Hiro was very patient.
Usually.
He was hotheaded, sure, but he was also calm in the face of most insults because he knew that the ones insulting him had the collective intelligence of sacks of hammers.
Usually.
Not at SFIT. No, the students here were intelegent, respectfully and ridiculously so. Why then did some of them have the slightly less intelegent habit of bashing Tadashi's memory to Hiro's face?!
Hiro was patient, hoping they would see how much hurt and rage their words stirred in him. They seemed to get the message without much hassle, and soon shut up, much to the boy's relief.
Except one.
Tadashi's thickheaded, big muscled rival, Scone. (Nicknamed by Fred because he loved to eat said scones. Fred regretted giving him the name after a trip to the ER, but the nickname stuck.)
The teen loathed the older man. A lot.
"Hamada." He sang, "Hamada...how do you like being an only child? Must be amazing, not having Tadashi around to steal your fire."
Hiro was patient. He let the words of bullies roll off him like water off a duck's back.
Not this time.
This time he lashed out with a yell, punching the larger boy in the nose, breaking it. He then drop-kicked Scone, knocking him to the ground.
"Don't ever." He growled savagely, standing above the fallen teen menacingly. "Put fire and Tadashi's name in the same sentence."
As he walked away, Scone snarled a vow.
"You're MINE Hamada!"