point of smoking cigarettes when you don't even have your own lighter?" She snapped, but nevertheless, produced one from her little purse, flicking a flame to life and holding it to his cancer stick.
He sucked in appreciatively- and almost instantly, smoke poured from his nostrils and lips.
The cold wind blew the smoke to Hiro's face, and he forced himself not to wrinkle his nose at the heady smell (a quirk he and his brother shared). He wished he'd worn an extra under-shirt, feeling the cold wind bite his skin through the thin fabric of his jacket. This one wasn't as thick or as comforting as his old one.
Yoko then turned to Hiro, holding the flame it to his face while cupping it with her hand (those pointed nails look like they hurt) so it wouldn't go out.
He hesitated, mind quickly contemplating the pros and cons.
Tadashi had (of course) warned him about the dangers of smoking when Hiro had turned eight, being the excellent and forward-looking brother everyone knew he was. According to him, smoking made you smell really bad, sped up your pulse and caused it to beat irregularly, made your teeth and nails yellow... and if you kept at it for too long, it would give you lung cancer and you could die.
… It was all pretty accurate.
Though it wasn't like he was doing this without taking note of the side effects.
It was just one time anyway, to avoid offending Toshi and his friends.
What could possibly be so hard about resisting a stick of leaves wrapped in paper?
Hiro held his cigarette to the flame and sucked in sharply like how Toshi did.
Big mistake!
He felt the pain almost instantly, his eyes going wide and welling with tears as he choked on the sudden bitterness burning his throat. Fuck, it hurt. It didn't help that it was a menthol either- Hiro couldn't decide whether his throat was on fire or being stabbed with ice. He gagged, resisting the urge to heave as he coughed out plume after plume of smoke.
"Aw, poor thing! It's your first time, isn't it?" The fujita asked mock-sympathetically, her voice laced with a hint of amusement. "It's alright— just breathe in slowly, and hold it for just a few seconds. Try not to cough, it gets worse if you do. Then breathe out! It's that simple!"
"She's right, kid. It's not as complicated as it seems." Toshi said, giving Hiro a lazy smile and a thumbs up. He reminded Hiro a little of Tadashi's other friend... Fred? Or was it Fran...? Bah, whatever. Why did he keep relating everything back to Tadashi?
Tired of their conversation, the blond-haired teen rolled his eyes.
"It's just smoking, not the fucking SATs."
"Whatever, Eve." Toshi replied, amused.
"That is not my name," The boy scowled, and his fists clenched. Toshi merely sneered, blowing out some smoke at the blond's direction.
Hiro momentarily wondered if Toshi had a death wish.
"My name is Ivan. Use it."
"I'mma just keep calling you Eve if you keep acting like a pissy bitch."
"You fucking—"
Hiro turned his attention away from the bickering pair (he didn't want to be dragged into the fight) and back to the cigarette. He felt Yoko's sharp eyes still on him, and shakily held the cigarette to his lips.
There was no going back now...
He did as she said, and sucked in… slightly. He tasted the tobacco briefly on his tongue before the feeling of ice coated his throat. It burned a lot less compared to the first time... so he continued to suck in, and then held it there, feeling the heat cloud in his windpipe.
It wasn't unpleasant... but it wasn't exactly the best feeling in the world either.
After two seconds, he exhaled, eyes wide as he saw the smoke escaping his lips, misting his view of Yoko's face.
Holy mother of megazon.
This was it.
He'd just taken his first official smoke.
He felt a little shiver travel down his spine as he thought about what he had just done. He'd only ever seen people do it in the designated smoking rooms, but he never imagined he'd be one of them.
Yoko's face though— it was like a mother watching her son walk for the very first time. Hiro failed to see what she was so happy about.
"Good job! Welcome to the smoker's community-" She was about to pat him on the head when she paused, an eyebrow raised. "Say, what's your name? Ya look kinda... familiar… can't remember why, though." She knew, Hiro knew she did! She was just trying to-
Ivan turned his attention to Hiro, ending his and Toshi's little spat.
