Chapter 3: The Way
It was one of those days where he couldn't focus on his work. Tadashi was in his lab at SFIT working on his health-care robot, Baymax. He was sluggish in his work. Sometimes he'd stop completely and just stared off into space. All he could think about was that bill he had read the night before
Over eight hundred thousand dollars. How were they supposed to pay for that? Most of the time in the lab that day, Tadashi had been thinking of ways of making that money. He could work extra hours at the café and other part time jobs, but that still wouldn't be once he was done with Baymax, he could sell him. He was to be programmed with thousands of medical procedures, somebody would want him. Then again, he had worked hard on Baymax, and wouldn't just sell him right off the bat. Winning the lottery? Now he was just grasping at straws.
Tadashi's brainstorming was interrupted when Tadashi's door was swung open.
"My slip joint pliers are missing," Wasabi said as he entered the room."
"Well good afternoon to you too," Tadashi replied.
"Where are they?"
"You just assume I have them?" Tadashi was still staring off into space.
"Well Gogo doesn't have them and she's the only other person besides you who uses them."
"Well I don't have them."
"You sure?"
"Yep."
"Posative?"
"Posative?"
"Maybe you could check around-"
"I don't have your stupid pliers!" Tadashi snapped.
Wasabi just stared at him for a minute. "Well alright then." Wasabi began walking out the door.
"Wasabi, wait," Tadashi said, feeling bad. "I… i'm sorry man. It's just been a rough week for me. I'm kinda stressed."
"Hey man," Wasabi said coming back into the room, "you don't need to explain anything to me. If Hiro were my brother, i'd probably be as stressed as you."
"You mean normally, or the way he is now?" Tadashi joked.
"You know what I mean."
"Yeah, well, in any case, I don't have your pliers."
"That's cool. I'm sure Gogo has them and probably won't give them back."
"Here," Tadashi rolled the computer chair he'd been sitting in over to his workbench, grabbed a pair of pliers, and tossed them to Tadashi.
Wasabi inspected the pliers. "These are mine!"
"What? No they're not."
"Then what's this?" Wasabi pointed to what looked like a smudge on the pliers.
"I don't know. Chicken scratch?"
"It's my initials."
Tadashi took a closer look at the pliers. He found the letters D. N. written in ant print on the side of them.
"These are your initials?"
"Yeah. Duane Noginger."
"Oh yeah," Tadashi chuckled. "We've been calling you Wasabi for so long, I forgot your real name."
"I have Fred to thank for that."
"What are you even working on with those?"
"The same thing i've been working on for months."
"You're still working with plasma?"
"Yeah. I've only scratched the surface of what it can do. You still working on Baymax?"
Tadashi looked behind him at the at the large inactive white robot. "Yeah," he sighed. "I just can't think straight today."
"Should you really be here? I mean, you'd if you can't focus, what's the point in working on Baymax today?"
"I've made some progress, it's just… some days are better."
"You know what we should do?" Wasabi asked with a smile on his face.
"Enlighten me."
"We gotta go out tonight."
"What?"
"You've been stressed out all week man. You need to go out and have fun."
Tadashi thought about it for a moment. "I don't know. I don't think I feel comfortable going out knowing Hiro's in the hospital."
"Come on Tadashi. It's one night. It's not gonna kill you."
"Well… I guess it wouldn't hurt."
"No, it won't."
"So then where are we going?"
"I was talking about it with everyone else. Gogo and Honey Lemon want to go go-carting, Fred wants to go see that new Jurassic Park Movie-"
"Jurassic World. That makes sense. Especially for Fred."
"Right. And then everyone wants to go check out that new restaurant that's in town."
"Sounds like full night."
"Yeah it is. So if you're set on coming, i'll pick you up at your place at like… six. That cool?"
"Yeah, six is a good time."
"Well," Wasabi started for the door, "i'll see you then."
With that, Wasabi exited Tadashi's lab.
A night out. Tadashi was beginning to like the idea. He could use a break from all the stress and troubles of the week he'd been through. He deserved this. Tonight was going to be the best he'd had in days.
Tadashi had never had so much fun in one night.
First, the group had gone go-karting. Gogo dominated. Wasabi wasn't very good at driving his kart thing, so he was mostly crashing into the the side of the track. Honey Lemon and Fred did well, but not as well as Tadashi and Gogo. During the racing part, Tadashi would've won, but as he and Gogo were neck and neck, Gogo gave him this glare that told him if he beat her, she would beat him. So like the genius he was, he let Gogo win. He didn't feel right doing so, but he wouldn't let that ruin the night.
