Big Hero 6: The Art Thieves

Chapter 30: Wishful Thinking (Part 1)

Another day, another adventure! Going through my usual morning routine of stretching, yawning, and grumbling at the sun, I perked up when I realized that today was a Saturday. Yay, no school! I quickly heaved myself out of bed and got ready to head to the Café.

When I arrived downstairs at the dinner table, hungry eyes searching for breakfast, my mom came over and handed me a plate of scrambled eggs and sausages. I dove into the steaming pile of food while my mom greeted me. "Good morning, Sakura."

"Mornigphh." I replied with a mouth full of egg.

Mom scoffed as she handed me a glass of juice. "Don't talk with your mouth full, dear."

I downed the juice before grinning sheepishly at my mom. "Sorry."

She smiled and rolled her eyes fondly at me before going back into the kitchen to fetch herself her morning coffee. She sat down in a chair next to mine, sipping on the delicious java as I slowed a bit in my quest of devouring everything on my plate.

My mom spoke up after a few minutes. "Your dad and I are going to help your cousin move into his house today." She took one last sip before she got up and placed her mug in the kitchen sink. "We start right after your father finishes his shift, so we will be a little late coming home today."

"Okay, cool." I nod nonchalantly, swallowing my last morsel of food before gathering my empty plate and utensils to put in the sink as well. "I'll be at Tadashi and Hiro's for the day, so it's fine if you guys come home late."

After promising my mom that I will be home no later than 10 PM, I start to make my way to the bakery that I've become so familiar with.

I walked in just as Aunt Cass looked up from behind the counter. She smiled when she saw me. "Hey Sakura! Nice of you to stop by! Tadashi's out on an errand, but Hiro's upstairs sneezing his butt off. I don't know how in the world that boy got sick overnight, but it happened. I'm surprised that it did, too, since Baymax always takes care of him 24/7." Aunt Cass shrugged before moving towards the coffee machine to start up an order. "I'm a bit busy at the moment, so could you go check up on him for me? Thanks."

I nodded, but realized that Aunt Cass wasn't looking so I opted to just go upstairs. Once I reached the two brothers' room, I opened the door and took in the unholy mess that is Hiro's side of the room.

"What happened in here? It's like a tornado and a hurricane ran around your room, had two children, and named them Hurrinado and Indoor Tornado."

Without looking at me, Hiro shrugged as he continued to type away at his desk. "I guess, but this is just how I like it. Everything is organized in my mind by an intricate system that only I can comprehend."

I shook my head in exasperation as I marched over and pulled his rolling chair away from the computer. "Whatever. You still need to lay down and rest, bud. You're sick."

Hiro glared at me and crossed his arms, annoyed that I interrupted whatever it was that he was doing. "Come on, Sis. Can't I play a little bit longer?"

I shook my head and crossed my arms to mirror his.

"Nope! Bed. Rest. Now. And don't you dare even think about hitting me with the puppy dog eyes because it won't work this time." Hiro smirks and gives me the puppy dog eyes anyway. Mischievously, he inched closer to the edge of his chair before springing up and licking my cheek.

"GAH! Ew ew ew, gross!" I smacked his head and flailed my arms around, frenziedly looking around for a tissue box. "I better not get sick because of this!" Hiro cackled evilly as I desperately wiped my face with a tissue.

"That's payback for dragging me away from my work."

I shot him a quizzical look, eyebrows furrowed. "Work? What work?"

"Working on searching for the next bot fight, of course!" He stated matter-of-factly, scraping his feet against the floor to roll himself back in front of his computer screen. "Oh, and by the way, tonight we need to go to a bot fight."

Before I could say anything, Hiro fell into a violent coughing fit. I narrowed my eyes at his painful sounding coughs and my resolve hardened. "No. Absolutely not. Hiro, you're really sick. I can't take you out tonight."

Hiro groaned as he lifted himself off his chair and stumbled towards his bed, plopping down onto his back. "Aww, please Sis, let me go fight..." For a moment he did nothing but lay there, so I thought he probably passed out until he suddenly sat up and lunged at me, wrapping his arms around my torso and dropping his knees to the ground with a loud painful thud that had me wincing. He started to nuzzle my belly and whine like a pitiful puppy that just got his new toy taken away.

