Work Text:
Tadashi wasn’t sure when their roles reversed. Maybe it was the two years of college that made Hiro so outgoing and completely different from his younger self. Actually, now that he thought about it, only someone as bold as Hiro would have went to illegal bot fights. Add in the fact that after accepting Krei’s proposal, Hiro had become instantly famous and had enough pocket money to change their lives around; it was no wonder that Hiro had changed so much. In fact, sometimes Tadashi felt as if he was the little brother.
Just the other day, Hiro had announced that he was going to start dating. The whole thing appalled Tadashi; how could Hiro even think about dating when they were still working hard on their thesis? And their research! How could anything be done while Hiro was off canoodling with some other person that Tadashi didn't know?
But of course, he was happy for his little brother. Tadashi had never felt the pull of romance himself; all that mattered to him were his studies, Hiro, and Aunt Cass. He had gotten his fair share of love confessions, but he had never looked at them seriously because he had been so focused on making sure Hiro fit into college. Maybe it was time he also started looking into his own love life?
Either way, there was no way that Hiro was going to date someone that he didn’t approve of. The thought made him feel better about the whole announcement and he resolved himself to finding the best girlfriend for his little brother.
The first girl Hiro introduced to Tadashi was a brunette with large round glasses. She seemed to dress in the current fashion trends and had a friendly smile to boot.
But something about her was all wrong in Tadashi’s eyes. Hiro looked happy when he sat in the chair next to her but that soon changed after Tadashi started interrogating her about her interests and her work ethics.
It soon delved into discussing politics, and after a while, even Hiro noticed something was wrong. The girl excused herself before the main course and was gone ten minutes later.
Tadashi was abashed when Hiro yelled at him later, but refused to give up on his stance. He was not going to let his brother date someone that was so terribly wrong for him and he wasn’t going to feel ashamed for doing so.
Hiro, having known him for all his life, gave up on the matter, simply extracting a promise from Tadashi that he was never going to do that again.
So of course, Tadashi found himself doing it again. And again. In his defense, the second girl didn’t even know a thing about robotics which was weird considering she had gotten into SFIT and the third girl was still in high school. They weren’t strong defenses, but Tadashi had clung onto the hope that he was doing the right thing.
Hiro rounded on him a few days after the third girl had fled. He had cornered Tadashi, who had fallen into the habit of avoiding his little brother because of the shame in his heart, in their shared kitchen, his eyes blazing and his mouth drawn into a stern frown.
“Can you stop scaring my potential girlfriends away?” Hiro asked, exasperatedly.
“I’m not doing it on purpose!” protested Tadashi. “It’s not my fault that they don’t know you as well as I do!”
“We’re in college, Tadashi! We’re not dating to marry!” refuted Hiro, with a scowl on his face.
Hiro’s angry eyes and flushed cheeks struck a chord in Tadashi’s heart, making him pause and wonder just why he was feeling that way. Like Hiro should be dating to marry, but couldn’t because in Tadashi’s eyes, no one would be good enough for his little brother.
And that was the exact moment that Tadashi realized that he was doing it on purpose. Because to him, no one was better for Hiro than he was. The realization had him choking up, and he couldn’t meet Hiro’s eyes because of the shame he felt.
Hiro’s eyes softened, “It’s okay, Tadashi. I know you’re just scared because I’m your little brother and you don’t want me to go out and get my heart broken. But I’m sixteen now, and that means I’m old enough to go out and get my heart broken.”
“But,” he protested weakly, but Hiro simply reached out a hand and placed it on Tadashi’s cheek, understanding shining through his black eyes.
“You’re lucky I love you so much,” said Hiro with an upward tilt to his lips.
“I,’’ Tadashi hesitated, before continuing on with his confession, “love you too, little bro.”
If only you knew how much.
Tadashi wasn’t sure when he became literally the worst big brother in the world. When had his brotherly affection turned to outright love that shouldn’t be allowed? He had never felt the romantic kind of love before; in fact, he had only ever felt intense feelings when they were toward his little brother so it was no wonder he never realized just how deep his feelings for Hiro went.