Next they went to go watch Jurassic World. It was obvious why Fred had wanted to see it. Giant lizards causing mayhem, what more could he ask for? Tadashi sat next to Honey Lemon, and every time there was some kind of jump scare, she gripped his arm. Maybe a bit too tight. Fred enjoyed the movie most of all. Tadashi didn't see him blink the entire time.
Now they were all at the new restaurant, Ray's Place. The place was packed, seeing as how it had just opened, but they still managed to get a table. The floors were hardwood, as were the walls. The place seemed like a nice family joint, the kind that would be in a small town where everyone knows each other.
They had to wait about a half an hour to order "So sorry for the wait folks," a waitress said as she approached their table. "What can I get for you?" Wasabi ordered the New York strip. That sounded good to Tadashi so he ordered the same thing. Honey Lemon asked for the Chicken Ceaser Salad, and Gogo ordered the patty melt. Strangely enough, Fred ordered an assortment of breakfast items.
"Fred, why are you ordering breakfast?" Gogo questioned as she sipped her soda that they had gotten when they sat down.
"Uh, duh, breakfast foods are the best kinds of foods. You got pancakes, french toast, eggs. I don't know why you guys think it's so weird."
"Because," Wasabi said, "they have a bunch of other stuff here, and all you care about is breakfast."
"You know what? I'm going to start making breakfast for dinner a thing. Then everyone will start doin' it."
"I have my doubts about that, but you go right on ahead," Tadashi said.
"See Tadashi has faith in me."
"Did you hear what I said?"
"Yeah, something about me going right ahead."
"Yeah, but I also said-"
"Tadashi, you know it's pointless trying to change his mind," Gogo said. "Just leave it."
The group talked for a while, but Tadashi had stopped joining in on the conversation when he looked to another table. There was a man who was looking at him. It was a creepy stare, but Tadashi only saw it for a split second before the man turned his head away from him.
Tadashi looked two another table. There were two parents, and two boys who must've been their sons. The older one looked to be about fourteen, and the younger one about eight. They were laughing, even though there was nothing around that looked amusing. The boys seemed to be having a great time just being in each other's company. Tadashi fought the urge to think about Hiro. He wasn't about to let the night be ruined by a single thought.
"Tadashi," Honey Lemon said. His eyes immediately shot to her. "Are you alright?" She must've noticed Tadashi's thinking face.
"Uh, yeah… yeah. I'm fine, just… thinking."
"Thinking about Hiro?" Tadashi just nodded.
"He's gonna be okay. You know that right?"
"Yeah, I know. It's just… we don't have the money to pay for the operation.
Everyone grew silent.
"What?" Wasabi said.
"Aunt Cass was trying to hide it from me, but I found the bill for the hospital. We just don't have that kind of money."
"Why didn't you tell us?" Gogo asked.
"Look, this isn't your problem guys. Don't worry about it."
"You have to at least talk about it man," Fred said.
"I will, just… not tonight. Tonight, we had fun, and I don't want that to be ruined by personal problems."
No one spoke about it after that. Soon the food came, and everyone was coming up with different topics to talk about. Fred was telling a story of the time he got his head stuck in a tree. It was very… detailed. Fred's breakfast had taken up about a fourth of the table. Maybe he was on to something.
Through the sound of everyone's conversations, Tadashi heard the words 'bank robbery'. Tadashi looked for the source of the words until his eyes fell on a TV hanging on the wall. It was turned to the news with the headline "Failed Bank Robbery" at the top of the screen. The sound wasn't all that loud, but Tadashi could make out most of the words.
"... were rattled last night when three armed men broke into the Krei Bank," a news woman spoke. "Their intention was to break in and rob the vault deep within the basement, but were arrested when they tripped the silent alarm, alerting the authorities before they could crack the vault's lock…"
Tadashi gazed at the TV for a while. A thought formed in his mind that had never been formed there before.
"Hey guys," Tadashi said, thinking out loud. "How much money do you think bank robbers make?"
The table became silent again.
"What did you just say?" Fred asked.
"How much money do you think bank robbers make?" he said again, staring at the TV. Tadashi probably didn't even notice he was talking.
"Why would you ask that?" Gogo asked, sounding a bit suspicious.
"I don't know. It's just a question."
"Well it's a random ass question."
"I'm just curious."
"Tadashi are you even paying attention?"
Tadashi's focus snapped back to his friends. "Huh?"
"You were asking about bank robberies," Wasabi said.
"What? Oh yeah." Tadashi pointed to the TV. "The… the TV. There was a bank robbery."
Everyone was now watching the news with Tadashi.
"So why'd you ask about the cash?" Fred asked.
"I said I was curious. It's weird thinking that people get away with so much money without working for it."
"Well, that's the point of a robbery," Honey Lemon said with a somewhat forced chuckle.
