I hate it when a character is played off flawlessly, and I feel like it happened with Tadashi. Even Baymax showed his foible when he was low on battery (by the way, that scene was hilarious!). On the other hand, Tadashi is always happy, always strong, always seeing the good side. I just... I do like him, but in my opinion that was a little too much.
Human beings make mistakes. We have flaws. We do things we regret. Even Baymax, who is a robot and had the potential to be perfect, wasn't. They humanized Baymax, we can see a little of humanity in him, and that's the reason I like him. (As Krei would say, I love that robot!)
So I've been trying to show Tadashi scared, afraid and unsure. For once, Tadashi doesn't have everything under control. I think that was something really lacking on the movie.
Well, I present you chapter six!
Tadashi looked through the window while Hiro was in the bathroom. The sun was slowly being covered by dark clouds; a small wind began to blow as the rustling of the branches of the trees outside got louder. He walked over his part of the room and grabbed his umbrella, just to be convenient. Then he heard the sound of small steps behind him and turned around, seeing that Hiro had left the bathroom and was waiting for his big brother.
"Ready to take a walk, buddy?"
"Where... Are we g-going?"
"I'm not sure yet. Eat something, walk outside. You need to do some exercise, young man. It has been college and home, home and college for the last two days; it's time to do something different. Unless you want to go to college again, nerd." He said, teasingly ruffling his brother's hair.
"Fluffy robot is there. I wouldn't mind." Hiro shrugged and smiled as he tried to organize his hair. His efforts were useless; his hair always pointed to all the directions possible. Tadashi smiled and shook his head, approaching his younger brother and kneeling down to tie Hiro's shoes. Before he could tie Hiro's left shoe, he heard his phone ringing.
"Be right back, ok?" Tadashi said as he tapped Hiro's head. Hiro tilted his head and looked down at his untied shoe, sitting down to try to tie it himself as Tadashi walked toward his bed, where his phone was. He grabbed it and his smile faded when he saw who was calling him.
Aunt Cass.
He put one hand over his mouth, thoughtful, as he looked at his phone. He knew he should answer the call. He looked over his shoulder and let out a soft giggle when he saw that Hiro was staring at his feet with his arms crossed, looking as jaded as it can be because he couldn't tie his shoe.
"Hey, Hiro." Tadashi called. The young boy perked up at the mention of his name, looking at his older brother. He nodded when Tadashi asked him to be quiet, pretending to zip his mouth closed. The older one nodded in response before finally answering their aunt.
"Tadashi?"
"Hey, Aunt Cass. How are you doing?"
"Oh, it's all fine here. I just wanted to hear from my favorite nephews. How are you boys doing? How's the week going?"
"Hum... Fine. I took Hiro to visit my college. He loved one of my main projects." Tadashi bit his lip. It wasn't a lie at all. Hiro did love Baymax. Tadashi just didn't mention Hiro was five years old when he saw it.
"Is it that robotic nurse you showed me once?"
"Yeah. It took me a few tries, but I think it's finally working now!"
"I knew you would do it, Tadashi! No wonder Hiro liked it, that project is amazing."
"Thank you. It means a lot."
"Hey, it's just the truth." She smiled. "Speaking of Hiro, can I talk with him?"
Tadashi's eyes widened.
"Why?" He asked, without thinking at all. He mentally slapped himself after that question.
"Hum, because I want to talk to him, perhaps?" Cass chuckled. "Did you study for over eight hours straight again?"
"Yes! I did. That's why I'm not thinking straight." He forced a laugh and he could almost see Cass shaking her head and smiling through the phone.
"Well, can I?"
"What? Oh, Hiro." He bit his lip. "I'll call him for you." Tadashi covered the end of his phone and tapped his foot. He looked at the watch on the wall and counted from one to twenty before sighing and putting his phone to his ear again. "Hum, Hiro just entered the bathroom to take a shower. You should probably call later."
Please believe me.
"Really? I hope he didn't do anything wrong and rushed to the bathroom to avoid a conversation if he noticed it was me who was calling."
