because it's valentine's day mofos

disclaimer: i don't own the copyrighted material within

Honey kicks in the door and squeals all the way to a table, quickly followed by Carol and Bethrani carrying huge boxes. Gigi just rolls her eyes while everyone else wonders what two non-roboticists are doing in the lab, and Honey cheers, "It's finally here!"

Hiro looks at Marys, who shrugs, and asks like he's dismantling a bomb, "What is finally here?"

"Dizzy Kei's Valentine's Day shipment!"

And then the three are pulling out pink tulle, white silk, red cotton, and so much sequins and sparkles and pure whimsy that Hiro wonders if they shot down Cupid and ransacked his body. Honey pulls Marys into the growing crowd around the table and Hiro goes to save his girlfriend; fashion was neato and all, but he was trying to work on his nanobots and needed Marys's input.

Marys sighs as she runs a hand over a rose dress—Hiro recognizes the fabric, a modification of the Big Heroes' undersuits, he's glad that Honey found an extra use for it—and Honey shrills, "Valentine's Day is this Friday, and we just have so many orders, I just HAD to show them off! Thank you so much Hiro!" And bweh, Hiro blushes hard when Honey kisses his cheeks because come on, not in front of everyone!

Then she and her friends swirl away again, cackling about the insane commissions rolling in. The lab returns to normal, although some of them have fashion and romance on the mind. Hiro sees Marys bite her lip in her "I really want something and am considering the pros and cons of obtaining it" way

and decides that as creator of the special silk, he should be able to get that dress for her in time for Friday.

Hiro imagines Marys spinning around in shades of rose, and blames his blush on the stifling room, did someone rewire the AC again?

"Ok kids," Yue shushes Chiyo and Xiaolan so they can listen to Nene's monotone, "lots of people are coming Friday either on dates, group outings or determined singles' sessions. If you have plans, tell me now."

Ai raises her hand, "I think I got asked out to here."

"Perfect, you can work around your date." Nene motions at their assortment of uniforms, "If you wanna dress up, that's fine. Just don't be complete sluts and invest in fancy non-slips."

Sonu grins, "Can we make special requests? A cute guy in my homeroom might show up and he likes salted caramel mocha, which is not on the menu anymore."

"Keep it on the down low, and that reminds me: Junichi, Yue, you two've got the steadiest hands, you're with me on fruit duty the morning of. Any issue with school?"

Junichi goes to school online and lives with Nene, so he only whines for a bit about about wanting to sleep in. Yue shakes her head, because education in juvie is a bit more lax than official high school. Ai and Chiyo shift a bit at this, embarrassed at their technical incarceration. Only by the grace of their minor ages and the Big Heroes' influence their names weren't outed to the media, which Yue is so thankful for. Junichi squeezes Yue's hand because he understands how the Fujitas are impossible to come away from unharmed, and speaks up, "Need anything else, Ms. Nene?"

Nene sighs, "Only some advice…should I wear a red yukata or cheongsam?" She quarter smirks, "An evil old professor of mine is going to come with his mistress, and I want to make him squirm before I report him for falsifying grades."

Xiaolan grins like the devil incarnate and the whole group huddles in to discuss a plan of attack. Chiyo has an account on Dizzy Kei, she can get some of the better selections for the whole group and Nene can compensate her as a work write off; there's a family of florists across the bay sweet on Sonu and grow the loveliest roses; all the kids love working at the bar and love Nene for taking them in, and this Valentine's Day is going to rock.

When Nene's lips twitch upwards as Xiaolan plans the perfect outfit, Yue feels hope for her own future, Friday and beyond.

Wasabi unsnaps his lawn chair and plants it firmly into the earth, before easing himself down and sighing down to his core. He was in the only spot of sunlight in the entire SFIT campus, possibly all of San Fransokyo, and he needed some vitamin D.

He also likes this spot because it's close to the hub, and people watching is a guilty pastime, if only to validate his hygiene concerns. The amount of unclean PDAs are enough to make his skin crawl in the most wonderful ways, and Wasabi really hopes that Baymax gives Hiro and Marys the Talk soon, if Tadashi and Marys's father hadn't already.

A half-forgotten young woman strolls by, and oh yeah, Tadashi used to date Denise Ishioka. Wasabi wonders why they fell apart (if it had anything to do with the way Tadashi used to smile at Honey), and if they'd gotten together again if Tadashi had survived the fire. Funny how disasters can bring people together—he spots Gigi with a new girlfriend and wishes them well.

Pulling out a book he's been meaning to read, Wasabi lazes through simple prose and occasionally cringing at ridiculous dating fails and germ contamination. Say what you will about Hiro and Marys's ages, but they're much better off than the idiot in red who two-timed three datemates at once. Wasabi hisses when those three datemates gang up and start whaling on their idiot, and should the Big Heroes get involved?

