AN: Hello! You'll probably be able to tell that I haven't written fan fiction in years and I'm probably extremely rusty—But here I am! I haven't fan girl-ed over anything in a long time, so Hidashi is my guilty pleasure as of right now. Please bear with me, and try to not to be too harsh! ;_;


"Ta….dashi…"

The older boy's eyes fluttered open slowly at the sound of his name. An odd sense of familiarity filled him as his vision tried to adjust to the thick darkness of his bedroom. He sat up, propping himself up on one elbow and listened, not sure if he had heard his name or if it was just his imagination. The normally soft sound of his brother's breathing was now ragged and labored; it made Tadashi's heart skip a beat.

He quickly swung his feet off the side of his bed and hopped to the floor, tip toeing his way to his brother's bed and wincing with ever creak of the floorboards. He wouldn't exactly call this a "usual occurrence" but "frequent" was definitely a word he would use. Hiro had started having nightmares when their parents died… Tadashi was just happy they no longer happened every night.

Tadashi kneeled at the side of Hiro's bed, placing his head just inches away from the younger boy's and watching him with half-lidded, sleepy eyes. It made his heart drop, seeing the look on Hiro's face—The way his eyebrows knit together, bunching up the skin at the base of his nose; the way his eyes were squeezed shut, forced together harshly; the way the corners of his mouth dipped down… Tadashi hated that the most. The thought of Hiro without a smile—without a crooked, goofy, gap-toothed smile—just tore Tadashi up inside.

"N-no…." a small whimper came from the young boy and every line on his face seemed to harden, his frown deepening. Tadashi let out a small sigh and placed his thumb against the bridge of Hiro's nose, stroking up and down with a comforting, feather light touch.

"Hey, Hiro, I'm right here," Tadashi said softly. "You don't have to be afraid Hiro." His voice was barely above a whisper, but it seemed almost as if the other boy could hear it in his sleep. His face softened, his eyebrows relaxing, and the corners of his mouth beginning to lift. "That's it Hiro. It's alright." Tadashi placed his free hand underneath his brother's and gave it a small squeeze. It seemed tonight would play out just as every other night did, and the older boy would be making his way back to bed in just a few minutes.

Tadashi waited just a few more minutes to make sure Hiro would be okay for the rest of the night. When he finally decided Hiro wouldn't have any trouble with the rest of his night, Tadashi rose slightly, leaned forward, and gave his brother a small, quick kiss on the forehead. He pulled away slowing, his heart beating faster, as was normal for him whenever he kissed Hiro like that. He figured he must be scared—scared that Hiro would wake up and be freaked out. Yeah, he thought, they were brothers, but Hiro was a bit too old for goodnight kisses these days. He wasn't a scared five year old anymore, he was nearly fifteen, and he had graduated high school already for crying out loud. He didn't need his brother hovering over him like a mother hen.

Tadashi shook his head. It didn't matter, Hiro wouldn't remember his nightmare in the morning and he sure as hell wouldn't know Tadashi had been at his side. The older boy was glad his brother was a deep sleeper.

Standing up slowly, Tadashi slowly began to pull his hand from Hiro's, careful not to wake the young boy up. But, as he did so, the grip around his fingers tightened ad Hiro let out a small whimper.

"..Dashi... Please… I need you..."

Heat filled Tadashi's body from head to toe instantly, and he suddenly became hyper aware of the feeling of Hiro's small fingers wrapped around his own. Hiro's face was back to being tense, a sight that made Tadashi's heart stop, despite the fact that it was going a mile a minute. He wasn't sure what to do. He couldn't stay up much longer, it was 2 am and he had class in the morning. But, he couldn't just leave his little brother—especially not with that sad look on his face. Hiro was his weakness, the only real family he had left, and he never wanted to see him hurt. He had promised himself, from the very beginning, that he would keep Hiro safe.

So that's why, despite the fact that his brain was continuously screaming NO and his heart was furiously pounding against his chest, he placed on knee on the edge of Hiro's bed and crawled over his little brother, laying down slowly behind him. Even if Hiro thought he was a creep when he woke up, Tadashi told himself that this was the only way to get a good amount of sleep while keeping Hiro's nightmares at bay.

A shaky, uncertain hand found its way around Hiro's waist and grabbed hold of him tightly, pulling the young boy back until his back pressed against his brother's chest. Why does this feel so scary? Tadashi wondered to himself, trying to sooth his nerves and pounding heart by pressing his forehead against the back of Hiro's head. The gesture, however, seemed to have the opposite effect on him as the scent of Hiro's green tea shampoo filled his senses and soft, silky hair pressed against his cheek.

Tadashi's grip around Hiro's waist tightened and he tried his best to match the boy's soft breathing in an attempt to calm himself down once again. Stupid, he thought to himself. What the hell are you thinking Tadashi? Get a grip.

It took him a while, but eventually he fell asleep, his hand still entwined with Hiro's.