"No, he didn't do that. Not this time, I mean." Tadashi chuckled at some memories. "He didn't know it was you. Also, we may go out to eat something after he finishes his shower, so if I don't answer any calls, that's why."
"Oh, ok. Are you sure everything is fine?"
"Yes, Aunt Cass. No need to worry."
"Good. See you soon! Tell Hiro I said hi."
"I will. See you!" He said before hanging up. Tadashi sighed and sat down on his bed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "She bought it, buddy. I thought she wouldn't... Hiro?"
Tadashi looked around his room and noticed Hiro wasn't on the spot he previously was. Tadashi wanted to slap himself in the face again when he realized he hadn't been looking at Hiro while talking on the phone with Aunt Cass. He should have known it would be enough time for the little boy to get away and have the opportunity to make a mess. The older one huffed in annoyance as he started to call for his little brother and look for him. Tadashi was calm enough, they were at home and there was nothing that could threaten Hiro's life there like there was in college.
At least that's what he thought.
Tadashi's heart stopped when he got downstairs and entered the kitchen.
It was one of those moments when one simply can't think rationally. He stood still on the bottom of the stairs, unable to move as his brain tried to assimilate the image he had in front of him.
Hiro was lying down on the floor as he tried to get up on his elbows, but failed. He was hyperventilating; his forearms were redder than they should be. A raspy sound came from his mouth, almost as if he was trying to get something off his throat. His eyes watered from the physical exertion. Hiro tried to stretch his arms to get up on his elbows once more, but he coughed and his hands slid across the floor, his head collapsing on the wood.
Tadashi snapped back to reality when his brother passed out. He shook his head before running and kneeling down by Hiro's side. His hands fluttered around his little brother, for he had no idea of what he should do.
"Hiro? Hiro!"
Tadashi looked down, staring blankly at Hiro, to make sure was breathing. The younger one fluttered his eyes open and looked up. Even if all he saw was blurred, he could never not recognize his brother. Hiro tried to reach out for Tadashi, but his hand fell on the ground when he tried to do so. He let out a forced "Dashi" before closing his eyes again.
"Hiro, what did you do? What happened? Hiro, wake up! Hiro!"
Tadashi positioned his body in order to grab Hiro and settled the little boy in his lap; Hiro's legs were draped over Tadashi's crossed leg and his head was resting on Tadashi's forearm. The older one sighed in relief when he realized Hiro hadn't exactly passed out; but he wasn't really awoken either. Tadashi glanced at an open closet under the kitchen sink and then noticed an open packing near the spot where he had found Hiro hyperventilating.
"Knucklehead! You ate peanuts again?"
Tadashi wanted to yell at Hiro for doing that, but knew it would be totally useless. Hiro didn't know what he was doing and it wasn't his fault. The older one controlled himself not to squeeze Hiro to death in his arms, but he was so scared that sweat started to go down his forehead. He couldn't go to the hospital; people there knew Hiro and they sure would be suspicious to see him as a five year old. The older one was nearly having a heart attack when an idea came to him.
"Baymax!"
The mention of the "fluffy robot" made Hiro smile for a second, but it soon faded when pain hit him again. He closed his eyes once more and laid one arm on his belly, getting on a fetal position in his brother's lap. His arms and legs were getting red, and Tadashi knew he had to hurry. The last time something like that had happened was when Hiro was around nine years old, but the memory was still clear on Tadashi's mind. He gulped as he stood up, making his best not to drop Hiro, but being careful not to hurt him and make him comfortable at the same time.
Tadashi looked from side to side as he tried to think rationally. He knew the best thing to do would be call Wasabi and ask him for a ride to the college. But he knew how slow his friend could be, even when someone's life was at risk. And more, he lived too far away. Until he got there, it could be too late. Some other options went through his mind, but he would always end up with the same conclusion: he was running out of time.
The older Hamada knew what he had to do. It was irresponsible and Aunt Cass would kill him if she found out; not to mention it was dangerous and it could end up pretty bad. But he had to get to the college and save Hiro's life.