He wondered if Hiro had ever noticed. That their brotherly hugs lasted a bit too long to pass off as normal or that their nightly cuddles as they watched movies was a little strange. He blushd furiously as he remembered their last session; Hiro with his back pressed up against him and half-asleep as the movie blared on. It had all seemed so innocent before; he wondered how he could ever face Hiro now that he realized the depth of his feelings.
Tadashi dropped his head in his hands in shame. The two of them even still bathed together; that certainly wasn’t normal! It didn’t happen often because the two of them rarely came home at the same time, but when they did, it just made more sense to bathe together. After all, it saved on the water bill.
Tadashi had thought they had been simply more close than normal brothers because of their missing parents, but now he wondered if there wasn’t simply something wrong with him. He had never met anyone who possessed a big of a brother complex as he did.
Somehow, someway, Tadashi had fallen deep into love with his little brother.
It was wrong in every aspect. Hiro was a boy and a minor. When will that ever be okay in any world? A deep, dark corner of his heart whispered that it was better that Hiro wasn’t a girl because wasn’t incest only bad because the offspring had a higher chance of mental illnesses?
But Tadashi knew he couldn’t stop loving his brother. Even if he dated and married someone else, Hiro would always come first. And honestly, Tadashi was okay with that. Hiro deserved a happy life, and he would let go of these feelings in order to ensure that. And that meant he had to stop being so jealous and finally let Hiro go out and find a partner.
He ignored the stab of jealousy at just thinking of Hiro finding someone, let alone being with someone. Would he ever be able to meet Hiro’s future partner without being jealous?
He would have to try, for Hiro’s sake.
Resolved, Tadashi promised himself that he would accept the next girl that Hiro introduced to him.
So of course, the next girl Hiro introduced to him was a complete and utter idiot. And that wasn’t even his jealousy talking! She only wanted to be with Hiro because Hiro was rich, and not because Hiro was everything anyone would ever want in a partner. Tadashi couldn’t help raising hell and forcing her out of their apartment, and to his utter surprise, Hiro didn’t seem too bothered by it.
Hiro had shrugged when Tadashi had apologized profusely, shame creeping up on him when he realized he had done it again. “It’s alright, Tadashi,” Hiro said with a secretive smile on his face as he patted Tadashi’s arm, “I’ll just have to find someone you’ll approve of.”
“I’m sorry,” he apologized again.
Hiro just chuckled, patted him on his head this time, and left the room with a skip in his step.
The fifth girl wasn’t much better. The sixth, horrid. And the seventh? Tadashi swore to never even think about her again. The last few were all a blur; Tadashi didn’t even remember why he didn’t approve of them.
It was with a sigh that he faced the kitchen cabinet, shame creeping up on his heart as he realized he had just thrown out the tenth girl Hiro had introduced him to. He had promised himself that he wouldn’t let these feelings get in the way.
He was still facing the cabinets when Hiro walked in, which was why he didn’t notice Hiro until the boy was right next to him.
Hiro’s smile was predatory as he crowded Tadashi up against the kitchen cabinets. “Don’t you have something to say for yourself, Tadashi?”
Tadashi was flustered, the close proximity to his little brother doing wonders to his head and sending his thoughts into a whirlwind. “I don’t know what you want from me,” he started weakly, not sure where he was going to go with his protest, but Hiro carried on as if Tadashi hadn’t even spoken.
“That was the tenth girl you scared off, Tadashi. Some may even say you have ulterior motives for doing so.”
The accusation cleared the haze in Tadashi’s mind, and his back immediately stiffened and his look became stern. “She didn’t even know your birthday!”
“Mhmm,” said Hiro, looking like the cat who had gotten the cream. “So, if I ever wanted to get your approval, I should probably look elsewhere.”
“Well,” started Tadashi cautiously, still extremely confused at what Hiro was trying to get at. “Maybe the new freshmen of SFIT aren’t the best pool of applicants.”
“Say,” and Hiro’s smile started to become a smug smirk, “somewhere closer to home?”
His friends’ faces flashed in front of his eyes, and he immediately heartened at the idea. Gogo and Hiro did get along rather fabulously and they would make a dashing couple. He felt a stab of pain at his heart at the idea of letting go of Hiro, but ruthlessly crushed it back down. “Gogo would be perfect for you,” he agreed amiably, a smile on his face as his mind continued to explore the possibilities of the two dating. He wouldn’t even make a big fuss if the two started dating.