…nah, Wasabi likes his sun spot. The guy will be fine anyway, nothing a trip to the health center can't fix. Wasabi pulls out a thermos of green tea and sips away, spotting Abigail and Gogo debating whether or not they should intercede.

Oh boy, those two. His momma would not approve of the team incest, but Wasabi concedes that it could work. He'll be the smart one if need be, no chemical romance bonding him to a teammate; if that fails, Fred and Nene are good points of reference to work by, the Big Heroes can make inter-team dating work.

Wasabi returns to his book, existing happily a tangent away from pre-Valentine's Day drama. Then someone walks up and asks, "Hey, can I sit here? I need my sunlight fix after all of this gloomy weather."

He looks up to see dark brown eyes and androgynous features and a little bottle of hand sanitizer clipped to the other's belt. Hot damn, but Wasabi can appreciate someone with a little interest in their health, especially when they look like that. He scoots over a bit, "Not at all."

"Thanks," they laugh and plop down in the sun patch, "I'm Alex, nice to meet you."

Wasabi grins, "I'm Andre, but you can call me Wasabi if you spot me some of your hand sanitizer."

…well, Wasabi never said that he was a pillar of virtue, Fred and Nene can carry on.

"Freddy," Honey sang as she entered his room, "We've got patrolling duty by the docks, you ready?"

"Yeah," except that Fred isn't. He's sprawled on his bed, a framed picture in his hand, and Honey knows the signs of male angst well enough to know that this is bad. "Lemme just get suited up, you heading to Nene's on Friday?"

"Of course, she has the best red velvet cake pops," Honey sits down next to Fred, "But tell me what's wrong, hermano. Bad day at volunteering?"

Fred sighs heavy and heard like he never should, "Like you wouldn't believe. You know how many people are in shelters because their romantic partners are evil?" He holds up the picture—it's him and a group of smiling teens in front of the Golden Gate bridge—and frowns, "These kids aren't even our age yet but they've fallen for abusers. Like, how do we fix that? We're supposed to be heroes."

Honey bites her bottom lip, assessing how all of the teens in the picture are wearing long button downs and strategically brushed hairstyles. Fred's right, they are Heroes, but how do they even begin to fix that problem?

Then Honey gets an idea, and pulls out her cell, "You think that Hiro's busy?"

Hiro's not busy, and neither is the rest of the team. San Fransokyo's Shelter for Young Adults suddenly gets a visit from all nine of them, Marys suited up in a prototype Honey design. The teens and adults are star-struck, Baymax the most popular of all, and they spent the whole night hanging out and quietly assessing how to help.

Money helps, of course, and Abigail grins that she can get Krei to do a big budget fundraiser for all of San Fransokyo's shelters in a way that benefits everyone involved. But Honey's surprised that just letting the people in the shelter vent is helpful enough, and personally plans to visit some of the worst offenders and set their garages on fire.

Eventually they leave with a promise to return, and one of the teens yells, "Happy almost Valentine's Day!" just as their giggling friends blow kisses and flash Wasabi.

Abigail squawks and hides Hiro and Marys's eyes, while everyone else shrieks with laughter. Later on when Fred's walking Honey home, he sighs, "Thank you."

Honey smiles, "Tis the season of love, and we're heroes; we ought to be spreading some."

Nene isn't the only one with a Valentine's Day rush. Cass smiles as her café thrums with good vibes, especially from the adorable senior citizens on first dates. Hiro's being a diligent barista while Baymax has calming Baymax time in a corner with some patrons, and Cass figures that they're going to make supreme bank by Sunday. Happy Valentine's Day indeed.

Especially when Marys shows up with Abigail just to order a plate of macarons and smile at Hiro. Cass loves Marys, how she gets Hiro to act like a proper fifteen year old and gangs up on him with Abigail and Baymax to get Hiro to sleep more often. Really, she expects her to be just as good of an influence on him at home and on their little team

Cass grins at Hiro's showboating to Marys and Abigail; as if he could hide his Big Hero life from her, after she's raised him and knows all of his awkward smiles. Oh, she'll let him tell her herself, he needs privacy as a growing boy, but she plans on getting revenge for his stunt a few weeks ago with the stabbing and whatever else in the warehouse district.

For now, she watches him blush over Marys and tease Abigail for being an old maid. As if; Cass might not have raised Abigail, but she's part of the extended Hamada family, and Cass is expecting Gogo to join in any day now. Really, these kids didn't grow up with Tomeo and Mae, nobody can keep secret affections and affiliations from Cass Hamada.

No, she'll let them do this dance; it's Valentine's Day tomorrow anyway, the whole pomp and circumstance is adorable. Abigail and Marys lock heads and start planning experimental aircraft with rocket engines, in between drilling Hiro on his own projects, and Cass can't help but smile.