After taking a deep breath, he went to the balcony and grabbed the keys of his motorbike. Luckly, GoGo had brought it back to the cafe the day before as a favor. Tadashi jogged to the front door, Hiro made his best to hold his older brother's shirt, but he didn't have enough strength. Tadashi's heart skipped a beat every time Hiro let out a wail. He quickly stopped to make sure his younger brother was alright. Well, as alright as one can be when they're going through an allergic reaction. His allergy was a mild one, but Tadashi knew that could end up closing Hiro's throat and keeping him from breathing.
Tadashi put on his helmet, sitting down on his motorbike. He wrapped one arm around Hiro and used his other arm to hold the handlebars, looking down at the boy in his lap. Hiro seemed to be semi-conscious, his little hand softly tugged Tadashi's shirt. Tadashi let in some air as he turned the key to turn his motorbike on. Hiro coughed and his cheeks seemed to puff for a second, but he just shivered and started to hyperventilate again.
"Are you ok?" Tadashi asked, worried. All he got for a reply was a soft nod, which Hiro gave without even opening his eyes.
Well, that's it. He thought as he sighed.
"Hold on, buddy!"
The older Hamada sighed one more time before he tightened the grip on Hiro. He lifted his head and gritted his teeth with determination, finally accelerating his motorbike and entering the streets.
Tadashi would be lying if he said that situation hadn't scared him to death. Besides the fear of Hiro dying in his arms, driving with one hand only while holding an infirm boy in a city like San Fransokyo was something nobody should ever have to do. He made his best to obey the law, but he certainly passed a few red lights and drove on the sidewalk more times than he would like to count. On that ride people had called him names he would never repeat, and he understood their reasons.
After that troubled ride, he finally got to his college. Tadashi left his motorbike in such a hurry that it fell on the ground with a clash; but he didn't bother enough to pick it up or even take his helmet off. Despite it being a Saturday, there were quite some students there, which made it even more difficult for Tadashi. He tried to dodge the people on his way, but his apprehension and the fact that he was holding Hiro didn't allow to run perfectly. He bumped into some people, and had it been any other day, he would have stopped and apologized.
Tadashi slammed the door of his lab open, causing a thud that could be heard all the way from the third floor. He entered the room in a jump and used his foot to kick the door behind him, closing it with another thud. He allowed himself to calm down for a moment, looking at Hiro in his arms. He was still breathing with difficulty, his little arms and legs were still red and he was starting to wheeze. But at least he seemed to be more conscious than he was when they left the house. Surely that crazy motorbike ride had been enough to wake him up. Tadashi put his brother on the floor, being careful not to let him pass out or fall. He ran to the opposite corner of the room and grabbed Baymax's luggage.
"Baymax!"
Nothing happened. Tadashi wanted to slap himself again for being so idiot. He hadn't thought about installing a voice control.
"Ow." He faked pain, knowing that was the word that would activate Baymax. Nothing happened again. "Ugh."
He made a mental note to change that later. Tadashi closed his eyes and turned to the wall, biting his lip. That was going to hurt. He lifted his foot and it took him a second before he finally kicked the wall with all of his strength.
"Ow!" He said again, but this time it was real. His eyes got watery as he let out a shriek, grabbing his foot with his hands and jumping on the other foot; making his best to keep his balance. He quickly turned his head when he heard a familiar sound: Baymax was now inflated and approached Tadashi. That was enough to make the human forget about his pain and quickly run back to Hiro, who was still sitting on the ground as he tried to breathe better. Tadashi carefully picked his brother up.
"Baymax!"
"I heard a sound of distress. What seems to be the trouble?" His robot head moved up and down. "Tadashi, you have an epidermal abrasion on your right foot. On a scale of..."