"Yeah, I… I guess so."
Tadashi quickly shook the thought away. What was he thinking? Why would he even think about bank robbery? It was the strangest thing.
The night carried on without anyone bringing up Tadashi's strange question. When it was time to leave, Tadashi told Wasabi that he felt like walking home. Wasabi didn't object to him doing so, so Tadashi said goodbye to his friends as he walked down the sidewalk toward home. The restaurant wasn't that far from the café.
Tadashi walked through the night, wondering what to do about that hospital bill. There was no job he could take that would pay that much money, and he didn't own anything of value that he could sell. The words 'bank robbery' fluttered through his mind now and then, but he was trying to push them out.
Then all thinking ceased when that cloth was put to his mouth.
It was dark. Really dark. But that was because Tadashi felt too weak to open his eyes. He could tell he was sitting… in a chair. He could feel restraints around his wrists and ankles.
Where am I? he thought to himself. He didn't have the energy to speak. What was on that cloth?
"Tadashi Hamada," a voice said, kind of in a friendly tone. "It is great to meet you."
Tadashi worked up enough energy to open his eyes, which was hard because his eyes felt as heavy as stone. Standing before him was a man, looking to be about thirty years old. He had brown hair that looked like he had just combed it, and he wore a very casual jacket, along with jeans and running shoes. This man looked familiar to Tadashi, but not enough to remember him on the spot. He couldn't tell where he was. It was dark all around where Tadashi was. All he could see was that man.
"Where… where am I?" Tadashi managed to say.
"That," the man said, is a question that if answered will probably screw me over, so i'm not going to tell you."
"Who the hell are you?"
"Ah, finally, sensible questions. Well… actually no. Damn it," the man said to himself. "I didn't think this through. Okay," he said, talking to Tadashi again, "I can't tell you my real name, but you can call me… Mr. S." The man talked like it was a casual conversation with someone he knew.
"If… if you think you're going to… to kill me or… sell me or something-"
"Whoa, whoa , whoa, don't jump to conclusions so fast. Don't think of me as someone who's going to hurt you. Think of me as… someone with your best interersts in the works."
"What… what the hell are you talking about?"
"I've been watching you for a while Mr. Hamada. You have skills. You and all of your friends do. Those skills are something I need."
Tadashi instantly remembered who the man was. "You, you're that guy from the restaurant who was staring at me."
"Well… yeah. But i've been watching you long before that. You're a hard guy to get alone. You're either with your friends, or your aunt, or your brother-"
Tadashi jerked in his chair. "Leave my friends, my aunt, and my brother alone!" he yelled. Normally, when people saw Tadashi wit Cass, they figured she was his mom. But this guy identified her as his aunt. How long had he been watching him.
"There we go jumping to conclusions again. I'm not going to hurt you, or your friends, or your aunt, or your brother. I just have something I want you to do for me."
"So you kidnap me and ask me to do a favor for you? That's a… that's a pretty bold tactic there."
"Well, it's not really a favor, because i'm not getting anything out of it other than assurance. You on the other hand are getting something out of it."
"Oh yeah? What's that?"
"Wouldn't it be amazing if you had the money to pay for your brother's heart transplant? I know i'd be pretty happy."
Tadashi was silent. He stared at the man for a moment in confusion. "What do you mean?"
"Tadashi," the man came closer to Tadashi, "I need you to rob a bank."
"What?" Tadashi wasn't sure if he had heard him correctly.
"I said I need you to rob a bank. You know? It's a building, built for storing money and other valuable things-"
"I know what a bank is," Tadashi snapped. "but you want me to rob one?"
"See now you're catching on."
"Why in hell would I do that?"
"Didn't I already say it? You can pay for your brother's operation. The way I see it, you could not go through with the operation, but your brother would… you know. Or, you can go through with it, but have your family be in debt until you die. Then there's the option of the bank."
"Why would you bring me here to tell me this?"
"I saw in the restaurant how you were looking at that news broadcast. You want that money, and for a moment, you considered robbing a bank. Go ahead, tell me i'm wrong."
Tadashi opened his mouth to speak but didn't. It wa true. He had thought about robbing. Not a bank, just in general. He thought of the money he could get, for Hiro, for Aunt Cass.
"Okay i'll admit, I thought about it for a split second. But that's not me. I would never rob a bank. I don't even know how to go about doing that."
"That's why i'm here. Those men that tried to rob Krei Bank last night. I planned the whole thing. If they weren't all trigger happy idiots, they wouldn't be behind bars right now. But you, you are smart. You would be able to follow a plan, and you have the motivation for committing such an act. You and your friends, with your combined skill sets, could get in and get out without the cops even knowing what hit them."