"You're Hiro. Hiro Hamada. Aren't you?" Ivan noted, much to Toshi's shock (he tensed almost immediately), and Yoko's sadistic delight. Ivan turned to Yoko, an accusing finger pointing in the fourteen-year-old's direction.
"He's the guy that's been beating the shit out of everyone from the East rings. What the fuck is he doing here?!"
Toshi snapped out of his lazy reverie, his head snapping around to face Hiro. "You're the Fox?"
Hiro didn't know whether to pee himself in fear, or burst out laughing.
The FOX?! Was that what they were calling him?
Where the heck did they get that?
He struggled to keep a neutral expression, willing himself not to laugh. A chilling thought crossed his mind. What if they wanted to take Megabot... or worse, send him to Yama? He knew Yama's gang was probably on the look-out for him. He had landed their boss in a police station, and though he was sure they had bailed him out, Yama wasn't the kind of man to let a grudge go.
Hiro had to play his cards carefully.
"… You've got me confused with somebody else. I'm new at bot-fighting! I can barely control my bot!" He began to play his innocent persona (oh, was that why they called him fox?).
"You little liar," Yoko said, though her tone was more intrigued than angry. "I've heard about you from Kagura. She was the fujita there when you defeated Mr. Yama of the Yamazaki Yakuza. Said you turned his own bot against him." She sighed wistfully, no doubt wishing she could have been there to see.
Hiro was about to make another excuse when the clump of ash from his cigarette (apparently you were supposed to flick them off after a certain period of time) landed on his forehand.
It stung like pressing his skin against the stove (like he accidentally did last week when he tried to help Aunt Cass make dinner).
He yelped in pain, nearly flinging the whole thing onto the ground.
"Hey, careful. These are my best ones." Toshi warned, smoke trailing from his lips. "Fox or not, don't you go wasting a good joint."
"Sorry." Hiro shrugged, taking another puff, much to his own surprise. He had done it without thinking.
He sucked in again, watching Yoko smile with pride... and tried to ignore Ivan's suspicious glare. The fact that his eyes were unnaturally blue didn't help any. Toshi, on the other hand, was once again fading back into his lazy attitude, the shock of Hiro being the fox (he still found it incredibly hilarious) wearing off.
A comfortable silence fell upon their little group.
Hiro could even hear the traffic coming from the main street, a few blocks away.
That reminded him.
He had to get home, and soon (before Tadashi or Aunt Cass found his bed empty and called the police)!
It was then when Ivan decided to voice his frustration.
"Why are you here?" Ivan finally asked, breaking the silence. Hiro blinked in surprise, coughing on his smoke. He still wasn't completely used to the feeling.
"I... came here for a bot-fight? Duh." Was his intelligent and dangerously sarcastic reply. Hiro began to wonder if Toshi's reckless indifference was contagious. Ivan narrowed his eyes, stepping towards Hiro menacingly.
The latter stepped back in reflex, holding the cigarette tight between his fingers and crushing it slightly.
Yoko watched with obvious interest while Toshi continued to smoke, swiftly finishing his cigarette and flicking it to a wall where it exploded into a million sparks. Hiro would have thought it pretty if he hadn't been trying to edge away from Ivan's approaching muscles- uh, person.
The cold hardness of the brick wall greeted Hiro's back.
Ivan had him cornered.
And Yoko and Toshi didn't look like they were going to intervene, either. He didn't know if it meant they knew Ivan wouldn't hit him or they would simply be satisfied to watch. You just couldn't be sure with these people.
"Do not play coy with me, fox," Ivan warned. "I'm not aware of your true intentions, but if you try anything funny-"
The unspoken threat was left hanging in the air. Hiro swallowed... hard.
Tired of Ivan's paranoia, Yoko decided to cut in.