"Not now!" Tadashi interrupted. "You have to help Hiro! He's going through some kind of reaction... Allergies... I don't know!" He said, showing the boy in his arms to the robot. He watched as Baymax scanned Hiro and then approached, softly taking the boy from Tadashi's arms and putting him on a chair. Tadashi could barely breathe when Baymax made a needle appear on the tip of his finger, piercing the young boy's arm with it. Hiro let out a complaining wail and wanted to cry, but it was cut off when Baymax put a tube of oxygen over Hiro's mouth.
The young boy's eyes widened for a moment, but he relaxed into the situation when he noticed it was helping him to feel better. Tadashi watched from behind, his heart beating so loud that he swore people could hear it from outside his lab. He bit his tongue and crossed his fingers when the robot turned around with Hiro in his arms. Still a little scared from the injection, he seemed to be even more awake now. The red spots on his legs and arms seemed to be getting smaller and he was starting to breathe normally, yet he still coughed a lot.
The older Hamada approached, feeling like his heart had gone all the way down his stomach.
"Hiro has a mild allergy to peanuts. The ingestion of such may lead to have trouble breathing, feel lightheaded, or to pass out. Luckily, he was medicated fast enough. It could have been life threatening otherwise." Tadashi blinked in confusion, slowly starting to feel better when he heard what the robot was saying. His heart slowed down, his lungs relaxed. Hiro rubbed his eyes and looked up, smiling. "He will be alright."
Baymax gently handed Hiro back to Tadashi. The older Hamada pressed the younger one against his chest, letting out the most relieved sigh ever. He gave a few steps back until his back hit against the wall and he slowly slid to the ground, crossing his legs. Hiro coughed again and looked up at Tadashi, wrapping his arms around his brother's neck in a hug. Tadashi ruffled Hiro's hair and closed his eyes, returning the hug.
"Hiro, remember when I said there were only two rules? Well, now there's a third. Never eat anything without asking permission first, ok? You could have..."
He didn't dare to finish that sentence. It wasn't necessary anyway. Hiro was alright and that was all that mattered. He remembered that when the younger was nine years old and ate peanuts for the first time, his throat swelled up and he couldn't breathe. Tadashi was more than glad to see it hadn't happened that time.
They pulled away from the hug, but Tadashi still held his brother in his lap as he stood up and walked up to Baymax.
"Remind me to install a voice control later, ok? I don't want to have to kick the wall and hurt my toe every time you get sick, bonehead." Tadashi said, pressing his forehead against Hiro's and rubbing it softly. The young boy let out a chuckle and nodded. The moment was interrupted when he coughed, his stomach abruptly retracting.
"Before I forget," Baymax said. "The baby may experience some collateral effects from the anti-allergy I had to administer; such as coughing, hoarseness and vomiting. I suggest letting him rest for the rest of the day and don't let him eat anything that may be hard to digest. And no peanuts."
"Fluffy robot." Hiro said, trying to catch his breath as he giggled.
"I cannot deactivate until you say you are satisfied with your care."
Tadashi sighed again.
"Thank you, Baymax. I..."
"I'm sa... Satisfied with my c-care." Hiro interrupted.
Tadashi turned his head in surprise as Baymax went to his luggage and shrank. The older one gave a huge smile before sighing again.
"Are you feeling ok?"
Hiro nodded, but then looked down at his belly and let out a painful wail.
"I'm going to take you home, ok?" Tadashi looked up and chuckled. "Look at that. I didn't even take my helmet off! I sure hope no cop saw us in our way here. Aunt Cass won't be happy if she comes back home and the first thing she sees is a traffic ticket." He said as he put his helmet on a table and left his lab, walking slowly as he rubbed Hiro's back. Hiro placed his head on Tadashi's chest and took a deep breath.
Some students passed by, and Tadashi looked around as he looked for his friends. He sighed when he realized there were only strangers there. Some of them glanced at Tadashi, and he perceived they should be the ones on whom he had bumped into when he was entering the college. He forced a smile whenever he got a glance.
After walking through that hallway, he finally got to the front door. When he opened it, a soft draft went through his hair. Hiro shivered when the cold wind hit his body, making him open his eyes and look at the scenery in front of him.