Tons of thought were racing in Tadashi's head. This was insanity. This was illegal. This was robbing a bank for god sakes. This guy talked about it like it was a hobby of his.
"Look," the man continued, "I know you need money. This is the only way to get that money. Now i'm not forcing you to do anything, but this is going to be the one chance for you to help out your family."
"Why do you care about me or my family?"
"To be honest, I don't. I'm just trying give you some motivation."
"Then why do you want us to rob Krei Bank if you're not getting anything?"
"Well you're not robbing Krei bank, not yet. First, if you accept my offer, you'll hit a small one that's only meant to hold safety deposit boxes. You'd keep the money, and i'd be able to tell whether or not you're ready for Krei Bank."
Tadashi pondered the idea. The idea of committing one of the most illegal crimes in the world. "I… I don't know."
"That's fine, that's cool." The man pulled out a switchblade from his pocket. At first, Tadashi thought he was going to get killed for declining, but instead, the man cut the ropes that were binding Tadashi's wrists and ankles. "If you change your mind, come back here, we'll plan something, and you'll get the money for your brother. If you choose not to, then you walk away and never think of me again. The third choice is that you walk away, and call the cops on me. I would recommend choosing one of the first two. You screw me over," the man pulled out a gun from his jacket to show Tadashi, "I know where you live, I know where your friends live, and I know what hospital, and what room your brother's in."
Tadashi rose from the chair, and he could now see a bit more clearly. They were in a warehouse of some sort. They must've been at the San Fransokyo port, because the entire time, Tadashi could hear the sounds of waves crashing against the shore, and the smell of the sea breeze.
"I won't drug you this time," the man said as he put his knife away. "You can show yourself out." With that the man walked to the other side of the warehouse without another word, and he walked out a back door. On the side Tadashi had been facing, stood a large opening where two large doors would be.
He was left unguarded and with an open door. Was that guy really not threatening him? Was he just given a choice, and two of which had no consequence? He obviously wasn't going to tell the cops. That gun was enough to scare him, even though the guy had knowledge of his friends and family.
What was he going to do now? What choice should he make? Before being kidnapped it was obvious; definitely not robbing a bank. But now… he just wasn't sure.
Tadashi walked through the large entrance to be greeted by the San Fransokyo port. It was still dark out, so he hadn't been gone that long. The port was a fair ways away from the café, so Tadashi decided to call a cab.
When he arrived home, the lights were out and the doors were locked. Luckily, Tadashi had his house key. When he walked up the stairs into the living room Tadashi expected to get an earful from Aunt Cass about how late it was. Instead, he found Cass passed out on the couch.
Tadashi grabbed a blanket that was folded on the top of the couch, and layed it out on Aunt Cass. What was she doing down here? She was only ever asleep when she passed out watching some old horror movie or korean soap opera, but the TV was switched off. Then Tadashi looked to the table. On it was the hospital bill, Cass's check book… and a bottle of whiskey.
He gave his sleeping aunt a sad look. She had been up all night trying to solve this problem. On top of that, she was drinking her troubles away. He couldn't stand this. He couldn't stand to see his aunt, the person who'd taken care of him most of his life, like this.
He knew it was dumb. He knew it was dangerous. He knew he was would risk everything for this. Maybe it was just that's guy's words talking, drilling their way into Tadashi's head, but he knew what he was going to do.
He was going to put it all on the line and rob a bank.
(A/N) Tadashi: Oh for god's sake, why are you crying?
DaydreamDepartment: Because you're going to become the bad guy!
Tadashi: Uh no. Haven't you ever played GTA? The main characters may be thieves, but they were the most protagonistic people in their games. Or Sand Man from Spider Man 3. He was a villain, but he was doing it all for his daughter. It's gonna be the same story when Ant Man comes out. In these types of stories, the criminals are always the good guys.
DaydreamDepartment: Wow, I never thought about it that way.
Tadashi: Well I hope I made things a little bit more clear for you.
BEING A CRIMINAL, PASS IT ON.
Don't actually become a criminal. That's just something funny I thought I'd add. So there's Tadashi, wanting to rob a bank. If you've read the beginning of the first chapter, you know sh*t's gonna go down. How is the rest of the team going to react? Will Tadashi get the money for Hiro's operation? What is Mr.S's real name. Okay that last one isn't going to be a pivotal plot point… but it's still a question nonetheless! Hope you guys enjoyed this one. That's DaydreamDepartment out of your hair! )
P.S. I don't own Jurassic World, but I thought it'd be fun to add. Also, I encourage you to see the movie if you haven't yet. Most thrilling trip to the theater I've ever had. Okay byyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyye!