When Hiro shyly pulls Marys aside after the dinner rush and presents her with the beautiful rose dress he asked for an allowance advance on, Abigail sighs and Marys squeal and Cass sees Tomeo and Mae forever and ever; maybe this iteration will have a happy ending suited for a cheesy holiday.

Nene isn't sure if it's salty to wear a cute aromantic pin on her cheongsam's lapel on Valentine's Day, but all the other ace, aro and demi kids at SFIT/SFST's communal group all do the same. She's pleasantly surprised to find Fred there with a gray-ace pin and they roll up to the annual Valentine's Day Rally by SFIT's hub together.

There couples and random students team together in ridiculous games, and Nene laughs into her palm when somehow all of her fellow Heroes get pulled into the mess. Hiro and Marys arguing with each other in Lovers' Jeopardy, Wasabi and the nonbinary person in Nene's bioengineerging class dancing against Gogo and Abigail, Honey beating everyone in the selfie-off and probably getting a few numbers afterward…Kanon would've loved these dumb shenanigans, Nene claps along.

"Where did you get that pin?" Nene turns to see Elio Miura next to her, eyeing her pin with interest, "It's not as frilly as the ones off Dizzy Kei."

"One of the SFIT/SFST communal clubs is for people in the grayer end of the spectrum," Nene tilts her head, "Interested?"

"I only just found out all the names to it," Elio's voice is a pleasant kind of soft, not monotone like Nene but simply quiet. "It explains why I'm just into Valentine's Day for the chocolates."

Nene nods, "We have a 'Self Lovers Only' chocolate menu at the bar tonight, I'll tell you more about the club if you show up." Elio smiles and she follows on her urge to add, "Unless you're busy now? You're a robotics major, right? Just came out of week 5-6 midterms?"

"If there's chocolate involved, I'll make time," and Elio's smile is a pleasant kind of understated, not smug like Kanon's or flat like Nana's but just…nice. Friendly, Nene could use some more friends.

An airhorn fires off, queuing Fred in his mascot suit to step up and wow everyone with his insane sign twirling skills. Nene and Elio giggle together at the sight, and this is nice together, this is warm in her red silk and drab brown hair; Nene hopes that Junichi and Yue finished the rest of the fruit desserts, she wouldn't want to offer a potential friend anything less on Self Love Day.

Hiro whistles at the giant crowd filing into Nene's and stage whispers to Marys, "Do you think there's a VIP room?"

Marys laughs, and she runs her hands over her skirt again just because she can. She can't believe Hiro got it for her—even if Honey would've given it to him for free, the fact that he got her The Dress Of Her Dreams is still super mind blowing. She twirls around to watch the silk rise up to her knees and feels pretty, feels light, feels giddy knowing that Hiro turns into a blushing mumbling mess every time she smiles at him.

Inside Nene's divided the bar in two, and Junichi pulls them to a free corner in the dating side. There's tables and menus and wow, it's like areal café, and Junichi blushes at Marys's out loud thinking, "We're not that second-rate you know."

"Especially not with this music," Hiro points out the Panic! At the Roller Rink music playing, and sings along just because he knows that Marys loved to hear him sing. She teases him for turning into a post-emo loser, and he recalls all the MNR posters in her room; the implicit expectation that they'll go see their next tour together goes said through mutual giggling. Marys likes everything honeydew and Hiro's interested in the five alarm spice truffles being offered; he smiles lazy and wide as they place their orders, "Tonight's on me."

Marys blushes at the romance and makes him blush in return by teasing, "I'll just have to pay you back another way."

"Y-You mean?" His voice is tiny and hopeful and makes Marys burn with energy.

She nods, slowly leans in…and whispers, "24 hour Godzilla marathon on my flat screen."

Hiro cheers and Yue, Chiyo and Ai sigh dreamily in a corner. Are she and Hiro cute? Hell yes they are, and Marys smirks to herself at catching such an amazing boyfriend. And when he leads her into a heated discussion about Sugar Rush racing strategies, everything else melts away. Just his voice, his eyes, his hands illustrating—just Hiro.

Marys startles a bit when their food arrives, and Hiro chirps, "Distracted?"

"Distracted by your dumb mouth," and leans in to brush back his hair and mark that dumb mouth as hers. He shivers and she shakes, and her dress catches along his hands.

Sure, this day was just a marketing grab for cheesy cards chocolates, but that was just fine with her, now that she had someone to laugh at those cards with, someone to taste chocolate off of.

Gogo would have to be blind to miss how Abigail's eyes trail across her hips, how Abigail's words linger in collarbone hollows and how their hands never quite touch even when sharing tools because the body shock would trigger an earthquake.