"Rain." He muttered under his breath.
Tadashi looked at his brother and then looked ahead again. He hadn't noticed it before, but Hiro was right: a drizzle fell from sky, which explained the cold weather they were feeling. Hiro shivered again and rubbed his head against Tadashi's chest. The older brother sighed and put his brother on the floor, an action Hiro didn't take very well. He cocked his head and reached out.
"Dashi!"
"Just a second." Tadashi giggled. He took his jacket off and walked around Hiro, motioning for his brother to open his arms. Hiro shrugged and obeyed; watching curious as Tadashi put his jacket on his younger brother. He giggled again at the fact that Hiro practically disappeared inside the jacket, for it was way larger than his size. Then the older brother pulled the hood over his younger brother's head, nearly covering his vision. "There. It should keep you warm and dry."
Hiro pushed the hood back and looked up, worried. "B-But Dashi will be cold."
"Dashi will be just fine." He assured as he pulled the hood over Hiro's head again. Then he knelt down with his back on Hiro. "Get on."
"Hum?"
"We can't go home by motorbike. I only used it to come here because it was an emergency. Get on, I'll take you home on my back."
Hiro approached his brother, unsure. He put his hands on either shoulder of Tadashi as the older placed his hands on Hiro's legs and stood up. The boy tightened the grip he was giving on his brother and looked ahead.
"Are you ready to go?"
Hiro nodded, but seemed to hesitate.
"Dashi will be cold. You're n-not wearing your j-jacket anymore."
"It doesn't matter now. We'll get home soon."
"But I d-don't want you to be cold, T... Dashi."
Tadashi turned his head and looked at Hiro. The younger one had concern and a bit of sadness on his face.
"Why don't we make a deal? I gave you my jacket, so now you wrap your arms around me until we get home. That will keep me warm."
"Ok." Hiro said, smiling. He wrapped his arms around Tadashi's neck until his hands touched over his brother's neck; then he held his left wrist with his right hand, to make sure he was keeping Tadashi warm, like a scarf. The older one smiled and shook his head, looking at Hiro one more time to be sure the hood was over his brother's head to keep him safe from the rain. Tadashi took a deep breath and finally started to walk, leaving his college.
As he walked in the rain, his hair quickly got wet as a few drops fell on his shirt and shoulders. He shivered because of the cold; and Hiro seemed to notice, for he rubbed his sleepy head against Tadashi's shoulder to produce some heat.
"You should build a jacket like fluffy robot." Hiro said after a yawn. "He's warm."
"I will keep that in mind, Hiro." Tadashi laughed; but then he let out a grumble when he stepped on a puddle. "Better build a shoe dryer too, hum?" He chuckled.
"Hey, Dashi." Hiro said, sounding serious yet sleepy.
"Yes, Hiro?"
"I'm sorry."
The older blinked.
"Why?"
"For eat-eating that and for mak-making you bring me here... On a sat-turday... With your bike."
Tadashi stopped walking to think and looked over his shoulder to see his brother; Hiro's head was lying on Tadashi's shoulder and he had his eyes closed, yet the grip around Tadashi was tighter than ever.
"Hey, it's ok." He said, walking again.
"Thank you, Dashi. You saved my live."
"No problem. I will always be there to save you. Just try not to get into trouble, ok?"
"Ok." Hiro chuckled, yawning. "I love you, Dashi."
Tadashi stopped walking for the second time.
"I love you too, Hiro."
You can all tell me how bad this was now.
Well, Hiro's allergy was a very minor thing in the movie; some people don't even remember about it. But I decided to use it to bring some interaction and some lifesaving between the Hamada brothers. I had to do some research and I was based on an allergy reaction I had around two years ago; but I never had any contact with peanut allergy itself, so I'm sorry if I got anything wrong. If I did, please forgive me.
Also, thanks for the support again. To everyone who sent me a message asking about this story, thank you too. I hope I didn't disappoint you guys with this chapter!
I hope you enjoyed this. Thank you for reading!