I still shook my head, adamant. "No matter how much you beg, I can't take you. What would Tadashi say if he heard you where planing this."

Hiro looked up at me and pouted. "Argh, fine. But you still can't stop me though. I'll sneak out somehow."

I scowled while he simply smiled up at me innocently.

We didn't say much after that until lunch came around. Hiro tried to go back to his computer screen, but his attempts were always foiled by me. If I can't stop him from going, I sure as hell can stop him from finding out where to go in the first place. Spitefully, he glared at me as he drank some of Aunt Cass's chicken noodle soup. His zeal didn't last long though because he soon fell asleep right after.

Baymax inflated himself back up from his little recharging cubicle and greeted me with his one-hand wave. "Hello, Sakura."

I shot the chubby balloon a smile. "Hey Baymax. Glad to see you back in action. Take care of Hiro for me, would ya? And make sure he doesn't have any crazy ideas of sneaking off at night, okay?"

"Okay." Baymax replied in his gentle, soothing tone before going over to Hiro and properly covering him with a blanket.

Nodding, I left the two alone and decided to check up on Aunt Cass. Things were as busy as when I first stepped into the Café. Actually, things were busier considering that it's the lunch rush.

"Hey Sakura!" Aunt Cass called from behind the counter, three danishes in one hand and a cupcake in another. "Help cover for me! I'm getting swarmed! Gah!" She yelped as she nearly dropped the cupcake.

Immediately, without a second though, I leapt over the counter in a hurry and wrapped an apron around my waist.

After the lunch rush, Tadashi came home and grinned when he saw me.

I, of course, grinned back.

"Hey Sakura, how's Hiro feeling?"

I shrugged nonchalantly as I dried a clean mug. "Not too bad, that is, if he can stay in bed and not be on his computer for 5 minutes."

Tadashi laughed good-naturally. "Haha! Yeah, I'd hope so!" He then head up the stairs with a wave. "Welp, I'd better go and make sure he's in bed."

I sped up my cleaning process before untying my apron and hanging it on the wall. Aunt Cass approached me with a happy smile.

"Hey Sakura! Nice work out there. Here, I think we BOTH need to treat ourselves after today." She smiled sympathetically while handing me a macaroon. "It's too bad that you got injured while on the job. Maybe Baymax can take a look at it."

I flexed my hand absentmindedly, wincing at how tender it still felt. Things got too hectic earlier with too many customers asking for baked goods. I was in such a rush that I forgot to put on oven mitts before reaching into the oven and grabbing the metal tray. Let's just say some confused patrons may have been left wondering after hearing a loud yell of a nasty word from the kitchen.

"Don't worry Aunt Cass, I'll take care of it when I get home." I then thanked her with a small bow before taking the macaroon. "Thanks for the macaroon though!"

Aunt Cass nodded. "Of course. I'm guessing you want to go hang out with Tadashi and Hiro upstairs?"

"That's the plan!" I chirped cheerfully.

Aunt Cass chuckled before winking at me. "Have fun, but don't get too carried away!"

I laughed nervously before fleeing to the stairwell. I munched on the soft chewy pastry as I climbed the stairs towards the brothers' bedroom, finishing it off rather quickly before I opened the door to see what was going on.

Hiro, with a messy bedhead and flushed cheeks, was clumsily trying to get dressed—and not doing a good job at it. Tadashi was trying to get him to stop, getting more and more agitated by the second.

"Hiro! Where are you going?! Get back in bed!"

"No Tadashi!" The younger brother objected, dodging a lunge from his older brother with surprising agility. Hiro yanked on his socks and ran towards the door, but he stopped abruptly when he saw me.

I raised a brow at him, crossing my arms like I just caught a child stealing from the cookie jar. "Back to bed, Hiro. You're still sick as a dog."

"No, I'm—" Hiro couldn't even finish his reply before he's wracked with coughs.