"Relax, blondie," Yoko snapped, though keeping her voice a light-hearted, friendly tone. "He's not up to anything. My sisters would have informed me by now if he was. We keep tabs on everyone. Foxie here is probably just in it for the extra payment!" She deducted, gave him a little wink.
Hiro didn't know whether to be grateful or afraid. Payment? What extra payment?!
"Whatever." Ivan spat, lips twisted into a sneer. He eyed Hiro up and down before stepping back, slicking his hair back cooly with his hand. "We'll see you around... Hiro."
Ivan turned and left, with Yoko in tow, her high-heeled bots once again abusing the already damaged pavement. Toshi watched them leave and sighed, nudging himself up and off the wall to follow.
"... Well, that was fun. Look, kid... if you ever feel like it, you know where to find us." Toshi said, ruffling Hiro's hair as he passed him. "I got a soft spot for kids like you, so don't sweat it."
Then he trailed after the duo, already pulling another cancer stick from his pack, harassing Yoko for another light.
Hiro watched them leave, and then looked down at the cigarette in his fingers, still lit.
He could throw it away now.
They weren't looking.
... But why waste a cigarette?
Hiro held the stick to his lips and took another puff.
And another.
And another...
He blew the smoke upwards, marvelling at how it curled and twisted in the cold night air, almost like it was dancing. After smoking it to the line, he flicked it towards the wall like Toshi did to his.
It exploded in a million sparks, like a firework.
Hiro turned, and left for home.
Back at the Lucky Cat Café, while Aunt Cass and Mochi lay asleep in her bed (they were like logs... dead to the world and rather heavy), Tadashi Hamada paced back and forth amongst the furniture like a man possessed. His cap was off, and his fingers were clawing at his face and neck.
Then he halted in his steps, slamming his fists onto the counter-top.
Where was Hiro?! Tadashi thought to himself, growling in frustration.
It was well past midnight- Hiro had never been out this late... Wait, scratch that, he had.
But... he had always worn his jacket.
The hoodie Tadashi had so expertly sewn a GPS tracking device into, thus causing his little brother to explode and throw a major tantrum... Tadashi then decided to go downstairs to cool off and stuff his face with extra-hot hot wings (he still felt the burn).
He regretted that. Clearly, leaving Hiro alone after a fight as intense as that was a very very bad idea.
He knew Hiro wouldn't come down and apologise. Wasabi's tip on reverse psychology hadn't (and would never) worked. Hiro was far too smart to fall for something as simple as that, and much to prideful to admit his was wrong without some gentle prompting.
So why had he done it?
Leaving his brother alone for hours in his room was a terrible move (he couldn't help but rethink again and again how it could have all gone differently)- especially since he got roped into helping Aunt Cass downstairs during the evening rush hour. Amidst the chaos of dealing with cranky night-shift workers, sleep-deprived college students and bossy hipsters, Hiro had managed to sneak out, undetected.
He chose not to inform Aunt Cass. She had been upset enough when they had been thrown in that holding cell (thank god it was only temporary, he didn't know what Professor Callaghan and his friends would say if they found out he'd been thrown in jail).
Tadashi was pretty sure he was on the verge of heading out and hunting his little brother down himself. He had to. The kind of trouble a fourteen-year-old boy as adorable (and as arrogant) his brother could get into...
He heard the front door creak open.
And the quick patter of light footsteps as they struggled to escape his brother's notice-
Too slow!
Tadashi turned around, his athletic reflexes kicking in, and tackled his little brother to the ground.
"Where have you been?!" Tadashi hissed through his clenched jaw, his arms wrapped tight around his little brother. Hiro was wearing a different, dark-grey hoodie. Tadashi wondered what happened to the old one (he had purchased it for Hiro last year). He looked fine, for the most part.
The elder brother felt his singed nerves slowly cool, finally assured that Hiro was safe.