Gogo is far from blind, she sees more than maybe even Wasabi in terms of detail; maybe it comes with being a bike courier, or an elder nuna in a messy Korean drama neighborhood, or just another part of Edith Yerin Cho.

And she'd have to be blind to miss so many things about her friends, like how Honey still holds a candle for her ex-crush Irene Lim, or how Wasabi totally needs to stop blaming hygiene on his attraction to Alex Valenzuela, or how once upon a time Tadashi's eyes edged along Honey's shadow.

That could've been sweet, but Gogo's the one who started the whole no dating friends rule when freshman year hormones nearly tore them apart, and Gogo isn't one to go back on her word. No, the what-could-have-beens are black and white, and right now is bright neon red on the back of Gogo's knees and neck. Abigail catches her eye over their coffees, and Gogo winks away another flirt, just to taste the shivers when Abigail's gaze flickers down to Gogo's lips.

It's stupid how easy the shivers come, because they flirt all the time as it is, Gogo's surprised that even Hiro hasn't noticed yet. A tease here, an innuendo there, and they don't necessarily need to strip down together between super hero changes but they do anyway; Gogo can read all the fine print etched into Abigail's laughter and Abigail's grins and Abigail's cheekbones, arms, scars on a toned stomach that Gogo wants to drag her tongue across and spell all the colors that Abigail makes her feel.

Oh, she could imagine what those pilot hands could do, how that back could arch like an after trail in the sky and a voice like shooting stars—

Gogo rests her cheek in her palm, counting the roses strung overhead, and this can't end well.

It can't end well, they're teammates and friends, how could it possibly end well when one false step could rip the Big Hero dynamic apart? Sure, Hiro and Marys proved that it could be done, but their love is innocent, their love doesn't involve the dangers of X-rated physical need. Gogo knows that Abigail knows this, that's why she won't reach over and trigger an earthquake handhold. Gogo knows this, that even Baymax would know this, that they should just let it go and pretend to live in black and white

and yet when Gogo turns to ask Nene for a refill, she sees Abigail's expression in the mirrored cabinets. Abigail's longing is plain in its technicolor, how her eyes soften in emerald and lavender affection, honey gold friendship stained with coral lust over Gogo's radish calves and shoulder muscles. It's not true-true love but it's close enough to hurt the same way and Gogo feels Abigail sigh in the hollows of her collarbones, in her hips and between her heartbeats. She sees Abigail want to let go but still cling to just another moment and Gogo can't begrudge her when all she can focus on is the curve of her lips, their exact shade of peach and their easy relief when Abigail says Gogo's name.

This can't end well.

Abigail's wearing a dark pink minidress to show of her perfect thighs, and in the rose light she's a siren.

This won't end well.

Abigail sways ever so slightly to the subtly seductive music pumping beneath their feet, drawing Gogo in.

This will ruin everything, but Abigail's hand is so close, and San Fransokyo is built to withstand the world falling apart under the Big Heroes' feet.

Nene makes eye contact with Gogo and pointedly taps her wrist; she sees, she knows, and when a Fujita tells you to get on with it then you better put on your skates and go. Gogo gulps down her coffee, womans up, and asks in the pause before the big one, "What are you doing after this?"

The big one hits when Abigail finally fumbles her way around an affirmative answer, when their hands brush against each other when they reach for the bill, when they knock together against the roses and joke together and breathe together on the too short walk to Abigail's flat. The buildings melt into the sea and the earth swallows up all of their mistakes and Abigail tastes like ozone, like apricot ozone; Gogo will never find a better flavor that can jolt like adrenaline through her heart.

"Aren't we supposed to not perpetuate team dating?" Abigail laughs against Gogo's lips, more delicate than a sugar spun bubble, more thrilling than a black hole portal.

"Wasabi will get over it," and Gogo dives into the new dimension set between Abigail's hips and in the reach of her arms, and it's cold flames and stark touches and colorful sound and not-quite-but-close-enough love here in the aftermath of their body shock.

Who knew that something as stupid as Valentine's Day could mean something more than a candy kiss; this won't be a bed of roses, but Gogo would have to be blind to miss how wonderfully she and Abigail fit together, and the world is just going to have to reform itself around that.

DAT ABIGOGO KISS THO

So happy Valentine's Day! It's my first single one in 3 years, and I'm spending it babysitting, wishing for pizza and writing about fictional lesbians XD

Side note: in a previous chapter, Honey referred to the iconic bodycon Chinese dress as qipao, and Nene refers to it here as cheongsam. They are both correct, however Honey's using the Mandarin word she learned from online Asian fashion blogs, and Nene's using the Cantonese word that she speaks. In real life San Francisco, Cantonese is the most spoken Chinese, but where I live it's Mandarin, so it's an interesting bit of difference for me.

ANYWAY, see you all next chapter!