I rolled my eyes and attempted to push him back to bed. Although sick, the kid's got really good reflexes. Like before with Tadashi, he managed to side-step behind me and latched onto my hand, tugging me along with a mischievous smile. "Come on, Sis! Let's go!"

Why do I get the feeling that his smile means trouble?

Tadashi furrowed his eyebrows at us, confused. "Where are you two going?"

I glanced back at him looking equally confused while Hiro smirked. "She's taking me to go bot fighting! Sure I might get more sick, but Sakura said it'll be fine."

I whipped my head back to stare the younger brother in utter shock. "WHAT?!"

"What..." A soft echo of my shout sounded from behind us, sounding shocked and...betrayed..?

I spun around at the hurt tone in Tadashi's voice. He had an expression between sadness and anger. "Sakura...why would you agree to do this?"

I shook my head quickly, panic sweeping through me in waves. "N-no! I didn't say that! Hiro's lying! He..." I trailed off when Tadashi balled his hands into fists and shook his head in disappointment.

He suddenly reached out and gripped my burned hand which hurt like hell. I let out a small whimper of pain and winced as he angrily pulled me back into the room, leaving a dumbfounded Hiro out in the hallway.

Tadashi slammed the door shut and yelled, "Sakura how could you do such a thing?! Do you realized how stupidly irresponsible you are by agreeing to take Hiro out in his condition?!"

"It was not my fault. I—"

Before I could fully explain myself, his hand came up and slapped my face. In that exact moment, Hiro meekly opened the door and flinched when he saw the slap.

"Save it. I don't want to hear your excuses." He stated coldly.

Raising my trembling burnt hand to my reddening cheek, I felt warm tears threatening to spill from my eyes. It hurts. It hurts so freaking much, physically and emotionally and I swore something in me hardened and broke at the same time before I screamed, "I USED TO LOVE YOU, YOU BIG JERK! BUT NOW!" I clenched my hands and finally let the tears stream down my face. "I HATE YOU!"

"Good. I never want to see you again anyway, and I hope you disappear." Tadashi gave me an icy cold stare as I locked my eyes onto his honey brown ones. They used to be so warm. Why are they so cold now? I tried to break eye contact, but his intense stare had me frozen and unable to look away.

With great strength, I closed my eyes and sobbed, angry at how stupid this argument became, frustrated at how stupid Tadashi is being, and scared of the harsh look on his face. I stood there and cried for a minute or two, a part of me hoping that the kindhearted Tadashi I once knew would suddenly apologize for his behaviour and wrap me in one of his tender hugs.

But he didn't do any of that.

He just let me stand there, letting tears drip down my chin and onto the hardwood floor, feeling humiliated and choked up as I waited for the comfort that never came.

I can't take this anymore.

I sprinted past him, shoving him out of the away with surprising strength, shocking and snapping him out of his livid trance, violently yanked the door open, and pushed past a dumbfounded Hiro.

Someone seizes me by the arm just as I reach the bottom of the living room stairs.

"Sakura, wait. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to yell at you like that." Tadashi spoke softly, gently gripping my arm. His warmth was back in his eyes, along with heavy guilt and something small and desperate, but it was too late. I've seen his dark angry side, and I don't think I can forget the fear I felt earlier easily. The damage had been done.

I glared at him, fresh tears brimming as I nudged off his hand from my arms and pivoted to face him aggressively, righteous fury burning through my body like a wildfire on gasoline. "AND WHAT'S IT TO YOU?! WHY DO YOU CARE?! You seemed like you couldn't bother sparing my feelings earlier, SO WHY CARE NOW?!"

He looked lost, and oddly lonely, but I didn't want to look at his stupid face anymore so I turned around and continued my journey down the rest of the stairs and out of the Café. I whooshed past a concerned looking Aunt Cass, not even stopping when she called out and asked if I was OK.

I missed seeing Tadashi running up to the door, hand pressed against the cool glass as he watched me run down the street before he furiously threw his hat on the ground with an agitated yelp. Almost instantly regretting his decision, he picks up the hat, pats the dirt off it gently, lets out a sad sigh, and then gives my retreating figure one last guilt-ridden look before heading further back into the Café.