“Oh, for the love of God,” snapped Hiro furiously. He heaved a loud sigh, closing his eyes as if asking for patience, before training annoyed black eyes onto Tadashi. He stepped forward, crowding even deeper into Tadashi’s personal space, immediately increasing Tadashi’s heart rate. “You lovable, dense idiot, I’m talking about you.”
Tadashi immediately flushed, and immediately reminders of what realization he had come to earlier in the week started to flood in. He was sure that the tips of his ears were red and he strongly wished that he still had his hat on.
When Tadashi didn’t immediately respond, Hiro pressed even closer, causing Tadashi to splutter ineligible things as he realized his brother’s lithe and scrawny form was pressed flush against him. It felt good and damn to all the wrongs that were associated with it. Hiro’s voice was soft, “So I wasn’t wrong then? I wasn’t sure…”
Tadashi realized then that Hiro, although grown up and now way more advanced in matters of love than his older brother, was still as vulnerable and insecure as he used to be. His eyes softened as he realized that Hiro wasn’t all he made himself out to be, and he slowly reached out a hand to ruffle his little brother’s hair like he had always used to.
He knew it was wrong. He knew their relationship was taboo, but he couldn’t stop the want that coursed through him when he thought of a relationship between Hiro and him. To be honest, he would only ever be interested in Hiro and if Hiro felt the same...maybe it wasn’t as wrong as the world made it out to be.
“You weren’t wrong, Hiro,” he said softly, and his heart soared at the hope that was shining in his brother’s eyes. And ignoring all the logic that had been ingrained in him by the world’s values, he leaned downward and pressed his lips against Hiro’s.
The kiss was magical to say the least. They had denied themselves this for so long, it was no wonder that it left them panting and breathless when they drew apart. It felt forbidden, but it also felt right.
And if they couldn’t choose what was right, then what was the point of them having their own minds and values?
Their path forward wasn’t going to be an easy one, but Tadashi was damned if he wasn’t going to give it his all.
“I realized it in the beginning of the year,” confessed Hiro with a rueful smile. “I panicked and tried my best to get over it by finding a number of normal, nice girls to date. Of course it didn’t work. They weren’t you and I had nothing in common with them.”
Tadashi curled his fingers into Hiro’s hair, petting his brother reassuringly. Hiro leaned into his touch with a soft smile before continuing. “And then you had to go and be so territorial and it made me think, what if you felt the same way? So I found a girl that you would definitely have objections about to test my theory.”
“Like a true scientist,” murmured Tadashi.
Hiro chuckled happily, cuddling closer into Tadashi’s embrace. “Yup,” he smiled brilliantly before leaning upward and pressing a kiss onto Tadashi’s lips. “It feels amazing to be able to finally do that.”
Tadashi hoped his answering smile wasn’t as silly as he thought it looked, but at Hiro’s answering one, realized he really didn’t care that he looked silly after all.
He leaned downward to kiss Hiro, and they got lost in each other.
“Weren’t you all gung-ho about finding a relationship a few weeks ago?” asked Fred. “What happened to that?”
“Oh,” said Honey Lemon, her eyes sparkling, “I can still introduce you to some girls! They’re really very nice.”
Hiro, who had been concentrating on quite the complicated robotics project, swiveled in his chair so he can lean backward and look at the crew with a small smile. “Oh, that. It’s alright, guys, I found something better.”
His eyes cut over to where Tadashi was currently lost in his own world, working diligently on some new upgrades on Baymax. His eyes softened at the scene; Tadashi was brilliant and he was so very lucky to have him.
Luckily, his friends were too busy arguing amongst themselves on how could little Hiro had found someone before them to notice his quick glance at Tadashi. Hiro laughed when they all started to interrogate him on whom his new love was and patiently endured their teasing.
It would probably be a long time before the two of them told the others about their relationship, but Hiro found himself not caring. In the beginning of the year, he never would have dreamed that his love could be reciprocated, and now here he was, in a happy, loving relationship with Tadashi.
He cut one last glance at his big brother, who was still tinkering at his desk, lost to the storm that had caught up the others.
Hiro couldn’t help but to chuckle affectionately, a dopey smile on his face as he watched his brother work.
He couldn’t wait to spend the rest of his life with Tadashi.