"None of your business!" Hiro snapped, somehow managing kicking Tadashi in the shin. He gasped in pain and loosened his grip. Hiro quickly untangled himself from his brother's arms and scooted back, against a table.
"Hiro, please, just stop it! It's late, and I'm tired-"
"Good! So go to sleep!"
"How could I possibly go to sleep knowing you're out there alone on the streets?!" Tadashi exclaimed, his voice cracking. He paused, noticing the way Hiro froze up at his tone, reminding himself to keep his anger in check. It wouldn't help any if he started berating Hiro now... his brother had made that clear that nagging was a surefire way to make Hiro even more stubborn.
Then... he noticed the odd smell.
"... Why do you smell like cheap air-freshener?" Tadashi asked, wrinkling his nose (they shared the same quirk) as he noted the heavy stench on his brother's body. He'd have to remind Aunt Cass to open the windows in the morning because- pheeew did that stink! What company made this crap anyway? Who would possibly buy it?
"I got spritzed by a cleaner chasing me out the toilet," Hiro lied effortlessly. "She didn't want anyone in there while she was cleaning up."
Tadashi nodded, finding it funny (but this wasn't an appropriate time to laugh). He himself had been the victim of cranky sanitary workers back at the university. Though he never thought they'd actually have the guts to attack people.
He'd have to be careful about that old guy back at the SFIT third-floor washrooms...
Tadashi and Hiro glared at each other for a good minute before Hiro sighed. His clothes looked dirty, his eyes tired and his hair was all ruffled (Tadashi knew this only happened after aggressive head-banging, his brother's habit for dealing with stress).
He felt his heart falter.
Had Hiro been ran into some kind of trouble? He needed to talk this out with-
"Look, Tadashi. From now on, just leave me alone. I can handle myself." Hiro said, and before Tadashi could reply, he dashed up the staircase and up to their shared room.
He heard the door slam shut, just like the door to Hiro's heart.
Hiro's words stabbed his own heart like an icy knife. It hurt. Hiro was the only piece left of his precious family- not that he didn't love and appreciate Aunt Cass, but there were happier times... when it had been him, Mom, Dad and little baby Hiro.
And then everything ended in an instant...
Shit, it still hurt thinking about it.
He didn't want Hiro to shut him out. He knew Hiro needed him, just as much as he needed Hiro. They were brothers! Brothers were there for each other.
And while he knew Hiro would be mad if he ever found the tracking device (he was right... Hiro was beyond mad at this point), it was a necessary precaution. Hiro didn't think he'd allow his precious fourteen-year-old brother to go roaming the alleyways of San Fransokyo without having some kind of fail-safe, did he?
He groaned, flopping in an armchair by the window. They really needed to discuss Hiro's curfew and nightly ventures...
... The older Hamada drifted off to sleep almost instantly, his head slumping against the armrest. It didn't matter that he wasn't in a proper position to fall asleep; knowing that Hiro was safe and finally home was enough to ease his over-worked mind.
Hiro flopped onto his bed- freshly showered, thankful that the foul smelling air-freshener he'd found in the trash was finally off his skin.
He'd remembered to cover the obvious stench of cigarettes rolling in waves off him thanks to a bossy old lady he had encountered on the late train back home. She had started nagging him about 'bad habits' and how youth these days no longer had respect for law and blah blah blah.
Then luckily, on the final walk back he had found a dumpster. He then proceeded to dig around in it (gross) and found a scented-spray, practically misting himself in it in desperation.
It was foul, it was cheap... but it worked though.
Thank god.
He tried not to think about the heartbroken look on Tadashi's face before he dashed back to their room. Was he still downstairs, stress eating like Aunt Cass did? Hiro didn't know... neither did he want to find out.
The genius was exhausted. The emotional stress he had gone through in that single night finally taking a toll on his body. He slowly drifted off to dreamland, just like his brother.
And as the night slowly passed, the boy's computer pinged...
NEW MESSAGE (1).