Aunt Cass shot him a puzzled stare. "What on Earth just happened? What was that shouting I heard upstairs?"

Tadashi ignored her, silently trudging up the stairs with a defeated expression in his dead eyes.

Aunt Cass huffed, but decided to let it go. She knew he'll tell her eventually, and right now he really looked like he should be left alone for the time being.

My sight was blurred by my endless tears, and I had no idea where I was headed. I narrowly avoided colliding with other pedestrians and running face first into a pole before ending up in the local park. I sniffed pitifully, plopping my butt down on a cold bench carelessly and covered my face in my hands, bawling loudly. I currently didn't care who saw me so broken down like this, crying and muttering nonsense on a park bench like a heartbroken idiot.

"Tadashi is such a stupid, stupid head! He's so dumb, completely insensitive to my feelings, and a total moron! Why couldn't he understand that I didn't do anything?! Why didn't he freaking believe me?! God! He's a weirdo, he's a meanie, he's unfair, a stupid jerk, and he's—" I suddenly remembered the merciless cold dark brown eyes, and a certain word popped up in my head that I never thought I would use to describe Tadashi.

"—scary..."

I paused, horrified that I actually was afraid of the boy I had a crush on. I gazed at the wet patch of ground incomprehensibly for a moment, wondering why there's a wet spot right under me while everywhere else was dry before realizing that the wet spot on the ground was created by my tears.

How long had I been sitting here crying alone?

As I wiped the tears away, some guy came up to me and spoke with a soft worried voice. "Hey there, are you alright? You seem upset.

I glanced up at the stranger, nodding as I replied, "yeah. I'm fine. Just had a fight, that's all." I faked a smile, trying my best to prevent my lips from trembling and the lingering tears from falling because in truth I am still very much not fine.

He sits down next to me, offering a consoling smile. "I'm sorry to hear that. My name is Yin. What's your name?"

I smiled back and answered, "mine is Sakura."

We talked for a long time. Somewhere in the back of my mind I knew I shouldn't be talking to strangers, and that I should be getting home soon, but Yin was so polite and a perfect distraction from my miserable thoughts and depressing emotions that I couldn't help but stay with him even when the sun began to set.

Meanwhile, back at the Café...

Tadashi paced around in his and Hiro's bedroom restlessly, rubbing his head vigorously as he rambled to himself exasperatedly. "Oh my God, why did I do that to her? I didn't mean to slap her, yet I did and now she probably really hates me. God, I was so mad at her, but that's all I wanted to be! I just wanted to be...angry, and that's all! I shouldn't have laid my hand against her. What the heck is wrong with me..."

Now with both hands in his hair, he tugged at his roots, feeling the dull burning pain numbing his intense regret briefly before realizing that his slap would've hurt Sakura way more. The momentarily subdued guilt was back with a nasty vengeance.

He shook his head as he continued to ponder what came over him to unexpectedly turn so physical.

Hiro glanced up from the comic he was browsing through, and rolled his eyes at his fretting older brother. With one leg propped on his other leg's kneecap, he leaned back further into the pillows on his bed. "Either way, Sakura definitely hates you now. I mean, your slap was completely uncalled for, and you didn't even listen to her when she tried to explain herself."

Tadashi slowly turned to death glare at his younger brother, growling lowly. "And just who's fault was it who got me worked up in the first place?"

Hiro widened his eyes and gulped quietly, opting to raise his comic book up to his face to hide from Tadashi's fierce glare.

Tadashi continued to pace around the room, wrought with worry and remorse and internal conflict. After a while, he paused to gaze out the window at the bay, which shimmered with the beautiful colors of sunset. He didn't have the luxury of appreciating the view, however, as he chewed his lip in apprehension. "I have to go find her. She could be in danger, or lost, or kidnapped, or—or worse: fall into the bay or fall off the Golden Gate Bridge."

Hiro scoffed at how ridiculous his brother sounded. He grabbed the nearest pillow and threw it at Tadashi's head to snap him out of his paranoid thoughts.

"Oh would you relax?! She probably went home. Sakura isn't irresponsible like me, remember? She can take care of herself." Hiro sighed, momentarily mourning for the loss of his evening of bot fights before shifting his focus back to his brother. "And you're going to get gray hair or go bald if you keep worrying, so ease up."

In this moment, Baymax decides to speak up and add in his own two cents on the conversation from his little charging station. "Hiro is right, Tadashi. My scans show that you have elevated stress, blood pressure, and anxiety levels. Would you like a hug?"

Tadashi froze for a few seconds, considering the health bot's offer, and sighed with a heavy heart. "You know what, sure Baymax. I'd like a hug."

The big squishy balloon hobbled over to him and enveloped him in a tender hug. Tadashi sighed again—but this time in content—into the comforting contact, grateful that he added in heaters for Baymax's de-stress program. The hug was so comfortable that Tadashi could feel himself actually calming down.

Hiro grinned at Baymax's noticeable handiwork as he watched his brother's tense form practically melt into the round robot. He chuckled and joked lightheartedly. "Plus, what's the worst that can happen to her? Get kidnapped by art thieves and then get traded in for artwork?"

At that proposed notion, Tadashi's serenity within Baymax's protective arms disappeared like the morning fog as he groaned. "Oh God, I dearly hope that doesn't happen. She could get hurt, or—"

Hiro instantly sat up in a panic, dropping his comic book as he held his hands up to placate his older brother. "No no no! I was kidding! KIDDING! She's fine, okay? Sakura is FINE so stop worrying already!"

Tadashi shook his head and Hiro moaned tiredly before flopping back onto his bed in defeat.

Meanwhile with Sakura...

Noticing how late it was, I stood up and grinned apologetically. "It was nice to meet you, Yin, but I need to go home now."

Yin glanced at me with an indecipherable look before he smiled kindly and said, "would it be alright if you walk home with me? I think my sister would love to meet someone like you, Sakura."

I hesitated, pursing my lips. "Yin..."

He scratched his cheek sheepishly before smacking his hands together in a pleading pose. "Please, Sakura! I know I'm asking a lot, but it would mean the world to my sister. She's been having a tough time recently and I think meeting you would finally get her to smile. It's been so long since she smiled..."

I gazed down at the ground between us, weighing my options. On one hand, I'm following a complete stranger—who I talked to for only a few hours—home, and mom would be so mad if I didn't get home on time. On the other hand, he mentioned that he didn't live far from here, so if I just go with him and say hi to his sister real quick, I can still make it back home on time if I jog the rest of the way there. And besides, I could potentially make a little girl happy.

Decision made, I nodded at Yin, who gave me a big smile out of relief and gratitude, before he and I began our trek to his house.

Meanwhile with Tadashi...

It was officially nighttime, and the boys had just finished getting ready for bed.

They wished each other good night after turning off the lights, and crawled under their blankets while Baymax deflated in his charging cubicle.

Waiting for Hiro's soft snores to sound out, Tadashi sighed for the umpteenth time that evening while staring at the ceiling. After a solid half an hour of blankly staring at nothing, he tossed and turned in his bed in an attempt to get comfortable as he murmured to himself. "Seriously, why did I do that to her? I am so heartless...I hope she got home safely..."

Closing his eyes, Tadashi gradually fell into a restless sleep. Unbeknownst to him, Hiro was still awake. Once sure that Tadashi was asleep, Hiro peered at the dark lump that was his older brother through the darkness. Although he didn't show it, in reality he felt incredibly bad for what he'd done.

"You're not heartless, Tadashi..." He whispered softly before turning over in his bed with a look of shame.

Tadashi fell into a world of dreams haunted by his guilt-ridden conscience and a fleeting figure of Sakura. A tear rolled down his cheek as he dreamed of the girl who he hurt so badly staring at him accusingly with an emotionless expression, and then walking away from him without so much as a word.

Not looking back.

No hesitation in her steps.

Deaf to his apologies and pleas of atonement.

Ignoring him begging her to stay.

She never heard him plead to her, "please, oh baby, don't go."

"Please don't leave me."

"Please..."

To Be Continued...